The U.S. Supreme Court decision, June 26, interpreting the U.S. Constitution to require all states to license and recognize same-sex “marriage” “is a tragic error that harms the common good and most vulnerable among us,” said Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz of Louisville, Kentucky, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). The full statement follows: Regardless of what a narrow majority of the Supreme Court may declare at this moment in history, the nature of the human person and marriage remains unchanged and unchangeable. Just as Roe v. Wade did not settle the question of abortion over forty years ago, Obergefell v. Hodges does not settle the question of marriage today. Neither decision is rooted in the truth, and as a result, both will eventually fail. Today the Court is wrong again. It is profoundly immoral and unjust for the government to declare that two people of the same sex can constitute a marriage. The unique meaning of marriage as the union of one man and one woman is inscribed in our bodies as male and female. The protection of this meaning is a critical dimension of the “integral ecology” that Pope Francis has called us to promote. Mandating marriage redefinition across the country is a tragic error that harms the common good and most vulnerable among us, especially children. The law has a duty to support every child’s basic right to be raised, where possible, by his or her married mother and father in a stable home. Jesus Christ, with great love, taught unambiguously that from the beginning marriage is the lifelong union of one man and one woman. As Catholic bishops, we follow our Lord and will continue to teach and to act according to this truth. I encourage Catholics to move forward with faith, hope, and love: faith in the unchanging truth about marriage, rooted in the immutable nature of the human person and confirmed by divine revelation; hope that these truths will once again prevail in our society, not only by their logic, but by their great beauty and manifest service to the common good; and love for all our neighbors, even those who hate us or would punish us for our faith and moral convictions. Lastly, I call upon all people of good will to join us in proclaiming the goodness, truth, and beauty of marriage as rightly understood for millennia, and I ask all in positions of power and authority to respect the God-given freedom to seek, live by, and bear witness to the truth.

About 800 people witnessed history June 18 as the Archdiocese of Omaha advanced to Rome the sainthood cause for Father Edward Flanagan, Boys Town founder. Archbishop George J. Lucas was the main celebrant of a morning Mass at St. Cecilia Cathedral in Omaha that marked the closing of the archdiocesan phase of the canonization effort with a special ceremony to encase and officially seal four boxes -- 4,600 pages -- of documents detailing the archdiocese's three-year investigation. The documents will be shipped to the Congregation for Saints' Causes at the Vatican. If the findings are accepted, recognizing Father Flanagan's heroic virtues, he will be declared "venerable." In general, two approved miracles attributed to the intercession of the candidate are needed for sainthood -- one for beatification and the second for canonization. The ceremony was a once-in-a-lifetime event, a first for the archdiocese, to have one of its members -- an archdiocesan priest -- advance toward possible beatification and canonization, said Omar Gutierrez, notary for the archdiocesan tribunal for the cause. Among those concelebrating the Mass were Bishop Kevin Doran of Elphin, Ireland, Father Flanagan's native diocese, and Father Patrick O'Toole, pastor of the parish in which Father Flanagan grew up in Ballymoe, Ireland.

Yes, I admit that I was one of the apparently millions who went to see Jurassic World this weekend. So without giving too much away (no spoilers here), I was happy to see that the story finally returned to the theme park that started the entire franchise. It was interesting to see how much technology is used in those types of operations (assuming what they showed was true to life). What I really want to focus on is the main issue of the movie; namely that the scientists decided they need to not just revive dinosaurs from the past but to genetically create a new one. That is where the plot gets ramped up and that is also where the religion theme begins to emerge. It seems that humans always create problems when they try to be God. It happens here and it happens in our daily lives. Deciding who lives and who dies through abortion or capital punishment. The entire field of genetic engineering really causes me to pause. I understand that God provides the miracle of modern medicine to help us. He endows us with curiosity and cognitive skills to learn how things work. God wants us to discover how to cure diseases and provide a better quality of life but think about why we need to do a lot of this tinkering with science. Many of the maladies that continue to cause us problems are situations we have created ourselves. Many of the modern wonders of the world are humankind's attempts at being God-like. We want to demonstrate that we can do things but frequently don't consider the consequences. It happens in Jurassic World. Just because you can do something doesn't necessarily mean you should. Joshua 24:15 says "If you don't want to serve the Lord, you must choose for yourselves today whom you will serve." When we choose to serve ourselves instead of the Lord, we create plots for movies like Jurassic World or worse.

