Sunday Sermon: Recent Episodes

Vatican In Exile

WARNING! You may hear Sunday Sermons, that could cause permanent life changes by stepping on your toes! Including Sunday Sermons from Saint Alphonsus, Saint John Vianney and others!...

There are things we go through that need the help of other people. This means that in relationships, we find weight bearers to help us carry what we could not and cannot carry by ourselves. God makes it that way so that we can’t do Christianity by ourselves.

If we walk in the Spirit, the world should know us by our walk. The apostle Paul said walking is a weapon. It’s how we fight. When we walk by the Spirit, we will not carry out the desires of the flesh.

In our Gospel reading for today we read about an amazing miracle and then an even more amazing response. Someone got more than what they asked for.

In one of his sermons, Martin Luther King Jr. said, “I imagine that the first question which the priest and the Levite asked was: ‘If I stop to help this man, what will happen to me?’ But by the very nature of his concern, the Good Samaritan reversed the question: ‘If I do not stop to help this man, what will happen to him?’”

So at the beginning of Acts, with the creation of the early church, Jesus was equipping them with something for the worst times Christianity would face. He was also equipping them with something for the worst times Christianity would face. He was also equipping us. How does God get his people ready for this type of environment?

“Whence shall we buy bread?” (St. John 6:5) Focus on God. Be Thankful for all His blessings. Look for Him to come again in all His glory and majesty.

Man's greatest honor and privilege is to do the will of God. This was what the Lord Jesus taught His disciples. But how can you know what His will is?

How can we beg God to forgive us and then turn around and refuse to forgive those who have wronged us? How can we expect God to be compassionate with us, but not show compassion to those around us?

The true citizen of Heaven not only has his home in Heaven, but his heart is there as well. Not only does he look forward to dwelling there hereafter, but even now he seeks to be holy and heavenly in life and character.

Has God begun a good work in your life? Do you feel incomplete and unfinished? Fear not. God will complete his work in you if you will only submit to the construction that He is doing with in you.

We are told in Revelation 14, that there were 144,000 people who sang a new song before the throne. Revelation 14:3 tells us "no one else could learn that song except these people, and they learned it while they were on Earth". What is this new song that these 144,000 people were singing?

Only God knows how much time each of us has on this earth to make decisions that will impact eternity. When God says we should be “redeeming the time,” He wants us to live in constant awareness of that ticking clock and make the most of the time we have.

“It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord”. (Psalm 92:1) Some of us only go to God in prayer when we need something. Do we at least thank God for our blessings? Never fail to thank God every single day for all the blessings He bestows on us.

If Satan is a liar, he seeks to transmit that nature to his children. And it is very easy for a believer to be infected with that as well. Whenever you tell a lie, you are offering yourself to Satan to father one more child.

People today tend to only believe in a distant God. One who is remote from them and not involved in their lives at all. But Luke shows God has come close to humanity. God stands among them directly involved.

The only two things Jesus ever told us to learn from Him were humility and gentleness. Why? Because as the children of Adam, we are all proud and hard. If you want to demonstrate a heavenly life on earth, it is not going to be demonstrated first by evangelism, preaching, catechizing, or social work. It is going to be demonstrated by an attitude of humility and gentleness first of all.

Paul writes to the Ephesians from prison. He writes to them about boldness and courage and confidence and glory. And as he writes about all these things, he wants them to see his hardships in a whole new light. What he writes will help us to do the same: to lift our eyes, and to see our own circumstances in the light of the gospel of Christ.

Do we only go to God when we need Him and then go our merry way when we get what we want? Do we thank Him?

Today I want to consider a woman we meet in our Gospel readings for today. She doesn’t have a name but we know she was a widow from Nain (A village located 14 kilometers south of Nazareth) whose only son had died. Death had taken away her only source of hope, strength as well as protection. There was nothing she could do about it but weep bitterly. But then something unexpected happened. A stranger she met, told her not to weep. The rest is history.

“And who is my neighbour? (St. Luke 10:29). Our Blessed Lord tells the Parable of the Good Samaritan”

If you have turned away from sin and are following Jesus as Lord in complete obedience, his will for you is that you not be anxious about anything, but that you enjoy deep serenity and peace and security. Jesus spoke these words in Matthew 6:24–34 precisely for you — to help you overcome whatever is making you anxious.

Our Epistle readings today deal with the question of the place of the Law of Moses in our spiritual walk as Christians.

The Christian is justified in the words, "By the grace of God I am what I am." From first to last it is throughout the work of Gods grace that makes you what you are. See that you "receive not the grace of God in vain."

“Faith and works should travel side-by-side, step answering to step, like the legs of men walking. First faith, and then works; and then faith again, and then works again -- until they can scarcely distinguish which is the one and which is the other.”

Our Blessed Lord wept bitterly as He came into view of Jerusalem. He wept bitterly knowing that so many souls would choose to follow the world and it’s promises instead of following Him.

It should be said that this testimony of Christ, “He has done all things well,” should be reflected in our own life — everything we do should be good, everything we currently are doing should be good, and everything we will do should be good.

What does the Church teach about the assumption of Mary? Let us begin by considering a few key points.

Most people do not think of worry as sin. They look at it as something natural, as something that is part of being human. They look at it as something that is legit, giving the circumstances that they are facing. Yet the Lord three times, in Matthew 6:25-34, gives a command not to worry and he couples the command with this statement. “Oh, you of little faith.”

There is a natural longing in the human heart for peace, friendship, love and happiness – for a life that is purposeful and worthwhile. And there is an even deeper longing, sometimes quiet or hidden. This longing is to discover the ultimate meaning of life, to know the love of God, and to share in a destiny beyond the horizon of death.

Every person in the world is a servant. One may live in a free country with freedom of speech and liberty to pursue happiness. But the fact is, every person is a servant. This servitude is not a political or economic servitude. This servitude is a spiritual bondage, either to sin or to Jesus Christ. No one is free to live however they choose to live. All live in servitude to one of two masters, either to sin or to the Savior.

You may find it easier to believe that God cares for someone else, but you? You know yourself. You know what sin you struggle with. You know how selfish you are. You know about your own personal rebellion and doubts toward God. Because we struggle with believing God really does care about us, He has to tell us and show us over and over again how much He cares. The great thing about God is, He doesn’t get tired of expressing His love toward you every day and in many ways.....

Not being able to find something that you are looking for can be one of the most frustrating things in life.

Romans 8:18 "For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us."

Colossians 1:24: "Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ's sufferings for the sake of his body, that is, the church,"

The same Christ who suffered on earth dwells in us now and He wants to take us through the same sufferings He went through, but now in our body.

The prodigal son made several choices which we often mistakenly roll into one. After reading the story carefully I realize that each decision was specific in and of itself. Let me share with you the choices he made.....

“That we should believe on the Name of His Son Jesus Christ” (I St. John 3:23) St John tells us that we should not be amazed that the world hates us. We should not be amazed because even Our Blessed Saviour stated that the world hated Him. We are commanded to love one another as difficult as that is at times.

“He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him (St. John 6:56) Giving gifts to loved ones is a wonderful thing but the best gift we can give to others is when we give the gift of our self. Our Lord gives of Himself to nourish us, sustain us, feed us.

Malachi 2:2 “I will curse your blessings, yea I will curse them” Has the blessings that God has given you become a curse to you?

As we live life on a daily basis we play different "roles" based on what we are doing at that particular moment. But when it comes to being a Christian, our life can not be "chopped up into sections," so to speak. In other words, we can not say that we are a Christian when we go to church but not a Christian when we are at home.

Waiting is hard, but when waiting involves the things of God, waiting is essential. Empowerment is in the waiting! Not waiting on God is disastrous!

Take every Word of God, Whether the spoken or the written Word of God seriously and mourn over your sin whenever you come short of God's standards.

“Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, and slow to wrath.” (St. James 1:19) St. James tells us to focus on God. He tells us to focus on doing the work of God. He tells us to be "the doers of the word, and not hearers only." (St. James 1:22)

On the hill of Calvary, in the hour when Jesus was crucified, two thieves, condemned with Him, hung on either side with Jesus in the middle. For the hour of their suffering they were thus separated, if only physically, by the cross of Jesus. In the outcome they were eternally separated, one to perdition and the other to be with Him for ever. This is a picture of what the cross of Jesus always does.

“He that hath the Son hath life.” (I John, Chapter Five) Sometimes life seems to overwhelm us with burdens and trials and difficulties. And yet it is Christ Who gives us victory over the world.

“I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” (Romans 8:18)

Strangers and pilgrims are descriptors of Christians because we are citizens of a kingdom, not of this world.

This is the feast day of Saint Joseph the Worker, and I thought it would be a good time for us to focus on the issue of work and labor as God has described or portrayed it for us in the Scriptures.

When a person who rejects Christ gift of salvation, takes that last breath and the heart stops beating, there is no delay in going to their eternal abode. Where would you go if you were to die this very moment?

We are to be like God, we have to allow Christ to remake us in His own image. And that image, Father Todd reminds us today, is the image of love. “As the Father hath loved Me, so I have loved you; continue ye in My love.” (St. John 15:9)

Palm Sunday, April 10th, 2022 "Ye have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you." (St. John 15:16) We make choices constantly, on a daily basis. As Christians, we are called to choose God over the world.

But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son....

In the Lords prayer the very first request is, "Hallowed be Thy Name." This was the primary longing in the heart of the Lord Jesus. He prayed "Father, glorify Thy Name," and chose the way of the Cross since that was to the Father's glory.

Every new year brings with it new opportunities, new beginnings. In Christ and His grace, we can find this same newness at any moment of our lives.

How often do we do something really stupid and then we say out loud to ourselves: "Why did I do that?"

"For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by a slave woman and one by a free woman. But the son of the slave was born according to the flesh, while the son of the free woman was born through promise."

The Wise Men brought gifts unto the Christ child: Gold, as befits the King; Frankincense, as befits the Eternal High Priest; and myrrh, as befits the Divine Victim.

Each of us should follow the example of St. John the Baptist by preparing the way for the Lord. We do this by introducing others around us to Jesus. How do we introduce others to Our Blessed Saviour?

On the Sunday before the Nativity, we call to mind the ancestors of Christ from the time of Abraham until the advent of our Lord. Just as these forbears prepared the way of the Lord, so also are we called to prepare His way into our hearts.

Today, Satan cannot attack the Risen Christ. His attacks are therefore directed at Christ's Body, the Church. Victory over Satan is possible only as we stand united against him, as a Body under the Headship of our Lord and His true Vicar, His representative here on earth.

In our day, so many find themselves feeling as if they have no connection with anyone: family, friends, neighbors. It is a source of lasting sadness. In the Gospel we hear the invitation of the Lord that we be members of His family through grace, and that we fill His house with charity and joy.

“And when they found him not, they turned back again to Jerusalem, seeking him” (St. Luke 2:45) We seek after the things which we desire. We seek after the things which are important to us. We seek after the things we need. We should desire God and seek after Him for He seeks after us.

Surely one of the great stories of Christmas is the story of the visit of the Wise Men from the East to the Home of the Holy Family where they found Jesus. My question to you is...What if the Magi showed up at your house, what would they fine?

We prepare ourselves for the memorial of our Lord's Nativity that we may hear His invitation to us. Let us not become distracted by even good things, lest we miss the call of our Lord to that which is best.

Feast of St. Stephen, Deacon and Martyr, December 26th, 2021 “But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up steadfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God”. (Acts 7:55)

In the Twenty-Third Chapter of the Old Testament Book of the Prophet Jeremiah, we hear the following: "BEHOLD, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth" (Jeremiah 23:5) We should take comfort in these words because we are assured that God will take care of His people....

Our Lord shocks the pharisees by healing on the Sabbath! In one instance, we see our Lord on the Sabbath in the Synagogue, healing a woman who had been patiently suffering a spirit of infirmity for eighteen years. Let us take a lesson from the woman who had been healed on how to bear infirmities with grace.

Christians are not to judge other Christians. And Christians are to judge other Christians. That’s what the Scriptures teaches. In fact, the apostle Paul says both things in the same letter. In our Epistle readings for today he says:

"Therefore do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart. Then each one will receive his commendation from God." (1 Corinthians 4:5)

Just a few paragraphs later Saint Paul says, To judge other Christians. "For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge?" (1 Corinthians 5:12)

Is Paul contradicting himself? ...

If there’s anyone who ought to be filled with great joy and spreading joy throughout the world, it’s those of us who are Christians. Because we have more reason to be joyful than anybody else on the face of this earth. That’s why Paul was able to say in our epistles readings today, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again, I say, rejoice.”

Let me start by saying that what we believe, concerning the Immaculate Conception is in both Sacred Scripture (the Bible) and in Sacred Tradition (the teaching of the apostles handed on by the Church). The Immaculate Conception of Our Lady is a dogma of our faith which is in Sacred Tradition although not explicit in the Bible but implicit. There are hints of the Immaculate Conception of Our Lady in the Bible.

We are now in the second week of Advent. And as we prepare for the coming of our Lord Jesus, I think about the meaning of Christmas. There are many words that come to mind. Words like peace on earth, good will toward men. Words like the love of God, and good news of great joy. We think of a babe in a manger and traveling wise men and shepherds keeping watch by night. We think of a Savior sent to save us from our sin.

I want to suggest one more word to associate with the meaning of Christmas. The word, scandal.

Our Lord tells a parable of a rich man who was blessed with such an abundance of crops that his barns were overflowing. Instead of giving of his bounty, the man ordered his barns to be torn down and even larger ones to be built. Little did the man know that he would not see a time to enjoy his riches.

Very often we learn about God from other people: our parents; our grandparents; etc. As children, our parents perhaps take us to church...As we grow, we still are influenced by what we hear and see about God coming from others around us, but as we grow spiritually, we need to experience our own "faith" in God.

Last Sunday After Pentecost: Jesus Is Coming Again!

Jesus came into this world when people weren’t ready for him. And Jesus said the same thing would be true of his second coming as well...

“Blessed are they who hear the word of God and keep it.” St. Luke 11: 28. Indeed, blessed are they who hear the Word of God in sermons, and keep it in their hearts and act and live according to it! Blessed are they who learn, know and fulfill the law and the holy will of God. And may we not add: Blessed are they who hear the word of their neighbor, and keep it? They who hear secrets and do not divulge them? For on silence in these matters a great deal depends, and the neglect of it occasions much evil and mischief. But how few are there, even amongst Christians, who deserve to be called blessed on that account! How many talkative people there are who commit even grievous sin by revealing secrets! And of those who unnecessarily reveal secrets I intend to speak to-day, by asking and answering three questions...

If we're going to properly have work of faith, labour of charity, and an enduring, steadfast, hope, then we need to be, in the words of Saint Paul to the Ephesians, imitators of God, who is our perfect example. We're not called to be super-human. We're called to be followers of God or imitators of God, as beloved children

We are to love our neighbor as ourselves. In the well-known parable of the Good Samaritan, our Lord brings forth the truth that we know our neighbor through the showing of mercy, and we are known as neighbor by this same showing of mercy.

