Seventeenth Sunday after Trinity, October 12th, 2025

 

Seventeenth Sunday after Trinity, October 12th, 2025

Do you have a job or do you have a vocation?    So many of us go to work Monday through Friday working Eight to Five.  We do what is required of us while we are there.  We do what our boss expects us to do and then we go home. And then we wait around for payday.  We do what we are told Monday through Friday, eight to five, but then when we get home that is MY time.   That would describe a "job."  But St. Paul writes:  "I THEREFORE, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called" (Ephesians 4:1)   If we look up the definition for the word "vocation" you might find the following definition for the word:  "a particular occupation, business, or profession; calling."  That definition would seem to mean something more than simply a "job."  And if you look at the same definition it goes on to say:  "a divine call to God's service or to the Christian life" and then "a function or station in life to which one is called by God. the religious vocation; the vocation of marriage."   (Dictonary.com definition of "Vocation") Given this further definition of a vocation I once again ask the question do you have a job or do you have a vocation when it comes to God?  St. Paul wants us to realize that we are called by God.  It seems though that most folks consider this nothing more than a "job."  When Sunday rolls around we get dressed, go to church, listen to the Word, and then we go home and do what we want to do.  The rest of the week is my time.  That seems more to describe having a job not having a vocation.  St. Paul is reminding us that every single one of us is called by God.  God calls us to live a life dedicated to Him. So much of the world dedicates their life to themselves.  But again St. Paul reminds us that we should "walk worthy of the vocation" by which each one of us is called.  As Christians, we should always remember that we do not simply have a job . . . . we have a vocation.  We have a calling.  A divine calling.  Our calling is a way of life.  A way of life centered around God.  We should always be mindful that we are called and that we have a vocation to serve the Almighty.  

Join us at 10:30 AM on Sundays at St. Margaret church.  We worship at the beautiful chapel at Marquette Manor, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.

Sixteenth Sunday after Trinity, October 5th, 2025

 

Sixteenth Sunday after Trinity, October 5th, 2025

In the Seventh Chapter of St. Luke's Gospel, St. Luke paints a fascinating picture for us.  He describes Our Blessed Lord entering the city of Nain along with His disciples.  As we read this passage, we discover that Our Lord encountered a funeral procession and the grieving mother.  As we read this passage, we can begin to see in our mind's eye the drama unfolding before us.  And as Our Lord saw what was happening, He looked upon the grieving mother who had lost her only son, we are told that Our Lord had compassion on her.  "And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her . . ." (St. Luke 7:13)  Let us reflect on this fact.  First, Our Lord took the time to notice what was taking place.  Do we take the time to notice what is happening to people around us?  Do we take the time to notice what is going on in the lives of others?  Or are we so preoccupied with our own lives that we do not notice what is going on around us?  Next, Our Lord had compassion on her?  Our Lord saw what was going on.  He saw the agony and pain in this grieving mother's eyes, and He had compassion on her.  Do we show compassion on those around us?  "Be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another" (I St. Peter 3:8)   We are called to follow Our Lord in how we lead our lives.  We will never be perfect, and we will fall short very often.  But the point remains that we are called to be His representatives here in the world.  We are called to carry on His mission in the world.  And we should show mercy and compassion to those around us.

Join us at 10:30 AM on Sundays at St. Margaret church.  We worship at the beautiful chapel at Marquette Manor, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis. 

Fifteenth Sunday after Trinity, September 28th, 2025

 

Fifteenth Sunday after Trinity, September 28th, 2025

"Be not anxious for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than the food, and the body than the raiment? "  (St. Matthew 6:25)

As human beings we need to be fed and we also have to be clothed.  But as Christians, we also have to be spiritually fed on a daily basis.    People are hungry for the Word of God.  They want to hear what God is saying to them. They are searching for God and may not even know it.  As St. Augustine pointed out:   "You have made us for Yourself and our hearts are restless until they rest in You."  St. Augustine knew full well the desires of the human heart.  He was restless himself as a young man but he tried to "calm" this restlessness by focusing on fulfilling many desires of the heart and mind.  St. Augustine sought to fulfill his hunger with sex.  He sought to fulfill his hunger with wine.  He even sought to satisfy this restlessness with learning and education.  In essence, St. Augustine found that he went down many avenues to satisfy his restlessness and search for happiness.  And he found that each and every time he was indeed "satisfied" for a brief time but then his heart became "restless" again.  And St. Augustine discovered a pattern each of these points in his life:  he was satisfied for a time, yes, but then he wanted something else.  It was not until St. Augustine gave his heart to God that he discovered his heart was "restless" no longer.    Our human hearts are indeed restless.  Our human minds are restless.  We human beings are constantly searching for things that make us happy, for things that satisfy us.  And again we find inspiration from St. Augustine when he gives us the answer to satisfying our true hunger as human beings:  "So I set about to find God and found that I could not find Him until I embraced the mediator between God and man, Christ Jesus, Who is over all these things, Who was calling me and saying:  'I am the Way, the Truth and the Life . . . ."  

