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http://www.maryundoerofknots.org/

Mary Undoer of Knots Parish, 4646 N. Austin Avenue, Chicago, IL (2026)

09/03/2026

Thursday - Feast of St. Gregory the Great
Gospel - Luke 5:1-11
Waiting for that Lightning Bolt
Sea of Galilee, Capernaum

How many times have you walked away from a challenge? Turned your back on something so new and different that you were afraid? Something that you knew would completely change your life? Either it was too radically different or you were too comfortable with the life you were living?

16 years ago I was happily teaching high school religion. Life was good and very full not only as a teacher but as a husband, father and grandfather. And I knew retirement was not that far away. But then a chance comment after Mass changed everything. Have you ever thought about becoming a Deacon? Simple answer – NO! End of story, or so I thought. But the possibility kept nagging at me and I kept ignoring it. I figured – fine, I will just wait for that obvious lightning bolt from heaven, just to be sure. Reluctant to change, sure! Nervous about upsetting my life – absolutely! Difficult choice? Actually ‘choice’ is not the right word. Response is more accurate – response to the call. So yes it was a difficult response but also one that ended up merging my home life, my work life and my spiritual life into one. In the end, there was no lightning bolt, only a gentle call that comes to you where you are at and offers you a new direction. (More about that some other time)

Peter, in today’s Gospel, is given that call. He has already seen Jesus preach in the synagogue in Capernaum. He has seen Him cure his mother-in-law. And now coming to shore after a long and fruitless night of fishing, Jesus asks to borrow his boat to preach to the crowd. OK, fine! But then Jesus asks him to put back out onto the Sea of Galilee. Peter is reluctant but OK, fine! And they catch a multitude of fish. When they get to shore, Jesus asks Peter the really challenging question – drop everything and follow Me! Leave your home, your wife and family, your job and friends and take on a new challenge. Peter is afraid; he knows he isn’t perfect and he asks Jesus to leave him in his unworthiness. But Jesus persists and Peter answers the call.

And so it is with all of us. Jesus comes to each one of us – not with a lightning bolt or a burning bush. He meets us where we are at; he meets us in the events of our ordinary lives and offers us the challenge not to separate our spiritual life from home and work but to make it all one. To make our faith and love of God the focus of our daily life, not just something we do on a Sunday morning.

Creator, help me to let go of old ways, old thoughts. Let me be open to change and to growth and let that change be an opportunity for me to draw closer to You!

09/02/2026

Wednesday – 22nd Week in Ordinary Time
Gospel - Luke 4:38-44
A (Luke)Warm Reception
Ruins of Peter’s House, Capernaum

Friends, please note! I will be taking a short break for the next few days beginning Friday 9/4; time to catch my breath, attend to some family and ministry duties and recharge my ‘batteries’. Facebook and email posts will return on Tuesday Sept 8. In the meantime, you can still access daily posts on my blog - https://deaconbillfrere.blogspot.com/

In case you hadn’t noticed, this week our daily Gospel readings have shifted from Matthew to Luke. Tradition tells us that Luke was a Gentile and a doctor. So it’s not unusual then that, when Jesus performs a healing miracle, Luke provides a bit more detail to the illness. And so Peter’s mother-in-law is not just “sick”; she is sick with a severe fever. In the days ahead when we go deeper into Luke, you will also see an emphasis on Jesus as the Savior of all people, not just Jews. In fact, He shows a particular affection for the second-class citizens: the poor, the sick, the non-Jews, women and the oppressed.

But today, consider what’s been happening ever since the week began. On Monday we saw Jesus being run out of Nazareth, His home town! In fact, the people tried to throw Him off a cliff. And then look at these past 2 days. Jesus comes to Capernaum, preaches in their synagogue and then today heals Peter’s mother-in-law. And their reaction? They are amazed at His words and His authority; anyone who was sick was brought to Him and cured, and they spread the word about this amazing preacher.

What a warm reception! What a different reception from what happened in Nazareth! In fact, Jesus comes to make Capernaum basically His home for the next few years.

