Category: Uncategorized

                She gazed at her left hand which was caressing her growing belly.  Such a study in contradiction, she thought.  This belly so smooth and taut beneath her plain work-a-day garment – the badge of a young woman with the first of many children within her; then there – her hand, swathed in unexpected blotches and wrinkles (she tugged her sleeve down a bit) – the badge of an old woman with few and dwindling years foreseen.

                She fretted, and was shamed that she should do so.  It had been said – there could be no doubt – that her son, John, would have a momentous future.  Yet she worried.  The babe had not stirred, had not pressed against his confines even once.  Could he . . . could her babe be merely waiting to be born for the grave?  Was he resting within her, or was he already d…

                “Zechariah!  Husband.  How are you today, my Love?”  His shoulders shrugged, his wise old hands out, palm up; well-known, well-loved lips tightened in a self-depreciatory half-smile.  Elizabeth’s thoughtful hand grasped his – gave it a reassuring squeeze.  He, with his free hand, gently patted her distended belly.  His eye was quizzical.  Elizabeth’s head drooped.  A tear fell, darkening the fabric obscuring the object in question.  “No.  Nothing . . . yet,”  Elizabeth forlornly admitted.  Zechariah’s age-smoothed, gentle fingers stroked her forehead with just a wisp of connection, lovingly tucked a stray lock of grey-lightened hair back under her head shawl.  His thumb passed beneath her damp eye and lingered on her cheek.

                “Elizabeth?” a soft, almost childlike enquiry, wary of intruding perhaps.  Elizabeth violently swayed sideways and back.  Zechariah frantically gripped her shoulders to keep her on her feet.  Alarmed, he hastily questioned her eyes with his own – What’s going on?!  Are you alright?!  Surprisingly, Elizabeth’s face was alight with joy!  ‘The baby!’ she mouthed, ‘Our John!’

                The sweet voice behind her, “Elizabeth, I’ve. . . I’ve come for. . . for a visit.  I thought I could be of some – help?”

                Elizabeth turned, Zechariah keeping a cautionary hand on her shoulder, “O Mary, sweet cousin!  Don’t question how I know, but . . . I do know.  It has been explained to me in the most wonderful way!”  Hands extended, she laughed.  Her son was rolling, and pushing, and kicking!  “Mary.  Mary, you are the most blessed of all women!”  Mary stepped back in astonishment as Elizabeth continued, “The fruit of your womb is blessed!”  Mary shook her head in puzzlement.  How could Elizabeth know – and Zechariah, too, standing behind is wife, holding her shoulders and grinning wide enough to display the missing tooth which he was always at great pains to conceal.  How could they know?  “I am a humble woman . . .”  Elizabeth glanced back and up at her dear husband, “We are just ordinary people!  How does this happen to me – to us?”  Mary’s eyes, no longer confused, were steady, serene, radiant. 

                “How does it happen, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?”  Elizabeth giggled like the girl that Mary was.  “The moment – the very moment – the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped!  He.  He who had not yet moved to admit to life – he leaped for joy!”  Elizabeth approached Mary with a rolling gait as her John still cavorted within her.  She embraced Mary’s slight form and whispered with elation into her ear, “Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled!”

                Mary leaned away from Elizabeth’s embrace, yet held tightly to her hands with nervous fingers.  It was true then.  It hadn’t been a dream or a hallucination.  It was . . . True.  Mary drew in a deep breath.  Then her breath burst out in synchrony with Elizabeth’s.  They locked eyes, grinning and laughing in their shared joy.  Elizabeth’s son was alive!  And . . . the Messiah was on his way!

Ms. Catherine Lambert, O.P.

God couldn’t have been happy with the split between the Southern Kingdom of Judah – ruled by Solomon’s heir and the Northern Kingdom of Israel – the rebellious majority who broke away and established their own kingdom.  The North . . . Israel . . . was indeed rebellious.  It would not consent to be ruled by Solomon’s heir, would not acknowledge Jerusalem as the capital, would not even worship the True God but degenerated into idolatry.  No.  God-the-Father could not have been happy with them at all.  And yet . . .

