Father Matthew Wiering Podcast

What's the Beam in your Eye?

Today Jesus gives us the very humorous image of a man in need of assistance with a sliver with his eye, and the person who wants to help him has a beam in his own eye! For those of us who are inclined to help others with their issues, Jesus commands, "Remove the beam from your own eye first." What is the beam in my eye? That would make a great focal point for us for our efforts this Lent! In order for us to lead others in faith, which Jesus is asking of us, we first must be healed of our own blindness and be rid of that beam!

How Can We Love our Enemies?

In our very challenging Gospel today, Jesus commands us to love our enemies. We could include within this category anyone whom we really struggle to love. St. Thomas Aquinas gives us a definition of love that is very important for us to understand Jesus's command, saying, love is "willing the good of the other as other." We may have strongly negative feelings towards someone, but, since love is not a feeling but rather a choice for the good of the other, we can still love despite negative feelings. We can will the good of the other. To do so is to love like our Heavenly Father, who loves all -- whether we respond to his love in the way he hopes ... or not.

Happy are the Poor?!?

In Luke's Beatitudes, basically everything that I try to avoid -- like poverty, sadness, hunger, and being disliked -- Jesus says is good for me. How easy is it for us to be attached more to earthly things than to God! It is my poverty, experienced in different ways, that helps me to live and embrace my identity as beloved son of the Father, on whom I am completely dependent. What a blessing it is to be poor and needing everything from God!

Want Your Life to be Fruitful? Say 'Yes' to Jesus

In today's gospel Peter allows Jesus to get in his boat, and, even though he had just spent a fruitless night fishing, goes back to deep water and lowers his nets, all at the command of Jesus. The fish slam into the net. If we want our life to be fruitful, then we must say 'yes' to Jesus and do whatever he tells us to do!

Shining the Light of Christ in our Current Political Situation

Today for the feast of the Presentation of the Lord (traditionally known as "Candlemas"), the liturgy has us process into the church each holding a lit candle. The symbolism here is that Christ has now passed his light on to us, and we are to burn brightly in the world, attracting many living in darkness to Christ, the true Light. Christians throughout the centuries have done this, often effecting great changes for the good in civil society, and sometimes, even changing the world. May our light shine in the darkness!

What is your Charism?

In today's second reading from St. Paul's 1st Letter to the Corinthians, the author uses the make-up of the human body to help us understand the Church. As the human body is composed of various parts, all with different yet essential functions for the health of the whole, so the body of the Church is also composed of members with different yet essential functions, which Paul calls "charisms." Have you ever thought about how God has gifted you with unique gifts to assist in the building up of the Church? What is your charism, and are you using it?

Baptism of the Lord: Christ's Radical Solidarity with Sinners

It's very strange to imagine this strange event that inaugurates the public ministry of Christ: The holy and sinless Lord standing in line with sinners to be baptized. It makes sense that sinners like you and me would present themselves to John to confess their sins and be baptized, drowning the sins of their old life in the waters and emerging, resolved to live a new life. Why does Christ present himself to be baptized? Not to receive forgiveness for his own sins but for ours. Not so that he can live a new life but so that we can. Christ takes our own sins to the waters baptism, on our behalf, as if they were his own sins. Now that is radical solidarity!

Epiphany: Those Who Seek the Lord Find Joy

St. Matthew includes an interesting detail in the account of the visit of the Magi: When the wise men announce the star signaling the birth of the King of the Jews, King Herod was troubled and "all Jerusalem with him." What is clear is that those who are closed to the coming of the Christ have troubled hearts. And those, who, like the Magi, seek and find the Christ, have joy. Let's be like the Magi!

Marveling at Motherhood

Today we celebrate the Motherhood of Mary and reflect on the great gift that it is for us to ourselves be children of Mary and also to bear Christ into the world. Happy New Year!

A Jubilee Year: A New Start with God

This week Pope Francis opened the Holy Door at St. Peter's Basilica, and today our own bishop inaugurates the Jubilee Year in our own diocese. God offers us extraordinary graces during this holy year -- make we welcome this invitation to make a new start with God and others, especially our family.