Browsing Thoughts from Fr. Bob
4th Sunday of Advent & Christmas 2023
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 12/27/23
Every so often the fourth week of Advent consists only of one day: the fourth Sunday of Advent. This is one of those years. The fact that this Sunday falls on Christmas Eve is a wonderful opportunity for us all. On this day, may the Word of God we ... Read More »
3rd Sunday of Advent - December 17, 2023
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 12/11/23
Throughout this Advent season we are called to prepare for the Lord’s coming by repenting our sins, removing obstacles that make it difficult for us to recognize his approach, and remaining watchful for his arrival. But, today we rejoice (in Latin Gaudete) because we focus on the knowledge that ... Read More »
2nd Sunday of Advent - December 10, 2023
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 12/05/23
It is in the passage we hear in the first reading that Mark chooses in part to open his Gospel, which he calls “the Gospel of Jesus Christ the Son of God.” This is very telling. His goal in writing this account, the first of the Gospels to be ... Read More »
1st Sunday of Advent - December 3, 2023
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 11/30/23
Already bombarded with Christmas decorations and music for weeks now, we are undoubtedly already anticipating the celebration of our Savior’s birth. But today, on this first Sunday of Advent, we are reminded that Christ’s coming was not a single, one-time-only event. In the Gospel, Jesus warns us that he ... Read More »
Christ the King - November 26, 2023
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 11/20/23
Today we are given the chance of a lifetime, a preview of what we will face at the end of time, straight from the lips of the one who will come in glory on that day. This is Christ the King, who rules over God’s creation. This entire year, ... Read More »
33rd Sunday in OT - November 19, 2023
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 11/13/23
Someone once said, “There are no small parts, only small actors.” Even actors with seemingly insignificant roles put everything they have into the part. In our Gospel, both the servant who was given only two talents and the one who got but one seemed to have only bit roles ... Read More »
32nd Sunday in OT - November 12, 2023
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 11/08/23
On this day in the middle of November, the month in which we remember in a special way all those who have died, let us reflect on our baptism. When we were baptized in Christ, we were baptized into his death. Therefore, we are with the Lord in life ... Read More »
31st Sunday in OT - November 5, 2023
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 11/02/23
In our first reading today, Malachi asks “Have we not all the one father? Has not the one God created us?” Indeed we all have the same Father in heaven, as Jesus points out in the Gospel. We have all been created by God. This should give us some ... Read More »
30th Sunday in OT - October 29, 2023
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 10/25/23
It’s easy to look forward and look kindly upon our family and friends and the neighbors and co-workers, and classmates we know. In the same way it is easy to look away from or look down upon those who are strangers to us, especially those who seem most unlike ... Read More »
29th Sunday in OT - October 22, 2023
Posted by Fr Bob Betz on 10/19/23
In today’s Gospel, some of the Pharisees seek to entrap Jesus, asking him a question designed to get him in trouble with either the religious or government authorities. But Jesus finds a clever way to answer sensibly and safely. Had Caesar heard his answer, he would have been pleased ... Read More »