Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time Gospel for February 26, 2017 By Glen Argan If there is one reading in the Bible that shoots an arrow through the heart of our accumulative, frenzied, technological, top-down society, it is Sunday’s Gospel (Matthew 6.24-34). I have to admit that every time I read or hear this reading about the lilies of the field
Read moreBy Glen Argan Words such as “Islamophobia,” “homophobia” and other invented “phobias” of the day, in my opinion, assume too much. They assume people become bigoted thugs because they are afraid of Muslims, gays or whomever. It reminds of the time that a woman interjected into a serious discussion of some matter which I have forgotten and began shouting, “It’s
Read moreBy Glen Argan About 18 months ago, Nora and I headed off on our walking pilgrimage across northern Spain, the Camino de Santiago. I don’t use the word “pilgrimage” lightly for, although it was a journey that was both physical and spiritual, we went on the Camino as a renewal of faith. Part of that renewal included the gathering of
Read moreBy Glen Argan Edmonton is increasingly becoming a city where transportation is frowned upon. Staying home or walking may be the best alternatives. A week or two ago, I got a call and email from Keren Tang (www.kerentang.ca) who is running for city council this fall in Ward 11 which includes much of Edmonton south and east from Whyte Avenue
Read moreBy Glen Argan The Jesus we meet in last week’s and this week’s (Matthew 5.38-48) Gospels is a no-nonsense fellow. The last line says it all: “Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Well, how is that possible? No mention is made of Jesus sending his Holy Spirit to help us along. Just do it; be perfect. Following Jesus
Read moreBy Glen Argan Special to the Prairie Messenger EDMONTON — Catholic educators must stir their students with a grand vision of goodness and beauty that can transform society, Rev. Stefano Penna told Catholic education leaders from across Alberta. “The teacher who gives beauty doesn’t teach what the kid wants to hear; they teach what the kid needs to hear,” Penna
Read moreBy Glen Argan Special to the Prairie Messenger EDMONTON — By embracing the theory of evolution, Pope John Paul II became “one of the great heroes in science and religion,” says a University of Alberta professor. The late pope was one of the most important people in “breaking through the warfare model of science and religion always being in conflict,”
Read moreBy Glen Argan My friend suggested to me that Donald Trump’s presidency will be a kleptocracy, an allegation I didn’t take seriously. While my respect for the new president does not run deep, I still thought he had more class than to spend a billion dollars on becoming president so that he could raid the people’s treasury of billions more.
Read moreGospel for Sunday, February 12, 2017 Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time By Glen Argan We do not make our own salvation; it is God’s gift to us through Jesus Christ in the Holy Spirit. This is the basic existential truth of Christianity. Salvation is not an achievement, but a gift. Yet, in recent decades, many who were raised in Christian
Read moreBy Glen Argan Special to the Prairie Messenger 02/01/2017 EDMONTON — Economists and proponents of Catholic social teaching need to overcome “a forgetfulness about the truth of the centrality of the person in the economic drama,” said a visiting scholar from Ireland. Rev. John McNerney spoke at Newman Theological College Jan. 25 about what he called “the ultimate spiritual nature
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On the Threshold 