Sermons from St. Herman's

On the Saturday of Souls before Great Lent, Fr. Matthew Howell talks about the refreshment and comfort that souls of the departed receive by our prayers. Using the  Synaxarion of the Lenten Triodion and Pentecostarion,  he also reads an explanation for why we offer kolyva (boiled wheat) at memorial services.  Previous Homilies from the Saturday of the Departed before Great Lent:  March 9, 2024 Feb...

On the Sunday of the Prodigal Son , Fr. Matthew Howell talks about the lessons of the parable that Jesus tells: 1) that God can forgive any sin; 2) that we must repent by leaving our sin behind; 3) that being in the "Father's house" and sharing his life is heavenly; and 4) that our self-righteous criticism and condemnation will separate us from the love of the Father. Using extensive...

On the Sunday of the Publican and Pharisee , Fr. Matthew Howell gives a brief explanation of the Lenten Triodion period before discussing the content of the parable spoken by Jesus today. He talks about the humility of the Publican (Tax Collector) and contrasts it with the self-righteousness of the Pharisee who prays with or to himself and ends up condemning the Publican. He offers three things to...

On the feast of the Meeting of the Lord in the Temple, Fr. Matthew Howell talks about the context of the feast in terms of why the Holy Family goes to the temple in the first place and who they meet there, then talks about the encounters with Christ by Simeon the Righteous and the Prophetess Anna. He lays out how we should all strive to have encounters with God in an intentional way through prayer...

While serving the Divine Liturgy on the eve of the feast of St. Ephraim the Syrian at All Saints of North America Antiochian Church in Homer, Alaska, Fr. Matthew Howell pulls out lessons from the Lenten Prayer of St. Ephraim: "O Lord and Master of my life, take from me the spirit of sloth, meddling, lust of power, and idle talk. But give rather the spirit of chastity, humility, patience, and...

On the ⁠Sunday of Zacchaeus⁠ , Fr. Matthew Howell dusts off a quote from his favorite former NBA coach Monty Williams to illustrate that simply having desire for God is not enough but we must actually do something with that desire: namely, the difficult work of repentance and seeking God. Previous homilies on Zacchaeus Sunday: February 4, 2024 January 29, 2023 January 30, 2022 Epistle: 1 Timothy 4...

On the feast of ⁠St. Gregory the Theologian⁠ , Fr. Matthew Howell talks about St. Sophrony's definition of a true theologian: "'If you are a theologian, you prayer is pure. If your prayer is pure, then you are a theologian.' The monk-ascetic is not a theologian in the academic sense of the word but in another way he is, since pure prayer is deemed worthy of genuine divine visions&...

On the Sunday after Theophany , Fr. Matthew Howell uses excerpts from the book Know the Faith by Fr. Michael Shanbour to talk about four phases of repentance. 1. Cold hard truth about your condition 2. Contrition 3. Confession 4. Change of circumstances Along the way, he drops another phrase from Lord Business of The Lego Movie. Previous homilies for the Sunday after Theophany: 2023 - More than Re...

On the Sunday before Theophany, Fr. Matthew Howell preaches about the importance of Holy Water and how it becomes a conduit for us to receive God's uncreated energy (grace), thus furthering God's effort to draw near to us and be with us. Epistle: 2 Timothy 4:5-8 TIMOTHY, my son, always be steady, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfil your ministry. For I am already on the point of...

On the eve of January 1, at the divine liturgy for the feast of the Circumcision of Christ and St. Basil the Great , Fr. Matthew Howell preaches at Holy Transfiguration Greek Orthodox Church in Anchorage, Alaska. He talks about how New Year's resolutions generally don't work on their own but if we truly have resolve to repent, speak to our priest about being accountable, and ask God for strength t...

On the Sunday after the Nativity of Christ , Fr. Matthew Howell uses a paragraph from Metropolitan Hierotheos Vlachos in the book The Feasts of the Lord (page 61) to describe how we should be like the Magi and not return to Herod, who represents the flesh of the world. Rather, we should return to Paradise through a virtuous life of asceticism and sacramental participation. Fr. Matthew also mention...

Following an akathist to St. Herman of Alaska, Fr. Matthew Howell talks about how St. Herman lived in solitude on Spruce Island but was not alone because he lived and breathed in the presence of God.

