1st Communion Homily

My dearest children today is a joyful day for we gather here for your first Holy Communion. To our eyes we see bread and wine, but the one whom you will receive is Jesus. To receive Jesus is into your life is to allow Him to stay close to you. We stay close to Him when we choose to live our life for Him. The world is a busy place, but we must always make time for Christ. Continue to invite Him to enter into your life to dwell with you out of love. Continue to say “yes” to Jesus each and every day of your life.

To our parents please remember to take your children to Mass. Teach them how to pray and love Him. We are called to build up the domestic church which is the church at home. When we fail to assist at Mass we fail to be present with Jesus. We say that there is something else in my life which is more important then developing a relationship with Him. Saying “yes” to Jesus is not just for these children, but for each of us. Let us share in their joy each and every time that we receive Jesus.

Let us receive Jesus with great joy!

Divine Mercy Sunday Homily

This 2nd Sunday of Easter is also known to us as Divine Mercy Sunday. This word “mercy” comes from the Latin, “misericordia.” This derives from two words; “mesereri” which means “to have pity on” and “cor” which means “heart.” From this we are given the image of someone who shows compassion with all their heart.

We should notice that following the Resurrection that the Lord chooses to continue to bear the wounds of His crucifixion. These wounds remind us of the importance of the cross for through them we are able to see the mercy of God. It is He who was willing to lay down His life and thus show compassion upon us with all His Heart.

Saint Thomas comes to venerate these same wounds. He was found to be unbelieving, but through them He was allotted faith. So too through the mercy of the Lord do we come sinful and sorrowful and yet He shows His abundant compassion upon us and on the whole world. Through these wounds we are afforded the same faith that Thomas came to profess.

On this Divine Mercy Sunday we should desire to enter into this abundant font of mercy. In the sacraments the Lord has left us with many gifts which allow God’s grace to enter into our life to strengthen us. One of these gifts is the Sacrament of Confession. As we were instructed in our Gospel concerning this institution of the sacrament, “He breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.” Through the Sacrament of Confession we enter in sinful and are embraced by God as we are absolved of our sins. 

As the priest prays when he says the words of absolution: “God, the Father of mercies, through the death and resurrection of his Son has reconciled the world to himself and poured out the Holy Spirit for the forgiveness of sins.” One who pays close attention would note that the priest formally prayed, “sent the Holy Spirit among us” instead of “poured out.”

To pour out reflects the outpouring of compassion that God has for each of us. This compassion freely flows from the merciful heart of God. We must open our own heart to be found receptive of all that the Father desires to bestow upon us. What He desires to pour out upon us is found to be without end.

In the image of the Divine Mercy we notice two rays which denote blood and water that are poured out from the heart of Christ. It was from His side that He was pierced with a lace that opened up this flow of blood and water. It was His heart which pierced by our sins and those of the whole world. Through this outpouring of blood and water we see the abundance compassion that God has for each of us.

As we continue this Easter season let us come to place our trust in Christ. The more that we enter into this abundance font of mercy the more that we will be sent forth to love others without end. Let our life always be ordered towards Christ and let us be willing to let go of our sinfulness in order that we may be sent forth from Him to repent and believe in the Gospel.

Easter Homily

Christ is risen. He is risen indeed, alleluia!

In the Gospel of Saint John; Mary of Magdala, Peter, and John come to put together the puzzle that surrounds the Lord’s Resurrection. That day they expected to find a tomb that contained a dead body, but instead the stone was rolled away. The garments that were used to bury the Lord were found rolled up and laying upon the ground and the body was gone. This tomb was empty and from it sprung forth a great hope.

It is in the Gospel of Saint Matthew that Mary of Magdalene and the other Mary come to the tomb. Here they encounter an angel who sat upon the rolled away stone who told them that He had been raised. From here they encounter the Lord and thus they approached Him, embraced His feet, and did Him homage. They were commanded by Him to be not afraid and to spread the news of His Resurrection.

Our world is in need of this news of the Lord’s Resurrection. So often we allow all that goes on around us to thrust us down into despair. We must remember that the stone has been rolled away and with it springs forth a great hope. This hope is the fact that we have been redemeed. That sin and death hold no power over God. That the emptyness of the tomb is a proclamation of what is to come for each of us.

The message of the Lord’s Resurrection does not remain closed up inside of a tomb, but is taken outward from it. This message does not end with a few select individuals, but continues to spread throughout the whole world. We too must be concerned with taking this message out into the world in order that others may come to believe in this great hope. This hope brings light into a world that has been thrust into darkness.

As those in the Gospel slowly came to put together the puzzle pieces their despair was turned into hope. They came to believe and understand the importance of the Lord’s Resurrection. Let us not only believe in word, but in mind. We too must come to understand the importance of what we celebrate. If we understand this importance we would be here each and every Sunday for we would realize that Christ lives and through our celebration of the Mass we join with Him who has redeemed us upon the cross and risen on the third day.

The world will continue to be touched by sin. Those around us, including ourself, will continue to face the reality of death. There will always be something for us to fear. Nevertheless, there is still a great hope that shines brightly. That is the hope of Christ who continues to be present with us Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity in the Most Blessed Sacrament of the Altar. Let us continue to rejoice with Him as we continue to proclaim with the confidence of faith that Christ is risen!

Easter Vigil Homily

Christ is risen. He is risen indeed, alleluia! 

On this most holy of nights we proclaim the Good News of the Resurrection of our Blessed Lord. It is this news which springs forth from the depths of an empty tomb. Despite all that seemed to be touched by death the stone has been rolled away and life springs forth.

This night we welcome those who will be given new life in the waters of baptism. We also welcome those who will be received fully into the Church making their confirmation and first Holy Communion. Our prayers are with each of you for through this encounter with the outpouring of God’s grace your life will forever be changed for Christ.

We too need to be moved by this same outpouring of God’s grace. Our life of faith should not be regulated to a tomb to be left for dead. Instead our life of faith is to be sent forth, for it is alive, as we live each day for Christ and the Gospel.

There are some who see no hope in this world, but this empty tomb signals a great hope to us. Let us be people of hope as light has been brought into the midst of darkness. It is this light that shines forth brightly no matter what is taking place within this world. Let us be sent forth to live the Good News of the Lord’s Resurrection always.

Holy Thursday Homily

In all things Christ comes to fulfill.

Therefore this night the apostles gather with Him in prayer. In doing so they are carrying out the Jewish ritual of the Passover. It is Christ who becomes that sacrificial lamb upon the cross as He lays down His life for us out of love. In the course of this ritual He gives Himself to His apostles in the Eucharist.

In His words: “This is My Body.” “This is My Blood.” “Do this in remembrance of Me.”

The good and faithful Jew would realize that the Passover meal was to enter into that very day of the Passover itself. There is nothing that is symbolic in what is taking place. Likewise, it is at Calvary that time continues to stands still and we continue to enter into Christ’s saving action. For this reason Fulton Sheen once stated, “The Mass is the greatest love story every told.

This night we call to mind this reality of God’s love for us as we continue to rejoice in the gift of the Eucharist. May Eucharistic devotion be stirred up within the depths of our heart that we may do all things for the greater glory of God. To look upon the Eucharistic is to look upon Christ and to receive the Eucharist is to receive Christ. 

Let us always be changed by this life giving encounter with Him and be found willing to live our life for Him always.