Sermons from St. Herman's

Using the day's gospel passage about the Gadarene demoniac, Fr. Matthew Howell talks about the reality of demons' efforts to separate us from God, the lifestyle of pigs, and the tools that the Church gives us to live in the Light of Christ. Epistle: Galatians 1:11-19 Brethren, I would have you know that the gospel which was preached by me is not man's gospel. For I did not receive it f...

On the 4th Sunday of Luke on which the Orthodox Church presents the parable of the Sower and the Seed, Fr. Matthew Howell preaches about how we all have all the different types of soil in our heart. He claims that it is possible to change the soil in your heart to make it more fertile and receptive to the seeds of the Word. He explains why the most necessary tools for cultivating better soil in on...

On the 18th Sunday after Pentecost and the third Sunday of the lectionary readings from Luke, Fr. Matthew Howell begins by contrasting the context of the death of legendary Chicago Bears linebacker Dick Butkus to the grief of the widow of Nain whom Jesus encounters in today's gospel. He then points out that Jesus' body is lifegiving, and wonders aloud why we often walk away from our own en...

While preaching about a passage from St. Luke's account the Sermon on the Mount, Fr. Matthew Howell passes on three pieces of advice that he received from his mother as a child to frame the three points of the homily: 1. "You always represent our family" (Be kind and merciful because you are a Christian, and because you call God your Father); 2. "Send mail to receive mail"...

On September 24, the Orthodox Church commemorates St. Thekla the Protomartyr , St. Silouan of Athos , St. Juvenaly of Alaska and St. Peter the Aleut . In this homily, Father Matthew ambitiously connects these four saints to the day's gospel reading and epistle reading. He points out that these saints exhibit love for God, love for neighbor (and enemies), and steadfast faith in the face of bitt...

On the Sunday after the feast of the Elevation of the Holy Cross, Fr. Matthew Howell talks about what it means to deny oneself, take up the cross, and follow Christ. He points out that a life lived denying oneself leads to detachment from the world and attachment to God. Galatians 2:16-20 Brethren, knowing that a man is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, even we h...

On the feast of the Elevation of the Holy Cross , Fr. Matthew preaches about the centrality of the cross in our lives. He explains how, when we lose the cross as the center of our lives, then we end up like the crowd that cried out "Crucify Him! We have no king but Caesar!" 1 Corinthians 1:18-24 Brethren, the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being...

On the feast of the Nativity of the Theotokos , Fr. Matthew Howell uses a quote from St. Ignatius of Antioch to preach about how the Virgin Mary is the foremost example of a Christian both in name and reality. He talks about how she heard the word of God and kept it, and how it is important for us also not only to hear the word of God and keep it and apply it in our lives just as the Theotokos did...

On the tenth anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood, Fr. Matthew Howell reflects on how his time as pastor of St. Herman Church is not only proof that God exists but that with God the impossible becomes possible. Galatians 1:1-3, 20-24; 2:1-5 Paul, an apostle - not from men nor through men, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead - and all the brethren wh...

On the 13th Sunday after Pentecost and the 13th Sunday of Matthew, Fr. Matthew Howell preaches about the parable of the wicked vinedressers. Quoting from St. Nikolai Velimirovic of Zica who refers to the wicked servants as having "black ingratitude", Fr. Matthew explains how their repeated acts of ingratitude led them to envy, anger, delusion, hatred and murder. He talks about how we can...

During the divine liturgy for the feast of the beheading of St. John the Baptist , Fr. Matthew Howell preaches about the need to shrink our ego in order to allow God to fill us with Himself. Other homilies by Fr. Matthew Howell for this feast: August 28, 2024 ⁠August 28, 2023⁠ ⁠August 29, 2022⁠ ⁠August 29, 2021 Acts of the Apostles 13:25-33 IN THOSE DAYS, as John was finishing his course, he said,...

Following Great Vespers for the Beheading of St. John the Baptist , Fr. Matthew Howell preaches about the Old Testament reading from Isaiah which says, "The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight the paths for our God" (Isaiah 40:3). Fr. Matthew says that we all have a savage wilderness in our heart that needs to be straightened out so that w...

