Why Pray?
Why Pray if God is All-Knowing?
This Pastor Mike starts out by making the case that we pray because He has asked us to. He cites Psalm 50" "Call on me in the day of trouble." God wants the intimacy of our relationship with Him, even if He knows everything.
The Mass is the
Highest Form of Prayer...
Prayers While Preparing the Altar
This is video #7 of The Mass Explained series from Stella Maris Academy. Fr. Matt and Ms Boran explain the prayers that are said while preparing the altar at Mass.
Click the image above any time of day to view the latest Mass from Catholic TV.
Faith and Culture
Father Leo discusses the growing crisis surrounding the Society of St. Pius X and its announced plan to consecrate bishops without papal permission. He explains why the Vatican has described the proposed SSPX ordinations as a schismatic act and why obedience to the Holy Father remains central to Catholic unity.
In this video, we learn how to take everything we’ve absorbed this year and apply it to our relationship with God through prayer. Sr. Miriam James Heidland joins Fr. Mike Schmitz to talk about how to pray, some common obstacles to prayer, and some of the incredible fruits of prayer that await us.
Please Pray for Vocations!
From a comment: "The fact a multi millionaire famous dude gave up everything to become a priest is as real as it gets."
June 2025: Robert Koch, Patricia Buck, Joseph Ianotta, Charles Baer, Ralph Buzzelli
July 2025: Lucy Paulin, Clara Bayne
Aug 2025: Mary Bauer, Ronald Rademacher
Sept 2025: Mary Ann Skinger, Alison Wilson, George Brown
Oct 2025: Barbara Imhoff
Nov 2025: Mary Frances Lerch, Shirley Dickson, Richard Nolan
Dec 2025: Janice Steinhauser, Frank Lowe
Jan 2026: Allen Schomaker
Feb 2026: Virginia Briski, Laura DiCola
March 2026: Sister Celeste Hupert, Michael Van Leer, Barbara Davis
April 2026: Sr Carol Troesch, Marie Adams, Barbara Fuerst, Judith Scott, Jane Welka, Paul Walsh
May 2026: John Staudacher, Dennis McLean, Pauline Zelina, Joseph Kaib, Martha Foster
July 2026: Frank Lopresti
A parable is a short story with many truths that always drive home the word of God. The rabbis and Jesus loved to use parables to teach valuable life lessons. The rabbis would say when you understood a parable, “you have heard it, and you have heard it; you have seen it, and you have seen it.” In a nutshell, there’s two ways to see something, and there’s two ways to hear something.
In this Old Testament parable, God sent the Prophet Nathan to rebuke King David, who had just committed adultery and murder. Nathan tells King David about a rich man who has cattle and property. There was also a poor man with one beloved lamb that was precious to him and a special part of the family. When the rich man had a visitor, instead of taking one of his own cattle to slaughter, he took that one precious lamb from his poor neighbor, killed it, and fed it to the visitor.
After hearing this, King David stood up full of outrage and wrath, and said, “This man shall be arrested and executed!” You see, David heard, but he didn’t hear. He saw, but he didn’t see. He understood what was just and right, but he didn’t understand that he indeed was the evil man Nathan was describing.
Friend, any message from the parables is not for our neighbor, the other political party, or our coworkers, but for ourselves. When the Lord speaks to you through His word, the first place we ought to go is the mirror, and say “Lord, how can I learn from this?” If you were a disciple and you understood for yourself, Jesus or the rabbi would say to you, ”you’ve seen and you’ve seen, you’ve heard and you’ve heard.” Blessed are you, for this was revealed by the Holy Spirit.
-Pastor Bobby Schuller
Memory Lane!
Here we celebrate the life of Victor Boerio, who was one of the most consequential and beloved members of St Athanasius Parish over the last 30 years. Though his family and friends were the most important part of his life, here we remember just some of the ways that he impacted parish life at St Athanasius. He will be missed by us all!
Deacon Bill Homily Archive
Here are four recent homilies. Hover over the icons below to see the dates and topics.
Step Back and Reflect - An Essay
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Deacon Bill Palamara 412-596-3370