Easter 6 - Faith Is Our Rosetta Stone

 

Easter 6

May 10, 2026

Faith Is The Interpretive Key

 

            When Christianity came to northern Africa in the mid-300s, one effect was that people started to read and write in Greek, rather than in the old Egyptian hieroglyphics. After a while, everyone forgot how to read this ancient Egyptian language. For centuries, these pictures remained a mystery to archeologists and researchers, until a game-changing discovery in 1799: the Rosetta Stone. This stone told the same story in three languages, allowing people to place the Greek writing side-by-side with the hieroglyphs – and for the first time in the modern world, archeologists were able to interpret this mysterious language.

            Life can be mysterious, too. Why are we here? What’s the meaning of suffering? How can we find happiness? What’s the secret to a good marriage? Is there life after death? I remember coming across a book one time entitled, “Ten Best Guesses About Life” – the author said that he didn’t have any actual answers, but here were his best guesses about those deep questions that plague every human being.

            But goodness, doesn’t your heart cry out for something more solid than just a “best guess”? We need some sort of Rosetta Stone, some rock-solid interpretive key to understanding what life is all about – and thanks be to God, we have that. It’s our Catholic Faith.

            Faith is the interpretive key to making sense of the mystery of life. Pope John Paul II said, “It is only in the mystery of Christ that the mystery of man truly becomes clear.” Psychology can help us understand ourselves; therapy can give us insights into our behavior; science can shed some light upon what it means to be human; but only our faith in Jesus Christ shows us where we have come from, how we are to live, and where we are ultimately going.

            Where have we come from? Many of you who grew up with the Baltimore Catechism remember the first question: “Who made you? God made you. Why did He make you? To know, love and serve Him so that we can be eternally happy with him in Heaven.” It’s that simple!

            How are we to live? Jesus Christ, of course, is the model of our behavior. If you grew up in the ‘90s like I did, you remember the phrase WWJD – What Would Jesus Do. It was plastered on posters, tee-shirts, bracelets, every bit of Christian swag that my youth minister could find (looking back, it was quite cringe!). A nice, but incomplete, idea. We are to live, not just like Christ, but in intimate union with Christ through grace. In today’s Gospel, He speaks about giving us the Commandments…but also about giving us the Holy Spirit. We obey Him, but with the strength given by grace. We live a pure, forgiving, merciful, courageous, trusting, surrendered life – by His power in us.

            Where are we going? The Spirit puts the answer in our hearts – we were made for a better world, a place without the brokenness and sin that we wallow in here.

            And this sheds light on every aspect of our lives. What is work for? For developing our talents to the glory of God, serving others, and making it an offering to the Lord. What is the purpose of legitimate pleasure? It is meant to be a foretaste of Heaven. How do we have good friendships? By seeking people who are pursuing virtues themselves, so that we may be positively influenced by them. What’s the secret to a happy marriage? Imitating Christ’s self-sacrificing love. How can we suffer well? By offering it up to Jesus in love, and allowing it to purge us of our faults. How do we make good choices? By bringing them to prayer and seeking the Lord’s will for our lives. How can we be truly happy? By loving God with our whole heart, soul, mind, and strength, and sacrificing our life for the good of our neighbor. It is our Catholic Faith that helps us interpret the mystery of human life!

            So, I have a homework assignment for you. Consider an aspect of your life that perhaps you’re confused or unhappy or not at peace about. Maybe it’s a relationship; or your marriage; or your work; or a suffering you’re enduring; or some other stress in your life. This week, go and research what Christ has to say about this particular topic. Don’t go looking on TikTok or Youtube; go straight to the source: the Bible and the Catechism. The answers are there if we know where to look!

            And if we start to see the world through the lens of our Catholic Faith, what joy and meaning we will have! In the early 1900s, there was a young man from Poland named Jan Tyranowski. He was a quiet man in his thirties – a tailor, an introvert, a man who kept to himself due to his bad health and shy temperament. One day he was at Mass when the priest said from the pulpit, “It isn’t difficult to become a saint!” Jan realized that this was indeed his calling – to become holy in his own life – and his ordinary life began to make sense. He started imbuing his work with prayer; offering his bad health to God as a sacrifice; studying the Lives of the Saints; frequenting the Sacraments. The priest noticed that this young man became more fervent in his faith, so he asked him to help out with the parish youth group. Reluctantly – because he was still painfully shy – he agreed. But pretty soon, the Nazis invaded Poland and took the priests into the Dachau concentration camp – leaving the parish without any leadership.

            So Jan took it upon himself to keep working with the youth. He began secret weekly meetings at his apartment where young men would gather for fellowship, a spiritual talk, and praying the Rosary together. One day, a new young man named Karol showed up – and was very impressed by Jan’s spirituality. Karol had been questioning the meaning of his own life, but hearing Jan speak about everyone’s call to holiness, he realized that this was the purpose of his existence – to glorify and love God, and spend eternity in Heaven. Young Karol decided to become a priest – and later on became a Pope and a saint, St. John Paul II. For his part, Jan is now Venerable Jan Tyranowski – on the path to sainthood himself. He sought the answers to life, and found them in Jesus Christ and his Catholic Faith.

            Life is not a mystery when it is lived in the light of Christ, who reveals man to himself.

Easter 5 - The Early-Church Lifestyle

 

Easter 5

May 3, 2026

The Early-Church Lifestyle

 

            It was my first semester of college, and I was completely torn. I had made the college baseball team, and they practiced two hours a day, six days a week. At the same time, I had joined one of the “households” on campus (a “household” at Franciscan University is like a Catholic fraternity) and they had significant commitments – they prayed together twice a day, and had other events like mandatory fun nights (nothing is quite as fun as “mandatory fun”!). I couldn’t fully embrace either the team or the household, because both competed for my time and energy.

