Priestly Ponderings

Father’s Day, that we celebrate today is an annual Sunday holiday that occurs each year on the third Sunday in June. It was created to celebrate the men who lead our families and Father’s Day reflects how we honor our heavenly Father by honoring our earthly fathers. The fifth commandment tells us to honor our father and mother (Exodus 20:12); therefore, it is right and fitting to honor our earthly fathers as commanded by our Father in heaven. Even though fathers don’t tradit

Today’s readings speak about God’s love. They began with the Book of Exodus and God reminding Moses that He had chosen the Hebrew people as His people. They did not deserve this choice. He chose them out of love. He saw Abraham’s faith and responded with his love for Abraham and his progeny. The people witnessed this love when they were delivered from slavery and led through the desert to the Promised Land. God only asked them to remain faithful to Him, a response to his

On Saturday, June 13 is celebrated as the Memorial of St. Anthony of Padua. On this day there is a distribution of St. Anthony’s Bread which is a Catholic devotion and charitable act honoring St. Anthony of Padua, rooted in a 13th‑century miracle and later popularized in the 19th century. It combines prayer, thanksgiving, and almsgiving to help the poor. The tradition dates back to 1263, when a child drowned near the Basilica of St. Anthony in Padua. The child’s mother praye

THE SOLEMNITY OF THE MOST HOLY BODY AND BLOOD OF CHRIST that we celebrate today, also known as Corpus Christi. This Solemnity celebrates the real presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist. The feast of Corpus Christi honors the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, affirming that Jesus is truly present—body, blood, soul, and divinity—under the forms of bread and wine during Mass. It emphasizes that in every Mass, Christ’s one sacrifice on Calvary

THE U.S. CONFERENCE OF CATHOLIC BISHOPS (USCCB) approved the consecration of the nation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus in 2026 to accompany the country’s 250th anniversary. At the USCCB Fall Plenary Assembly in Baltimore, bishops voted “to entrust our nation to the love and care of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.” Devoting the nation is an opportunity “to remind everyone of our task to serve our nation by perfecting the temporal order with the spirit of the Gospel as taught by the

THE SOLEMNITY OF THE MOST HOLY TRINITY That we celebrate Today, is the central Christian mystery of one God in three distinct persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The Trinity is one God in three persons, each fully divine yet distinct in relation: the Father generates, the Son is begotten, and the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son (Lateran Council IV, 1215). This doctrine emphasizes that God is relational, eternal, and pe

Catholic Memorial Day is a time to honor the deceased, especially those who sacrificed their lives in service, through prayer, Mass, and reflection on spiritual freedom. Spiritual Significance As we celebrate Memorial Day as Catholics it should be more than a national holiday; it is a sacred opportunity to unite patriotism with prayer and remembrance. The day honors men and women of the Armed Forces who gave their lives, reflecting Christ’s teaching: “Greater love has no one

THE SOLEMNITY OF PENTECOST The Solemnity of Pentecost is one of the great solemnities of the liturgical year and marks the close of the Easter season. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops lists Pentecost Sunday among the principal celebrations of the 2026 liturgical year, following Easter Sunday on April 5 and the Ascension of the Lord in this past Sunday. But Pentecost is not simply the end of Easter. It is the day the Church celebrates

THE SOLEMNITY OF THE ASCENSION OF THE LORD The Solemnity of the Ascension of Jesus, celebrated forty days after Easter, commemorates the moment when the risen Christ, in the sight of his apostles, ascended bodily into heaven (Acts 1:9-11). It marks the completion of his earthly mission and the beginning of his exaltation at the right hand of the Father, where he intercedes for us as our eternal High Priest. The Ascension is a remind

On Wednesday, the Church celebrates the Memorial of Our Lady of Fatima, this memorial is more than secrets and public consecrations of the Pope and the bishops of the world. It is a continual message of seeking Mary’s intercession is a world that continues to be at war. A public dispute has unfolded after Pope Leo XIV’s repeated public appeals for peace in the Iran war prompted sharp criticism from President Donald Trump; both figures have stood by their statements, and the