            I think that God-the-Son had a soft spot in his heart for the remnant of the Northern Kingdom – those left behind as the greater number was led into Assyrian exile.  There’s always a ‘remnant’, right?  Well, this remnant was not the ‘faithful few’ who often become the seed of a resurgence of worship and loyalty to God.  No; this remnant became the scorned Samaritans.  The  Assyrian exile had come and gone.  The staunch Southern Kingdom ended up molding generations Jews would rather walk m-i-l-e-s out of their way to avoid stepping foot in what was no longer the Northern Kingdom, but what had become the disparaged Samaria.  And yet . . .

            Jesus and the disciples were travelling, as they often did.  They came to the border town of Sychar.  Heading for Galilee, it was time to walk the wearying detour around Samaria.  However, despite the disciples’ sound advice to the contrary, Jesus not only stepped foot in Samaria, but actually rested on the lip of Jacob’s Well which was just on the edge of town. 

            While Jesus’ followers had been sent on into town to scare up something for them all to eat,  Jesus had a nice little chat with not just any Samaritan, but with a Samaritan woman.  A woman who even her fellow Samaritans agreed was ‘fallen’. . .

            The woman approaches the Well with an empty water jug on her right shoulder.  It’s not the usual time for getting one’s daily water – already it’s mid-day.  It’s staggeringly hot.  The sun pries at the woman’s eyes; she idly squints at her sandaled feet as they scuff up little puffs of dust with each tired step.  She’s not in a hurry.  Why should she be?  She’s wondering if it is worth the effort to cook an evening meal – her husband has not deigned to grace his home in two days.  Maybe he won’t come home tonight either . . . maybe he won’t ever come home.

            The woman rests her water jug on the Well’s rim.  There’s something not quite right, she thinks.  She narrows her eyes a bit more, trying the figure out what is different.  The sun is beating down on her head making a sharp, little pain over her left eye.  It’s hard to think . . . but . . .   there’s a shadowy silhouette upon the Well’s sun baked stones . . .  Someone must  be . . .  there’s never anyone here at this time of day!  That’s why she comes at this hour!  She knows right enough what she is . . . she doesn’t need to hear it shouted out by sundry and all.  Haltingly, she raises her sun-narrowed eyes.  Which of the village women is casting that shadow?  The one with the strident shriek that pierces her ears?  Or the one who says nothing but is dismayingly accurate with her spit?

            It is neither.  It’s a man.  He’s looking at her in no particular way . . . just looking.  Most unusual.  By his dress, he’s a Jew, one of those hated and hating people.  It’s a puzzle.  The man says to her, “Give me a drink.”  It’s not unusual for a man – for any man to make this demand . . . though his words are soft, gentle.

            “How can you, a Jew, ask me, a Samaritan woman, for a drink?”  She’d more expect a flung stone than a soft spoken request from any Jew.  It was a mystery. . . a curiosity which – as considerable as it seems now – becomes all the larger as the kindly man continues to speak with her.  By the conversation’s end, there is a catch in her chest.  She can hardly draw breathe! 

            Then she’s running, running in the stifling heat, the blinding light of the noonday sun.  She’ll tell someone . . . anyone!  There.  There is her husband-who-is-not-her-husband.  Somehow, she’s no longer angry with him.  She grabs his sleeve with urgent fingers.  “Come see a man who told me everything I have done!”  He starts to shake her off but is captured by the elation in her face.   “Could he possibly be the Messiah?” she asks.

            You know the story.  Sure you do.  Jesus and the boys stayed in Sychar of Samaria for a couple of days.  Jesus boarded at the woman’s house with her sometime husband hanging on his every word.  Of course, there wasn’t enough room for all of them there, so the rest were parceled out to the neighborhood; neighbors were amazed at the riveting conversation and cheerful comradery of these Jews.  The people became thoughtful – these rowdy men, these hard-faced women, these rough day-laborers and poor traders, these idolatrous, sinful people – as the man who told the woman at the Well all she had ever done, spoke to them . . . to them . . .  of the things of God and of the things soon to come.   Jesus was no respecter of persons – which is a funny way of saying that he respected everyone – equally. 

