GOD WANTS US TO REMEMBER the LITTLE EUCHARISTIC MIRACLE that happened at OLHOC last April. GOD WANTS US TO SHOW UTMOST REVERENCE and RESPECT for the EUCHARIST. GOD WANTS US TO REMEMBER the picture of the host with blood after having been abandoned for 15 hours on the floor of our church (see picture below). For the next five Sundays, GOD WANTS US to HEAR JOHN's ENTIRE CHAPTER SIX, all about the GREATEST MIRACLE ON EARTH: the transformation of the bread and wine into THE BODY and BLOOD of OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, a miracle that occurs at every Mass and is much greater than our "little" Eucharistic miracle of last April. Every three years, in the Year of Mark and during the Summer, we hear...

Pope Francis has just established a NEW WORLD DAY From now on, every fourth Sunday of July, beginning SUNDAY JULY 25 this year, will be "WORLD DAY FOR GRANDPARENTS AND ELDERLY." The theme this year is: "I AM WITH YOU ALWAYS" based on the last verse of Matthew's Gospel (Matthew 28:20): "BEHOLD, I AM WITH YOU ALWAYS, UNTIL THE END OF THE AGE." Why having a new World Day to be celebrated by the entire Catholic Church in every parish in every country? Many countries...

"MY GRACE IS SUFFICIENT FOR YOU, FOR POWER IS MADE PERFECT IN WEAKNESS," says the LORD to PAUL in an amazing, private REVELATION (2 Corinthians 12:9). This second major Revelation to Paul is not as famous as the first one on the road to Damascus: "SAUL, WHY DO YOU PERSECUTE ME?" (Acts 9:4), which led Paul to a total CONVERSION from a persecutor of the first Christians to one of the greatest Christian evangelizers of all times. In my homilies last Sunday (8:30 am, 10 am and 1 pm), I invited...

We can all be thankful to God for the many gifts Fr. Ben has brought to our parish. This weekend we will all have plenty of opportunities to show him our appreciation. It is never easy to say goodbye. In French we simply say " Aurevoir", which literally means: "See you again!" In the last 10 years our parish has been blessed with five parochial vicars: Fr. John, Fr. Lopez, Fr. Santiago, Fr. Philip and Fr. Ben. Each one brought us their pastoral experience of parishes they served before joining us. Each one brought us their very rich personal experience (including in four different countries of origin: USA, Ecuador, Spain and Chile). All of us, parishioners, volunteers, staff and clergy have benefitted greatly from such a diversity of pastoral experiences. I recall the shock many of you had when...

Today was filled with much JOY. I was able to go and visit Fr. Eamon Dignan, our former pastor at OLHOC who served for 17 long years: 1987-2004. It was a most JOYFUL morning. I had been told that Fr. Dignan's memory was failing him. I was simply planning to give him the Eucharist and say some prayers. I discovered that we could have a small conversation talking about his old days at OLHOC. He may not know where he is now or may not recognize people he has known for the last 10 years. But as soon as I mentioned Waldorf and Our Lady Help of Christians, his eyes brightened. He had a BIG SMILE. When I reminded him that he was the one who built our church (completed in 1990), he immediately...

Last week at the Sunday 7 pm Mass, I preached in Spanish about the "HUMILITY OF GOD". Talking in my imperfect Spanish about our "little" miracle of the Eucharist at OLHOC was not easy (a humbling experience). Just one hour before the Mass, the Holy Spirit led me to share another "little" miracle in my life, a 4-page LETTER I received from a LIVING SAINT in 1978 ...a letter that changed my life. In earlier occasions, I have spoken about my personal encounter with MOTHER TERESA in Calcutta when I was living next door in Dakha, Bangladesh. I have even shown the original 4-page letter she wrote me...

Do you believe in Eucharistic Miracles? I do! Do you believe in the "little" Eucharistic miracle that happened at OLHOC end of April 2021? I do! I pray you do too. ÀMEN! Looking back to the last 12 months at OLHOC, we have much to be THANKFUL TO GOD. The pandemic has reminded many of us that we took the EUCHARIST for granted. THE TIME OF EUCHARISTIC REVIVAL HAS COME! We had a record participation of parishioners at our outdoor PROCESSION ON CORPUS CHRISTI. The 90-degree heat and humidity did not stop us! It was TIME FOR JESUS TO GO OUT of our church and remind us that we need to strive for BRINGING ALL TO HIM, SHARING HIM WITH ALL AND BEING ONE IN HIM THROUGH THE EUCHARIST! In the last few weeks,...

