Father Chris Looby

  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

  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

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

  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

  This morning I attended the funeral of Bishop Doug Lucia's father, Leward, at Holy Angels Church in Altona, NY.  Bishop Terry LaValley was the homilist.  Here is the text: Years ago, I remember walking through Holy Angel Cemetery, and then Father Doug showed me a new headstone for his parents. The theme we wanted to capture was Leward’s love of nature and the beauty of God's creation, etched into the stone. As a gardener, a lifelong hunter, and someone who loved the outdoors, Leeward embraced the beauty and wonder of God's creation. He knew well that familiar image that Jesus shared with his disciples: "Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat. But if it dies, it produces much fruit." Leward held on tenaciously to all that life would offer him, never mind the number of years he had lived. We know Leeward lived a life of great sacrifice for the sake of his family and neighbors. He was determined not to let his illness

  "Taste and see the goodness of the Lord!"  This response from Psalm 34 today is an invitation to experience God deeply and personally. It’s a call to not just hear about God's goodness, but to taste it, to let it nourish and transform us. A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of visiting my friend Rob in San Diego, California. San Diego is famous for its tacos, and as soon as Rob picked me up from the airport, we headed straight to a taco restaurant right on the beach.  The menu was filled with all sorts of options—some usual, like ground beef, chicken, and pork, and some unusual, like beef tongue, tripe, and octopus. Now, I love tacos, especially beef tacos, but I had never tried octopus tacos before. Rob encouraged me, saying, "Try it; you'll love it!"  I was hesitant at first, unsure if I would enjoy them, but I took a risk and ordered the octopus tacos. They turned out to be the most delicious tacos I've ever eaten.  This experience taught me the val

   “You’re not you when you’re hungry!” Many of us have seen the Snickers commercials featuring the late Robin Williams. In these ads, Robin Williams plays the part of a football coach who is acting erratically and irrationally because he is hungry. It’s only after taking a bite of a Snickers bar that he returns to his normal, calm self. The slogan is memorable: “You’re not you when you’re hungry.” This clever commercial taps into a truth we all recognize: hunger can drastically change our mood and behavior. Today’s readings highlight a similar truth, but on a much deeper level, about our spiritual hunger and God’s care for us. In the first reading from the Book of Exodus, we hear about the Israelites grumbling against Moses and Aaron, lamenting their hunger in the desert. They complain that they would have been better off dying in Egypt, where at least they had food, than starving in the desert. Their physical hunger made them forget the miraculous deliverance God had just accomplish