           The Northern Kingdom had been most thoroughly punished.  Those who were hauled off to Assyria made poor decisions.  They intermarried with the locals and disappeared as a people.  Those who had escaped being exiled became the hated and scorned dregs of Jewish society.  But God-the-Son (with his Father’s nod and the Spirit’s go-ahead) loved them anyway. . . loved them as his own – which, of course, they were.

by Ms. Catherine Lambert, O.P.

            You’ve heard the joke, right?  You know, it goes like this:  All religion is, is Death Insurance!  You pay the premium, but when it’s time to make a claim . . . The Insurance Company is more than willing to pay up – but YOU are NO WHERE TO BE FOUND!  YUCK.  Yuck.  Yuck.

            Weird thing is – that’s not far wrong.  No, no.  Don’t worry.  I’m not going to go all atheist on you.  But.  The fact of the matter is that Death is the Big Scary – and that’s for sure.  We don’t know what’s on the other side.  We think.  We hope.  We believe . . . then we hope some more. 

            But I say, “Why worry about it!”  It happens to us all – at least at this point in time (yeah, I do read sci-fi).  We’re going to go whether our Grand Exit is accompanied by organ music:  “duh-duh-duh – DUH!” or by a choir of angels:  “Ahhhhhhh . . . “

            Yup.  Yup.  Yup.  But that’s not really The Thing, is it?  It’s not so much how we are going to die or where we go after that (well, it sorta is).  It’s how we make our way there, don’t ya think?  We don’t need Death Insurance . . . we need Gettin’-Through-Life Insurance!  And Brother…  Sister…  do I have a policy for you!

Ms. Catherine Lambert, OP

            Mama said . . . Mama said!  “Be fair to your brother, sister, cousin, friend (you fill in one one that Mama most often referred to).”  Be fair.  It’s probably the very first social law that any of us ever struggled with – starting at three and ending with a sharp realization around ten (give or take) when we notice with great indignation that Mama is not fair with us.  It evidentially has something to do with, “I’m the adult, you’re the child.  Do what I say!”  And that’s not fair.  Then Mama tells you something she kind of left out when you were three:  “Life is not fair.  Deal with it!”

            Deal with it?  Deal with it?  How do you deal with the end of an Era?  …with the death of all you thought was true?  But we do deal with it, don’t we? 

            So – an eon later, we’re bored and fidgeting at Mass.  “Sit still.  You only get from Mass what you’re willing to put into Mass!” says your brother, sister, cousin, friend, mama . . . spouse.  And that kinda makes sense, you think.  It clicks right into place with something you learned long ago.  Yeh.  It does make sense.  You only get back from Mass what you’re willing to put into it.  You like the sound of that – it seems fair. 

            So you join a prayer group.  Man!  That feels great!  Let’s do some more . . . You join a service group that collects gently used baby and kid clothes for single parents.  Wow.  That feels even better.  You commit to the midnight-to-one, first Friday Adoration slot.  Yep . . .  Well, truthfully – Nope.  Not feelin’ the love on this one.  Hey.  I’m puttin’ in, but I’m not gettin’ back.  That’s not fair.  I’ll quit.  I mean, it’s only ‘fair’, right?  But that thought doesn’t feel . . . ‘right’.  Well, who cares?  There are other people in that particular Adoration slot . . .  Hey!  Joe and Sally don’t show up every first Friday.  How would me not showing up any first Friday be so different?  It would be okay.  It would be better than okay – it would be fair.

            But here’s the thing.  If Life isn’t fair.  Maybe spiritual life isn’t fair either.  Now wait a minute.  Hold on.  It wasn’t fair that Jesus – the sinless one – died a horrific death to give us the chance to get to heaven.  No, not fair at all.  But he did it.  Why do you suppose that was?  Uhh, hello!  He loved us.  Could it be that Love trumps Fair?  Could it be that when Mama told me Life wasn’t Fair – she was speaking quite loudly at the time because her head and arm were in the washer trying to reach that laaast sock – could it be that she also meant Love trumps Fair . . . ?

Ms. Catherine Lambert, O.P.

