Homily from the Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time. The only way to be able to pray in all seasons is to pray in all seasons. Growing through the motions involves commitment, consistency, and companions. It means being willing to go through the motions no matter the season and no matter the circumstances. It is only by doing this that we can have full range of motion in our relationship with the Lord. Mass Readings from October 16, 2022: Exodus 17:8-13 Psalms 121:1-8 2 Timothy 3:14-4:2 Luke 18...
Oct 15, 2022•25 min
Homily from the Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time. Our Why is a Who. We can know exactly what to do and how to do it. So much of our lives can be spent doing more and more, but never knowing exactly why. But if the reason behind our actions is Jesus, then we can truly be free to love every time we say "yes" to our Who. Mass Readings from October 9, 2022: 2 Kings 5:14-17 Psalms 98:1-4 2 Timothy 2:8-13 Luke 17:11-19...
Oct 08, 2022•25 min
Homily from the Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time. Duty is not the enemy. So much of life is doing our duty. Doing what we are supposed to do. And yet, there are times when this means that we only “go through the motions”. There is a chance for us to do more however…we can choose to grow. Mass Readings from October 2, 2022: Habakkuk 1:2-3; 2:2-4 Psalms 95:1-2, 6-9 2 Timothy 1:6-8, 13-14 Luke 17:5-10...
Oct 01, 2022•24 min
Homily from the Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time. Complacency is being satisfied with how things are and not being willing to change them. We are insulated from discomfort in many ways. And our lives of comfort can lead to complacency. But encountering Christ can lead to compassion. Mass Readings from September 25, 2022: Amos 6:1, 4-7 Psalms 146:7-10 1 Timothy 6:11-16 Luke 16:19-31...
Sep 24, 2022•29 min
Homily from the Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time. The connection between our values and our virtues. We are nothing without the virtue of integrity. As one pastor noted, "If you have integrity, nothing else matters. And if you don't have integrity, nothing else matters." Integrity is the bridge between our desires and our decisions. Without integrity, our lives remain mere piles without purpose. Mass Readings from September 18, 2022: Amos 8:4-7 Psalms 113:1-2, 4-8 1 Timothy 2:1-8 Luke 16:1-1...
Sep 17, 2022•23 min
Homily from the Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time. Who you are now is who you are. Joy is the abiding sense of well-being. It is a feeling, but it is also a choice. But we do not choose joy itself. We must choose the source of joy. Love is the source of joy. Mass Readings from September 11, 2022 Exodus 32:7-11 Psalms 51:3-4, 12-13, 17, 19 1 Timothy 1:12-17 Luke 15:1-32...
Sep 10, 2022•28 min
Homily from the Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time. Loyalty is a force that conquers time. The essence of a eulogy virtue is character. Not merely who people think you are, but who you actually are. A person of character does what they said they would do…despite changing feelings or circumstances. This is loyalty. Mass Readings from September 4, 2022: Wisdom 9:13-18 Psalms 90:3-6, 12-14, 17 Philemon 9-10, 12-17 Luke 14:25-33...
Sep 03, 2022•27 min
Homily from the Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time. Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it is thinking of yourself less. The Book of Sirach makes the claim that the humble person is loved more than a giver of gifts. But what does it mean to be humble? Does it mean what most of us automatically think of? Or does it mean something deeper...something freer? True humility gives a person the ability to pay attention. Mass Readings from August 28, 2022: Sirach 3:17-18, 20, 28-29 Psalms 68:4-...
Aug 29, 2022•20 min
Homily from the Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time. How are you fighting for Heaven? Jesus makes it very clear that our call is to make our pursuit of Heaven exactly that: a pursuit. He is personal and practical when He tells us that each and every one of us must strive for Heaven. Mass Readings from August 21, 2022: Isaiah 66:18-21 Psalms 117:1, 2 Hebrews 12:5-7, 11-13 Luke 13:22-30...
Aug 22, 2022•20 min
Homily from the Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time. Sometimes God gives the victory and sometimes God gives what we need to finish the race. Every one of us is in the middle of the race of our lives. God has called us and brought us here, even when there is no victory in sight and even when victory is not possible. But God will always give whatever we need to finish the race. Mass Readings from August 14, 2022: Jeremiah 38:4-6, 8-10 Psalms 40:2-4, 18 Hebrews 12:1-4 Luke 12:49-53...