CORPUS CHRISTI EUCHARISTIC MIRACLE Pope Urban IV established the annual celebration of the FEAST OF CORPUS CHRISTI in 1264, over 700 years ago. Did you know that it was a EUCHARISTIC MIRACLE (Bolsena, Italy) that led to that decision? I never paid much attention to that historical event until this year...as it reminded me of our "little" Eucharistic miracle at OLHOC. Pope Urban IV was the right Pope at the right time. He was born Jacques Pantaleon in Troyes, Northern France, in 1221. He served as Archdeacon of Liege (today's Belgium) at the time St Juliana of Liege had visions of the Eucharist which led to the establishment of a local celebration of CORPUS CHRISTI. Later on, as Pope, he resided in Orvieto, only 10 miles away from BOLSENA where in 1263 occurred an amazing Eucharistic miracle that he declared authentic, leading him to establish a worldwide, annual celebration of CORPUS CHRISTI. As I get "older" I am...

"GO and MAKE DISCIPLES OF ALL NATIONS, BAPTIZING them in the name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, TEACHING them to observe all that I have commanded you." (Matthew 28:19). This is the final ORDER given by Jesus to his disciples at the end of Matthew's Gospel. This is what Jesus is asking from each one of us in Waldorf today: GO AND EVANGELIZE! Jesus is challenging each one of us to get out of our comfort zone and to have the missionary spirit of His first disciples. Once we have experienced the Love of God in our lives, we cannot be lukewarm to the teachings of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Either like non-believers we reject Jesus or like His first disciples we become passionate followers of Jesus as He becomes the center of our life. We may feel incompetent. We may feel afraid to handle...

We have finally reached the end of the 50 days of the EASTER SEASON: PENTECOST, the fulfillment of Jesus' PROMISE that HE WILL NEVER LEAVE US ALONE. HE WILL SEND US THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH. Like the Apostles, we can all be FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT. We may not see "tongues of fire", we may not be able to speak in tongues, but like the Apostles, we can be TOTALLY TRANSFORMED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT. We just have to OPEN OUR HEARTS TO RECEIVE THE POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT and pray those three most powerful words: COME HOLY SPIRIT! In the last few weeks,...

"HE WAS LIFTED UP". Those four words give all of us HOPE, we all need to be LIFTED UP. Our attachments to this world are at times heavy like chains. Jesus encourages us to look up. As HE is being LIFTED UP TO HEAVEN, he gives us the HOPE that we too can be LIFTED UP and be with HIM in HEAVEN. This is Our Lord's PROMISE of the Coming of the Holy Spirit to transform us and lift us up. This is what the ASCENCION OF THE LORD is all about. Every year at this time we hear the beginning of the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 1:1-11) narrating the ASCENCION OF THE LORD, the amazing event that took place 40 DAYS after the Lord's RESURRECTION. Jesus invites the APOSTLES to stay in Jerusalem and WAIT FOR THE PROMISE OF THE FATHER. He announces that "In a few days you will be BAPTIZED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT ...You will RECEIVE POWER when the HOLY SPIRIT COMES UPON YOU and you will be my witnesses". This is PENTECOST, which we will celebrate next week... Do we want to be lifted up? We do not have to await our departing from this world. We can be lifted up today. Heaven begins right here right now on earth. Jesus promised to His Apostles that He will not leave them alone. He was going to leave this world, but He was not going to abandon them. They will never be alone. He will send them an Advocate, the Paraclete, THE HOLY SPIRIT, the Spirit of Truth who will GUIDE them (John 16:12-15). At OLHOC, we are still glowing in the JOY of...

I got a large number of comments/suggestions on last week's column's "Eucharistic Miracle at OLHOC". In my 10 years at OLHOC, I do not recall any other "unplanned" event that received so much attention and created so much excitement. I simply want today to reflect on where we are and where the Holy Spirit is leading us. For me, the main lesson so far of the Eucharistic Miracle at OLHOC is that it has helped UNITE OUR PARISH IN FOCUSING ON THE EUCHARIST in ways we had not experienced before and I pray that it will continue to do so for many many more years! My motto over the last 10 years has been and remains...

Last weekend, there was much excitement at OLHOC! Let me quote some of the words used or texted: “Wow Father. What a great blessing. No doubt it is a Eucharistic miracle! ...God is great: Eucharistic Miracle in "my church"...God's name be forever praised. MY LORD and MY GOD! Love Eucharistic Adoration...What a great miracle, somehow my Faith is ignited and in full blast. Hallelujah, Ave Maria! Awesome, Our powerful God.” What was this all about? The possibility that a Eucharistic Miracle had happened at OLHOC. First, one of our volunteer sacristans had sent to some parishioners a picture of a consecrated host that had been found on the floor of our church and had been disposed of in a vessel with water in the sacrarium of our sacristy. As the host was almost dissolved...

Jesus is asking all of us as his disciples, "WHY ARE YOU TROUBLED?"( Luke 24:38). Like many of us today, Jesus' disciples are confused. They do not understand what is going on. They have little hope for the future. They are told by several women about the empty tomb early that Easter Sunday morning. Then Peter had run to the tomb and also had found it empty. It is a long and painful day. They are all perplexed. What is going to happen to them? They are afraid that the Jews will arrest them and also crucify them! They locked themselves in a small "upper room" in Jerusalem. Now two of the disciples have just joined them, returning from EMMAUS where the Risen Lord has appeared to them. At that very moment, Jesus himself appears to all of them. They are startled. They are terrified. Is he a ghost? Maybe they are afraid that Jesus, their beloved master and guide for three years, is going to condemn them harshly for not having followed him all the way to Calvary (only one of them,John,was there). Jesus is asking all of us, "WHAT TROUBLES YOU? WHAT WORRIES YOU RIGHT NOW?" In so many ways, all of us are...

