Catholic Latte

Focusing on this weekend’s Gospel (Mt 13:24-43), Fr. Eric expounds upon the Parable of the Weeds and the Wheat (Mt 13:24-30), the Parable of the Mustard Seed (Mt 13:31-32) and the Parable of the Leavened Bread (Mt 13:33) to articulate what the Lord teaches us about preparing for the end times.  Topics include the need to acknowledge that our time here on this earth is necessarily a time of pilgrimage and spiritual warfare, the Lord’s confidence in the good in this world to triumph ultimately over that which is evil, and the need to prioritize a healthy respect for the natural process of development and growth over a desire to be perfect right away.
Other topics include the invitation to be small and hidden; the importance of the interior life when it comes to cooperating with God’s transformative grace; and the significance of seeing the end times as  a time of harvest and completion, as opposed to an arbitrary end of all things.
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Even though the primary focus of today’s Gospel (Mt 13:1-23) is the Parable of the Sower, Fr. Eric focuses on the issue raised by Our Lord in the middle of the Gospel, where He address the question as to why He speaks in parables to begin with (Mt 13:11-15). Fr. Eric discusses the importance of reading the parables with humility, docility and obedience; rather than trying to achieve a certain mastery or synthesis with regards to who God is and what He’s all about. Other topics include Jesus’ great miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and the fish (Mt 14:13-21; Mk 6:31-44; Lk 9:12-17; and Jn 6:1-14); and the need to read the parables from the perspective of an intentional disciple, rather than the wise and intelligent.
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Rather than delve into a lengthy exegesis of this weekend’s Gospel (Mt 11:25-30), Fr. Eric focuses on the first half of the opening line, where the Lord says: “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth.”  Topics discussed include the singularity of purpose that Christ has in seeking the glory of His Father, which we are called to imitate in our aspirations towards authentic Christian discipleship.
The example of Our Lady of Lourdes is used to show how we are called to emphasize the primacy of being over doing in our worship of the Lord.  Fr. Eric also references the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass to emphasize how we’re called in a sacramental way to participate in the work of salvation by uniting the sacrifice of our lives to the sacrifice of Christ on the Cross, thereby underlying the significance of aligning our sense of being and purpose with the person and mission of Christ.
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One of the more tricky concepts in the spiritual life is how to actively trust in the Lord.  We know intuitively that we’re supposed to allow God to carry the day; but what does that mean for us, practically speaking? Fr. Eric reflects on the Parable of the Sower (Mt 13:1-23; Mk 4:1-20; and Lk 8:4-15) to illustrate some key principles that we might observe in our practice of actively trusting in Christ, focusing especially on the various ways in which we tend to inhibit the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. 
Topics discussed include the significance of guarding our hearts in the sense of being mindful of how different activities affect our interior sense of peace and recollection, the danger of having a superficial faith built on religious experience and emotional highs, and the importance of not allowing ourselves to get so caught up in the things of this world that we have nothing left for the things of God.
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At first glance, today’s Gospel (Mt 10:37-42) might seem like an angry diatribe on the part of Our Lord; whereas, in reality, Jesus is offering us a relationship of real love, intimacy and friendship. In the aftermath of yesterday’s priestly ordinations in the Archdiocese of Toronto, Fr. Eric discusses Christ’s self-revelation as God; His desire to be involved in the intimate details of our lives; and the exhortation to share in His mission by taking up our part of the one salvific, redemptive Cross which has been reserved exclusively for us.
Other topics include the proper relationship between master and disciple, as exemplified by the image of Jesus and St. Simone of Cyrene (Mk 15:21-22; Mt 27:32; Lk 23:26); and the reality that the ultimate “reward” for our troubles is intimacy with Christ, which itself is the essence of holiness.
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Even though churches throughout the Archdiocese of Toronto were open this past weekend for public Mass for the first time in months, many people were clearly still afraid and concerned about the prospect of going back to Mass. Fr. Eric shares a specific call to action that he made to the people at his own parish this past weekend to encourage others to come back to Mass. Topics include the various steps required to form an intentional disciple; the importance of cultivating trust among those we're trying to evangelize; and how to renew a sense of courage and trust in a concrete way during this time of pandemic, especially when it comes to the idea of coming back to Sunday Mass.
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Given the state of the world where there is an abundance of economic and political uncertainty, not to mention the various issues and problems related to the ongoing pandemic, we can name any number of reasons in our current cultural climate to be afraid. Fr. Eric reflects on what our faith tells us about the nature of fear and how to manage our fears, focusing especially on this weekend’s Gospel (Mt 10:26-33) in which the Lord speaks directly to us on the subject of fear.
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On June 19th, the Church celebrates the World Day of Prayer for Priests.  To mark the occasion, Fr. Eric reflects on various factors to consider in discerning a potential calling to be a priest based on the account in the Gospel of Matthew of the calling of the first disciples (4:18-22).  Fr. Eric discusses the  relevance of transferable skills; the importance of doing one’s work carefully and well; the primacy of following the person of Christ; and the need to ground the effort towards evangelization on one’s own personal, transformative encounter with the Lord.
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After much anticipation, churches throughout the Archdiocese of Toronto will be reopening their doors for private prayer starting on Sun. June 14th before recommencing public Masses on Wed. June 17th. Reflecting on the whole process of planning to reopen our various churches to the public, Fr. Eric discusses the principle of subsidiarity; the importance of balancing the need for structure, and the need to respect the freedom and dignity of individual persons; the need to have patience with the process; and the significance of taking the time to remember the stark contrast between a life without the sacraments and a return to the sacramental life.
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When it comes to repairing broken relationships among the peoples of this earth, we would do well to revisit the foundational doctrine of the Most Blessed Trinity.  On the occasion of Trinity Sunday, Fr. Eric reflects on common errors with regards to the doctrine of the Trinity; as well the significance of our being made in the image and likeness of the God who Himself is mystery (cf. Gen 1:27), particularly in terms of how it affects our sense of self-worth and how we relate to other people.
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