Search

Results

The perfection of love

Funeral, Sacrament-based, Holy Day, Holiday, Special Occasion - Sample homilies to be adapted for your use

Occasion: Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary Readings: Genesis 3:9-15, 20; Ephesians 1:3-6, 11-12; Luke 1:26-38 I READ AN OBITUARY a woman had written for herself before she died of cystic fibrosis at 44 years old. Her words were ones of gratitude for a full and meaningful life, satisfying work, long, loving friendships. I’m sure she had suffered great pain during her lifetime, and she, like all of us, had had some very bad days. But in the end, bitterness had no place in her final act of self-expression. She declared that relationships were ultimately the most important thing, and she encouraged those reading her last message to “go out and create moments to take your breath away.” This is an example of how a life can have coherence, how the pure essence of a person’s being can unfold and blossom over time, how what is present from the beginning can manifest itself and bear fruit. I imagine this woman as someone who lived wholeheartedly, who, in spite of tremendous challenges, said yes to her own unique and unrepeatable life. The Immaculate Conception is an attempt to say the same thing about Mary. Her life was held together and carried forward by her complete assent to the task she was given. By God’s grace she was freed and empowered, from the first moment of her existence, to be utterly open to love. SOME PEOPLE may feel confused or even repelled by the adjective immaculate, as if Mary’s purity or spotlessness are comparative terms, by which the rest of humanity is found unworthy or befouled. This is a sad misunderstanding that Mary herself would not support." SOME PEOPLE may feel confused or even repelled by the adjective immaculate, as if Mary’s purity or spotlessness are comparative terms, by which the rest of humanity is found unworthy or befouled. This is a sad misunderstanding that Mary herself would not support. The peasant girl of the Magnificat was clearly never interested in setting herself above or against other people, and she obviously did not consider bodily existence demeaning or contaminating. She lived the life she was given, with integrity and presence, doing the ordinary work of running a household, raising a child, caring for and enjoying family and neighbors. As a transparent vessel of the perfect love of God, she functioned not apart from but within the rhythms and limits of normal human existence. Neither is the church’s declaration of Mary’s immaculateness meant to be a derision of human sexuality, though many have misunderstood it as such. There is an unfortunate tendency to think that original sin is caused by the simple fact of having a body, and more specifically that it is transmitted through the act of procreation. Because of the depth and pervasiveness of this misperception, vast numbers of individuals have spent their lives at war with themselves, struggling and ashamed or at least ambivalent about their bodies. Even healthy, balanced, and wise people sometimes have an unconscious bias toward the spirit, inadvertently drawing on a long cultural habit of equating earthly existence with sin and evil, while holiness is thought to require a rejection of the flesh. But this is not the truth that Mary lived, and it certainly is not consistent with the astonishing mystery of the Incarnation. Neither Jesus nor Mary shuddered at the thought of being human, even though God knows it is a hard task indeed. Life on earth is difficult in an infinite variety of ways. We are weak and vulnerable and easily confused. We disappoint ourselves and are subject to the betrayals, mistakes, and harmful actions of others. We suffer pain and the deep spiritual consequences of our individual and collective sinfulness. Life is very messy. Yet Jesus chose to enter human existence fully, and he did so through the body of woman. In doing so, he affirmed the blessedness of life, the goodness of the body, not just in general but in particular. Every life, every body has infinite value, belongs to God, is tenderly loved by God. Mary’s Immaculate Conception is simply an extension of the Incarnation. She was preserved in perfection by and for the sake of her Son. And just as his Incarnation was for our sake, so her purity is for us as well. She endures as archetype, model, and living, loving guide for us as we stumble through this existence, which often does indeed seem to be a vale of tears. In darkness we long for light; in woundedness we yearn for healing. And in the ordinary, everyday choices we make, in our attempts to live and love responsibly and wisely, she accompanies us. From her we can learn how to keep taking the next necessary step, how to keep saying yes to the unique requirements of this particular life, how to live with integrity and coherence, how to reach for the only perfection that matters: the perfection of love.