Let us put into action the Lord's injunction: "Go and do thou likewise!"

We are human beings and we have to focus on the "here and now" of this life, we also have to take care of our other citizenship as Christians.

When other people fail, when other people mess up, we have a choice to make. How are we going to react to their failure? Are we going to get insulted and offended? Are we going to write them off and have nothing to do with them? Or, are we going to “Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy, and beloved,... patience”

In the Gospel, while our Lord was on the way to raise the young daughter of Jairus, a woman with a chronic issue of blood sought to touch the hem of His garment, believing thereby that she would be made whole. And so she was! By the faith of the woman did our Lord cure her, and by the faith of Jairus did our Lord raise his young daughter. Do we have the faith we need that the Lord may make us whole?

It is appointed for all men once to die; the one goes first, and the other follows, into a long eternity. My daughter died yesterday; my son is buried to day; my father, mother, brother, sister, husband, wife, friend, is dead! And what then?

In the Eighteenth Chapter of St. John’s Gospel, we hear Pilate asking Our Blessed Saviour the question: “Art Thou a king?” Whether we admit it not, someone or something rules our life. As Christians we should be able to say that Christ is indeed a king! He is the ruler of my life!

Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints." This brings before us an aspect of death which is rarely considered by believers. It gives us what may be termed the Godward side of the subject. Only too often, we contemplate death, like most other things, from our side. The text tells us that from the viewpoint of Heaven the death of a saint is neither hideous nor horrible, tragic or terrible, but "precious." This raises the question, Why is the death of His people precious in the sight of the Lord?

Body and soul and all that we have are the things that are God’s. We are literally composed of benefits, which we receive from his liberality every moment of our lives He has created us out of nothing and kept us in life by his almighty power. He has cleansed us in Baptism from the sin in which we were born, and has adopted us as his children. And when we, by, the sins we committed, treated God most contumeliously, and rejected that first grace, his mercy has again received us in the Sacrament of Penance to his favor and friendship. But what is most wonderful of all, he still continues to enrich us with countless benefits, as if we had never done the least thing to displease him. Body and soul, all we have are

God’s, everything we have is a benefit we receive from God. Countless are the benefits that God has bestowed upon us, especially that he has pardoned us our sins so often in the Sacrament of Penance and re-admitted us to his grace. Now I shall call your attention to the still more wonderful goodness that God shows after we have done penance and have been converted to him.

Someone said old age is when you’ve got it all together, but you can’t remember where you put it. There is the story in Joshua 14:6-14 that talks of a man named Caleb who was just getting started at age 85. Let’s talk about Him, as an old man who had it all together and knew where he put it.

Sooner or later, every Christian discovers that the Christian life is not a playground but a battleground...

That is a time when one requires help, when one is at the point of death. But it is also a time when great skill is required to help; and it is a certain sign that a disease is incurable when nothing but a miracle on the part of God can cure it. With reason, then, did the ruler, in to-day’s Gospel, beg of our Lord to come: “Lord, come down, before that my son dies;” there is no time for delay, because he has already begun to breathe his last. A malady of that kind is impurity, and it is an incurable and desperate malady, so that he who is infected with it has already begun to die an eternal death. For when it has once become deep-rooted it can hardly be cured, unless by a miracle of divine grace.

The reasons for memorization and considering Scripture in our heart it that there will come times in our life, when we cannot bring forth a good thought or even any thought. Something, though, will pop into your mind. And at this time, we want the right things popping into our mind.

We often bind up a person's occupation - or what they do - with who they are. This actually reveals a good insight on how what a person does is an external manifestation of that person's interior disposition.

As children of the Church, we look to our mother as she glorifies her Divine Spouse, our Lord Jesus Christ. In so doing, we are called to participate in this relationship and to catch a glimpse of the interior glory of the grace-filled soul.

“Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind”. (St. Matthew 22:34ff) Our Lord speaks to the Pharisees but it is a good reminder for all of God’s children that we are called to place God first in our life and love our neighbor as ourselves.

There’s a documented, psychological trait known as “enclothed cognition.” This principle says that our clothes shape our thoughts and our actions. The idea is that how you dress will affect how people perceive you and it will affect how you perceive yourself. That’s why soldiers in the military have to wear uniforms and it’s why judges wear black robes.

So, it’s interesting that, in our lesson this morning, Paul talks about what we need to wear as Christians. Because if the idea of “enclothed cognition” holds true in the secular realm, it’s even more true in the spiritual realm.

Clothes make the man — or the woman — who belongs to Jesus Christ. But I’m not talking about cloth-and-fabric clothing. I’m talking about how we have been clothed with Christ, how we have put on Christ’s righteousness and holiness and character. That’s what we need to be wearing on a daily basis. we’re going to talk about the need to take off our old clothes and put on some new clothes.

Our Lord enjoins us both to love one another and to love our enemies. In doing so, we fulfill the commandments of God and our hearts are fashioned after that of our Lord Himself, who is ever meek and humble of heart.

Irreverence in the church of God is an act of the greatest contempt toward God, which he, in his anger, punishes most severely.

St. Paul reminds us that we are each called to a vocation as followers of Christ. St. Paul reminds us that we are called to walk worthily of the vocation that God has put before us.

Eighteenth Sunday After Pentecost: Here's Your Sign

Jesus came into this world when people weren’t ready for him. And Jesus said the same thing would be true of his second coming as well. The point of all of this is that we need to be prepared, because Christ will return

Our Lord instructs all those who would follow Him, and He does so in diverse ways. When we hear the Gospel proclaimed, we hear instruction. When we pray in the silence of our hearts, there, too, is instruction.

In the Gospel of Saint Luke, we hear about a miraculous draught of fishes and we learn the importance of the blessing and command of God in the work which we do. We can also learn the relation of private instruction and revelation to that which is public by what the Evangelist was inspired not to say. Come along and let us all follow the Lord!

“He blasphemeth.” St. Matthew 9: 3

On other occasions, influenced by hatred and envy, the Jews had called him a disturber of the people, a drunkard, a sorcerer who drove out devils in the name of the devil, but all these accusations were as nothing compared to that of being a blasphemer—that is, one who assails the Almighty, who is worthy of infinite honor and glory, with curses and injurious expressions. I will take occasion from the Gospel of today to speak of this fearful sin, which is so common unfortunately, in order to inspire you with such a horror of this crime that you will be shocked at the very name of it.

Are we wasting our Lord's goods? We come to an attitude that this is my money, because I work so hard for it. But is it our money, or does it truly belong to another?

Our God is not some distant far-off, uncaring God Who could care less about how we feel . . . what we are going through . . . what we are enduring. Our God is a God full of compassion.

Our Lord tells us: "Behold! I stand at the door and knock!" Likewise, we are to be like our Lord, for He tells us: "Knock and it shall be opened unto you."

In seeking after the things of our Lord, we must never allow ourselves to become the victims of despondency, impatience, or even of injuries to our own pride. Rather, we must be ever more faithful and - above all - persistent in seeking those things which are good.

Let us take the Gospel's example of the Canaanite woman whose love for her daughter and whose faith in the Lord leads her to a holy persistence, even in the face of resistance and humiliation. Let us make her prayer our own: "Lord, help me!"

Seventeenth Sunday After Pentecost “Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” So let me ask you this morning — are you a good neighbor? — What if he meant for us to love the actual neighbors that live 30 to 40 feet from us?

This is the great law of Charity: “Thou shalt love thy neighbor;” these words teach us whom we are to love. “As thyself;” how and in what manner we are to love. This law, though well known by all, is understood by very few; for most people show by their conduct that they know little of what is meant by that law. There are many nowadays who ask with the lawyer: “And who is my neighbor?” So rare is the true love of one’s neighbor that people neither know nor care to know who their neighbor is; still less do they know what it means to love him as themselves. Since so much depends on the fulfillment of this law that without it it is impossible to love God, I shall endeavor to explain it today:

The most frequently used image of God and his people in the New Testament is the family relationship. Sometimes we are pictured as being “born again” into this family. Other times, we are pictured as being adopted into God’s family. And this image of the family is used to stress the close relationship we have with God, who is our Father, with the blessed Virgin Mary our mother and our close relationship with one another, as brothers and sisters in this family

We have heard about the Four H's of the spiritual life: Honesty, Humility, Help, and Hope.

Today we begin to learn about a "Fifth H": Heart.

A sure way to learn how to cultivate this "Fifth H" is to have recourse to the Blessed Theotokos, who so loved her Divine Son and who has been given to us by Him as a mother in grace. Let us hasten to have our hard hearts softened that they may be refashioned in the grace of God!

Dear Lord, I desire perfect charity. Please help me to fulfill my desire by the help of Thy grace, which I stand in need of. Remove from me all the obstacles I have placed between Thee and me. Help me to acquire all of the holy dispositions I need to come into complete union with Thy most holy will.

Why did Christ give back the young man to his mother, after having restored him to life? Did he still belong to his mother? No; once death has intervened, although one is restored to life by a miracle, all the bonds are loosed which during life connect men with each other, whether they arise from natural ties, or from mutual agreement. Thus, if today a husband dies, and tomorrow is restored to life again, his former marriage is annulled, and both husband and wife are freed from all obligations toward each other. Still, if a child restored to life should belong to any one, there is no doubt that it is to his mother. Therefore: “He gave him to his mother.” After this digression I return to the matter I have already spoken of. I have said and proved that it is indispensably necessary to make restitution in order to avoid eternal damnation, so that inability alone can excuse one from making it. But there is still one point, and that is the manner and circumstances of restitution.

Do we ever fail to thank God for all His blessings which He provides us? Do we only go to God when we need something but forget about Him when we get what we want?

I found that Thomas Aquinas and Saint Gregory the great make a distinction between pride and vainglory, with pride being the cause of vainglory. So what’s the difference between Pride and Vainglory?

"Many are called, but few are chosen." With these words our Lord charges us to rise to the challenge of His divine invitation. Just as in the parable of the wedding feast, today the King sends invitations with his servants to all the world. Do we make excuses so as not to respond? Or if we do respond, do we show disrespect to the good King by removing the wedding garment which He has provided us? Hear today of the great choice we have - the choice to be chosen!

Have you ever had the experience to look for for your glasses and you look and look and look and you can not find them anywhere? And then at some point you find them and it was on your head the whole time. I am sure that each of us have had that experience at one point or another.

“No man can serve two masters;” no one can serve God, and at the same time the devil, the flesh, or the world. This sermon will be profitable not only for sinners, to arouse them to repentance and amendment, but also for those who have already repented of and amended their wicked lives, to keep them from relapsing into sin, and also for the just and the innocent, to give them a greater knowledge of the malice of sin, and thus inspire them with a greater horror of it.

There’s no child of God that does not feel that conflict in his soul – the spirit against the flesh and the flesh against the spirit, but the Spirit always has its witness and always has its fruit.

St. Paul wanted to remind the Church at Corinth that if we have riches, it is because God provided those riches; if we have abilities or strengths or skills, it is only because God has provided each one of us with what we are good at; if we have a roof over our head and food on our table every day, it is because God provides.

Our Lord relates the parable of the vineyard put into the care of unjust husbandmen. These treat the servants and even the son of the master with contempt and put them to death. Don't we do same when we disdain the messengers of the Lord and even the Lord Himself, thinking ourselves masters when we are rather to be loyal stewards of the goods placed in our care?

Pius 12th instituted today's feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary for the whole Church, so as to obtain by her intercession, in his words, "peace among nations, freedom for the Church, the conversion of sinners, the love of purity and the practice of virtue"

There is no one found to return and give glory to God.” — St. Luke 17:18.

To return and give thanks for having been restored to health is certainly an obligation which the law of gratitude imposes on all men; but amongst ten there was found only one who fulfilled this law, as our Lord complains in to-day’s Gospel: “Were not ten made clean? And where are the nine?”

"My soul doth magnify the Lord." (Luke 1:46) Does our soul magnify the Lord? How do we magnify the Lord?

Our Lord instructs us today with a parable about a servant who is forgiven a very large debt by the king, but who then refuses to have patience with a fellow-servant over a very small debt owed to him. We are challenged both to bring ourselves before the King to make answer for the debt which we owe, and to be quick to show mercy to our brethren who owe us. We who are shown forgiveness by the King of all should be happy also to be bringers of forgiveness to each other.

"And when He was come near, He beheld the city, and wept over it, . . . " (St. Luke 19:41) St. Luke describes for us Our Lord's reaction as He travels towards Jerusalem. He describes a profound event for us. The tears of Our Blessed Saviour are indeed the tears of God.

“If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied” (1 Corinthians 15:19). The Assumption of Mary means nothing if Christ did not rise from the dead. It never could have happened.

There are not a few Christians whose souls would profit much if their bodily tongues were dumb and their bodily ears deaf, so many sins do they commit by their senses of speech and hearing. Would it not be better for certain talkative people to be altogether dumb than to injure or destroy their neighbor’s honor and good name by their wicked tongues? Would it not be better for those curious ears to be completely deaf than to listen with pleasure to backbiting, detraction and scandal? Certainly it would be much better, if it were God’s holy will, for some men to lose both tongue and ears than to lose their souls.

What does it mean to be deaf and dumb? Saint Gregory the Great says: “For our Lord, then, to put His Fingers into the deaf man's ears was by the gift of the Holy Ghost to enlighten his dark mind unto obedience.”

St. Luke describes the thoughts of the Prodigal son when he came to the realization of his situation: "I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee, and am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants." (St. Luke 15:19) First and foremost, it is us who have to first realize that we are in need of God and also that we are ready to seek God.

Even having been instruments in our Lord's miracles, today we see that the disciples are unable to cast out a demon on account of their unbelief. Further, our Lord informs us that such a demon as that which they were dealing with is not cast out but by prayer and fasting. Let us take that challenge to heart today - we are all of us called to be faithful and to keep our souls with prayer and fasting, so that through us our Lord may continue to work miracles and deliverance for His glory.

What cannot humble prayer obtain from God? A great, public, and notorious sinner gains more by simply striking his breast, and heaving a penitent sigh, with the few words, “O God, be merciful to me a sinner,” than the proud Pharisee with all his fasting, alms-deeds, and other good works. “I say to you,” such is the testimony our Lord gives on the matter, “this man went down into his house justified rather than the other.” Sinners, behold the true pattern of a penitent! You must imitate the public sinner, if you are really determined to get rid of the filth of your sins in the Sacrament of Penance and to return to God with your whole hearts.

All are called to study of the Sacred Sciences, especially of Sacred Scripture. Let us consider the conditions needed for Sacred Study to be fruitful.

One of the greatest deceptions that Satan has ever deceived believers with is this - making them believe that a man can continue to live for himself and still be saved and go to heaven in the end.