Aug 15, 2022•20 min
Homily from the Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time. We sacrifice because we love and we love because we sacrifice. The roots in our lives can be so beneficial. Family and friends, home and homeland. But roots can also become traps. Good things can become Ultimate Things. When we say "I need this" and are willing to sacrifice anything to get or to hold on to it, we become trapped. In this, God loosens the roots and calls us to walk by faith. Mass Readings from August 7, 2022: Wisdom 18:6-9 Psalms...
Aug 08, 2022•24 min
Homily from the Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time. Time and Death make most of what we live for hevel. We are preoccupied with "done", but we are simultaneously addicted to asking "then what?". The wisdom of Ecclesiastes notes that so much of what we live for is impermanent, passing, or meaningless. Yet Jesus reveals that there is a real meaning and a real hope. Mass Readings from July 31, 2022: Ecclesiastes 1:2; 2:21-23 Psalms 90:3-6, 12-14 and 17 Colossians 3:1-5, 9-11 Luke 12:13-21...
Aug 01, 2022•28 min
Homily from the Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time. The Who determines the How. The disciples did not merely want Jesus to help them have a "better spiritual life" or a deeper prayer life; they wanted to pray how He prayed. And Jesus taught them. He taught them that Who we pray to determines how we pray. Mass Readings from July 24, 2022: Genesis 18:20-32 Psalms 138:1-3, 6-8 Colossians 2:12-14 Luke 11:1-13...
Jul 25, 2022•23 min
Homily from the Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time. Feeling anxious, worried, or sorry for yourself is normal. It is also completely unhelpful. We have a problem. And the problem is that we can do the right thing in the wrong way. We can choose to serve...while feeding our worry and self-pity. We can carry our cross...while feeling anxious and sorry for ourselves. Everything comes down to one question; it is not a matter of being tough, it is a matter of trust. Mass Readings from July 17, 2022: G...
Jul 18, 2022•22 min
Homily from the Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time. I can know all I need to know and still not do all I need to do. There are so many things that we know that we ought to do. There are even things that we know that we want to do. And yet...we just can't seem to act on what we know. How do we start? How do we become people who do what we know we ought to do? Mass Readings from July 10, 2022: Deuteronomy 30:10-14 Psalms 69:14, 17, 30-31, 33-34, 36-37 Colossians 1:15-20 Luke 10:25-37...
Jul 11, 2022•23 min
Homily from the Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time What else is there? Many of us want to grow spiritually. But what does that really mean? What is it that we really want? What is the actual goal of life? Put in the words of Jesus, what should we truly rejoice in? Christ's answer is nothing less than having our names written in Heaven. Mass Readings from July 3, 2022: Isaiah 66:10-14 Psalms 66:1-7, 16, 20 Galatians 6:14-18 Luke 10:1-12, 17-20...
Jul 04, 2022•21 min
Homily from the Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time. Deliberate. Decisive. Definitive. God continues to call. God calls us to follow Him, making it clear that being a disciple is challenging...that it costs something. Therefore, we need to weigh out our response, we need to avoid hesitation, and we need to choose to follow Jesus in such a way that it actually changes something in our lives. Mass Readings from June 26, 2022: 1 Kings 19:16, 19-21 Psalms 16:1-2, 5, 7-11 Galatians 5:1, 13-18 Luke 9:5...
Jun 27, 2022•21 min
Homily from The Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. This is everything. The Body and Blood of Christ is one of the most underappreciated gifts God has ever given. In the Scriptures, God gives us His Word. In the Sacraments, God gives us His work. But in the Eucharist, God gives us Himself. Mass Readings from June 19, 2022: Genesis 14:18-20 Psalms 110:1-4 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 Luke 9:11-17...
Jun 20, 2022•21 min
Homily from The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity. It is not good for the person to be alone. The Feast of the Most Holy Trinity reminds us of the innermost secret of God: He is Love. It also reveals the innermost secret of humans made in God's image and likeness: we are made for love. Mass Readings from June 12, 2022: Proverbs 8:22-31 Psalms 8:4-9 Romans 5:1-5 John 16:12-15...
Jun 13, 2022•19 min
Homily from Pentecost Sunday. The greatest gift is to make yourself available. The Holy Spirit, poured out on the apostles (and the entire Church) at Pentecost would have gone to waste without the most important reality: the disciples made themselves available to be used by God for the service of the people around them. Mass Readings from June 5, 2022: Acts 2:1-11 Psalms 104:1, 24, 29-31, 34 1 Corinthians 12:3-7, 12-13 John 20:19-23...
