COVID-19 Vaccines & Catholic Morality

11/21/21 - Solemnity of Christ the King - Cycle B

Dear Families,

The Feast of Christ the King ends the Church year. The Church celebrates this feast to hold up Jesus as the kind of king and leader the world needs.

This Sunday’s Gospel when Pilate asks Jesus if he is a king, he answers that his kingdom does not belong to this world. He has no army. Jesus is not a king of power and force. He reins his kingdom by being a Servant King. He serves people with God’s truth, love and peace. Jesus has authority over everything, but he humbles himself to serve us and even to die for us.

On this feast of Christ the King, let us remember to allow Christ to rein in our minds, will, hearts, and bodies. Let us be followers of the Servant King.

As a family watch video in its entirety and then ask each other this question.
How is God’s kingdom different from a kingdom on earth?

Family Prayer: Jesus, you are a good and loving king. Help us to follow your will and trust that it is always for our good. Amen.

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(La versión en español sigue al inglés)

3/13/22 - Peter, James, and John See a Vision of Jesus - Cycle C

Dear Families,

In this Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus takes Peter, John, and James to the mountain to pray. While Jesus was praying, they fell asleep. They woke up and saw Jesus’ appearance change, his clothes were dazzling white and he was speaking with Moses and Elijah. While Peter was speaking to Jesus about making three tents, the disciples became frightened when a cloud came and cast a shadow over them. They heard a voice from the cloud that said to them “This is my chosen Son; listen to him.”

If the disciples had stayed asleep, they would have missed this amazing event. They would not have seen Jesus in glory. They would not have heard the voice from heaven. During Lent let’s stay awake to see Jesus’ presence in our lives and listen to Jesus.

As a family watch video in its entirety and then ask each other these questions.
How can you listen to Jesus? What might he say to you?

Family Prayer: Jesus, open our ears and hearts to better hear you. Amen

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(La versión en español sigue al inglés)

2/20/22 - Jesus Says Love Your Enemies - Cycle C

Dear Families,

In this Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus reminds us to be kind even to those who are not kind to us. This is very difficult, but if we want to be like Jesus, we need to love our enemies, and those who would hurt us. Jesus is teaching us about mercy. Mercy is treating others, not as they deserve, but as God wishes them to be treated. God’s love is given to both the saint and sinner. Jesus loved everyone, even those who crucified him. We should try our best to be like him. Next time someone is mean to you ask Jesus to help you forgive that person. Jesus calls us to treat others in the way we want to be treated.

As a family, watch video in its entirety and then ask each other these questions.
Do you need to ask forgiveness from God or another person? What is holding you back from doing so?

Family Prayer: Lord, we find it hard to be kind when someone is not kind to us. Help us to see others as you do, so that we will not be tempted to judge them or be unkind.

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(La versión en español sigue al inglés)

1/23/22 - The Word of God - Cycle C

Dear Families,

In this Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus was in his hometown Nazareth where he grew up. Being a faithful Jew He was attending the synagogue on the Sabbath. He was called to read the Scripture and make a comment. Jesus reads aloud from the scroll of the prophet Isaiah and announces that this Scripture is now fulfilled. He will bring Good News to the poor, sight to the blind, and freedom to captives. Jesus is proclaiming himself as the anointed one when he said, “Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.”

Jesus tells the people about his mission, the work that he will do to bring forth God’s Kingdom. Every kind thing we do is a way to serve God’s Kingdom. When we read the Word of God and reach out to people in need, we follow Jesus and continue his work showing people God’s love.

As a family watch video in its entirety and then ask each other this question.
How do we bring people Good News the way Jesus does?

Family Prayer: Jesus, thank you for showing us how to love others. With the help of the Holy Spirit, we will continue your mission. Amen

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(La versión en español sigue al inglés)

1/30/22 - People Reject Jesus - Cycle C

Dear Families,

This Sunday’s Gospel is a continuation of last week’s Gospel. Jesus fulfills the words of the prophet Isaiah as he announced in last week’s Gospel. In this Sunday’s Gospel, people begin to recall that he is the son of Joseph the carpenter. Jesus confronts them about what they are thinking. He said they wouldn’t appreciate a prophet from their own town. They get angry when Jesus reminds them that sometimes people of other countries believed more in Israel’s prophets than their own people. He gives them the examples of Elijah and the widow of Sidon and Elisha and General Naaman who were not Israelites but believed in the prophets. The crowd did not want to hear the truth, they became so angry that they rejected him and forced him to leave town.

Jesus words were challenging to the people of his hometown Nazareth. He wanted them to respond to him differently from the way others had responded to the prophets. But they wouldn’t let his words change them or see a different perspective. At times we can be like the people of Nazareth, we don’t trust Jesus’ message because we find his words to us challenging. We need to trust his words to us and rely on his guidance in our lives.

As a family watch video in its entirety and then ask each other these questions.
What is love? How difficult is it to listen to those who love you, especially if they are trying to inform or correct you?

Family Prayer: Jesus, help us to be humble enough to listen when we are corrected by people who care about us. Help us to remember that they are looking out for our good. Amen