Today I would like to invite you to consider a different perspective within the context of increasing mandates regarding travel and COVID vaccination.

The big picture has nothing to do with the COVID drama. The big picture is always eternal life with God or eternal separation from Him. That is the choice we have to make. Everything else is temporary or fleeting; it all passes. So, we shift our overall focus toward certainties, things that absolutely will happen.

First, and I know this sounds harsh, but it must be said: we are all going to die. There is no escaping death. Yes, it’s painful when someone we know and love dies. That is absolutely true. Let’s take a look at this certainty through the Catholic perspective.

We believe that there are “4 last things:” Death, Judgment, Heaven and Hell. All 4 of these are certainties. We will all die. We will all be judged. There are only 2 places we can spend eternity, either heaven or hell. Death is the portal through which we all must enter so that we may be judged by our Lord on our temporal lives. We will spend eternity in either heaven with God or we will be eternally separated from God in hell.

Why do I mention this? This ought to be on the minds of everyone, particularly when we are in the midst of trials. How we endure these trials is one of the details that Jesus Christ will use in judging us. How merciful are we? How obedient are we to those appointed over us? How patient are we in difficulties? How well do we walk alongside others in their trials? How well do we evangelize? How do we include God in our decision-making? The list goes on and on.

Sometimes, especially during this COVID pandemic, don’t we get caught up in the political drama or have a hard time reconciling vaccination mandates with our personal beliefs, or do we just blindly go along to get along to avoid conflict? This list of questions is long as well. All of the minutiae that we can name are mere distractions from the big picture. They distract us from God and His will in our lives. They turn us away from God and, generally, lead us into error or even into sin. Don’t get caught up in the minutiae. Keep your mind on where you want to spend eternity.

Let’s change the perspective of our situational analysis. Yes, sometimes it is God’s will that someone we love very much becomes very ill or even dies. We have to accept that. God will use the evil of the moment to bring about the good. We tend to forget this. For example, sometimes, God answers our prayers with a yes, but the only way that our intentions could possibly happen is through difficulties that we could never have imagined. Maybe COVID is the means through which more people answer His call. Maybe disease or even vaccination mandates mean better reconciliations with estranged family members. Maybe the best and most complete reconciliations happen when death is imminent. Maybe our hardened hearts can only be cured by seeing someone close to us suffer. Whether it is us or them with the disease, both parties suffer. Maybe suffering together is the only way to reconciliation. Maybe.

This perspective obviously requires an enormous amount of trust in God. Trust that He has your absolute best interests in mind when we are faced with difficulties like this. We must Trust that only He knows the outcomes and invites us to spend eternity with Him. Trust that He created us to love and serve Him. Trust that He loves us enough to give each of us free will. He loves us individually. None of this is easy, especially while living in the world.

Live in the world, not of it.

Remember to keep this passing world in the proper perspective. Because this world (and everything in it) is passing away, even COVID. Take a moment and think about your own perspective. Maybe you can benefit from altering it a bit by evaluating the situation in terms of the big picture: Eternal Life with God or Eternal Separation from Him. Everything else is passing details that should not rule over us.

May the Lord bless you and yours abundantly!

Ms. Renee Valenzuela, OP

As I was praying the rosary this morning, the Joyful Mysteries, the Holy Spirit flooded my mind with work that must be done. Not in a distracting way, but in a pastoral way that related directly to the present mystery. I’d like to share this experience with you this morning.

The first mystery, the Annunciation, He instructed me to accept God’s Holy will in my life, so I may be healed. At Mass, we pray the Centurion’s prayer with hope with and a confident understanding that nothing is impossible for God. He can heal us no matter how sick or broken we are. I must remember that because He can heal me, He can heal anyone. Allowing God’s will in my life, will only progress my healing. He gives me exactly what I need for my own, individual cure. He wants me to be cured of what allows me fall to temptation. I have to want to be healed. If I truly do, I will accept His remedy, and be healed: “your faith has made you well.” (Mk 10:52, RSV-CE)

The second mystery, the Visitation, He reminded me that in order to be a true and faithful disciple of Christ, I must avail myself to the needs of others, no matter how dire my own situation might seem. in this mystery, Mary has just been informed that she is to be the Mother of God. She’s a young teenager, just betrothed, who has become pregnant in a world that condemns women to death for adultery. Yet, her faith in God is so deep, her trust in His Holy Will for her life outweighs her fears of what this would “surely” bring. Shouldn’t I trust God’s will in my own life with the same conviction?

