SEPTEMBER
September 1, 2014 | Twenty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time
Questions to Ponder:
• How do I welcome the Word before I preach?
• What does James mean by being “unstained by the world”?
• How can I make my parish “a wise and intelligent people”?
Sept. 8, 2024 | Twenty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time
Questions to Ponder:
• Do I hear God’s longing for my healing in prayerful moments?
• How do I live the simplicity of life as an example to my people?
• How would I preach today’s first reading?
Sept. 15, 2024 | Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Questions to Ponder:
• When I pray over the first reading, what comes to mind?
• How do I cultivate good works in my parish community?
• Is there one cross God has given me that has been particularly heavy?
Sept. 22, 2024 | Twenty-Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Questions to Ponder:
• Am I aware of my sinful tendencies?
• How do I approach these ugly realities about myself?
• How do I handle competition among my peers?
Sept. 29, 2024 | Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Questions to Ponder:
• How do I share power? At the parish council? With other priests?
• Do I think of my staff as co-workers or employees?
• Do I collaborate well with my bishop?
OCTOBER
October 6, 2024 | Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time
Questions to Ponder:
• What is the link between leadership and suffering?
• How do we balance the ideal and the real?
• What is it about children that makes the Kingdom “belong to such as these”?
October 13, 2024 | Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Questions to Ponder:
• How does our society value wisdom?
• In what ways do we elevate the value of the Word?
• What is our view of the “treasure in heaven”?
October 20, 2024 | Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Questions to Ponder:
• Why would the Lord be pleased to crush his servant in infirmity?
• How can we suffer in sympathy with/for others?
• Why do we grow indignant with fellow believers?
October 27, 2024 | Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Questions to Ponder:
• What experience of moving from tears to consolation can we draw on?
• In what sense are priests “taken from among men”?
• What experience do we have of courageously speaking up despite the rebuke of others?
NOVEMBER
November 1, 2024 | Solemnity of All Saints
Questions to Ponder:
• Do I have a real desire to become a saint? If not, how do I get there?
• Am I grateful for my ministry “always and everywhere”?
• How do I express my gratitude to God daily?
November 3, 2024 | Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time
Questions to Ponder:
• Do I ponder the power of Christ working in me at the Eucharist?
• At what times does the character of Moses enliven my prayer?
• How single-minded am I in following the two great commandments?
November 11, 2024 | Thirty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time
Questions to Ponder:
• Do I live a simple life without pretense or privilege? How?
• How can my lifestyle as a priest offer praise to the Lord?
• How do I encourage others to pray from the heart?
November 17, 2024 | Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time
Questions to Ponder:
• Can I sit quietly with the Our Father and await the Kingdom?
• What is my deepest desire from the Lord?
• How do I understand ordained ministry as the ongoing search for God?
November 24, 2024 | The Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe
Questions to Ponder:
• When was the last time I felt the awesome presence of the holy?
• How was I moved in what followed this encounter?
• Does my preaching inspire the congregation to “praise and thanksgiving”?
DECEMBER
December 1, 2024 | First Sunday of Advent
Questions to Ponder:
• With the future unknown, how do we envision days of being safe and secure?
• What needs to change for us to be “blameless in holiness”?
• What “anxieties of everyday life” can we lift up to the Lord this Advent?
December 8, 2024 | Second Sunday of Advent
Questions to Ponder:
• When God “remembers” us, what will lead us to rejoice?
• How does our prayer for others give witness to the affection of Christ Jesus?
• In what way do our voices effectively cry out about the Lord’s coming?
December 15, 2024 | Third Sunday of Advent
Questions to Ponder:
• Where do we most often see the Lord God in our midst?
• Is it really possible to have no anxiety at all? How can we?
• How can we make our kindness known to all this time of year?
December 22, 2024 | Fourth Sunday of Advent
Questions to Ponder:
• What saving moments have come from small places like the town of Bethlehem?
• In whom do we see (or need to see) the face of the Lord?
• What sounds of the season cause us to leap for joy?
December 25, 2024 | The Nativity of the Lord
Questions to Ponder:
• Who are the “sentinels” to whom we listen for announcing God’s good news?
• How well does our liturgical music give joyful praise to the Lord?
• What impedes God’s own people from accepting him?
December 29, 2024 | Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph
Questions to Ponder:
• How can we respond to the societal loss of “fatherhood” among men?
• What religious customs can we promote among families?
• How can we include family life in our celebration of the 2025 jubilee?
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