Authors Mary Vineyard

holy day/feast immaculate conception Genesis 3:9-15, 20 Ephesians 1:3-6, 11-12 Luke 1:26-38

Restricted
Christmas wonder

Funeral, Sacrament-based, Holy Day, Holiday, Special Occasion - Sample homilies to be adapted for your use

Holy days/feasts: Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord (Christmas): Mass at Midnight Readings: Isaiah 9:1-6; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-14 CERTAIN IMAGES inspire wonder. They’re powerful beyond the simple contents of the scene. Think of the photo of the New York firefighters planting a tattered flag in the rubble of the World Trade Center towers. That image is likely to touch every heart. Certain images are powerful because they speak to a deeper place in us than words alone can do. In the nativity scene we have such an image: a serene new mother, a concerned father, and a vulnerable newborn child. Beleaguered travelers, they’re forced to take refuge in a stable, and the child is lain in a manger—a food trough. Their rude surroundings leave them barely protected from the elements, open to any and all who come their way. And many come their way: shepherds, townspeople, angels, and kings. They come to see what there is to see. And we come here on this special occasion, to celebrate this birth, and to give our attention over to this scene of the child in the manger, the one who becomes bread for us all, the one who inspires wonder. Why do the angels sing? Why have the magi traveled so far to lay their gifts before this child? Why do the townspeople gather and the shepherds bow? What is going on in this mother’s heart? This father’s worried dreams? There are many ways to respond to wonder. Jesus encountered them all in his public ministry. Some people would marvel at his works, but that’s all they would do, marvel. “Oh, my! Did you see that! Wasn’t that something?” and they would go on with their lives unchanged. And there were some who wanted Jesus to perform wonders for their entertainment as you’d get a dog to jump through a hoop. They wanted “wonders on demand.” And then there were those who viewed the working of wonders as a kind of litmus test to tell who has God’s favor. If you make some magic for us, then you must be OK. If you can’t or won’t, you must not be worth listening to. Jesus knew that the purpose of wonder is to open our hearts. It’s to help us to see that there is more to life than we have come to expect. There are, coursing through human life, elements of the divine." Jesus knew that the purpose of wonder is to open our hearts. It’s to help us to see that there is more to life than we have come to expect. There are, coursing through human life, elements of the divine. Why does this particular scene inspire wonder? It’s because we have two realities captured in this one human moment. Luke tells us, “This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” And we hear in John’s gospel, “The Word became flesh and lived among us.” We have on the one hand a very mundane and earthy reality—a vulnerable child in poor circumstances. And yet this same child of poverty is also the Word who was with God from all time and who indeed is God. What is the appropriate response to wonder? It is to do as the shepherds did and fall on our knees. To do as the kings did and lay our gifts before him. To give all our attention and to open our hearts. To stand wordless before this scene of wonder and let the truth of it seep into us, our hearts, our minds, our bodies, our souls. This scene is an invitation and a promise. The invitation is to leave our pursuit of mastery behind and instead enter into mystery. To be as vulnerable as this child and these parents. To be as open as these shepherds and as generous of heart as these kings. To praise like the angels and pay attention like the townspeople. The resulting promise is that we will meet God. We will discover not only that Jesus is God, but that we, too, can share in God’s life—not only in the afterlife, but right here and right now. And so here's my invitation to you in days to come. It’s an invitation I hope to take up myself. It’s an invitation to holiness. • Open your heart to the wonder of this scene in the manger. • Pray daily, perhaps before each meal with your family or friends. • Nurture your relationship with Jesus by paying attention to his presence in your day. • Read the gospels. • Worship weekly. • Avoid demanding signs from God and observe the many that are right before you. Pray, “Lord, give me the eyes to see you at work in my life.” And then start looking around. Love the people you encounter each day. Use your talents for the good of the world. Say a prayer of gratitude. Let us not squander this moment of wonder. Read this homily in Spanish.

