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06 Jul 2014 - Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle A

Abruptly Jesus broke into prayer: “Thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth. You’ve concealed your ways from sophisticates and know-it-alls, but spelled them out clearly to ordinary people. Yes, Father, that’s the way you like to work.” Jesus resumed talking to the people, but now tenderly. “The Father has given me all these things to do and say. This is a unique Father-Son operation, coming out of Father and Son intimacies and knowledge. No one knows the Son the way the Father does, nor the Father the way the Son does. But I’m not keeping it to myself; I’m ready to go over it line by line with anyone willing to listen. “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly” (from Matthew 11). From New Message 4 Next Week (actapublications.com/newmessage4nextweek) based on The Message: Catholic/Ecumenical Edition by Eugene Peterson (ACTA Publications, 2014).

Rest Renewal Freedom

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Homily stories

10 Aug 2014 - Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle A

AFTER MY marriage ended, I hopped in a car and drove from Chicago, where I had lived most of my life, to Seattle, where my sister lives. I desperately needed to get away from everything for a while, and I had never taken a road trip before. It was scary but exhilarating to have no future plans whatsoever. My husband and I were 25 years old when we met, 41 when we separated—that’s a long chapter, and I had to do the hard work of closing it. I wanted to be totally alone and crawl inside my head for a while. What better place to do that than among the isolation of farmland and mountains and forests? But it was hardly a peaceful drive. Even the weather—a heat wave in Iowa, a blinding blizzard in Wyoming, a dust storm in Washington—matched my inner tumult. I put 2,000 miles between me and my problems—through seven states, four capitals, three Native American reservations, and two national forests before reaching the lush, green valleys of the Cascades. And—I’m not making this up—a rainbow arced over the dizzying peaks in front of me. Finally—like Elijah after the wind and earthquake and fire and the disciples after the storm—my head began to clear.

Authors Jennifer Tomshack

Hope Elijah Despair Renewal

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Many (not all) church officials repent handling of abuse

12 Feb 2012 - Preaching the News for Sunday

In all that we do, Saint Paul counsels this Sunday, we should “avoid giving offense” but rather should “do everything for the glory of God.” Catholic bishops and other leaders Tuesday held an unprecedented service of repentance in Rome, asking forgiveness “for those who have abused in various ways,” including the actions of church management which allowed the abuse of children to continue. "This evil is within us and severely tarnishes our testimony," Canadian Cardinal Marc Ouellet, head of the Vatican's Congregation for Bishops, said during the service at the Church of St. Ignatius in Rome. Church leaders have at times “become an instrument of evil” toward those they were charged to protect, he said. The service was held as part of a four-day symposium, held at Rome’s Jesuit-run Gregorian University, on the sexual abuse crisis called “Towards Healing and Renewal,” which brought together roughly 100 bishops and religious superiors from around the world, along with child protection experts. Representatives of six groups who were in various ways involved in sexual abuse--including the head of a religious order, a teacher, and a priest--apologized to Mary Collins, an abuse victim from Ireland who served as a representative of all abuse victims. At the end of the service, Collins asked God for the strength to forgive so that the church "may be healed." Collins earlier had told conference participants of her personal experience of abuse. She recalled the collapse of her confidence in church authorities when the archbishop she had confided her story to focused on trying to protect the "good name" of the priest and refused to suspend him from ministry. “We need to be vigilant in choosing candidates for the important role of bishop, and we also need to use the tools that canonical law and tradition give us for the accountability of bishops,” said Maltese Monsignor Charles Scicluna, the Vatican’s top prosecutor for sex abuse cases. “Bishops are accountable to the Lord, but also to their people,” said Scicluna, who serves as the Promoter of Justice in the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. “They owe their people good stewardship.” For his part, retired New York Cardinal Edward Egan wasn’t feeling particularly repentant in a recent interview in which he said he regretted apologizing for the priest abuse scandal in 2002 when he was bishop of Bridgeport. In the interview with Connecticut magazine, Egan said "I don't think we did anything wrong" in handling abuse cases. He said he was not obligated to report abuse claims and maintained he inherited the cases from his predecessor and did not have any cases on his watch, according to the magazine. Clergy in Connecticut have been required to report abuse claims to authorities since the early 1970s, according to attorneys who represented numerous abuse victims. Sources: Articles by Alessandro Speciale for Religion News Service, John L. Allenfor the National Catholic Reporter, and John Christoffersen for The Huffington Post

bishops edward egan sexual abuse clergy sexual abuse marc ouellet towards healing and renewal mary collins charles scicluna

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Bye-bye Brazilian Catholics?