Yesterday we talked about whether or how we know Jesus. Today the focus is on how do we react to that ‘knowledge’? If we really do believe Jesus is the Son of the Most High, how do we respond? Do we try to push Him out of our life, get rid of Him like the Nazareans? Or do we provide a warm welcome, open our arms and our hearts to His words and actions? What kind of reception do we give to Jesus? Do we offer such an open response that Jesus doesn’t just visit us but He takes up residence in our hearts?

Great Spirit, allow me today to feel Your presence. Help me to remember and appreciate that You are always here beside me. Give me the openness to welcome You into my life.

09/01/2026

Tuesday – 22nd Week in Ordinary Time
Gospel - Luke 4:31-37
The Word of God
Synagogue, Capernaum

NO!!! And that was it! End of discussion, if there even was any! Maybe we wanted overnight at a friend’s house or it was that one special toy we felt we had to have! It didn’t matter if it was our mom or our dad. That one simple word was the final say and any attempt to plead our case was pointless! That one word had power; it had forcefulness and finality! And it allowed for no discussion!

The Power of the Word!

That is what we hear in today’s Gospel. The Power of the Word, the Word of God! Jesus is in the synagogue at Capernaum preaching on the Sabbath. And the people’s response is overwhelming. They are amazed by His knowledge of Scripture and His wisdom! They are astonished with His teaching! Such is the Power of His Word!

But He isn’t done. There is a man there possessed by a demon. And Jesus casts out the demon and heals him. Not by any grand physical gesture! But by His Words – Be quiet! Come out of him. His Words have wisdom and power, able to heal and to capture our attention and our faith!

It is a good reminder to us all to turn to Him in prayer and in reading Scripture. To recognize His power to heal, to forgive, to inspire and energize us to live a life of faith and hope.

He truly is the Word of God!

08/31/2026

Monday – 22nd Week in Ordinary Time
Gospel - Luke 4:16-30
A Rush to Judgement
Mount Precipice, outside Nazareth (Mt Tabor in the distance)

Ever had that experience of running into an old relative, someone who hasn’t seen you since you were little and they proceed to treat you like you were still that little child they used to play with. It’s as if, from their perspective, you never changed, you never grew up. And when you try to tell them all that you have accomplished and the bright future you are working toward, they almost refuse to believe it – no, not my little boy!

That is what’s happening in today’s Gospel. Jesus has returned to Nazareth after being baptized by John and praying for 40 days in the desert. At this point, He has done nothing – no miracles, no parables, no preaching- nothing at all. And He goes to the synagogue to offer His first sermon. And He reads from the Prophet Isaiah: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives
and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free” It is a prophecy about the Messiah, the long hoped-for Messiah. And He then tells them clearly that today that prophecy is fulfilled! I am the Messiah.

They are enraged and upset. This can’t be; we know this man! He is just the son of the carpenter. We saw him playing as a child! He is just a Jew like any of us. They become so upset that they drag Him out of the synagogue, out of Nazareth, to the top of Mount Precipice to throw Him off the cliff. But He passes through their midst and leaves to begin His mission. In spite of their denial, their hatred, and their doubt that He will amount to anything, Jesus begins His Mission.

We have all faced moments of pushback from others, moments when we start a new job or career or a new life and all we get from others is doubt! You won’t make it; you won’t be able to handle it! Do you think he’s really going through with it? He’ll never amount to anything! Moments that make us doubt our choices and perhaps rethink our life goals. Moments when we question our abilities and our resolve.

But even though we have had moments like that in the past, we got through them. Moments when God was with us all along! So maybe today could be the day to spend in gratitude, to thank God for all He has done for us to get us this far in life. To thank Him for His many blessings that gave us the strength and courage to move on in life. To thank Him for those special people in our lives who love us, encourage us, push us and correct us when we need it, and people who gave us the courage to move forward and succeed. People like my mom, who celebrates her birthday today.

Happy 101st Birthday, Mom! Continue to get rest and get well!