At the Christmas Liturgy, Fr. Matthew Howell reads the famous homily by St. John Chrysostom for the Feast of the Nativity of Christ .   2022 - Nativity Sermon of St. John Chrysostom 2021 - Nativity Sermon of St. John Chrysostom Epistle: Galatians 4:4-7 Gospel: Matthew 2:1-12 The Nativity Sermon of St John Chrysostom “I behold a new and wondrous mystery!” My ears resound to the shepherd’s song, pip...

During the Vesperal Liturgy for the Paramon of the Nativity of Christ on December 24, Fr. Matthew Howell reads excerpts from the Nativity Sermon of St. Gregory the Theologian, #38 in his collection called The Orations (paragraphs 1-4, and 17-18). The full Oration by St. Gregory can be found here . The excerpts read by Fr. Matthew can be found here . 2022 - Nativity Sermon of St. Gregory the Theolo...

On the Sunday before Christmas , Fr.  Matthew Howell preaches about how God is with us in spite of the messiness, brokenness, and sinfulness of the human family. He talks about how the Word of God joined a really broken family and how He did not fear to jump into the swamp of sin and pain with us in order to raise us up above it. Along the way he breaks down some of the stories of the names mentio...

At the baptism of an 11 year old girl and a baby boy on one of the shortest days of the year, Fr. Matthew Howell preaches about the importance of living in the Light of Christ. Epistle: Romans 6:3-11 ROMANS 6:3-11 Brethren, all who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death. We were buried therefore with Him by baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead b...

On the second Sunday before Christmas, Fr. Matthew Howell uses the image of being invited to a grand banquet at Buckhingham Palace to illustrate how much more valuable and worthwhile the Divine Liturgy. He exhorts people not to take it for granted by making it the high point of one's week and to "live from liturgy to liturgy." Along the way, he quotes Psalm 68:37, Revelation 3:20, and St. John of...

On the patronal feast of St. Herman of Alaska , Fr. Matthew Howell talks about St. Herman's famous phrase, "From this day, from this hour, from this minute, let us love God above all, and strive to fulfill His holy will." Fr. Matthew then connects that phrase with Jesus' words in John 15:9-10: "Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father'...

On the Tenth Sunday of Luke on which we hear about Christ healing the woman who had been bent over for 18 years, Fr. Matthew Howell discusses the reasons why God blesses us both with good health and poor health. Hint: repentance is at the heart of both.  "God gave me many gifts but I did not respond...That's why I do not pray for God to make me well. I pray for Him to make me good." -- St. Porphyr...

On the 14th Sunday of Luke, Fr. Matthew Howell talks about how part of our spiritual blindness comes from focusing too much on the wrong things and the wrong people, worrying about and judging what others are doing instead of simply focusing on Christ and our own repentance. He suggests blinders as the antidote, a sort of spiritual tunnel vision that keeps us moving toward God. Along the way, he r...

The famous Thanksgiving Day sermon of Fr. Alexander Schmemann was the last sermon he preached shortly before his repose in 1983. He read it immediately following the conclusion of the final Divine Liturgy he served at St. Vladimir Orthodox Theological Seminary, where he had been the dean for many years. He reposed on December 13, 1983. Fr. Matthew Howell read this homily at the end of the Thanksgi...

On the 13th Sunday of Luke, Fr. Matthew Howell preaches about the encounter between the rich young ruler and our Lord Jesus Christ. He points out that the money is not the problem per se , but that the love of money interferes with the young man's ability to follow Christ. Because God gave us free will, we use that will to serve a master: either our possessions and passions or our uncreated God. F...

On the feast of the Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple , Fr. Matthew Howell talks about how we are to become living temples of God who offer constant worship to Him as Mary did in the holy of holies. He reads from The Feasts of the Mother of God by Met. Hierotheos Vlachos, and highlights this sentence: "It is not only the place where God is worshipped that is a temple, but above all the per...

Following Vespers for the Feast of the Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple , Fr. Matthew Howell talks about how simple the feast is, but also how within the simplicity is a path to God through the example of the Virgin Mary and her parents.

Preaching about the parable of the foolish rich man, Fr. Matthew Howell asks whether we should be living for the Friday night "weekend party life" that our culture puts before us, or instead orienting our entire week towards the Sunday morning divine liturgy? He claims that when we are properly oriented toward Christ and the Kingdom of Heaven, then our relationships with everything else--including...