Holy Hour for Life 2026

God IS love. This is the very essence of Trinity since there is the one who loves, the one who is loved and the love that passes from one to the other. Love is God’s very essence. It is his very nature, his whole being. So, in the trinity we find the alpha and the omega, the beginning and the end of love, full, complete, nothing to be added and nothing to be taken away. Before all else was – this love was; all encompassing, complete, and eternal. Yes, God is love. But God is also life. He is not just alive as a tree or bird may be but rather, as Saint Thomas Aquinas tells us, He is Life itself. He is the very act of being. So, God does not have life as a possession or an attribute, as we do, but He is being itself, life itself. God’s love is creative, and from His love all other life springs forth. We know something about that, since in one way or another we have each experienced the life-giving force of love, be it the creative power of art, science, engineering, teaching, or be it the intimacy between a husband and wife. Love is creative and it follows the pattern laid down by our God.

As the author of life, it is only God who has the authority to give life and to take it. God and God alone is the Lord of Live and Death. He alone has sovereignty over it, and he alone delegates that to others as he wills – to doctors, to parents, to others, in limited ways and as situations may demand. But in each and every one of these situations God remains the Lord of Life and at no point are we to do with life simply as we please. The Catechism teaches that all human life is sacred because from its beginning it involves the creative action of God himself, and this human life remains forever in a special and unique relationship with the Creator, who is its sole end. If we recognize that truth, we easily see that each life has a God given dignity which no government, no court, no loud and demanding court of public opinion can or should try to supplant. This is why the Catholic Church stands firm and teaches without apology or compromise the affront to God and to life that abortion, suicide, euthanasia, and cloning are and will always be. To reject and destroy life is to blind oneself to love. It is the shattering of wisdom and clarity; it is the abandonment of conscience, and it is the embrace of confusion and loss. It is the ascendance of darkness and death, and yes evil.

This loss of conscience, of clarity, this clear rejection of the God’s plan of life, is thrown into clear relief with the recently passed ‘Prioritizing Patient Access to Care Act’ (August 10, 2026) which permits abortion throughout pregnancy removing all statutory limitations. Let us pause just there. Imagine abortion up until the moment of birth. With this new law, it will be up to the physician’s judgement, with all time limits and restrictions removed.

This is where we have now arrived, and I fear will continue from. This is what our Commonwealth puts on display and promotes as patient care. Is this care for the child? Is this care for the mother? Is this care for our youth, and especially for our young girls, who continue to witness how little society and culture appear to really care for them.

So, what can we do? In the recent letter from the Bishops of Massachusetts on this subject, we are told to pray, to witness, to speak up and to choose life and to promote that message within our families and to our youth. But we must also prepare, for the repeal of this law, though in process, is unlikely, and there will be many broken lives, many broken hearts, truly suffering souls who will need our attention. There will be many who will for the rest of their lives carry the heavy burden of a momentary yet truly devastating decision. We, you and I, will find ourselves in times and places where we can share the message we have each received, the message of forgiveness, reconciliation, mercy, and peace. The message that tells us that this God of Life is also the God of Love who rejects no one who comes to Him. This God who invites without restraint all to come into and abide in the love relationship of the triune God. For within him we live and move and have our being. Within him is a mercy unfathomable, deep and without limit. As we look upon the other, the hurting and broken hearted, we must see in each the face of Jesus and so be moved to comfort them. We must share with them the solace that is found only in the One who created us, gave us life, loved us into being.

As we sit now before our Lord, we pray for all those impacted by abortion by suicide, and by euthanasia (currently illegal in the Commonwealth but legal in Vermont and Maine). We pray that God gives us his mercy, that we experience his love in our lives and that we carry his message of forgiveness and mercy wherever it needs to be heard.

Amen.

Deacon Peter Bujwid
St Agnes Church, Arlington, Massachusetts 

October 18, 2026

A - Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

In our gospel reading, Jesus speaks about the Kingdom of Heaven using symbolic language – a field sown with good seed, a mustard seed destined to grow, and yeast that leavens. In fact, scripture speaks often of heaven using symbols and metaphors.  

 And so, we learn that heaven is like a wedding feast to which the King invites his guests.   Heaven is a temple where God dwells and within which the liturgy is forever celebrated and where the Seraphim sing in unceasing worship.  Heaven is the Father's house where Jesus goes to prepare for us a dwelling place.  Heaven is a paradise, a place of light and peace. Heaven is a movement of God where, “He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore.”   Heaven is the new Jerusalem, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.  A world transformed so that the King may live amongst us. 

 These pictures and symbols help us to gain some sense of heaven, but it remains beyond our ability to fully understand. This is clearly communicated to us in 1st Corinthians (2:9), for "no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him."

But we must make mention of one more description of heaven.  Here we are presented with something we can understand very well.  For in heaven, we experience the beatific vision: the immediate, intimate, full, and complete encounter between God and our soul.

We can understand this because we all know something about relationships.  We all have good relationships and we have poor relationships.   But in this case, it is the fullness of a relationship.   Pope Benedict describes it this way, “the ...divine essence immediately reveals itself plainly, clearly, and openly”.    So, heaven is most profoundly a relationship with our creator - a relationship which continues into eternity.

It is good to speak of heaven.  These descriptions of heaven are high, wide, broad, and deep, like the mature mustard bush.  And just like that bush, this Kingdom of Heaven does not announce itself in a loud or immediately demonstrable way but rather grows slowly from the smallest of seeds, just as our relationship with the triune God also grows slowly.  And it must grow, since it is by way of that singular relationship grown to fulfillment, that we know and see heaven.  With family and friends, we remain invested in nurturing, encouraging, supporting, and sacrificing to maintain and grow in those relationships.  And so, it must be with our relationship with the trinity.  We are to nurture, find encouragement, and be willing to sacrifice to grow closer to God.   In doing so we already live in the Kingdom of heaven by virtue of this relationship which is forged in love – forged since it is not always easy. 

