Videos

As the world was falling apart around him, the prophet Baruch challenged the people not to lament, but to repent from the ways they were helping to cause the breakdown. We are each to repent of how we are contributing to the breakdown of society around us.

In the first reading for today, Paul tells us that good bishop is someone who manages his family life well. Do we have good life within our own home?

In the Gospel today, a Roman Centurion receives a miracle cure for his servant because he believes that Jesus can heal him. Do we believe that Jesus has already ransomed us from sin, or do we still believe that we are powerless against it?

Br. Joe Trout, OP breaks open the readings for the Twenty Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time with a new take on forgiveness and why we need to do it seventy times seventy times (always).

Jesus called the scribes and Pharisees "whitewashed sepulchers" because they appeared to be holy, but were the opposite. Where might God make the same accusation about us?

On this feast of the beheading of John the Baptist, we remember that Herod was "interested" in John, but not enough to keep from beheading him to save face. Are we just "interested" in the things of God, or are we willing to change the way we are in the world to help bring them about?

Br. Joe Trout, OP breaks open the readings for the Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time, in which Jesus tells us he is only here for the Children of Israel and Paul tells us he is here for the Gentiles. WHo are we here to serve?

God gave the Israelites a land to inherit as their own. Let us acknowledge that we receive a rich inheritance from God and from our ancestors, and that this is a good thing.

Jesus tells us to pick up our cross and deny ourself. To do that, we need to own our self and have a dynamic sense of our self as capable of making choices and following Christ.

Br. Joe Trout, OP speaks to us of God's surprising generosity, going beyond anything we expect or deserve, and he asks us to ponder the ways that God has been good to us in our own loves.

On the Solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul, Br. Joe Trout, OP notes that these great apostles were not perfect people, yet in leading the Church they brought us closer to God. In the same way, we should not demand perfection from our current leaders, but should expect them to lead us all towards God.

Br. Joe Trout, OP breaks open the readings for the Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time with a surprising insight into prayer—that God ultimately hears our prayers and vindicates us, but often not right away,. Thus, serving God can be painful and entail suffering, but it is still the path to eternal life and joy, so brace yourself for it if you want to walk this path.