HOMILY ADVENT WEEK 01 05 – Year II Seeing with the Eyes of Faith: Optional Memorial of St. John Damascene (Isaiah 29:17-24; Ps 27; Mt 9:27-31) *********************************************** “Do you see what I see?” This line from a familiar Christmas Carol, along with today’s readings, invite us to see Jesus with the eyes of faith, and […]
Faith-Jesus Christ-St. Francis Xavier
HOMILY ADVENT WEEK 01 04 – Year I Building Our Lives on Rock: Memorial of St. Francis Xavier ((Is 26:1-6; Ps 118; Mt 7:24-27) ************************************* At the Western Wall in Jerusalem, our guide pointed out that the massive stones we saw were really just a retaining wall to support the platform on which the temple […]
Faith-Eucharist-Jesus Christ
HOMILY ADVENT WEEK 01 03 – Year I Love That Satisfies Spiritual Hunger (Is 25:6-10a; Ps 23; Mt 15:29-37) ************************************************* “Is that all there is to my life?” This is a question many people end up asking, especially as they enter into the second half of life. Our yearning for the fullness of life can […]
Faith-Jesus-God-Justice
HOMILY ADVENT WEEK 01 02 – Year I A Shoot Shall Come Out (Is 11:1-10; Ps 72; Lk 10:21-24) **************************************** There is a bumper sticker that reads, “If you want peace, work for justice.” The powerful readings for day two of the first week of Advent inspire me to adapt that saying to become, “If […]
Faith-St Andrew
HOMILY ADVENT 01 01 – Year I Feast of St Andrew: Kerygma and Didache (Rm 10:9-18; Ps 19; Mt 4:18-22) *************************************************** “If you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your hearts that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” This message of Paul to the Romans succinctly […]
Advent-Faith-Hope-Love
HOMILY ADVENT SUNDAY 01 – B Biblical Waiting: Faith, Hope and Love (Isaiah 63:16-17, 64:1, 3-8; Psalm 80; 1 Corinthians 1:3-9; Mark 13:33-37) ***************************************************************** An old pastor got carried away with his homily. Eventually he realized he had talked at great length. He searched for his pocket watch but to no avail. He quietly asked […]
Faith-Hope-Trust
HOMILY WEEK 34 06 – Year II On Being Alert and Ready through Prayer, Hope and Trust (Rev 22:1-7; Ps 95; Lk 21:34-36) ******************************************************* Stop, drop and roll! Over the years, children were taught these three words to help them remember what to do in the event of a fire. They were to stop running […]
Faith-Fellowship-Self-awareness-Kingdom of God
HOMILY WEEK 34 05 – Year II Experiencing the Newness of the Kingdom of God (Rev 20:1-21:2; Ps 84; Lk 21:29-33) ********************************************** There is a scene in Mel Gibson’s movie Passion of the Christ in which Jesus, bloodied and battered from his torture and carrying the cross, meets his mother Mary and, to the viewer’s […]
Faith-End times-Love
HOMILY WEEK 34 04 – Year II Invited to the Wedding Feast of the Lamb (Rev 18:1-23, 19:1-3; Ps 100; Lk 21:20-28) *********************************************** On the last day of our stay in Jerusalem, our group of pilgrims went to the Western Wall. It happened to be a Thursday when Bar-mitzvahs are celebrated. Even before reaching the […]
Faith-Worship-Witness-St. Catherine of Alexandria
HOMILY WEEK 34 03 – Year II Joyful Worship and Courageous Witness: Optional Memorial of St. Catherine of Alexandria (Rev 15:1-4; Ps 98; Lk 21:12-19) ********************************************** During this last week of the liturgical year, the readings continue an apocalyptic theme, and present us with two scenes – a heavenly one and an earthly one and […]
