Videos

God can do amazing things (like multiplying the loaves and the fish) if we can simply trust what God says. So.... trust.

Happy Easter to You and Yours! Today, Br. Joe Trout, OP breaks open the readings for Easter Sunday, pointing out that with the Resurrection, we enter the End Times, and every time we open ourselves to God coming "from above" we bring more life into the world.

Jesus was tested by the Jewish authorities to find something to use against him. God tests us not to learn anything but so that we might grow.

Like Moses on the mountain, begging God to save his people, we should turn from sin and have the humility to see our solidarity with all God's sinful people who need that grace.

Br. Joe Trout, OP breaks open the readings for the Third Sunday of Lent, pointing out that when Jesus overturned the tables in the Temple, he was underscoring what had been lost in the understanding of the Ten Commandments—that our greatest gift is to spend time with the God who made and saves us. Opening ourselves to spending time with God without the distractions of pursuing other goals is how we both receive this gift from God and give this greatest gift to God.

Jesus tells us that if we forgive others, we will be forgiven by God. Can we see ourselves in need of this forgiveness? Do we want to be better Christians than we are today?

In the parable of the sheep and the goats, the world is challenged to see the delight of caring for others, where giving to those in need is not counted as loss, but as joy.

In Saul's conversion, great things were asked of him, but it could not have happened if people along the road did not stop and take him to Ananias. God calls us to great things and to small, hidden things as well. It is all part of God's great plan.

King David wants to build a temple for the Lord, and the Lord says "No!" because David wanted to pretend that he should provide for God, ignoring the fact that God has always provided for him. We need to trust that God provides what we need, and sometimes God's "no" to our prayers is a reminder of this.

Br. Joe Trout, OP breaks open the readings for the Third Sunday of Ordinary Time, pointing out how Jesus, Paul, and Jonah all preach a message of urgent repentance. These messages were headed in different ways in different situations, but people reformed their lives. Will we?

Today's Gospel tells of how when Jesus was presented in the Temple, Anna the Prophet spoke about him to all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem. May our speech point out what is good and holy in the world, rather than gossiping about what is wrong about it.

Jesus is the light of the world, not like Christmas lights shining in the dark, but like the sun revealing the true beauty of the world. Open your eyes to see the world in the light of Christ.