Convocating

Year 2 for the “Priest & Deacon Convocation” here at the Edgewater in Alexandria Bay, NY. A “sell-out crowd” according to one of our veteran diocesan priests.
Gathering here with the vast majority of our ordained clergy affirms our shared community. Morning and evening prayers… our daily eucharistc celebrations… in prayer our dedication to Jesus, church–the [...]

In His hands…

What an amazing sight: God the Father holding the crossbar of his son’s crucifix! Here, in the Basillica at Capistrano (New Church of Mission Capistrano), the exquisite, handmade, Italian Retalbo presents an image that is so powerful… today on December 26th, just the day after the Feast of Christ’s birth.
No photos in this [...]

From a deacon’s wife…

Advent has begun.  That wonderful time of waiting and longing for God to enter the world. Just as Mary waited for the birth of her son,  we too wait for the birth of God within us.  Open your heart this season,  let the Holy Spirit come to you and live within you, and a new [...]

From the heart…

When I began preaching over 4 years ago in Diaconate Formation, the challenge of writing and then presenting a sermon (or homily, as we express it in the Catholic Church) was daunting:  synthesizing scriptural texts ranging from the Hebrew prophets, through the Psalms, New Testament Gospels and the inevitable Pauline writings. Whew!  And then to [...]

Hitting the Road!

Another Youth Bike Tour is just around the corner…  As I have been working on the “Reflection Newsletters”, our daily, themed sheets for spending 20 minutes off our bikes in the morning and considering all of God’s gifts to us, I’ve been moved by the working of the Holy Spirit in my life.
This Day 2 [...]

Any sound tree bears good fruit…

Hypermiling: it’s not about the mileage… or saving money at the gas pump either. I think it points to something much, much deeper. A co-worker and I were recently talking about how irritable everyone at school is. Sure, it’s the end of the school year and teachers are a bit frazzled as [...]

Celebrating community…

“Tim, the reason we begin the diaconate formation with a new group of men every two years is simple: whenever a new group of men is brought together in formation, the group must be large enough to build community among them. Without community,” Fr. Lou Aiello continued, “these men would not have the support [...]

Beyond the Pulpit & the Pews: Evangelism in a Digital Age

“There are precious few resources on the web for men who are discerning the call to this particular vocation. Which is a minor scandal. This ministry is growing by leaps and bounds — the Permanent Diaconate is, arguably, one of the few vocational success stories to bear fruit after Vatican II — and it is [...]

“They presented these men to the apostles …”

“They presented these men to the apostles who prayed and laid hands on them.” Acts 6:6
This was the second time during the ordination liturgy that I approached the bishop, Most Reverend Thomas J. Costello. The first time had been 10 minutes earlier, when each of us knelt before him, hands together as in prayer, making [...]

“Give me again the joy of your help;”

As I prayed Psalm 51 in this morning’s Psalter, I was moved by the urgency in the psalmist’s voice, exhorting God to be with him:
Give me the joy of your help;
with a spirit of fervor sustain me,
that I may teach transgressors your ways
and sinners may return to you.
This was my plea as well! After [...]