By seeking this life of ease, pleasure and entertainment we prepare ourselves to commit mortal sin. We have established a habit of setting aside God's Law in small things, so when the big test comes we are likely to also set aside God's Law and commit a mortal sin. Ecclesiasticus warns us: “he that contemneth small things, shall fall by little and little.”

Even rich people may be deceived and robbed, as happened to the rich man described in today’s

Gospel, who was so unjustly treated by his own steward, who not only robbed him of his goods, but also

tried to make an unjust profit out of his debtors. Therefore, money and riches are not able to make one

happy, because those who strive for wealth and riches find nothing in them but vanity.

When I speak to the young men that I work with in the juvenile prison where I work as a counselor, I very often emphasize to them to recognize the importance of people who have "unconditional love" for us. In other words, as I point out to them, most of the people that they would consider their "friends" basically only use them. Whereas someone who has unconditional love only wants the best for you.

We hear in the Gospel of our Lord feeding over five thousand people with just five loaves and two fishes. Not only were the multitudes all satisfied, but there were left over twelve full baskets of fragments. We witness the great miracle wrought by our Lord! But we are also challenged by Him to do as the Apostles did. Our Lord did not simply materialize food to feed the crowds like a showman might. No, our Lord took the little that the Apostles could offer, and blessing it, He made it into something more than sufficient to satisfy everyone. Let us never think that what we have to offer is too small or insignificant. When offered to the Lord, He can work miracles.

Let us first consider that there are two propositions concerning this question. The first is that the majority of Catholics are saved. The second is that the majority of adult Catholics are lost.

We must face the fact that many today are notoriously careless in their living. This attitude finds its way into the church. We still have most of our liberty, we have money, we live in comparative luxury. As a result, discipline has practically disappeared. What would a violin solo sound like if the strings on the musician’s instrument were all hanging loose, not stretched tight, not “disciplined“?

Those false prophets, who are dressed in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves, are like those detractors and calumniators who, with smiling countenances and every outward show of friendship, outrage Christian charity in their conversation and take away from their neighbor the best and most valuable thing that he has that is, his good name. Beware of those false people, those ravening wolves, and pay no attention to what they say. “By their fruits you shall know them.” You will find out what they are, by what they talk of; but you will be compelled almost to avoid society altogether, if you wish to keep away from those who malign their neighbor, so common is this vice, and so little do people generally make of it!

We preach far more by how we deal with our suffering than we ever can with our words."

I have a friend who said that when you get over 40 every morning when you wake up something hurts....

Our Lord both forgives the sins of a paralyitic man and then heals him of his paralysis, in the sight of all. The scribes, predictably, murmured against the Lord for daring to forgive sin, believing Him to be merely man and not also God. We, who are daily the witnesses of God's great workings, can also easily fall into the mindset of the scribes when we refuse to acknowledge the action and the grace which also surround us, and which can heal us of our physical and spiritual infirmities.

When we say we trust in someone's word, what does that mean? What does a person's word signify?

Many times prayer comes easy. We can recite the Lord's prayer with ease. We can take time to spend with God and good thoughts flow like a river. But then there are those times when we cannot have a thought. We have no good thoughts. We aren't even able to have a bad thought, we have nothing to bring to God.

The Bible teaches that our old self was crucified by God on the cross. We cannot crucify our old man. The old man (the mind that wants to sin) was crucified with Christ on the cross. It was God who did that. But there is something else that we have to crucify - our flesh (the storehouse of desires).

“Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.” (St. Luke 6:36)

We like to be so focused on other people's wrong-doing, if for no other reason, it takes the focus off of our wrong doing. If I focus on someone else and focus where they are wrong in their life, it means that I have less time to focus on what is wrong in my own life.

Our Lord delivers two men from demonic possession, allowing the demons to enter into a herd of swine. The swine swiftly run themselves into the sea and drown. Those who had kept the swine were understandably alarmed at this. But instead of rejoicing at the wondrous works of the Lord, the swineherds and the local populace besought the Lord to depart, as they feared they might lose even more material possessions after the manner of the swine.

How often do we cling to material things, and attempt to close out the presence of the Lord for fear that we might lose some trifle?

“Behold they have now been with me three days, and have nothing to eat.”— St. Mark 8: 2.

How these poor people put us Christians to shame! They followed Christ everywhere, over mountain and valley, in order to hear his doctrine and preaching, so that they forgot to eat and drink; for three whole days they remained with him, in spite of the hunger they suffered, until Christ, taking pity on them, relieved them by a miracle. How do we act, who profess to be followers of Christ? How often do we not depart from him and from the teaching of his Gospel for the sake of eating and drinking? Nay, how many are there who give up his friendship and the salvation of their souls, that they may eat what is forbidden at certain times, or else gratify their gluttony by excessive eating and drinking? And why do they act thus? What is the object of their eating and drinking? Is it not that they may be happy, that they may live long and enjoy themselves? Now, the very contrary of this follows on gluttony and immoderate eating and drinking, as I shall now show.

We have gotten the false notion that our bodies are our own, and yet they are not, and even the world knows this is part. And so, who actually owns are bodies?

I want to warn you...I want you to understand... that if you have not forgiven even one person anywhere in the world, no matter how long you may have considered yourself to be a "believer") that you will certainly not enter the kingdom of God.

When a centurion's servant lay sick and near death, the centurion sought out the Lord. Our Lord, moved with compassion, offered to go to the house of the centurion to heal the servant. The centurion moved with great humility and faith confessed his own unworthiness that the Lord even enter under his roof. He besought that the Lord simply "say the word," and the centurion was certain that by the simple word of the Lord that his servant would be healed. And so it came to pass: by the word of the Lord the servant was healed. The humble faith of the centurion is a challenge to us today: do we truly believe that our Lord can heal us by His divine word as well?

From the First Epistle of St. Peter we hear: ". . . for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble." (I St. Peter 5:5) Not only did St. Peter learn this truth from Holy Scripture but he learned it even more importantly by witnessing Our Blessed Saviour humble Himself in the service of those around Him.

“We have labored all the night, and have taken nothing.” – St. Luke 5: 5. No wonder that the fishermen brought their nets and boats to land in sheer vexation. Why should they give themselves further trouble? They had labored all the night and had taken nothing. They were tired of this useless toil. How many there are nowadays who also labor in vain!

Theologians speak of an act of the will, guiding the heart, soul and spirit, to do something. In this case, we make an Act in regard to one of the Theological Virtues, Faith, Hope or Charity, or an Act of Contrition, when repenting of our sins. This act is a decision to devote our self to this virtue and in doing so, we usually use words to express the intention of our heart.

Everybody who calls themselves a Christian has a story that includes pain and suffering. Behind each smiling face you will discover a tale of pain, difficulty, heartache, and many unanswered questions. Not that we aren’t happy–we are–or at least most of us are, but no one gets a free ride through life. Into each life some rain must fall. No one lives in the sunshine forever.

“And the Pharisees and Scribes murmured, saying: This man receiveth sinners. “— St. Luke 15: 2.

“Now the publicans and sinners drew near unto him to hear him.” Certainly their intention was a good one, and who could find fault with it? Christ receives sinners; he goes in search of them; he goes into their houses; he eats and drinks with them, so as to win their hearts and convert them to God. A most holy work, indeed, and who could have anything to say against it? And yet there were false and wicked tongues that spat out poison, murmured and complained, and cried down our Lord as a public sinner on account of that holy work.

Many confuse Conversion and repentance. Conversion is an event, whereas repentance is a way of life, a life of penance.

Our Lord also warns us: "But if thine eye be evil thy whole body shall be darksome. If then the light that is in thee, be darkness: the darkness itself how great shall it be!" If instead of turning our eyes towards Him Who is our ultimate good, by avarice we turn them towards the passing goods of this world, seeking after them inordinately, indeed serving them as if they were our masters, we invite darkness into all that we do, and we comport ourselves as if blinded.

God wants His "house" to be filled. He has invited each one of us to His supper and wants us to attend. And yet how often do we come up with excuses? How often do we respond in the negative to the God's request?

A little over a century ago a book was written, The Comparative Number of the Saved and the Lost. (1899 by Father Nicholas Walsh) It puts forth the proposition that the majority of mankind are saved. We must consider whether this view is true or false.

Our Lord began His very first sermon in Galilee with a call to repentance. He said: "The time is accomplished, and the Kingdom of God is at hand: repent, and believe the gospel." Repentance is the great means which can bring us closer to the Kingdom of God. Daily life in this fallen world is a struggle - but for the Christian it is a struggle that he or she never has to face alone. Through genuine abandonment and entrusting oneself unto our Lord God and Saviour Jesus Christ, one finds that the power of His grace can even make suffering sweet when embraced for His sake. Let us today embrace all the more the sweet yoke of Christ, and work in His grace.

“And they began all at once to make excuse.” St. Luke 14:18.

These must have been very ill bred and discourteous people who so rudely declined a friendly invitation to a magnificent banquet. Enraged at their conduct, the one who invited them (as the parable shows us), excluded them forever from his table. Do not the majority of Catholics, act in the same way towards their Lord and God? He invites them to His first Supper, in which He gives us His own Flesh and Blood as our food and drink; and yet, how many there are who make excuses, and despise that precious Banquet, by going but seldom to holy Communion! He invites us to the heavenly Marriage-feast, that we may share with them forever in all imaginable and unimaginable delights; but how many excuse themselves and refuse to come, because they prefer to indulge in forbidden pleasures, and glut themselves with the husks of swine! Daily, He invites sinners, to His grace and friendship. He calls upon them to be converted and do penance, and promises that He will forgive them everything, so that they may not be excluded from His heavenly marriage-feast; but how many there are who make excuses, and reject the proffered grace by constantly deferring repentance and conversion to some indefinite time, saying always, by way of answer to their long-suffering Lord: I will come, but not now: later on; I will do penance and be converted, but not immediately; at some other time! In view of this insulting and injurious treatment of our best Friend, let us consider, to day

I. The majesty and mercy of Him who invites the sinner to repentance; and

II. The insult and insults offered to God by the procrastinating sinner.

It has been a long, strange journey. It started some fifteen months ago and I thought it would never end, quite frankly. But it is finally over. We are allowed to finally gather together as God's family and celebrate Mass together in the little chapel we have called home for almost ten years. And I would dare say that it is fitting that we are allowed to gather together this week because this week we celebrate the Feast of Corpus Christi.

The greatest manifestation of God's power was not in creation but in the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus, when Satan was defeated. For it says in (Ephesians 1:19-20). “Having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know....what is the immeasurable greatness of Gods power toward us who believe, according to the working of His great might that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places.” The crucifixion of Jesus was the worst evil ever committed in man's history. It was also the very best thing that ever happened on this earth. If God is powerful enough to convert the worst event of history into the very best, then you can be certain that He will turn everything that happens in your life also into something glorious for you. “For we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose to be saints.” (Romans 8:28).

All the apostolic functions of the Church must begin in the name of the Blessed Trinity. All the Sacraments are administered in the name of the Blessed Trinity. The same name is invoked at the beginning of the Mass, and at the beginning of a sermon. All Christians make the sign ofthe Cross in this name when they pray. But how perverse the Christian world is in this respect nowadays! For once that we hear the name of God we hear that of the devil twenty, a hundred times. There are many Christians of whom we have good reason to believe that they begin and end all their actions in the name of the devil, so accustomed are they to make use of curses and imprecations. Yet they who are addicted to this habit bring forward all kinds of excuses in order to show that cursing is either harmless, or that, at all events, it is only a small fault; or that, through long continued habit, it is impossible to correct it.

Every Christian is called to be a saint - this is true! When thinking of the saints, our minds often turn to those who have been canonized by the Church and who inspire a special devotion among the faithful. But every member of the Church should be leading the life of sanctity, every member of the Church should be striving to be holy. It is in the daily struggle, the daily fighting of the good fight, that saints are made. It is in the victory of grace over our own fallen nature - the doing of the will of God as opposed to our own selfish will - that we find sanctification. It is in daily self-denial, picking up one's cross, and following the Lord Jesus Christ that the sinner is lifted up by Him Who draws all things to Himself.

A true, committed Christian needs to be just that . . . a true, committed Christian 24 hours a day, whether he/she is at church . . . or at home . . . or at work . . . or at the grocery . . . or even driving in traffic.

How Much Prayer Does It Take to Save a Soul?

"And the Lord answering, said to her: Martha, Martha, thou art careful, and art troubled about many things: But one thing is necessary...." (Luke 10:41-42)

So much does God, who is all-sufficient to Himself, love a poor mortal who loves him, that, not satisfied with dwelling in heaven and earth, He wishes to dwell in that man personally with his whole divine essence. “If any man, love Me,” He says, “he will keep my word, and we will come to him, and will make our abode with him,” that is, the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost will take up their dwelling within him. Just souls, children of God, rejoice and exult, that this great honor is yours! Oh! be most careful never to lose by mortal sin the great Guest, your God, who dwells in and with you.

Pentecost! It is a reminder and celebration of the great mystery of the Descent of the Holy Ghost upon the Blessed Virgin and the Apostles in the Cenacle at Sion. It is also a lesson of challenge for us: The Spirit of God is never given in vain. That same Spirit Who descended upon the Apostles at Pentecost also descends upon every Christian soul in the waters of Baptism. That same Spirit given to the Apostles so that they might forgive sins remains with those who have succeeded the Apostles in generations since, and sins are still being forgiven. That same Spirit challenges each and every one of us this day, this week, this year not to receive the grace of God in vain, but rather to bring forth fruits worthy of repentance.

Today we celebrate the Birthday of the Church. The promise has been fulfilled. The Holy Ghost has been poured out on the 120 or so apostles and disciples and Mary the Mother of Jesus. And the 120 or so apostles and disciples with Mary had been filled with the Holy Ghost. Let us think for a moment about why the Holy Ghost had been given?

We read in the Second Chapter of the Acts of the Apostles when the Holy Ghost came upon the Apostles while they were gathered together. We hear "And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, . . . ." When I read this, I wonder what exactly does a "sound from heaven" sound like?

Our Lord is ascended into heaven! This great mystery brings with it a mixture of joy and of sorrow to the Apostles. Joy that our Lord is seated at the right hand of the Father, but sorrow that the Lord has gone ahead, leaving them behind in this world. Our Lord had promised them, however, that He would not leave them orphans. The Holy Ghost would be sent to them in all power, and they would be witnesses unto the Lord even unto the uttermost regions of the world. In His power, His presence, and His essence our Lord truly remains with us forever. Today the Church remembers those successors of the Apostles, the Fathers of the Council of Nicea. Having received themselves the Apostolic faith, these saintly men stood firm in the face of heresy and proclaimed to the world that faith which they had received. To this day we re-echo their declaration and hold fast to this same faith.

