Faith – Page 8 – Royal Doors

Jan

10

2017

Mark 8:22-26- Ask your Doctor if Spiritual Eyes are Right for You!

Faithblindness, healing, miracles, Sight, vision

Christ is Born! Number one...or number two? Number three...or number four? Is this clearer...or is this? This little song and dance should sound familiar to any of us who do not have perfect vision and need to have our eyesight checked to see if our glasses prescription has changed. Sitting in the chair the lenses are looked through, rotated and flipped and slowly but surely your view of the world becomes clearer. The blind man at Bethsaida experienced something similar in our gospel passage today. His vision comes back to him by degrees. First he sees a shapes which resemble…

Jan

06

2017

By Fr. Michael Bombak

Matthew 3:13-17- A Community of Persons

Faithlove, theophany, trinity

Christ is Baptized! At the World Meeting of Families, during the Papal visit to Philadelphia in 2015, a little boy asked Pope Francis what "God did with all His time before He created the world." The Holy Father paused for a few seconds and then responded "He loved." It is through this feast, the Holy Theophany, where God is manifested to the world as a truly loving God. God is not a monad but a community of persons, One God in three Divine Persons- Tri-unity- Trinity. Our God is a God of love, and love, which is always about the…

Jan

05

2017

By Fr. Michael Bombak

Luke 3:1-18- On the Road to Meet the Saviour

Faithcorporal works of mercy, repentance, road

Christ is Born! My grandfather spent many years as a draftsman working to design our highways. Years later my father would work with the construction crews which would actually level the ground and imprint the road not only on the map, but on the earth itself. My biggest contribution is using those highways to drive across the country. My journeys across the country would have been impossible without them! A lot of work had gone into establishing those roads. The people who John was ministering to in our reading today asked him an important question: "What must we do?" They…

Jan

04

2017

By Fr. Michael Bombak

Luke 21:5-7, 10-11, 20-24- Missionaries, Not Tourists

Faithdiscernment, temple, wardrobe

Christ is Born! I remember the drastic change in mood in the story "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" when Lucy has tea with Mr. Tumnus. To that point in the story she had accidentally slipped into what seemed a private magical world in an upstairs wardrobe and was being shown around by Tumus, to her mind a friendly mythical creature. All changes in an instant when Lucy wakes up after being lulled o sleep by Tumnus over tea. Tumnus had intended to deliver her over to an evil witch. He was a secret agent and the magical world…

Jan

03

2017

By Fr. Michael Bombak

Luke 21:12-19- The Trial of Life

Faithlaw, trail, witness

Christ is Born! Our Lord made many promises to us during His ministry, and one of the more inconvenient ones was that life would be a trial. If we truly were to follow Him, we would be called out on it, and not by "the man", "them", "the bad guys", but by our friends and family- those who are closest to us. Jesus is telling His fellow Jewish disciples that they would be delivered to synagogues to be persecuted by those who were praying right next to them on a regular basis! Jesus Himself, after all, was betrayed by one…

Jan

02

2017

By Fr. Michael Bombak

The Circumcision of Our Lord- A New Years Homily from Fr. Mike

Faith

Dec

28

2016

By Fr. Michael Bombak

Mark 12:28-38: We CAN Get Satisfaction!

Faithcommandments, love, sacrifice, satisfaction, surrender

Christ is Born! Glorify Him! What is the meaning and purpose of life? Many people ask this question, looking for fulfillment, direction and purpose, especially today in our confused world. A collective and hungry cry can be heard from our world, which is probably best expressed by the Rolling Stones: "I can't get no satisfaction!" Nothing seems to satisfy. Happiness and fulfillment come from following the commandments that we have been given by the One who made and loves us. In our reading today the Lord gives us the ultimate guide to human fulfillment, the answer to that hunger in…

Dec

27

2016

By Fr. Michael Bombak

Matthew 21:33-42 We’re Servants, not Owners

FaithChristmas, servant, steward, vineyard

Christ is Born! It happens time and time again throughout history, as well as in literature. From Hamlet to Narnia to Gondor one constant theme is the story of a steward, who by lies and treachery, tries to steal the throne for himself. The lure of power can often overcome those who have been entrusted with the kingdom in order to serve others. In our reading today, brothers and sisters, the Lord uses the parable of a vineyard to illustrate this point. The servants have been tasked with taking care of the vineyard while their master is travelling. They forget…

Dec

26

2016

By Fr. Roman Planchak

Theotokos – She Who Bore God

FaithTheotokos

CHURCHES AND INDIVIDUAL CHRISTIANS of many traditions are displaying Nativity scenes this season. All of them will include an image of the Virgin Mary, although there are serious differences in how these Christians view her. The historic Churches, Eastern and Western, reverence her as blessed and ever-virgin and ask her to intercede with God for us. Most Protestants do not, in the view that there is no warrant in the Bible for such activity. Reverence for the Virgin Mary arose in the early Church in view of its growing belief that her Son, the Lord Jesus, is truly Godv and…

Dec

22

2016

By Fr. Michael Bombak

Mark 11:27-33- Turn your Back…for Their Sake!

Faithconductor, courage, orchestra

Glory be to Jesus Christ! I remember when I was young and at the orchestra for the first time being awed and amazed at the amazing music and the pomp and majesty of all the instruments playing together. It was all so magical and inspiring. The one thing that completely confused me, however, was the conductor. Why was this guy up here waving his hands around? Was he feeling the music? Couldn't he feel it somewhere else and stop blocking the view? I really didn't get why you need a conductor until I started singing in choirs and (very briefly) playing…