Fr. Kirby Longo's Homilies

I don’t think we realize how often we lie, gossip, and behave selfishly- especially in our work for that is where it is most easily justified. John the Baptist came to reveal to 1st century Galileans how utterly mediocre their lives were. Yet, he also made it clear that the life of a saint, the way of perfection, is right before you, it’s in your midst, it’s the call to true charity and humility i...

This is the third part in a four part formation series for the Catholic Youth Coalition in the Diocese of Helena. With only one session to look at the Church, I focused in on the martyrs and Desert Fathers and Mothers as an incredible witness to the power of the gospel. This is something that inspires us to give our whole lives, to give up the world. Here is the Audio from that talk.

The climate of western culture has created a new and unique form of dialogue which usually consists of carefully crafted homage to tolerance followed by a lambasting of anyone who disagrees with the personally held position. When we look to ourselves for our identity instead of looking to the one who made us, we end up putting our whole identity in some trait, some feature that we think makes us u...

Why do the scriptures so often speak to us of the end times when God obviously doesn’t plan to tell us his plan for that day of judgment? In fact, it does not even seem a part of Jesus’ divine mission to know the day or the hour of that coming. In speaking of it,  just he seeking to instill fear in his listeners? Or is he giving them hope for eternal life? Yes on both accounts.

Evil is framed according to a narrative that suggests it’s somehow all outside of us, it’s too powerful to be grappled with, and it might be on your doorstep soon. This is not, however, what our gospel today suggests. In fact, Jesus paints a very different picture than the news, and today’s gospel contains a truth which we both need to hear and don’t want to hear.  

So each year the Israelites sent a goat into the wilderness on Yom Kippur with their sins, for a moment being free of the burden of sin, and shortly thereafter they would sin again, being broken humans like ourselves, and await the following year when Yom Kippur would come. More urgently, they awaited the messiah who would set things straight, he who “will arise, the sun of justice with his healin...

To a man who has had success in all life’s endeavors, who excels in virtue and is without match in business savvy, Jesus declares, “It is you I want for myself, I do not care for your accomplishments. Empty yourself of all those things that I may fill you up!” Jesus looks upon this man and loves him, calls him to discipleship- and he walks away!! How could this happen, how does such a powerful sce...

This is the 2nd part of a four part series I am giving to the CYC Board in our diocese, discussing the theology of the cross, what it tells us about God and about ourselves. Unfortunately, I didn't record the first part of the series, but I will hopefully get around to typing up my notes soon enough, or perhaps will give the talk in a different context soon, and will record it. Just a Note- this i...

Who is saved? What is it necessary for salvation? We ask questions in this arena often, and rarely do the answers not make us uncomfortable. That’s because an easy answer to that question either errors on the side of universalism- basically everyone is saved so don’t worry about it. Or it begins to sound rigid, brutal, and nearly arbitrary when someone claims there is no salvation outside the Chur...

What is the appropriate response finding to such a terrific evil planted in the institution founded by Christ to stand against this exact evil? How do we respond when looking upon these wicked men who go about in the light as though they will guide us in the ways of holiness while in the dark they go about their awful, pernicious deeds? Where can we go from here? Many are furious and disgusted wit...

I am not sounding some apocalyptic horn announcing this the worst age. Every age, every generation has its struggles. We can just look to Paul’s letter today, “Brothers and Sisters, watch carefully how you live, not as foolish but as wise, making the most of the opportunity, because the days are evil.” The evil we face today is subtle, confusing, and hard to pin down. That Struggle is the struggle...

If we didn’t enjoy, at least in some shallow way, the iPhone’s ability to distract us for hours on end from the real world, from facing ourselves, we wouldn’t buy them and invest our whole identity in that platform. If we didn’t believe sports were the root of happiness, we wouldn’t sacrifice every second of our life running our kids from school sports to travel sports to dance to whatever.       ...

The Blackfeet are predominately Catholic, and overwhelmingly Christian besides- in other words they are a faithful people. Yet they face dire poverty with 70% unemployment. Alcohol and drugs have wreaked havoc upon their people with a disproportionate amount of young deaths, as well as ½ the children in Browning being born addicted. Where is God’s grace in this place? Where is he when his people s...

Our ten year reunion is an interesting moment. The gospel, which I think is fitting, is a meditation on Death and suffering: what do they tell us about living a meaningful life?

This Sunday is the feast of Corpus Christi, the body and Blood of Christ. There are multiple layers to this feast, each of which reveals an ever deeper and greater mystery. This feast, when all is said and done, concerns the humiliation of the eternal Son of God. So, we must understand what exactly Jesus is doing here- without trying to level out what is mysterious. Because I must be clear: this i...

We can imagine: not only will our intellect constantly penetrating the mysteries of God, the great heavenly feast in the book of Revelation will be brought to life- imagine perfect, heavenly food, in overflowing abundance. Will our favorite activities still exist on the new earth? I don’t see why we will not ski powder every day or have perfect trails with perfect dirt for mountain biking and stun...

In this fallen world, we all face incredible suffering, sometimes what seems like unbearable, deeply unjust suffering. In these moments we must remain on the vine, take up our cross with Christ and let him strengthen us, or we will inevitably isolate, grow bitter, and eventually despair. We must remain in Christ if we want to weather the storm of this life- not only to weather it but to be joyful...

After 250 years of fighting relentlessly for the common good, for the idea that there is indeed goodness and truth, we have abandoned that struggle and chosen instead to just tolerate each other. Of fear of the tension that comes with diversity has crushed us, sent us into hiding. As a result, our faith is privatized, and we are afraid to bring it to bear in the world. In this we can learn a lesso...

Gregory the Great tells us, “The unbelief of Thomas was worth more to us than the faith of the others who believed.” If we make that great act of humility, humbling our sinful pride and coming before Christ, we find ourselves transformed in faith as Thomas was transformed, as all the saints were transformed. And it is then that we have the capacity and the courage to bestow God’s mercy upon others...

When St. Francis came before the Crucifix in the San Damiano Church, he asked three questions: Who are you, Lord? Who am I? And what would you have me do? With these three questions on our minds and hearts, I would like to dig into the scriptures from this Easter Sunday.

I realized the great leap of faith in the priesthood is this: When we are ordained, we are taken up into the priesthood of Jesus Christ, and along with that of course comes all the love of those who love Christ and the Church, yet what also must come is all the rejection of those who rejected Christ. All of us as Christians are called to take upon ourselves the Cross of rejection and scorn. Yet th...

It is easy to pass over Jesus entrance into Jerusalem without looking into the detail and complexity of what is happening. If we do this, we miss the great magnitude of the event. Jesus fulfills a handful of prophecies in this single act, let's take a look! 

The “You do you” life will never satisfy. As we move ever closer to Easter, to that great feast in which we proclaim boldly that Christ is risen, we look deep into ourselves and ask- am I living as if God is dead? Or can I truly say he is risen and lives in my heart- am I his servant, ready to follow his will.

Our God is mysterious. He acts in ways that we often cannot grasp, and we see his plan as those looking through a mirror dimly. Yet we know all the same that he is never unreasonable. His plan never requires an act of blind faith. The scholastics always spoke of fides quarens intellectum, faith seeking understanding! We will never grasp God completely, but we continue to seek, to learn, to know ou...

Ash Wednesday sits just three days away- we need to examine ourselves. We see continually in the scriptures that physical healing is always secondary for Jesus. What is most important is our spiritual healing. So, we ask ourselves: What are my addictions? What are my sins? Where do I need the Lord most? This lent, let your penance be specific to that place you struggle most- if you are prideful, a...