08/30/2026

Sunday – 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time
Gospel - Matthew 16:21-27
The 4th Temptation
Church of Holy Sepulchre, Jerusalem

Two nights ago, I made ice cream, simple delicious vanilla ice cream, with my brand-new ice cream maker, courtesy of a birthday present from Ginger. I ate 2 bowls worth! Last night, I made an apple pie – had to have something to go with the ice cream, right? I had 2 slices with a scoop of ice cream! Whether it’s a nice slice of pie or, if we are dining out, a yummy crème brulee! And yes, I make sure never to overdo the entrée; always leave room for dessert! OK, I admit it – I love dessert! I find it hard to pass up a good dessert. It’s a temptation that’s hard to resist.

Of course, in life, we can all admit there are much more serious temptations that we battle against on a daily basis. Money, power, acceptance, popularity, greed, jealousy, self-pleasure and a variety of addictions! Temptations – we all have them and it can be a constant struggle to reject!

Jesus faces His own temptation in today’s Gospel. If we are counting – this is His 4th temptation. Jesus has already faced 3 temptations in the desert at the beginning of His ministry – temptations to focuse on His divine nature, to change stones into bread, to have His angels attend to His needs, to make Himself ruler over all nations. And in a battle with Satan, He rejects them all.

And now He faces a different temptation – a very human desire – to avoid pain and suffering, to take the easy road in life! This time, it is not Satan but Peter who challenges Jesus’ prediction of His death and resurrection. Let’s give Peter some credit here. He doesn’t confront Jesus in public, with all the other disciples around. Instead he takes Jesus aside and rebukes Him. Part of me thinks Peter is doing this out of love but it is still a very human temptation for Jesus. In the end, Jesus not only embraces His human nature but also His mission to suffer and die for our sins!

Jesus is basically addressing not only Peter but Satan himself, recognizing the temptation for what it is – the temptation to avoid a demanding life and death and to take the easy path. His response is clear – begone Satan, don’t tempt me!

As Christians we are all faced with difficult choices – difficult temptations. And there are plenty of times when we do take the easy way out. Either out of laziness or fear or a simple lack of courage, we look for quick solutions and then have to deal with the consequences of our lack of action! We jump headlong into a situation, kind of like Peter jumping out of the boat in the middle of a storm, and then we’re stuck with ‘how do I get myself out of this mess.’

Jesus reminds us that, in order to truly follow Him, we all must take up our cross. Will it be difficult? Yes! Is it an easy path? Definitely not! But the reward is eternal life. May God give us the strength, the courage and wisdom to make the difficult choices, to turn away from the easy path and to follow in His footsteps, No pain, no gain!

08/29/2026

Saturday – 21st Week in Ordinary Time
Gospel – Matthew 25:14-30
Using Our Talents Wisely
Grotto of St. Jerome, Bethlehem

An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. He told his employer-contractor of his plans to leave the house building business and live a more leisurely life with his wife enjoying his extended family.

He would miss the paycheck, but he needed to retire. They could get by. The contractor was sorry to see his good worker go and asked if he could build just one more house as a personal favor. The carpenter said yes, but in time it was easy to see that his heart was not in his work. He resorted to shoddy workmanship and used inferior materials. It was an unfortunate way to end his career.

When the carpenter finished his work and the builder came to inspect the house, the contractor handed the front-door key to the carpenter. "This is your house," he said, "my gift to you."

What a shock! What a shame! If he had only known he was building his own house, he would have done it all so differently. Now he had to live in the home he had built none too well.

So it is with us. We build our lives in a distracted way, reacting rather than acting, willing to put up less than the best. At important points we do not give the job our best effort. Then with a shock we look at the situation we have created and find that we are now living in the house we have built. If we had realized that we would have done it differently.

Just like that carpenter, every day we build our own house, we build our lives. Every day we hammer a nail, set up a wall, paint a room. And sometimes we don’t do a very good job. We get lazy, we get forgetful and distracted. And some days we just give up, thinking we don’t have the will or the right tools for the job. Sometimes we doubt our abilities, our TALENTS! And some days we just choose to take the easy path and ignore our God-given gifts!

And other times, we follow the path of those 2 servants who invested their talents and gained a profit. They took a risk, a leap of faith, and saw their talents increased. And that first servant? he was afraid to lose what he had! He gave in to fear instead of faith.