Authors Tom McGrath

holy day/feast Christmas midnight mass Isaiah 9:1-6 Titus 2:11-14;Luke 2:1-14

Restricted
Keep your eyes on the road

Funeral, Sacrament-based, Holy Day, Holiday, Special Occasion - Sample homilies to be adapted for your use

Occasion: Ash Wednesday Readings: Joel 2:12-18; 2 Corinthians 5:20-6:2; Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18 THIS WEEK I almost fell into the clutches of the devil, and let me tell you, it was scary. I was driving down by the freeway where they’re doing road construction, and they had this long, open trench dug by the side of the roadway with about 15 workers standing around, leaning on their shovels, looking into it. The only place they gave you for your car was this skinny little strip of bumpy pavement with nothing between you and that ditch but a line of flimsy orange plastic cones. So, as the lane funneled down to where the ditch was, I began to get that dreadful feeling you get when you’re in a tall building and you stand too close to a window. The ditch became this magnetic monster sucking my car into its gaping maw like a giant vacuum cleaner. It was going to grab my poor vehicle, chew it up, and spit out the wheels. The horrifying thing was that, as the ditch continued to rivet my attention, the car really did start edging toward the opening, and before I could wrest it back, it actually knocked over one of the plastic cones! It was like I was being pulled into hell by the hands of the devil! "TURN AWAY FROM SIN and believe the Good News!” Jesus cries out in Mark 1:15. Well, he’s got me there because I tend to turn toward all that is dark and sinful. For some reason—maybe it’s because I’m mortal—I am attracted to the things of the world that speak of my mortality. I think we all are. For instance, newspapers feature the bad news on the front page because that’s what attracts people to buy the product. You never read about all the airplanes that make perfectly smooth landings. Just like I never notice my stomach until I get hungry. More people pay to see violent movies than gentle movies. The only baby attracting attention in church is the one that’s crying. While driving this week, I was not attracted by the safe pavement but to the menacing ditch. And to make matters worse, as I found out, we tend to move toward whatever we focus our attention on. That makes for perilous driving and stressful living unless we can get that focus under control. Beginning today, I’m going to turn away from all the passing things of the world that attract my attention—food, money, and that self-sufficiency that hardens my heart to the reality of God within me. So beginning today, I’m going to turn away from all the passing things of the world that attract my attention—food, money, and that self-sufficiency that hardens my heart to the reality of God within me. It’s what we do as Catholics during Lent. We fast, we pray, and we give our money away. More important, we turn away from the bad news of our sins—all the things that threaten the eternal well-being of our immortal souls—and believe instead in the Good News of Jesus Christ. We do not deny our sinfulness; our Lord Jesus came to call sinners, and that’s us. Rather, we focus our attention on the good news that our sins are forgiven because that’s the direction in which we want to move. As a sign of our repentance and God’s pledge of forgiveness, we receive a mark on our foreheads. It’s like the mark Cain received from God. Cain, you remember, got so mad at his brother Abel that he killed him. He was kind of like the Tony Soprano of the Genesis story. So in punishment he was banished from the land to become a restless nomad, exposed to the dangers of life on the run. But out of love for Cain, God placed a mark on his head as a sign to all not to do him any harm because he was under God’s personal protection. The mark we receive today is a sign to all that we are sinners, like Cain, but we, too, are under God’s personal protection. In Jesus Christ, God has pledged to us eternal life and the forgiveness of our sins. Therefore, we are never afraid because God will always be faithful to the divine promise. Free from fear, our hearts are open to the approach of God and God’s offering of love, which works the miracle of rebirth within us. We are made entirely new creatures. The ditch of sin no longer has power to lure us in. We are free to travel the road that leads to life.

Authors Father Paul Boudreau

holy day/feast Ash Wednesday Joel 2:12-18 2 Corinthians 5:20-6:2 Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18

Restricted
Making our way back to God

Funeral, Sacrament-based, Holy Day, Holiday, Special Occasion - Sample homilies to be adapted for your use

