While many people lament the problems caused by the use of social media, there are countless pearls of wisdom that are shared every day on outlets such as Facebook and Twitter. While often the platform for instant news, political rants and the need people have to put themselves out there, inspiration can also be found in cyberspace. A recent tweet by Pope Francis was an attention getter. The pope tweeted, "Our contagious joy must be our first testimony of the closeness and love of God."

Rabbinic Jewish writings present their understanding of God and of our lives. Read what they write on the purpose of pronouncing a blessing/thanksgiving over food. Their insight occurs in a discussion of an apparent conflict between two Scripture verses.

If each of the months of the year were assigned a quality, it might be said that March is lucky and July is independent, but November is always grateful. Although the Thanksgiving holiday comes at the end of November, it lends an atmosphere of gratitude to the entire month. This month also marks the end of the Church's liturgical year, while the calendar year begins the last stretch toward the finish line. Thus, it is a fitting time to reflect on all that we have to be thankful for.

Each year, the month of November is an exciting time for the Vocations Office and the Catholic communities of the United States, because it brings the National Vocation Awareness Week, which will occur from Nov. 5-11 this year.

Last month, the Office of Cultural Diversity's African-American Commission brought in the well-known national speaker Father Tony Ricard from New Orleans. He is a tremendous storyteller as well as a comedian. He had the assembly roaring in laughter at times. His message was challenging and spiritually uplifting. It was an awesome three nights.

Hope and Hudson. They are two of the most important words in my life.

One can wonder if Mary of Nazareth had a "patron saint." If so, was it Miryam of the wilderness account? One can never know, but the questions lead to a reflection on Miryam's biblical portrait.

American poet Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "Beauty is the handwriting of God." During a much earlier time period, St. Augustine said, "Late have I loved you, beauty so ancient, and so new; late have I loved you." In these magnificent quotes, the sacred and secular intersect and invite not only insight into God who is complete beauty, but also contemplation on God, who is love.

The Catholic Church preaches, teaches and practices total nonviolence.

On July 7-9, close to 40 delegates from Buffalo went to the National Black Catholic Congress XII in Orlando, Fla. They are especially grateful to the Foundation of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Buffalo, who made it possible for them to attend.

On World Mission Sunday, October 22, our celebration leads us to hear of our Christian faith - leads us to mission, as Pope Francis explains in his message for this year's celebration.

The recent solar eclipse reminded me of another celestial event of a very unique and enduring nature. As you may know, the Church has been celebrating the centennial of the Fatima Apparitions from November 27th of 2016 through November 26th of this year. It was 100 years ago this October 13th that the "Miracle of the Sun" occurred in a field in rural Portugal. This was the last of six apparitions made by Our Lady to three shepherd children - Lucia, Francisco and Jacinta.

Since the beginning of his pontificate, Pope Francis has issued a call to create a culture of encounter, and to look beyond our own needs and wants to those of others around us. In the homily given at his first Pentecost as pope, he emphasized the importance of encounter in the Christian faith: "For me, this word is very important - encounter with others. Why? Because faith is an encounter with Jesus, and we must do what Jesus does: encounter others."

Summer in Western New York finds marine forecasts on local weather reports. As local boaters know, serious storms can come up suddenly on Lake Erie. When I hear storm predictions, I am reminded of my own experiences with lake storms and of fear in the face of uncontrollable nature.

What is it like to have peace within? What is it like to know God loves you regardless of your faults? What is it like to love God, to know Him more and want to do His will?

Fall is naturally a time of new beginnings and excitement in many households as children return to school or begin school for the first time, young adults are off to college, and parishes launch their complete schedule of ministries. New beginnings and welcomes mark this time of the year, and at the heart of it all, there is hope for all the future holds. Words of welcome and welcome back echo through these days.

Music, a universal language. It evokes thoughts, feelings, and memories. For teenagers, music is an essential part of life. We listen to music while we get ready for school, do homework, or when we are just relaxing. As I have grown, my music choices have developed as well. There are also special songs that I will always remember and love, like "This Town" by Niall Horan or "Caroline" by Amine. When I hear certain songs from my childhood it brings back memories from church, and suddenly I am 7 years old again sitting with my family in our favorite pew.

Think to a time when you were hungry. Remember how it felt, a bit uncomfortable, right? You may have even said, "I'm starving!" But you knew that in a short time the next meal would be there for you. Knowing that a good meal was awaiting you allowed your slight hunger to actually whet your appetite.

Parents will do just about anything for their children. Sacrifice is a quality that seems built into being a parent, and protecting your children from danger, suffering, or threats to their life and well-being is both natural and expected.

Turku, Finland. Barcelona and Cambrils, Spain. Charlottesville, Virginia. Stockholm, Sweden. Paris, France. Manchester and London, England. The Middle East, Africa ... and Buffalo. There are so much more, just in recent months, including 3,000 preborn children's lives snuffed out through abortion every day in the United States.

