Our Lady of Hope Blog

My Dear Friends,

As you know by now, we have a pope. Cardinal Robert Prevost has been elected and has taken the name of Pope Leo XIV. He will need the courage that comes from the lion in order to carry the burden of the papacy on his shoulders.

My Dear Friends,

Since I submit my bulletin letters on Tuesdays, there is a good chance as you are reading this that we have a new pope. There will be a lot of commentary about who this man is, what name he has chosen, and where he is on the spectrum of the Catholic Church, i.e. progressive, traditional or centrist.

My Dear Friends,

When I was assigned as a priest in Boston at Our Lady of Victories Church (2008-2011), I had a radio program every Sunday. Most of my shows were with my friend Paula from Brunswick, Maine. We would have a discussion about a certain topic concerning the Catholic Church or cultural issues coming from a Catholic foundation. When Paula could not do my show with me anymore, I would do a show by myself on the Sunday readings. Some topics of my shows with Paula included how to receive Holy Communion, Divine Mercy, the Eucharist, marriage, confession, celibate priesthood, holy friendships, etc.

My Dear Friends,

Today we remember Pope Francis, who died on Easter Monday, April 21st. He is among one of the oldest popes in history, and he reigned as pope for 13 years.

When I was born in 1969, Pope St. Paul VI was the current pope of the Catholic Church. When he died in 1978, it did not occur to me that it was a big deal (being that I was only 9 years old). Blessed Pope John Paul I was elected, but he lived only thirty days as pope before he died.

My Dear Friends,

The Lord is Risen! Alleluia! Today we commemorate the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ from the dead and His final defeat of Satan. Sacrificing Himself as the Paschal Lamb as He celebrated Passover with His Apostles, preparing Himself for the act of sacrifice on Good Friday on Calvary, Jesus offered Himself as both priest and victim. And because the Old Testament sacrifices were not complete until the act of eating the flesh of the sacrificed animal, Jesus’ sacrifice is also completed when we come to feast on the Body and Blood of the Paschal Lamb.

My Dear Friends,

Today begins Holy Week. It begins with Palm Sunday and the reading of the Lord’s Passion, this year from the Gospel of Luke. In the traditional Mass, Palm Sunday and Passion Sunday are two different days, but since the reform we have combined Passion and Palm Sunday to the same day. After Palm Sunday the next big celebration is the Chrism Mass, which we celebrate on Tuesday at the cathedral.

My Dear Friends,

Last week there was a disturbing video in front of the Kansas Statehouse. There was an attempt to desecrate our Blessed Sacrament by a group of Satanists. Their attempt to celebrate a “Black Mass” turned violent as Catholics were present to pray and stop the desecration from happening. Black Masses make a mockery of our Lord’s sacrifice and open a doorway to evil in our midst.