The third mystery, the Nativity, He explained to me that proclaiming the Gospel, the evangelium, to all who would listen, is necessary for the salvation of souls. Of all the needs in this world, this is the most important and dire one. The Creed tells us exactly what we need to know and teach. There is nothing more important than explaining the life of Christ to others, in order to bring souls to Him. This is why I am a Lay Dominican. I was created to do this. I pray that I might do this well, to bring as many souls to Christ as possible.

The fourth mystery, the Presentation of the Christ Child in the Temple, He reminded me that the road of discipleship is not an easy one. Choices, difficult choices, must be made throughout this journey. That choosing Him over the distractions of the world is the one thing I must do each day as His disciple. Making God the one and only priority that is superior to all others, to do things that I might not feel up to doing at that moment, but heed the call nonetheless without delay.

The fifth mystery, Finding the Christ Child in the Temple, He reminded me that Jesus is always present in the Church, no matter what I see in this corrupt world; even if evil is done inside His church or by His clergy, He is still here, with us, until the end of the age, and vengeance is His alone. I am not faithful for the sake of corrupt laity or clergy, I am to be faithful in spite of them. The Lord is better able to administer justice than I could ever be. The Holy Spirit urges me to pray that they encounter Christ, as St. Paul did: profoundly. They are human too and are subject to temptation and sin; clergy especially, are the focus for the evil one’s temptations. He and his minions tempt all of us, and so many people leave the Church because of scandals, abuse, sins committted in the Church or by clergy. Don’t let that separate you from Christ in the Eucharist. There is only one place where He truly resides, physically and spiritually: in every Tabernacle of every Catholic Church in the World. Don’t leave; He is truly present in the Eucharist, even if consecrated by unholy men. His holiness is more powerful that their unholiness.

The Lord put these things on my heart today. Thank you for allowing me to share them with you.

Ms. Renee Valenzuela, OP

Hey everyone! I’m so sorry that the livestream did not work, but at last, the video is here! Thank you everyone who attended Mass with us today and to everyone who watches and shares this video! May God bless you all abundantly!

Congratulations to Mrs. Peggy Brechtel, OP, Mr. William Schmidt, OP, Ms. Renee Valenzuela, OP, Ms. Cheryl Riley, OP, Mrs. Marilyn Pipkin, OP, and Mrs. Helen Hawkins, OP on making your final professions today! May God bless our newly professed in their vocations in the Order of Preachers.

Please like and share!

I am happy to announce that 6 members of our community have made final professions today.

Unfortunately the livestream couldn’t happen, but I did record it and will post here, Facebook and Twitter this afternoon.

Thank you all for your prayers throughout this journey. We couldn’t have done it without you.

Forever yours in Christ,

Ms. Renee Valenzuela, OP

Today, Aug 6th, is the feast day of the Transfiguration of our Lord. In the Order of Preachers, we know this day to be the day that our holy Father, St. Dominic, died in 1221, exactly 800 years ago. We celebrate this day called Dies Natalis, the birth of St. Dominic into eternal life. Thanks be to God for the saintly beauty of this man, a true gift to the world for the last 800 years.

Today, an introspection is in order. Looking at the image above, we see the apostles Peter, James and John astonished by the sight of Jesus’ transfiguration with both Moses and Elijah present, as recalled from the Gospel reading today, Mark 9:2-10.

We also see two other figures, flanking our Transfigured Lord. On the left is the Blessed Virgin Mary and on the right, St. Dominic. Fra Angelico has captured our dual feast day perfectly in this image. The transfiguration also calls to mind that on this day, St. Dominic has received the ultimate gift, the beatific vision. St. Dominic has been born into eternal life with our Lord, our Savior, our Creator, our Triune God.

