BIG C CATHOLICS

Fr. Charles Irvin Senior Priest Diocese of Lansing ( Click here for today’s readings ) We have come here to this sacred place, in this holy time, both of which are set apart from the rest of the world around us, in order to hear what God is saying to us. We are here, hopefully, to respond to God’s call, to surrender to God’s love, and to receive the Bread of Life Jesus won for us on His Cross. May you, and I with you, now yield to God’s love and respond to the gift He offers us here in this the most important celebration in our Church. As Catholics, we hold a sacred trust. It is our calling to remain integral with the Church of the eyewitnesses of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. As Catholics, our integration with the Church of the Apostles is something that we hold precious. May we receive and always treasure what they have handed on to us. More people come to Mass on Easter than on any other Sunday of the year, some making the effort only this one time each

Here is the second 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 first lesson, we talked about how the Bible has both a literary meaning and an historical meaning. But that’s not all. Since God is the principle author of Sacred Scripture, it also has a divine meaning. And together, the literary sense and historical truth of Scripture reveal that divine meaning. They reveal the way God is directing the course of human history. As we’re going to see, God writes the world like we write words. As human beings, we use words as signs that stand for particular realities. For example, the word “chair” signifies something tangible and real that you may

From the Saint Paul Center for Catholic Biblical Theology , the following is a transcript of their Lenten Scripture study, Genesis to Jesus. Genesis to Jesus presents the whole sweep of salvation history, to help you make sense of the Bible. By the end of Lent, you'll understand the importance of Easter as the eighth day of creation in light of God's unified plan for our salvation. You may sign up to receive new video lessons [ here ] and buy related study materials. ____________________________________________________ Welcome to Genesis to Jesus part of the St. Paul Center’s Journey Through Scripture Bible Study. To many people, the Bible is simply a giant book that doesn’t make a lot of sense. And that’s a shame. Because actually it’s a beautiful story. In fact, it’s our story. It’s the story of where we come from, what went wrong, and God’s incredible, merciful plan to save us and make everything right again. Certainly, you could say that plan – that story – culminat

Fr. René J. Butler, M.S. Provincial Superior, La Salette Missionaries of North America Hartford, Connecticut ( Click here for today’s readings ) Well, that was quick! In under twelve hours Andrew and his companion had decided that the man they had just met was the Messiah! No one knows what they talked about, so we may give free rein to our imagination.           Maybe they discussed Jesus’ vision of a world of peace and justice and of outreach to the poor. We have seen in our own time that this is one of the most attractive features of Pope Francis. Why not something like that in this case? Or they might have had a free-ranging conversation on the Scriptures in general. They did call him “Rabbi,” after all. Or maybe such an exchange might have been more like the one Jesus would have three years later, after his Resurrection, with two other disciples, on the road to Emmaus when, we are told: “Beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them what re

In venerating the saints, remembering the souls of departed loved ones, and praying for those in purgatory, Catholics are often accused of praying to the dead. But the souls in heaven (the Church Triumphant) and those in purgatory (the Church Suffering) are not dead. They are very much live. In fact, they are much closer to the Throne of God than anyone on earth (the Church Militant). By virtue of the Communion of Saints, no Christian is an island, isolated or alone. We are joined together, spiritually united in love, through the Lord Jesus Christ and the divine economy of salvation, one family sustained by God across time. As members of Christ's mystical body, Christians are bound not only to Him, but to each other. Prayers to the saints for their intercession are efficacious for they see God now face to face. Hence, their petitions to Him on our behalf are powerful. Most of all, Christians pray to God: God the Father, God the Holy Spirit and God the Son, our Lord and Savio