Homily from the Fifth Sunday of Lent. Some last words have the power to define a person's life. From the Cross, Jesus utters His last words. He thirsts for us to allow Him to forgive us. Mass Readings from April 3, 2022: Isaiah 43:16-21 Psalms 126:1-6 Philippians 3:8-14 John 8:1-11...
Homily from the Fourth Sunday of Lent. My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? This central Last Word of Jesus from the Cross is possibly the most important. He not only expresses the depths to which He enters into the consequences of sin, but the depth of His trust in the Father and the power of His sacrifice. Mass Readings from March 27, 2022: Joshua 5:9, 10-12 Psalms 34:2-7 2 Corinthians 5:17-21 Luke 15:1-3, 11-32...
Homily from the Third Sunday of Lent. The best gifts can be given in the worst of circumstances. When He had virtually nothing left to give, Jesus still gave. He gave His own mother to be our mother. The one person who knew Him most and loved Him best, Jesus entrusted to all of His beloved disciples. Mass Readings from March 20, 2022: Exodus 3:1-8, 13-15 Psalm 103: 1-4, 6-8, 11 1 Corinthians 10:1-6, 10-12 Luke 13:1-9...
Homily from the Second Sunday of Lent. Both men were loved. They weren't both saved. The second Last Word of Jesus from the Cross is missing something. Jesus has begged for mercy for all...including the two criminals who were crucified with Him. But they did not both receive mercy. One received mercy and one rejected mercy. Mass Readings from March 13, 2022: Genesis 15:5-12, 17-18 Psalms 27:1, 7-9, 13-14 Philippians 3:17—4:1 Luke 9:28-36...
Homily from the First Sunday of Lent. Father, forgive them for they do not know what they are doing. The first last words of Jesus reveal not just what, but Who was on His mind in the last moments of His life. Mass Readings from March 06, 2022: Deuteronomy 26:4-10 Psalms 91:1-2, 10-15 Romans 10:8-13 Luke 4:1-13...
Homily from the Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time. Our words disclose, disguise, and direct our hearts. The words we use are powerful. They can build up and they can destroy. But they can also reveal our character. Mass Readings from February 27, 2022: Sirach 27:4-7 Psalms 92:2-3, 13-16 1 Corinthians 15:54-58 Luke 6:39-45...
Homily from the Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time. Vulnerability is having enough courage and self-possession to let life in. All of our fears stem from the fact that we are woundable. We care about rejection, inadequacy, and the future because we know that all of those things have the potential to hurt us, But the fear of being vulnerable does not have to define our lives. Mass Readings from February 20, 2022: 1 Samuel 26:2, 7-9, 12-13, 22-23 Psalms 103:1-4, 8, 10, 12-13 1 Corinthians 15:45-49 Lu...
Homily from the Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time. We are called to do today what prepares us for the challenge of tomorrow. We have become more comfortable with the "completed" past than the unknown future. Rather than desiring to launch into the challenge of the future, many of us have become paralyzed by fear of the future. When we are rooted in the Word of God each day, we become more rooted in God Himself each day. When we are rooted in the Lord, there is no room for fear of the future. Mass Re...
Homily from the Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time. The fear of being inadequate is the fear that I won't be able to rise to the challenge. Fear is a gift. It is meant to keep us alive. But it can also keep us from living. There are two sources of fear are our biology and the stories we tell ourselves. We may not be able to change our biology, but we can change the stories we tell. Mass Readings from February 6, 2022: Isaiah 6:1-8 Psalm 138:1-5, 7-8 1 Corinthians 15:1-11 Luke 5:1-11...
Homily from the Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time. Do not sacrifice your identity and integrity on the altar of approval. We all need acceptance. It is a basic human requirement. But we also must have the courage and freedom to know who we are and what we are about independent of the accepting group. Mass Readings from January 30, 2022: Jeremiah 1:4-5, 17-19 Psalms 71:1-6, 15-17 1 Corinthians 12:31—13:13 Luke 4:21-30...
