No one can confidently say that he will still be living tomorrow.

"...if you believe that you must die, that there is an eternity, that you can die only once, and that if you then err your error will be forever, irreparable, why do you not resolve to begin at this moment, to do all in your power to secure a good death?..." - St. Alphonsus di Liguori: (1696 – 1787: Was an Italian Catholic bishop, spiritual writer, composer, scholastic philosopher, and theologian.)

Scripture Text: (Wis 2:23–3:9)

God formed man to be imperishable;
the image of his own nature he made them.
But by the envy of the Devil, death entered the world,
and they who are in his possession experience it.

But the souls of the just are in the hand of God,
and no torment shall touch them.
They seemed, in the view of the foolish, to be dead;
and their passing away was thought an affliction
and their going forth from us, utter destruction.
But they are in peace.
For if before men, indeed, they be punished,
yet is their hope full of immortality;
Chastised a little, they shall be greatly blessed,
because God tried them
and found them worthy of himself.
As gold in the furnace, he proved them,
and as sacrificial offerings he took them to himself.
In the time of their visitation they shall shine,
and shall dart about as sparks through stubble;
They shall judge nations and rule over peoples,
and the Lord shall be their King forever.
Those who trust in him shall understand truth,
and the faithful shall abide with him in love:
Because grace and mercy are with his holy ones,
and his care is with his elect.

The reading from the Book of Wisdom today reminds us that heaven is our true home. St. Francis of Assisi proclaimed this as he praised God for “Sister Bodily Death,” saying, “Happy are those she finds doing your most holy will. The second death can do no harm to them.”

If you have lost a loved one recently, let today’s reading bring you comfort. As you go through the process of grieving, know that the pain won’t last forever. Stay close to Jesus, and know that a life lived for him in this world is not all that far from the heavenly life he has in store for you. Interestingly, the more you can do that, the more “imperishable” you become. You build a legacy of love and care that is more meaningful than any physical monument, accolade, or award, and people will remember you long after you are gone. And if we can all build that kind of legacy, who knows what might happen?

I suspect we may bring about the kingdom of God on this earth.

Give other Catholics permission to be different from you. You're not the only Christ-follower in the world.

“The Church is the Body of Christ, and as such it is both heavenly and earthly. The Church is the communion of saints, and it includes as members both angels and shepherds - cherubim and seraphim, and you, and me.” – Dr. Scott Hahn: (Born October 28, 1957: is a Catholic theologian and professor at Franciscan University of Steubenville)

Scripture Text: (1 Cor 3:9c-11, 16-17)

Brothers and sisters:
You are God’s building.
According to the grace of God given to me,
like a wise master builder I laid a foundation,
and another is building upon it.
But each one must be careful how he builds upon it,
for no one can lay a foundation other than the one that is there,
namely, Jesus Christ.

Do you not know that you are the temple of God,
and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?
If anyone destroys God’s temple,
God will destroy that person;
for the temple of God, which you are, is holy.

People are looking for signs today. Some are lost and searching for God, and some are questioning or perhaps even hostile to faith. The only real sign we can give them is Jesus—just as Jesus himself did back then. And this is something we all can do. Remember: you are a temple of the Lord; he is alive in you through the power of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 3:16). So you just might be the very sign that someone is looking for!

Don’t underestimate how much God can use you to bring people to him. If you are trying your best to stay close to the Lord every day, people are going to notice it—even more than the cross around your neck or the Bible on your desk. They will notice that you’re peaceful when you should be stressed, collected in the midst of chaos, and forgiving when you have every right to be angry. They’ll notice that there is not just something different about you, but someone.

So be at peace; Jesus is at work in you.

“It is mercy, not justice or courage or even heroism that alone can defeat evil.”