24 Feb 2013 - Preaching the News for Sunday

In this Sunday’s reading from the Book of Genesis, the Lord promises Abram that his descendents will be as numerous as the stars in the sky. One might have said the same of Brazilian Catholics as recently as the 1970s when more than 90 percent of the nation identified with the faith. Today that number has plummeted to 65 percent. Alarmed at the drop, church leaders are trying new strategies to counteract the growing popularity of evangelical churches on the one hand and secularism on the other.Before Pope Benedict XVI announced he would vacate the papacy at the end of the month, he had been expected to visit Rio de Janeiro in July for World Youth Day, a large international gathering aimed at energizing new generations of Catholics. Many Brazilian Catholics were hoping that the trip would bring worldwide focus to the challenges of evangelical growth and secularism.One Brazilian response has been a Charismatic renewal that invigorates many Catholic services with the kind of liveliness that in the past worshipers found only in evangelical churches. Father Marcelo Rossi, a 45-year-old former personal trainer, has sold more than 12 million CDs and has celebrated Mass in a soccer stadium filled with tens of thousands of people.Some Catholic priests now perform “liberation Masses” resembling group exorcisms and welcome congregants who speak in tongues. While such aspects are frowned upon by some Catholics, the Charismatic movement has clearly struck a chord among many worshipers.Evangelical churches, especially Pentecostal ones that share this focus on the charisms or gifts of the Spirit, are growing rapidly and building megachurches. In São Paulo the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God, a multinational Pentecostal organization founded in Brazil in 1977, is spending $200 million to build a 10,000-seat replica of Solomon’s Temple.At the same time a growing number of Latin Americans say they have no religious affiliation at all, part of a worldwide trend, said Philip Jenkins, a history professor who teaches at the Institute for Studies of Religion at Baylor University. One sign of this, he said, is the drastic drop in fertility rates, which for the Catholic church means fewer children to be baptized and confirmed, fewer young candidates to become priests and nuns, and diminishing ties to the church for Catholic parents.Brazil’s fertility rate, at about 1.83 children per woman, is among Latin America’s lowest. “If I were a Brazilian cardinal, I would be even more worried about family size and fertility rates, which are a very good augur of secularization, than Pentecostalism,” Jenkins said.Homily hint: The challenges the Catholic Church faces in Brazil, though pronounced, are not unique to that country. The ranks of disaffected Catholics seem to grow daily, for a variety of reasons. Perhaps a parish discussion on how to help stem the tide of defections would be in order. Source: An article by Simon Romero for the New York Times

brazil brazilian catholics philip jenkins universal church of the kingdom of god liberation masses marcelo rossi secularism charismatic renewal evangelicalism pentecostalism

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Homily stories

02 May 2010 - Fifth Sunday of Easter, Cycle C

IN HIS VISION John of Patmos declared he “saw . . . a new earth,” echoing God’s words in the Book of Isaiah God: “For I am about to create . . . a new earth” (65:17). Camping on the South Rim of the Grand Canyon almost a century ago, Theodore Roosevelt took in the view and declared: “There it is, magnificent. Man cannot improve upon it; leave it alone.” Apparently the old earth was pretty good, too, as least as far as Teddy Roosevelt was concerned! There is not, however, as big a gap between the old and the new as one might think. For centuries Christians have believed that God not only wanted to but has renewed the earth—made it new again. The redemption Jesus brought to the world, Saint Augustine said, meant a restoration of love and beauty to creation lost through humanity’s habit of turning from God and seeing God in the work of creation. Renew, redeem, restore: These re- words all say “again”—an “again” of what was, a “newing” of the old; not a restoration of what was but a making new of what is. Biblical writers from Isaiah to Paul and John have called on creation, especially its earthly stewards, we human beings, to cooperate with God’s initiative to heal, to flourish, to love, to return to communion with God and one another in Jesus. We have been given a new commandment, a new covenant, a new heart, new selves. Let us in spirit and deed sing to the Lord a new song.

