The King's Corner

From today’s reading from Romans: “But how can they call on him in whom they have not believed?  And how can they believe in him of whom they have not heard?  And how can they hear without someone to preach?  And how can people preach unless they are sent?  As it is written, How beautiful are the feet of those who bring the good news!...” Let’s look at our feet.  Are they beautiful?  Pedicures or not, they better be; otherwise, we are not bringing the good news.  When we walk or run to those who need us – our love, forgiveness, or charity – we bring good news; we have been sent. Deacon David Pierce

We all appreciate that life doesn't unfold for us as we hope without effort on our part.  That is, accomplishments occur with work - often difficult work with obstacles to overcome.  Try hard, and success is likely.   Take the easy road, and achievements are few. Still, like Snoopy, we'd like a little margin for error.  Every day cannot be our best.  On some days we'd appreciate a little margin for error.  Lord, hear our prayer. Deacon David Pierce

At the end of our days, most of us share the fear of the unknown.  But to be trapped in a car, waiting for the flames to engulf you, and perhaps, your loved ones – it is too much to consider.  Yet and still, we go there because when the smoke clears, we recognize that we’re all one under the sun.  We suffer when other suffer; we grieve when others grieve.  We are all from the earth, ashes to ashes, dusts to dust.   May the dead rest in peace – and the living be ever mindful that whatever divides us, it, too, shall pass.” These were the words written by columnist Kathleen Parker in Friday’s Cape Cod Times.  She wrote about the “Camp Fire” in northern California and the “Woolsey Fire” in Malibu. We are near the end of our liturgical year, so we face the end times, so to speak.  It’s a good time to reflect and remember that we are all one under the sun.  We do grieve for other people, including those we don’t know, especially when television brings their suffering to our attention i

While some people were speaking about how the temple was adorned with costly stones and votive offerings, Jesus said, "All that you see here– the days will come when there will not be left a stone upon another stone that will not be thrown down." Then they asked him, "Teacher, when will this happen? And what sign will there be when all these things are about to happen?"  He answered, "See that you not be deceived, for many will come in my name, saying, 'I am he,' and 'The time has come.'  Do not follow them!  When you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified; for such things must happen first, but it will not immediately be the end."  Then he said to them, "Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.  There will be powerful earthquakes, famines, and plagues from place to place; and awesome sights and mighty signs will come from the sky." Jesus is said in Revelations to have given this warning.   

November 25, 2018 The Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe Readings for today's Homily To watch Mass in its entirety click The Mass

When Jesus looked up he saw some wealthy people putting their offerings into the treasury and he noticed a poor widow putting in two small coins. He said, "I tell you truly, this poor widow put in more than all the rest; for those others have all made offerings from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has offered her whole livelihoo d." What more can be said?   To give from one’s poverty, suggests a deep and abiding faith contrasted with giving that provides no real sacrifice.   Nevertheless, those giving from their surplus must be thanked for their generosity that can help many in need and can serve many good causes.  The rare birds that give from their poverty truly are special. Similarly those who give their lives for their country give from their poverty, that is, all they have – their very being, their whole livelihood.  They put in more than all the rest.  Deacon David Pierce   

“I, John, heard a voice from heaven speak to me: Here are my two witnesses:  These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. If anyone wants to harm them, fire comes out of their mouths and devours their enemies. In this way, anyone wanting to harm them is sure to be slain. They have the power to close up the sky so that no rain can fall during the time of their prophesying. They also have power to turn water into blood and to afflict the earth with any plague as often as they wish.  When they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up from the abyss will wage war against them and conquer them and kill them. Their corpses will lie in the main street of the great city, which has the symbolic names “Sodom” and “Egypt,” where indeed their Lord was crucified…” Our first reading is from Revelations, again.   Bizarre reading.   I always refer to Elaine Pagels book, “Revelations: Visions, Prophecy, and Politics in the Book of Rev

I, John, heard a voice from heaven speak to me.  Then the voice spoke to me and said:  "Go, take the scroll that lies open in the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land." So I went up to the angel and told him to give me the small scroll.  He said to me, "Take and swallow it.  It will turn your stomach sour, but in your mouth it will taste as sweet as honey."  I took the small scroll from the angel's hand and swallowed it.  In my mouth it was like sweet honey, but when I had eaten it, my stomach turned sour.  Then someone said to me, "You must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, tongues, and kings." We didn’t eat scrolls for Thanksgiving.   But we certainly put a lot in our mouths that was sweet as honey and tasty as turkey with stuffing.   Perhaps many us suffered with too much intake and then sour stomachs.   Rolaids and Tums for most I suspect.