“I am sure of God's hand and guidance... You must never doubt that I am thankful and glad to go the way which I am being led. My past life is abundantly full of God's mercy and, above all sin, stands the forgiving love of the Crucified.” ― Dietrich Bonhoeffer: (1906 – 1945: German Lutheran pastor, theologian, anti-Nazi dissident, and martyr)

Gospel Text: (Lk 16:1-8)

Jesus said to his disciples, “A rich man had a steward
who was reported to him for squandering his property.
He summoned him and said,
‘What is this I hear about you?
Prepare a full account of your stewardship,
because you can no longer be my steward.’
The steward said to himself, ‘What shall I do,
now that my master is taking the position of steward away from me?
I am not strong enough to dig and I am ashamed to beg.
I know what I shall do so that,
when I am removed from the stewardship,
they may welcome me into their homes.’
He called in his master’s debtors one by one.
To the first he said, ‘How much do you owe my master?’
He replied, ‘One hundred measures of olive oil.’
He said to him, ‘Here is your promissory note.
Sit down and quickly write one for fifty.’
Then to another he said, ‘And you, how much do you owe?’
He replied, ‘One hundred measures of wheat.’
He said to him, ‘Here is your promissory note;
write one for eighty.’
And the master commended that dishonest steward for acting prudently.
For the children of this world
are more prudent in dealing with their own generation
than the children of light.”

I have read this gospel over time and again and it just doesn’t seem to fit into the scheme of how the kingdom of God should be.  Remember, this is a story Jesus tells. We may even ask, “Why is it that someone who cheats others gets rewarded by the master”?  We would never hold this up as an ideal for our children, which may be why this is one of those frequently overlooked gospels.

Jesus’ point is that this dishonest steward is capable of extending mercy to others simply because he understands the concept of extending mercy.  He understands the concept so well, that he can extend mercy which doesn’t belong to him.  He can extend his master’s mercy.  Subsequently, if this dishonest steward can understand the extension of mercy to others, then why is it we have such a difficult time extending mercy?  Do we believe the mercy we extend has to be in our own personal spiritual bank accounts?  Could we extend to others our master’s mercy? 

Concepts such as extending mercy, reciprocity, generativity, and even compassion don’t make much sense in an economy of greed and personal gain.    But if this is the kingdom of God, then our concepts must rise to new levels.

“In reality, before the Lord we are all sinners and all in need of forgiveness. - All of us!

“If we—all of us—accept the grace of Jesus Christ, he changes our heart and from sinners makes us saints. To become holy we do not need to turn our eyes away and look somewhere else, or have as it were the face on a holy card! No, no, that is not necessary. To become saints only one thing is necessary: to accept the grace that the Father gives us in Jesus Christ. There, this grace changes our heart. We continue to be sinners for we are weak, but with this grace which makes us feel that the Lord is good, that the Lord is merciful, that the Lord waits for us, that the Lord pardons us—this immense grace that changes our heart.” ― Pope Francis, The Church of Mercy

Gospel Text: (Lk 15:1-10)

The tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus,
but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying,
“This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
So Jesus addressed this parable to them.
“What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them
would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert
and go after the lost one until he finds it?
And when he does find it,
he sets it on his shoulders with great joy
and, upon his arrival home,
he calls together his friends and neighbors and says to them,
‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’
I tell you, in just the same way
there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents
than over ninety-nine righteous people
who have no need of repentance.

“Or what woman having ten coins and losing one
would not light a lamp and sweep the house,
searching carefully until she finds it?
And when she does find it,
she calls together her friends and neighbors
and says to them,
‘Rejoice with me because I have found the coin that I lost.’
In just the same way, I tell you,
there will be rejoicing among the angels of God
over one sinner who repents.”

Jesus today tells us the parable of the lost sheep and lost coin. These parables convey a God of insane and irrational love. A simple risk analysis would tell anyone that if you lose one sheep, you should just cut your losses and move on. If you leave the ninety-nine sheep to look for one lost sheep, then you risk losing more sheep to theft or wolves. The rational decision is to forget that one sheep. But Jesus’ parable suggests that God’s love for us is not rational. God rejoices in finding the one lost sheep.  

And a simple cost-benefit analysis would tell anyone that the effort in finding one coin is not worth the cost of lighting an expensive candle to look for it and then throwing a mini-celebration with friends and neighbors after finding the coin. No rational person would throw a party for finding one lost coin. The party would cost more than the coin! But God’s love is not rational and goes beyond our human calculus of love. And as Christians we are called to love as irrationally and foolishly as God.

If we are leading authentic Christian lives, then our lives will not be our own. Instead, we will live and die for the Lord. We will lead lives of irrational and insane love for one another.

Disciple means “follower”. To follow the steps of the Master, to be like Him, to think like Him, to live like Him...