Homily from the Third Sunday in Ordinary Time. Imagine living your entire life and not knowing why. The return of the exiled Jews from Babylon was a great gift. But it also highlighted the reality that many of them did not know why they were Jewish. Do Catholics know why they are Catholic? Or do we lose our way precisely because we have lost our why? Mass Readings from January 23, 2022 Nehemiah 8:2-6, 8-10 Psalms 19:8-10, 15 1 Corinthians 12:12-30 Luke 1:1-4, 4:14-21...
Homily from the Second Sunday in Ordinary Time. Jesus changes shame into joy. There are certain things, certain failures, embarrassments, and shames, that could define our lives. There are certain events that could define our lives in a negative way unless something changes. Jesus can change those things. Mass Readings from January 16, 2022: Isaiah 62:1-5 Psalms 96:1-3, 7-10 1 Corinthians 12:4-11 John 2:1-11...
Homily from the Baptism of the Lord. Jesus changed the water. Now the water changes you. Why was Jesus baptized? Not because He needed it, but because we need it. We need baptism to be saved, to be children of God, and to be in a new and real relationship with God. Mass Readings from January 9, 2022: Isaiah 42:1-4,6-7 Psalms 29:1-2, 3-4, 3, 9-10 Acts 10:34-38 Luke 3:15-16, 21-22...
Homily from the Epiphany of the Lord. Worship can help us escape the trap that life is about us. When life is about us, it is not food for the human heart. When we realize that life is about Someone other than us, we are allowed to have a heart that is larger…a heart that is large enough to give. Mass Readings from January 2, 2022: Isaiah 60:1-6 Psalms 72:1-2, 7-8, 10-13 Ephesians 3:2-3, 5-6 Matthew 2:1-12...
Homily from the Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. Family is the School of Love. Everyone is part of a family in some way. Be careful with each other. Mass Readings from December 26, 2021: Sirach 3:2-6, 12-14 Psalms 128:1-2, 3, 4-5 Colossians 3:12-21 Luke 2:41-52...
Homily from the Nativity of the Lord (Christmas Mass). God is with you on the bathroom floor. We are so distracted by so many things that we need to look up. But sometimes we need to look lower in order to see where God is in our lives. Mass Readings from December 25, 2021: Isaiah 62:11-12 Psalm 97:1, 6, 11-12 Titus 3:4-7 Luke 2:14...
Homily from the Fourth Sunday of Advent. Love without a commitment remains an illusion. In order to truly grow in love, there needs to be the willingness to make a commitment. And there needs to be the ability to keep a commitment. Mass Readings from December 19, 2021: Micah 5:1-4 Psalms 80:2-3, 15-16, 18-19 Hebrews 10:5-10 Luke 1:39-45...
Homily from the Third Sunday of Advent. Be Where Your Feet Are. Too often, what keeps our heart small is the fact that we do the minimum minimally. What we are called to do, we put the least amount of our heart into it. But to be magnanimous, we do even the minimum excellently. Which is often nothing more than simply doing one thing at a time. Abounding love is focused love. Mass Readings from December 12, 2021: Zephaniah 3:14-18 Isaiah 12:2-6 Philippians 4:4-7 Luke 3:10-18...
Homily from the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. God gives exactly what is needed for whatever He has called us to. The solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of our Lady affirms the fact that Mary was preserved from all stain of Original Sin through the merits of her Son’s future life, death, and resurrection. Mass Readings from December 8, 2021: Genesis 3:9-15, 20 Psalms 98:1, 2-4 Ephesians 1:3-6, 11-12 Luke 1:26-38...
Homily from the Second Sunday of Advent. Abounding love is focused love. Too often, we do not love well because we do not discern what is worth loving; we don't pay attention to the value of things. Because of this, our love becomes diluted. But when we truly appreciate the value of the moment or the value of the person, we develop an attitude of abundance coupled with an awareness of scarcity. And while we love with our hearts, we discern what is worth loving with our heads. Mass Readings from ...
