Father Todd O. Strange

Anointing of the Sick is a sacrament, commonly misunderstood. Perhaps a brief explanation is helpful. It’s rooted in Jesus’ ministry, Jesus, the divine healer. The Church upholds this sacrament for the purpose of strengthening those tried by illness. The priest anoints in the name and power of Christ himself. There are three principal ritual actions that take place: the prayer of faith (see James 5:15), laying on of hands (see Luke 4:40), and anointing with oil (see Mark 6:13). It supports...

In our second reading, Peter declares: “You are ‘a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people of his own, so that you may announce the praises’ of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light”. Much of the letter, from which this come, seems to speak to those who are newly baptized, and so it’s fitting for us to hear in this Season of Easter. When I think of Peter, I can’t help but recall being on pilgrimage in Rome. Possibly the most powerful moment for me was...

By the time you read this, it will have been two weeks ago that I was away from the parish on vacation. The purpose was to attend and concelebrate as a priest, at a wedding of a young lady whom I have known for about fifteen years, and whose family is dear to me. When she was in college she studied in Madrid. It was there, having become involved in the young adult activities at the local parish, that she met a young man from Madrid. After college, she sought and found work in Madrid, so that...