“And you shall give testimony, because you have been with Me from the beginning.” St. John 15: 27. All the consolation and joy of the Apostles was gone, when Jesus Christ, their only comfort, had vanished from their sight. They were standing on the mountain and looking towards heaven, just as one who wishes to accompany his departing friend a part of the way, nor did they take their eyes off him, as long as He remained in sight. This was their only remaining comfort, that at least they might continue to look at him, until the cloud, hid him from them. When God is excluded from the eyes of the mind and from the heart of man, there can be no true joy nor consolation.

“The end of all things is at hand” (I St. Peter 4:7)

God calls us to love one another and to share the gifts we have been given. The devil promotes nothing but hatred and division. Thus, he often uses the media and social media to cause division and hatred.

Here you have an unlimited permission to request whatever favor you desire with a full assurance of obtaining it. And yet there is nothing more common than to hear men complaining that their prayers seem to be of no avail. What is the cause of that? If ever our hearts and desires are in contradiction with the words we utter, they are so very often when we pray; for we are not always earnest in our prayers, nor do we really wish to be heard; in fact, we desire the very contrary of what we ask for. This is the case especially when we ask for heavenly graces and spiritual blessings, which ought to be the chief object of our prayers.

"One thing I know: that whereas I was blind, now I see." With these words, the man who had been healed by the Lord of his blindness gives testimony before the unbelieving Pharisees of this great miracle of healing. Just as the Pharisees wished to find fault in the healing of the blind man, so often we, too, may be tempted to find fault in the workings of God's grace. We grow impatient in our own spiritual life, and we become envious of the goods that have been bestowed upon others. Today our Lord teaches us to rejoice in all good things, and never to give up patience, that the works of God may be made manifest in us, too.

Our Blessed Savior pointed out to the disciples, we are never truly alone even when we are physically alone because God is always with us.

The Gebirah meaning meaning "Great Lady" or "Queen Mother", was clearly the most important woman in the Kingdom of Judah; a king had many wives, but only one mother. The Gebirah of the eternal Davidic Kingdom of Jesus Christ is Mary of Nazareth. Upon her Assumption into heaven Her Son placed her in her well deserved place beside His throne as mother of the King of kings.

“And when he is come he will convince the world of sin.” —St. John 16: 8. The sin of which the Holy Ghost will convince the world is the want of faith in Jesus Christ, who, in the Gospel of today, expressly says: “Of sin, because they believe not in me.” Yet this conviction will be extended to each and every sin, for all sins are due to a want of lively faith, but especially to those sins which are committed against the Holy Ghost, the chief of which is despair on the part of the sinner. But if there is any despairing sinner in the world, it is certainly he who boasts of his sins. He is the most shameless of all sinners, whether he boasts by word, or by act. He is a hopeless sinner, too, as I shall now prove.

We know that God is pure simplicity, but do we know what simplicity really is?

A truly simple Catholic is a Catholic that has turned his body, life, heart and soul completely over to God and follows Him wherever He may lead us.

Our Lord offers living water to a Samaritan woman whom He meets at Jacob's well. This woman, though a Samaritan, had performed a corporal work of mercy unto the Lord, giving Him water to drink at His request. Regardless of her background, and regardless of her state of life, she was well disposed towards the grace and the word of the Lord when she encountered it.

May we, too, imperfect as we may be, today hear the word of the Lord and seek after the living water of His divine grace!

How sad and forlorn were the hearts of the disciples when their beloved Master said to them: “A little while, and you shall not see me.” Still, there was some consolation in store for them “A little while and you shall see me;” and then your sorrow shall be changed into joy; “your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man shall take from you.” Far more sorrowful is the state of those sinners to whom God can say, after confession: “A little while and you shall not see me!” For, in a little while, by relapsing into sin, they will drive the divine Guest out of their hearts, and lose his grace and friendship. Perseverance in good is the surest sign of a future resurrection with Christ to glory, and of his possession in heaven; hence, to avoid relapse into sin, and to encourage you to be constant in the divine service, I will now proceed to draw some considerations from that exhortation of the Holy Ghost addressed to us all by the Wise Man: “With all watchfulness keep thy heart, because life issueth out from it” (Prov. 4: 23). Therefore, O man, carefully guard your heart from all evil thoughts and desires, if you wish to continue in the grace of God and to rejoice with him in heaven.

The Gospel tells us of a man, suffering from paralysis, who had waited daily for thirty-eight years for the opportunity to be healed of his infirmity.

The Feast of St. Mark that we celebrate today is a reminder that the Gospel occurs in a human setting and condition. Mark, also known as “John Mark”, was at the center of tension between Paul and Barnabas and the differences were so severe that it led to a parting of way for the two.

And yet, St. Mark despite his less than stellar beginning in Church Leadership, and Barnabas, who seemed to start off as a mentor to Paul, was reconciled to St. Paul.

Have you ever received a gift and for whatever reason you just never used it? St. Paul makes the point that each and everyone of us is given grace. And each one of us is given various gifts which we are called to use...

The children of God dread nothing more than offending him by a mortal sin; the bare remembrance of their past sins makes them weep and lament. The children of the world have very little fear of sin; they commit it without the least scruple, for the sake of some miserable thing, and they rejoice about it afterwards, as the Holy Scripture says: “They are glad when they have done evil, and rejoice in the most wicked things” (Prov. 2: 14). Nay, there are some who go so far as to boast of their sins and exult in them. But He who rejoices at and boasts of his sins, is the most shameless sinner of all.

God’s faithful and generous people acknowledge that everything comes from, returns to, and belongs to God. Our job is to be faithful stewards of what we receive from Him.

Today we hear of the holy myrrh-bearing women who went to the tomb of our Lord that they might anoint His body. When they arrived, they were met by an angel who deputed them to tell the Lord's disciples and Peter that the Lord was, indeed, arisen from the dead! It was in going about their own practical devotion that these women became witnesses and messengers of the greatest miracle of all history - the Glorious Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. Thus it is for all who would follow Christ.

The “I Am” statement, concerning the good Shepherd in John, might best be understood as falling under, and echoing this claim of Jesus being the Good Shepherd. He is God, and He is the God of Israel. All the OT and God’s redemptive acts were pointing to the coming of Jesus as the God-in-flesh, the true and better Israel, and the fulfillment of all the OT types and shadows." So how does Jesus fulfill the OT picture or type of God as a Shepherd?

“I am the Good Shepherd, and know My sheep, and am known of Mine.” (St. John 10:14)

The Church calls to our minds the Precious and Life-giving Cross of our Lord.

Recall that our Lord tells those who would follow Him that they, too, must daily pick up their own crosses. In fact, our Lord instructs those who would follow Him with three instructions or conditions: They must deny themselves; they must take up their crosses; and they must actually follow Him.

Let us hear this challenge today from our Lord and let us make haste to put into action His words to us!

Saint Thomas Aquinas advises: “In order to avoid sin, pleasure must be shunned, not altogether, but so that it is not sought more than necessity requires.”

Let us remember that all of the penances in the world will not save us without true repentance for all of our sins.

Life is scary, sometimes, when we do not know what is coming. And yet we know that when we are afraid we should stand with Christ.

There are two practices, penance and mortification. The actions of both are the same, although the reason differs. Mortification is to help us stay away from sin as Saint. Paul said: "But I chastise my body, and bring it into subjection: lest perhaps, when I have preached to others, I myself should become a castaway." [1 Corinthians 9:27] Penance is for penitents, which we consider an act only penitents can do. Do any of us think of giving up sin?

“Jesus came and stood in the midst” (St. John 20: 19.)

Jesus stood in the midst of his Apostles, in the room in which they had shut themselves up for fear of the Jews, and in which they were talking of Christ. Jesus is never to be found in the company of those who, without fear or shame, place themselves in the danger of sin; because he who without necessity runs into such danger, will not long preserve the grace of God. There is a certain kind of company that seems to many not at all dangerous, although it is the most dangerous of all-that is, the company of young people of both sexes, who meet at night to amuse themselves; call it what you please, ball or party, or anything else; I call it, in plain language, a nightly promiscuous gathering of young people for the purpose of amusement. If what I have to say offends any of you, I hope you will forgive me; the danger that threatens your precious souls and the duty of my office force me to speak of this matter in order to satisfy my conscience. I do not envy or grudge you your enjoyments, but rather wish you from my heart all kinds of joy in abundance, provided there is no danger to your souls.

How quickly the novelty of a new Lenten season can wear off! But do not become discouraged by this, for Lent is a time for renewal, rather than novelty.

We hear today how our Lord healed the man sick of the palsy, and how the Lord did use this man's healing as a sign to all that the Lord had the power to forgive sins.

This forgiveness is the start of the great renewal that we all must seek within our souls, our lives, and our society. Hear how the Lord uses even that which seems insignificant to be a manifestation of His grace and power.

“Who shall roll us back the stone from the door of the sepulcher?” Mark 16:3.

The greater the desire of these holy women was to behold and anoint their dear Lord, the greater was their anxiety lest they should not be able to carry out their intention; for the entrance to the grave was closed by a huge stone; and therefore, they asked each other: Who shall roll us back the stone from the door of the sepulcher? Poor weak women (that they were), they had not the strength to do it; nevertheless, they went on their way, determined to do their best. In like manner, sinners are deterred from doing sincere penance, and being really reconciled to God. I say sincere penance, and real reconciliation; for the great mass of the ordinary annual confessions, enforced on bad Catholics at Easter, are mere shams and sacrileges. Most of such sinners are shut up in the grave of sin by a huge stone which they fear even to attempt to roll away. The inveterate habit of a certain vice, some unlawful intimacy, or proximate occasion of sin, which they do not wish to abandon this is the stone that lies across the door of their hearts and which they think it impossible to remove. “Who” (they irresolutely ask), “who shall roll us back the stone?” Who will free me at last from this occasion, this intimacy, this inveterate habit? Sinners! (I reply) God helps those who help themselves. But he wishes you to learn now by my lips:

When we think of penance and mortification, we think of fasting. Some even think of hair shirts. We think of giving things up in order to atone for our sins. However, let us remember that the publican, who prayed: "I fast twice in a week: I give tithes of all that I possess," was not justified.

How can penance and mortification have a positive side?

Do know the most common time people report that they worry? The most common time for worrying is between 9:00 p.m. and 3:00 a.m. It’s when the lights go out, activity ceases, you’re lying in bed, all those worries come flooding into your mind, and you just can’t seem to turn it off. God says all that worrying is in vain. It doesn’t accomplish anything. He wants to take those worries away and give you sleep.

Mary Magdalene, and Mary the Mother of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint Jesus. But they would soon be surprised to find that the stone had been rolled away. And this scared them, quite frankly.

Whether we want to admit it or not, we get scared. We especially get scared of the unknown. And yet we know that when we are afraid we should stand with Christ.

Our Lord did not call His disciples by a multimedia presentation and an in-depth business pitch. He went far, far beyond this. Our Lord both called His disciples and summed up the life of discipleship with just two words: Follow Me.

We hear in today's Gospel our Lord calling the Apostle Philip with those same words: Follow Me. He also says them to us. In those words we find not only an invitation to a deeper spiritual experience and journey this Lent, but we also find the very essence of the journey itself - that we do, and must, every day follow the Lord.

Hear today of our Lord's call to Philip and to all of us.

“Mary Magdalene, and Mary, the mother of James and Salome, bought sweet spices, that coming they might anoint Jesus.” St. Mark 16: 1.

How strange that no one but these three pious women resolved to show the last honors to our dead Saviour, Jesus Christ, and to anoint His sacred Body in the sepulcher. And yet there must have been many people in the city of Jerusalem on whom our Lord had conferred great benefits during His life. Did none of them go to the sepulcher? No; they had already forgotten His benefits; My words to day will be directed against ingratitude, of which most men are guilty toward God

Let me ask you a question? Is there an area in your life that has not been surrender to His will? When will you stop rebelling against God? How many times will you rebel before God says that's enough...no more....that was your last chance.

We find ourselves entering into the holiest week of the year . . . Holy Week . . . which begins with Palm Sunday. During Holy Week we witness a vast array of emotions ranging from sorrow and sadness. We witness rage and anger. We see both love and hatred coming from the crowds surrounding Our Blessed Saviour. And additionally before the week is over we are witness to amazement, disbelief and wonder at the rising from the dead of Our Blessed Saviour. But one emotion we are also witness to is "regret."

"All things are lawful to me, but all things are not expedient." With these words Saint Paul helps us as we prepare for the coming Lent.

It is not what we have, but what we do with what we have that is indicative of our place along the path of our spiritual life.

We hear in the parable of the Prodigal Son how a squandered inheritance leads to dissolution - but an awakening helps cast off the chains of slavery to the things of this world.

“Behold, thy King cometh to thee, meek.”— Matthew 21:5.

My dear Christians, as we have just learned from today’s Gospel, the Saviour celebrates today His triumphal entry into Jerusalem.

In the New Testament there are mentioned three kind of works. We have good works, evil works, and dead works. Good works are works that please God; evil works are works which are mentioned in Galatians 5:19-21, also known as the works of the flesh. What are dead works then?

Dead works are works that appear good externally but that spring from a corrupt motive or done for the wrong reason. Therefore they are like filthy rags in God's eyes.

We need to be persistent as faithful Christians. We need to be persistent . . . in our prayers . . . . in our faithfulness . . . in our character and morals. We need to be persistent with the way we live our lives as faithful Christians. The problem with us is that we want everything done right away. We want things done "five minutes ago." As humans, we are inpatient. And yet not everything is worked out right away. So often in real life problems are not fixed and taken care of in a half-hour or hour. And we are called to be like the Canaanite Woman and be persistent in our faithfulness.

To drink more than one’s health or income or reputation can bear, is folly, wickedness, and a shame! And yet it is an ordinary consequence of excessive drinking. Important as this consideration is, it would not matter much if the salvation of the soul and the law of God were not concerned also. For the worst of all the evil consequences of excessive drinking, which should be most effective to deter Christians from that vice, is, that most people drink more than is consistent with the salvation of their souls. But here some may be inclined to say, like our Lord in to-day’s Gospel, “which of you shall convince me of sin”? What nonsense to say that it is a sin to drink a drop too much now and then! So common has this vice become that it is no longer looked upon as sinful. My object now is to show how false and wrong that idea is.

God is always there. God is always around. God is always with us. And yet so often people will say that "God seems so far away." I would dare say that God speaks to us on a daily basis but so often we don't hear what He is saying to us. Why is this?

Our Lord speaks to us in the Gospel to remind us that if we would be forgiven of our sins, then we also must forgive each other. Only the forgiving heart can be forgiven.

This must be our fundamental thought: to cultivate a forgiving heart. Today as ever, the world encourages the heart to keep grudges, to remember past wrongs, to be unforgiving of anyone who would dare injure our pride.

This way leads to enslavement to wrong-doing, and is a path to spiritual and societal destruction. Let us open our hearts today to the grace of the Lord, so that we might learn the difficult but necessary lesson of how to be truly forgiving.

Our real life is not, like Ishmael's, simply owing to the work of man. Our real life is owing to the work of God in us through the Church and through Mary, fulfilling his promise to make for himself a people (Genesis 12:1–3) and to put his Spirit within them (Ezekiel 36:27) and write his law on their hearts (Jeremiah 31:33).

