As we dedicate this coming Monday to the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, we would do well to reflect upon his understanding of human relationship, and his realization of the triumphant power of love.

In FY2024-25, for example, our parish celebrated more than three dozen infant baptisms. That’s three dozen chances for our community: first to support parents as they baptize their children in the faith, but then to consider our role in the rest of their lives.

Long after the company slogans have moved on to something else, God's offer of newness will remain. Whether it's January or July, we will find in him the satisfaction of rebirth we all so deeply crave.

“With us” isn’t just where God is; it’s who he is. In other words, it is not in God’s nature to be anything but with us. Jesus’ birth is a living testament to that reality.

[Advent] is a slow, step-by-step journey with a clear destination; the way is clearly marked but requires intention and grit to follow it; the experience will transform the traveler.

Longfellow understood Advent’s promise: Jesus will be on the scene every time, in every circumstance. He is coming into our grief, pain, bewilderment, and even despair, so as to set things right.

The prophet Jeremiah tells us that God knew and “dedicated” each of us before he even formed us. In other words, he has staked out a unique and unrepeatable calling for each and every human being.

Advent is a time of self-reckoning. It is a season of intense intellectual and spiritual honesty, so that we may come to realize that, without Jesus, we are hungry, homeless, and cold. 

Charity is not a mere abstract ideal at Our Lady of Mount Carmel; rather, it is a lived reality, made manifest in your countless acts of service. 

We should keep those who serve and have served close in our hearts and minds - not just on November 11th, but every day.

Much more significant than the admiration we amassed is whether our lives ultimately directed others to Jesus.

Today, as we take time to honor the faithful departed for their fidelity in life and pray for them, it’s good and natural to remember that time will slip out of our hands too.

There is not  a single human experience to which he does not attend. Whatever we face on October 26, 2025 - or October 27th, or November 30th, or the whole of 2026, or the coming decade - God is the close-up, constant, unchanging presence in our ever changing world.

The more truly human we become, the more we can offer anyone we encounter - young and old alike - the genuine, loving relationship every human craves.

“…this past week we published our Annual Stewardship Report for the last fiscal year. You can access it at www.olmc.church/annual-report”

We’re all invited to be caught up in the mystery of God, and to recognize his fingerprints over all of creation.

‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’

“You cannot serve both God and mammon.” 

When we suffer, God is very near to us, drawing purpose out of our pain and transforming it into his own beautiful goodness.

Most importantly, we should ask ourselves “who.” Who am I seeking?