I can imagine Peter’s consternation when Jesus challenges him to head out one more time. Likely shaking his head, Peter nonetheless gives his “ok, one more!”
McKenna
Taking In (Nehemiah 8; I Corinthians 12; Luke 4: 18-21)
“Taking in the news.” It can refer to events both good and bad, taking in the news of a baby’s birth, for instance, or at the other end, receiving word of a loved one’s passing.
Being The Beloved (Isaiah 40:11: Lk 3:22)
A gift – something given over freely, with good will and coming not from obligation but from good will and esteem. It raises the question: of all the gifts to receive, which would be the most valuable and precious?
The Finger of God
Just last week at the end of a sequence of calamitous happenings in the country and world, someone remarked that if he had one wish it would be that when turning on the news he’d hear something other than bad news. His wish caught the dark and heavy feelings of the...
On Not Shutting Down
I know two young men who were given a set of CD’s of the greats in classical music. Neither of them ever listened to nor had any appreciation for this kind of track. The one said, “This stuff is boring and even hard on my ears. I’ll humor my uncle who gave them to me,...
Living in a Time of Extremes
To us who live in a time when extremes on the left and right of the spectrum seem glaring, St. Paul comes with this counsel for keeping on course. “Do not conform yourselves to this age. But be transformed by the renewal of your mind.” To paraphrase him, “There are...
The 400th Anniversary of Our Charism
A paraphrase of the opening line today from Isaiah reads: “How beautiful are the feet of the one who brings glad tidings, announces peace, carries good news, tells us that our salvation is here and now, and does all this by a life-changing proclamation. And that is,...
What Kind of God?
What Kind of God? (Wisdom 12:13-16; Psalm 135) I ask you to think of a particular boss in one of the jobs you’ve had over the years and also to recall the different ways in which you felt that boss regarded you. Did you feel he or she was indifferent to you, was...
Expecting and Seeing
Expecting and Seeing (Matthew 13:13) Some time ago I went to see a touring art exhibit featuring Monet’s water lilies. Laid out in three big murals that were hung together, it wrapped around the room to give the visitor a sense of being right there at the pond’s edge....
The Vincentian Witness
The Vincentian Witness Not that God needs it, but in today's culture do you ever get the urge to stand up for God? A spiritual writer recounted a conversation with a college friend after not seeing him for years. After catching up, the friend told him he had heard the...
Vincentian Meditations – New Vincentian Resource
VINCENTIAN MEDITATIONS Thomas McKenna, C.M. Vincentian Meditations is a Vincentian Family resource of meditations and scriptural reflections rooted in Vincentian spirituality. Fr. Tom McKenna has studied, prayed, preached and written about Vincentian...
Vincent’s Praying-Acting Cycle
Vincent’s Praying-Acting Cycle Years ago I heard Fr. Robert Maloney say something about St. Vincent de Paul I never forgot. “Hardly have I ever read somebody who could come down on one side of an issue and then 50 pages later say something the exact opposite.” And...