Our faith life is the foundation of this relationship.  A faith life anchored in the sacraments, in scripture reading, and in loving our neighbor as we love ourselves.  And we bring these and all life's lived experience into an active prayer life.  A prayer life that follows a regular daily structure; a prayerful rhythm by which we discipline ourselves and pursue and nourish our relationship with the creator. It is here that the Spirit intercedes for us, when at times we find ourselves weak or at a loss.  It is here where the bonds of our relationship to the trinity are formed, deepened and developed over time – like the mustard seed which grows to become a large bush. And it is here that the first light of heaven can be experienced in preparation for the moment when we will see God face to face.

It is good to speak of heaven. But we must also acknowledge the possibility of its loss.  For there will be a time of harvest where the wheat will be gathered in, but the weeds will be taken away to be burnt. Jesus tells us that his angels will collect out of his kingdom those who cause others to sin and all evildoers. This is a hard truth. And one that should encourage us to be serious about our faith life and how we love ourselves and love others.

So let us not tarry but know something of heaven today by pursuing a growing relationship with the God who himself pursues a relationship with us. And may this little seed of relationship soon grow into something beautiful, eternal and waiting and ready for the harvest.  

Deacon Peter Bujwid
St. Agnes Church, Arlington, Massachusetts
Sunday 19th July, 2026 

 

Year A – Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity

I am sure many of us have heard of the recent surge in interest in the Catholic faith throughout the US.  Here in Boston, the archdiocese is reporting that the number of young adults being baptized and confirmed has more than doubled since 2023.   And that is something for all of us to celebrate. But I fear this positive development needs to be tempered with some less positive news.   I read recently a 2026 report which stated that many adults under 35 are today experiencing a profound "confidence crisis."  Many report high levels of emotional distress and suffering, self-loathing, harsh internal criticism, feelings of worthlessness and immense loneliness.   These negative emotions are particularly felt by the Gen Z generation, those today who are 18 to 29 years old.  The root causes for these phenomena are for others to explore, but we can be certain that economic instability, the rise of digital echo chambers, those lost COVID years, and our various global problems play a part.  Add to this the growing concerns over AI and job security, and we cannot be surprised that our young adults feel lost, fearful and alone.   But into today’s challenging time, we have all been placed to bring good news, for we are the carriers of very good news.   

Today is the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity and we are invited to explore, experience and acknowledge our place within this mystery.  For we live our life of faith within the mystery of the triune God who is immediate and present to us all the time.  For many, this God appears far away or even absent, yet in truth God is so very close and He tells us that repeatedly despite our deafness.   In our first reading, the newly freed Israelites had already lost their way. They fashioned the golden calf before which Aaron built an altar.  On seeing this, Moses in his anger broke the two stone tablets but now he returns to the Lord on Mount Sinai.   Perhaps Moses was expecting severe punishment on all the Israelites but instead we hear the LORD describe himself as a merciful and gracious God, slow to anger and rich in kindness and fidelity.  For God’s justice is tempered with mercy and kindness.  

Who do we know that is unnecessarily harsh on themselves, unforgiving, experiencing self-loathing?  Who do we know that is saddened by their life choices, who needs to hear this truth about God?   That God does not pull away but remains devoted to our well being.   

And it is Jesus, the Son, who demonstrates this living word of God.  We heard in our Gospel that, “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.”  That is God’s mission – to offer eternal life to all.  This is the mission accepted by the Son.  And this is our mission as well.  In faith, we acknowledge the significance of this in our own lives while placing our arm around those that fail to see this clearly.   Jesus did not reject those who would hate him, insult him, as we would likely do.  Rather in obedience to the Father, the Son hands himself over to sinners so all can gain eternal life.  As Jesus laid down his life, we are drawn deeper into the mystery of trinity, by better understanding what real love is and what self-giving love looks like.  

Who do we know that needs to hear that life can be lived so radically differently from the life script dictated to us by the loud, deaf and blind?  Who is it that needs to hear that in losing something of ourselves by way of sacrificial love, we find meaning and a life reborn? 

In our second reading, Saint Paul is writing to the Corinthian church.  He is writing to a church divided into factions, split along class lines; a church still guided by the secular values of Rome rather than the precepts of a Christian community.  St Paul urges unity, love and peace, so that this church may better reflect these trinitarian qualities.  He tells them to rejoice, mend their ways, and to be blessed in the fellowship of the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit who is the giver of life and the one who makes unity and holiness possible.  

"Who do we know that needs to put back together a life fractured by secular living?"  Who do we know that needs healing from the rifts of separation, frustration, and loneliness?  Who do we know that thirsts for the Holy Spirit and the joy He brings?  

In his providence it appears God is today preparing our youth to fully awaken to his presence. Our young adults will likely be the means of evangelization; teaching and sharing the good news with their peers.   They will be the ones whose voices will counter the voices of self-loathing, self-criticism, and the feelings of worthlessness and loneliness.  But this task is not only theirs, for the Spirit is with all of us.  And Jesus has demonstrated how we are to love.  And God has reaffirmed his kindness and fidelity towards all of us.   We thank God for our youth and young adults.  We encourage and support them, as they, like us, and as Ezekiel describes, take firm root and grow into trees along the river of living water bearing fruit every month, with leaves that heal (Ezekiel 47:12).    Amen.  

Deacon Peter Bujwid
St Camillus Church, Arlington, Massachusetts