Blog - January 2020 RSS Feed

In today’s Scripture reading, we find King David in humble prayer before God. We can’t do anything to win God’s favor, He loves us already. We can live with gratitude for all the gifts God has given us.

On this week’s Conversation with Cardinal Dolan , Father Dave and I talked about last weekend’s March For Life. We also had Attorney General William Barr with us to discuss expressing our religious faith in the public square.

Today we celebrate the Feast of Saint Thomas Aquinas. His philosophy can be summed up with the line, an egg is an egg. It’s a realism. There is a definitive identity and order in creation. A baby in a womb or an immigrant at a border – these are people.

In yesterday’s Gospel, Jesus called His first followers. We usually think of a call, or vocation, from Jesus as one to the sacrament of Holy Orders or consecrated religious life​, but Jesus calls each one of us to lead the kind of life that will lead us back to Him.

On this day in 1973, abortion on demand was legalized in the US. In today’s reading we hear about David and Goliath’s battle. Those fighting to protect the baby in the womb are up against mighty, Goliath-sized opposition, but, as David said, we have the Lord on our side.

On Conversations with Cardinal Dolan today, Father Dave and I discussed how recent attacks on houses of worship are attacks on places that bring light and love into the world, not darkness and division.

In today’s first reading, God chooses David, the least of his brothers, to be King of Israel. Sometimes God chooses what appears to be the least likely of His people, so we know that good things are done only through Him

Last Wednesday I wrote with reverence and gratitude about Cardinal John O’Connor, our prophetic and heroic archbishop from 1984 – 2000, on the 100 th anniversary of his birth. Today, as our nation marks his birthday, allow me to reflect on another towering pastor, prophet, hero, and martyr, The Reverend Martin Luther King.

Happy 100 th birthday, John Joseph O’Connor! We were blessed to have you as our shepherd from 1984-2000. Never can we forget you! While there are so many gifts you gave that prompt our gratitude to this day, we especially prize your prophetic fortitude in defending the sanctity of human life – from the baby in the womb to the fragile ill and elderly – and the dignity of the human person – especially the worker, minorities, immigrants, the poor, AIDS patients, and special needs kids.

This week on Conversation with Cardinal Dolan , we catch up after the holidays and talk about the rhythm of the Christmas season, New Year’s resolutions, and the naming of parishes.