            Many Christians have a similar struggle. They can’t fully enjoy the life that Christ offers them because their time and energy are split between the soccer field, the office, the internet, the vacation home, and the Lord. But this was not the case in the early Church – we continue reading from the Acts of the Apostles, where the early disciples lived a daily faith that consisted of praying with fellow believers, the “breaking of bread” (the Mass), listening to the teachings of the Apostles, good deeds, and fellowship with one another. It wasn’t just a part of their life – it was their life, and it was beautiful and holy.

            St. John Vianney once said, “Religion must be about us as the air we breathe.” And Jesus in the Gospel calls Himself “the Way and the Life” – He’s not just one part of life, but He is life. He’s not just one way to live, but the Way. So, our Catholic Faith must become a lifestyle.

            That doesn’t mean we don’t work or play or go to parties. I’m sure those early Christians did all of the above – I mean, we gotta make a living – but everything in their lives were evaluated in terms of their Faith. Much like a professional athlete will sit down to dinner and ask, “What food will help me become the best athlete I can be?”, so a Christian must approach his day and ask, “What will help me become the best Christian I can be?” Christianity must become a lifestyle – otherwise it’s not authentically following Christ.

            So here are five very practical ways to make Christianity a lifestyle.

            First, start each day with a morning offering, and begin each activity with offering it to Jesus. Everything we do can be made holy if we offer it to God. For example, did you know there is a patron saint of soccer players? St. Luigi Scrosoppi was an Italian priest who taught at a boarding school for poor children, but he was best known as the kind-hearted, virtuous soccer coach at that school. He taught the kids that sports could develop great virtues such as fairness, courage, perseverance, and teamwork, and he would begin every practice and game by offering it to the Lord. All we have to do is pray, “For You, Jesus,” before we begin a meeting, a homework assignment, a chore, or even an enjoyable activity – and then do it in a way that pleases Him.

            Second, before making a life decision, ask the Lord and consider His will. If one were to take a hike, we would have to get a map. Before a battle, we to consult the general and get the plan. Before we embark on any life choices – we have to consult our King. If we’ve got a difficult conversation coming up, we say, “Lord, guide me – put Your words in my mouth.” If we have a choice to make about what college to attend, we bring it to prayer: “Jesus, show me Your will,” and then we pay attention to the signs He gives us, and the thoughts He inspires in our minds. No more trying to figure life out on our own – we were meant to live in desperate dependence upon our Heavenly Father!

            Third, surround your life with good Catholic media and sacramentals. I know many parishioners have done the “Bible In A Year” podcast with Fr. Mike Schmitz, and there are hundreds more such as “Godsplaining” or “Pints With Aquinas” which we can incorporate into our drive-time or workout routine. And while our ears are occupied with podcasts or Christian music, our eyes can be occupied with the sacramentals (things such as a crucifix, Rosary, statue of Our Lady, etc) that we fill our life with. I happened to be chatting with one of our seventh-graders at the school where I teach, and he opened his locker to grab something, and I saw a small crucifix hanging in his locker. Not in-your-face, but a subtle reminder that God is with us at all times.

            Fourth, the early church valued community – they “did life together”, as our Protestant brethren say. It used to be that the Church was the very center of the community – Bishop Caggiano, growing up in 1950s Brooklyn, reminisces about how the Church was also his school, sports teams, parties, dances, feast days, processions…everything in life was provided by the Church. He and the other families were bonded both by their Italian blood and by their Catholic Faith. That’s not the case anymore, which is why it’s important to be intentional about finding Catholic community. My sister in Maryland has a group of five Catholic families who all gather via Zoom every single morning at 7:30am for morning prayers together – and these are families with young kids (my sister’s youngest is two years old!). Many sociologists say that the increase in loneliness and anxiety is because our American culture has lost what they call the “third places”. We all have our homes (the “first place”), and our work or school (the “second place”) but throughout human history, culture and community thrives at “third places” – the front porch, the café, the local barbershop, and the church. As Woody Allen once quipped, “Half of life is just showing up” – half of discipleship is just showing up to be surrounded and supported by other Christians!

            Fifth, of course daily prayer should season our day with God’s grace. Most Catholics pray at night and at meals, but those “scraps of time” in between are also vital. Those five minutes in the restroom? Don’t scroll your phone – thank God for all the things you’re grateful for. Standing in line in Big Y? Enough time for a decade of the Rosary. Recent stats say that Americans spend 4.5 hours daily on their phones – if we can replace just a tenth of that wasted time with prayer, how quickly our lives would change!

            My challenge for you this week is to make a small change to incorporate Christ into your lifestyle. Offering your day to Jesus, asking the Lord for His will, surrounding your life with Catholic media and sacramentals, intentionally seeking community, and using our scraps of time for prayer. My friends, for the early Christians, their walk with Christ was not just something they did on Sunday. It was a way of life – which is why the early Church was overflowing with saints; why the Church quickly spread to the end of the earth. Jesus is more than a part of the journey – He is the Way. He is more than an academic subject to study – He is the Truth. He is more than just a part of life – He IS LIFE.

Easter 4 - Sharing in the Mission of the Church

 

Homily for Easter 4 – Good Shepherd Sunday

April 26, 2026

Sharing In the Mission of the Church

 

            The sign that a plant or an animal is mature is that it can reproduce. And the sign that a Christian has a mature faith is that they can also reproduce – by making other Christians.

            It is often said that the Church does not have a mission, the Church is a mission. The mission of the Church is very simple – Jesus outlines it in Matthew 28 when He says, “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them, and teaching them to observe all I have commanded you.” So the Church’s mission is threefold: to evangelize (make disciples), celebrate the Sacraments, and catechize (teach others how to follow Jesus).

