St. Ignatius of Loyola, Montreal: Recent Episodes
St. Ignatius of Loyola, Montreal
I am convinced that denying ourselves and following Jesus is actually good for us. Maybe even the best thing we can do. Because, well, when I have tried to do things my way, when I have tried to go it alone, when I have tried to put my wants and desires before anything else, the results are not good.
Recording on Sunday, September 3, 2023 at St. Ignatius of Loyola in Montréal, QC.
But I want to focus in on how Jesus deals with Peter, how he raises him up to be the leader Jesus knows he can be, and needs him to be. I think looking at this relationship can be a lesson for us; a lesson about how Jesus wants to help us grow, and how we can help others grow too.
Recorded on Sunday, August 27, 2023 at St. Ignatius of Loyola in Montréal, QC.
Through the Jewish people, everyone else is offered the salvation won for us by Jesus. That was, and is, God’s plan. And for us here today, we get to participate in that plan. We get to help make it so that all peoples are welcomed in his house of prayer and get a piece of cake so to speak.
Recorded on August 20, 2023 at St. Ignatius of Loyola in Montreal, QC
"Church isn’t a bunch of people who all decided to see the same showing of the Barbie movie. This is more like a family gathering together for a family reunion with a potluck meal. There is a common bond and identity as we gather, and we bring what we have and who we are to share with the Lord and each other."
What do we believe when we hear Jesus’ words: “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.’
Each and every of us has a story. A Story of our very own. And whether we are aware of it or not, each of our stories is fundamentally all about love. The need for love, the pursuit of love, or the absence of love or all of the above
To God the Father there are no supporting characters, there are only his beloved children; you and me. You are at the center of God’s life. So much so that he sent Jesus, his Son, to save you, to give himself up on the Cross for you. You matter that much to God.
The Samaritan woman wanted to be loved, but for whatever reason made bad choices in her life. Now she was ostracized by most of the village and was probably seen as a grave sinner. Jesus knows all this and nonetheless wants to give her the gift of living water that springs up to eternal life
"Prayer doesn’t always solve the issue but it helps me see a way forward, and it helps to have God guiding me to the underlying issues that I can’t always see right away. And as I said at the very least I get to vent my anger to him, without it being toxic for everyone else."
The Beatitudes are a CALL TO ACTION.
Our response to that call summons us to make a Personal, Deliberate choice to, Be the Beatitudes, in the world!
Deacon Marco, 3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time
The light which is God himself can achieve so many impossible changes in our lives. God’s light breaks our yoke. It shows us the way. It clears our doubts and fears and increases our confidence in God and in ourselves too.
Fr. Mike Leclerc, Second Sunday In Ordinary Time"In those moments I realize I am being John the Baptist, I am recognizing God in our midst. And you are too! In those moments we together are a church full of John the Baptists."
Fr. Mike Leclerc, The Epiphany Of The Lord
"It’s Magi who are seeking something, and searching for the truth, who come to encounter Jesus as the messiah first rather than King Herod or any of the chief priests or scribes. None of the insiders recognize the star announcing the birth of the messiah, only these outsiders, these gentiles from another country."
Fr. Mike Leclerc, Solemnity Of The Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother Of God
"There are moments for both active haste and quiet reflection in each and every one of our lives. From what I glean from the Gospel, I think the moments to quiet our hearts are the moments of encounter with the divine, with God. Whereas the moments of haste are the moments when we are called to proclaim and praise God, praise him for what we’ve just experienced and proclaim what he’s done in our life."
Fr. Mike Leclerc, The Nativity Of The Lord (Christmas Day)
"Christmas is just about the only time when the world wants to even pay lip service to that kind of authentic love. With the birth of Christ, that divine love became a person, became real, and became accessible to all. And you can experience it not just tonight, not just during this brief season, but every day."
Fr. Mike Leclerc, Fourth Sunday Of Advent
"For the most part those moments of loving like God, of striving for holiness are to be found in the ordinary, everyday things we do, not in the grand gestures. It’s what Pope Francis termed middle class holiness."
Fr. Mike Leclerc, Third Sunday Of Advent
"Jesus wants you and me to rejoice, even now, at what God is doing in your life and my life, and in the lives of the people around us."
Fr. Lou Cerulli, First Sunday Of Advent
"Focus! Walk in the Light of the Lord! Love the things of Heaven and hold fast to what endures."
