Browsing Reflections from Fr. Jasper
Confession Time Change Starting in October…
Posted by Peg O'Donnell
September 22, 2024
On the morning of my First Confession in second grade, I had to be pulled from line and quickly ushered outside to the front steps of the church, where I unceremoniously threw up all over the potted geraniums that stood alongside the railing. It was ... Read More »
All Worth It …
Posted by Peg O'Donnell
It was quite by accident that we eighth graders found out that our no-nonsense eighth grade teacher, Ms. Anderson, was working a second job as a supermarket cashier as soon as she finished teaching for the day. She absentmindedly left her Acme smock on her desk chair while ... Read More »
Carrying the Cross…
Posted by Peg O'Donnell
Twenty-three years have passed since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. We know that for many families, the pain of losing loved ones in such a senseless act of vengeance and hatred lingers for a lifetime. I can’t help on this anniversary but think of a family ... Read More »
Something Beautiful for God…
Posted by Peg O'Donnell
When I walked into the hospital room to anoint the dear lady who asked the nurse to call our parish, she flashed a bright smile and held-up a small stuffed animal she had been holding. “Hi, Father. We are so happy you came,” she said.
After I introduced ... Read More »
Restless Hearts …
Posted by Peg O'Donnell
I was blessed to attend an all-boys Catholic high school in the suburbs of Philadelphia run by the Augustinian religious order. Although my particular school was founded in the late 1950s to serve the baby-boomer generation that had migrated to the suburbs after World War II, the Augustinian ... Read More »
The Green Crayon…
Posted by Peg O'Donnell
August 18, 2024
With the beginning of the school year right around the corner, I (as a former teacher) can’t help but think of the excitement of the students – mostly in the primary grades – who came bounding into the school year the first day back. They were ... Read More »
Who Cares Mary…
Posted by Peg O'Donnell
My eighth grade teacher had a statue of Our Lady of the Assumption in our classroom prayer corner that enshrined the Scriptures and displayed other sacramental – rosaries, holy cards, and the like – that we Catholic kids would pick-up and use along the way. Unlike the traditional ... Read More »
A Faithful God…
Posted by Peg O'Donnell
The hospital parking garage was crowded (as always), and as I made my way down the stairs to Christiana’s main entrance, a woman stops me. She had been crying.
“Father, are you from St. Francis Church? I’ve been calling for my Mom. She’s dying.”
I told her I ... Read More »
Indianapolis Speedway to Grace and Conversion…
Posted by Peg O'Donnell
Last weekend, thousands of Catholics – many of them young – gathered at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis where they spent 5 days listening to inspired talks about our faith, worshipping together as one body in Christ, and adoring Him in the Most Blessed Sacrament. If you haven’t ... Read More »
Deliver Us from Lawrence Welk…
Posted by Peg O'Donnell
I spent quite a few Saturday evenings with my Mom’s parents growing up. It became an almost weekly tradition: I would attend the Vigil Mass with my Grandmom (back when Saturday evening Mass was “new”), come back to her house for soup and a grilled cheese sandwich, and ... Read More »