Blog Archives - Albert the Ordinary

Jubilee, Pilgrimage, and going to Rome

Posted on February 1, 2025February 1, 2025 by Father Albert

I'm going to Rome. Who's coming with me? Why go to Rome? Because it's a jubilee year! It's a time of special grace, an opportunity to manifest to ourselves and to the world that this lifelong pilgrimage we call life has a goal: heaven. Ever since Adam and Eve were kicked out of the garden, humanity has been searching for a way back into paradise. All of human history is the story of mankind trying to find or create paradise and failing. The Tower of Babel? A wrong-headed attempt to build our way into paradise. So God scattered that. Then...Read More

Pastor Column: Receiving Communion Well

Posted on June 12, 2023June 12, 2023 by Father Albert

[N.B. This is not the Sunday Homily. It is an article from the bulletin of June 11, 2023] This feast is a fitting time to encourage everyone to reflect on how they receive communion. St. Paul warns us that “anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body, eats and drinks judgment on himself” (1 Cor 11:29). Before coming to Mass and before receiving communion, do you carefully examine your conscience to determine if you are in the right state to receive? Catholics are encouraged to receive communion often, but there are requirements. Besides being Catholic, they must not...Read More

Pastor Column: Pacem in Terris III

Posted on February 27, 2023February 27, 2023 by Father Albert

[N.B. This is not the Sunday Homily. It is an article for the bulletin of Feb 26, 2023] After a long hiatus, we return to our journey through the document Pacem in Terris by Pope St. John XXIII, written in 1963. Last we left off, we were looking at broad changes in society around the world and breaking open the Church’s teaching about government power and human rights. While the Church does not dictate any single governmental system to be the best, Pope John XIII does highlight the value of dividing powers within the government as well as the...Read More

Mater et Magistra IV

Posted on December 5, 2022December 5, 2022 by Father Albert

[N.B. This is not the Sunday Homily. It is an article for the bulletin of December 4, 2022] Continuing Pope St. John XXIII’s reflection on farming, we pick up with the subject of taxation. Yes, the Church teaches that governments do have the right to impose taxes in order to pay for services to the common good. She also teaches that taxation systems should be “based on justice and equity,” meaning that tax raters are “proportioned to the capacity of the people contributing.” The pope point out that this means the system should note the particular challenges facing farmers...Read More

Pastor Column: Mater et Magistra III

Posted on November 29, 2022November 28, 2022 by Father Albert

[N.B. This is not the Sunday Homily. It is an article from the bulletin of Nov 27, 2022] We left off last week with the Papal teaching on a Just Wage. This week, we follow that train of thought into the teaching on the relationship between wages and profits. We’ve already seen that laborers ought to share in the profits in some way since it is their labor that produces them. Pope St. John XXIII goes on to say that “any adjustment between wages and profits must take into account the demands of the common good of the particular...Read More

Pastor Column: Mater et Magistra II

Posted on November 28, 2022November 28, 2022 by Father Albert

[N.B. This is not the Sunday Homily. It is an article from the bulletin of Nov 20, 2022] We left off our journey through Pope John XXIII’s letter with an emphasis on balance between individuals and communities, between the principles of Subsidiarity and Solidarity. We pick up this week with the pope noting that science and technology have made is possible for the “public authority” to more directly react to imbalances between branched of the economy or between different regions. Since they have more ability, governments ought to be all the more responsible. Once again, the pope then immediately...Read More

Pastor Column: Mater et Magistra I

Posted on November 7, 2022November 7, 2022 by Father Albert

[N.B. This is not the Sunday homily. It is an article for the bulletin of November 6, 2022] Since his pontificate was short and much of his effort went toward beginning the Second Vatican Council, Pope St. John XXIII did not write very many encyclicals. We’ll begin with one of the more important ones, titled Mater et Magistra and written in 1961. It is Latin for “Mother and Teacher,” and it focuses on the role of the Church as mother and teacher of all nations. Like other popes, John XXIII released this document on the anniversary of a very...Read More

Pastor Column: Pope St. John XXIII

Posted on October 31, 2022October 31, 2022 by Father Albert

[Note: This is not the Sunday Homily. It is an article for the bulletin of Oct 30, 2022] Although Pope Pius XII wrote many other encyclicals, most of those focused on specific historical events - things like missions in Africa, conflict in Hungary, anniversaries of various events, and some canonizations. As he aged, Pius XII slowed down a little. In 1954 he fell gravely ill and considered abdication. He frequently relied on a few close colleagues to continue the work of the Church, though he did continue to address the public and respond to specific questions. One of the...Read More

Pastor Column: Queenship of Mary

Posted on October 24, 2022October 24, 2022 by Father Albert

[N.B. This is not the Sunday Homily. It is an article for the bulletin of October 23, 2022] Our next letter from Pope Pius XII is on the Queenship of Mary, titled Ad Caeli Reginam(Latin for ‘to the Queen of Heaven”), published in 1954. Recall that it was Pius XII who formally declared the Assumption of Mary into heaven to be a dogma. Following up on that declaration, the pope decided to offer a reflection on the power and influence of Mary as an intercessor in heaven. As always, his teaching on this is not some new idea, but...Read More

Pastor Column: Mediator Dei VII

Posted on October 17, 2022October 17, 2022 by Father Albert

[N.B. This is not the Sunday Homily, it is an article for the bulletin of Oct 16, 2022] Last week we began to look at the practical guidelines provided by Pope Pius XII for fostering a greater appreciation of the liturgy. In addition to things like adoration and the rosary, the pope reminds us of the value of frequent confession. He also urges “that as many as possible, not only of the clergy but of the laity... take part in monthly days of recollection and in retreats of longer duration made with a view to growing in virtue.” A...Read More

Father Alexander Albert

Category: Blog

Jubilee, Pilgrimage, and going to Rome

Pastor Column: Receiving Communion Well

Pastor Column: Pope St. John XXIII

Pastor Column: Queenship of Mary

Pastor Column: Mediator Dei VII