Sunday Homilies

DISCIPLES are people who submit willingly to a certain DISCIPLINE.  We can think of certain people or ideas that have excited us.  At one time or another, we have wanted our lives to be reflections of the thing that fascinates.  To be a disciple of Jesus means to be open to the many ways in which he calls us to re-think our own existence.

This was the first sermon for Auburn's observance of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity in its centennial year.  The venue: Cornerstone Community Church.  I forgot about recording until a couple of minutes into it.  Before turning it on, I got a good laugh when I said: "The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity was started by Episcopalians who shortly thereafter became Roman Catholics.  In mentio...

We, the church, the assembly, are called to holiness.  "Holy" is a word rich in significance; yet it can be an obstacle to us when we seek to understand ourselves before God.  We welcome the encouragement of all who have accepted the challenge of the call to holiness.

Baptism is death.  This is not the sort of polite conversation that one expects when an infant undergoes baptism.  But this is precisely why Jesus underwent baptism: to be in solidarity with us who face this very strange thing called mortality.

We live in accelerated times.  Today we attempt to grasp what is of value in this time and for eternity.  We accept the challenge of accepting a gift of universal significance to humanity.

Family brings to mind familiarity -- and from ancient times it has been held that "familiarity breeds contempt."  Today's scriptures affirm that this does not have to be.  As we appreciate the growth of our family members, we find that learning to forgive is liberating.

I am quite certain that this homily, at the first Mass of Christmas, will be my best effort for the solemnity of the Incarnation.  The mystery of the Word Made Flesh calls us to look deep within ourselves to discover the joy which can emerge from misery as we ask what it means to be human, and ask as well why the Son of God would will to enter this life of ours.

We men like to assert our power.  The power or potency to beget children is greatly esteemed.  Today we hear of power being wielded in a way which calls all our power-posturing into question.

As I was uploading this, the host admonished me: "Please be patient."  Patience provides a near-universal challenge to human beings.  It is difficult to see what patience gives us.  Perhaps if we slowed down the processes of our minds, and simply stood quietly before the incredible images supplied by the prophet Isaiah, we might discover that in the slowness God gives much to us.

On a weekend of difficult weather and general distraction, a brief reflection on knowledge of God covering the earth as water covers the sea.

This somewhat windy homily takes the image of the man hammering his sword into a plowshare and applies it to the dream of the parish's becoming more completely a faith community.

Let's get past the reflexive response, "We're Americans -- we don't need kings!"  There is a great richness in the concepts of kingship and kingdom, and we can enrich ourselves by considering these concepts.  Jesus, truly God and truly human, subjected himself to ultimate degradation and made the cross his throne.  If we are in the midst of degradation, his presence there can mean everything to us...

This recording is close to an hour and a half.  I provide explanations of the various parts of the Mass.  We must conduct our lives remembering that we are the ancestors of the people of the future.  Will they be able to look back upon us with gratitude?

I received some highly gratifying positive feedback on this one.  I was happy to hear from people who said that it made them think !  That's what we must do if we are going to have an adequate appreciation of our relationship with God and what time and timelessness have to do with it.  We must rouse ourselves out of a "pie in the sky when you die" mentality.

After two weekends on vacation and some hassles with keeping my account activated, I am back with Sunday homilies.  We all appreciate a quiet, loving hint so that we can be informed of a need to change something.  We don't appreciate it when this need becomes a topic of common conversation and we end up being the last to know.  Jesus was giving Zacchaeus that quiet, loving hint that leads to conve...

Does the internet make place irrelevant?  Our deepest feelings say no.  Each of us is from somewhere.  We have a lot invested in particular places.  It is taking believers a long time to work through these feelings.

"How long, O Lord?"  This cry from the sixth century B.C. resounds in every age, wherever human beings are.  We experience time now as dragging, now as racing.  We are challenged to understand that God is drawing us from time into the timeless.  If we wonder about the virtue of patience, let us consider the patience of Jesus in casting his lot with humanity.

A somewhat different take on the rich man and Lazarus.  I consider what it means to take anyone's name in vain.  How do people instrumentalize each other?

Jesus' parable of the devious steward is not teaching us to be devious!  Rather, we find here an invitation to "work" a "system" as this man worked the economic system, which was all he could see.  Our "system" to "work" is creation itself.  We are to develop a sense of wonder toward God who, in his creation, constantly expresses his love for us.

Self-righteousness is hard to get rid of; after all, it feels so good!  But we can trade it in for something better.  May we confront ourselves in a healthy manner so as to accept the sense of peace which is far better than self-righteousness.

The death of Madeleine L'Engle; the ideas of C.S. Lewis regarding heaven; our upcoming parish feast day (Friday, September 14) and the prioritizing that occurs when we take up our cross.

Might heaven be boring?; a mistranslation of Hebrews; one of Jesus' least important parables; Mother Teresa couldn't control God.

I have to apologize for the strange appearance of this page.  I have to scroll down quite a bit through blank space to see the latest posts.  Libsyn has sent me some advice on how to correct this, but I don't have it figured out yet. Apparently Libsyn has been having some problems over the last few days with access to their site. Anyway, here's my first theology-bite on heaven, and my thought on r...

After two weekends away doing ecumenical training, the crusty old pastor is back.  This homily starts from a reflection on the practice of dueling.

Due to technical difficulties, this homily is appearing rather late.  The Scriptures give us a lot to consider regarding prayer.  It is most important to note the communal nature of prayer (even when we think we're "alone") and to take confidence in the strength of praying liturgically with people all over the world.  Does it help to tell people that the Tridentine Mass was never abrogated?  Does...