Holy days/feast: Good Friday of Our Lord's Passion Readings: Isaiah 52:13-53:12; Hebrews 4:14-16, 5:7-9; John 18:1-19:42 A FEW YEARS AGO a woman was standing outside a church in New York City, hesitating about whether to go inside. Her name was Elaine Pagels, and she was a brilliant historian at Princeton University. Though her specialty was the history of ancient Christianity, it had been years since she herself had gone to church. Now she was in a desperate frame of mind. Her young son lay in a hospital a few blocks away, just diagnosed with an incurable disease. As she listened to the music drift out of the church and heard the liturgy begin, she found herself drawn in. Writing about this moment in her book Beyond Belief, Pagels said that she was looking for a place to take her fears and grief. Inside the church, she thought, were people who knew “how to deal with death.” Is that right? Are Christians people who know how to deal with death? Not in the sense that we have knockdown answers to the questions and the terrors that it brings. When the diagnosis comes back with our name on it, when brutal injustice is done to us or our loved ones, our world is shattered like anyone else’s. What we have, instead of answers, is Jesus Christ. In him God was pleased to dwell, and in him God himself entered into the fear and the grief, the questions and the terrors of this life. THIS IS THE AMAZING, fearful, and saving story that is our gospel today. Fearful, for this reason: The anointed one of God, God’s beloved Son, did not escape suffering or death, did not escape injustice. As Isaiah says, he was “afflicted,” “pierced,” and “crushed.” But this fearful story is the saving word to us because of who Christ was and is. Because it was God, the creator of the universe, who entered completely into this man’s journey toward death, entered even into the silence of the tomb, then our journey down that same road has to be seen in a new way. Our journey to Good Friday, and through all the Good Friday experiences along the way, is not a journey away from God or a journey away from life but part of the mysterious journey back to God. Our journey to Good Friday, and through all the Good Friday experiences along the way, is not a journey away from God or a journey away from life but part of the mysterious journey back to God." This is why Jesus can say on the cross, in his final moment, “It is finished,” and mean by that not “It is over” but “It is accomplished.” What has been accomplished? The fragile gift of life has been handed back to God. The other gospel accounts tell us that Jesus used his moments on the cross to offer forgiveness to one of the men being executed beside him and to pray for those who were putting him to death. The Gospel of John, though, reports that after saying, “It is finished,” Jesus “gave up his spirit.” The Greek words for “gave up his spirit” are sometimes translated “he delivered his spirit” or “he handed over” his spirit. That reading would be consistent with what Jesus is doing in the Gospel of John. He is trustingly handing his life over—not to Pilate or to Caesar but back to God. Jesus hands his life back to God in a particular way: by first handing it on to others. In the last moments on the cross he hands Mary, his mother, and one of the disciples over to each other, creating a new family. He takes their grief and despair and turns it into the occasion for new relationships and new responsibilities. This act of handing our life back to God is not something we do only at the end of life. It is in the nature of everyday existence. We are always expending ourselves, exerting ourselves. The question is whether we are exerting ourselves only to preserve our life and shore up what we have and our illusions of our immortality. Or, trusting that God is with us in this fleeting life, are we handing on life to others? The One who went to the cross, who embraces our life from womb to tomb, calls us to follow him into the dark uncertainties of this world. In fellowship with Jesus Christ, we can live in a way that hands life back to God by handing it on to others. And then we wait.

Authors David Heim

holy day/feast Good Friday Isaiah 52:13-53:12 Hebrews 4:14-16, 5:7-9 John 18:1-19:42

Restricted
Pass it on

Funeral, Sacrament-based, Holy Day, Holiday, Special Occasion - Sample homilies to be adapted for your use

