Fr. Christian Mathis | January 26, 2012
Be grateful in all things. Maxim #29 The Second Vatican Council declared that the source and summit of the Christian life is found in the celebration of the Eucharist. It is where we come to be both fed and sent. The word Eucharist is derived from the Greek word that means to give thanks. Christians [...]
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Tags: 55 Maxims, Eucharist, Fr. Thomas Hopko, generosity, gratitude, kindness, music, Natalie Merchant, Sacrosanctum Concilium, Second Vatican Council, Thanksgiving, video
Fr. Christian Mathis | November 24, 2011
This morning at our Thanksgiving Day mass I celebrated the Eucharist for the last time with the prayers of our current missal. On this day when we pause to give thanks, I am thankful for these prayers that have served my entire life as a roadmap to God. These are the prayers that formed me [...]
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Tags: Liturgy, New Roman Missal, prayer, Thanksgiving
Fr. Christian Mathis | November 23, 2011
Though this is not happy news, I am thankful for the leadership of our current bishop. When faced with a situation of priest sexual abuse in our diocese, he has set an excellent example of how to respond to this terrible reality of sin in the church. There are never easy solutions when it comes [...]
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Tags: Bill Casey, Bishop Richard Stika, child sexual abuse, clergy sex scandal, Diocese of Knoxville, prayer, sadness, Thanksgiving, Warren Tucker
Fr. Christian Mathis | September 3, 2011
It begins hours before the fans descend upon Neyland Stadium. You can feel the excitement on the highways, cars decorated with orange and white flags making their way towards Knoxville. You can feel the energy begin to grow on campus as thousands descend upon the university, setting up grills and pulling coolers from their vehicles [...]
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Tags: change, Eucharist, football, Knoxville, Liturgy, New Roman Missal, Neyland Stadium, Rocky Top, Smokey, tailgating, Tennessee Vols, Thanksgiving, tradition, unity, University of Tennessee
Fr. Christian Mathis | August 26, 2011
Earlier this week I had the opportunity to spend the evening with my good friend Fr. David for dinner and to hear Gillian Welch and David Rawlings as they shared their gift of music and poetry with the people of Knoxville. At some point as we listened to them perform on Wednesday night, I realized [...]
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Tags: beauty, being present, David Rawlings, Fr. David Boettner, friendship, Gillian Welch, gratitude, Johnny Cash, Knoxville, Loretta Lynn, music, Old Crow Medicine Show, Thanksgiving, The Doors
Fr. Christian Mathis | August 14, 2011
The last couple of years many of our Catholic Holy Days have fallen close enough to a Sunday to put them in the category of what I often call Holy Days of Non-Obligation. You see, the bishops of the United States have come to the pastoral conclusion that it may be too much of a [...]
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Tags: Assumption, Dormition, fasting, holy days of non-obligation, holy days of obligation, love, obligation, prayer, Thanksgiving
Fr. Christian Mathis | June 12, 2010
Last night I had the opportunity to gather with a small group of friends to celebrate ten years of priesthood. One gift that I received at our gathering was a poster of The Dude, with the simple message, Abide. I am a big fan of the the movie, The Big Lebowski, so the gift was [...]
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Tags: Abide, anniversaries, Colossians, friends, love, patience, priesthood, relationships, St. Paul, stability, Thanksgiving, The Big Lebowski, The Dude