Today's first reading:  And now, bless the God of all, who has done wondrous things on earth; Who fosters people's growth from their mother's womb, and fashions them according to his will! May he grant you joy of heart and may peace abide among you; May his goodness toward us endure in Israel [and on Cape Cod] to deliver us in our days.   Sir 50:22-24 Happy Thanksgiving! Deacon David Pierce & Diane

I, John, had a vision of an open door to heaven, and I heard the trumpetlike voice that had spoken to me before, saying, "Come up here and I will show you what must happen afterwards." At once I was caught up in spirit.  A throne was there in heaven, and on the throne sat one whose appearance sparkled like jasper and carnelian. Around the throne was a halo as brilliant as an emerald.  Surrounding the throne I saw twenty-four other thrones on which twenty-four elders sat, dressed in white garments and with gold crowns on their heads.  From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings, and peals of thunder.  Seven flaming torches burned in front of the throne, which are the seven spirits of God.  In front of the throne was something that resembled a sea of glass like crystal. In the center and around the throne, there were four living creatures covered with eyes in front and in back.  The first creature resembled a lion, the second was like a calf, the third had a face l

For many of us life is like climbing a mountain.   We seek fame and fortune not realizing that when we reach the peak, when we achieve that success, there can be an empty feeling and a sense of great loss.  The great truth, the one answer, is achievements and success don't offer what love provides.    Love equates to real and authentic happiness.   It's never downhill for us when love raises us up. Deacon David Pierce    

I heard the Lord saying to me: "To the angel of the Church in Ephesus, write this: "'The one who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks in the midst of the seven gold lampstands says this: "I know your works, your labor, and your endurance, and that you cannot tolerate the wicked; you have tested those who call themselves Apostles but are not, and discovered that they are impostors.  Moreover, you have endurance and have suffered for my name, and you have not grown weary.  Yet I hold this against you: you have lost the love you had at first. Realize how far you have fallen. Repent, and do the works you did at first. Otherwise, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent."'" The number seven has special significance for the writer of Revelations.  According to Jonathan Kirsch in his book “A History of the End of the World: How the most controversial book in the Bible changed the course of Western Civili

We are fast approaching the end of the liturgical year.  We don’t like talking about endings unless of course it’s the end of suffering or the end of the baseball season with the Red Sox being World Series champions – the Patriots as Super Bowl Champions, we’ll see.  The end of the trail; the end of the line; the end of relationships, perhaps marriages; the end of our lives. Not good. Most of us want beginnings, not ends. Perhaps that’s one reason why Advent is so attractive.  The Advent season is about a fresh start. It’s like rebooting a computer, and we start over again to do better the next time around with Jesus Christ as our companion. Today’s first reading from Daniel is about an ending – and it’s pretty startling at least for those whose names are not written in the book – some sort of journal where judgment is handed down.  According to the prophet Daniel those on the wrong side of the ledger end up with “everlasting horror and disgrace.”

Drop the Tablets Moses, and let's start again!   She does make a very good point. That which is written in stone is long-lasting, so let's add another.   Ladies, get your chisels and find another stone.  Gentlemen, lend a hand.   Be kind. Deacon David Pierce

[Chosen Lady:] I rejoiced greatly to find some of your children walking in the truth just as we were commanded by the Father.  But now, Lady, I ask you, not as though I were writing a new commandment but the one we have had from the beginning: let us love one another.  For this is love, that we walk according to his commandments; this is the commandment, as you heard from the beginning, in which you should walk. This passage from 2 John makes it clear we must walk – walk in the truth and walk according to the commandments.  When we do so, we love as commanded by the Father. If we cannot love one another – a tall order for someone we might have just met – we can at least show them respect and speak the truth, not lies.   Lies prevent respect, let alone love.  Lies have us walk in the dark and certainly not according to the commandments.   Lies blacken us and have us crawl rather than walk in the light.

Asked by the Pharisees when the Kingdom of God would come, Jesus said in reply, "The coming of the Kingdom of God cannot be observed, and no one will announce, 'Look, here it is,' or, 'There it is.' For behold, the Kingdom of God is among you." This passage is key to our understanding the Kingdom of God.  It’s not when we die and “go to heaven.”  Where is heaven?  Why do we wait for our entrance to that domain, assuming it is even a place.  We suspect not.   It’s otherworldly and indescribable.   We can only use metaphors. With a universe having billions of galaxies each having billions of stars with unfathomable distances between them all, God’s dwelling place can only be a mystery or properly considered as everywhere and at every time.  We can only imagine.