            But the Church’s mission is not just for priests and nuns – it is for every Christian! If you’ve received the Sacrament of Confirmation, you are both empowered and required to bring souls to Christ – the entire point of that Sacrament is to make you a missionary in your own life!

            But let’s ask – why is it necessary for a mature Christian to have a hunger for souls? Because if we love Jesus, we must love what He loves – and what does He love more than anything? Souls! He would do anything to purchase our souls, even to death. St. John Bosco, who ran a boarding school for poor boys in Turin, Italy, had the following phrase inscribed over the door of his school: “Da Mihi Animas, Cetera Tolle” – Give me souls, take away all the rest. When young St. Dominic Savio walked through the door and read the motto, he immediately understood and said, “Ah, here your business is not to make money, but to make saints!”

            Jesus makes a pretty radical claim: that He is “the way, the truth, and the life.” He is not one truth among many or just one way to live your life. No, there is an exclusivity in what He claims – He is the only One who leads to Heaven, and that His Church is the only true religion. In fact, we believe that “outside the Church there is no salvation.” Does this mean that only baptized Catholics go to Heaven? Not necessarily. Rather, it means that anyone who is saved is saved in and through Jesus Christ – not through their own religion, deity, or spiritual practice – and that the Catholic Church has the fullness of what Christ taught and the best access to Him. This radical claim should spur us on to want to bring every soul to Jesus in the Catholic Faith. We were beggars who have found spiritual food in the Eucharist, so we turn to the hungry around us to share this feast.

            How do we do this? Our three readings give us the three ways to participate in the mission of the Church for souls. First, by prayer and suffering for souls. St. Peter’s letter, which we read as our second reading, speaks to us of the great good of suffering well, in union with Christ’s suffering. If Christ’s suffering saved the world, then our suffering can also help Him save souls. Not that we can add anything to Christ’s sufferings, but since we are members of the Body of Christ, we are applying Christ’s sufferings to Monroe in 2026. Christ wants to suffer and pray in and through us for souls, here and now, because we as Christians are called to extend the presence of Christ throughout history and throughout the world.

            Here’s an example. When St. Therese of Lisieux was in her teen years in France in the 1800s, she had a burning desire to pray for the conversion of sinners. One day, she happened to read in her father’s newspaper that a horrendous crime had been committed: a man named Henri Pranzini was found guilty of murder and would be executed in a few days. Therese made it her mission to pray and sacrifice for this man, especially praying that the Precious Blood from the Wounds of Christ would grant him the grace of repentance. But Pranzini showed no signs of repentance – he turned down the offer of Confession, and continued to grow angrier and more hateful as the fateful day approached. As Therese read the paper daily to check on his status, she only increased her prayers more and more fervently. Finally, the day arrived – and Pranzini was led to the guillotine, executed for his crime. The following day, Therese desperately checked the paper – and lo and behold, the article on the front page described Pranzini standing on the scaffolding, holding a crucifix and kissing the Sacred Wounds three times before his death! He had repented, at the last possible moment! Therese saw that as the answer to her prayer – the power of fasting and sacrificing for souls!

            But prayer should be coupled with words and deeds. Today’s first reading shows Peter using such powerful words that over 3,000 people were baptized that very day! (His arm must have been very tired from all those baptisms!) Notice that Peter did two things as he preached: he invited, and he explained. He gives very specific instructions: repent, be baptized, believe in the Lord Jesus. We, too, should be concrete in our invitations: “Hey, want to go to Sunday Mass together?” “I know you’re struggling with something, could we pray together?” “You look like you could use some peace and quiet – want to come to Adoration?” This is how Jesus worked – His first encounter in John’s Gospel were with two men who followed Him from a distance. He asked them, “What are you looking for?” They asked Him where He was staying, and He responded with those powerful words, “Come and see.” It was an invitation to meet their deepest need by coming to see Him – so we hear the needs of modern men and women: need for love, meaning and purpose, acceptance, forgiveness – and invite them to meet Christ.

            But our invitation must also be supported by explanation. What would you say if you invited someone to pray the Rosary, but they responded, “Nah, you Catholics worship Mary. I don’t do that.” How would you respond? St. Peter tells us in his letter that we should always have a reason for the hope within us. Do you know your faith well enough to explain it to a nonbeliever? We need to! Study the Catechism, read good spiritual books or listen to Catholic podcasts, dive into the Bible. We need to be able to explain our Faith – we could say to our unbelieving friend, “As Catholics, we don’t worship Mary; rather, we honor her, since she was closest to Christ on earth, she is closest to Him in Heaven. Now will you pray the Rosary with me?”

            Prayer is good, and words are good, but this must also be supported by the power of our witness. Listen to the words of St. Charles Borromeo: “Be sure that you first preach by the way you live. If you do not, people will notice that you say one thing, but live otherwise, and your words will bring only cynical laughter and a derisive shake of the head.” But to be clear – just “being nice” is not witnessing to the truth of Jesus Christ. Witness is directly commensurate to what we’re willing to sacrifice for.

            Back in 2015, twenty Christian Egyptian construction workers were captured by Islamic radicals and brought to Libya. These terrorists wanted to make a statement that Christianity is powerless in the face of the weapons and force of Islam. They brought them to a beach and gave them a chance to give up their Christian faith, but each of the twenty refused to deny the Lord. So the captors beheaded them one-by-one…but there was a twenty-first person who had been kidnapped as well. It was a friend of the twenty, but he professed no particular religion. But upon seeing his friends die for this Jesus, he said to the terrorists, “Their God is my God now.” And he lost his life as well – evangelized by the silent witness of the twenty who died for Christ.

