OCIA can be likened to the friendly neighbor who - just a few steps ahead of you as you both hurry out of a thunderstorm and into the cheery church - holds the door open for you.

Joseph had the courage of a lion when safeguarding Mary and Jesus, yet lived with all the meekness of a lamb in his daily life.

Contrary to the common understanding of the word, a retreat is not an escape or a surrender. Rather, it’s a deliberate return to First Things.

That said, we as Christians understand that no person, party, or political (or entertainment) platform is supreme. Our deepest allegiance is to Jesus.

Sometimes the most courageous thing we can do is simply reach out.

It is a reminder that holiness is forged in the ordinary, and that redemption is always possible, even (especially?) in the most familiar places.

Thanks to a latticework of partnerships and the excellent efforts of countless laborers, the soil of OLMC and LGA is abundantly fertile: a place where roots grow deep and children’s lives start to blossom into the dreams God has for each and every one of them.

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? 

This Labor Day, let’s take some time to be re-created with God’s own rest and playfulness. That way, whatever we face the next day, we can begin again with all the zest and zeal of God himself.

In reality, true greatness lies in loving obedience to God’s will, no matter how mundane it might seem at the time.

The joy our servers experienced on Monday was the fruit of their giving something, indeed, giving themselves, over to Jesus. The prospect of holding nothing back from our good Lord is often intimidating. But if we begin by committing ourselves to the little sacrifices that love demands of us on a daily basis, we will find our fears melting away and the impossible acts of love become not only possible, but desirable.