We live in the glow of baptism and the radiance of the Eucharist, yet the shadow of sin hovers near.

Fr. Scott Haynes A Meditation on Romans 8:12-17 and Luke 16:1–9 Brethren: We are debtors, not to the flesh, that we should live according to the flesh, for if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the spirit you put to death the deeds of the flesh, you will live. For whoever are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. Now you have not received a spirit of bondage so as to be again in fear, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons, by vi

Fr. Scott Haynes A Meditation on Romans 6:19-23 7th Sunday after Pentecost Saint Paul tells us in today’s Epistle: “As you have yielded your members to serve uncleanness and iniquity, unto iniquity; so now yield your members to serve justice, unto sanctification.” (Romans 6:19) That may sound a little severe at first, but Saint Paul is really describing something very familiar. Every day, we use our bodies, our minds, and our desires in one direction or another. We can give o

Fr. Scott A. Haynes In the Gospels there are two accounts of Christ multiplying loaves and fishes: the feeding of the 5,000 and the feeding of the 4,000. Why two accounts? What is the difference between them? The obvious answer: 1,000. All joking aside, there is a salient difference—location. As they say in real estate, what matters is, location, location, location. The feeding of the 5,000 took place near Bethsaida, close to the Sea of Galilee. In contrast, the feeding of th

Fr. Scott Haynes St. Cyprian of Carthage, writing on the sin of envy, gives us a sentence that seems to have been written for every age in which grace is resented: “It is a persistent evil to persecute a man who belongs to the grace of God. It is a calamity without remedy to hate the happy.”¹ He is not speaking merely of irritation, rivalry, or wounded pride. He is uncovering a deep spiritual disorder: the heart that suffers because another soul belongs to God, the heart that

Learn the Biblical wisdom of avoiding gossip, slander, and backbiting. St. Monica explains.

Fr. Scott Haynes Among the most mysterious images in the Book of Revelation is the vision of the two witnesses: "These are the two olive trees and the two candlesticks, that stand before the Lord of the earth." (Revelation 11:4) At first glance, the imagery appears obscure. Yet St. John expects his readers to recognize it immediately. He is drawing upon the vision of the prophet Zechariah, where two olive trees continually supply oil to a golden lampstand. The Old Testament p

Fr. Scott Haynes A Scriptural Study 4 kings 24:8-17 Psalm 78 Matthew 7:21-29 As we listen to these passages from the Fourth Book of Kings, Psalm 78, and the Gospel according to St. Matthew, the Lord places before us two houses: Jerusalem, fallen into ruin, and the house built firmly upon rock. In the first reading, Jerusalem falls. The Temple of the Lord is plundered. The gold vessels made by Solomon are broken and carried away. The king, his mother, the nobles, the soldier

Fr. Scott Haynes A Meditation on Ecclesiasticus 45:1-6 for the Feast of St. William June 21 “Moses was beloved of God, and men: whose memory is in benediction” (Ecclus 45:1). These words, chosen by the Church as the Epistle for the feast of St. William the Abbot on June 25, first praise Moses, the great lawgiver and servant of God. Yet in the liturgy, the same words are placed like a crown upon the head of a saint who, in another age and another land, also became a friend of

Fr. Scott Haynes A Meditation on the Introit of the Fourth Sunday After Pentecost Julius Caesar once remarked that even the shouts of his enemies were music to his ears, but, on the other hand, he was terribly afraid of thunder. When it vaguely looked like a storm was brewing, he began to shiver and shake and crawl underneath the covers. Peter the Great, considered by many to have been the greatest czar of Russia, was terrified to cross a bridge. He would tremble in his b

Fr. Scott Haynes A Meditation on Romans 8:18–23 St. Paul gives us one of the most majestic visions in all of Sacred Scripture when he writes, “For we know that every creature groaneth and travaileth in pain, even till now. And not only it, but ourselves also, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit: even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption of the sons of God, the redemption of our body” (Romans 8:22–23). These words are not gloomy words. They are not

Fr. Scott Haynes “He shall be great before the Lord: and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother’s womb.”—Lk 1:15 On June 24, the Church celebrates the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist, a solemnity filled with prophetic anticipation, sacred joy, and spiritual mystery. Unlike other saints, whose feast days mark the day of their heavenly birth (i.e., their death), John the Baptist is honored on the day of his birth into this world, signifying his unique r

We give all the angels in heaven joy when we who are sinners repent.

Fr. Scott Haynes At Confirmation in one parish, the archbishop asked the children for a definition of the Holy Trinity. A girl answered very softly, “The Holy Trinity is three Persons in one God.” The old archbishop, who was almost deaf, replied, “I didn’t understand what you said.” The young little theologian now stood and said loudly, “You are not supposed to. The Trinity is a mystery.” That child had learned something many adults forget. A mystery is not something unreal.

There are passages in Sacred Scripture that seem almost to tremble with divine sorrow. One senses in them not merely commandments being broken, but the very order of creation wounded by human rebellion.

Among the parables of Our Lord, few reveal the Heart of God more vividly than the Parable of the Great Supper.

"Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer. And you know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in himself."

The words of Bl. Josepha Hendrina Stenmanns shine like a lamp in the sanctuary of our hearts: “Make a tabernacle in your heart where the Holy Triune God constantly dwells.”

Fr. Scott Haynes From a distance the fig tree looked alive. Its leaves were full and green. Anyone walking toward it would expect fruit. But when Christ came near, He found nothing. That is one of the most frightening images in the Gospel. A soul can look healthy outwardly while inwardly becoming empty. One can still attend Mass, say prayers, speak about religion, and appear respectable, yet secretly lose the life of grace within. The Gospel says the tree withered “from the r

Fr. Scott Haynes “Be you also as living stones built up, a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.” (1 Peter 2:5) Saint Peter calls us “living stones,” not dead stones scattered upon the ground, but stones joined together in Christ, chosen for a temple that breathes with prayer, sacrifice, and love. A single stone alone seems small and unnoticed, yet placed in the hands of the Divine Builder it becomes part of s