Beloved: Remind them to be under the control of magistrates and authorities, to be obedient, to be open to every good enterprise. They are to slander no one, to be peaceable, considerate, exercising all graciousness toward everyone.  For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, deluded, slaves to various desires and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful ourselves and hating one another. But when the kindness and generous love of God our savior appeared, not because of any righteous deeds we had done but because of his mercy, he saved us through the bath of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he richly poured out on us through Jesus Christ our savior, so that we might be justified by his grace and become heirs in hope of eternal life. We now have a House that is controlled by the Democrats and a Senate that retains its Republican control.  If only Congress can be peaceable and considerate of differences.  If only there can be no slander and graciousness toward

Beloved: You must say what is consistent with sound doctrine, namely, that older men should be temperate, dignified, self-controlled, sound in faith, love, and endurance… For the grace of God has appeared, saving all and training us to reject godless ways and worldly desires and to live temperately, justly, and devoutly in this age, as we await the blessed hope, the appearance of the glory of the great God and of our savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to deliver us from all lawlessness and to cleanse for himself a people as his own, eager to do what is good. We older men should abide by this “sound doctrine.”  Unfortunately, many of us do not such as President Trump, as well as his aggressive and hostile critics who denounce and mock him in the strongest terms. We’re witnessing the worst of America’s politics and leaders – Democrats as well as Republicans – who need to be cleansed and obliged to do what is good.   Where is our temperance and our dignity?   I’d say tempo

Jesus said to his disciples, "Things that cause sin will inevitably occur, but woe to the one through whom they occur.  It would be better for him if a millstone were put around his neck and he be thrown into the sea than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin.  Be on your guard!  If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him.  And if he wrongs you seven times in one day and returns to you seven times saying, 'I am sorry,'  you should forgive him." This reading is about sin.   Today is Veteran’s Day, and we should ask all men and women in our Armed Forces (past and present) to forgive us our sins – the sins of sending them into unjust wars and impossible-to-resolve conflicts around the world.   We seek their forgiveness for taking them for granted and sending them into combat with unclear objectives and no definition of success.   Too many men and women have returned with the wounds of war and unending conflict – physical and psycholog

Catholic Women's Club Veteran's Day Luncheon honoring all veterans and especially those dearest to us. Click for photo's from the luncheon.

November 11, 2018 Thirty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time Readings for today's Homily  To watch Mass in its entirety click The Mass

Jesus said to his disciples: "I tell you, make friends for yourselves with dishonest wealth, so that when it fails, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.  The person who is trustworthy in very small matters is also trustworthy in great ones; and the person who is dishonest in very small matters is also dishonest in great ones.  If, therefore, you are not trustworthy with dishonest wealth, who will trust you with true wealth? If you are not trustworthy with what belongs to another, who will give you what is yours?  No servant can serve two masters.  He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon." “Liar, liar, pants catch on fire.”  It’s a commonly used expression nowadays especially when referencing the promises of politicians – many of our “leaders” whose noses grow after every broken promise. The thirst for money prompts many elected officials – especially those seeking or wanting to retai

Since the Passover of the Jews was near, Jesus went up to Jerusalem.  He found in the temple area those who sold oxen, sheep, and doves, as well as the money-changers seated there.  He made a whip out of cords and drove them all out of the temple area, with the sheep and oxen, and spilled the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables, and to those who sold doves he said, "Take these out of here, and stop making my Father's house a marketplace." How we would love to drive out with a whip of cords those making the Capital a marketplace with votes to buy – not doves.   The only way to drive them out is through votes with the hope that new congressmen and women can overturn and turn the tables on those seeking power to serve their self-interests. We know the money exchangers have been in Congress perhaps since its establishment – exchange of money for votes.  Men and women of integrity who refuse to compromise that integrity sometimes seem few and far betw

Jesus gave us commandments.    So did God to Moses on Mt. Sinai.    Here's a relevant cartoon.  Like God, we all need to focus - on the commandments as well as on our neighbors' needs. Deacon David Pierce

Which of you wishing to construct a tower does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if there is enough for its completion?  Otherwise, after laying the foundation and finding himself unable to finish the work the onlookers should laugh at him and say, one began to build but did not have the resources to finish.'  Or what king marching into battle would not first sit down and decide whether with ten thousand troops he can successfully oppose another king advancing upon him with twenty thousand troops?  But if not, while he is still far away, he will send a delegation to ask for peace terms.  In the same way, everyone of you who does not renounce all his possessions cannot be my disciple." Are we prepared to do what is necessary to properly and truthfully follow Christ?  What exactly does it mean to follow Christ?  It means to give up all our possessions, according to this reading from Luke. 