Holy days/feasts: Holy Thursday: Evening Mass of the Lord's Supper Readings: Exodus 12:1-8, 11-14; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26; John 13:1-15 "AS I HAVE DONE, so you must do.” . . . “Every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes!” . . . . “This day shall be a memorial feast for you . . . as a perpetual institution.” Rarely does scripture gather itself so sharply around one idea: the handing on of a memory. Each reading is addressed to someone who will be reading far in the future and tells that reader—tells you and me—to hold on to something, with both hands. And forever. We can understand this. We do it instinctively, sometimes desperately. We try to hold on to things, to people, because our lives are often fragmented if not fractured, because there seems to be less security in our world. We want to pass something on to the next generation that will ground them and hold them sure and secure as they tumble into the future that is always unknown. And what scripture gives us are not only memories but actions: instructions for what we must do, not merely say. So Exodus gives us the Passover meal that remembers both a slaughter and an escape, blood spilled as a judgment and blood smeared as a sign of salvation. Jesus gives us the inelegant work of washing feet, setting aside our prestige and our egos like fancy dress clothes that must be put away in order to take up plain and simple service. And Saint Paul gives us the earliest biblical account of the Eucharist—a meal. We are to eat bread and share a cup, and in this eating and drinking the saving death of Jesus shall be remembered and his presence recognized in every generation to come. This has been handed to us, which is what the word tradition means: to faithfully pass on to the future what we have reverently received from the past—not merely as a formal ritual but as a treasure that allows us to touch a timeless event so truly that we become one with it, sharing its joy and sharing its meaning. We live it now. This is what has been given to ground us here and now. This is what we give to the next generation to anchor them in faith. We seem always to be in a hurry, always thinking about the next thing to do. Yet tonight, after completing the day’s tasks, we stop. We remember." We then, tonight, are “a people in flight”—not, we hope, from fear, but because we live in a rushing world. We seem always to be in a hurry, always thinking about the next thing to do. Yet tonight, after completing the day’s tasks, we stop. We remember. We recognize that like the Hebrews in Egypt, we can stop running for a while. We recognize that even in our rushing about, God is mindful of us even if we are not always mindful of God. Our anxieties come pressing in on us, threatening to overwhelm us like the armies of Pharaoh. We remember we are a people who need to be saved—who cannot save ourselves. But tonight we remember God delivers us and the body and blood of Christ saves. We then, tonight, are a people who are once again being given the great treasure of our faith: On the night before he died, Jesus took bread and wine, established a new covenant in his own body and blood, and said, “Do this.” And, “Remember me.” And tonight, we do it. Tonight we remember how this treasure-tradition began and what it means to a people in flight. We then, tonight, are confronted with the stark reality of one whom we call Master and Lord, who, like a towel boy in a locker room, takes up a menial task, washing the dust from our feet. It is servant’s work, not master’s work, but Jesus makes it his work. And he hands it on as our work. “As I have done, so you must do.” And isn’t it interesting that all these memories, all these actions, are connected with a meal? How important to a people in flight. The journey tires us; we grow hungry along the way. And Jesus invites us to come away with him to rest and be refreshed. To break bread. To recognize him. Tonight we end our Lenten journey. Tonight we pause in our hectic life journey, covered in the dust and sweat of the day’s labors, and here we are welcome. Here there is room at the table. Here there is something for us to do for one another. Here is a matter of life and death. Here is a memory. Here is the Lord’s supper. Come. Partake. Remember.

Authors Father Larry Janowski O.F.M.

holy day/feast Holy Thursday Exodus 12:1-8, 11-14 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 John 13:1-15

Restricted
Don't look up

Funeral, Sacrament-based, Holy Day, Holiday, Special Occasion - Sample homilies to be adapted for your use

Holy days/feasts: Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord Readings: Acts of the Apostles 1:1-11; Ephesians 4:1-13 or 1:17-23; Mark 16:15-20 THE PORTRAITS OF THE ASCENSION I like most are the ones that begin and end with Jesus’ feet. Of course the heads of the disciples gather at the bottom of the frame, staring upward with open mouths. But all we see of Jesus are his feet disappearing at the top edge of the picture. His great exit is in process, and all that will be left behind is the advice of a couple of angels. The disciples, for obvious reasons, are fixated on the heels of Jesus. But the angels tell them something we could take to heart, too: “Why are you standing looking up at the sky?” They remind the disciples that their focus should not be on the Jesus who is gone, but on the Jesus who will return in the same way. Although the Ascension is a pretty spectacular event from the perspective of those on the ground, our real concern is the Jesus who returns to us, in every hour until the final hour, and his coming kingdom, which we pray for whenever we pray the prayer he taught us. Don’t look up, the angels say. Look out. Look within! Don’t get caught up in what is already past, but see what’s happening right now. Participate in the kingdom, which is coming in every new decision, in each word and action, in your relationships, in the choice for love, compassion, and forgiveness! This angelic advice is all about perspective. If we focus too much on heaven, over which we have no control—if we view religion as a matter of “what goes up”—then we’ll miss what’s “going down” all around us. And that’s something about which we have a lot of control, not to mention a lot of responsibility. AS A FEAST DAY, the Ascension tends to get lost in the “what goes up” phase of our imagination. We, too, look up until our necks ache, forgetting that the story we’re being told is neither history nor biography, but gospel. The gospel is faith spoken to faith. The gospel speaks to believers about the meaning of what they believe. Once Jesus returns to his Father, our business lies not with the realm we can’t see but the busy, complicated, tangible world we are immersed in. Once Jesus returns to his Father, our business lies not with the realm we can’t see but the busy, complicated, tangible world we are immersed in." And what should we be doing in this world? Jesus gives some interesting advice to his disciples at the end of Mark’s gospel. He says, “Proclaim the gospel to every creature.” Jesus also offers signs that will accompany believers: Demons will be driven out, new languages will be spoken, deadly serpents will be handled without harm, and the sick will recover through the laying on of hands. Well, how are we to take that? Some Christians still practice “deliverance” from demons as a regular part of their ministry. Charismatics and Pentecostals speak in tongues and diligently engage in faith healing—sometimes even to the point of refusing medical care for themselves and their children. A sect of Appalachian Christians handles poisonous snakes at their worship services to prove their faith in the Holy Spirit’s power to protect them from harm. I do not doubt that there is a literal dimension to the power of the Holy Spirit to affect miraculous healing, to keep us from harm, to banish our demons, or to burst forth in the “language of angels,” as Saint Paul described the gift of tongues. But keeping our sight focused on the equally miraculous world around us—the world we take for granted as “normal”—we can still see these gifts at work. Who among us has not been amazed at the renewed experience of life after a fever is gone or depression clears and health is restored? Who has not felt the deep protection of God in the midst of crisis or grief or fear? How many of us have participated in the banishing of demons that enslaved us with addiction, habits of sin that tear us apart, or negative ways of thinking that once crushed our ability to hope? Haven’t we known moments when “the words just came out” and we knew what to say to someone in pain or in need? Is there anyone here who hasn’t seen an absolutely splendid day and praised God along with it? In the celebration of Jesus’ Ascension, we recognize that we ascend, too, through the grasp of what binds us to our brokenness and sin. In all these ways, Jesus comes again, and we meet him, eye to eye, right where we live.

