BIG C CATHOLICS

Msgr. Bernard Bourgeois Micah 5:1-4a or Romans 8:28-30; Matthew 1:1-16, 18-23 Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a Son, and they shall name him Emmanuel, which means “God is with us.” (Mt 1:23) Recently I had occasion to speak to someone who has been away from the Catholic Church for several years. For a variety of reasons, not the least of which is the fact that her children are in Catholic schools, she and her family have decided to return to the sacraments. In the course of our discussion, she mentioned that for a time she had worshipped with a local fundamentalist group who took every possible opportunity to bash the Catholic Church. This group was particularly concerned with the alleged Catholic worship of Mary. With the celebration of Mary’s birth falling on September 8, I decided to use this space to set the record straight on these matters. Mary holds a high place in the Christian world. She is the Immaculate Conception. She was chosen from all

Fr. Charles Irvin Senior Priest Diocese of Lansing ( Click here for today’s readings ) There are times when we tell ourselves that nothing’s new, that human nature doesn’t change, and that history simply repeats itself. The Old Testament Book of Ecclesiastes tells us: What has been, that will be; what has been done, that will be done. Nothing is new under the sun . [Ecclesiastes 1:9] Yet we also find ourselves seeking what is new. We greet each other with the question “What’s new?” We watch TV news, read newspapers, pay attention advertisements, and look for new models of things we already have. Advertisements are loaded with words telling us of new products, or “new and improved” products that we can’t live without. The world of computers is filled with new gadgets, new programs, new downloads, and so forth. We seem to be obsessed with what’s new. Jesus used the word “new” many, many times in His discourses and teachings, all the time trying to get us to see the new crea

Here is the eleventh lesson in the Saint Paul Center for Catholic Biblical Theology 's Lenten Scripture study, Genesis to Jesus. By the end of Lent, you'll understand the importance of Easter in light of God's plan for our salvation and his unfathomable love for us. In this Holy Saturday instalment we will see how Christ was put to death for our trespasses and raised for our justification. _________________________________________________ Over the course of this study, we have been moving through God’s covenant plan for humanity. This has taken us through the covenants of the Old Testament. Now we will illuminate more fully how those covenants find their end in the New Covenant of Jesus Christ. We will see how Christ fulfills God’s plan for humanity through his life, ministry, death, and resurrection. We will also understand why Christ is described as the new Adam, the true son of Abraham, the new Moses. In our final lesson, we’ll see how Christ comes as the new so

This is the tenth lesson in the Saint Paul Center for Catholic Biblical Theology 's Lenten Scripture study, Genesis to Jesus. Follow along, and by the end of Lent, you'll understand the importance of Easter in light of God's plan for our salvation and his deep and unfathomable love for us, his adopted children through Christ. _________________________________________________ In our last lesson we learned how David became the king of Israel. And we began to show some parallels demonstrating how the Davidic Covenant is the prototype of the New Covenant of Jesus Christ. Now we will look a little more closely at this covenant with David. Specifically, we are going to identify the seven primary and three secondary characteristics of this covenant. We will conclude by showing how Christ fulfills the Davidic Covenant, as well as the prophesies of kingdom restoration through the Church. We begin this lesson by identifying the seven primary and three secondary characteristi

This is the ninth lesson in the Saint Paul Center for Catholic Biblical Theology 's Lenten Scripture study, Genesis to Jesus. Follow along, and by the end of Lent, you'll understand the importance of Easter in light of God's plan for our salvation. Sign up to receive new video lessons [ here ] and buy related study materials. ___________________________________________________ In our last lesson, we concluded our discussion of God’s covenant with Moses. We learned about all the amazing parallels between the life of Moses and that of Jesus Christ. Our consideration took us to the end of the Book of Exodus, and through Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. In this lesson, we will spend most of our time in 1st and 2nd Samuel, focusing on the rise and fall of Israel’s first king, Saul. And how Israel becomes a great kingdom under the leadership of David. This Davidic Kingdom is more than just a political reality. It is actually the means by which God includes other nation

Here is the seventh lesson in the Saint Paul Center for Catholic Biblical Theology 's Lenten Scripture study, Genesis to Jesus. Follow along, and by the end of Lent, you'll understand the importance of Easter in light of God's plan for our salvation. Sign up to receive new video lessons [ here ] and buy related study materials. ___________________________________________________ When we ended the last lesson, the descendants of the twelve sons of Israel were enslaved in Egypt. In this lesson, we will see how their enslavement to Pharaoh ends. More importantly, we will see how the Lord delivers Israel from spiritual bondage in the Exodus, while he brings judgment on Pharaoh and the gods of Egypt. Now we move out of the Book of Genesis and into the Book of Exodus. We learned in the Book of Genesis that salvation history is the story of God’s family. In that family, Adam was created to be the first-born son of creation. Adam falls, failing in his duties as first-born

Here is the fifth lesson in the Saint Paul Center for Catholic Biblical Theology 's Lenten Scripture study, Genesis to Jesus. Follow along, and by the end of Lent, you'll understand the importance of Easter in light of God's plan for our salvation. Sign up to receive new video lessons [ here ] and buy related study materials. _____________________________________________________ The second covenant God enters into with man is God’s covenant with Noah. The story of Noah and his ark is one of the most famous of all time. It’s inspired a multitude of books, movies, and countless homilies. But there’s a whole lot more than just the story of how humanity was saved from a terrible flood safe within an immense wooden boat filled with all kinds of animals. This is a story of how God renews his covenant with creation, a rebirth of sorts, which foreshadows the sacrament of baptism. There are also parallels between Noah and Adam, as well as the flood and creation. But let’s b