Why is worrying considered to be a sin against God? I think it is mainly because we are forgetting who is in charge. I Peter 5:7 says "Give all your worries to him, because he cares about you." In that very simple statement is a very powerful and profound message. Our God loves us and cares about what happens to us. He is sad when we turn our backs on him whether through sin, neglect or ego. The self indulgence that we are capable of as humans is such an obstacle. But we must remember that nothing on earth cannot be healed by our loving God. He is almighty and powerful and his comfort is limitless. So we bring ourselves to him over and over again and he accepts us as we are. Who else does that for you? Have you ever felt judged by others? I know I have. Have you ever judged other people? I know I have. If you have felt judged by our God you are not talking to the same God that I know. Our God gives us talents, abilities and gifts and he honors that commitment. So often our judgement and worry stem from jealousy of others; what they have and what they can do. At the same time, we are neglecting the gifts God has given to us that are unique. If we truly focused on using our gifts to their limits we would not have time to worry, envy, or judge others. So how about it? Turn your worries over to God today and start living a fuller life. Focus on what God has given you and multiply it as you use it for its anointed purpose. Don't worry, be happy!

Loving Father and Creator of all we come to you today deeply grateful for your creation. As we look around us we are amazed at the greatness and majesty of all that you have made. Nature around us speaks of your greatness - the vast expanse of the sky, the mountains, trees, lakes and streams speak of your great design. You have given us such beauty in the colors of the rainbow, the beauty of flowers and fields. Words cannot adequately express the magnificence of all you have created. We join in praise with the writer of the psalms when he says, "O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth." May we show our love and reverence to you, our Lord, by caring for all that you have created. We humbly give you praise and thanks. Amen

A friend recently asked me what I thought of Bruce Jenner's decision to declare himself a female. The first thing that came to my mind was empathy. I am sure that Jenner is feeling pain and agonized over this matter for a while. At least I hope he did since there are other people (specifically his children) who are profoundly affected by his decision. The more I thought about it, I began to wonder why he would do this. Believing that God is our creator and that He certainly does not make mistakes, why did Jenner feel that he was meant to be a women? We have seen this humanist approach to the world more and more lately but this sort of public cry for attention is surely not what Jenner needs at this point. I am praying that someone will reach out to him and share the Good News with him. As humans we make mistakes. We certainly have doubts and fears but knowing that God is with us and in control is a comfort that Christians enjoy every day. Living for eternal life with Jesus Christ in Heaven is our ultimate goal. Whatever crosses we are given to bear in this world are only sharpening us for our mission and purpose. As St. James says in his letter (4:4) "Anyone who wants to be a friend of this world becomes God's enemy." That does not mean that we should ridicule or judge Bruce Jenner. That means that we should pray for him. That means that we should hope that he has a relationship with God and everything else is out of our control.

In Philippians 4:12, St. Paul tells us that he has learned the secret of being happy at any time in everything that happens. His happiness stems from his acceptance of Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. So is the secret to happiness that easy? Yes is the answer! Asking Jesus Christ to take over your life is truly a life-changing experience. Allowing the conversation between you and Jesus to never end is a very important part of this transformation. Not only in prayer and adoration but in ongoing conversation. Allowing Jesus and his beatitudes to guide us through life is truly the secret to happiness. St. Paul experienced many hardships, not the least of which was his initial blinding, as he began his conversion from persecutor to Christian. I enjoyed the depiction presented two Sundays ago on A.D. the Series. Saul's anguish and confusion was carefully depicted. His complete and utter surrender to the power of Christ is a great example to all of us. Too often the story of St. Paul gets lost to us as we read through his many letters in the Bible. But his story, his journey, his conversion experience provides us with the perfect path to Jesus Christ. His allegiance, loyalty and devotion show us how even a simple man, like us, can become a saint. St. Paul's past transgressions did not prevent him for living forever with Jesus Christ in heaven. We should not allow our past, whatever it is, to prevent us from this wonderful grace. Saying yes to Jesus Christ is easy. Let the happy life begin today for you by saying yes.