Author Archives: mikedenz

In the sixteenth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew we see two very interesting and seemingly different encounters Peter has with Jesus. First, Jesus installs Peter as the first pope: “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him,Continue reading “The Obstacle”

In John 14:16 Jesus calls the Holy Spirit the “Paraclete.” The literal translation of the word Paraclete is “the One Called Alongside.” Paraclete is also translated as: Encourager Advocate Comforter Helper Counselor Over the last five months of this pandemic you may have felt isolated, uncertain, confused, lonely or afraid.  Likely you felt several ofContinue reading “The One Called Alongside”

In a passage from St. Paul’s Second Letter to the Corinthians, St. Paul begins: That I, Paul, might not become too elated, because of the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, an angel of Satan, to beat me, to keep me from being too elated. 12:7 What? AContinue reading “When I am weak, then I am strong”

This post is not so much sacred thinking except for the fact that it is about my blog “Sacred Thinking.” After I started this blog I’ve been adding chunks and chunks of articles to it, much of which was taken from my past writings, which has resulted in a nice little startup collection. And forContinue reading “Housekeeping…”

Dr. Scott Hahn, a premiere Biblical theologian, was speaking to a small group of people about the importance of studying Scripture. He mentioned how he is often met with the following objection people have about the importance of learning Scripture: “If the poor peasant from the 15th century, who didn’t have a Bible and couldn’tContinue reading “Excuses…”

I had a short visit with a friend about 3 years ago.  I remember she told me about how her husband has been suffering from chronic tinnitus for 5 months. They have tried all the suggested treatments to no avail. There is no cure they know of. They have gone to healing Masses and haveContinue reading “Persistence”

The Catholic Church does not permit its faithful to receive Holy Communion outside the Catholic Church in non-Catholic communities, for example: a Protestant denomination. Hence, while a Protestant denomination may extend Communion hospitality to Catholics, it does not mean that Catholics are permitted to accept such hospitality. As well, those who are not Catholic cannotContinue reading “Why Can’t my non-Catholic family go to Communion at my Catholic Church?”

Peace. This is a popular word people associate with Jesus – often at Christmas time. This is because of St. Luke’s telling of the angels visit to the shepherds on Christmas. The angels have just announced the birth of Jesus to the shepherds, then they sing: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earthContinue reading “Peace be with you…”

There is passage from St. John’s Gospel that is one of my favorites – chapter 1, verses 35-39. It was first explained to me over 20 years ago by a then young Franciscan priest. As time passes, it becomes more and more meaningful to me. The passage begins with John the Baptist watching Jesus walkContinue reading “What do you seek?”

Jesus called them to him, saying, “Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them; for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” And a ruler asked him, “Good Teacher, what shall IContinue reading “First comes God…”