Authors Alice Camille

holy day/feast Ascension Ephesians 4:1-13 Ephesians 1:17-23 Mark 16:15-20 Acts of the Apostles 1:1-11
All generations will call you blessed

Funeral, Sacrament-based, Holy Day, Holiday, Special Occasion - Sample homilies to be adapted for your use

Holy days/feasts: Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Readings: Revelation 11:19a, 12:1-6a, 10ab; 1 Corinthians 15:20-27; Luke 1:39-56 TALK ABOUT an exclusive job description! Only two people in the history of salvation are called “blessed”: Abraham, the father of nations, and Mary, the mother of the church. They are two such different figures that the comparison seems amazing, almost suspect. What does the famous founder of the Jewish and Islamic nations, one of the greatest figures in the Old Testament, have to do with the humble young woman of Nazareth? The stature of Abraham as forefather could hardly be rivaled by a Jewish girl from a remote town that was a bit of a joke to the surrounding villages. Remember the line: “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” Answer: Yes! Something very good in fact, something that would lead to mercy for endless generations. The people of Mary’s day would not have made the connection between this young female and their illustrious Father Abraham. Yet when Elizabeth comes out to meet her cousin, she is the first to call Mary “blessed among women.” And Mary knows it’s true. In her Magnificat, she proclaims that all generations will call her blessed, just as Abraham was once called a blessing for all nations by God (Gen. 12:2-3). This isn’t a case of adolescent bragging. Mary knows that it is God who has “done great things” for her and for the whole world, bringing down the powerful and lifting up the poor, reversing the fortunes of the world so that divine justice will at last be known to all. The mercy of God once promised to Abraham is being fulfilled in Mary. This is what makes her the “Blessed Mother,” as generations have called her. And we the church continue to be blessed through her patronage. The mercy of God once promised to Abraham is being fulfilled in Mary. This is what makes her the “Blessed Mother,” as generations have called her. And we the church continue to be blessed through her patronage." On this feast of the Assumption, the church celebrates the particular blessing of Mary being received, body and soul, into heaven at the end of her life. This event is not recorded in the Bible and is easy to dismiss as one of those supernatural occurrences that can, at best, have meaning only for Mary herself. What good does it do us to know that Mary had a remarkable exit? How can something that happened 20 centuries ago—under quite singular circumstances—speak to us now? Though the church did not declare the Assumption of Mary a dogma until 1950, the feast was celebrated as early as the 6th century. What moved Pope Pius XII to elevate this long-standing teaching to dogmatic status? The world had seen in a brief half-century two of the cruelest wars in history. What had been endured in the atrocities of the Second World War brought the degradation of the human body to new lows. The pope wanted to bring an awareness of the dignity of every human person before the world again. Just as the crucified body of Jesus was glorified in the redemption, so the suffering bodies of all men and women are neither forsaken nor outside of God’s watchful care and intention. THE KEY TO THIS MYSTERY is in remembering that Mary is the one through whom all generations would find themselves blessed. What is true for Mary is true for the whole church, and the mercy revealed to her is available to all of us. When we look at artists’ representations of Mary being assumed into heaven amid clouds and cherubs, we lose sight of the idea that God’s plan for Mary is no less real for us. God cares about human persons, body and soul, and does not intend for any part of who we are to be lost. If the Resurrection of Jesus broke through the barrier of death, Mary is the first recipient of this wonderful grace. Death no longer holds the sting of corruption over us. We are free to enjoy total unity with God without loss of how we know ourselves best, as creatures of flesh and blood, whole and entire. Unlike impersonal spiritual ideas that presumed an anonymous reunion with God as one great floating spirit in the end, the Assumption tells us we get to keep our selfhood, our charming individuality, all the way to the reign of God. The Assumption of Mary teaches us we have nothing to fear for ourselves or our loved ones or those countless strangers who pass through our world, however briefly. God will assume and rescue the unborn babies, the lost children, those fallen to illness and injury and old age, or cut down by violence. Human flesh is dear to us; it is also near to the heart of God. Body and soul, God lifts us up, and along Mary’s blessed way, we, too, find that the promise of God’s mercy is something we can count on.

