vincentian spirituality
Gratitude: The Key (1 Cor. 9: 16-19; Mk.1:29-39)
by Tom McKenna, CM | March 6, 2024 | Formation, Reflections | 2 Comments
A question: what is it that allows people to keep on giving? What is it that motivates someone who isn’t receiving any reward or payment to continue being generous?
The Collaborative Instinct
by Tom McKenna, CM | February 21, 2024 | Formation, Reflections | 3 Comments
There have been times in both the history of the Jewish people and in our own Church when there was a wide dividing line between the clergy and the rest of the believing people.
Inside Authority (Mark 1: 21-28)
by Tom McKenna, CM | February 7, 2024 | Formation, Reflections | 2 Comments
There is a phase to describe what often happens when somebody who is believable begins to talk: “When he or she stands up to speak, everybody listens!”
Gospel Readiness (1 Samuel 3:3-10)
by Tom McKenna, CM | January 24, 2024 | Formation, Reflections | 2 Comments
Am I more often alert to the sounds of God’s presence? Or do I not pay much attention to the ways God is directing me?
John 3:16 – Read It!
by Tom McKenna, CM | Apr 3, 2024 | Formation, Reflections
If you’ve watched any sports events over the last decades, you’ve seen banners held high, calling attention to a famous passage in John’s Gospel.
A Closer Walk (John 2:13-25)
by Tom McKenna, CM | Mar 20, 2024 | Formation, Reflections
Early in St. John’s gospel, we see Jesus resolutely striding into the outer courtyard of the Jerusalem Temple, a space bordering on what the Jewish people acknowledged to be God’s own Dwelling place.
Gratitude: The Key (1 Cor. 9: 16-19; Mk.1:29-39)
by Tom McKenna, CM | Mar 6, 2024 | Formation, Reflections
A question: what is it that allows people to keep on giving? What is it that motivates someone who isn’t receiving any reward or payment to continue being generous?
Hearing God’s Love (Matthew 10:26-33)
by Tom McKenna, CM | Jun 28, 2023 | Formation, Reflections
We readily readily recognize the Sacred Heart of Jesus as the symbol of his great love for us. But as we know from the experience of many, this message given is often enough a message not received.
Naming God (Exodus 34: 8-9; John 3:16)
by Tom McKenna, CM | Jun 14, 2023 | Formation, Reflections
Two people are in a conversation, asking how they feel about each other. After much back and forth, one says to the other, “How would you name that feeling?”
The Way (John 14:1-12)
by Tom McKenna, CM | May 31, 2023 | Formation, Reflections
Rereading Andre Dodin’s biography of Saint Vincent de Paul recently, I was struck with the phrase he used to weave together the various threads of Vincent’s life.
Get Up and Set Out (John 6:44, Acts 8:26-40)
by Tom McKenna, CM | May 17, 2023 | Formation, Reflections
This homily was preached on the occasion of the taking of Final Vows by a Vincentian seminarian, Alex Palacios, in Philadelphia, PA.
Inside The Fold (John 10:1-10)
by Tom McKenna, CM | May 3, 2023 | Formation, Reflections
Preparing for this Sunday, which is often called Good Shepherd Sunday, I came across a description of the things a shepherd in Jesus’ time would do to care for his — or her — sheep.
Paying It Forward (Acts 2:42-47)
by Tom McKenna, CM | Apr 19, 2023 | Formation, Reflections
In the Acts of the Apostles, we come across a behavior that is not quite self-explanatory.
Toward Jerusalem
by Tom McKenna, CM | Apr 5, 2023 | Formation, Reflections
We disciples of Christ profess to follow the Lord Jesus– and this week in particular, we would follow Him to Jerusalem.
Never Alone (John 11:1-45)
by Tom McKenna, CM | Mar 22, 2023 | Formation, Reflections
One of the heaviest of feelings is the one of being alone. You hear it in the cry of an infant, and more generally you catch it in the forlorn look of any lonely person.
Seeing What’s There (John 9:39)
by Tom McKenna, CM | Mar 8, 2023 | Formation, Reflections
How many times have you heard people use the phrase, “I finally woke up?”