HOMILY SUNDAY 12 – C The Birth of John the Baptist (Isaiah 49:1-6; Psalm 139; Acts 13:22-26; Luke 1:57-66; 80) ************************************************************ Have you answered the call of God in your life? Today’s solemnity of the birth of John the Baptist invites us to respond to God’s call by being a disciple, taking up our cross […]

  HOMILY SUNDAY 12-B Calming the Storm (Job 38:1-4, 8-11; 2 Cor 5:14-17; Mk 4:35-41) ************************************************** “Life is a mystery to be lived, not a problem to be solved.” As a young priest, I misquoted and mixed up that statement one Sunday in Beauval. Starting out my homily, I am told I said “life was […]

HOMILY WEEK 11 06 – Year II Marriage Encounter and the Reign of God: Optional Memorial of St. John Fisher and St. Thomas More (2 Chron 24:17-25; Ps 89; Mt 6:24-34) ************************************************ Human beings have a rather unique characteristic – a desire to build a better mousetrap. The birds Jesus mentions in the gospel build […]

HOMILY WEEK 11 05 – Year II Priority and Perception: Memorial of St. Aloysius Gonzaga (2 Kg 11:1-4, 9-18, 20; Ps 132; Mt 6:19-23) ********************************************* Two words summarize the gospel today: priority and perspective. The two sentences expressing these two words are: “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” and “The eye […]

HOMILY WEEK 11 04 – Year II Redemptive Suffering and the Test (Sir 48:1-14; Ps 97; Mt 6:7-15) ****************************************** Elijah continues to be the focus of the first reading in today’s liturgy. In this passage, we hear about him as an epic hero from the point of view of another Old Testament author – Sirach, […]

HOMILY WEEKDAY 11 03 – Year II Three Ascetical Practices: Optional Memorial of St. Romuald (2 Kg 2:1,6-14; Ps 31; Mt 6:1-6; 16-18 ********************************************* Does the word “asceticism” sound attractive to you? The gospel today invites us to practice three ascetical traditions in the Church as a way of humbly living out our faith and […]

HOMILY WEEK 11 02 – Year II Living the Law of Love (1 Kg 21:17-29; 51; Mt 5:43-48) *************************************** The readings today are like a two-act play, conveying the message to love others as Jesus has loved us, by being as merciful as the Father is merciful. Elijah and King Ahab in the first reading […]

HOMILY WEEK 11 01 – Year II Living the Law of Love (1 Kg 21:1-16; Ps 5; Mt 5:38-42) ************************************* “An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.” Retaliation is one of the world’s oldest and most contagious sins. Did you know that the Old Testament law of “an eye for an […]

  HOMILY SUN 11-B Living in the Reign (Ezekiel 17:22-24; Psalm 92; 2 Cor 5:6-10; Mark 4:26-34) ****************************************************** Wanting a creative title for a retreat I was to conduct, and wanting something on the Kingdom of God, I came up with Living in the Reign. Actually, that title fits the readings for today, the 11th […]

HOMILY WEEK 10 06 – Year II Trust in God and Live in the Truth (1 Kg 19:16-21; Ps 16; Mt 5:33-37) ************************************* “You are my inheritance, O Lord” Today’s psalm and readings invite us to place our complete trust in God and to live in the truth. In a tense game of poker, the […]