One of those at table with Jesus said to him, "Blessed is the one who will dine in the Kingdom of God." He replied to him, "A man gave a great dinner to which he invited many.  When the time for the dinner came, he dispatched his servant to say to those invited 'Come, everything is now ready.'  But one by one, they all began to excuse themselves.  The first said to him, 'I have purchased a field and must go to examine it; I ask you, consider me excused.' And another said, 'I have purchased five yoke of oxen and am on my way to evaluate them; I ask you, consider me excused.'  And another said, 'I have just married a woman, and therefore I cannot come.'  The servant went and reported this to his master.  Then the master of the house in a rage commanded his servant, 'Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in here the poor and the crippled, the blind and the lame.'  The servant reported, 'Sir, your ord

On a sabbath Jesus went to dine at the home of one of the leading Pharisees. He said to the host who invited him, "When you hold a lunch or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or sisters or your relatives or your wealthy neighbors, in case they may invite you back and you have repayment. Rather, when you hold a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind; blessed indeed will you be because of their inability to repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous." It is better to give than receive. Jesus’ words to his host reflect this popular saying many of us would reject, or at least ignore.  But we all know there is great pleasure in making other people happy or simply easing the pain of their loss and heart ache. We are to invite others into our hearts through our compassion and charity.    Our friends, brothers, sisters and relatives are already there.  We just need to make room for others to dine.   Repayment i

November 4, 2018 Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time Readings for today's Homily  To watch Mass in its entirety click The Mass

One of the scribes came to Jesus and asked him, "Which is the first of all the commandments?"  Jesus replied, "The first is this: Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is Lord alone! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these."   The scribe said to him, "Well said, teacher. You are right in saying, 'He is One and there is no other than he.' And 'to love him with all your heart, with all your understanding, with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself' is worth more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices." And when Jesus saw that he answered with understanding, he said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God."  And no one dared to ask him any more questions. “The Lord our God is Lord alone!”   How many of us have othe

He told a parable to those who had been invited, noticing how they were choosing the places of honor at the table. "When you are invited by someone to a wedding banquet, do not recline at table in the place of honor. A more distinguished guest than you may have been invited by him,  and the host who invited both of you may approach you and say, 'Give your place to this man,' and then you would proceed with embarrassment to take the lowest place.  Rather, when you are invited, go and take the lowest place so that when the host comes to you he may say, 'My friend, move up to a higher position.' Then you will enjoy the esteem of your companions at the table. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted." No one likes to be last and certainly not the Boston Red Sox or New England Patriots fans (or Celtics and Bruins fans).  As a matter of fact, being first and winning it all is the goal for most of us fan

A psalm of David (#23) The LORD is my shepherd; there is nothing I lack. In green pastures he makes me lie down; to still waters he leads me; he restores my soul. He guides me along right paths for the sake of his name. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff comfort me. You set a table before me in front of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Indeed, goodness and mercy will pursue me all the days of my life; I will dwell in the house of the LORD for endless days. Today’s psalm is a song of trust in God.  We all walk through the valley of the shadow of death.   Life on this earth is not everlasting, but at least we know that goodness and mercy pursues us all the days of our lives.   That’s God who invites us into God’ house, not heaven but the house we call the Earth with unparalleled beauty and diversity of plants, animals, and people. A shadow can only be cas

Today is the Solemnity of All Saints.   Our Gospel reading from Revelations begins:  I, John, saw another angel come up from the East, holding the seal of the living God.  He cried out in a loud voice to the four angels who were given power to damage the land and the sea, "Do not damage the land or the sea or the trees until we put the seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God."  I heard the number of those who had been marked with the seal, one hundred and forty-four thousand marked from every tribe of the children of Israel. This reading can be disturbing if misinterpreted.  After we have the seal of the living God on our foreheads the land, sea and trees will be “damaged” by five angels.    This doesn’t seem very angelic or saintly.  Then again, this is Revelations in which all sorts of spooky things are said to have occurred.   Perhaps post-Halloween this reading fits.  We are all given the power to damage the land, sea, or trees.  This we do this through our