Authors Alice Camille

holy day/feast Assumption Revelation 11:19a, 12:1-6a, 10ab 1 Corinthians 15:20-27 Luke 1:39-56

Restricted
Where do you meet Jesus?

Funeral, Sacrament-based, Holy Day, Holiday, Special Occasion - Sample homilies to be adapted for your use

Holy days/feasts: The Resurrection of the Lord: The Mass of Easter Sunday Readings: Acts of the Apostles 10:34a, 37-43; Psalm 118:1-2, 16-17, 22-23; Colossians 3:1-4 or 1 Corinthians 5:6b-8; John 20:1-9 or Luke 24:1-12 or Luke 24:13-35 DARKNESS, DAWN, a faint glow on the horizon—the first hour of the first day of the week. At the tomb Mary Magdalene was confused, frightened—the stone had been rolled away. When he arrived Peter was amazed. Hollywood would say, “This is the first day of the rest of their lives.” No, this is the first day of a new era, an era of light and life and love. Jesus came again and again to those who loved him. He didn’t appear to Pilate or Herod. He came to those who loved him, to those who believed in him. They met in Galilee, home territory, familiar places, where the disciples would be comfortable. He came again and again reassuring them until they really believed it had happened: Jesus had risen from the dead. It is much the same in our lives. He comes often to those who seek the truth, to those who long for him, and just like the disciples we, too, grow in love and understanding. It is much the same in our lives. He comes often to those who seek the truth, to those who long for him, and just like the disciples we, too, grow in love and understanding. Recently a woman told me this story. Years ago she was in the kitchen cooking a Sunday brunch shortly before Easter, when her oldest son, then 9 years old, came in and said, “Hey, Mom, there isn’t an Easter Bunny is there?” Surprised, she queried, “Why are you asking?” Her son answered, “Well, you know, the Easter eggs and the little chicks, they’re all symbols of new life because Jesus is alive. He rose from the dead! You and Dad hide the Easter eggs.” The mother smiled as she reminisced. Her son was nodding his head, encouraging me to agree because he was certain of his new understanding. “I think I burned the bacon that morning,” she continued, “and he and I had a little talk. He was so little and yet he had begun to explore the meaning of Easter—Christ alive within us. That was years ago and I am still touched every time I talk about it.” Of course she was moved by that memory because every time we tell our God-story, God comes to us again. We bring the past into the present and it is filled with grace. Telling the story: That’s what the first disciples did. Mary Magdalene first ran to tell Peter. Peter and the beloved disciple went to see for themselves. The gospel indicates confusion, amazement, fear, and even tentative faith, but I don’t think those disciples were silent. I can see them full of excitement, discussing some of the things Jesus had told them—the light beginning to dawn. Perhaps they started to spread the news: The tomb is empty! Did they tell Mary, Jesus’ mother? Did they tell Mary, Martha, and Lazarus? The point is from day one they told the story of how they experienced Jesus; maybe only with close friends at first, those who were safe, but I think they couldn’t contain themselves. Where have you met the Lord recently? Are you spreading the Good News? Perhaps you found peace in receiving forgiveness, or maybe you were the one who forgave and experienced that marvelous freedom in letting go. Blessed are those peacemakers; they are free of hostility and vengeance. Perhaps you met the Lord in the struggle for justice for the poor and the marginalized. Blessed are those who search for justice because they see the world with compassionate eyes. They are free from prejudice. Speaking of the poor, did you meet the Lord as you fed or clothed those in need? Did you visit those confined by age or illness? That is a blessing in itself. They have gifts to share that cannot be described. Perhaps just like the mother in the story I told, you met the Lord in your children—in the ordinary routine of everyday life—in the love and laughter of birth or birthdays—in the tears of love and sadness when someone has died. If we are open and attentive, we will meet the Lord again and again just as the first disciples did in the experiences of life. Rejoice in it! As disciples go out and tell the whole world. Let your world know by your words and actions that you have seen him; that he lives! And in that telling you can be amazed just as Peter was because you will meet him again.