( Please excuse the quality of this podcast. There was some internet disruption when recording)

“When he had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterwards lie was hungry.”—Matthew: 4: 2.

To do penance, to deny one’s self, and to mortify the flesh is most necessary;

The Gospel of today reminds us of a special manner of doing penance, of which Jesus Christ, the Son of God, gives us an example: “When he had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterwards he was hungry.” The example of Jesus Christ is there to encourage all Christians to fast, abstain and endure hunger; and it is to that that the Catholic Church binds her children during this season under pain of sin, that they may imitate Christ to a certain extent.

Our Blessed Savior without hesitation turned down each and every one of these temptations despite His weakened condition from fasting for forty days.

How many of us are tempted by the devil? How many of us give in at the first sign of weakness?

Today the Church calls to our minds the Second Coming of our Lord and the Last Judgment. Of course, we proclaim every week our belief in the Lord Who "shall come again to judge the living and the dead." But how often do we reflect on the truths contained in those words?

What does Saint Paul mean when he says in our Epistle for today, “Be ye therefore followers of God, as most dear children”? The word “followers” means “mimic”, to be an “imitator.” The command is for God’s people to imitate Him. We are to learn all about God, and mimic His characteristics

“And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God.” Luke 18: 43. Christ, the Son of God, knew well what was to happen to him, in a short time in the city of Jerusalem, amongst the wicked Jews for he had foretold it to his disciples. Why, then, did he not remain away?

I Corinthians, Chapter Thirteen

“And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.”

St. Paul is pointing out that love needs to be the basis for why we do anything we do as a Christian. The cold reality is though, is that so much of what we do in life is done without love.

The life of grace is a life of balance. If our labors are not directed by charity and tempered by humility, they can actually cause us to stumble on our way.

Today the Lord speaks to us of a Pharisee and a Publican, both of whom went unto the Temple to pray. Hear how humility is the key to finding sanctification and justification.

When Our Blessed Saviour told the parable of the "Sower," He explained that the Sower sows his seed on various types of ground. Some of the seed went on rock, some of the seed went among thorns, some of the seed fell by the wayside, etc. The parable certainly makes sense for it shows that the seed will grow (or not grow, for that matter) depending on the soil it is planted in.

If there are any days in the year on which most men lead an idle, or rather an unchristian and sinful life, it is on these days of Shrovetide.—that is to say, the time that immediately precedes the Lenten fast; a time that, according to the vicious custom of the world, is supposed to begin almost on Christmas day, as far as revelry and dissipation are concerned.

Wednesday, February 17 is Ash Wednesday. I like to think of Lent as a time of Spiritual Spring cleaning. And with Septuagesima let us think about what we want to do, during Lent.

Hear today about Zacchaeus the tax-collector, and how he let nothing stand in the way of his effort to catch a glimpse of the Lord as He traveled through Jericho. Our Lord's presence brings about a remarkable and lasting transformation for Zacchaeus! The same can be done for all of us, even today.

“And Jesus also was invited, and his disciples to the wedding.” John 2: 2. Truly that was a happy marriage-feast, at which Jesus, the Son of God, and Mary, the Mother of Jesus, and the Apostles of our Lord appeared among the guests. Ah, Christians, would that all our social gatherings, conversations, meetings, entertainments and marriage-festivities were so arranged that we could invite Jesus without scruple to be present at them. But alas! How many there are in such assemblies who cannot hope to have Jesus as their friend and companion. I allude to the danger and occasion of sin.

Today when division seems to be around every corner. It is now when we need to remind ourselves that we belong to God. We are His children. We were chosen by Him to be His adopted sons and daughters. Our identity as humans beings is not based on what political party we belong to. It is not based on who we voted for in an election. Our unity is based on the fact that God loves us . . . God has chosen us . . . and Our Blessed Saviour died on the Cross to save us from our sins.

Do penance! For the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand! With these words Saint John the Baptist prepared the way of the Lord, and with these words our Lord begins His own public preaching.

Do we stop and thank God for all of His many blessings?

And how many things that come into our lives are blessings in disguise.?

The great feast of the Nativity comes upon us quickly! Just as we have been preparing our hearts now during the Nativity Fast for many weeks, so the world itself prepared from generation to generation for the coming of the Saviour.

With each passing generation, the Advent of the Lord approaches - sometimes seemingly imperceptibly... until that great day in which the Sun of Righteousness dawns!

So also, for us, with each passing day the great Feast approaches - are we making the preparations we should in order to meet the Newborn King?

Second Sunday after Christmas, January 3rd, 2021

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me.” (Isaiah 60:1)

Make this your motto for 2021! Live by these words this year! Remind yourselves each and every day that God is in charge and He is with us every step of the way!

Saint John wrote five books of the Bible, his Gospel, three Epistle and the Apocalypse at the end.

Many read the Apocalypse as a book of prophecy, which it is. However, when we read the Bible, let us look for spiritual advice. And this includes the prophetic books, because there is much spiritual advice there.

"A voice of one crying in the wilderness saying : The voice of one crying in the desert: Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the wilderness the paths of our God. Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall become straight, and the rough ways plain. And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh together shall see, that the mouth of the Lord hath spoken." (Isa.40:3-5). This message has an application for us. The Lord is coming back a second time. And just as John the Baptist prepared the people for His first coming, the church must prepare people for His second coming.

All of us are messengers. We all convey messages whether we realize it or not. But unlike us many times, Jesus' answer to Johns disciples were not just by his words, he answered them by his actions.

None of us can know where we will be in eighteen years. We can know, however, how we ought to face each day between now and then.

In the Gospel we hear of our Lord preaching in the synagogue, and calling to a woman who had suffered a spirit of infirmity for eighteen years. She could not even lift up her head for her illness. And yet she sought the Lord and His grace with resolve and dignity.

Our Lord heals her on the Sabbath, in the sight of all, even to the consternation of those who would hold that being healed on the Sabbath was against the law.

Let us take an example from the woman both in her infirmity and in her healing.

The First Commandment says, “You shall have no other gods but me.” Specifically, we must not attribute the efficacy of prayers or of sacramental signs to their mere external performance, apart from the interior dispositions that they demand ”

While it is wise to provide for the future, we ought always to do so according to the richness of God. For all that we have and all that we can offer is given to us by the rich mercies and bounties of Almighty God. Our first concern is that all the goods which are placed in our care are used in the manner desired by the Lord.

Hear today a short parable from the Lord about the rich man who sought to provide only for himself, forgetting the mercy of the Lord. We can avoid falling into the same trap by cultivating true thanksgiving in a joyful heart.

Heaven and Earth shall pass away but my Word shall not pass away- Luke 21:33

Third Sunday After Advent

We are all looking for an easy way to become a saint. If becoming a saint is easy, why aren't we all becoming saints?

“Behold, Thy King cometh unto thee” (St. Matthew, Chapter 21) Hear Jesus' own declaration of his kingship. Accept the amnesty that King Jesus holds out to you, and renounce your allegiance to self and success and money and family and physical pleasure and security – and whatever else rules you more than Jesus.

When we plant our gardens, we have successes and failures. Sometimes the ground wasn't prepared rightly. Other times, the weather just doesn't cooperate. And sometimes, we can do everything right, and the seeds just won't germinate. Such are the difficulties of gardening in our fallen world. But with the seed of God's Word, germination and fruiting are assured... as long as the ground is good! Hear today as our Lord challenges us all to be good ground for the reception of the seed of His Holy Word!

Jesus' advent as Judge shall be quite sudden and unexpected. And for what purpose? No longer to comfort and convert men, but to judge the wicked strictly and condemn them to the fire of hell. Oh, what a terrible coming! With reason does the Church sing: How men shall shudder at the coming of the Judge! And who is that Judge? This I shall partly explain today.

There is much speculation on just what the Mark of the Beast is. Some speculate we will be chipped, but that may not be the Mark of the Beast. This character, this mark, may actually be external, but that is not what we want to consider in this homily.

And immediately after the tribulation of those days, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light.”

Terrible are the signs of which today’s Gospel speaks as forerunners of the day of general judgment, the last day of the world. There shall he many such signs, some of which are to appear a long time beforehand, while others shall immediately precede the final catastrophe. Of the former class are those we have already known and experienced; such as the destruction of the Jewish nation: a people now without faith or king or commonwealth; the conversion of the heathens to the true religion, which has been already preached and accepted in all parts of the globe; the persecution of the Church by so many heretics as precursors of Antichrist; and besides these we have seen wars, famines, pestilences, earthquakes, the increase of wickedness and sin, men growing cold in the love of God, the want of reverence towards God in the churches and towards priests and spiritual superiors, and the fall of the Roman empire, which the Apostle St. Paul alludes to, according to Tertullian, St. Jerome, and St. Cyril. All these are signs of the approaching end of the world and the terrible day of judgment.

Advent is a little Lent. The world is now in the beginning of the holiday season, which will end at Christmas, where as Christians are in a time of preparation.

Jesus will come two times. He came at the first Christmas, and will come again at the end of the world. Advent is a time of preparation for both comings of Jesus,

Ours is an unbelieving age, and of such an age our Lord said that no sign would be given, save the sign of Jonah the Prophet.

And yet, the Gospel takes us along and makes us witnesses to the great miracles wrought by our Lord. Saint Luke recounts a special miracle, that of the resurrection of the young son of the widow of Naim. Our Lord, by His divine power, raises a man from the dead in the sight of all! All who witnessed it were astonished and gave glory to God.

We, too, are called this day to witness this miracle and to give glory to God. Even more, we are called to witness that God's miracles have not ceased - they continue to this day. We need only learn how we can see them.

The Sadducee's had tried to trap Jesus on the doctrine of the resurrection of the dead. Now the Pharisees try one last time to trap Jesus. They ask Jesus what the great commandment of the Law was. Jesus then turns the table of the questioners. He asked the Pharisees about their belief in the Messiah.

All whatsoever you do in word or in work, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, giving thanks to God and the Father by him. (Colossians 3:17)

On Thursday we celebrate the Feast of Thanksgiving. Let us consider all of the things we have to thank God for. Let us begin today to count our blessings, and we have all been blessed so much. In fact, we have much more to thank God for this year, than we did a year ago.

Would that all fathers and mothers had as great a care and interest in the eternal life of the souls of their children as most parents nowadays have for their children’s temporal welfare; if that were the case, many children would be better brought up and would save their souls!

We should often remember those who have gone before us, who fought the good fight, who kept the faith. It is through such selfless struggle and occupation with the things of heaven that enlightened their earthly life, and which has kept the light of faith burning down to our own day.

We are no less called, each of us, to do the same. We must daily pick up our own crosses and follow Him Who is the Author of the faith. His Immaculate Bride, the Church, is given to us to guide us and to teach us how to give glory every day. Hear today how we can be dutiful sons and daughters of the Church, begotten in grace.

Jesus was eating in the home of one of the leaders of the Pharisees on the Sabbath. He watched as these proud men picked out the places of honor for themselves at the table. Then He delivered a pointed message about humility, which must have humiliated the guests (14:7-11). Finally, as if the tension were not great enough already, the Lord told the host that he had invited the wrong guests! He said, “You should have invited the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind instead of all these friends, relatives, and rich neighbors who can return the favor” (14:12-14)! At this point you could have sliced the atmosphere with a knife!...

Those who find fault are friendly to the face of others, but fond of prying into the lives of others; without sufficient grounds they respect and condemn their neighbor. They are fond of speaking of the faults and failings of others, and therefore, by thus interfering with the affairs of others, they act against themselves and the love of God.

This time of year we honor those unsung heroes who have obtained eternal happiness by quietly doing their duty to God and man here on earth. We do not know many of their names, because they silently went about doing good. Let us consider and imitate their virtues. What sets them apart from the rest of men and women?

In this day of chaos, we must understand that Christ the King is in the midst of it all. He is in control. So in all of the turmoil around us, let us focus on becoming a holy and acceptable people worthy of our Lord.

Our Lord instructs all those who would follow Him, and He does so in diverse ways. When we hear the Gospel proclaimed, we hear instruction. When we pray in the silence of our hearts, there, too, is instruction.

In the Gospel of Saint Luke, we hear about a miraculous draught of fishes and we learn the importance of the blessing and command of God in the work which we do. We can also learn the relation of private instruction and revelation to that which is public by what the Evangelist was inspired not to say. Come along and let us all follow the Lord!

“From the days of John the Baptist until now,” says our Lord, “the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent bear it away,” and so, I undertake to prove that an easy and luxurious life is not the way to heaven.

Many of us find ourselves dismissing as nothing things that are mortal sins. We treat mortals sins as mere trifles. We tend to draw a line between venial and mortal sin in the wrong place.

Our Lord tells us: "Behold! I stand at the door and knock!" Likewise, we are to be like our Lord, for He tells us: "Knock and it shall be opened unto you."

In seeking after the things of our Lord, we must never allow ourselves to become the victims of despondency, impatience, or even of injuries to our own pride. Rather, we must be ever more faithful and - above all - persistent in seeking those things which are good.

Hear today about the Canaanite woman whose love for her daughter and whose faith in the Lord leads her to a holy persistence, even in the face of resistance and humiliation. Let us make her prayer our own: "Lord, help me!"

God wants us to get some things settled in our heart. One of the most crucial is deciding whether we are all-in when it comes to our relationship with Him. Do we want to walk in the fullness of His love and His plans? Or, do we want to spend our lives chasing after the world’s empty pleasures?

Saint Therese of Lisieux had a simple rule that all of us should take to heart. "Almighty God, All Thee and no me."

After the light of the Holy Ghost has been implored by fervent prayer, the next requisite for a good confession is the examenation of conscience, or the effort to find out what sins we have committed. As many confessions are not made properly because of a lack of this requisite, remember, my brethren,

1.That he who wishes to make a good confession must examine his conscience himself.

That he who wishes to make a good confession must examine his conscience with proper diligence and care.

Saint Paul exhorts us: "Receive not the grace of God in vain!" All that we do "in vain" is nothing more than vanity.

We usually do not appreciate all of the things that God has done for us until they are either taken away from us or until we suffer in some other way. Did you thank God this morning for your electricity? Your hot water for a shower? Your breakfast? The car that safely and warmly transported you to church this morning? Probably not. But how would you feel if you just got your power back three weeks after a hurricane. Would you thank God for electricity then?

One of our great weaknesses as Christians is not appreciating the blessings that we have been given by God. This is the chief reason for our restlessness and dissatisfaction. We have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ, but we do not marvel at that fact. Our Lord wanted to encourage a sense of conviction that His Disciples had lived at a time of extraordinary events in the history of the world.

We are called to be doers of the word, and not hearers only. Every lesson from the Lord is not only a transmission of information, but it is also a transmission of vocation. We are truly called by every lesson to live more deeply the Christian life!

