Fr. Mike's Gospel Reflection for - Sunday, March 8, 2026

“If today you hear His voice, harden not your hearts.”

In the Gospel passage this weekend we hear about a Samaritan woman who went to a well when she thought no one else would be there. She didn’t want to socialize or to get advice. She just wanted to get water and quickly return to the safety of her home. However, she unexpectedly hears God’s voice through a Jewish man who ruins her plan. At first, she is reluctant. She knows He should not be speaking to her. However, as Jesus speaks, she becomes hopeful. Her heart is softened and she is willing to abandon the voice in her head, break all the rules, and listen to the intriguing words of this Jewish stranger.

As His words touch her heart, she stops being uncomfortable. She hears and believes that this is the voice of the “the Messiah!”What she hears turns her hot, dusty, confused world upside down. She is amazed by His words and becomes refreshed with the living water of God’s voice.She is so moved by the encounter that she is able to rise above her status as a social outcast and boldly inspires her townsfolk with words of her own. Because of her, they hear His voice and open their hearts to Him.

In the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius, we learn about “Holy Indifference” which means a total openness to the will of God in one’s life. It requires that we fully surrender our plans, dreams, expectations, and aspirations so that we can gratefully accept in faith and love the future to which God calls us. In my case, I certainly never expected that God would call me here. Indeed, when I first heard His voice, I was reluctant. I guess you could say that I hardened my heart. Yet, He persisted and here I am.

God’s voice is always in our midst. It comes to us from both expected and surprising sources. Sometimes it confirms what we are thinking; sometimes it challenges us to think radically differently. We must listen for it, discern it carefully, be open to it (even if it’s uncomfortable), and then act on it. One thing is certain, whenever we hear God’s voice and from whomever it comes to us, we must not harden our hearts.

Fr. Mike

Fr. Mike's Gospel Reflection for - Sunday, March 1, 2026

The Gospel this weekend is the account of the Transfiguration of our Lord. This is the moment when Jesus took Peter, James and John up the mountain to see him in dazzling white with Moses and Elijah as Jesus as the fulfillment of the law and the prophets.

The apostles hear God’s voice speaking to them. We pray that, as we listen to God’s voice, we may merit to become co-heirs to eternity.We should not be satisfied with merely hearing God. We must do more than that. We seek to be transformed into the likeness of Jesus. God tells the apostles to listen to Jesus. Those words are spoken to the apostles on the mountain and to us here today. Our very existence on this earth is directed toward listening to God and being transformed into the likeness of Christ.

So, what does this mean for us here today? First, we are reminded that our relationship with God is based on two essential points of contact: His Word and The Eucharist. Each mass is an opportunity for us to witness and participate in the glory of our Lord in much the same way as the apostles did on the mountain. We hear the word of God from the Old Testament which forms the basis of his loving relationship with us. We hear the good news of the New Testament which opens our minds and hearts to the promise of eternal life.

At each mass, our first duty is to “listen.” But then, much as Jesus shone in his glory on the mountain, he shines for us here on this very altar as the bread and wine are transformed into his body and blood.This is the first transformation.The second transformation occurs when we receive the Eucharist and we become what we receive. When we take what we receive outside of this church. When we “come down the mountain” and face the harsh reality of the world around us.That’s when the grace that we receive in Holy Communion gives us the courage and energy to speak for what is right and true. Jesus gives us his life, death and resurrection. He feeds us with his body and blood. In return, we need to stay focused, trust Him, obey Him, and, as God commands, “Listen to Him.”

Fr. Mike

Fr. Mike's Gospel Reflection for - Sunday, February 22, 2026

This weekend is the first Sunday of Lent. For the next forty days (not counting Sundays), as we prepare for Easter, we use somber purple vestments which focus us on our sinfulness.

Two scriptural passages establish the importance of the forty-day period of preparation. In Genesis, when the Lord was dissatisfied with the wickedness of human beings, He called to Noah to build an ark and then He sent rain upon the earth for “forty days and forty nights.” In Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus is led into the desert where He fasted for forty days and then faced the Devil who attempted three times to convince Him to sin.Of course, Jesus stood firm and, after the third attempt, He chased the Devil away.

And so, we also prepare for forty days. First, we prepare by recognizing our sinfulness.That’s what God did before the flood.He looked over the earth and saw a lot of sinfulness. If we are honest with ourselves, we would also see a lot of sinfulness. Once we recognize sin in our lives, we must confront our sins and overcome them. That is what Jesus does in the Gospel passage. He went out into the desert to face the Devil. We don’t overcome anything by running away from it. We have to recognize our demons and then face them. Once we face them, like Jesus did in the desert, we can conquer them.

If we are getting married or having a baby, we prepare. If we have a big test or a big game, we prepare. If we have an important meeting or presentation, we prepare. As we approach the holiest and most important day on the Church calendar, we must also prepare. We cannot joyfully share in the great mystery of Christ’s resurrection unless we have properly prepared by recognizing and confronting our demons.

One way to conquer our demons is to introduce good behaviors into our lives. During Lent, we can pray more, we can do more for others, we can encourage our families to join us in our Lenten journey. We can attend the Stations of the Cross each Friday evening to remind ourselves of the pain that Jesus endured to set us free from sin and darkness, as well as reminding us that, despite our sinfulness, Jesus loves us with perfect, eternal love.

Fr. Mike