Category: Sunday Homilies

Zephaniah 3: 14 – 18A, Phillippians 4: 4 – 7, Gospel Luke 3: 10 – 18 Christmas is a time for gift giving, and the Advent Season is our time to prepare for Christmas.  On Christmas we celebrate the greatest gift that has ever been given, Jesus.  God gives himself to us out of love […]

Today’s scriptures present a beautiful illustration of how we believe that the promises of the Old Testament are brought to fulfillment in the New, in the person of Jesus Christ. The figure who announces and hastens this blossoming of prophecy into reality is John the Baptist, who has long been regarded as a bridge figure […]

Lectionary 689 Each year on December 8th Catholics the world over celebrate the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception; this important feast day honors Christ by honoring his mother the Blessed Virgin Mary, in particular by celebrating our belief that she was conceived free from original sin. Thus the Immaculate Conception refers to the conception of […]

Isaiah 63: 16B – 17, 19B; 64: 2 – 7, I Corinthians 1:3 – 9, Mark 13; 33 – 37 “Be vigilant at all times and pray that you have strength”  This is the advice Jesus gives in the Gospel for the First Sunday of Advent.  He is speaking to his disciples about the signs […]

Lectionary 161 Many people I have encountered in recent years have shared concerns with me about the direction in which events in our world seem to be moving.  I often tell them that the more we study the past the less we worry about the present and future.  In the scripture readings on the feast […]

Daniel 12; 1 – 3 Hebrews 10: 11 – 14, 18 Mark 13: 24 – 32 This Sunday is the last ordinary Sunday of Ordinary Time.  Next weekend we celebrate the Solemnity of Christ the King which marks the end of the Church year.  As we near the end of the Church year the readings […]

Lectionary 155 The poor and the defenseless are at the heart of the Church’s scripture readings this Sunday, with Elijah the prophet encountering the impoverished widow of Zarephath, the Psalmist singing the praises of the Lord who is close to the downtrodden, and Jesus himself upholding the poor widow visiting the Temple as the model […]

Mark 12: 28 – 34 In the Gospel for this weekend we hear about an encounter that Jesus had with a Scribe.  At the time of Jesus Scribes were Pharisees who had a particular interest and expertise in the law, and were sometimes referred to as lawyers in the Gospels.  Often when we hear of […]

Revelation 7: 2 – 4, 9 – 14 1 John 3: 1 – 3 Matthew 5: 1 – 12 Today we pause to recognize, honor and venerate the Saints. Throughout the Church Year we celebrate specific days for saints. Men and women were widely recognized for their heroic virtue and fidelity to God’s grace, and […]

Lectionary 149 In today’s reading from Jeremiah we hear wonderful news; the prophet announces that the blind and the lame will be healed and will join the joyful throng of Israelites as they are redeemed from their exile in Babylon and return home to the promised land:  “I will gather them from the ends of […]