The Breaking of the Body of Christ

Homily for the Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A
Isaiah 55.1-3 Psalm 145 Romans 8.35, 37-39 Matthew 14.13-21

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When we're broken, Jesus doesn’t necessarily put all the pieces back together; sometimes he does, but sometimes he refashions the pieces and forms them into something new, something that we never would have imagined before.

Solomon and Harry Potter

Homily for the Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A
1 Kings 3.5, 7-12 Psalm 119 Romans 8.28-30 Matthew 13.44-52

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The greatest temptation of the modern world is believing that we can conquer death on our own – that we don’t need God and we don’t need anyone else. The ultimate message of the Harry Potter books and movies is that love wins, and the love of family and friends is the only thing that is lasting in life. The Christian gospel takes that one step further – God is love, and the one who shows us ultimately what it means to have sacrificial love is Jesus Christ.

Listening to the Wisdom of God

Homily for the Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A
Wisdom 12.13, 16-19 Psalm 86 Romans 8.26-27 Matthew 13.24-43

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We are so inundated with information, that this information starts to shape how we think – act – live. And if the information we see and hear and absorb day after day is filled with hatred, judgment, division, and stubbornness – well, then we’re going to start thinking and acting and living the same way. How can we sort out the wheat from the weeds – truth from fiction – good from evil?

Seeds, Soil, and the Sower

Homily for the Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A
Isaiah 55.10-11 Psalm 65 Romans 8.18-23 Matthew 13.1-23

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Where do you fit into this parable? Are you like the seeds? Or are you like the soil, and if so, what kind of soil? Or are you like the sower?

The Eucharist Stays the Same

Homily for The Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, Year A
Deuteronomy 8.2-3, 14b-16a Psalm 147 1 Corinthians 10.16-17 John 6.51-58

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There is one thing that has always been at the heart of the Mass, no matter the language, the time, or the place –bread and wine are taken, blessed and consecrated, through the power of the Holy Spirit, to become the Body and Blood of Christ – the Bread of Life and the Cup of Eternal Salvation. It is this Eucharist that has strengthened and supported the Church each and every day since Christ gave it to us. The same Eucharist that has become present at every Mass in every place in every time.

Paying Attention to the Trinity

Homily for The Most Holy Trinity, Year A
Exodus 34.4b-6, 8-9 Daniel 3 2 Corinthians 13.11-13 John 3.16-18

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Especially if you’re not used to the Catholic Mass, it’s almost like the Church has designed the Mass knowing that people’s minds wander, that we get distracted, that we might even be bored, and that chances are pretty good that at least once during each and every Mass we go to, we’re going to be caught not paying attention.

The Holy Spirit and Change

Homily for Pentecost Sunday, Year A
Acts 2.1-11 Psalm 104 1 Corinthians 12.3b-7, 12-13 John 20.19-23

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The Holy Spirit is God’s gift
To keep us grounded
To help us navigate the waters of change
To help us adapt
To strengthen us
To reassure us
To give us hope
To guide us in the right direction