King Duncan gives these definitions from boys and girls on what love is. There was a group of boys and girls, ages 4-8 who were asked, “What does love mean?” ...

The story is told of a farmer who had just rescued a lost sheep. When asked how the sheep got lost, the farmer replied, "They just nibble themselves lost. They go from one tuft of grass to another, until at last...

Brett Blair relates a story about the baseball legend, George Herman “Babe” Ruth. Babe Ruth had hit 714 home runs during his baseball career and was playing one of his last full major league games. It was the...

What is a miracle, in your estimation? How can you tell when a miracle has occurred? Are either of these stories miracles? A first grade teacher was reading the story of the Three Little Pigs...

This past week we have gone through a litany of emotions. We had the cheers of Jesus entering into the city of David, Jerusalem. We had fear when Jesus was taken away...

With the celebration this weekend of Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord, we begin the most solemn week of our faith life. It begins with...

Who was this man that Mark Grimsley writes about? He was one of the greatest soldiers of his time. He lived at a time when his country needed great soldiers! Yet his past so discouraged him...

A man borrowed a book from an acquaintance. As he read through it, he was intrigued to find parts of the book underlined with the letters YBH written in the margin. When he returned the book to the owner, he asked what the YBH meant...

Rev. King Duncan, a United Methodist minister, offers these insights in today’s gospel proclamation of the Transfiguration. The story of Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration occurred at a time when...

We are about to enter into one of the major seasons of our liturgical year: The Season of Lent. What is Lent? Lent is the period from Ash Wednesday to Easter Sunday, during which Christians purify themselves by praying, fasting, repenting of their sins, and making changes and sacrifices in their lives...

In his book Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis wrote, "Do not waste your time bothering whether you 'love' your neighbor act as if you did. As soon as we do this, we find one of the great secrets..

Wade Burton tells about a man who was riding a bus from Chicago to Miami. He had a stop-over in Atlanta. While he was sitting at a lunch counter, a woman came out of the ladies' rest room carrying a tiny baby...

There is a traditional story entitled, “Is Vodka Allowed?” There is a legend which states that in the late Middle Ages, the Russian Czar had come to the conclusion that in order to unite his country, there would have to be one state religion to which everyone should belong...

One of my all-time favorite Broadway musicals is “The Lion King”. I had the privilege of seeing it again on my most recent trip to New York. It has a stunning opening with the song, “Circle of Life”...

There is a wonderful cartoon series in the paper entitled, “Family Circus”. In the cartoon one time, the little girl sits her baby brother on her lap and tells him the story of Christmas...

Our first reading comes from 1 Samuel. What was proclaimed at the Liturgy was the latter part of Chapter One (1). But the initial verses of this book helps set the tone for what we heard...

King Duncan tells the story of a Sunday school teacher who challenged her children. She instructed them to take some time on Sunday afternoon to write a letter to God...

There are some of us who are still around who remembers the late night host, Johnny Carson. He had a side-kick who opened the show each night for him...

G. W. Target wrote a short story titled "The Window," which tells of two men, both seriously ill, who occupied the same small hospital room. One man was...

With this First Sunday of Advent we begin anew with another change in our liturgical celebrations. We begin a new liturgical year...

Our ecclesiastical or Church calendar marks its conclusion with this last Sunday of the liturgical year. The liturgical year is, of course, different from the calendar year. The liturgical year has four major seasons...

Several years ago, Carl Reiner and Mel Brooks did a comedy skit called the "2013 Year Old Man". In the skit, Reiner interviews Brooks, who is the old gentleman. At one point, Reiner asks the old man, "Did you always believe in the Lord?"

There is a small Catholic chapel in the heart of Santa Fe, New Mexico, called Chapel of Our Lady of Light. It has a fascinating story attached to the early days when there was...

G. K. (Gilbert Keith) Chesterton was an English writer who published works on philosophy, ontology, poetry, plays, journalism, public lectures and debates, literary and art criticism, biography, Catholic apologetics, and fiction, including fantasy and detective fiction...

Our protagonist in today’s Gospel is a man named Bartimaeus. Bartimaeus is blind. Most likely, he was sitting at his usual spot each day, in particular, this day, which turns out most eventful for him...

We can look at our readings today from the standpoint of a traffic light. Traffic lights have red, amber and green lights...

A traditional list of immediate "basic needs" is usually listed as food, water, shelter and clothing. But many modern also emphasize...

Crime scene investigators, which today have been popularized by the television series known as CSI, accent a truth that never seems to vary...

Former Senator Alan Simpson said once, "Up in Wyoming we have more cattle than people. We like it that way." In the Senator’s opinion...

In Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, Malvolio comments: "Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them." Much truth can be...

We find ourselves in a hospital waiting room. One rather self-important individual was getting impatient. Unwilling to wait any longer, he barged in and...

If we believe in Jesus, we know the boundaries are erased inside and out, life's for us all. Fred Craddock tells the story of a missionary sent to preach the gospel in India near the end of World War II...

Brett Blair tells this story about Queen Victoria and a visiting African chieftain. According to the story, Queen Victoria was once...

Aesop once told a fable about a group of mice who lived in a barn. Life was wonderful, except for a sneaky cat. Hardly a day went by without a poor mouse being chased or even eaten by the cat. Finally, the head mouse called a meeting...

In 1984 Sally Field starred in a movie entitled Places in the Heart. It is set in the South during the Depression of the 1930’s. It is about a widow and three small children who...

Donald Macleod relates this story about Harry Emerson Fosdick. Years ago, Harry Emerson Fosdick, then at the height of his influence as...

Bob Hope died in 2003 at age 100. Before Bob died, his wife, Dolores, asked him where he wanted to be buried. And Bob, in his usual comedic style, answered, "Surprise me!" One night when Bob was...

Today, and for the next five (5) weeks, we take a break from Mark’s gospel and turn to John’s...

Listen to a synopsis of Oscar Wilde’s classic tale, “The Selfish Giant”…Once upon a time there was a beautiful garden that was owned by an ugly and unfriendly Giant...

When one goes to our nation’s capital, visitors usually want to see the standard monuments: the White House, the Congress, the Supreme Court, the various memorials and perhaps some of the Smithsonian...

We have two stories today in regards to listening. Our first one comes from King Duncan. A cynical young medical student confronted a pastor...

There is a marvelous miracle described in Willa Cather's book, Death Comes for the Archbishop. In the story, Father Junipero and his friend, Father Andrea, set out on a journey through a Mexican desert...

This is one of those unusual years in our Liturgical Calendar. The Solemnity of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist, June 24th, falls on a Sunday. In the grading of our liturgical feast days...