In the Gospel, we hear of a Doctor of the Law trying to tempt the Lord by asking Him which is the greatest commandment. Our Lord gives the answer, and even more; for with the knowledge of the essence of the Law and the Prophets comes a great responsibility on the part of the receiver.

We have seen how, when our Lord was approaching the city of Naim, “a dead man was carried out;” in to-day’s Gospel we read that “there was a certain man before him that had the dropsy;” this man was dangerously ill, and would certainly have died had not our Lord cured him. Here, again, we have a warning that we must die, a sermon and an exhortation to think often of death. In my last sermon I showed you how the frequent meditation of death is a powerful means to induce us to do good and to avoid evil. To-day I have another opportunity of treating of the same matter, and of showing in what manner we may derive advantage from the frequent meditation of death.

We are all called to be unsung Heroes who live out the Catholic life.

Having closed ears and blind eyes can’t please God. But that's the sinful condition we’re born into at birth. Thanks be to God that through Jesus and his cross He comes to heal you so you can now hear and speak to Him. Opening your ears, He’s awakened you and called you to Him under the cross where all your sins are forgiven.

Today our Lord instructs us with a parable of the Kingdom. We hear of a king who hosts a great nuptual feast for his son, sending servants far and wide to invite many to come and share the joy of the day. But those who were invited were not only uninterested in coming to the feast, they even treated the king's servants violently for bringing the invitation!

But the king invites even more people, of any condition, whosoever his servants might find, so that they might share in the nuptual feast. The king even provides the guests with new garments for the celebration. Hear as our Lord relates the great truth of responding to the invitation of the Eternal Father, and what is required of those who are called.

I have said and proved that it is indispensably necessary to make restitution in order to avoid eternal damnation, so that inability alone can excuse one from making it. But there is still one point, and that is the manner and circumstances of restitution.

We put God first because that's the purpose of our lives, the worth of our lives and the only way to fulfillment in our lives.

No one can serve two masters, as Christ Himself assures us. And yet what a number of those who believe in Christ, although they dare not, of course, contradict the Word of Christ in explicit terms, yet do so by their lives! They live as if they would like to serve both God and the world; they do not want to be at variance with God or the world.

In this sermon podcast we learn that we should thank God for everything that comes into our life, the good and the bad. For God brings good out of evil and sends us tribulation for our own good.

The message in this Gospel reading is clear, The tax collector standing at the back of the Temple, who was humiliated in the eyes of the Pharisee was afraid even to lift his eyes towards Heaven; the only thing he knew to do was to humbly beg God’s forgiveness for his sins, which indeed were many. Jesus assures us that “this man went down to his house justified and righteous, rather than the other… for he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Saint Paul instructs the Corinthians - and all of us - on how we are to bear ourselves in times of plenty and in times of trial: Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, do manfully, and be strengthened.

Come and see how all of these build upon each other and work with each other under the greatest virtue of all: Charity!

“What must I do to possess eternal life?” This question should touch the hearts of all men, because all are created for eternal life. A short answer embracing the whole divine law was given to the question: “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with thy whole heart, and with thy whole soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind, and thy neighbor as thyself.” This again holds good for all men. All must love their God with their whole heart and their neighbor as themselves; for such is the will of God. And all can love God and their neighbor, for no one is without the graces and helps which the divine generosity has prepared for all in abundance. Yet, there are people who indulge in curious thoughts and speculations regarding this truth, and doubt whether the goodness of God reaches in this sense to all men; thus they represent the divine goodness and liberality as not so great or lovable as is becoming. Against these I shall in this sermon defend the honor and glory of the general love and mercy of God. From the many doubts that might assail us on this point I select only two, to which nearly all the others may be reduced.

There are not a few Christians whose souls would profit much if their bodily tongues were dumb and their bodily ears deaf, so many sins do they commit by their senses of speech and hearing. Would it not be better for certain talkative people to be altogether dumb than to injure or destroy their neighbor’s honor and good name by their wicked tongues? Would it not be better for those curious ears to be completely deaf than to listen with pleasure to backbiting, detraction and scandal? Certainly it would be much better, if it were God’s holy will, for some men to lose both tongue and ears than to lose their souls. I have -already said enough of those who sin in this exceedingly dangerous matter by talking against their neighbors (God grant that what I have said may help them to amendment in this respect!) They who listen to such uncharitable talk must now have their instruction, for they must know....

We as humans seem to need and almost thrive on the approval and affirmation of others. We just love for people to acknowledge our greatness.

This also leads to another problem in the same area. People will in most cases ignore or snub someone that they have never heard of, or have heard bad reports on. We live in a society that demands me first and my feelings above anyone else.

This passage in the 2nd letter to the church at Corinth shows the folly of this notion. Paul is saying we don’t need this stuff if we are God’s.

We tend to look at people's financial statement, and value them by what it says. The real measure is what God is using that person for.

Our Lord encounters a rich young man who seeks eternal life. The young man has kept the commandments, but asks the Lord what more he can do. Our Lord invites him to sell all that he has and to give to the poor and to come follow Him! The young man goes away sad, for he is greatly attached to his possessions. Is it possible for the rich - or any of us - to find salvation? The Lord has the answer.

We hear of a king settling accounts with his servants. One servant is forgiven a debt of a very great amount of money after he begs forgiveness from the king.

This servant turns around and then shows no mercy whatsoever to a fellow-servant who owed him a small amount of money.

Hear how the king reacts upon hearing of this, and learn our Lord's lesson for all of us in living a life of forgiveness.

Jesus told three parables of the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the lost son. The third parable is commonly known as the Parable of the Prodigal Son, but it might be more aptly called the Parable of the Loving Father. All three parables speak of the recovering of that which was lost, but the focus of the third parable is different than that of the first two. The focus of the third parable is on the actions of the father of the returning prodigal. For me, the most important aspect of this parable is what it tells us of our Heavenly Father’s reaction when any of us turns toward Him: He “runs” to embrace us.

Both Matthew and Luke tell us that sometime earlier Jesus looked down upon the city and had cried out, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem…how often I have longed to gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing.” (Matthew 23:37; Luke 13:34) Do you hear those words? YOU WERE NOT WILLING.

And that brings us to today. Just like the people of Jerusalem, we find ourselves in the presence of Jesus. I wonder what He sees when He looks at us? Does He see people worried about many things? Does He see people who are so busy doing things here and there—so busy that they never bother to consider those things that are eternally important?

Or does He see people who recognize Him for who He is—the Messiah, the Christ, the Son of God, our Savior. When He turns and looks into our lives, I wonder, will He weep once again because of what He sees? Or will we have the peace that passes all understanding as we respond to His outstretched arms and hear Him say, “Well done, good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy of your Lord”?

“I say to you, this man went down into his house justified rather than the other.” St. Luke 18: 14.

When a man is able to declare himself free from so many vices, such as theft, injustice, adultery, to thank God in fervent prayer for benefits received, to fast, to give a tenth part of his goods to the poor, are not those praiseworthy holy works and occupations which show a man to be a pious, just servant of God? On the other hand, what is more scandalous than to see a man wallowing in all sorts of wickedness, so that he is publicly called a sinner? Yet how different was the judgment pronounced by our Lord on the two men: “I say to you this man went down into his house justified rather than the other.” Who would look on such a judgment as just if he did not know it came from the infallible Truth?

LECTURES FROM THE HEART: PRAYER AND FASTING

Today our Lord delivers a boy from a demon which the disciples had not been able to cast out. This demon had caused the poor boy to toss himself into fire and water alternately, seeking through one or the other to cause destruction.

The Lord tells the disciples that they were not able to cast out the demon because of their own unbelief. And in addition to faith, prayer and fasting were also necessary for casting out such a destructive demon.

Our Lord today reminds us of the very same thing. As the devils redouble their desire for destruction, let us redouble our faith, which then will enliven our prayer and fasting!

LECTURES FROM THE HEART: O YE OF LITTLE FAITH

Today our Lord retires into a mountain alone to pray for us all, while He sends His disciples ahead of him on a boat across the sea. When night was come, the boat was tossed by the wind and waves upon the sea, and the Apostles feared for their lives.

What then do they see but the Lord Himself coming to them, walking across the stormy water! Hear today's lesson as Peter wishes to walk across the water to meet the Lord. What can we learn from his example?

The idea of one’s being a servant to a master is somewhat foreign to our thinking today. We sometimes compare it to the employer-employee relationship, but that does not do justice to the master-servant relationship. A servant is one who gives up himself wholly to another’s will. He is devoted to another to the disregard of his own interest. We are all servants. The question is what, or whom do we serve? Do we serve sin, or do we serve God?

It's not always easy to see the needs of other people. Sometimes we are too focused on our own problems to see when others are hurting. At times we lack awareness because our schedule is overloaded. The truth is, you were created to serve God by helping others. In doing so, you are fulfilling the law of Christ. But you can't help someone with their burden if you don't see it. If you care, you'll be aware.

It has been asked by someone, “Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire?”

Many Christians struggle more with their personal prayer life than with any other area of their lives. Jesus told His disciples, “My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations” (Mark 11:17). Paul preached, “Our God does not dwell in temples made with hands.” We are the temple of the Holy Spirit (I Cor. 3:16). Christ lives within us, and our Heavenly Father’s call on each of our lives is to be a house of prayer.

What should we do, when we realize that the world we live in is a cess pool? And how do we purify and guard our minds amongst such wickedness?

I want to share a fish story with you. And, you may think that this story, like so may other fish stories is based best in the exaggeration, but I promise you, this is a true story.

We have eagle- eye vision when it comes to others but can be blind as moles when we examine ourselves.

Thomas Martin is the former manager of a Jack-in-the-Box restaurant in Oroville, California. He reported a robbery in which the crook took $307 as the store was closing. When questioned about the suspect, Martin provided police sketch artist Jack Lee with a detailed description of the assailant. After Lee completed his sketch, he observed how the drawing looked just like Martin. When investigators noted the similarity, Martin confessed to the crime.....

"Except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven" (St. Matthew 5:20) You see, the Pharisees and the scribes knew the Law. They understood the Law. They followed the Law. Yet, they knew the Law so well they knew their ways around the Law as well. In other words, they knew the Law, yes, but they did not live faithful lives to God.

Has anyone ever asked you, "Why do I need the Holy Spirit?" If so, what did you tell them? Here is a sermon that may help us answer this question!

Today we hear of the wonders done by our Lord for those who followed Him into a desert place apart.

Leaving the comforts of home and city, a multitude followed after our Lord to hear His words and to be healed of their infirmities. When evening was coming, through the hands of the Apostles, the multitude is fed by our Lord. Five loaves and two fishes become enough to satisfy a crowd of more than five thousand, with twelve baskets of fragments left over!

Even today, our Lord continues to take what is offered to Him in true generosity, even if it seems to be insignificant or insufficient, and uses it to satisfy the hearts of those who follow Him.

In the casting out of the demons from the two demoniacals our Lord speaks but a single word: Go!

We also see the unfortunate attitude of the swineherds and the populace, who likewise give an order to our Lord: Go!

Jesus said in Matthew 5:23-24, "If therefore thou offer thy gift at the altar, and there thou remember that thy brother hath any thing against thee; Leave there thy offering before the altar, and go first to be reconciled to thy brother: and then coming thou shalt offer thy gift." Reconciliation with your brother or sister comes before worship, it comes before prayer, and it comes before sacrifice.

In today's Gospel we hear of a centurion who comes before the Lord in faith, bringing news of the suffering of his servant. The Centurion acknowledges his own unworthiness that the Lord should even come beneath his roof.

In Scribes and Pharisees world view, there is a holy order that must be maintained. Wicked, sinful people must not co-mingle with the righteous. They’ve had their eyes on Jesus. They’ve been monitoring his ministry. As the religious police, they want to make sure that Jesus is following proper holiness behaviors.

And then they see it. Corrupt tax collectors and all kinds of “sinful” people are approaching Jesus. And Jesus doesn’t seem to mind at all. In fact, he even sits down to EAT with them! He is in no way setting a proper example to society. It’s as if Jesus and the Pharisees are living in alternate universes.

Jesus very patiently tries to explain the economy of God’s kingdom. He relates three short stories to describe the mercy of God and His search for that which is lost....

How we can use Spiritual Communion to come closer to Jesus and to cast our care upon Him in these trying times?

What should we do, when we realize that the world we live in is a cess pool? How do we purify our minds and guard our hearts from the dangers of this world?

Let us at once and in good earnest return to God. He has long and often sought after us. He has often spoken to our hearts; often reproached our ingratitude, and shown us His judgments. There is not a path in which He has not pursued us, not a truth which He has not pressed upon us. In short, He has employed every artifice and expedient to win our hearts, and to attract us to His service -- love, kindness, the joys of Heaven, the punishments of Hell, the instability of human life, etc. Let us then remember well those words of the Holy Ghost -- Put not off from day to day. Even tomorrow, for aught we know, may be too late.

Today the Lord teaches us a manifold lesson regarding sight, both physical and spiritual. Just as our eyes must be rightly working in order for us to see physical things as they are, so also must our mind be rightly working in order for our soul to see spiritual things as they are.

We must see rightly if we are to act rightly. For one can not serve two masters, and one must see clearly if one is to follow the True Master, God Himself.

THE FRUIT OF ANGER: As I like to say, there is nothing necessarily wrong with anger or being angry. We all get angry at times. Sometimes rightly and sometimes wrongly, though. But anger in and of itself is simply an emotion and we all have emotions. But it is typically what we do with the anger that gets us into trouble.

You may be asking, "What in the world does Baptism and Ice Cream have to do with each other?" Let me tell you.......

When is the right time to come unto Christ and to follow Him? Now!

This Second Sunday after Pentecost, we turn our eyes and our ears to our Lord's call to repentance and belief in the Gospel, for this is the vocation of every Christian soul.

Our Lord's call is heard by the humble fishermen of Galilee who do not hesitate to heed the invitation of our Lord: Come, follow me! In following Christ, they left behind all in order to find all.

Our Lord likewise instructs and calls each of us today. Are we ready to act as the Apostles did?

"God has promised forgiveness to your repentance, but He has not promised tomorrow to your procrastination."-Saint Augustine

We look up to a whole host of people but the only person that truly matters is Our Blessed Saviour. It is Jesus Who came to die for us. It is Jesus Who came to save us from our sins. It is Jesus Who defeated death so that you and I could have everlasting life with Him.

Communicating with words is one of the distinguishing marks of human existence. Like so many aspects of human life, however, communication is a gift from God that can be abused. Whether our tongue is used for cursing others or cussin’ others, we must guard against such abuse.

Today we celebrate the memory of All Saints, both those who are known to us, and those who are known only to God. There have been saints at all times, and they have come from every corner of the earth. They were Apostles, Martyrs, Prophets, Hierarchs, Monastics, and Righteous, yet all were perfected by the same Holy Spirit.

