One of the often repeated themes of Sacred Scripture is the special care God has for the poor, the underprivileged, and the outcasts of society. We find that theme in today’s readings. The Old Testament prophet, Sirach, says “the Lord God hears the cry of the oppressed and he is not deaf to the wail of the orphan; the prayer of the lowly pierces the clouds.” That, by the way, is sheer poetry.

Usually, the Responsorial Psalm is a kind of reflection on and a repetition of the theme of the First Reading. And sure enough, in today’s Responsorial Psalm, after each verse comes the refrain: “The Lord hears the cry of the poor.”

A woman in my parish has an adult son who has rejected his faith. She prays for him every day. She lights candles, says rosaries, and asks God again and again to bring him back. But nothing changes. Is God listening? Is He delaying? She told me once that she feels like the widow in Jesus' strange parable - crying out for justice, but hearing only silence. And yet, she said, she is at peace. I asked why. She responded, "God is already answering. I just can't see it yet."

Leprosy would make one ritually impure. It is against this background that we should understand the episodes in the first reading and in the gospel. In the first reading it was Naaman, the Syrian, and in the gospel ten unnamed lepers. The striking difference lies in the sense of gratitude shown by those who were healed. The 9 Jewish lepers healed by Jesus were more concerned about getting their healing confirmed and certified by the religious leadership, where as the only non-Jew had no such strings attached. So, he went straight back to Jesus praising God. He prostrated before him and thanked Jesus.

A priest friend of mine received a call from a family whose elderly mother was dying. Within thirty minutes, he was at her bedside, offering the consolation of the sacraments, anointing her with the oil of the sick, and commending her soul to God. She passed not long after, and for months, her family spoke of their deep gratitude for his presence. When I phoned him to commend his faithful ministry, he simply said, “I was just doing my job.”

I am embarrassed to admit that I frequently find myself dining and socializing with people who have millions and sometimes billions of dollars. I’ve eaten more caviar, lobster and wagyu steak than most people on the planet. I justify it by saying it’s part of my job. But I have seven pairs of nice jeans and expensive shoes.

A million young people, from 150 countries from all over the world, recently gathered in Rome to be acknowledged as the Catholic youth of our present age and to celebrate that they are the Church - present and future. This was just one of the many celebrations that have taken place in Rome during this Jubilee Year of Hope.

One of my favorite movies is the 1991 comedy What About Bob? Bill Murray plays a troubled, paranoid hypochondriac named Bob Wiley who innocently but annoyingly hounds Dr. Leo Marvin, played by Richard Dreyfuss. Bob is paralyzed by his fear of, well, everything, and is convinced the psychologist can heal him. But Dr. Marvin’s failed attempts to heal Bob end up driving the doctor to attempt to murder Bob. He fails. The surprise is that, having faced death head on, Bob is suddenly healed. He attributes his healing to Dr Marvin for break-through “death therapy.” In facing the cause of his deepest illness and dysfunction, Bob is healed.

Today's Gospel tells us that a large crowd was traveling with Jesus, but turning to his disciples, he tells them what it means to follow him: "...turning to his disciples, he said... Whoever does not take up his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple" (Luke 14:26-27).

If we consider ourselves disciples and not part of the crowd, these words of Jesus are for us, but what does it mean or understand by "taking up the cross and following Jesus?"

Once I was invited to a group meeting with Pope Francis. Entering the room, I paused, eyeing the seats next to the Pope’s fancy chair. Someone saw my paralysis and invited me to sit in the seat farthest from what I wanted. Hiding my disappointment, I sat. We waited. To our surprise, an aid pointed out that those seats were still empty and invited me and another to have them. We calmly but gleefully strode across the room and sat. Pope Francis entered, and we enjoyed two hours of amazingly uplifting conversation.

In the First Reading, Isaiah claims that the time has come to bring together the people of every language and nation and to show them God’s glory. And in today's Gospel, Christ proclaims that “people will come from all the nations to feast in God’s kingdom.” It is very clear from the New Testament that Christ came for the salvation of all people. In Matthew 24:31, Jesus speaks of the “chosen from all over the earth.” In his final prayer to His Father at the Last Supper, Jesus asks His Father to grant unity to all his followers, saying “I want my followers to be one with each other, just as I am one with You, and You are one with Me.” (John 17:21) In his final mandate to His disciples just before His Ascension, Jesus ordered His disciples to “baptize the entire world.” (Matthew 28:19) It is clear that Jesus wanted unity in His Church, based on the unity of the Father and Himself. Or as St. Paul writes in Ephesians 4:5, "one Lord, one faith, one baptism."

My Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

As we reflect on the challenges that we face in our present day and age: natural disasters, immigration concerns, political divisions, global unrest, war, uncertainties in the area of economics, health care, homelessness, etc., thank God, that within our Diocese of Stockton, we are blessed to have events that invite us to stop and reflect upon these concerns which impact us and our society. Our liturgical year provides us with a setting that enables us to turn to God for His grace and mercy in order to empower us to face the spiritual confrontations that the enemy lays before us on our pilgrim way.

There was a young mother in my parish community who was depressed due to financial strain. She prayed for help. One morning before Mass, she placed on the counter a zip-lock bag filled with jewelry and old coins. Smiling, she explained she had been fixing an old cabinet and found the items hidden deep within the walls of her home. One particular coin could be worth as much as $900,000. The contents of the bag–previously unknown to them–were now their prized possession. Their plans changed that week. They had to learn how much it was worth.

Welcome to the 2025-26 school year!

We are just a few days away until school is back in session! We are so excited to welcome the many new students and their families to the St. Stanislaus community!