As St. Augustine discovered in his own life, the human heart desires many things to be "satisfied."  But above all these "desires" is the desire to be with God and this can only be satisfied by a relationship with Our Blessed Saviour.  "Therefore take no thought, saying What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?   . . . . for your Heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.  But seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you."  (St. Matthew 6:31-33)  As human beings we will desire many things in life but we need to first seek and desire God.  Until we discover that purpose, we will forever be restless and unsatisfied in life.

Join us at 10:30 AM on Sundays at St. Margaret church.  We worship at the beautiful chapel at Marquette Manor, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis. 

St Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist, September 21st, 2025

 

Saint Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist, September 21st, 2025

In the Ninth Chapter of St. Matthew's Gospel the Pharisees ask the disciples why Our Lord takes the opportunity to eat with tax collectors and sinners.  Our Lord heard this comment being made and He responded:  "They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick.  . . . . for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance" (vv 12-13)  On this Feast of Saint Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist, it is good to recall that Our Lord calls all to serve Him, especially sinners.  Remember that St. Matthew was a tax collector.  And to put things into perspective, remember that tax collectors were hated.  They were hated because they took the people's money.  Tax collectors were known to cheat the people in order to line their own pockets.  And they were also hated because they took the money and gave it to the Romans, an occupying force.  But nonetheless Our Lord called St. Matthew to follow Him.  Our Lord does not discriminate.  Our Lord calls all who are willing to follow Him.  Very often we fool ourselves into thinking that we are "not worthy" to serve God.  We convince ourselves that we are "too sinful to do God's work."  The bottom line is that all of us are sinners in need of God's mercy.  God calls each and every one of us to repentance.  God calls each and every one of us to serve Him.  God calls each and every one of us to give our hearts to Him.  St. Matthew represented the most hated man because he was a tax collector.  Yet Our Lord did not hesitate in calling St. Matthew.  And to St. Matthew's credit, he accepted the called and followed Our Lord.  St. Matthew did not hesitate to accept Our Lord's invitation.   Neither should we hesitate to accept Our Lord's invitation.

Join us at 10:30 AM on Sundays at St. Margaret church.  We worship at the beautiful chapel at Marquette Manor, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.

Thirteenth Sunday after Trinity, September 14th, 2025

 

Thirteenth Sunday after Trinity, September 14th, 2025

In the Tenth Chapter of St. Luke's Gospel, we hear Our Lord tell His disciples the following:  "BLESSED are the eyes which see the things that ye see: for I tell you, that many prophets and kings have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them." (vv 23-24)   Boy, if there was ever an "understatement" in the Bible this was definitely it.  The disciples heard and saw things on a regular basis that that prophets and kings and regular folks like you and me would have longed to hear.  The disciples were in the presence of Our Lord on a daily basis.  Think about all the wonderful things they heard.  Think about all the miracles they witnessed during that time.  But even with all that they had seen and all that they had heard, they still took things for granted, didn't they?  Look at the example of St. Thomas, who has gone down in history known more famously by another name:  "Doubting Thomas."  This is because despite the fact that he saw so many miracles with his own eyes.  Despite the fact that he heard so many wonderful things and truths which Our Lord spoke.  Despite all of this St. Thomas still "doubted" and questioned whether it truly was the Lord Who was raised from the dead.  But are we really so different from St. Thomas?  Has God done wonderful things for us in our life?  Has He blessed us throughout our lifetime?  Has God been with us when we needed Him most?  Has He walked alongside us when no-one else would?  God has spoken to us as well.  God has blessed us during our lifetime.  We have seen the miracles which God has done for us.  Or maybe not.  Maybe we didn't hear God speaking to us.  Why?  Because we were too busy listening to what the world was saying to us.  Perhaps we never noticed the blessings which the Good Lord provided for us because we were too occupied chasing after what the world has to offer.  God speaks to us.  Take time to pay attention.  God provides for us.  Take the opportunity to thank Him.  God teaches us.  Make sure that you learn what He is teaching. 

