By Fr. Jack Treloar, SJ | For The Compass | August 9, 2023 The story of Elijah’s experiences in the cave as it occurs in this week’s first reading presents two very important lessons for us who live in the 21st century. We discover how God works. We come to understand the importance of learning to listen. When Elijah enters the cave, he expects God to manifest tremendous power because Elijah himself has been a prophetic messenger of this power to the wayward Israelites. He has been the hammer of God calling the people back to true worship of the one God. So, he enters the cave with a certain ..read more

By Fr. Jack Treloar, SJ | For The Compass | July 12, 2023 The farming community in Wisconsin is painfully aware that our state is experiencing a drought this summer. Farmers know how necessary rain and snow are to a successful crop at the end of the summer. The reading from Isaiah and the responsorial psalm point out for us that rain makes the earth fruitful. Just as rain and snow water the earth to set up the conditions whereby seed can grow and flourish, so the word of God goes forth to set up conditions of spiritual growth. Jesus’ “Parable of the Sower” echoes these Old Testament texts. He ..read more

By Jeff Kurowski | The Compass | March 14, 2023 OSHKOSH — A new program offered at the Jesuit Retreat House (JRH) on Lake Winnebago is designed to provide spiritual enrichment and introduce the scenic campus to non-retreatants. The inaugural session of the three-part Lakeside Speaker Series was held on Feb. 8. Jesuit Fr. Joe Laramie, national director of the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network, gave a presentation about devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The Pope’s Worldwide Prayer network, based in Milwaukee, promotes devotion to the Sacred Heart and to Pope Francis’ monthly prayer ..read more

By Fr. Jack Treloar, SJ | For The Compass | February 22, 2023 As we enter the Lenten observance, a time of penance and repentance, the church invites us to reflect on sin and temptation. All three readings focus on the root of sin, sin itself and the effects of sin. Embedded in these reflections we find the untruth of sin and the truth of properly serving God. Reflecting on Genesis shows that the first sin of Adam and Eve is the result of a lie. The serpent begins with a deliberate misinterpretation of God’s commandment. “Did God really tell you not to eat from any of the trees in the garden ..read more

Jesuits USA Midwest Province Fr. Jim Shea, SJ’s, JRH Assistant Director and Hosting Coordinator, article – “Jesus and the Two Thieves: A Meditation” – is featured on pages 20-21 in a special USA Midwest Province Lenten publication. The word ‘retreat’ has many definitions; perhaps the first that comes to mind for many people is that of an army fleeing from an opponent. It’s not completely different in the Church: we look at retreat as a time of ‘withdrawal’, a turning away from worldly concerns to focus on prayerful care for the spirit. This booklet is a collection of reflections written by J ..read more

By Fr. Jack Treloar, SJ | For The Compass | January 26, 2023 Sometimes when you walk into a store, you see a table near the entrance marked “remnants.” This usually means the items are leftovers. They did not sell, they are damaged: what is left is too small to sell for the regular price. This is a negative meaning of the word “remnant.” The first reading from Zephaniah talks about a “remnant people.” In Zephaniah’s understanding, the word “remnant” has a positive meaning that becomes obvious when we look at the description Zephaniah uses to characterize the remnant. They are lowly and humble ..read more

By Fr. Jack Treloar, SJ | For The Compass | December 26, 2022 In the Gospel according to Luke we find three separate descriptions of Mary’s prayer life. At the Annunciation, when the angel appeared and told her that she will be the mother of the Savior, Luke says that she was greatly troubled by the appearance and then “pondered what sort of greeting this might be” (Lk 1:29). Then, after the shepherds leave while she is in Bethlehem, she “kept all these things in her heart, reflecting on them in her heart” (Lk 2: 19). Finally, she reacted to the words of her son who had stayed behind in the t ..read more

By Fr. Jack Treloar, SJ | For The Compass | December 1, 2022 During our Advent observance, various characters appear in order to point our way to the coming of the Lord. Of all these characters, perhaps John the Baptist is the most intriguing. He emerges as, “A voice of one crying out in the desert. ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths’” (Mt 3:3). John takes his basic job to announce the arrival of the Messiah. His proclamation includes the need to reform our lives and to look forward to a new way of existence. John can be a quite forbidding character. He lives in t ..read more

By Fr. Jack Treloar, SJ | For The Compass | November 5, 2022 A superficial reading of the confrontation between Jesus and the Sadducees can lead one to think that the narrative is another instance of Jesus overcoming an objection to his teaching by one of the dominant political/religious movements common among the Jews of his time. The confrontation, however, is a minor part of the Gospel story this week. Pay attention to the opening description of the Sadducees. They, “deny there is a resurrection.” The conflict, then, is about the meaning of resurrection, not about Jesus as a trou ..read more

By Fr. Jack Treloar, SJ | For The Compass | May 22, 2022 This week’s Gospel is a short section from the last discourse of Jesus presented in the Gospel according to John. The whole discourse is about three chapters long; John thought Jesus’ teaching was worth giving in detail. In our reading this week from Chapter 14, Jesus says to his disciples, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you” (Jn. 14:27). What is the peace Jesus gives to us? What is the peace the world gives? We are currently experiencing a terrible conflict in Ukraine. Property i ..read more