Jesus tapped me on the shoulder and said, Bob, why are you resisting me? I said, I'm not resisting you! He said, You gonna follow me? I said, I've never thought about that before! He said, When you're not following me, you're resisting me. --Bob Dylan: (American singer, songwriter, artist and writer)

Gospel Text: (Lk 14:25-33)

Great crowds were traveling with Jesus,
and he turned and addressed them,
“If anyone comes to me without hating his father and mother,
wife and children, brothers and sisters,
and even his own life,
he cannot be my disciple.
Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me
cannot be my disciple.
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,
‘This 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.”

Today, the Lord speaks to us in clear-cut terms. Our Lord Jesus Christ must be loved by the true disciple with all his heart, well over all kind of ties, even the closest ones: «If you come to me, without being ready to give up your love for your father and mother, your spouse and children, your brothers and sisters, and indeed yourself, you cannot be my disciple» (Lk 14:26-27). In the follower's life, He is always the first one. St. Augustine says: «Let us reply to our father and to our mother: ‘I love you in Christ, not instead of Christ’». In following Jesus even our love for life must rank as a second priority. To follow Jesus, after all, entails to embrace the Cross.

Without the Cross there is no disciple.

The evangelic call exhorts to prudence, that is, the virtue dictating our adequate behavior. Who wants to build a house must first find out whether he can face the expense. The king, who must fight, after figuring out his own forces, decides whether going to war or negotiating peace. He who wants to be a disciple of the Lord must first take up his cross at the cost of his own self. His own denial will be his best bet!

Cowards are cruel, but the brave Love mercy, and delight to save

God's mercy can make even the driest land become a garden; can restore life to dry bones (cf. Ez 37:1-14). ... Let us be renewed by God's mercy, let us be loved by Jesus, let us enable the power of his love to transform our lives too; and let us become agents of this mercy, channels through which God can water the earth, protect all creation and make justice and peace flourish.  – Pope Francis: (Easter Urbi et Orbi message on March 31, 2013)

Gospel Text: (Lk 14:15-24)                            

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 orders have been carried out
and still there is room.’
The master then ordered the servant,
‘Go out to the highways and hedgerows
and make people come in that my home may be filled.
For, I tell you, none of those men who were invited will taste my dinner.'"

Today’s Gospel gives us moving insight into the mercy that God has for his people. When he is spurned by unbelief, he doesn’t fight back with vengeance, but with love. He rolls up his sleeves and casts his nets deeper and wider to find people who will recognize his generosity for what it is and receive it with eager grateful hearts.

It’s hard to keep resisting God’s mercy! Especially when we least deserve it, it flows all the more intensely. So why resist? God wants to forgive you for all your sins, the big ones just as much as the small ones. He is always reaching out, always offering his mercy. So answer his invitation. That’s exactly what the Sacrament of Reconciliation is for!

“If There Was No Purgatory, We'd Have to Invent It”

"Temporal punishments are suffered by some in this life only, by some after death, by some both here and hereafter, but all of them before that last and strictest judgment. But not all who suffer temporal punishments after death will come to eternal punishments, which are to follow after that judgment.”  - St. Augustine of Hippo, Father and Doctor of the Church

Scripture Text: (Wis 3:1-9)

The souls of the just are in the hand of God,
and no torment shall touch them.
They seemed, in the view of the foolish, to be dead;
and their passing away was thought an affliction
and their going forth from us, utter destruction.
But they are in peace.
For if before men, indeed, they be punished,
yet is their hope full of immortality;
chastised a little, they shall be greatly blessed,
because God tried them
and found them worthy of himself.
As gold in the furnace, he proved them,
and as sacrificial offerings he took them to himself.
In the time of their visitation they shall shine,
and shall dart about as sparks through stubble;
they shall judge nations and rule over peoples,
and the LORD shall be their King forever.
Those who trust in him shall understand truth,
and the faithful shall abide with him in love:
because grace and mercy are with his holy ones,
and his care is with his elect.

What do the suggested readings for today’s Mass tell us about our passage through death into eternal life? How should we remember the dead in a way that pays them tribute and respect?

But they are in peace. (WIS 3:3)

What would we give to have real peace in our lives and in our world? If peace were only the absence of conflict, how much we would gain by seeking it. But even though we could work our way through the conflicts of the present political, cultural, religious and personal universes that we inhabit, would we have peace? Something else must be added for absence of conflict to bring about real peace. It is the assurance that we don’t have to fall back into conflict at the next stage of life, the next political era, or the next cultural phenomenon that drapes our generations in misunderstandings and exaggerated economic competitiveness.