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24th Sunday in Ordinary Time 2024

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  Who do you think you are? I’m sure many of you have seen the popular show Who Do You Think You Are? —the show where celebrities trace their family trees and discover incredible stories about their ancestors.  For some, it’s a journey of uncovering hidden connections, while for others, it’s a journey of discovering who they really are. Their roots reveal something deeper about their identity, shaping how they see themselves and their lives today. Take Conan O’Brien, for example. On the show, he explored his Irish heritage and uncovered stories of his ancestors living through famine and extreme hardship.  These stories didn’t just change how he viewed his ancestors—they changed how he viewed himself. He realized that the same strength and perseverance that carried his family through those difficult times are a part of him today. The premise of the show centers around a question that all of us, at one point or another, have probably asked ourselves:  Who am I? Where do I come from? What
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Guns as Extensions of Human Action: A Philosophical Case for Gun Control in Light of the Georgia Mass Shooting

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  Guns as Extensions of Human Action: A Philosophical Case for Gun Control in Light of the Georgia Mass Shooting In the wake of the recent mass shooting in Georgia, the familiar debate over gun control has resurfaced, with many Second Amendment advocates repeating the well-worn phrase: "Guns don’t kill people—people kill people." This argument attempts to frame firearms as neutral objects, emphasizing human responsibility rather than the tools used in violent acts. Yet, this perspective fails to address a critical philosophical truth: guns, especially those designed for maximum lethality, are not neutral. They are extensions of human intention, amplifying a person’s ability to cause harm. This article will argue that firearms, particularly assault weapons, are indeed responsible for killing people because they act as extensions of the individual, much like an arm or a hand. To support this argument, we will draw from the philosophy of Thomas Aquinas and modern theories of the
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23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time 2024

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  Yogi Berra, the legendary baseball player, was not only known for his skills on the field but also for his quirky and memorable sayings, known as 'Yogi-isms.'  They often made us chuckle, but if you thought about them long enough, they revealed a kind of down-to-earth wisdom. Take, for example, this classic: ‘When you come to a fork in the road, take it.’  It sounds confusing at first, but it’s a humorous way of reminding us that sometimes, in life, we just need to make a decision and move forward, even when the path ahead isn’t entirely clear. Or how about, ‘It’s like déjà vu all over again.’  We’ve all experienced that funny sensation when something seems so familiar, like we’ve been there before. It’s Yogi’s way of capturing that universal experience in a way that makes us smile. But perhaps the most famous of all was something he said about a restaurant that had become so popular that getting in was nearly impossible:   ‘Nobody goes there anymore. It’s too crowded.’  The
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Location: Morrisonville, NY, USA
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22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time 2024

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  My father and mother, Philip and Barbara Looby.  My Dad coined a phrase: "You're wearing the beads and carrying the jacket!" Growing up, my father had a saying that he’d say to me whenever he felt like I wasn’t following through with my commitments to clubs or activities like Boy Scouts, band, or chorus.  He’d look at me and say, “Chris, you’re wearing the beads and carrying the jacket!”  At first, I didn’t quite get it, but over time I realized what he meant. I was showing up—I had all the outward signs of being involved—but I wasn’t actually doing the work. I wasn’t fully committed to living out what it meant to be part of those groups. I think that saying can apply to our lives as Christians too. We might wear the cross, come to Mass, and say our prayers, but are we really living out our faith in action?  Or are we just “wearing the beads and carrying the jacket” without fully committing ourselves to the work of the Gospel? In today’s readings, we hear a clear and po
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21st Sunday in Ordinary time 2024

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  A man was praying, and he said, 'Lord, why do you have to make everything so complicated?' Suddenly, he heard a voice from heaven reply, 'If it were easy, you wouldn't need me!' And isn’t that the truth? Sometimes we wish everything in life and faith were simple. But as we see in today’s readings, not everything is easy to accept or understand. And maybe that’s exactly the point: faith, especially when it's challenging, invites us to rely on God even more. In today’s readings, we encounter some very challenging words—words that, even 2,000 years after they were written, still cause discomfort.  St. Paul, in his letter to the Ephesians, speaks about subordination, specifically saying, “Wives should be subordinate to their husbands.”  And then, in the Gospel, many of Jesus’ own disciples, after hearing His teaching, declare, “This saying is hard; who can accept it?” These two passages highlight a theme we can all relate to—dealing with teachings that challenge u
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20th Sunday in Ordinary Time 2024

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A scene from the classic Western "The Eagle's Brood" (1935).  You always knew who the good guys and bad guys were in the classic black and white movies! When I was a kid, I loved watching those old black-and-white movies, especially the classic cowboy and gangster films. They had a certain charm, didn’t they?  The good guys always wore the white hats, and the bad guys always wore the black hats. There was never any confusion about who was who.  You knew just by looking who was on the side of justice, honor, and truth, and who was on the side of deceit, corruption, and wrongdoing. It made things simple.  But of course, life isn’t always that simple. Today’s readings invite us to reflect on the choices we make, the paths we take, and whether we are living as wise or foolish people. In the first reading from Proverbs, Wisdom is personified as a woman who has built her house and prepared a feast. She stands at the highest places of the town, calling out to those who are simpl
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Location: Morrisonville, NY, USA
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Feast of the Assumption 2024

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  This is a picture of Mary's House in Ephesus on the western coast of Turkey.  Tradition says this is the place where Mary was assumed into heaven.  I took this picture in April of 2018 when I went on a pilgrimage to Greece and Turkey.  Did you know that a majority of Catholic pilgrimage sites around the world are in honor of our Blessed Mother? Today we celebrate the glorious Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, a day that commemorates the moment when Mary, at the end of her earthly life, was taken up body and soul into heavenly glory.  This feast is not just a celebration of an event in Mary’s life, but a profound reminder of our own destiny, our own pilgrimage towards eternal life with God. As we reflect on today’s Gospel from Luke, where Mary sets out on a journey to visit her cousin Elizabeth, we see in her actions a model of what it means to be on a pilgrimage.  Mary's journey to Elizabeth was no ordinary trip—it was a pilgrimage in the truest sense, fille
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