On the 12th Sunday after Pentecost and the 12th Sunday of Matthew, Fr. Matthew Howell uses a long introduction from St. Nikolai of Zica to tell an imaginary tale of a man loading a lifeboat with unnecessary items, such as pianos and boxes of gold. Fr. Matthew then uses this to frame the perspective we need about the gospel reading about the rich young man who walked away from Jesus disappointed ab...

On the 11th Sunday after Pentecost and the 11th Sunday of Matthew, Fr. Matthew Howell talks very briefly about forgiveness and the need to forgive our neighbors unlike the wicked servant mention in the gospel reading. Fr. Matthew then preaches about the Prophet Samuel who is commemorated on this day. He points out the power of Samuel's faithfulness and availability to God when, as a child, Sam...

At the end of the baptism of the infant Elspeth Little, Fr. Matthew draws a parallel between the Dormition of the Theotokos and the baptism of the baby girl.

On the feast of the Dormition of the Theotokos , Fr. Matthew Howell curates excerpts of a homily from Fr. Archimandrite Sergius Bowyer, abbot of St. Tikhon Monastery. He talks about the Theotokos being the Living Ark and how her life calls us all to live a life of holiness. The excerpts can be found in the book Acquiring the Mind of Christ , published by St. Tikhon's Monastery Press in 2015 on...

On the leave-taking of the feast of the Transfiguration and the 10th Sunday after Pentecost, Fr. Matthew Howell talks about the importance of fasting and prayer as pillars of personal faith that can move mountains as laid out by our Lord Jesus Christ in today's gospel. He points out that prayer and fasting and enable someone--by God's grace--to move the mountains of sin that grow in one&#3...

On the feast of the Canonization of St. Herman of Alaska and the translation of his relics, Fr. Matthew Howell preaches about St. Herman. He gives context for the harshness of the environments, circumstances and oppression and persecution that St. Herman faced and the arduousness of his lifestyle. Yet in spite of these difficulties, St. Herman was able to shine the light of Christ on the Alaska Na...

On the feast of the  Transfiguration, the Very Rev. Fr. Gregory Rogers gives a sermon while visiting St. Herman Church. He examines the Transfiguration of Christ from many different angles, explaining how it is an epiphany of the Trinity, of Christ's divinity, and of the kingdom of heaven by connecting many biblical allusions to this feast.

On the Eighth Sunday after Pentecost and the Eighth Sunday of Matthew, Fr. Matthew Howell preaches about the feeding of the 5,000 while visiting St. Anna Greek Orthodox Shrine in Roseville, California. He points out that everyone knew that the small amount of bread and fish were not enough to feed the multitudes, yet a sincere and complete offering in faith to Jesus Christ turned into a tremendous...

While visiting St. Athanasius Antiochian Orthodox Church in Sacramento, CA, Fr. Matthew Howell passes on advice that he was given a year earlier from an older, wiser, retired priest (Fr. John Steffaro) that applies to every Christian: preach the gospel, pray the liturgy, and love people. Romans 15:1-7 Brethren, we who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please oursel...

At a retirement party in Sacramento, Fr. Matthew Howell gives a speech honoring his dad, the Very Reverend Father Stephen Howell.  This video has most of the speeches from the retirement party. Fr. Matthew's speech begins in the video at minute 56:45 and goes to 1:16:36. The video cuts off before Bishop John Abdalah and Fr. Stephen Howell give their speeches. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0o...

On the Sunday in which the Orthodox Church commemorates the 630 Fathers of the Fourth Ecumenical Council in Chalcedon, Fr. Matthew Howell explains the theological debate centered on the two natures of Christ. He claims that everything in the Church is built upon this Truth of how Jesus Christ is one divine person with both a fully human and fully divine nature. He then ties this feast to the Gospe...

While serving as a session priest for Antiochian Village Camp's Arch Week Program for high school graduates, Fr. Matthew Howell wraps up the program on its final morning with a homily intended for all the participants. He points out that their week at the Antiochian Village was actually a week in reality and that they can live out the their calling as Christians in college based on their exper...

While serving as a priest for the Antiochian Village Camp Arch Week Program, Fr. Matthew Howell and the "Archers" join the traditional Summer Camp program for a supplication to St. Raphael of Brooklyn at his grave. At the end of the service, Fr. Matthew preaches about how both St. Raphael and St. Herman of Alaska befriended the lonely, comforted the poor, and defended the oppressed. He t...