Authors Joel Schorn

redemption Renewal restoration

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A path to God's kingdom

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

Special occasion: Renewal of marriage vows Readings: Matthew 22:24-31; Luke 20:27-38 “At the Resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage but are like the angels in heaven.” SOCIOLOGIST Brad Wilcox published a book earlier this year called Get Married: Why Americans Must Defy the Elites, Forge Strong Families, and Save Civilization. Wilcox is the director of the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia, so he has spent his career studying the benefits of marriage and what makes a good marriage. In this book, he uses data to debunk some popular marriage myths. One is that unmarried people are happier than married people—the “flying solo” myth. Another is the “soulmate myth.” (Eighty-eight percent of young unmarried adults agree that there is a soulmate waiting for them somewhere out there.) He also talks about four groups who tend to do marriage well—people of faith is one such group—and what habits and practices benefit their unions, and, subsequently, their families and communities. He says this in the book’s intro: “Not everyone can or should marry. Nor stay married. But for most of us, getting married and forging a strong family is the best way to build a prosperous, meaningful, and happy life.” Wilcox has an exceptionally rosy view of how a good marriage can enrich someone’s life. But he also acknowledges: “Anyone who has been married knows that there are days, months, and even seasons of married life that can leave you angry, disappointed, or dispirited.” That said, he backs up his optimistic claims and insights with stacks of data. If you’re married, hoping to get married, interested in marriage, or wanting to support married couples, check out Get Married. Married people have the special gift (and challenge) of being the main sign of God’s grace, love, forgiveness, and mercy to one particular person: their spouse I mention Wilcox’s book because he’s an expert at marshaling data—and any sociologist will tell you that to obtain good data, you first need to ask good questions. That brings us, in a roundabout way, to this story from Matthew. Jesus explains to the Sadducees that their question concerning marriage is all wrong. They’re asking: “Based on how someone’s married life unfolds, how will things shake out for them in heaven?” Jesus doesn’t say outright, “This is a stupid question, guys!” But he does tell them that they are misled because they do not know scripture or the power of God. So let’s turn this question around. Based on what Jesus tells his disciples about heaven, how can married people live up to the promises they made when they got married? What can spouses do to help each other experience a foretaste of heaven? One thing we know is that every Christian is called, by virtue of their vocation, to be a sacrament to others—a sign of God in the world. Married people have the special gift (and challenge) of being the main sign of God’s grace, love, forgiveness, and mercy to one particular person: their spouse. Each day brings opportunities to demonstrate these godly qualities, and doing so benefits both spouses, not just the recipient. Back to the book for a moment. Wilcox sums up his findings in this way: “Giving ourselves to others—especially spouses and families—is the path most likely to lead us to a meaningful and generally happy life for most of us.” That sounds something like what Jesus told his disciples earlier in Matthew’s gospel: “Whosoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” People who have been married long enough might feel like married life becomes routine or even a little dull. But Jesus tells the Sadducees one more thing that we should note: at the resurrection, people won’t be “married and given in marriage,” but “they will be like angels.” Imagine that! Angels are divine messengers and guardians. Their bodies are spiritual, not earthly, and angels look upon the face of God. At the resurrection, Jesus tells the Sadducees (and us), everything will be transformed. This puts marriage in fresh perspective. Marriage is designed as a lifelong covenant, but that’s not the same as eternity. Spouses listen up: Your time together is holy. It’s limited. And it’s your path to God’s kingdom come—on Earth as it is in heaven.

Authors Heather Grennan Gary

Special occasion Renewal of marriage vows Matthew 22:24-31 Luke 20:27-38 valentine's day national marriage week

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