Browsing the 2023 archive of Thoughts from Fr. Bob
5th Sunday of Lent - March 26, 2023
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 3/20/23
On this final Sunday of Lent before Palm Sunday and Holy Week, we hear Jesus call Lazarus forth from the tomb. Jesus calls us as well, forth from our tombs of sin and death, where our harmful habits and attitudes separate us from God.
The story of creation teaches ... Read More »
4th Sunday of Lent - March 19, 2023
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 3/15/23
Today we have reached the halfway point of Lent, we call this Laetare Sunday. A Latin word meaning, rejoice. We rejoice in the knowledge that the cross does not end in death, that Jesus’ story does not end in the tomb. The Church also celebrates the second scrutiny for ... Read More »
3th Sunday in Lent - March 12, 2023
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 3/08/23
Today in our first reading we hear the Chosen People grumble, for they are thirsty and have no idea how long their journey through the desert will last. “Is the Lord in our midst or not?”, they complained. I feel as we gather and worship the Lord, to listen ... Read More »
2nd Sunday in Lent - March 5, 2023
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 3/02/23
As we continue this forty-day journey through Lent, we do not want to lose sight of what the future held for Jesus in the Gospel, and for us in our own lives. Jesus will suffer greatly and will be put to death and laid in a tomb. But on ... Read More »
1st Sunday of Lent - February 26, 2023
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 2/22/23
Just as Jesus went into the desert for forty days, so we go into the desert of our Lenten season for forty days. It would appear that the devil didn’t really know the Son of God too well. Each temptation would have been much more successful if he’d been ... Read More »
7th Sunday in OT - February 19, 2023
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 2/16/23
Our culture tends to value a show of strength and tends to assess our strength by the amount of force we have. When someone hurts us, we are expected to fight back. We say the anger is justified. We say that the only way to teach the wrongdoer a ... Read More »
6th Sunday in OT - February 12, 2023
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 2/08/23
During this brief period between the season of Christmas and Lent we are invited to learn from Jesus the teacher. This is the third of four consecutive Sundays when we hear passages from his Sermon on the Mount. Jesus has gone up the mountain and sat down, and his ... Read More »
5th Sunday in OT - February 5, 2023
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 1/31/23
Last week, in the middle of our snowstorm, we heard Jesus teach the Beatitudes declaring whom God has blessed. Uniting that passage with today’s adds another dimension to what we are called to do. We can enlighten others with the lessons of the Beatitudes like a light on a ... Read More »
4th Sunday in OT - January 29, 2023
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 1/26/23
We’ve all heard the expression, “History repeats itself.” Time and time again, the people and their leaders fell away from the ideals of God’s covenant with humanity. Selfishness or arrogance, fear or hate, sin or evil lead people to turn toward self-preservation or self-aggrandizement. It happened in Zephaniah’s day under ... Read More »
3rd Sunday in OT - January 22, 2023
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 1/18/23
Almost every day or every week, is national something day or week. You name it, and there will be an occasion for it. To my surprise, today we celebrate the Sunday of the Word of God. It was established just four years ago to remind us that scriptures are ... Read More »