What feeling do you have when looking at the crucifix? And when you gaze upon the Cross, this throne of Jesus, do you accept Him as your king?
Fr. Mike Leclerc, 33rd Sunday In Ordinary Time
"Jesus is saying by your endurance your soul will gain so much. Our souls are where the image and likeness of God are to be found. It affects every part of our being; body, mind, and soul, however it abides in our soul. And so to gain our soul I think means to fully realize and bring to the fore the reflection of that image and likeness that is within us."
Fr. Mike Leclerc, 32nd Sunday In Ordinary Time
"I would love for you to have a place where you can talk about eternal things. I know you have a place to talk about the here and now. You have a financial advisor to talk about retirement. A work colleague to talk about that project you’re working on. You need a place for all that. It’s important. But you also need a place to talk about eternal things, to ask questions and learn to grow in your faith."
Fr. Mike Leclerc, 31st Sunday In Ordinary Time
"Zaccheus’ life is changed because when Jesus sees him he sees someone who is a fellow ‘Son of Abraham’, a child who is lost and needs a shepherd, someone to guide him back to where he is welcomed as part of the family, where he can be himself, where he is seen for who he is, where being real and authentic is all that matters, not what you’ve done or what you haven’t done. Jesus welcomes him Home."
Fr. Mike Leclerc, 30th Sunday In Ordinary Time"I think sometimes we can even be asking our brothers and sisters to pray for me, in place of me praying, in my stead. Because let’s face it there are times when each and every one of us has come here, come to this hospital for sinners in such a state, for whatever reason, that we can’t really pray for ourselves."
Fr. Mike Leclerc, 29th Sunday In Ordinary Time
"Why some prayers are answered and some aren’t is the real question that comes out of the Gospel today - and it’s one for which there is no easy answer."
Fr. Mike Leclerc, 28th Sunday In Ordinary Time
"When Jesus sends the 10 off to see the priests, he doesn't make the distinction between any of the ten, doesn't ask if they're Jewish or not. And God’s healing is for all of them; Jewish, Samaritan or Gentile doesn’t matter."
Dcn. Marco, 27th Sunday Of Ordinary Time
"We are Children of God and Loved and we are given this great gift of the Holy Spirit. This deep grounding powerful faith."
Fr. Mike Leclerc, 25th Sunday In Ordinary Time
“As Adrian mentioned last week when he was up here speaking about Kids ministry, the greatest inheritance he has is his relationship with God. And the best thing he can do for his children is share that inheritance. However, just as with any inheritance, it can be made to grow into a lasting legacy, or it can be frittered away.”
Fr. Mike Leclerc, 24th Sunday In Ordinary Time "God the Father longs for all of his children to be reunited with him, he is filled with Joy whenever a child discovers how much he loves them."
Fr. Mike, 23rd Sunday In Ordinary Time
“The Lord is saying that in comparison to our love for Him, all other love must be so inferior that it can be called the opposite of love.”
Fr. Mike Leclerc, 22nd Sunday In Ordinary Time "I’ve realized that this culture of invitation has been a key to us growing over the past six years. But it isn’t something we should take for granted either. We need to remind ourselves over and over how important it is to invite, it is the way for most of us to share the Good News, it is the way to help people we care about encounter Jesus in some way."
Fr. Raymond Lafontaine, 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time
"Jesus' answer is not that easy... And yet, His inclusive vision of the Kingdom of God is a Kingdom into which we all are invited to Belong, Believe and Behave. We are called to create a church with wide open doors where no one is ever alone in their sufferings... A community who welcomes Jesus' desire to share in our pain and challenges and to help us grow in discipline and trust in our loving God."
Fr. Mike Leclerc, 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time
"We all know it takes perseverance to run the race, and for sure we need Jesus as the pioneer and perfecter of our faith to lead the way. But we also know it is so much harder, lonelier, precarious, and the race seems so much longer when we go it alone. We need one another."
Fr. Lou Cerulli, 19th Sunday In Ordinary Time "God has entrusted us with the Gift of Faith and He doesn’t want us to keep it all to ourself. So, what are we gong to do with this Precious Gift?"
Fr. Lou Cerulli, 18th Sunday in Ordinary Time
"We make decisions all day long, very day, through the whole of our life. Ask the Lord for a grateful and generous heart and God will not disappoint..."
Dcn Marco Argentino, 17th Sunday In Ordinary Time "The Lord’s Prayer is much more than just a prayer of petition; it is also a statement of who we are and what we are – to God and to each other."