Jesus was a refugee and friend of outcasts. What about you and me? Will we dare to follow in Jesus' footsteps?

Over the next couple of months, we have plenty of opportunities to experience celebrations and times of worship from the various cultures we have in our diocese. We all know that, in the wake of all that has happened in Charlottesville, we must turn to our Lord in prayer for peace in our country. It is important that we all come together to pray for each other, and with each other. The Lord calls us to love one another as he loves us.

As we begin the 2017-2018 school year, there is much to applaud. Our 2017 graduates garnered almost $4 million in high school scholarships, and our high school graduates secured over $300 million in college awards. We expect no less of the Class of 2018.

Summer picnics and family get-togethers, walks in the park and at Canalside, ice cream and lemonade, parish festivals, and taking time to enjoy the sunset over Lake Erie - all are hallmarks of the season in Western New York. Undoubtedly, the deep refreshment and relaxation of summer are things for which everyone yearns. With the waning days of this precious season soon approaching, and in the heart of our "ordinary time" in the Church, the Sunday Gospels of August give us pause to consider our faith as a source of refreshment.

Pope Francis calls us to be "missionary disciples." In recent messages, he speaks of a "new" evangelization and two notions that to some ears sound opposite: a missionary (someone who is sent away) and disciples (called to accompany, or be with, those who are near). Which is it?

This year's Hispanic Family Day at Fatima Shrine is on Aug. 26. The theme of the day is, "The Spirituality of Marriage and Family." The celebrant for the 10 a.m. Mass will be Father Erick Viloria, from the Diocese of Rochester, who will also speak at the 1 p.m. workshop on the section of "Amoris Laetitia" that we chose for the theme of the day.

As I write this column, I am in Massachusetts, the "land of my birth," where I have been blessed to step out of the whirlwind for a few quiet summer days of R and R. I should add a third R to Rest and Relaxation, as a vacation priority for me always is to catch up on Reading.

Summer in Western New York is a time for working in the garden with the soil, the plants, the flowers, the bushes, the trees. So this is an appropriate time to think of the first "garden story" in the Bible, that of Genesis 2:4-24.

Imagine for a moment that you are putting your family's budget together for the next year, and you think that you are just plain spending too much. Let's also imagine that your total spending for the year is $100. You look over what your household spends, and you find a place you want to cut: you spend $1 on poor people overseas, so you decide to cut that down to just 67 cents. Does that seem like a reasonable choice to you? Does it seem like a moral choice?

World Refugee Day, June 20, came and went with hardly a notice.

As I was trying to discern what God wanted me to write about, I walked into my 16-year-old son's bedroom to discover a military calendar hanging on the wall. It highlighted young men and women in combat fatigues, fighter jets, an aircraft carrier battle group and plenty of American flags.

Like most parents, when my kids were growing up I read my share of Dr. Seuss books to them, and one of my favorites was "The Lorax." It is the story of the Once-ler who discovers that he can make a garment called a Thneed from the beautiful Truffula trees - and creates an entire industry that decimates the Truffula trees, pollutes the air and water, and forces the animals to migrate in order to survive.

As jubilarians, we welcome and thank all who come to celebrate with us today: Bishop Richard J. Malone, our family and friends, priests concelebrating, and all who have supported us along our way to this day.

The theme for the National Black Catholic Congress, which will be taking place from July 7-9 in the Hyatt Regency in Orlando, Fla., is "The Spirit of the Lord is Upon Me: Act Justly, Love Goodness, and Walk Humbly with Your God."

Do you sometimes wonder, though, why so many people, maybe even beloved relatives or friends, can't seem to find that joy that comes from knowing Jesus? Do you worry that they may perhaps have never truly encountered Him?

In the Dec. 20, 2016 issue of Commonweal magazine, this sentence appeared in an article entitled, "Abortion and Social Justice": "Nothing would do more to energize social-justice movements than a broad-based coalition that was able to break through the impasse of abortion politics in the United States."

Teens in this day and age are often bombarded with daunting and overwhelming decisions that need to be made in a timely fashion. For many, the decisions include where to go to high school or college, what career path they should choose, and how they want to live their lives. These important and life-changing decisions can leave teens feeling frustrated, confused and misguided. It was not until I started living on call to the Holy Spirit, and truly listening to God's plan for me that I began to feel confident in my choices.

When we think of the phrase "faith at work," some conventional images might come to mind: caring for the poor, a teacher explaining the faith, but we don't need to have an openly religious job for our faith to be relevant. Any honest and upright work is holy and an opportunity to grow closer to God. As St. John Paul II once reminded us, Jesus himself worked as a carpenter, and "Through their work, people share in the Creator's work."

This month, I want to share some of the teachings of Pope Francis in his apostolic exhortation "Amoris Laeticia" on the Christian education of our children.

"A very solid scientific consensus indicates that we are presently witnessing a disturbing warming of the climatic system," warns Pope Francis in his landmark environmental encyclical "Laudato Si" ("On Care for Our Common Home").