Homily from the First Sunday of Advent. Two things are clear about the inn at Bethlehem: Love Incarnate showed up and there was no room for Him. Too often, we want to love the way we have been created to love. But we find ourselves incapable of loving this way. Not because we aren't willing or because we don't want to...but because our lives are simply too full. We have no room to love. Mass Readings from November 28th, 2021: Jeremiah 33:14-16 Psalms 25:4-5, 8-10, 14 1 Thessalonians 3:12—4:2 Luk...
Homily from the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe. When torn asunder, we are held together by worship of the King of Kings. The end of the year offers us the chance to recognize the little lords and tingy tyrants in our lives; those things we love and those things that attack us. And we have the chance to allow Jesus Christ, the King of the Universe to be the true King over all of those fragments by offering Him true worship. Mass Readings from November 21st, 2021: Deutero...
Homily from the Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time. The struggle doesn't change the destination. The struggle is the way. When we are in the middle of a journey...or the middle of life...we will encounter obstacles. In that encounter with obstacles, we will be tempted to go back. But it is necessary to ask “what is God asking of me right now?” Mass Readings from November 14th, 2021: Deuteronomy 12:1-3 Psalms 16:5, 8-11 Hebrews 10:11-14, 18 Mark 13:24-32...
Homily from the Thirty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time. Death is unavoidable. We will all lose everything. We will all lose everything...even to the point of our very lives. Rather than avoid death, we can practice dying by actively giving away our claims to our materials, time, and our abilities. Mass Readings from November 7th, 2021: 1 Kings 17:10-16 Psalms 146:7-10 Hebrews 9:24-28 Mark 12:38-44...
Homily from the Solemnity of All Saints. One day, this will be your feast day. The Solemnity of All Saints is the day the Church has given us to celebrate and honor what God has done in the lives of the countless people He has redeemed and sanctified. Mass Readings from November 1st, 2021: Deuteronomy 6:2-6 Psalms 18:2-4, 47, 51 Hebrews 7:23-28 Mark 12:28-34...
Homily from the Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time. When all is lost, love God with all that's left. We are called to love God with everything. It is easier to love when we are winning, but are we able to love when we've lost? What if we have lost everything? When we've lost, we are most tempted to become bitter, resentful, and take back our love. But we are made to love God and we can trust God even in the midst of losing it all. Mass Readings from October 31st, 2021: Deuteronomy 6:2-6 Psalms...
Homily from the Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time. Life is about losing. It is not about quitting. It is one thing to lose. It is another thing when those losses begin to stack up and we get to the point where we haven't just lost...we've been beaten. We can wind up feeling defeated. Into this place of defeat, God Himself speaks into our loss and our shame, telling us what is needed. Mass Readings from October 24th, 2021: Jeremiah 31:7-9 Psalms 126:1-6 Hebrews 5:1-6 Mark 10:46-52...
Homily from the Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time. Life isn't about power, it is about being poured out. The world sees life as being about winning. And to win is to gain power and influence. If a person wins they get power, and with that power they can re-shape the world as they see fit. But a Christian view of winning is different. Life is not about power, it is about being poured out. Life isn't about winning, it is about witnessing. Mass Readings from October 17th, 2021: Isaiah 53:10-11 P...
Homily from the Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time. What you've been holding on to ends up holding on to you. Anything can keep us from Heaven. Anything that we prefer over and over (and anything that we defer putting down over and over) can end up holding on to us. There are times when we've chosen so often that we no longer have a choice. And there are times when we have put off letting go so often that we can't put it down. And we find ourselves stuck. What do we hold on to then? Mass Read...
Homily from the Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time. "Because I said I would." We are not yet who we are called to be. Sometimes, in order to become the person we are called to be, we need to stop holding on to what is holding us back. Other times, we need to keep holding on. The ability to make and keep a promise is one of the ways we are called to become who we are created and redeemed to be. Mass Readings from October 3rd, 2021: Genesis 2:18-24 Psalms 128:1-6 Hebrews 2:9-11 Mark 10:2-16...