Fr. Lou, 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time
"What must I do to inherit eternal life? And Who is my neighbor? Reflections on these critical and inseparable questions and our own attitude of the world as well as our role as Catholics in the world."
Fr. Mike Leclerc, Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
"In modern times we can’t assume people will walk by our churches and care about what is going on inside, let alone want to come in. We need to be outside our churches engaging with the world. The methods we used in Christendom need to be re-thought because we do not live in a Christian world."
Fr. Michael Leclerc, What are you afraid of?
"But you know, it turns out it wasn't really material or practical things that were holding me back from entering the seminary; It was fear. For me, my brand of fear is the fear of failing. What if I try and fail, what then, what do I do then? What does it say about me? I don't do well with failure."
Father Kevin Burgess, The Most Holy Trinity
"God wants us to be part of His life forever. He is a God who delights in us, who cares for us, who invites us to share in His glory, and pours His love into our hearts – all because He is a Trinity of Persons"
Fr. Mike Leclerc, Pentecost Sunday
"The question I always get is why would I want to send people, including some of our best leaders, out from your parish, when everyone else is afraid of losing people? Why would you do this when churches across the board, of every denomination, have seen less than 75% of their congregations come back after the pandemic?"
Dcn. Marco Argentino, Seventh Sunday Of Easter
"He may not have claimed it or even fully know it, but behind every Guy, Guy, Guy…There was God, God, God! Just as behind every You! You! You! There is also God! God! God! Because God is love!"
Fr. Lou Cerulli, Sixth Sunday Of Easter
"An opportunity to invite the Spirit:
HOLY SPIRIT COME INTO MY HEART, HOLY SPIRIT COME INTO MY HEART, HOLY SPIRIT COME INTO MY HEART!"
Fr. Mike Leclerc, Fifth Sunday Of Easter
"Jesus says 'Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another'. But do we stop and think that his love for us meant that he was nailed to a Cross so that you and I could be reconciled to the Father. Are we able and willing to love one another to the point of putting the other first? Of doing what is best for them? Even someone we don't like?"
Fr. Mike Leclerc, Fourth Sunday Of Easter
"So first of all let me ask you, if no one else has asked you in a while. “How are you? How is your day?” Let’s take a moment and please think how would you answer that question, if someone like me, someone who really wanted to know, really cared, asked you that and you took the time to answer honestly"
Fr. Mike Leclerc, Third Sunday Of Easter
"That's it... Fishing and tending sheep... That's what Church HAS to be about. And yet time and time again we neglect one and avoid the other."
Fr. Mike Leclerc, Divine Mercy Sunday
"The disciples seeing Jesus, seeing that it was really him changes everything. And yet it isn’t his divine nature that does it for them, what does Jesus do when he sees them? He shows them his wounds. Those wounds aren’t godly, they aren’t divine, they are the wounds suffered by a profoundly human act of killing a man for no reason."
Fr. Mike Leclerc, Easter Sunday
"I know we have Mary Magdalenes here, apostles to the apostles here. Men and women who know what it is to come alive again through Christ, who have hope and see a great future, who know that if it can happen to them it can happen to anyone, heck it can even happen to an entire parish."
Deacon Marco Argentino, Good Friday
"We had gone astray, and that the world had turned into a terrible place, and yet God hoped, Our Father in heaven, His last hope was that Jesus himself would come. So, God himself in the person of Jesus became man and dwelt amongst us just like we are."
Fr. Mike Leclerc, Holy Thursday
St. Paul, more than just about anyone, imitated Jesus in his servant leadership and raised up countless men and women who themselves would become imitators of Christ, who would become prophetic voices, wonderful evangelizers, great organizers, captivating teachers, generous donors, amazing healers, and who would demonstrate great servant leadership themselves.
Dcn. Marco Argentino, Fifth Sunday Of Lent
"Jesus came not to condemn but to save, to rehabilitate, to give new and enduring life. Jesus always leaves a door open. Therefore, I can say that God has a very bad memory, because when we come before Jesus as the Sacrament of God among us, with a repenting heart there is no more memory of it."
Fr. Mike Leclerc, Third Sunday Of Lent "We’re conditioned to think that our lives revolve around these great big moments. But truly great moments often catch us by surprise, they come wrapped in what others may consider small moments."