People want "comfort foods." People want "comfortable surroundings." We need "comfortable beds which we will cover with our comforters." We need to feel "comfortable with the people around us." But when Our Lord was speaking of sending a "Comforter," this term is misleading to our modern ears. He is speaking of sending us a helper who will strengthen us . . . who will give us strength. Simply put, Our Lord is speaking of the Holy Ghost.

I’m suggesting to you that there is a direct line backwards from this time in history to A. D. 33 and from Rome to Jerusalem. Pentecost is the birthday of the Church. In that sense what happened on the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2 is an unrepeatable event in exactly the same sense that your birthday is unrepeatable. But just as there is the resemblance, however faint, between the way you looked when you were born and the way you look now, there is a resemblance between the Church of today and the Church that was founded on the day of Pentecost.

I’m suggesting to you that the true Pentecostal Church is not necessarily the church with the name Pentecostal in its title. The true Pentecostal Church is the one which reflects the marks of the Church which was born that day. That’s why the lessons of Pentecost are lessons for us today

The great feast of Pentecost is not simply the celebration of an event which took place two millennia ago. It is the celebration of what must happen and what does happen to us in the Church today.

The Holy Ghost really comes to the soul that receives sanctifying grace, and abides therein as long as that soul keeps itself in grace. This truth is founded on the words of St. Paul: “The charity of God is poured forth in our hearts by the Holy Ghost, who is given to us” (Romans 5: 5);

Sermon given by Fr. Todd based on the Gospel appointed for the Feast of the Ascension coming to us from the Twenty-Fourth Chapter of the Gospel of St. Luke.

"You shall be witnesses unto Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and Samaria, and even to the uttermost part of the earth."

On the Sunday after the Ascension of our Lord, we make the remembrance of the Fathers of the First Ecumenical Council. This day we commemorate the 318 God-bearing Fathers who gathered in Nicaea in the year 325, to address the heresy of Arianism as well as other grave issues that concerned the Church.

The bishops of the Church, with one mouth and one voice, declared the truth of the faith handed down to the Church from the Apostles. They declared that the Son and Word of God is one in essence with the Father, true God of true God. The Fathers composed the holy symbol of Faith, the Nicene Creed.

"And Mary said: Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it done to me according to thy word." (Luke 1:38) How many of us accept God's will as readily as the Blessed Virgin Mary did over two millenia ago? What we need to remember is that all authority, including secular authority comes from Almighty God. The United States is founded on the proposition that the people give the government authority, but this is not Christian and not Biblical.

Peter did not press his way into the inner circle around the fire, and sit there; but he stood, and leaned forward just to warm his hands, and then it was that this woman, noticing how restless he had been, came up with a companion of hers, and, looking at him, began to say to the other woman, “I know that he is one of them, I am sure that he is”; and then, she and the other both broke out saying, “You were with him; we are sure you were with him”; and the men joined in the cry, perhaps most of them said, “Oh, yes! he is one of them”; and then Peter “denied with an oath, I do not know the man.” Oh, how dreadful for him to call Christ “the man,” when he had boldly declared that he was the Son of God! What a terrible fall this was!

There are a lot of people who could explain the Christian faith and they could go on and on and on about it, but the really important question is: Can they live the Christian faith and not just talk about it?

Novena to the Holy Spirit

Friday after Ascension Thursday -- Saturday, the Vigil of Pentecost

This is the prototype of all novenas. It commemorates the nine days between the Ascension of Our Lord and the descent of the Holy Spirit on the first Pentecost Sunday. During this time Our Lady and the twelve Apostles prayed in the upper room for the coming of the Paraclete.

In His preaching, the Lord Jesus would often use that word “must.” in John 3:7, John 3:14. There is one here in John 9:4: “I must work the works of Him that sent Me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work”. “Must,” of course, is a word of necessity. It is an urgency of God. So Fr. Hoffman speaks then of the necessity and the Urgency of time. “We must work the works of Him that sent Me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work”

In the scriptures we have a clear promise on the part of the God of infinite truth, who must necessarily keep His promise: "Ask, and you shall receive." And yet there is nothing more common than to hear men complaining that their prayers seem to be of no avail. What is the cause of that? I am firmly convinced that if ever our hearts and desires are in contradiction with the words we utter, they are so very often when we pray to God.

"EVERY good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights" (St. James 1:17) In this one verse St. James writes a powerful reminder to every single human being to remember where our priorities belong.

The world is of the mind that it can commit no evil that would merit God’s righteous judgment. The world deems itself independent of God’s judicious authority.

The reason for this self-assurance is that the world is devoid of the sense of its own sinfulness. It is sunk in its own self-righteousness. In the face of evil – this pandemic – many people, probably most, will not repent of their sin, for they are blind to their own guilt.

In today’s reading, our Lord was on one of His long journeys and obviously walking. He came to a place in Samaria and stopped at a well. It was the sixth hour of the day – noon. As he rested, hot, tired and dusty, a Samaritan woman approached the well to draw some water. Jesus spoke to her and said, “Give me a drink”.....

Few couples like to admit it, but conflict is common to all marriages.

Since every marriage has its tensions, it isn’t a question of avoiding them but of how you deal with them. You and your spouse must choose how you will act when conflict occurs.

For Christians, Christ is the reason for our hope. He is the reason for our joy. Our Blessed Savior is the reason for our motivation in life. We must always remember to acknowledge that God is the Lord and Master of our life. We must always remember to put God first in everything.

Pride is an illusion, a lie and a thief. And since it is a truth of faith that we are nothing, he who esteems himself and thinks that he is someone is a seducer who deceives himself.

— Saint John Eudes (1601-1689)

After enduring a lengthy introduction, Winston Churchill rises from his seat, walks to the podium and stares fixedly at his audience of new graduates. "Never give up!" he asserts solemnly.

He turns, walks back to his chair and sits down. As the stunned students sit in silence, Churchill, with perfect timing, again rises from his chair, returns to the podium and repeats, "Never give up!" Concerned they may respond improperly the audience never utters a squeak as the speaker again returns to his seat.

Sure enough, Churchill returns to the podium again, and again and yet again—five times—delivering his single-minded message, "Never give up!" At last, feeling he’s exhausted his audience and made his point, Churchill himself gives up and returns to the podium no more. The message?.....Never Give Up!

The suffering of the saints and the prosperity of the wicked is an issue which is frequently addressed in the Word of God. We find the Book of Job dealing explicitly with this matter. We come face-to-face with it again in Psalm 73. In each passage of Scripture the issue is considered from a slightly different perspective.

God's call and our response is not only a single moment in a vocation. It is the vocation. To follow Christ is to consent to being called at each moment—to be called away from something, to something, or into something. It is to respond generously at each moment with our heart’s full consent.To be so faithful and prompt when God calls, especially if it goes against our moods and interests—or even when more serious things such as our safety or reputation are at stake.

The greatest works of God are often made manifest to us, not when we seek signs or wonders, but when we do our daily duty in charity, and when we put our faith and our closeness to the Lord into practice.

Two men died and were waiting in line for admission to heaven.

“We've got room for only one more,” Saint Peter said. “Which one of you is more humble?”....Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also the interests of others.

The wolves that catch and scatter the sheep of Jesus Christ are the authors of scandal, who, not content with their own destruction, labour to destroy others. Woe to him who gives scandal, and causes others to lose the grace of God. If there be any among you who has given scandal, I will endeavour to convince him of the evil he has done, that he may bewail it and guard against it for the future.

In John 20:19-31 we see the disciples set themselves apart from fear of danger. The same is true for us. We’re fearful of the things that might harm us. We’re wary of the Coronavirus. And if we would get sick, we fear we might be one of the unfortunate ones who end up dying from it. We’re afraid of what this pandemic means for us economically. Business owners fret over the fate of their companies. Workers fear they may lose their jobs. And people who already are unemployed wonder how they’ll make ends meet.

There is a special episode preserved by the Gospel of John that stands out from among the post-resurrection scenes. This is the incident of the appearance of the risen Lord to Thomas, brilliantly narrated by John. The specialty and the importance of this event lie in the fact that it presents the relation between seeing and believing in a splendid, superbly formulated manner. More specifically, it shows the significance of believing after, or because of, having seen the risen Christ, and believing without having seen him.

After His resurrection, Jesus Christ entered, though the doors were closed, into the house in which the eleven faithful apostles were assembled, and stood in the midst of them. The mystic meaning of this miracle is, that the Lord does not enter into our souls unless we keep the door of the senses shut." If, then, we wish Jesus Christ to dwell within us, we must keep the doors of our senses closed against dangerous occasions, otherwise the Devil will make us his slaves. I will show today the great danger of perdition to which they who do not avoid the occasions of sin expose themselves.

Jesus spoke more often and more graphically about hell than anyone else in the Bible. The entire Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, reveals a God who will bring judgment on sinners, but who shows mercy to those who repent of their sins and trust in Him.

Near the cross! O Lamb of God,

Bring its scenes before me;

Help me walk from day to day,

With its shadow o'er me.

Near the cross I'll watch and wait,

Hoping, trusting ever,

Till I see my Savior's face,

Leave His presence never.

One of the many attributes that characterizes Christ is His compassion. Of course He was God, but He was also a man with a desire to serve others because of His love for them. Jesus Christ is our example.

Is there anyone here who is a devout lover of God? Let them enjoy this beautiful bright festival.Is there anyone who is a grateful servant? Let them rejoice and enter into the joy of their Lord

I HOPE, my dear Christians, that, as Christ is risen, you have in this holy paschal time, gone to confession, and have risen from your sins. But, attend to what St. Jerome teaches that many begin well, but few persevere. Now the Holy Ghost declares, that he who perseveres in holiness to death, and not they who begin a good life, shall be saved. “But he that shall persevere to the end, he shall be saved.” (Matt.hew 25:13.)

Who did the Jews think Jesus was trying to be? Was he someone who was demon-possessed? (Mark 8:48). Was he someone who was prideful? (vs. 53). Was he someone who was a blasphemer? (vs. 59). In other words, They were asking the question of Jesus, "Whom makest thou thyself?" (vs. 53)

The people in the streets of Jerusalem and the priests at the temple were asking the same question: "Who is this King?" The people said it was Jesus. The priests said it was the Lord Almighty. And in a way that nobody could yet understand, they were both right, because Jesus is the Almighty Lord. He is the King of glory.

There is something very misleading about "reading about humility" as if one could learn about true humility from a book. In fact, St. John says this precisely: "Do you imagine that talk of such matters will mean anything to someone who has never experienced them? If you think so, then you will be like a man who with words and examples tries to convey the sweetness of honey to people who have never tasted it. He talks uselessly. Indeed I would say he is simply prattling."...

"Loose the bonds of your sins, which make you the slave of Satan. Loose the bonds before the habit of sin gains such power over you, as to render your conversion morally impossible, and thus to bring you to eternal perdition."

During this time of pestilence, We can save the world by saving ourselves

How can a baby repent and be baptized? The answer is given in this sermon.

Jesus distributed the loaves and fishes among the multitude. They were satisfied: and the fragments of bread which remained filled twelve baskets. “ The Lord wrought this miracle through compassion for the bodily wants of these poor people; but far more tender is his compassion for the necessities of the souls of the poor that is, of sinners who are deprived of the divine grace. This tender compassion of Jesus Christ for sinners shall be the subject of this discourse.

Jesus knew there would come a time when He would not be physically present any longer with the church. Perilous times would come when supernatural strength would be needed. “Then they will fast IN THOSE DAYS.” We are living in such days today - the Bridegroom is absent and our needs for spiritual power are SO very great. Jesus intends for us to seek after God with great prayer and fasting.

What is the most important thing in life? How important are the things of this world, fashion, politics, fame, fortune? What should our priorities be? Let’s find out in 1 Corinthians 13

God, as the Apostle says, "will have all men to be saved" – I Tim. 2:4; but He also wishes us all to labor for our own salvation, at least by adopting the means of overcoming our enemies, and of obeying Him when He calls us to repentance. Sinners hear the calls of God, but they forget them, and continue to offend Him. But God does not forget them. He numbers the graces which He dispenses, as well as the sins which we commit. Hence, when the time which He has fixed arrives, God deprives us of His graces, and begins to inflict chastisement. I intend to show in this discourse that when sins reach a certain number, God pardons no more. Be attentive.

When we have a proper understand of God’s forgiveness of us we will have a proper disposition of forgiveness towards those who do us wrong.

In the story of the Pharisee and the Tax-Collector Jesus does not compare their deeds… he compares their attitudes. Those who exalt themselves will be humbled an those who humble themselves will be exalted.

MOST holy Mary lost her Son for three days: during that time she wept continually for having lost sight of Jesus, and did not cease to seek after him till she found him. How then does it happen that so many sinners not only lose sight of Jesus, but even lose his divine grace; and instead of weeping for so great a loss, sleep in peace, and make no effort to recover so great a blessing?

In his genealogy, Matthew breaks with Jewish tradition and custom. He mentions the names of four women: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth and Bathsheba (who is the one to whom the pronoun “her” in verse six refers). Matthew has a reason for naming these four and no others. First, they were all Gentiles. Second, three of these women were guilty of sexual sins.

The purpose of Matthew’s genealogy, then, is to show why Yeshua could not be king if he were really Joseph’s son.

The root of the word “sacrifice”. “Sacrifice” comes from Latin, which means, “to make holy.” The ultimate act of love is to sacrifice for another. In sacrificing for another we are actually sanctifying our soul. When the sacrament of marriage is lived according to God’s plan, spouses are daily challenged to make sacrifices for the sake of their beloved. God designed marriage as a means of helping our spouse to grow in holiness and to be set apart for God.

“Behold, this CHILD is set for the fall and for the resurrection of many in Israel.” LUKE ii. 34.

SUCH was the language of holy Simeon when he had the consolation to hold in his hands the infant Jesus. Among other things which he then foretold, he declared that “this child was set for the fall and for the resurrection of many in Israel.” In these words he extols the lot of the saints, who, after this life, shall rise to a life of immortality in the kingdom of bliss, and he deplores the misfortune of sinners, who, for the transitory and miserable pleasures of this world, bring upon themselves eternal ruin and perdition. But, notwithstanding the greatness of his own misery, the unhappy sinner, reflecting only on the enjoyment of present goods, calls the saints fools, because they seek to live in poverty, in humiliation, and self-denial. But a day will come when sinners shall see their errors, and shall say. “We fools esteemed their life madness, and their end without honour.” (Wis. v. 4.) We fools; behold how they shall confess that they themselves have been truly fools. Let us examine in what true wisdom consists, and we shall see, in the first point, that sinners are truly foolish, and, in the second, that the saints are truly wise.

The true “rule of faith”—as expressed in the Bible itself—is Scripture plus apostolic tradition, as manifested in the living teaching authority of the Catholic Church, to which were entrusted the oral teachings of the Prophets of the Old Testament, Jesus and the Apostles, along with the authority to interpret Scripture correctly.

Is it considered taking the Lord's name in vain to say OMG or words like 'geez'?