Each spring, as blossoms return and creation awakens, the Catholic Church turns with love and reverence to the Blessed Virgin Mary—our Mother and Queen. Among the most cherished devotions of this season is the May Crowning, a time-honored tradition that lifts our hearts toward heaven through Mary, who always leads us to her Son. To crown Mary is to acknowledge what the Church has always believed: that she who said yes to God deserves our highest honor — not as an equal to Go

FOURTH SUNDAY OF EASTER- ‘Preach the truth as if you had a million voices. It is silence that kills the world.’- St. Catherine of Siena, Virgin and Doctor of the Church This Wednesday, April 29, the Church remembers St. Catherine of Siena. Throughout St. Catherine of Siena’s life, the actions and lifestyles of many in the Church did not match up with the Church’s faith. Stagnation reigned over religious praxis in Europe. Ecclesial ministe

THIRD SUNDAY OF EASTER- FIRST COMMUNION SUNDAY Today is a very special day for many children, in our parishes at Holy Childhood of Jesus and St. Liborious, as well as many other numerous Catholic children throughout the world as they celebrate their First Holy Communion. This time is also an excellent time for all of us to reflect on that moment in which we all received our First Eucharist. First Communion is one of the most significant and memorable

SECOND SUNDAY OF EASTER- SUNDAY OF DIVINE MERCY WHAT IS DIVINE MERCY SUNDAY? In a series of revelations to St. Maria Faustina Kowalska in the 1930s, our Lord called for a special feast day to be celebrated on the Sunday after Easter. Today, we know that feast as Divine Mercy Sunday, named by Pope St. John Paul II at the canonization of St. Faustina on April 30, 2000. St. Maria Faustina Kowalska is the Polish religious sister whom our Lord chose to be his apos

From Fr. Mark Lent is a 40-day season of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving that begins on Ash Wednesday and ends at sundown on Holy Thursday. It's a period of preparation to celebrate the Lord's Resurrection at Easter. Just a few short weeks ago, we celebrated his birth, and now the Church begins our preparation to join him on his journey to Calvary. The church scene becomes somber, more intense, and such terms as contrition, conversion, penance, almsgiving, fasting and absti

From Fr. Mark Lent is a 40-day season of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving that begins on Ash Wednesday and ends at sundown on Holy Thursday. It's a period of preparation to celebrate the Lord's Resurrection at Easter. Just a few short weeks ago, we celebrated his birth, and now the Church begins our preparation to join him on his journey to Calvary. The church scene becomes somber, more intense, and such terms as contrition, conversion, penance, almsgiving, fasting and absti

From Fr. Mark Lent is a 40-day season of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving that begins on Ash Wednesday and ends at sundown on Holy Thursday. It's a period of preparation to celebrate the Lord's Resurrection at Easter. During Lent, we seek the Lord in prayer by reading Sacred Scripture; we serve by giving alms; and we practice self-control through fasting. We are called not only to abstain from luxuries during Lent, but to a true inner conversion of heart as we seek to follow

From Fr. Mark I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to all of you, the parishioners of Holy Childhood and St. Liborious, for all your prayers and support during my recent hospitalization. After enduring health challenges for some time, I had reached a point where medical attention was necessary, leading to an ER visit and hospital stay. As I return, I must follow my doctors' advice, to make important lifestyle changes to ensure that I can continue my dedicated servi

From Fr. Mark Lent is a 40 day season of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving that begins on Ash Wednesday and ends at sundown on Holy Thursday. It's a period of preparation to celebrate the Lord's Resurrection at Easter. During Lent, we seek the Lord in prayer by reading Sacred Scripture; we serve by giving alms; and we practice self-control through fasting. We are called not only to abstain from luxuries during Lent, but to a true inner conversion of heart as we seek to follo

From Fr. Mark The month of February has traditionally been a time of devotion to the Holy Family. What Does the Holy Family Teach Us? The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York houses a beautiful triptych of the Holy Family called the “Mérode Altarpiece,” painted by Robert Campin. The left of the three-paneled piece of art captures an open door of two bystanders peering into the main panel of the Annunciation, while the far-right panel depicts St. Joseph in his c