The reason why Peter, James and John were astonished is something we should ponder in our hearts. Is it mere visual stimulation that astonished them? I don’t think so. It is a glimpse of the immensity of the beatific vision. Such holiness had only been seen a few times before this moment. These are the two that are significant here: when Moses’s face became radiant in Exodus 34:27-35 and when Elijah was transported to heaven in 2 Kings 2:11. In both cases, those who witnessed this holiness were shaken with emotion, with fear and awe.

If we witnessed something like this personally, how would we respond? We would probably be gripped with fear and trembling because what would be running through our minds, at that point, is clear: How is this possible? What is happening? What am I seeing? Is anyone else seeing this too? It is our unbelief would be called into question. It isn’t so shocking when our faith, the act of believing itself, is challenged, but when we are faced with undeniable holiness, something we cannot explain no matter how smart we are, this is when we are astonished. Miracles can and do happen. And that is how we characterize this type of holiness.

I say that it is our unbelief that is called into question because when we are face to face with a real miracle, like levitation, bilocation, transfiguration, the biological forensic evidence of a eucharistic miracle, just to name a few, a confrontation takes place between our minds and our hearts: What if God is real? What if I really will be judged when I die? What does this all mean? Am I prepared to change the way I live? The reality of our mortality and the state of our soul comes into question, and immediately, we find ouselves uncomfortable. We realize that we have a choice to make: to believe that all of this is true or to continue to ignore our call to holiness. It’s a tough choice, because one requires action on our part and we know it, whereas the other requires no effort at all and we know that, too.

Holiness really does exist, but where do we see it today? Well, that really depends on the depth of our faith. One place to start is this: Do you really believe what we profess in the Creed? This is a question that we should all ponder in our hearts. I’m challenging you today, on the feast day of the Transfiguation of our Lord and the birth of St. Dominic into eternal life, to look at the Creed. Read each line and ask yourself, “Do I truly believe this?” Answer yourself truthfully, because this is the only way you can move forward. We are each called to holiness, individually. God made each one of us indvidually, and that is exactly how we are called: by name.

The place where we see holiness every day should be wherever we look in the mirror. That’s right. God is calling you and me to be holy, everyday. We should see holiness in our own image. I know it’s hard, and I don’t always succeed at it either, but it’s certainly not impossible. We have choices to make. These choices may not seem important at the moment, but they really are. Choosing one way or the other can mean the difference in where we will spend eternity. Choose to be holy. It doesn’t matter what others think or say, the only One whose opinion matters is God. He is our only judge. Maybe, when you choose holiness, others might even follow your example. The reverse is also true, when you choose unholiness, others also may follow your example.

I would love it if every person in the history of the world would merit heaven. Unfortunately, I know that will not happen. This is what makes our choices, our responses, how we live our lives, what we believe, how we act… all of that matters. There are serious consequences; whether we understand them or not, has no bearing on the reality of the consequence we will experience in the future.

Having been created in the likeness and image of God, we have the innate desire to know Him. Our curiosity can lead us to Him or away from Him. If you’re a rebel, rebel against the world and run toward God. How does one run toward God? The best place to learn this is in the Catholic Church, the Bride of Christ.

For those who are not Catholic, if you’re interested in learning more about God and His Bride, the Catholic Church and what we teach, seek out an RCIA class at a local parish, which, classes will begin soon. While the Church itself seems to be far from perfection because it is comprised of sinners, and we’re all working on getting to heaven, it is the surest way to spend eternity with Christ. This is His Church, He founded it upon Peter’s faith, and He is truly present in every tabernacle of every Catholic Church in the entire world. It’s the only Church where Jesus Christ is actually present, body, blood, soul, and divinity. A great resource can be found here.

You are called to holiness and to spend eternity with God. I want to help you get there. Please, help me get there, too. Comment below, start a converation, ask a question, I will respond as soon as I can, by Sunday at the latest! I still have lots of prepping to do before 8am Sunday!

Have a blessed and holy weekend, everyone! Pray for our Lay Dominican community as six of us prepare to make our final professions on Sunday! I will livestream it on facebook! Give us a like and a share, too!

Here’s the link:

Novena to St. Dominic