The third of the Ten Commandments tells us not to take the Lord's name in vain: "You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain" (Exodus 20:7). Does this apply to acronyms like OMG (Oh, my God!), "geez" (often used as an abbreviated form of Jesus), or similar terms?

THE Saviour of the world, whom, according to the prediction of the prophet Isaias, men were one day to see on this Earth “and all flesh shall see the salvation of God,” has already come. We have not only seen him conversing among men, but we have also seen him suffering and dying for the love of us. Let us, then, this morning consider the love which we owe to Jesus Christ at least through gratitude for the love which he bears to us. In the first point we shall consider the greatness of the love which Jesus Christ has shown to us; and in the second we shall see the greatness of our obligations to love him.

A sermon on how compassion changed the woman with the crooked spine, and how the synagogue ruler's religiosity resisted kindness. Compassion should always win.

As an introduction to this sermon, let me qoute St. Augustine sermon delivered to the penitents: "What is it that you are doing? You know very well-you are doing nothing! What's the use of your humbling yourselves, if you don't change your behavior? So many years I have been baptizing so many people, and all for nothing, if there are none among them who keep what they have received, and take care of what they have heard. God forbid I should believe that! It would be better for me to stop being your bishop, if that's how it is. But I hope, I believe that there are such people.

After preaching to and baptizing literally thousands of people from all around he is now bound up and seemingly helpless, while in the mean time the one that came after him is rising to stardome, as folks are flocking around him just to hear him speak or perhaps see him perform a miracle. John knew his role, and even confessed it in times past, now he sits looking at the fact that after all he did to prepare the way for the Messiah, he ends up waiting for his execution. At this time he sends his disciples to go ask Jesus “Are you the one who should come, are you really the messiah, are you really the one sent from God, or should we be looking for someone else?” Think about it: this same John pointed Jesus out of a crowd of folks by the Jordan River, saying ‘behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world’, and now he is questioning if Jesus is really who he claimed to be. Was he doubting or was there another reason for the question. Father Todd gives a great perspective and insight on John the Baptist who finds himself at the end of his life.

Poverty and wealth are very relative terms, and people with riches can be poor, and people with little wealth can be rich.

Jesus says to the church of Laodicea in "You say, I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing. But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor blind and naked." But to the church in Smyrna He says, "I know your afflictions and your poverty-yet you are rich!"

Today's gospel reading tell us of another rich man poor man situation where there was more to the story then meets the eye!

Some years ago a murderer was sentenced to death. The murderer’s brother, to whom the State was deeply indebted for former services, besought the governor of the State for his brother’s pardon. The pardon was granted, and the man visited his brother with the pardon in his pocket. “What would you do,” he said to him, “if you received a pardon?” “The first thing I would do,” he answered, “is to track down the judge who sentenced me, and murder him; and the next thing I would do is to track down the chief witness, and murder him.” The brother rose, and left the prison with the pardon in his pocket.

Because of what this man had done, death penalty was waiting on him. The opportunity was granted to him, but it called for repentance. Since there could be no repentance, there also could be no pardon.

In tribulations God enriches his beloved souls with the greatest graces. Behold, St. John in his chains comes to the knowledge of the works of Jesus Christ: “When John had heard in prison the works of Christ.” Great indeed are the advantages of tribulations. The Lord sends them to us, not because he wishes our misfortune, but because he desires our welfare.

Christians have their own "Homeland Security" for their defense from Fear and Anxiety in the present distress because "Our citizenship is in Heaven.” Our Security lies in God.

All of us are guilty of committing many types of sin. There are sins of omission - things we don’t do which we should, and sins of commission - things we do which we shouldn’t. There are sins of the flesh and of the spirit, open sins and secret sins, and so-called "respectable" sins. It was a respectable sin that Jesus graphically pointed out in the Parable of the Good Samaritan.

The Lord has fixed a day, called in the Scriptures "the day of the Lord," on which the Eternal Judge will make known his power and majesty. ”The Lord,"says the Psalmist, "shall be known when he executeth judgment." (Psalms 9:17) On this text St. Bernard writes: ”The Lord, who is now unknown while he seeks mercy, shall be known when he executes justice." The prophet Sophonias calls the day of the Lord ”a day of wrath a day of tribulation and distress a day of calamity and misery."

We live in a time in which people do not stand in awe before God. We are so busy that we forget him. We are so consumed with our own agendas that we hardly think about God.

Everything in life is meaningless without God. His ultimate purpose is to show that we can live a meaningful life only when we live it in a right relationship to God.

In His role as physician of souls and bodies, Jesus would heal in that particular order. First, he would forgive sins, and only then perform a miracle of physical healing, sometimes seemingly almost as an afterthought. Clearly, reconciliation with the Father was, and is, infinitely more important than a return to good health.

If you have Jesus' presence in your life, you will experience God's divine order. You'll have a peace and a calm, with no fretting or anxiety, no running to and fro to seek guidance, no sense that the bottom is falling out. You'll live at rest, knowing God has everything under control!

ALL sins are hateful in the sight of God; but the sin of blasphemy ought more properly to be called an abomination to the Lord. Every mortal sin, as the Apostle says, dishonours God. ”By transgression of the law, thou dishonourest God."(Romans 2: 23.) Other sins dishonour God indirectly by the violation of his law; but blasphemy dishonours him directly by the profanation of his most holy name. Hence St. Chrysostom teaches, that no sin exasperates the Lord so much as the sin of blasphemy against his adorable name. Dearly beloved Christians, allow me, then, to show you, first, the great enormity of the sin of blasphemy; and secondly, the great rigour with which God punishes it.

Robert E. Lee visited a Kentucky lady who took him to the remains of a grand old tree in front of her house. There she bitterly cried that its limbs and trunk had been destroyed by Federal Artillery fire. She looked to Lee for a word condemning the North or at least sympathizing with her loss. After a brief silence, Lee said, "Cut it down, my dear Madam, and forget it." It is better to forgive the injustices of the past than to allow them to remain, let bitterness take root and poison the rest of our life.

It would be nice if forgiveness was as easy as cutting down an old tree in the front yard… if you have lived at all you have experienced injustices that defy your best efforts at mercy and forgiveness.

When Jesus spoke of taking up the cross, there was nothing mystical to them about the idea. They immediately pictured a poor, condemned soul walking along the road carrying the instrument of his execution on his own back. A man who took up his cross began his death march, carrying the very beam on which he would hang.

For a disciple of Christ to take up his cross is for him to be willing to start on a death march. To be a disciple of Jesus Christ is to be willing, in His service, to suffer the indignities, the pain, and even the death of a condemned criminal.

It is interesting to see how people who come from nothing can become something. It is encouraging to see how hard work can pay off. Their stories are encouraging, instructive, and inspiring. Equally interesting and instructive, though, can be the opposite: riches to rags stories. It is just as common to hear stories about those who had it all and then lost it all. Luke shows us both sides of this in our parable as he builds on his great reversal theme. We see a rags-to-riches story and riches-to-rags one that serves to warn and instruct!

To live in this world of evil, sin, and temptation you need all the protection and help you can get. The bible says we need the whole armor of God. The spiritual warfare that we face day in and day out can ware down your defenses. Spiritual strength and courage are needed for our spiritual warfare and suffering. The Christian armor is made to be worn; daily in all life’s situations. There is no putting on our armor until we have planned our warfare, and finished our course.

"How great is God’s goodness! When sinners cast themselves at the feet of the Lord with humility and with sorrow for having offended him, he instantly pardons and embraces them. Behold the sermon for this day, in which I will show, first, the danger to which he who is in the state of sin, and defers his conversion, is exposed; and secondly, the remedy to be adopted by him who is in sin, and wishes to save his soul."

Curiosity killed the cat. At least that’s what people say when you’re asking questions they aren’t comfortable answering. Is curiosity a bad thing then? Not necessarily. But curiosity can be dangerous.

Yes, it’s important that we exercise our curiosity correctly. That’s especially true in regard to the soul.

Miserable the man who, at the hour of death, shall see that he has loved creatures, that he has loved his pleasures, and has not loved God. "When distress cometh upon them, they will seek peace, and there will be none." (Ezekiel 7: 25.) He will then seek peace, but shall not find it; for many causes of distress and trouble shall assail him.

There are a few passages in the Bible in which the sowing of seed or planting is used as an illustration in reference to the Word of God. In this study we want to closer examine Luke 8:8-15 so that we can gain a greater understanding how the Word of God can also bear fruit in our lives.

Sermon given at First Mass of Fr. Francis Dominic, September 27, 2018. Coming from the Gospel of Saint Matthew 10:39:

"He that findeth his life, shall lose it: and he that shall lose his life for me, shall find it."

What belongs to God? God wants what belongs to Him and He also marked it. When He created Adam and Eve He created them in “His image”. God’s picture is stamped upon or very souls. Jesus is asking for our hearts and lives. He understands that if He has our hearts He will have our money and talents and worship all by default. It’s a package deal. If there are certain parts of your life withheld from God then there are certain parts of your heart withheld from Him.

Were hell not eternal, it should not be hell. Torments which continue but a short time, are not a severe punishment. The man who is afflicted with cancer, submits to the knife. The pain is very sharp; but, because it is soon over, the torture is not very great. But, should the incision last for a week, or for an entire month, how frightful should be the agony!

All Saints' Day is a solemn holy day of the Catholic Church celebrated annually on November 1. The day is dedicated to the saints of the Church, that is, all those who have attained heaven.

You can best believe that when Jesus speaks, something is going to happen. You might receive revelation, truth, instructions, correction, discipline or feel the magnitude of his love for you. The question that follows this is when Jesus speaks, what will your response be.

Much of the recent news coverage in our nation has been focused on the police, how they carry out their duty, and how they interact with citizens. One of the things they will do if they have to arrest you is they will read you your Miranda Rights. Perhaps the most famous line in this recitation is, “You have the right to remain silent.”

Passion can be a wonderful gift, but if you’re not careful, it can become an awful curse. All too often people become passionate about achieving a goal, and end up wrapping their identity in that goal and losing sight of their inner reasons for setting out to accomplish it in the first place. They take on a success-at-all-costs mind-set, and as a result hurt themselves and others.

It is virtually impossible to exaggerate the importance of love. Nothing is more basic to true spirituality than this singular virtue. Nothing is more central to Christian living. At the very heart of authentic discipleship is love. Without love, we are nothing.

When many from my country hear the word “king,” one or two images typically come to mind:

The first is that of a distant tyrant across the ocean who mistreats the people and taxes their tea. The second image is that of a now-meaningless figurehead; a historical office held over from the past that no longer wields any real power.

But when we speak of Jesus Christ as our King, we are not alluding to either a tyrant or a figurehead—or even a benevolent king who rules for a season. We are instead speaking of a perfect, righteous, and loving King; one who is absolutely sovereign in His authority and eternal in His reign.

Countless millions throughout the world may live as if Christ is not King, but that does not change reality. Christ is King over all. Whether or not you acknowledge His authority and reign over you, He is your king! He reigns supreme.

"Is it my will that a sinner should die, saith the Lord God, and not that he should be converted from his ways, and live?" [Ezekiel 18:23]

When Jesus Christ called His first four Disciples from being commercial fishermen to fishers of men; He did so for an awesome reason; just as we are being called today!

We probably all know Bart Simpson’s famous thanksgiving prayer: “Dear God, we paid for all this stuff ourselves, so thanks for nothing.” Well, we know better. In fact, if Bart could have a prayer like that, what kind of prayer should we have?

Every follower of Jesus wants to be valuable to him.

We look forward to the day that he will come back for us and say, "Well done, good and faithful servant". When the "day of the Lord" your life will be judged to be successful or meaningless depending on His standards - not the worlds.

At the end of your life you want to leave with the knowledge that you have led a successful life!

If we were able to make two requests that would help to improve our lives here on the earth, what would those requests be? Agur, the wise man to whom Proverbs 30 is attributed, told us what his two requests were:

“Two things I asked of You, do not refuse me before I die: Keep deception and lies far from me, give me neither poverty nor riches;” (Proverbs 30:7-9).

The second request – the desire for “neither poverty nor riches” – is the focus of our Sermon.

What does “One” look like? Ever since Jesus prayed the prayer recorded in John 17:21, this has been a vital question for the Church.

Jesus prayed for the unity of his followers. The primary purpose of this unity is to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ and further the kingdom of God by demonstrating that Jesus is who he said he was—God, the Son.

How is Jesus’ prayer answered in our lives? Is it necessary for us to be unified in all aspects of our lives, or in selected areas? How can we be unified and still maintain our individuality and uniqueness? Where is the balance between unity and diversity?

Story: A small parish had a hall that needed a new roof.

So after every Sunday service, the congregation would go over to the parish hall to pray for the new roof. And at the end of the prayer time, there would be a collection.

One old Parishoner, renown for being very tight fisted, used to come and sit at the back during the prayer time - so he could make a quick escape when they started the collection.

One day just as he was going to the prayer time he was held up by the Pastor - and so came in a little late. Unfortunately there was only room at the front. So he went to the front and sat down there.

During the prayer time, a piece of roof fell and hit him on the head. Feeling spoken to he stood up and said:

"Lord, I’ll give $ 1000”. A voice in the back rang out: "Hit him again Lord".

Is that how we think God speaks to us?

What is this one thing necessary? It is not necessary to acquire riches, nor to obtain dignities, nor to gain a great name. The only thing necessary is to love God. Whatever is not done for the love of God is lost. This is the greatest and the first commandment of the divine law.

Late one summer evening in Broken Bow, Nebraska, a weary truck driver pulled his rig into an all-night truck stop. The waitress had just served him when three tough looking, leather jacketed motorcyclists - of the Hell’s Angels type - decided to give him a hard time. Not only did they verbally abuse him, one grabbed the hamburger off his plate, another took a handful of his french fries, and the third picked up his coffee and began to drink it.

How would you respond? Well, this trucker did not respond as one might expect. Instead, he calmly rose, picked up his check, walked to the front of the room, put the check and his money on the cash register, and went out the door. The waitress followed him to put the money in the till and stood watching out the door as the big truck drove away into the night.

When she returned, one of the bikers said to her, "Well, he’s not much of a man, is he?" She replied, "I don’t know about that, but he sure ain’t much of a truck driver. He just ran over three motorcycles on his way out of the parking lot."

A sign in the entranceway of an English castle open to the public reads, “It is the duty of the host to make his guests feel at home. It is the duty of the guests to remember that they are not” (Reader’s Digest, March, 1983).

With regard to Jesus Christ dwelling in our hearts, the first part of that duty applies to us: we need to make Christ feel at home in our hearts.

Believers are called to manage what God has entrusted to us in such as way as to bring Him glory, benefit His household, and expand His kingdom.

The Fifteenth Sunday After Pentecost 2019

What does Jesus mean by “For many are called, but few are chosen”? To answer, we must understand what Jesus means here by “call” and “choose.”