Posts Tagged 'god'

Homily – December 15th, Third Sunday of Advent

Last weekend, you may recall, we had John the Baptist telling us to prepare the way of the Lord. He told us—in broad, general terms–to make the Lord’s path straight, fill in the valleys, and flatten the mountains. The scriptures are often deliberately left open-ended like that, encouraging us to determine concretely what filling in the valleys and flattening the mountains actually means in our particular lives and in the life of the world. This time, however, John the Baptist, ...

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Reflection – December 15th, 2024 – Third Sunday of Advent

On this 3rd Sunday of Advent we are invited to rejoice and be at peace. As we prepare for Christmas let’s remember to find joy and peace in our relationship with God and share that joy with others. The 3rd Sunday of Advent is also called Gaudette Sunday. Gaudette is a Latin word that means “rejoice”. There is a pink or rose candle instead of a purple one on the Advent wreath. It is a reminder that the Advent season is a ...

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Homily – December 8th, 2024 – Second Sunday of Advent

Between 1962 and 1965, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit and Pope John XXIII, the Church underwent its greatest reform. We call it the Second Vatican Council. Even though it was the Roman Catholic bishops of the world who voted on final outcomes, it nonetheless sought out the opinion of other scholars and various experts, thereby making it an “ecumenical” council. Because it is 60 years in the rearview mirror, we tend to forget what a big deal Vatican ...

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Homily – December 1st – First Sunday of Advent

Back in 2008, I remember being on a retreat in the foothills of California. Before being sent off to spend 8 hours by ourselves in nature, we were given a few instructions the night before. Since this was supposed to be solitary time, we were to go far enough into the forest and mountains that we couldn’t see another person. We were to draw a circle in the dirt with the heel of our shoe or with a stick, and ...

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Reflection – December 1st – First Sunday of Advent

What Advent Offers Us

We blinked, and it happened.  The year has ended, and a new one begun, because for the Church, the arrival of the season of Advent marks the beginning of the new liturgical year.  The Church asks that we live Advent in anticipation of and preparation for the arrival of the Christ child, born again as the Child in the Manger, even as we know Christ is with us now, even as we continue to await Christ’s second ...

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Homily – November 24th – Christ the King

On this last Sunday of the Church’s liturgical year, the Solemnity of Christ, King of the Universe, we have a couple of readings that are as bizarre as last Sunday’s readings. The first reading from the Book of Daniel and the second reading from the Book of Revelation fall under the category of “apocalyptic” readings. You may have heard the word “apocalypse”; it means revelations. Some truth, hidden until now, is about to be revealed. The word “epiphany”, one of ...

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Homily ~ November 17, 2024 ~ 33rd Sunday of Ordinary Time

I don’t know about you, but I find the Scripture readings we just heard obscure and cryptic, very hard to get my head into. They’re not the typical stories that I can easily place myself in the middle of. Readings about the end time tend to be that way.

It reminds me of a “Peanuts” cartoon. Many of us grew up as kids reading only the cartoon section of the newspaper. In this one episode, Charlie Brown is laying back on ...

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Homily – November 3rd, 2024 – 31st Sunday in Ordinary Time

Back in 2003, while on a sabbatical year, I drove from Toronto to Tucson, Arizona to go on a retreat. What spurred me on to drive the 3600 km was the title of the retreat: “The Soul Tells A Story.” It was a retreat for writers, editors, publishers and, if you happened to be a priest, you could come too. So I went. Ever since then, I’ve had a secret passion to write. From that time on, I’ve discovered many ...

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Reflection – November 3rd, 2024 – 31st Sunday in Ordinary Time

The readings today emphasize that LOVE is the greatest law  fulfilling all commandments. We are urged to love God ” with all our heart  soul , mind and strength”. Jesus also teaches that we must love our neighbours as ourselves. We are told to love God and show that love through our actions towards others. Every opportunity to love someone is an opportunity to love God.   

As a former English teacher, I’ve looked at the word “love” – is “love” ...

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Reflection – October 27th, 2024 – 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time

To Follow Jesus is to Stop and Ask What is Needed

Throughout the gospels people come to Jesus asking for healing for themselves and others, so why is it that in today’s gospel a blind man is scolded and told to be quiet when he calls out to Jesus?

One of the things that stands out to me about this healing story is that the man in need of healing is identified both by name and by family. He is not just ...

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