Fr. Mike's Gospel Reflection for Pentecost - Sunday, June 15, 2025

Feast of Holy Trinity/Father’s Day

Happy Father’s Day! It’s pretty easy for those of us who have fathers to take them for granted. At 93 years old, my dad is still present in my life. My dad was a NYC firefighter for over 30 years. He was also a house painter, worked at a fish market, helped a house builder. He taught me the value of hard work and being happy in each moment. My dad’s father died when my dad was only four years old. So, my dad had to figure out how to be a father even though he didn’t have a father in his life. He did a heck of a job. I’m blessed that he inspired me to be a better father to my son.

It is fitting that we celebrate Father’s Day on the feast of the Holy Trinity when the Church celebrates one God who exists as three Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Jesus refers to God as “Father” over 165 times in the Bible. Just in John’s Gospel, Jesus uses the phrase “My Father” 34 times. The Trinity reflects the perfect love of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Last week we celebrated the presence the Holy Spirit in our lives to inspire and to motivate us to perform “great deeds.” Jesus emphasizes God as both his Father and our Father. Fathers are often driven by love to perform great deeds for their families. We tend to throw around the word “love” rather casually these days. We “love” pizza or we “love” the Dodgers or the Angels. More than pizza or sports teams, we love our Lord, our spouse, our children, our parents, and our dear friends. Unfortunately, we use the same word “love” for those relationships as we do for teams and snacks.

Yet, even the best of our human love a small and imperfect representation of the infinite and perfect love that God our Father feels for each of us. There is no comparison between our human ability to love and the love that God feels for us. No matter what we say or do, God can never stop loving us and He invites us to experience His love through the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. May we always feel that love!

Fr. Mike

Fr. Mike's Gospel Reflection for Pentecost - Sunday, June 8, 2025

For fifty days we have been celebrating the incomparable joy of the Resurrection. Today, Pentecost Sunday, we close the Easter Season by gratefully acknowledging the magnificent and mysterious work of the Holy Spirit. On this day, the Holy Spirit transformed very ordinary men (who ran away when Jesus was arrested and hid in a locked room because they were afraid) and inspired them to begin the challenging process of founding the Church.

Three years earlier, these apostles had dropped everything and followed Jesus. They truly had no idea what to expect. They put their own hopes and dreams on hold, they left their jobs, and they left their families. They put their egos aside, swallowed their pride and humbled themselves before Jesus. They spent three years with Jesus – listening, watching, and following. From Easter until Pentecost the apostles were still trying to figure things out. Like many of us, they were unsure about how to do the important job that Jesus had given them without Him at their side each day.

Jesus knew that, on their own, these men were not capable of starting the Church. So, Jesus caused the Holy Spirit to enter them, fill them with courage, and transform them into men who could inspire people to listen to the Good News of Jesus Christ. With the help of the Holy Spirit, they were on fire for the Lord!

In the Creed we call the Holy Spirit, “the Lord and giver of life” because the Holy Spirit gives us “new” life to fuel our relationship with God so that God can work in us and through us. In the Eucharist, the Holy Spirit is present in two ways: He transforms bread and wine into the Body and Blood of our Lord. Then, after we receive the Eucharist, the Holy Spirit transforms us so that we can become what we receive.

The Holy Spirit set the disciples on fire so that they could carry out the mission of starting and growing the Church. The Holy Spirit sets us on fire with the real presence of Jesus within us – HERE AND NOW – so that we can continue that mission.

Heavenly Father, help us to recognize and accept the Holy Spirit acting in our lives, setting our hearts on fire, and moving us to act in the lives of others.

Fr. Mike

Fr. Mike's Gospel Reflection for Sunday, June 1, 2025

I respect people who are “down to earth” and “keep their heads in the game.” I assume that those people “know how to get things done.” I’m decidedly less patient with those who have their “heads in the clouds.” In my opinion, they may dream big, but can rarely execute on their dreams.

This week, we celebrate the Ascension of our Lord. Of course, His Ascension into heaven is only possible because he first descended to be with us in this world to proclaim the Good News of His Father’s love for us. He not only came down to earth, He was “down to earth.” The Gospels tell us that He was “a regular guy,” who laughed and cried, was hungry and thirsty, was loving and compassionate. When people met Him, they likely said, “He was so relatable. It was like I had known Him my whole life.” Yet, He never forgot His heavenly home.

When Jesus was taken up to heaven, two angels asked the apostles, “Why are you standing there looking at the sky?” In other words, get your heads out of the clouds and start focusing on the work that needs to be done here on earth.

Someone recently criticized me for being too concerned about our buildings and campus.

In this person’s opinion, I was a little too “down to earth.” That may be true. I tend to focus on tasks which lead to tangible results. Sometimes, when I pray, I feel like I have my head in the clouds, and I’m never sure if it’s making any real difference. I like the fact that both Pope Francis (who got his shoes dirty) and Pope Leo (who ate hotdogs at baseball games) seem to be “down to earth, regular guys,” who value hard work and a practical approach. They do not seem to have their heads “in the clouds.” Yet, we also know that no man becomes Pope without spending much time in prayer, perhaps the Catholic version of having their heads “in the clouds.” And so, as with so many things in our faith tradition, the answer is to balance both aspects of our relationship with Jesus. We have to speak with Him often in prayer and worship, but we also have to do the many “earthly” things that He asks us to do.

Fr. Mike