Association Of Catholic Bloggers

  I was listening to the news today and heard that lottery sales are up and that the winning jackpot is huge.   While I do not tend to buy lottery tickets, I paused for a moment and wondered if I should. I would definitely be a philanthropist.   If I had that much money, which would be so much more than I would ever need, I would definitely think of ways to responsibly give it away. But, my next thought put an end to all my dreaming. If I were to win a lottery like that, all my days would be centered around managing that money and I would never be able to have peace of mind or focus on the things and people that really matter to me. The thought of philanthropy had brought a smile to my face, but I quickly realized that we can be generous and share with others even if we are not billionaires. Of course, I suspect for most, the idea of philanthropy when you are rich is that it will not tap into your reserves and endanger your lifestyle. I am reminded of the poor widow in th

  In today’s reading (Mark 1:21-28) we see an exchange between Jesus and an evil spirit that has found a home in a man in the synagogue.   Clearly, the emphasis is on the power of Jesus over evil as he calls the evil spirit out of the man.   It is a violent exorcism as the man convulses when the spirit is removed. I think it is safe to say that most of us have never encountered an event where an evil spirit is excised out of someone, but that does not mean that we have never encountered the presence of evil. Evil comes in many forms, and it is more likely that we have suffered much less dramatic encounters such as when we have given in to dangerous temptations, unhealthy worldly desires or embraced sin.   There are so many ways that we cooperate with evil. Because the presence of evil can be very subtle, if we are not paying attention, we may be seduced by it without even realizing it. The best remedy we have for resisting and recognizing evil is staying close to God.   It we

  Jesus went around the Sea of Galilee (Mark 1:14-20) and he invited Simon, Andrew, James and John to follow him. He said, “Come after me and I will make you fishers of men.” This is a personal invitation.   The disciples are called by name.   They are given a specific mission. The invitation remains the same for us today, and God does still call each of us by name.   The question is, “How will we respond?” Imagine Jesus coming to your house.   Imagine him finding you in the grocery store, or at work.   When he made his invitation at the sea, he called the men out of the ordinariness of their daily life.   He called them from their fishing boats as they were mending and casting their nets. It wasn’t a fancy call.   There weren’t any flashing lights or bells or fireworks.   Clearly, these are not things we should be looking for in our own invitation. The gospel tells us that Jesus was proclaiming the Kingdom of God, telling people to repent and to believe in the gospel,