Royal Doors

Dec

08

2016

Priesthood in God’s Plan

Faith, Featured Articles

THERE ARE ALL KINDS OF PRIESTS in the world. Most Eastern religions (e.g. Hindu, Shinto or Buddhist religions) have priests, generally for the performance of their temple rituals. What is the Christian priesthood and is it different from these examples or from the priesthood of the ancient Greco-Roman and Persian religions? The Old Testament Priesthood Chapters 28 to 30 in the Book of Exodus detail the choice, the anointing and vesting and responsibilities of the Israelite priesthood. We find some of this material summarized in the New Testament Epistle to the Hebrews as well. The Israelite priesthood originated during the…

Dec

08

2016

By Fr. Michael Bombak

Mark 9:10-16- True Discipleship

Faithdisciple, faith, reason, transfiguration

Glory be to Jesus Christ! At first glance our reading today seems a little confusing, and no doubt, as it is a short passage which relates the conversation the Disciples have with Our Lord as they descend the mountain after the Transfiguration. We must remember that at the Transfiguration, Elijah appeared and spoke with Jesus (along with Moses) on the mountain. The experience of the Transfiguration naturally brought up many questions for the Disciples who misunderstood our Lord's passion prediction and the fact that Elijah was meant to appear on the earth once more before the end. Our Lord points to…

Dec

07

2016

By Fr. Michael Bombak

Mark 8:30-34- Get Behind Me Satan!

FaithCross, peter, priorities, satan, Suffering

Glory be to Jesus Christ! Get behind me Satan! There are some of the strongest words uttered against someone by our Lord in all the gospels- period! It only appears even more harsh considering the fact that it comes a few verses after Peter correctly identifies who the Lord really is. And yet, it shouldn't surprise us. Satan tested Jesus in the wilderness with the same temptations- why suffer when you can rule these kingdoms? Why the cross and death? Throw Yourself down and reveal who you are and be done with it! What our Lord is telling us in this…

Dec

06

2016

By Fr. Michael Bombak

Luke 6:17-23- Keep your Eyes on the Flag!

Faithbeatitudes, Cross, golf, Suffering

Glory be to Jesus Christ! Do you enjoy playing golf? I'm not too good at it myself, but I really enjoy heading out on a warm summer day and embarrassing myself for an afternoon. Some of the courses that golfers take on can be quite challenging where you are not sure where it is that you are supposed to be shooting for. It is always a relief when you can see the flag off in the distance, pointing you to your destination. This is what the Beatitudes do for us, brothers and sisters. They point us to where heaven is.…

Dec

02

2016

By Fr. Michael Bombak

Luke 21:37-22:9- Gandalf and Judas

Faithjudas, lord of the rings, temptation

Glory be to Jesus Christ! There is a powerful passage from The Lord of the Rings where Frodo, who has been tasked with the mission of delivering the evil Ring to a council, tries to give it to Gandalf. This wise and powerful wizard refuses it however, because he knows its power and his own limits. He knows how much damage the Ring could do through him if he were to use it for evil. We are given a sobering reminder in our Gospel reading today brothers and sisters. No one is immune to temptation. Judas was called the same…

Dec

01

2016

By Fr. Michael Bombak

Luke 21:28-33- Stay Alert

Faithalert, awake, nepsis

Glory be to Jesus Christ! Imagine if you had an emergency and you called 911 to get an ambulance to come and get you right away. The operator comes on the phone and asks what you need and you stammer out that you need an ambulance, and she replies with "OK, we'll get around to it sometime today." Complacency can set into any relationship, but it is especially dangerous when it sets in with our relationship with God and our commitment to the mission which He has given us. Christians have been given the life-saving truth of the Gospel and…

Nov

30

2016

By Fr. Michael Bombak

John 1:35-51- Come and See

Faithevangelization, invitation, Madonna house, marian centre

Glory be to Jesus Christ! I remember when I was in High School and my youth leader at the time invited me to come to the Marian Centre, a field-house of the Madonna House Apostolate. The Marian Centre is a soup kitchen in the inner city of Edmonton which serves hundreds of homeless men and women every week. It was a truly grace-filled invitation, and one that would help me to come back to my faith after a very rocky undergraduate experience at the UofA. The "offhand" invitation of a Bible Study leader who had experienced the love, faith and…

Nov

29

2016

By Fr. Michael Bombak

Luke 21: 12-19- Leave the Success to Him

Faithmother teresa, success, trust

Glory be to Jesus Christ! How inconvenient does your faith make your life? Every once in a while I'll turn on the "Christian Music Radio Station" on in the car, but I can only listen for a few minutes. I always feel that they have turned Christ into some sort of "coping mechanism" and it's such a reduction of the gospel message. In our reading today our Lord gives His disciples a warning which we all too often forget or ignore: if you will follow Him expect resistance. Persecution is a litmus test for discipleship. And yet, even before we are…

Nov

25

2016

By Fr. Michael Bombak

Luke 20:19-26- Lovingly Minted

Faithcoins, Image, Likeness, mint, Money

Glory be to Jesus Christ! Do you have a coin collection? My son has a collection of coins from around the world, and also a special collection of coins which were minted in the year he was born. Coins are some of the most interesting artifacts from our current culture and from ancient cultures. The coins of the Roman Empire allowed business and trade to happen across a wide and diverse empire through a common currency. We read in today's passage of duplicitous people trying to trap Jesus in His speech. They give Him a question: "Is it lawful to…

Nov

24

2016

By Fr. Michael Bombak

Luke 20:9-18- Mind His Grapes

Faith

Glory be to Jesus Christ! Are you into family histories? It is always interesting seeing family trees, and learning more about our ancestors. What sort of person was my great grandfather? What was life like for my great great aunt? How did she live a "normal day"? These family histories are not simply disjointed recordings of what happened in a time and place far away, but stories of how we have arrived where we are today. Some are lessons to repeat and some are warnings of what to completely reject. As the famous maxim goes "those who are ignorant of…