When I was a young boy I had a friend who was ambidextrous. When writing, he could take the pen and begin a sentence with one hand and finish the sentence with his other hand without telling the difference in his handwriting. I wanted to do the same so I started to write with my…
I am currently finishing a book called “Living in the Flow” by Sky Nelson-Isaacs. It is a book about the intersection of quantum mechanics and faith. One of the questions it attempts to answer: Is the Universe friendly? In a faith community, we would ask it differently: Why do bad things happen to good people?…
Today as you read this email, we will be in the middle of the graduation Mass for Saint Simon Parish School. It is always a special occasion to graduate a class from elementary school but this year even more so because these young men and women have endured over two years of covid restrictions that…
This week has been another shock to our system as we heard the horrifying news of the massacre of 21 innocent children and teachers in Robb Elementary School, Uvalde, Texas. It is devastating to watch the damage done to that whole community. Our hearts and prayers go out to the families of those who were…
Over the last few days, the Mental Health Ministry team called Hope & Wellness Ministry and Michelle Nealon, Joan Mibach, and I attended the first National Catholic Mental Health Conference at the Jesuit Retreat House, Los Altos. It was an excellent conference, and I am sure that I will be preaching and teaching more about…
Last week all the priests of the Diocese of San Jose gathered in San Juan Bautista for our Annual Clergy Study Week. It is always good for us to take time away and engage in some formation as priests. It is the only time every year that we get to spend time together in fellowship.…
Celebrating Mother’s Day is always a wonderful opportunity to express our affection for our mothers and demonstrate our love for them if they are still alive. But it can also be a difficult day if we have a broken relationship with our mother as it seems everyone else is celebrating a harmonious relationship. It can…
I am currently reading a book by the great Irish poet and theologian, John O’Donohue called “Beauty” and it speaks of how we can discover divine beauty in all things. At this time of year when spring is unfolding its grandeur, there is so much beauty to be seen that it is not hard to…
After a week of incarceration and isolation in my room, I finally tested negative for Covid-19 and I am on the mend. While my energy is not 100% yet, I am feeling much better and I am back to quasi-normal. Thank you for your prayers. I will continue to take it easy for a few…
For the last several weeks I have given the retreat, From Here to Eternity: How to Live and Die Well. Through those sessions I explored in detail what our faith tells us about what happens when we die and indeed what happens in the dying process. I outlined the needs of the dying and how…