Fr. Mike Leclerc, Second Sunday Of Lent
"God is bearing all the responsibility for this covenant, even though he knows we will be the ones to break it. That is an act of complete and total self-giving done for one reason and one reason alone, because God loved Abraham, and God loves all of Abraham’s descendants."
Fr. Mike Leclerc, First Sunday Of Lent
"I hope and pray that this Lent, this time of preparation for the great feast of Easter, when Jesus came out of the tomb, can be a time of preparing for coming out of the tombs we’ve too often been in over the past two years. The isolation we’ve too often felt, in order to reconnect with the Lord, with one another, and become fully the Church, the people of God, gathered together spiritually and physically to gratefully offer praise and worship to the Lord who saves us by his Cross"
Fr. Lou Cerulli, 8th Sunday of Ordinary Time "The good we do is done NOT for our reward but because it's Right, Loving and Just."
Dcn. Marco Argentino, 7th Sunday of Ordinary Time
"God loves us beyond our expectations, beyond anything we can possibly imagine. And in response to God's love, we are to love as God loves, beyond expectations and with a depth beyond imagining. And with the great power of the love of God."
Fr. Mike Leclerc, 6th Sunday of Ordinary Time
"Jeremiah said that in a time of drought those who trust in the Lord will still bear fruit. I am so so proud of our parish, of all of you who have trusted in the Lord, renewed that trust, or like me, are learning to trust him more and more each day. That trust allows us to grow and bear fruit, personally, and as a parish."
Fr. Mike Leclerc, 5th Sunday of Ordinary Time
"Whenever we are asked to step out of our comfort zones, to stretch ourselves or grow as disciples, as leaders, as Christians, we often get those feelings of inadequacy. In your role as a parent, maybe you felt it the first time you held your newborn daughter in your arms and realized that God was entrusting this precious little life to you."
Fr. Mike Leclerc, 4th Sunday of Ordinary Time "It takes humility and courage to change. God is working. Jesus is still saying ‘this Scripture is being fulfilled in your midst.’ He is still transforming lives, filling people with his Holy Spirit, and wants to transform each of us, maybe even through those men and women, boys and girls whose lives are transformed themselves. Do we have the humility to recognize it, to acknowledge our need for it? And do we have the courage to change?"
Fr. Mike Leclerc, 3rd Sunday of Ordinary Time
"Your yes to our mission is crucial, because our mission is crucial. Our mission is to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ to those who don’t know that anyone can truly love them, those who cannot see him at work in their lives. When we align our mission as a church, as the Body of Christ, with the mission of Jesus, the Head of the Body, well… then we start to get healthy again."
Fr. Mike Leclerc, 2nd Sunday of Ordinary Time "What virtue do you see in your world today? Where has God been at work in your life in the midst of this 5th or 25th wave of the pandemic? Have you been able to be a source of God’s creative and redemptive work in the world? Is there something in all of this that gives you profound joy - not fleeting pleasure - but real joy?"
Fr. Lou Cerulli, The Baptism Of The Lord
"Living the Grace and Power of Baptism every day."
Dcn. Marco Argentino, The Epiphany of the Lord "There is an old Christmas card that declares...Wise men still seek Him. Are we wise? Do we seek Him? Or do we have all the answers in our technological pockets?"
Fr. Lou Cerulli, Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph
Life is not always fair. Our experiences of love and family can bring joy to the heart or pain to our wound. However, we are all members of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph, members of a parish family, or prayer group family, the global family. Isaiah 43 : 4 “You are precious in my eyes and glorious, and I love you”.
Dcn. Marco Argentino, Fourth Sunday Of Advent "These two women will impact the world, not all on their own, but by the impact they will have on the two important characters which are the unseen children, Jesus, and John. And it is through their mothers that they are first brought together"
Fr. Mike Leclerc, Third Sunday Of Advent
“An old grandfather told a story: Inside every person, are two wolves who struggle against each other. Which one will win?… When facing many challenges and opposing decisions, we are called to start by feeding the wolf of peace, love and kindness instead of feeding the one of fear, greed, and hatred”
Fr. Lou Cerulli, Second Sunday of Advent
"Let's not miss the grace that is happening right now."
Fr. Mike Leclerc, First Sunday of Advent
Just as snow brightens over the dark dirty ground and the dead leaves on the street, and brightens up the world when it's at its darkest point, so we are called to transform the dark into something that truly reflects the light of Christ to brighten up the world.