In early 21st-century America money and material possessions are often taken as signs not only of intelligence and goodness but also of divine favor They are regarded as the key to happiness Despite all kinds of evidence to the contrary most of us still assume that money can and does buy happines

Two of the most difficult problems facing the Catholic Church in the United States in the early part of the 21st century are the high incidence of divorce and the fallout from the crisis caused by sexual abuse by members of the clergy These are complicated matters that demand to be approached from

In this Sunday rsquo s passage from Mark 9 Jesus offers pieces of advice to his followers about dealing with outsiders and insiders The different sayings were put together at the oral stage with the help of keywords like ldquo name rdquo and ldquo scandalizes rdquo or ldquo causes to sin rdq

Today rsquo s reading from the Letter of James asks and answers a timely question Where do wars and conflicts come from All around us on the international scene there are wars and rumors of wars And there surely are conflicts in our country local communities churches and families Why James t

In approaching the mystery of suffering, the Christian Bible puts forward Jesus as an example of fidelity, a compassionate companion and a model of hope.

Among the New Testament writings the Letter of James is important for its emphasis on social justice By social justice I mean how we find our way among the various social ethnic economic gender and political realities that shape our lives When this letter was written there were probably only a