            Sacrifice is what sets believers apart from nonbelievers. I used to have a close friend named Lance, who was an atheist. He and his wife had adopted their niece and nephew out of a horrifically abusive situation. The two kids were pretty broken and psychologically wounded – they had major behavior problems and were in-and-out of psychiatric hospitals. One day I was hiking with Lance and I asked him, “As an atheist, what do you think is the meaning of life?” He said, “I think it’s to make the world a better place.” Hmm, okay. I can accept that. But later that day we were talking about the struggles he was having with his kids and I asked, “If you had to do it all over again and adopt those kids, with all of their challenges, would you do it?” He thought for a moment and said, “No, probably not. It’s been too hard.” I thought – what a perfect opportunity to “make the world a better place”, as he claimed – but because it cost him something, he wasn’t willing to do it, because he had no faith, no desire to imitate Christ.

            The only credible witness is sacrificial love. Ordinary kindnesses can be done by pagans and atheists; but making a sacrifice for the sake of God is something only possible with the grace of Jesus Christ. We see this in the Gospel – Jesus is the “Good Shepherd” Who is willing to lay down His life for the sheep. If Christ had not died for us, would we believe His teachings? Would we know of His love for us? Probably not. Likewise, if a Christian does not die daily to himself, the world will not see the truth of Christianity reflected in their lives.

            My friends, we should be filled with a zeal for souls to come to know the love of God and win Heaven, because the mission of the Church is our mission, too.

Divine Mercy Sunday 2026 -

 

Homily for Easter 2 – Divine Mercy Sunday

April 12, 2026

Struck to the Heart

 

            The word “mercy” comes from the Latin “misericordia”, which is two words: “miseri” (suffering) and “cordia” (heart). So mercy literally means “suffering of the heart”. We say that in English – someone’s suffering “struck me to the heart”.

            And as we look at the Crucified Lord, we see that He, too, was struck in the heart. One of His most prominent wounds is that penetration into His side – which, ironically, is both an act of mercy for Him and for us.

            In the middle ages, soldiers would often carry a very short, sharp dagger into battle called a “misericorde”. If an opponent on the battlefield fought courageously but was mortally wounded, a knight would draw his misericorde and put him out of his misery, quickly and relatively painlessly, in admiration for the opponent’s courageous fight. One quick blow to the heart from the misericorde, and the suffering would be ended.

            Thus, when the soldier pierced Jesus’ side on the Cross, he was not merely seeing if Jesus had actually died; he was also providing an act of mercy for a heroic warrior who fought to the death.

            And so when Jesus shows His open side to Thomas, He is saying, “Behold, I have fought for you! I have fought for your freedom, your salvation. Put your hand in the wound which purchased everlasting life.”

            Every time I drive down I-95 or the Route 25 Connector, my eyes are assailed by those obnoxious billboards for personal injury lawyers. All of them have a similar message: “Hire Bob Smith, he will fight for you!” There is something deep within our hearts that longs for an advocate, someone who will take blows and sufferings on our behalf, and who will overcome an enemy greater than we can handle on our own.

            So when Christ shows His wounds, He is showing that He is our advocate! He has fought the ancient foe of death and Satan, and overcome him. Sometimes boys will show each other their scars, each one coming with a story: “This is where I fell off my bike…here is where I tried the 360 and landed on the stick…this one I got when I got too close to the fire.” Scars are a story of a challenge that has been met, and conquered. So Christ shows His wounds to the Apostles to tell them, “The enemy has been met, and overcome.”

            What does this mean for us? Three things. First, realize that God is on your side! It amazes me how many Catholics think that life is a test and God is just waiting for us to slip up so He can send us to Hell. How can we believe that when we see the wounds He endured? Clearly, this God is madly in love for us and willing to do everything to bring us to Heaven. Never doubt that!

            Second, realize that our scars will become our glory. Even Jesus’ resurrected Body still has scars – but they no longer hurt Him. Rather, they are now a sign of everything He has overcome. Many of us are carrying a lot of scars – we’ve been abused, bullied, rejected, hurt. We are struggling with mental illness, or addiction, or loneliness, or shame from our past. Turning to Jesus doesn’t make these scars disappear; it just gives us the strength to overcome them. When we arise on the Last Day, made new in Christ, we will still have our scars – they are part of who we are – but they will become a sign of what God’s mercy has accomplished in us, and no longer cause us pain.

            Finally, Christ gives us an example to imitate – many of us are called to suffer on behalf of others. Many of you may have seen the famous Italian movie, “Life Is Beautiful.” It features a Jewish man and his son who are arrested and taken to a Nazi concentration camp. But the boy is too young to understand what is going on, and his father wants to protect his innocence, so he pretends that the whole thing is a game. The father suffers greatly to hide the son and to keep him from realizing the full horror of the camp. Spoiler alert – the father eventually gives his life to keep the guards from finding his son, and the son is able to be liberated and reunited with his mother.

            Many of us are called to similarly defend others to the point of sacrifice. Parents, for example, must heroically protect and defend their children, both physically and (more importantly) spiritually. Those in leadership positions in a company should not be seeking their own benefit, but primarily the benefit of those who work for them. Anyone with influence over others will have to fight a battle for their freedom.

            Too often, people want to take the easy way out instead of suffering the wounds and blows that leadership entails. I see that in parents who just give in and give their kids cell phones without any limitations because they don’t want to fight their teens. I see that in leaders in the Church who won’t “rock the boat” by ever making a tough call or preaching about a difficult topic. I see that in our government who will allow corruption to run rampant because it’s easier than having to root it out.

            But to be a leader is to fight on behalf of others, and when we fight, we get wounded! So if you are called to any leadership position, prepare yourself for the battle, get ready for the wounds, and look to your captain, Jesus Christ, Who has fought for us first.

