“And when you have done all you have been commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants; we have done what we were obliged to do.’” Those words Our Lord spoke to his disciples are certainly among his most unsettling. What could he have meant by them?

On one occasion last week, I woke up thinking about finances - those of the parish and my own as well. Then, in the chapel, the Spirit led me to a meditation on mercy, where I was given to see a relationship between the two.

It was born of remembering something Pope Francis said, which has stayed with me. He said, “Only mercy creates.” I continue to return to that for hope, because it reminds me that although there is much decline in this present age, there is also mercy.

While serving as high school chaplain, I tried all sorts of ways to get the attention of the students. Not seldom, unfortunately, I would try too hard while speaking to them.

As a young man, Pope John Paul II was introduced to Carmelite spirituality and a love affair began. He fell in love with the cross. He certainly knew his share of suffering, losing his sister, then mother, then brother, then his father, while coming of age in Nazi occupied Poland. But he learned to unite himself with Christ crucified, Who alone redeems suffering.

Resonating in my heart all week has been the thought of how much Our Lord truly desired to die for us on the cross, and that the real pain he suffered was the indifference of men. It wasn’t the hardness of the nails, but the hardness of man’s heart that hurt him.

In the Office of Readings this past week, Saint Paul used the expression “real widows” when writing to Timothy. “Honor the claims of those who are real widows.” He was speaking about people - in this case, women - whose needs are truly genuine.

This Sunday’s readings afford us an opportunity to look at the difference between a civil union and a sacramental marriage. It’s a bit of a sensitive issue, but we shouldn’t shy away from looking at God’s plan for marriage. After all, it’s a love story.

In almost all of the alleged messages attributed to the apparitions in Medjugorje, Our Lady addresses us as “Dear children.”