Jun 06, 2022•19 min
Homily from the Solemnity of the Ascension of our Lord. What am I going to do with the gifts I've been given? In the Ascension, Jesus completes the work of redemption. He has taken His once for all sacrifice, bound to time and place, and brought it before the Father. Because of this, we have access to all of God's graces in every time and every place. Mass Readings from May 29, 2022: Acts 1:1-11 Psalms 47:2-3, 6-9 Ephesians 1:17-23 Luke 24:46-53...
May 30, 2022•20 min
Homily from the Sixth Sunday of Easter. The great temptation to stay in our own "version" of the Church. God has given us the gift of the Church. The Church is His Body...the Church is His Bride. And we cannot have Jesus without His Church. Mass Readings from May 22, 2022: Acts 15:1-2, 22-29 Psalms 67:2-3, 5-6, 8 Revelation 21:10-14, 22-23 John 14:23-29...
May 23, 2022•19 min
Homily from the Fifth Sunday of Easter. The best you on the worst day of your life. There are a few things that we ought to never be surprised by. One of them is suffering. God does not abandon us in our suffering, he leads us through them. Mass Readings from May 15, 2022: Acts 14:21-27 Psalms 145:8-13 Revelation 21:1-5 John 13:31-35...
May 15, 2022•20 min
Homily from the Fourth Sunday of Easter. You are not abandoned. You are not alone. You are not afraid. Our lives are marked by stress. Not only is stress unavoidable, it is necessary. The main question is: what is our response to stress? Mass Readings from May 8, 2022: Acts 13:14, 43-52 Psalms 100:1-3, 5 Revelation 7:9, 14-17 John 10:27-30...
May 09, 2022•17 min
Homily from the Third Sunday of Easter. Use your potential. Jesus called Peter to sacrifice his potential so that his life and his death might glorify God. You are I are called to pick our spot, to pour ourselves out in such a way that God would be known, loved, and glorified. Mass Readings from May 1, 2022: Acts 5:27-32, 40-41 Psalms 30:2, 4, 5-6, 11-13 Revelation 5:11-14 John 21:1-19...
May 02, 2022•21 min
Homily from the Sunday of Divine Mercy. Mercy is the love that we deserve the least when we need it the most. The fact of the Resurrection of Jesus has introduced something new into this world of misery. The Cross and Resurrection introduced the possibility of mercy. Not only have we encountered the mercy of God, but we have been commissioned to be mercy in the midst of a world filled with misery. Mass Readings from April 4, 2022: Acts 5:12-16 Psalms 118:2-4, 13-15, 22-24 Revelation 1:9-13, 17-1...
Apr 25, 2022•20 min
Homily from the Mass of Easter Day. What did he see? John ran to the tomb and looked in. He saw and believed. What did he see? Mass Readings from April 17, 2022: Acts 10:34, 37-43 Psalms 118:1-2, 16-17, 22-23 Colossians 3:1-4 John 20:1-9
Apr 17, 2022•14 min
Homily from Good Friday of the Lord's Passion. The heart of envy. The crown of thorns reveals the darkness of the human heart. This darkness is in each one of us in the form of envy. Mass Readings from April 15, 2022: Isaiah 52:13—53:12 Psalms 31:2, 6, 12-13, 15-17, 25 Hebrews 4:14-16; 5:7-9 John 18:1—19:42...
Apr 16, 2022•13 min
Homily from the Evening Mass of the Lord's Supper. All of Jesus’ words are summed up in one word. On the cross, Jesus’ life ends with the same perspective He has had from the beginning: He trusts His Father. Mass Readings from April 14, 2022: Exodus 12:1-8, 11-14 Psalms 116:12-13, 15-18 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 John 13:1-15...
Apr 15, 2022•18 min
Homily from Palm Sunday of the Lord's Passion. This one word connects and transforms the entire story. There is a last word that does not merely disclose the Heart...it completes The Story. Mass Readings from April 10, 2022: Isaiah 50:4-7 Psalms 22:8-9, 17-20, 23-24 Philippians 2:6-11 Luke 22:14—23:56...
Apr 10, 2022•23 min