            And think of the great things that such wounds can accomplish! According to Tradition, the man who speared Jesus’ Heart was a Roman soldier named Longinus. He had poor eyesight, but when the Blood and water that flowed from Christ’s pierced side happened to gush upon him, his eyes were instantly cured – and he came to believe that Jesus is Lord. He became a Christian and suffered martyrdom in Italy – he is now known as St. Longinus. Christ’s wounds became his mercy and his healing.

            Mercy is found in the suffering, wounded Heart of our Lord.

Easter 2026 - A Holy Madness

 

Easter Homily

April 5, 2026

A Holy Madness

 

            My uncle is one of those tin-foil hat UFO chasers from California. He fits all the stereotypes, believing that aliens could read his mind and that trees can speak to us. In fact, his Facebook bio says that he is a, quote, “Revolutionary/Shaman/Wizard/Spirit/Troublemaker.” But I must admit that I believe something even crazier than he has ever believed: that a man rose from the dead.

            Just think for a moment how crazy that sounds. If I were to tell you that I saw George Washington eating at Bill’s, you’d think I’d lost it. And yet, I’m here to claim that a man who was brutally executed is now completely alive, forever and ever. He walked again on this earth, ate and drank, His tomb is empty, His body is glorified in Heaven. And that now this Divine Man should be followed as Lord and God.

            Seems like foolishness, right? Imagine how the early disciples felt. When Mary Magdalene told the Apostles that she had seen the empty tomb, Peter did something completely undignified – he ran. This would be a very inappropriate action for a grown man to do – but he didn’t care. He needed to know the truth. When he encountered the Risen Lord, he was so convinced that he spent the remainder of his life sharing that good news with others. Imagine the response he got, as he preaches the Resurrection in the first reading – most people discounted Peter as a raving lunatic. But those with faith to hear recognized in Peter’s words the only hope that really mattered – Jesus Christ is risen, so our life and our eternity now belong to Him Who has conquered death.

            Paradoxically, the Resurrection is the most reasonable belief of all. We know that the tomb is empty (no reputable archeologist in history has ever claimed to have found the Body of Jesus), the Resurrected Christ was seen by over 500 people, and many of the eyewitnesses died as martyrs, proclaiming that Jesus is alive. So though the world thinks us crazy, it is reasonable to believe in the Resurrection. I’m willing to bet my life that He is Risen.

            The great thinker Blaise Pascal said that if you believe Jesus is Lord and you’re wrong, there is nothing to lose, but if you’re right, then you have everything to gain. Conversely, if we do not believe in Jesus and Jesus doesn’t exist, then nothing happens, but if we refuse to believe in Him and He does exist, then we lose everything. So the rational choice is to believe in Jesus Christ – we have nothing to lose and everything to gain!

            After all, what is real craziness: believing that Jesus Christ is King of Kings and Lord of Lords, or believing that money, success, or pleasure leads to happiness? What is crazier: to give your life to Christ in the hopes of an eternity with Him, or to give your life to this world which will pass away when we die? I’d rather give my life away to God than to possess this entire fallen world. St. Paul says the same thing in our Scriptures: our life is hidden with Christ in Heaven, so we must seek the things that are above.

            And boy, does that look crazy to the world. It was a cold winter’s day in Grenada, Spain in the 1500s when an itinerant preacher named Fr. John of Avila came into town. He stood on a small platform in the town square and began to tell the townspeople of the good news of Jesus Christ. Out of curiosity or boredom, a small crowd began to gather, then grow. When he got to the part about Jesus Christ having risen from the dead – and how our lives belong to Him and to eternity – a wealthy man in the crowd was so moved by this realization that he climbed the platform with the saint and began to throw his money out into the crowd. “I will no longer live for this world! God alone! God alone!” he cried out, publicly telling everyone his sins and crying for God’s mercy.

            Well, the authorities couldn’t let this crazy man continue to make a scene, so they quickly took him to the local mental asylum – but he continued to rave about how he repents of his sins and believes in God. A week passed with the man still overwhelmed with tears and bursts of laughter. So the doctors summoned the man responsible: Fr. John. He met with the formerly-wealthy man, now poor and disheveled, and they spoke for a while. Finally, Fr. John came out and said, “This man is not crazy. He just believes with his whole heart. We would do well to do the same.” They released the man, who used the remainder of his wealth to open a hospital and serve the poor in town. Both men became saints – St. John of Avila, the preacher; and St. John of God, the great servant of the poor.

            I pray that all of you may be filled with the same holy madness. Love makes us do things that the rest of the world considers crazy. Forgiving our enemies. Forgoing the sports game to worship Christ at Sunday Mass. Staying faithful to our spouse, loving our difficult parents. Hoping for a Heaven we cannot yet see. And the craziest one of all: living and dying for a Man who is risen from the dead.

            So, yes, the wisdom of Heaven may seem like foolishness to this world. The truth of the Resurrection seems like madness to scoffers. But I pray that this kind of holy madness overtakes us all. After all, it would be truly crazy to choose this passing world over eternity!

Holy Thursday 2026 - Sacrament of Humility and Charity

 

Homily for Holy Thursday 2026

April 2, 2026

Sacrament of Charity and Humility

 

            The Eucharist is often called the Sacrament of Charity, but it can also be called the Sacrament of Humility. Both of these virtues are on display on this night, in two different but complementary ways.

            First, we see both virtues in the washing of the feet. It says in the Gospel that Jesus “set aside” his garments and wrapped Himself in a towel – this is a symbol of the Incarnation: when the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity took off His Heavenly glory and instead took on human flesh, the vesture of a servant. But this humility was motivated by charity – He did all this out of love for us: a desire to be with us, not just during His thirty-three years on earth but ultimately His desire to be with us for eternity.