The lesson is clear! In order to ‘share the Master’s joy”, we must use our God-given talents, not bury them in the sand. We must work diligently and faithfully and, yes, sometimes even take a risk in order to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Keep the faith! Share the faith!

08/28/2026

Friday – St. Augustine
Gospel - Matthew 25:1-13
Tough Love
Church of Peter Primacy, Sea of Galilee

I think we have all been there. It’s Friday and there is a big test today in our worst subject. But for one reason or another, we didn’t study; we didn’t fully prepare for it. We either figured it was no big deal, or we had better things to do the night before – like spending hours on our Xbox or binging our favorite show. And then reality hits us in the face when we come face to face with the test. We look around for help, a hint, anything that could get us through the mess that we created! In the end, we failed the test, miserably! Later on, we yell at our friends for not bailing us out, for not helping us with a cheat or two. Some friend you are! We think that somehow they are responsible for the mess that we ourselves created!

I think that’s what’s happening today in the Parable of the Wise and Foolish Virgins. The foolish ones are asking for help; give us some of your oil. But the wise ones say NO! What? How rude! How unkind! How unfriendly! How un-Christian! Aren’t these the wise virgins? Why aren’t they helping?

But perhaps that is exactly the point. Sometimes you have to say no; sometimes you have to practice a bit of tough love. Sometimes foolish friends become too dependent on you to always come to their rescue. They expect there will always be a safety net. But sooner or later they have to learn to stand on their own 2 feet, make their own decisions, and take responsibility.

His first 30 years of life were full of less than admirable qualities. He was a very difficult child for his Christian mother and his pagan father. In his teen years, he ran around with a not-so-savory crew who called themselves the ‘destructors’, full of mischief and hijinks He tells the story that they once decided to steal the pears off a tree. It had nothing to do with hunger; they just felt like doing it! In fact, they took all the pears and threw them away to some pigs.

He grew up to be an atheist and spent much of his early life in debauchery and misadventures. At the age of 17, he began a long-term relationship with a young woman, living together and fathering a child. He was always an extremely intelligent and educated young man. Finally at the age of 31, he converted to Christianity His name is St. Augustine of Hippo, whose feast we celebrate today and whose mother, Monica, we celebrated yesterday – talk about tough love! All those years of immense talent wasted! And then he had that leap of faith and the rest, they say, is history!

Sometimes maybe the most Christian thing we can do is not solve all their problems but give them the opportunity to resolve them themselves. We can’t just give them all the answers! I don’t mean we abandon them or leave them stranded. I mean we still love and support them, but we provide the opportunity for them to direct their own lives. We give them the chance to pick themselves up and carry on. Face it, when we finally stand before God, we will only be carrying our own lamps, our own oil.

08/27/2026

Thursday – St. Monica
Gospel - Matthew 24:24-51
Ready? Set! Go!
Caesarea Philippi

Remember that first day of school when we were little? Maybe we were excited? Maybe upset that the summer was over? Maybe glad that we get to see our friends again? Maybe nervous about a new teacher, new classes, new homework! But do you remember all the work, all the preparation that our parents went through to get us ready for that day? Shopping for school supplies, new clothes! Trips to the grocery store for extra food to make for school lunches! Maybe even getting us up early weeks before school started so that we were back on schedule. Our parents probably spent weeks getting us ready for that first day of school. And for many of you, you were doing exactly the same thing this week, getting your kids ready for school

So much preparation! And why do we do it? Because we love our kids and we want to keep them safe and protected! We want to make sure they are prepared for the new day, the new school reality.

And so it is with today’s Gospel and the story of the faithful and unfaithful servant. The faithful servant is always ready, always prepared for the return of the master. And the unfaithful one wastes his time and never looks to the future. Too late, he rushes at the last minute to make up for all the lost time and opportunities. We are all called to be ready for the return of the master; it is not a simple last-minute rush; it’s a lifelong preparation. It requires faith and dedication and yes, even love. It requires the sort of effort we put in to get our kids ready for school and, dare I say, for life. It is an unquestioning faith in the future and an unconditional love for each other and for the Master!

We celebrate today the Feast of St. Monica, mother of St. Augustine. Despite 17 long years of resistance, her constant witness to her Christian faith finally converted her pagan husband and St. Augustine. Talk about patience! Talk about persistence! Talk about faith! Talk about persistence and love!