Pointing to the AMAZING, HUGE painting of Jesus Divine Mercy just given to us by the family of the artist Orlando Lagman, I asked one of our young children last Sunday, what do the two large streams of WATER and BLOOD coming out of the PIERCED HEART OF JESUS represent? He did not hesitate, WATER represents BAPTISM AND CONFESSION; BLOOD represents the EUCHARIST! I gave him an A+! He was right on the mark! He is a pious child. He loves to come to church. He loves to read the Bible. He may be a future priest! I wish we could clone him and have many, many children like him! I hope that like this child we can always remember that JESUS DIVINE MERCY keeps pouring upon us these two large streams of GRACE which we can receive frequently, the WATER OF RECONCILIATION which cleanses our sins in CONFESSION and the FLOW OF BLOOD, the EUCHARIST which we can receive at every Mass. It is a simple two-step approach: first, whenever we commit a major sin, we go to the priest in confession to receive the ABSOLUTION, allowing the second step, receiving the EUCHARIST in state of grace! We just celebrated...

Last Thursday, our church was packed for the celebration of the Lord's Last Supper: HOLY THURSDAY, the first day of the TRIDUUM of the HOLY WEEK. When I say packed, I mean that we reached the maximum number of people allowed by the current 6-foot distancing. It was great to see so many people back in church. It was music to my ears to hear so many people tell me, "Father, I am so happy to be back." THE JOY OF BEING BACK had begun on PALM SUNDAY. IT IS CONTINUING! PRAISE THE LORD! Let us pray that more and more people will come back to join us to celebrate the Eucharist together as an assembly in our church! Over 200 people participated in Holy Thursday Mass of the last Supper. The Narthex was packed with about 30 people (maximum allowed currently) and the Father Martin Hall with 60 people. The Altar Guild had done a wonderful job decorating the Father Martin Hall to allow the Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament at the end of the Mass and until midnight. They had used their spiritual imagination and had decorated the Hall with Palm Trees and Flowers and had renamed the Hall, "THE GARDEN OF GETHSEMANE." The good surprise for all of us was when...

As Deacon Rich and I arrived at the altar, like everyone in the large assembly, we were waving our palms. We venerated the altar. Suddenly, I felt A GREAT JOY take over my HEART. I had not felt so joyful in a long time. It took me some time to realize what was happening. As the Mass went on, it became clearer to me. This was the JOY OF EASTER! THE JOY OF THE RISEN LORD! As we processed in the church, we were entering with Jesus into the Heavenly Jerusalem! We were entering into the HOLY WEEK, which will culminate in EASTER VIGIL AND EASTER SUNDAY. Unconsciously, I...

Jesus told Martha, “I AM THE RESURRECTION AND THE LIFE; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. DO YOU BELIEVE THIS?" (John 11: 25-26). This is the question that Jesus is asking each one of us as we complete our Lenten journey, our climbing the mountain of Easter, the mountain of the Resurrection. We have walked together for 40 days, anticipating the Joy of the Risen Lord. Can we answer Jesus' question with the awesome words of Martha: "YES! LORD, I HAVE COME TO BELIEVE THAT YOU ARE THE MESSIAH, THE SON OF GOD, THE ONE WHO IS COMING INTO THE WORLD." (John 11:27) The last three Sundays, we have...

CAN YOU BE TRANSFORMED BY THE CROSS? This is what happened to Simon of Cyrene. It can happen to you. In the fourth talk of the GIFT OF LOVE last week, many of us were touched by Dr. Sri's presentation of what happened to Simon of Cyrene, "As they led Jesus away they took hold of a certain Simon, a Cyrenian, who was coming in from the country, and after laying the cross on him, they made him carry it behind Jesus" (Luke 23:26). It appears that Simon of Cyrene was initially "forced" to carry Jesus' Cross. He just happened to be visiting Jerusalem. He did not know Jesus at all. However, there is no doubt that his experience of carrying Jesus' Cross made him feel compassionate for this young man crowned with thorns, being insulted and enduring immense sufferings on his Way to Calvary. Later on,...

Earlier this week I had a vision: a clear vision of a Crown of Thorns. It happened as I was in deep meditation in the little chapel of our rectory. This Lent, one of my resolutions has been to be as silent as possible when praying in front of the Blessed Sacrament. By silence, I mean total silence. As you know, the world's constant distractions make total silence quite a challenge, but it is one of the best ways to listen to God. What is God tell- ing me through this SILENT GIFT OF A CROWN OF THORNS? The main vision was a beautiful Crown of Thorns. First, it seemed to float alone up in the air. The crown was not moving at all. But there was some movement behind it: there were amazing...