 Join us at 10:30 AM on Sundays at St. Margaret church.  We worship at the beautiful chapel at Marquette Manor, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis. 

Twelfth Sunday after Trinity, September 7th, 2025

 

Twelfth Sunday after Trinity, September 7th, 2025

The older I get I am amazed how many incredible things are introduced and invented.  I see all the things available today that I never knew when I was a child.  For instance, when I was a child we did not have cable TV.  Therefore we didn't have 400 channels to choose from.  We had five channels to watch.  Speaking of televisions, we had no VCR's or DVD's back then so if you wanted to watch something on TV you better make sure you saw it when the show aired or you were out of luck.  There were no personal computers back then.  Certainly, no internet to browse and surf.  I could go on and on but you get the idea.  Things are certainly a lot different now than they were when I was a child.  It only causes me to think how different things will be fifty years from now, one hundred years from now.  Think about how things were one hundred years ago.  How different will life be One Hundred years from now?  The point that I'm making is that human beings are amazing when they want to be.  But St. Paul has a different spin on this point.

In the Second Epistle to the Corinthians, we hear:  ". . . . not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God;" (II Corinthians 3:5)  God is the one who makes all things possible.  God is the one who gives us the tools we need to create, develop and produce the amazing things we enjoy in life.  He provides man with the talent and the ability to create amazing things.  We do our part by using the skills and talents we have been blessed with but God makes all things possible.  St. Paul recognized this fact.  "But by the grace of God I am what I am: and His grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain . . . " (I Corinthians 15:10)   As faithful, devout Christians we are called to use the skills and talents each one of us possess.  For some, they are good with their hands.  These people can fix things and build things.  While someone else may have the gift of teaching and making things understandable.  Others are gifted with the talent to make beautiful works of art enjoyed by others.  All of us have gifts and talents that only we possess.  We are all called to use the talents that the Good Lord has bestowed upon each one of us.  But first, we need to acknowledge the gift that God has given to us in these varied gifts and talents.  Like St. Paul, we should always remember that our talent, our skill, our ability .. . .  none of these would exist without God.  We depend totally upon God for the blessings we enjoy. 

Join us at 10:30 AM on Sundays at St. Margaret church.  We worship at the beautiful chapel at Marquette Manor, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.

Eleventh Sunday after Trinity, August 31st, 2025

 

Eleventh Sunday after Trinity, August 31st, 2025

In the Eighteenth Chapter of his Gospel, St. Luke writes of the time Our Blessed Lord told the parable of the two men who went into the temple to pray.  In telling this parable, Our Blessed Lord portrays the first man, a Pharisee, as being very self-righteous.  Our Lord describes the way this man prays:  "I thank Thee that I am not as other men . . . ."  "I fast twice in the week."  "I give tithes."  And then Our Lord describes the prayer of the other man:  "God be merciful to me a sinner."  The point which Our Lord was trying to make in telling this parable was to be humble because He explains:  "I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted." (St. Luke 18:14)  How often do we depend on ourselves and ultimately end up failing miserably?  How often do we depend on others and end up being disappointed?  How often do we put our trust in worldly possessions which end up coming short?  In the Fifteenth Chapter of his First Epistle to the Corinthians, St. Paul counts himself as one of the Apostles because the Lord appeared to him and chose him.  And he then goes on to briefly describe all the labors he performed as working for the Lord.  But ultimately, St. Paul acknowledges that everything he did  . . . . all the good works he was able to achieve . . . none of it would be possible without God's graces.  " . . .  yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me." (I Corinthians 15:10)   The Good Lord has given each one of us strengths, abilities and skills which we possess.  Each of us have something that we are very good at.   But that being said, we should always be like St. Paul.   We should acknowledge where these abilities come from.  We should acknowledge that all that we have, all that we are, all that we possess is only made possible through the good graces of Our Heavenly Father.  In the parable which Our Blessed Saviour spoke, the problem with the Pharisee was that he emphasized himself when he prayed:  "I .  . .  I  . . . . I . . ."  We need to be more like the second man and place the emphasis on God.  We need to always humble ourselves and acknowledge where are gifts come from.

Join us at 10:30 AM on Sundays at St. Margaret church.  We worship at the beautiful chapel at Marquette Manor, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.