BISHOP
Essential role of Church for a free society
If you follow my thoughts regularly, you will have noticed that I rarely mention the names of partisan political figures. I do not and will not tell anyone for whom to vote.
Things that are true
As I have just completed six years as Bishop of Albany (April 10) and near the 47th anniversary of my ordination to the priesthood (July 2), I find myself overwhelmed with gratitude for the blessings in my life, the people God has sent his Holy Spirit into, “to teach and …
Keep telling the good news
The title of this article may seem to beg the question: is there any good news to tell. Or, if there is good news, why is it so hard to find. Neither question is really relevant to the existence of good news. If it is there — and it most …
United in prayer
Throughout our beautiful state, people of faith are uniting this week in prayer. Chastened and humbled by graphic reminders of our spiritual, social and physical vulnerabilities and the evil of which human beings are capable, the best in us and among us — dare I suggest, the life that God …
Keep the calm
“We got a panic on our hands on the Fourth of July.” No, this is not a prophecy or a warning from the CDC. No one, but no one, can predict the future. Jesus himself, when questioned about the last days, or even his own personal destiny, refused to reveal what …
The holy coach
This week we commemorate the Ascension, when the post-Resurrection appearances of Jesus cease so that he may become more immediately present to all who wish to receive him into their hearts. He has prepared his disciples by promising them another “advocate” — he is the first — which they will …
For God, no one is non-essential
“Something there is that doesn’t love a wall,” wrote poet Robert Frost of non-essential boundaries that neighbors maintain to reassure themselves of the lines that keep them safe from one another. His poem, “Mending Wall,” is a reflection on a springtime ritual whose meaning and utility he begs to question …
Mary’s month — our month
She does everything for her family. The sacrifice a mother will make for her child knows no bounds.
Love finds a way
Could it be that the more we feel separated from God, the closer God is drawing to us?
To tell the truth
Just when things are going well, catastrophe strikes, and suddenly everything seems to collapse. Conversely, when our world seems to be falling apart, it may only be beginning. To tell the truth, things are not always as they first seem.
An Easter story
The Holy Spirit is on a roll! An out-of-state friend of mine — a tuition-paying parent whose three children attend Catholic schools — texted me that his young daughter is “having a meeting with her classmates in our living room.” This sentence struck me because it’s packed.
God never gives up on us
Like never before, the whole world is united, at war with a common enemy.
Comfort food, spiritual and physical
Yes, this is serious. Yes, it is deadly for some. No, we should not go out and about as usual, and congregate in groups of more than 10. Follow all the state (and, mostly, common sense) imposed regulations. Etc. Etc.
PASTORAL LETTER FROM THE BISHOP
With those struggling with coronavirus fears, Bishop Scharfenberger offers reassurance that ‘God is with us.’
Loving our families through pain
Are you afraid? Maybe not for yourself, but with so much uncertainty in the world today — even about what is real and not real — how can we keep our families safe without terrifying them? With the specter of Covid-19 — the dreaded Coronavirus — said to be all …
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