One of my brother priests, he used to be a chaplain for the Navy Seals, and he’s such a great dude. Let’s just say he is pretty large. He has biceps as big as my face. He was in a war torn country celebrating mass for his Navy Seals. As he’s celebrating mass, an explosion happens outside of the tent. The priest dives for cover. As he looks up, he notices all of the Navy Seals are still kneeling in the dirt praying to the Lord. One of the Navy Seals gently looks at the priest and he says, “Father, keep pressing on.”
Here’s the Gospel today where Jesus says, “Perseverance will secure your lives.” No matter what sufferings, no matter what trauma, no matter what we experience in this life, with Jesus Christ, we can persevere to the end. The Navy Seals of Catholicism are the saints. You look at any of the saints’ lives, they persevered in the midst of sorrow, suffering, trauma, addiction, sins. With Jesus Christ, they persevered, and so can you. Only with Jesus, only with his grace.
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Love Like Jesus
So, our Newman Center just returned from our mission trip to Belize, which was unbelievable. But one of our students, who is just so awesome sauce, experienced something incredible when encountering the poor. She encountered Jesus. Not only did she encounter Jesus, but for the first time in her life, she loved how Jesus loved. In the gospel for this Sunday, we see Jesus’s heart burning on display, that his love is…
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Ascension of the Lord
So, you know that part of the Mass where everyone has received communion, and then the priest sits down. Everyone in the church then follows the priest and sits down, and it’s like this great relief. It’s this great sigh. And what’s so awesome is that we feel this great relief because everything has been accomplished. Everything is finished. We get to be…
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God Is Proud Of You
There’s a powerful moment in Rocky Balboa when a wounded son is healed by the simple words of his father: “I’m proud of you.” Those words change everything. In this Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus does something just as striking. He praises John the Baptist. It’s a quiet but profound reminder that God doesn’t just correct or challenge us. He also delights in us. This Advent, consider a simple but healing question: When was the last time you allowed God to tell you He’s proud of you? As sons and daughters, we’re invited to receive those words and let them restore our hearts.