The lesson is clear! In order to ‘share the Master’s joy”, we must use our God-given talents, not bury them in the sand. We must work diligently and faithfully and, yes, sometimes even take a risk in order to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Keep the faith! Share the faith!

Creator of all, keep me focused today and every day on my one true purpose – to serve You! Guide me; lead me to always be ready to answer the call to turn my faith in You into an active love for others.

08/26/2026

Wednesday – 21st Week in Ordinary Time
Matthew 23:27-32
Whitewashed Tombs
Mount of Olives Cemetery, along Palm Sunday Road

There’s a story about a preacher who was accused of not practicing what he preached. He responded; “Well, at least I don’t preach what I practice.”

Hypocrite! It comes from a Greek word for “actor”, someone who put on a show for others. Someone who acts a part and pretends to be good just for admiration and applause! If you thought Jesus was blunt in yesterday’s Gospel, today goes way beyond! The Pharisees and Scribes are like whitewashed tombs with only dead men’s bones and filth inside. The Jews believed that contact with the dead automatically made you unclean; so the tombs were painted white to warn the people away, to prevent them from touching the stones. So the Pharisees only appear righteous but they are ultimately only concerned with themselves!

But why such harsh words? Why does Jesus condemn the Pharisees so bluntly? Maybe it’s because their supposedly ‘sincere’ words were leading others astray. They care only about one thing – themselves – and about garnering applause from others. Maybe Jesus was concerned with the effect of their words on others! It’s bad enough that a person says one thing and does something completely different. What’s worse is if they can convince others to follow their example.

At some point in our lives, we have all been swayed by the ‘honeyed’ words of another. They said the right things, the things we wanted to hear, what we needed to hear at the time. We were fooled and we learned a bitter lesson not only about whom to trust but how much our own words have an effect on others. The lesson here is twofold: to value others not only for their words but for their actions AND not to fall into the same trap of being a hypocrite ourselves – saying things just for the admiration or applause of others!

Great Spirit, help me to live for others today and learn that love is the key and that my words must reflect what is in my heart.

08/25/2026

Tuesday – 21st Week in Ordinary Time
Gospel - Matthew 23:23-26
Rotten on the Inside
Spice Market, Jerusalem

We haven’t had much luck with growing zucchini this year. While the planst grow healthily for a while, then we are inundated with these little grubs (squash vine borers), and they end up rotting the crop from the outside. Generally, we can see the rot coming but there are also plenty of times when the zucchini rots from the inside out and the problem is you don’t see it coming until you cut it open. And then you have to just throw it away. Ugh! A very unpleasant surprise!

In today’s Gospel, Jesus uses extremely harsh language for the Pharisees and Scribes for being so clean and perfect on the outside, but utterly rotten within. He chastises them for being so concerned about collecting tithes on herbs like cumin and dill and yet not caring at all about the welfare of the people. The Law demanded that the people contribute 10% of all of their produce and crops to the Temple. Too often, instead of burning them as an offering, the Pharisees and Scribes would take them for their own personal use. Lawful on the outside but rotten within! They paid more attention to outward appearance and not to one’s inner soul, more attention to crops and herbs and not to justice and mercy and compassion for others. They paid tithes on mint, cumin and dill and completely neglected the needs of the poor.

Maybe this is our wake-up call – to look deep inside ourselves. Does our outward appearance match our inner attitude? Do we put up a good front but are dead inside? Do we worry too much about ourselves and not enough about others? Do I do the right thing but for selfish reasons? We all make mistakes; we are all, at times, blind to the needs of others.

What can I do today so that my words and actions, my thoughts and intentions, fully reflect the Spirit within? Take some time today to look deep inside, cut open that “zucchini” and see what you find. Is it worth making some “bread” with?

The Creator has a purpose for each and every one of us. We may not know it; we may not understand it. But we are on this earth to fulfill that purpose. It is our task to prepare ourselves – by prayer, by being unselfish, by choosing to walk a spiritual path.

Mary Undoer of Knots Parish

09/03/2026

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