            But the Holy Eucharist is even more humility, even deeper charity. In giving Himself to us, He has made Himself vulnerable. God puts Himself at our mercy. The priest holds Him in his hands; we have the power to do whatever we want to God! What humility! He even accepts insults and blasphemies, being received by wicked souls in mortal sin, because His love keeps Him here in the Eucharist.

            Throughout centuries, there have been many instances of the Eucharist being mocked or trampled upon, and yet Our Lord endures these insults with patient humility. For example, back in the 11^th Century in Trani, Italy, there was an unbelieving woman whose friends kept urging her to go to church. One day, out of curiosity, she went to church with them, and came forward to receive Holy Communion, but instead of swallowing, she took the Host from her mouth and hid it in a handkerchief. When she arrived home, she wanted to prove to herself that it was just bread, so she placed the Eucharistic Host in a pan of hot oil on her stove, intending to fry it. Instantly, the Host started to bleed…and bleed copiously, so that the blood flowed over the pan and onto the floor. The woman was shocked and summoned the priest, who then took the Host back to the church where it has been kept until this day. Our Lord’s humility in allowing Himself to be treated in such a manner!

            But this humility, too, is motivated by charity. Charity isn’t just about doing good deeds; it’s a gift-of-self to the other. To give oneself as food means that this Divine Person burns with a desire to love us, to be constantly with us! What a radical, even crazy, act of love – to say, “I want to be consumed by you!” As St. Therese of Lisieux said, “Do you realize that Jesus is there in the tabernacle expressly for you – for you alone? He burns with the desire to come into your heart!” It is love that causes Him to humble Himself.

            And so, we see that these two virtues on display this night are also the calling of every Christian. St. Augustine once wrote, “If you should ask me what are the ways of God, I would tell you that the first is humility, the second is humility, and the third is humility.” One of the more beautiful friendships in history is that of St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory Nazianzen, two of the early Church fathers who were also roommates at school. Gregory recounts that despite the fact that they were both excellent students who tried to outdo each other with good grades, their greatest rivalry was that of humility – they constantly tried to praise each other and take the lowest place themselves, to see who could serve the other one more humbly. Gregory writes, “Our rivalry consisted, not in seeking the first place for oneself but in yielding it to the other, for we each looked on the other’s success as his own.” What a beautiful and holy rivalry, to excel in humility!

            But humility is not for its own sake but for the sake of charity. St. John Paul II said, “Man can only find himself in a sincere gift of himself.” In the late 1800s, there was a talented young woman in Ireland named Catherine McAuley, who found herself single, alone, and out of a job. A compassionate wealthy couple hired her to manage their estate, as a personal assistant – and they grew to love her as a daughter. When they passed away, the left a huge fortune to Catherine. She knew she wanted to use it for good, so she started to give it away…but she felt like something was lacking. She soon realized that God didn’t want her to give away the money – He wanted her to give away her life to Him. She gathered some women around her and founded the Sisters of Mercy, known as the “walking nuns” because they walked through the city taking care of the poor, destitute, sick, and orphans. It wasn’t enough for her to just do good deeds – charity demanded that she give of herself, in imitation of Christ, Who didn’t just do nice things for us – He gave us His very self.

            These two virtues are inseparable – it’s very easy to boast about our works of charity, so we need humility to realize that all the good we do is simply because of God’s goodness. And we need charity to motivate our humility – we are able to take the lowest place and assume the role of a servant precisely because we wish to make ourselves a gift to others, out of love.

            The washing of feet, the giving of the Eucharist. Both witness to the cornerstone virtues of the Christian life – humility and charity, which make us like Christ.

Palm Sunday 2026 - What Did I Do To Deserve This?

 

Homily for Palm Sunday 2026

March 29, 2026

What Did I Do To Deserve This?

 

            Have you ever said to God, “What did I do to deserve this?” Maybe we lose a job, or get a bad diagnosis, or lose someone close to us, and we are filled with indignation – I’m a good person! What did I do to deserve this?

            Yet there has been only one perfect person in history – Jesus Christ. And for His entire life He had laid aside His glory to suffer the humiliation of human weaknesses – growing hungry and thirsty, suffering the pain of rejection, experiencing all the trials of human life. And this week He comes to the greatest humiliation of all.

            First, He enters Jerusalem, not on a chariot, but on a donkey. He is betrayed by His friend Judas. He washes the feet of His disciples. All of His friends desert Him. He is whipped, beaten, scourged, crowned with thorns, nailed to a tree, and abandoned to die. He, and He alone, has the right to protest, “What did I do to deserve this?”

            But perhaps we would be right to say, “What did we do that He deserved this?” It was precisely because we are sinners that He had to hang upon the Cross. He the Innocent One; we the guilty. We had sinned; He took the punishment. We had spat upon God; with His last breath, He forgives.

            So perhaps it is best that we do say, “What did I do to deserve this?” Not in anger or indignation, but in wonder and awe and gratitude. What did I ever do to deserve this forgiveness? This mercy? This depths of God’s love?

            Nothing. I could never deserve the death of God on the Cross. And that’s the whole point. It’s not about deserving. It’s a free gift of love.

Lent 5 - Jesus Wept

 

Homily for Lent 5

March 22, 2026

Jesus Wept

 

            John 11:35 is the shortest verse in the entire Bible: “Jesus wept”. I have had a devotion to that verse since college, when our intramural basketball team was called “John 11:35” because Jesus wept at how bad we were (I believe we lost every game). But apart from that, contained within those two words are a glimpse into the Heart of God. Why did Jesus weep? Three reasons.

            First, He wept because He was truly human. Christian hope doesn’t always take away the pain of life. Sometimes we think that if we had more faith, then it wouldn’t hurt us so much when we lose someone we love. But Jesus Himself wept – showing us that our faith doesn’t take away grief, but gives us hope in the midst of it.

