Build on Rock

Encountering Jesus at the well

January 5, 2021 / Michael Haverkamp

Pope Francis, at the beginning of his first exhortation to the world, invited “all Christians, everywhere, at this very moment, to a renewed personal encounter with Jesus Christ, or at least an openness to letting Him encounter them; I ask all of you to do this unfailingly each day. No

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A Child Will Lead Them

December 15, 2020 / Michael Haverkamp

1 A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. 2 The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him— the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord— 3 and he will delight in the

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Our Lady of Guadalupe

December 1, 2020 / Michael Haverkamp

As he walked up Tepeyac Hill to attend mass on December 9, 1531, Juan Diego had already seen so many dramatic changes in his life as to make the challenges we face in 2020 seem very small. He was born in 1474 and was given the name “Cuauhtlatoatzin,” which means

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Entrustment to Mary

November 10, 2020 / Michael Haverkamp

What does it mean to consecrate (or entrust) yourself to Mary? Why should you do it? A consecration to Mary is more accurately described as a consecration to Jesus through Mary. We go to Mary to get to Jesus, and she is the best possible person to lead us to

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The eyewitnesses

October 27, 2020 / Michael Haverkamp

Richard Bauckham, in Jesus and the Eyewitnesses: The Gospels as Eyewitness Testimony, makes a strong argument for the gospels, not as a product of oral tradition far removed from the apostles, but rather as eyewitness testimony from the apostles and disciples of Jesus. Consider these points: In some instances the

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The reliability of the gospels

October 13, 2020 / Michael Haverkamp

A reader of this blog mentioned to me that he was reading a book about Jesus where the author questioned the reliability of the gospels since the four evangelists were apologists. I’d like to address the reliability of the gospels in this post. Q. Were the gospel writers apologists? A.

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Children are a blessing

September 29, 2020 / Michael Haverkamp

God is absolutely true, absolutely good, and absolutely beautiful. Every smidgen of truth, every iota of goodness, and every ounce of beauty come from God. Having children is a good thing. Having children is a beautiful thing. And having children is a true thing – true in the profound sense

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United with Jesus

September 15, 2020 / Michael Haverkamp

Suffering has no meaning – unless Jesus rose from the dead. The Son of God became man so that He could share in our humanity and raise us up to His divinity. In becoming man, while He did not sin, He accepted the wages of sin – suffering and death.

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September 1, 2020 / Michael Haverkamp

“Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock. And everyone who

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As you judge

August 18, 2020 / Michael Haverkamp

“Stop judging, that you may not be judged. For as you judge, so will you be judged, and the measure with which you measure will be measured out to you. Why do you notice the splinter in your brother’s eye, but do not perceive the wooden beam in your own eye? How can you

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God and mammon

August 4, 2020 / Michael Haverkamp

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and decay destroy, and thieves break in and steal. But store up treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor decay destroys, nor thieves break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be. The lamp of

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Sharing in the happiness of God

July 21, 2020 / Michael Haverkamp

Jesus begins the Sermon on the Mount by establishing the values by which his disciples are to live. From there he addresses the Law of Moses, not with the intent to abolish, but to bring it to its fulfillment, to reveal the fullness of its meaning. Jesus is both calling

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Let your light shine

July 7, 2020 / Michael Haverkamp

You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house. Just so, your light must shine

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“What are you proud of?”

June 16, 2020 / Michael Haverkamp

“What are you proud of?” It was a question on one of my son’s school assignments, but it’s also a question that’s pervasive in our society. Children and adults alike are encouraged to take pride in themselves and their accomplishments. And that’s a good thing, right? Isn’t that how we

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Blessed are the Clean of Heart

May 26, 2020 / Michael Haverkamp

“Blessed are the clean of heart, for they will see God.” This beatitude (like the third) has a parallel in Psalms: Who may go up to the mountain of the Lord? Who can stand in his holy place? “The clean of hand and pure of heart, who are not devoted

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“Blessed are the meek”

May 12, 2020 / Michael Haverkamp

“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the land” Jesus quotes the Old Testament more often than I realized. This is Psalm 37: 8-11: Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath. Do not fret – it leads only to evil. For the wicked shall be cut off, but those who

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Blessed are the poor in spirit

April 28, 2020 / Michael Haverkamp

When the Israelites wandered the desert, God called Moses up Mount Sinai, and there he gave him the Law and Commandments to lead his people. When Jesus began his ministry, he went up the mountain, and called his disciples to him. In his Sermon on the Mount, he called on

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Mercy and Justice

April 14, 2020 / Michael Haverkamp

Saint John Paul II frequently discusses the relationship between justice and mercy in Dives in Misericordia. It can be difficult to understand how God can be perfectly just and rich in mercy at the same time. Justice and mercy appear to be exclusive concepts. But Saint John Paul says just

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Rich in Mercy

April 7, 2020 / Michael Haverkamp

“Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.” (Matthew 5:7) Mercy is one of the main themes of the Sermon on the Mount, and it was one of the main themes of the papacy of Saint John Paul II. He was instrumental in promoting the message of Divine

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Psalm 22: “In You our fathers trusted”

March 31, 2020 / Michael Haverkamp

“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Psalm 22:2, Mark 15:34, Matthew 27:46) No matter how many times we hear the accounts of Jesus’ Passion on Palm Sunday and Good Friday, there is something jarring, if not shocking, to hear the Lord cry out this lament from the

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