Authors Catherine Collins

holy day/feast Easter Acts of the Apostles 10:34a, 37-43 Psalm 118:1-2, 16-17, 22-23 Colossians 3:1-4 1 Corinthians 5:6b-8 John 20:1-9 Luke 24:1-12 Luke 24:13-35

Restricted
A great light

Funeral, Sacrament-based, Holy Day, Holiday, Special Occasion - Sample homilies to be adapted for your use

Holy days/feasts: Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord (Christmas): Mass at Midnight Readings: Isaiah 9:1-6; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-14 “A people who have walked in darkness have seen a great light.” WHO AMONG US HERE this evening has not walked in darkness? We have known the darkness of fearful world events. We have known the darkness of our own pettiness. We have known the darkness of grasping when we should have held tenderly. We have known the darkness of broken promises—our own and others. We have known the darkness of unfulfilled dreams of our youth. We have known the darkness of disappointment. We have known the darkness of chronic illness. We have known the darkness of loss. We have known the darkness of impatience with others, even those we love. Especially those we love. We have known the darkness of envying what others have. We have known the darkness of giving up on ourselves and giving in too soon. We have known the darkness of feeling empty in a land of conspicuous consumption. We have known the darkness of resting easy with the status quo, even when the status quo means that children go to bed hungry, working families have no health care benefits, and men, women, and children around the world are being oppressed. We have known the darkness of sin and our own limits. But, ah, there is a star, rising in the East. On this night, the light of Christ shines anew. The light of Christ shines in our lives, our homes, our workplaces, and our neighborhoods. The light of Christ shines in the kindness we show one another. In our moments of generosity. In our acts of courage. In our exercise of virtue. And in our acts of wild abandon for the love of God. The light of Christ shines in the eyes of those we love, and in the hearts of those who love us. The light of Christ shines forth from you and me, and from all of us who gather here this evening to become the body of Christ. We live in a mixture of light and shadows. On this day, we are witnesses to the truth that the light has come into this world and the darkness cannot overcome it." We live in a mixture of light and shadows. On this day, we are witnesses to the truth that the light has come into this world and the darkness cannot overcome it. All the darkness in the world can never overcome even the smallest light. And the light of Christ is no small light. May we, in our joy and anticipation and our Christmas hope, dedicate ourselves this year to seek the light. To follow the light daily by the practice of our faith. To let the light of Christ shine through us to everyone we meet. We gather tonight, this glorious night, with our hearts full of hope and our faces aglow in starlight, to celebrate Jesus, the Christ, the light of the world. God has seen us even as we walked in darkness and deemed us worthy of this great outpouring of love: Jesus, God’s Son, becomes human for our sake on this holy night. “A people who walked in darkness have seen a great light.” Let us follow that light where it leads: to our best and brightest selves in love with God.

Authors Tom McGrath

holy day/feast Christmas midnight mass Isaiah 9:1-6 Titus 2:11-14 Luke 2:1-14

Restricted

← Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Next →