            After the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, perhaps one of the holiest families to have ever lived was that of St. Emelia. Her husband is a canonized saint, along with her mother-in-law, and five of her ten children! But tragically, one of her sons died at the young age of 27. Emelia was overwhelmed with grief and struggled to find peace in it all. She stopped eating and became a recluse in her own house. But her daughter, St. Macrina, sat her down and firmly said to her, “You must stop grieving like those who have no hope! We will see him again!” Although that did not take away the pain, it gave her the hope to carry on. So the fact that Jesus wept for the death of His friend teaches us that it’s okay to grieve, to hurt, to feel pain, and that we shouldn’t expect our faith to eliminate such things – but, rather, that we grieve and hurt with a God Who grieves with us.

            Second, He wept because of the lack of faith of those around Him. It says twice that Jesus was “perturbed in spirit”, but the literal translation of the Greek is that He “snorted in spirit” – a deep pain, not based merely on human grief, but because of unbelief – the Jews still said, “Couldn’t He have done something?” Yes, of course He could…and He will, if they believe. It was much easier for Jesus to raise a dead man (who doesn’t resist) than to implant faith in a soul (who resists mightily).

            We, too, should grieve at those who go through life without faith. Many years ago I was celebrating Mass at Trinity High School in Stamford. We had daily Mass there before school, although none of the students ever came, and only a couple faculty members. But the chapel had a glass rear wall, so I could see what was happening in the lobby as I celebrated Mass. I’ll never forget one day that it was Spirit Week, so the school provided donuts for the students on their way into school. That day, I held aloft the Eucharist, Jesus Christ, the Bread of Life, and could look beyond it to see the two hundred students who had gathered in the lobby to eat donuts…and was struck to the heart that the entire student body chose donuts over Jesus Christ. Four people were there worshipping Jesus; hundreds were enjoying donuts outside. I had never felt so acutely the lack of faith in that school until that moment – and it was viscerally painful moment.

            So let us console Jesus by grieving the lack of faith in our culture. Yes, we’ve seen a small revival here at St. Jude’s, but a March Gallup poll still shows that 24% of Americans claim no religion (35% under age 30), and 53% of all Americans say that religion is not very important in their lives. These are not statistics – they are souls, souls who have an eternal destiny, souls who are thirsting for the love that Jesus alone can give. As we grieve with Jesus over this lack of faith, we can console Him by bringing souls to Jesus – living for Him, inviting others to encounter Him at Mass and in prayer, and speaking of Him to everyone we meet.

            Finally, Jesus weeps because death is a consequence of sin – and He is grieved about that reality. Death was not part of God’s original plan – it entered as a painful remedy to the disorder that humanity caused due to original sin. I say “remedy” because it would be intolerable to live forever in this broken world. I can’t tell you how many elderly people I visit who ask me, “Father, why hasn’t the Lord taken me yet? I’m ready to go!” Death is our escape-hatch out of this battlefield called life, the release to a world where sin cannot touch us.

            Human beings are a unity of body and soul, so what happens to the soul is reflected in the body. Perhaps you’ve seen a person’s body-language show that they were unhappy, or maybe you’ve seen a peace and joy reflected in someone’s eyes. Likewise, the result of sin (which is spiritual death) is physical death – even St. Paul says this in Romans: “The wages of sin is death”. Hence, Jesus is grieved that death exists at all, since it is the natural consequence of sin.

            So then, the raising of Lazarus has profound spiritual implications. If Jesus can take away death which is the consequence of sin, we realize that He can take away sin itself – which is far worse than death. Last spring I went on retreat in New Hampshire and visited an Orthodox monastery for Vespers (Evening Prayer). It was a long service, and about a third of it was the monks chanting, “He has defeated death by death! He has defeated death by death!” This is the heart of the Christian message – death and the sin that leads to it will be defeated, once and for all, by Christ, the Savior of Mankind.

            In John’s Gospel, this is Jesus’ final miracle before His passion. In a sense, it is a foreshadowing of the Resurrection. Jesus has the power to conquer death once and for all, which He will do in two short weeks by walking out of His own tomb. And He promises that all who live and die united to Him through grace will be assured of their own Resurrection.

            So while Jesus may weep here on earth – and while we weep with Him, because of sin, death, and faithlessness - there will come a day when all tears are wiped away. There will be no more death or suffering, no more mourning or tears, when He Who has already conquered death returns again to bring us a life that will never end.

Forty Years I Endured That Generation

 

Forty Years I Endured That Generation

Fr. Joseph Gill

            I teach a Confirmation class of about 65 kids – eighth graders from the public school in a middle-class town in Connecticut. These kids are not from particularly devout families, and many of them were not churchgoers until it was mandated by our Confirmation program. But a few weeks ago as the lessons were drawing to a close, I asked if any of the teens would be interested in continuing to study their Faith after Confirmation, since the Sacrament isn’t graduation but the next step in a lifelong walk with Christ. I was unprepared for the response.

            Two-thirds of my class enthusiastically signed up. They said that they were hoping we could keep holding classes throughout their entire high school career! What a powerful outpouring of the Spirit – even before the Sacrament had been received!

            Much has been written about the renaissance of grace being experienced by youth and young adults in the Church. I have seen it in my own parish: our average age is trending down, led by parents with young kids and Gen-Z young adults, especially young men. Pixels and ink have been spilled about the cause of this revival: a search for truth in a relativistic culture; a hunger and an emptiness after being fed the pablum of our modern world; profound loneliness, especially among young men, and a desire to live for a cause bigger than oneself.

            All of these are true, and I’ve seen these existential issues manifest in my work with youth and young adults. But I’d like to add a theological reason for this revival of faith among the young: this outpouring of grace among the next generation is profoundly parallel to what God did – and promised – in the Old Testament.

