Numerous members of the heavenly host persevered, endured, and evangelized through far FAR worse. Quite likely they are having a good laugh at the luxury of my puffball persecutions.
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Author: Alan Hommerding
Alan Hommerding has been with World Library Publications (WLP) since 1991, most recently as Liturgical Publications Editor for the WLP division of GIA Publications. He is also a composer of numerous published choral and instrumental works, and is well-known as an author of hymn texts. Alan has served the North American Academy of Liturgy as convener of the liturgical music seminar, and as a member of the executive group for the Catholic Academy of Liturgy. He has been a regular contributor to the PrayTell blog since 2016.
Mission/Evangelization and Colonialism/Imperialism
As with so many other matters, who we define as “the lost” can have numerous threads of racial supremacy, cultural colonialism, sacral imperialism, and other biases woven into its warp and woof.
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Veni, Respiratio Spiritus!
“And with that he breathed on them and said, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit.’ ” (John 20:22). I recall hearing this verse on Easter II 2020, and how it tickled my ears in a new way; even moreso in 2021, with a year-plus under my belt of living and attempting to minister in the world of an airborne virus.
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Where Two or Three Are Gathered . . . Then What?
Perhaps our real problem with grasping the topsy-turviness of the resurrection accounts is that we look at them as the final chapters of the gospels, and therefore we think that they are endings.
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In the Presence of the Angels
Angels are—first and foremost, above all else—messengers of the working out of the will of God.
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The Game of Lent
As the Scottish poet Robert Burns observed, to see ourselves as others see us is God’s greatest gift, and the Simpson household has certainly helped me do that.
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King Jesus Is a-Listenin’
Time and space are hallmarks in African American worship. The people gather to receive the Word and Sacrament. Movement from Khronos time (human time) to Kyros time (God time) occurs.
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The Word became flesh . . . so what?
If the Word matters, then words matter.
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#liturgyandjusticepart2
It is our acting and working together in our liturgical prayer that ought to be mirrored in our acting and working together for justice.
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#liturgyandjusticepart1
We need to remember that the fourth and final action of the eucharistic celebration is mission. When we do so, we may find our work reflected in and enriched by our liturgical prayer. Thus the dialogue between life and liturgy can bear fruit for the reign of God.
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