LukeLive

07/30/2026

When reading the Bible, remember this: "Anytime we use our sacred writings to justify acts of exclusion, rejection, and hegemony we are neglecting justice, mercy, and love."

Exclusion in the Bible must be read with attentiveness to historical contexts, and how it reflects a stage in the writers' spiritual development. The Bible is honest in its depiction of many stages of thought development. Some passages step forward to mature understandings and objectives, others step back to earlier and more primordial understandings, even justifying superstition and tribalism.

07/29/2026

I am catching up with articles featured on the National Catholic Reporter. For those who appreciate the hymn ON EAGLE'S WNGS by Fr. Michael Joncas, you will appreciate this:

Michael Joncas wrote "On Eagle's Wings" during a moment of private grief. Five decades later, the hymn has become one of the most recognizable religious songs in the English-speaking world.

07/29/2026

Keep sacred places sacred; natural environments, natural environments. "Let the children come unto me!"

The Mount Cristo Rey Protection Act would prevent the federal government from constructing border security infrastructure around the prominent Catholic pilgrimage site overlooking the U.S.-Mexico border.

07/18/2026

I am writing to tell you that my mother, Janet, journeyed to God Wednesday night, at the age of 92 1/2. She had extreme pain her last days so Hospice prescribed morphine and she left us quickly in only two days time.
As you know, this year was filled with many ups and downs for my mother with days of relative health and days of great discomfort - we thought she would leave us in March!, but now she is at peace with Christ and the Saints. I celebrated a mass with family members in mom's presence earlier in the day and that memory brings us great comfort.

In the previous weeks I shared with Mom here in FL (her funeral will be here in a few weeks and then I will return to NYC in August)
were beautiful. Although she was weak, we shared remembrances, we prayed, and I read to Mom -- poems of Emily Dickinson and others, Children's rhymes and Fairy Tales (Janet loved happy endings), and watched BLUE BLOODS --that long running tv series about a Catholic family of cops and lawyers who met for Sunday dinner in each episode. I recognized, once again, how it is important and so affirming for each of us to see ourselves and our distinctive cultural and religious identities depicted positively in the media. And, of course, positive depictions of others. Still a long way to go on all fronts.

As I have been sharing with many fellow Paulists, there is a hope and a bit of defiance in regard to death. I am experiencing both with and from family members as we grieve, remember the best, the saddest, the good and the regretful. "Blessed are those who mourn". So many levels of thought and feeling.
May God grant peace to us all.

07/11/2026

I invite you to join me in writing to the President, Vice-président, Secretary of State, and Representatives in Congress to stop the sale of Arms to the United Arab Emirates which is funding Genocide in Sudan via R. S. F. Read Nicholas Kristof' article for details.

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/11/opinion/sudan-atrocity-africa-rsf.html?smid=nytcore-android-share

Here is what I wrote in the Contact email pages for each:

I read Nicholas Kristof in the NYTIMES today re. Genocide in Sudan. Please support Senator Chris Van Hollen and Representative Sara Jacobs, who have sponsored legislation that essentially would limit sales of weaponry to the Emirates as long as it arms the R.S.F. in Sudan. USA MUST BE A LEADER IN IDENTIFYING AND STOPPING GENOCIDE. More Governments Statements against the Emirates and the R.S.F. would also help a great deal. Thank you.

Hundreds of thousands of people in Sudan are bracing for their city to be overrun by a militia notorious for committing atrocities.

07/09/2026

Everyone must have the ability to address calumny and detraction and to redress unsanctioned use of his or her image. AI and media require oversight and ethical management in their assault on human dignity.

https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/support-the-no-fakes-act/

07/04/2026

As we celebrate the birth of our Nation, it is humbling to remind ourselves how at the Continental Congress, the founders came so very close to creating independent states or small confederations of like-minded states—in part because all the states did not want to participate in paying off the debts of the Revolutionary War. Four distinctive dynamics were at play to create a formidable union as per Jospeh J. Ellis' book FOUNDING BROTHERS. Today, assessing the qualifications of people running for government positions benefits us all. To help us keep integrity in our democracy, I am offering my interpretation and application of Ellis’ four points (found in pp. 17 and 18 of the book) on my blog. But, if you do not wish to enter into the conversation more fully, here, at least, are my succinct summary of Ellis’ clarifying observations. We need to expect the same qualifications from our representatives today.
1. The founders educated themselves in philosophy (and corresponding ethics) as well as law.
2. The founders fostered mutual relationships of trust that seasoned their diverse opinions. They kept mindful of their common humanity.
3. Founders knew when to put controversial issues aside for the sake of the Union.
4. Founders always kept the FUTURE consequences of their decision in mind.
I invite you to join me in further conversation by reading my blog entry and offering your comments.

As we celebrate the birth of our Nation, it is humbling to remind ourselves how at the Continental Congress, the founders came so very close to creating independent states or small confederations o…

06/23/2026

HOPE - a reflection by jazz musician and composer Jon Batiste. I love it!

At the CAC’s virtual gathering “How Do We Find Hope in Hard Times?,” Grammy Award–winning artist and musician Jon Batiste joined the CAC team in

06/12/2026

Continuing the AI issue --Its environmental impact is being ignored! Here's more reasons to put a moratorium on AI advancement: "People experience data centers locally, in dirty water and overtaxed electrical grids. . . .A Gallup poll from May found that 71 percent of Americans would oppose a data center being built in their area." Moreover, "The public seems to agree that data centers are giant, ugly, noisy, smelly altars to industrial-scale hostile architecture." Lastly, proposals for data centers include tax incentives and no commitment to accept "fair share of the electricity costs they generate." For more details, read this:

A.I. is not inevitable.

06/11/2026

Down Memory Lane: I uploaded this excerpt from my Luke Live! ministry 13 years ago. I received 3.8K views but only 15 "thumbs up!" Well, we gave it a good try, didn't we? The point of the song is to LIVE FULLY. The Gospel requires hard work but also joyful engagements and rest, too. So says this Catholic priest. Now I am working in Ecumenical and Interfaith Relations in the NYC tri-state area.

This is an excerpt from Luke Live. Here, Paulist Fr. James DiLuzio...