Posts by Fr Dino Vanin

The gospel passage for the 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time offers us a way out of a lot of the apprehension and restlessness we experience whenever faced with a daunting situation and we tip toward dejection or even mental paralysis. And I am talking about challenges much, much smaller than having to feed a crowd of about five thousand men, without counting women and children. (cf. John 6:1-15) The huge mistake we keep making is as old as the world itself. It…

Whenever we heed the soft voice of care and empathy whispering in our soul, we might feel so great and so uplifted that we ignore our need to rest and get re-energized. This is what happened to the first Twelve. Boosted by the enviable feeling with which the Lord rewards good deeds, they were eager to share with him their successes and feats. (cf. Mark 6:30) The crucial aspect of our human nature, which needs to be pointed out, is…

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavens, as he chose us in him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and without blemish before him. In love he destined us for adoption to himself through Jesus Christ, in accord with the favor of his will, for the praise of the glory of his grace that he granted us in the beloved. Ephesians 1:3-6 After…

“…they shall know that a prophet has been among them.” (Ezekiel 2:5) This is my unconventional definition of a prophet. A prophet is a person selected and anointed by God to be charged, imbued, possessed and transformed by his divine words to such a degree that it becomes impossible for his audience to continue to live their lives as if he had never confronted them with those words. Without a single exception, God’s words are more than challenging; they all come…

Jesus tells the formerly hemorrhaging woman: “Daughter, your faith has saved you. Go in peace and be free of your affliction.” (Mark 5:34) And to distraught Jairus: “Do not be afraid; just have faith.” (Mark 5:36) This day, and every day, Jesus offers himself to us as the source of inner peace and freedom from fear, especially paralyzing fear, if we wholeheartedly place our faith in him. The Catholic Church has the deepest knowledge of Christ Jesus, her divine Bridegroom. For over…

The smell of a new car seems to have the power to make everyone riding in it feel better and acquire an overall positive outlook. They admire its new features; they touch here and there; they stroke the upholstery; they let their eyes feast on all corners of its interior. Today, we are reminded by St. Paul that “whoever is in Christ is a new creation.” (2 Corinthians 5:17) We need this reminder as so many events, along with painful circumstances…

Yet we are courageous, and we would rather leave the body and go home to the Lord. (2 Corinthians 5:8) I don’t know how you feel about this personal statement from St. Paul. Do you find it odd for people to wish to die so that they could be at home with our heavenly Father forever? Or do you find it rather dark and off-putting? No matter how we take it, I think that for a healthy person to wish to be at…

The Gospel passage for the Tenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Mark 3:20-35) mentions what is needed, in Jesus’ eyes, to turn a house into a home.  Jesus came home with his disciples. Mark 3:20 Jesus and his disciples had been on a mission to preach the good news of God’s Kingdom in many villages and towns. At home, in Capernaum, they were in urgent need of recovering and re-energizing themselves before the next mission. However, the crowds had even more pressing…

It is patently clear that the word “blood” is the most revealing word in all three readings of this liturgy. We immediately associate blood with life; while we recoil from the sight of spilled blood as, right away, it conjures up the specter of a violent death. The significance and the message conveyed by blood are evident in the sealing of the covenant between the community (the twelve tribes of Israel represented by the twelve pillars) and Yahweh God (Exodus…

The feast of the Most Holy Trinity is providential in more ways than one. The statement I am about to make about it might sound outlandish and preposterous: this feast is providential because a good number of believers tend to reduce God to a manageable size which would make our brand of religiosity convenient and God somewhat “controllable.” Let us put this unwise thought to rest right away: Our God is in heaven; whatever God wills is done. (Psalm 115:3) Already in…

Fierce attacks have been, and are, directed mostly against the Catholic Church by those who are hellbent on replacing reality, nature, truth, decency, and common sense with crazy ideologies inspired by the prince of darkness. Satan’s minions know that the Catholic Church might be the last standing bulwark of morality based on natural law and on the Gospel. Hence, it should not be surprising that often we get upset, deeply concerned, and even become apprehensive and frightened just watching the…

The Ascension of the Lord Jesus is a Solemnity because for Jesus, as Head of the Body, it marks the crowning of his complete triumph over all our enemies, death included, and his full glorification by the Father. As far as we, members of the Body are concerned, this Solemnity comprises all that the Risen Lord said and did after his Resurrection to prepare all his disciples, across the millennia, to abide in him, to relate to him and to…