Each year, High Point High School has welcomed a new group of immigrant students from Central America. This year, over 120 students will be spending their first winter in the United States. St. John the Baptist has so graciously supported these students in the past by providing them with warm winter clothing. High Point is seeking help again this year. Please consider donating new or gently used winter coats, adult sizes small and medium are mostly needed - preferably blue or black. 75% of the students are male, so more men's jackets are needed than women's. Hats and gloves will also be appreciated! Please call Jim McGarrity, 301-273-9374, for more information. Donations can be dropped off at the Parish Office in the Kazista Center.

This year C-4 celebrates 50 years of service to the community. This year's honoree is Karl Krchma, a member of SJB. Please click on the heading to get more information about C-4.

Applications are being accepted for those wishing to be a part of the Team. Click on the picture to open the application.

Corinne is the youngest in her family and considers SJB as a part of her spiritual family. In addition, she is a graduate of the SJB school ...

Gail hails from Southern Florida and has always been devoted to prayer to the Blessed Mother. She served as a member of the Eco Ministry ...

Judy Hennig embodies service. Judy, who was born in Massachusetts into an economically challenged family, was raised with a strong sense of family, faith, responsibility and service.

At the heart of the Gospel is a creative paradox: we must die to live. Jesus says, “Whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it” (Mt.16:25). Jesus’ own life embodies this paradox.

It seems that today many people are attempting to better themselves. They are obsessed with losing weight, exercising, healthy eating, optimizing time, increasing productivity, getting a better social life, experiencing more cultures, and cultivating a more satisfying sex life.

I believe we can draw three practical conclusions from the life and teachings of Francis and John on prayer: we can pray longer, more often, and in silence. First, we can pray longer. Can we dedicate more time to prayer?

It seems that we, the people of the Twenty-First Century, are incredibly preoccupied. We relentlessly think of ourselves. We live in little “ego bubbles,” only concerned about me, my life, my family, and my problems. In these bubbles, we are rarely happy and free.

If we claim to be followers of Jesus, then there can be no compromising the teachings he gives us today on nonresistance, turning the other cheek, and loving one’s enemies. Jesus is very aware of the fact that violence never truly solves anything.

We worry about a lot of things. Jesus mentions three: food, drink, and clothing. But we tend to get anxious over more than these things. I remember when both my daughters were first born. I would sometimes be unable to fall asleep because I was intensely worried about whether they were breathing!

Throughout the Easter season we have been walking with a mystic guide, namely the medieval German Dominican Meister Eckhart. He did not exist in a vacuum nor did he become one of the greatest mystics in Catholic tradition apart from his times.

Who am I? This is likely one of the most profound religious questions we can ask. The other is, Who is God? These two questions are linked. They are two sides of the same coin. It is said that St. Francis of Assisi prayed through a whole night these two questions: “Who are you, O God? And, who am I?”

In a retreat called, “The Rediscovery of Life,” Anthony De Mello relates the following story: “There was a lion that grew up in a flock of sheep and so he had no consciousness that he was a lion. He didn’t know he was a lion.

Abba Poemen said to Abba Joseph, “Tell me how to become a monk.” He said, “If you want to find rest here below, and hereafter, in all circumstances say, ‘Who am I?’ And do not judge anyone.” Abba Poemen wants to become a monk, a holy person.

A spiritual awakening occurs when we see reality as it is, present and aware in the now. The contemporary spiritual teacher, Francis Dale Bennett, describes his own spiritual awakening: “At one point, right in the midst of Mass, it was as if a bolt of lightning had struck the crown of my head and sent a strong energy current through my whole body, from head to feet ..."

Deacon Edward J. McCormack joined the formation faculty at Theological College and serves as the Director of Human Formation and the Coordinator of Retreats and Conferences .