Transfiguration 2026

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Peter, James, and John see Him transfigured, changed, metamorphosed. His face shines like the sun; His clothes dazzle with uncreated light. The holy prophets Moses and Elijah appear.

Yet even this inner circle of the disciples does not understand. They see Jesus as one of these holy prophets. There are like a recent Uber driver of mine. He had a distinctly Islamic name, but he was listening to the local Christian radio station. So I asked him if he was a Christian. He said, “No, I’m Muslim, but we believe in Jesus too.”

He’s right….

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The Epiphany of Our Lord 2024

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Tribulation is a gift. It doesn’t feel like it at the time. Nevertheless, tribulation is a gift. It is a gift because it prepares us for the Gospel.

The journey of the Magi (“wise men”) to the Christ shows this to us. The Magi don’t find Jesus where they are looking (Jerusalem). Instead they meet a fiendish and duplicitous Herod. Led by the Holy Spirit, the path to Christ went through anxiety and need….

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Oculi, the Third Sunday in Lent 2023

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There is a spiritual realm. There are demonic powers. And if our eyes were opened, we would see it at work in our world, with terrifying intensity.

Demons harm people. In today’s Gospel, Jesus warns about the danger of people being freed from the demonic returning to its servitude, because—the image goes—the house was not furnished. There was no change….

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The Epiphany of Our Lord 2023

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In the days of Herod the king, men asked, “Where is He who has been born king of the Jews?”

A dangerous question! Herod was notoriously paranoid, and notoriously ruthless. He eliminated anyone he perceived a threat. This included several sons. To call Herod “troubled” at this news is a masterclass in understatement…

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