The Message Of Jesus Disrupts

· Fr. Barnabas Powell
Christ is risen! The old apocryphal Chinese curse seems innocuous at first, but when you really think about it, it is truly a curse: “May you live in interesting times.” To wish for someone to live in times of turmoil and upheaval really is an ironic wish. But most of human history is turmoil and disruption. The United States has been around since 1776 and has fewer years of peace than conflict.…

The Rulekeepers

· Fr. Barnabas Powell
Christ is risen! It’s so easy to be “one-sided!” You know what I mean – “That idea is so wrong and everyone who thinks that way and acts that way is misguided.” And you may be right about that, BUT, there is also a danger on the other side as well. You can become just as misguided by insisting you’re right as those who are stumbling on the other side. It’s easy…

The Spiritual Discipline of True “Dialogos”

· Fr. Barnabas Powell 1 Leave a Comment on %s
Christ is risen! It seems we are a society of fads. To say that our modern culture is captured by the immediate and temporary seems to be a bit of an understatement! Just look around at what passes for actual conversation and see the effects of this faddish and tribal mentality at work. There is a lost art in true “diologos.” And there is a crushing lack of understanding about doing dialog…

I See You! Sunday’s Homily

· Fr. Barnabas Powell 1 Leave a Comment on %s
On this Sunday of the Samaritan Woman, we are confronted with the message that we must never neglect the marginalized in society AND the confrontation that all of us must be changed. Both parts of the Message of the Gospel MUST be our work and our calling. The purpose of the Faith is to CHANGE YOU!

The Truth Is Rarely Popular

· Fr. Barnabas Powell
Christ is risen! I have some acquaintances that are academic lay theologians and they never cease to amaze me with their regular “insights” that “Well, we know this has been believed a long time, but did you know about these exceptions that really mean that what we’ve always believed is not quite right.” It’s almost comical how regular this desperate need to be “creative” and find the “grey” especially in the moral…

The Corruption of The Straight Way

· Fr. Barnabas Powell
Christ is risen! Let’s face it, ideas matter. Words matter. The current fad of “lived experience” as a way to insist that truth is relative is a linguistic trap filled with all kinds of dangers to our society. But it has always been the desire of the evil one to corrupt the straight path of the Faith. In fact, the evil one is fine with just a slight “adjustment” to your way…

A New Definition of “Normal”

· Fr. Barnabas Powell
Christ is risen! American author and humorist Patsy Clairmont famously said “Normal is just a setting on your dryer.” She was hoping to communicate that many times our idea of what is “normal” is unreachable and a source of shame in our lives. This insight is very much correct. Because we don’t actually scrutinize our definition of “normal” often we miss the opportunity to actually deal with reality. But that doesn’t mean…

Everyone Is Welcome

· Fr. Barnabas Powell
Christ is risen! The New York Times recently had an article talking about the statement of the US Surgeon General concerning the very real societal epidemic of loneliness in our country (See “We Have Become a Lonely Nation” NYT 30 April 2023) In the article the Surgeon General rightly sees loneliness as a health problem leading to all kinds of difficulties. Loneliness is, indeed, both a spiritual and physical problem in our…

God Doesn’t Show Partiality

· Fr. Barnabas Powell
Christ is risen! I grew up in the volatile 1960s when the Civil Rights movement was really getting traction. I watched as a boy as marches and riots occurred around the country and our nation struggled with throwing off the scourge of racism. By the way, how is it possible that the pigmentation of someone’s skin could make them less human than someone else? It was a troubled time. And, as usual,…

We Bring You “Good News!”

· Fr. Barnabas Powell
Christ is risen! She started crying as I shook her hand. She was trembling and crying, and I was both confused and troubled. Her husband stepped in to save the day by explaining “Father, she is very excited to meet you. We were going through a very difficult time when our family found your videos on YouTube. We watched your videos and then started getting the daily devotionals, and it touched us…