Succeed On Our Own

A mother of four young children recently reminded me that a primary task of parents is to teach children to get along without them, to succeed on their own, to develop skills so that they can take care of themselves, interact well with others, develop talents, solve problems, and achieve goals.  I wonder if the […]

Love the People

Early in my priesthood, I was privileged to be mentored by Monsignor Arthur Matthew Tighe, longtime pastor of Visitation Parish, site of my first assignment in 1987.  Then, like now, there were various discussions and debates among Catholics about how the church should function as a sacramental institution, a hierarchical enterprise, a community of faith […]

Urban Adaptation

I am concerned about maintaining our Catholic presence in Kansas City’s urban core in the future.  We have a limited number of priests serving our diocese; the bishop and diocesan leaders must send priests where Catholics live and worship to provide sacraments—there is not a proportionate number of Catholics living or worshipping in our inner […]