HOMILY LENT WEEK 01 02 – Year I The Word That Transforms: Optional Memorial of St. Polycarp (Is 55:10-11; Ps 34; Mt 6:7-15) ****************************************** “My word shall not return empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose and succeed in the thing for which I sent it.” This phrase spoken to the world by […]

HOMILY WEEK 06 02 – Year I A Paradigm Shift of Faith (Gen 6:5-10; Ps 29; Mk 8:14-21) **************************************************** Have you ever experienced a paradigm shift? A paradigm shift is a movement away from one way of seeing reality, thinking or acting, to an entirely new way of seeing reality, thinking or acting. For those […]

HOMILY WEEK 06 01 – Year I Mastering Sin and Fostering an Attitude of Gratitude (Gen 4:1-25; Ps 50; Mk 8:11-13) ***************************************************** “Sin is lurking at the door; its desire is for you, but you must master it.” (Genesis 4:7) The readings today invite us to turn to God for the spiritual help and healing […]

HOMILY SUNDAY 06 – B Living in Faith and Freedom (Leviticus 13:1-2, 45-46; Psalm 32; 1 Cor 10:23-11.1; Mark 1:40-45) **************************************************************** Some years ago, there was an item in the news about a nurse who was very upset towards the government. She had returned from tending to those suffering from Ebola in Africa, and although […]

HOMILY WEEK 05 06 – Year I Responding to Love with Love (Gn 3:9-24; Ps 90; Mk 8:1-10) ************************************** Many years ago, the Beatles sang a song, “All You Need Is Love.” That song resonates with the readings for today, which remind us of the depth of God’s love for us, and our call to […]

HOMILY WEEK 05 05 – Year I Shame and Fear – Speak and Hear (Gen 3:1-8; Ps 32; Mk 7:31-37) **************************************** What would you entitle a homily based on these readings? Many possible titles came to my mind: “A Not-so Original Sin; Sin and Sinfulness; Forgiveness and Healing; The Solution to Sin,” etc. What I […]

HOMILY WEEK 05 04 – Year I The Two Dimensions of Faith and Love: Optional Memorial of Our Lady of Lourdes (Gen 2:18-25; Ps 128; Mk 7:24-30) ********************************************* What are the names of the two girlfriends that a priest or bishop can have? The answer is Karen and Sharon. Caring and Sharing! Those two names […]

HOMILY WEEK 05 03 – Year I The Reality of Sin: Memorial of St. Scholastica (Gen 2:4-17; Ps 104; Mk 7:14-23) ************************************** A French preacher told his congregation that he was going to preach about hell – what the hell it is, where the hell it is, and how the hell to get there! Understanding […]

HOMILY WEEK 05 02 – Year I A Spirituality of Human Incompleteness (Gen 1:20-2:4; Ps 8; Mk 7) ******************************************* A child was paging through a large family bible when he came across a large Maple leaf his mother was drying in its pages. He ran to her excitedly to proclaim that he had found Adam’s […]

HOMILY WEEK 05 01 – Year I Creation and Recreation: Optional Memorial of St. Josephine Bakhita (Gen 1:1-19; Ps 104; Mk 6:53-56) ************************************************** The readings for an optional memorial like St. Josephine Bakhita today vary from year to year, thus presenting a different challenge to a homilist each time. Within the context of this memorial, […]