Browsing the 2020 archive of Thoughts from Fr. Bob
Trinity Sunday
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 6/04/20
It was great to see so many of our parishioners gathering together on Pentecost Sunday after nine or ten weeks of not being able to celebrate public Masses. But to be honest, I was a little disappointed that we didn’t have more people in attendance. Only about a third ... Read More »
Thoughts from Fr. George on his 50 years of Priesthood
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 5/27/20
A Reflection of 50 Years
As some of you may recall, I was ordained a deacon in April 1969 and ordained a priest in May 1970. Consequently, this is the 50th anniversary of my priestly ordination. Of course, it is impossible to celebrate any anniversary this year in the ... Read More »
Pentecost
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 5/27/20
What an appropriate day to begin celebrating public Masses again. For it is Pentecost, the beginning, the birthday of the Church. Promised by the Lord to his disciples at the Last Supper, anticipated by the prophets for centuries, unknown to generations going back to creation, the Holy Spirit is ... Read More »
7th Sunday of Easter - Ascension
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 5/20/20
Final messages are very important. They might be the last words of encouragement to our children before they go off to college; or maybe, we’re moving to another part of the country and saying goodbye to friends and neighbors. Or even more important, the last words we share with ... Read More »
6th Sunday of Easter
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 5/13/20
Easter seems like a long time ago. Yet, because it is such an important event for us and the world, we celebrate for 50 days. Today’s reading anticipates the feast of Pentecost two weeks from now. Peter and John join Philip in Samaria to make sure the Samaritans receive ... Read More »
5th Sunday of Easter
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 5/05/20
Today we honor all mothers, grandmothers, godmothers, and all women caretakers in our lives. In our second reading Peter’s words apply to many of them, for they have been cornerstones in our lives- chosen and precious. In the Gospel, Jesus teaches his disciples that he shows the way to ... Read More »
4th Sunday of Easter
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 5/04/20
Hope all is well with you, your family, and your friends. The Fourth Sunday of Easter has been called Good Shepherd Sunday. In the cycle of readings for this day, all three years celebrate Jesus leading and caring for his flock.
Strangely John’s Gospel today identifies Jesus as the ... Read More »
3rd Sunday of Easter
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 4/22/20
This weekend would have been the celebration of First Communion for our young people at St. James-another disappointment we experience during this coronavirus. Appropriately, our Gospel for today is the story of our Lord walking with two of the disciples on the road to Emmaus. The journey from Jerusalem ... Read More »
2nd Sunday of Easter
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 4/16/20
We have completed 40 days of Lent in preparation for the celebration of Easter, our Lord triumphantly rising from the dead. Now we enter into a deeper learning and intimacy of our relationship with our God through his risen Son. Fifty days of growing and progressing in our faith ... Read More »
Easter 2020
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 4/08/20
Alleluia!! Sing out with joy for the Easter miracle. The Lord is risen! We have been redeemed. Death no longer has ultimate power over us. We anticipate the day when we too will be raised with Christ. As baptized Christians, we have already been raised up. While we, through ... Read More »