            Picture this scene: the Israelites, after having been enslaved for approximately 450 years in Egypt, were finally liberated through the most remarkable signs and wonders that the world had ever seen. Ten vicious plagues upon their enemies, culminating in the death of the first-born…a giant ocean splitting in two, allowing them to walk through on dry ground…bread miraculously appearing from Heaven and water gushing from a cleft rock…seeing the tremendous mystery of God appearing in thunder and trumpet blast on Mount Sinai.

            But even with all of these miracles, did the Israelites believe? They were utterly faithless. Crafting a molten idol out of gold, appointing a leader to return to Egypt, grumbling against the Lord in the wilderness. Time and again, God forgave their faithlessness…until it became too much to bear.

            The decisive moment occurred at the edge of the Promised Land. It was only about a three-month journey from Egypt to the banks of the Jordan, and God told the Israelites that they could easily take the land – He would fight on behalf of His people. But the people refused. Their faithlessness had reached fever pitch, and despite the mind-blowing marvels they had seen, they refused to believe that God was with them, and made plans to return to Egypt.

            So in retribution, God swore that the entire populous would wander in the desert until the faithless generation died out. For forty years they wandered, until the faithless adults had perished, and the younger generation of children had grown up. Led by Joshua, they were ready to inherit the land and the promises.

            Can we not see a parallel to our situation in the Church? The time immediately before the Council could be considered a “golden age” of Catholicism. We had a future saint who won an Emmy with one of the most popular TV shows of the decade (Bl. Fulton Sheen’s “Life Is Worth Living”), seminaries were full, popular culture portrayed Catholicism in a favorable light (think of Bing Crosby’s “Bells of St. Mary’s”), and we had even elected a Catholic president – unthinkable merely a few decades prior. It was as if God had granted us exceptional and extraordinary graces to win the world for Christ.

            And this was precisely the intent, presumably, of the Second Vatican Council. Open wide the doors of Catholicism, that all might come in! This was our “Promised Land” moment – if we had kept faith with God and remained faithful to Scripture and Tradition, we would have experienced that new springtime in faith that John Paul II could only dream about.

            But just as a few faithless leaders corrupted all of Israel to turn away from the Lord, a few corrupt clergy turned the Church away from the authentic faith passed down from the Apostles. Not everywhere, mind you – but in many boots-on-the-ground parishes, we saw faithlessness in the vapid liturgies, heterodox preaching and teaching, the sexual abuse scandal simmering beneath the surface, wholesale rejection of moral theology, and a faith that had been gutted of its grandeur, truth, and challenge.

            So what did the Lord do? He withdrew His blessing until this generation could pass away. Those who came of age in the 1960s had forty years of influence in the Church – not all bad, but certainly it was a “desert” experience for many Catholics. Now, as that generation has ceded to a younger and more faithful one, God is once again leading us to the cusp of the Promised Land where a new outpouring of the Spirit may once again lead to full pews and vibrant saints.

            During the forty years in the desert, we had some great lights sustaining us: Pope John Paul II, Mother Angelica. The flourishing of the Franciscan University experiment. Cardinal Arinze, Mother Teresa. The rise of the Catholic homeschooling movement; the “underground” traditional liturgies we used to attend. These beautiful works of God kept the Barque of Peter afloat until God could do a new thing with a new generation. But these lights were few and far between in an otherwise-arid land. Now, He is ready to unleash a new torrent of grace on a new generation, since the ones who led us astray have puttered off into the sunset.

            Pastor Rick Warren once wrote, “Do not ask God to bless what you’re doing, ask God that you may do what He’s blessing.” And we see what He is blessing these days: traditional Masses, young people vibrant with the faith, religious orders who live their vows radically, schools that are faithful to the Magisterium. We must seize this opportunity by focusing our efforts where God is already blessing, and put our Church’s resources where the Holy Spirit is moving!

            This isn’t to say that we can write off the Boomer, Gen X, or Millennial generation. They are souls, too, who need the grace of God. But we shouldn’t allow the Catholic revival to be stymied by them, if their perspectives are still dwelling in the past. A few days ago a brother priest lamented that he couldn’t get people to come to his church – it was empty and mostly grey-haired, in a neighborhood that trended younger. I asked him about his Masses – was the preaching solid? How was the music? He admitted that his music director still played the same songs (unworthy of the name “hymns”) from the ‘70s and ‘80s, the Marty Haughen-St. Louis Jesuits fare, thinking they were “contemporary”. (No, fifty years ago is not contemporary). Ah, my brother priest, I see where your problem lies.

            God promised in the Psalms, “Forty years I endured that generation; I said, ‘They are a people who go astray, and they do not know My ways’ – so I promised in My anger, ‘They shall not enter into My rest.’”. He is now giving an outpouring of grace because the next generation is standing on the edge of the Promised Land. Will the Church respond? Not by using its resources to prop up dying schools which have only the mere semblance of Catholicism, empty parishes where the authentic Gospel has ceased to resonate, leaders who do more harm than good. No, we must see what God is blessing – souls, parishes, leaders, and schools that are faithful to all Christ has taught us - and make this the authentic expression of Catholicism. Then we will be the faithful generation whom He has made fit to inherit His gifts!

Lent 3 - The Samaritan Woman At the Well

 

Homily for Lent 3

March 8, 2026

Jesus and the Samaritan Woman

 

            A pastor was once preaching about humility, and he spoke about how Jesus humbly rode into Jerusalem on a donkey on Palm Sunday. He was urging people to approach God as humbly, and asked rhetorically, “Do we come into church on a donkey?” A woman in the back pew pointed to her husband and called out, “No, but I came into church with one!”

            Frequently when Jesus wants to speak of spiritual things, people can only think of earthly things. He says that He is the living bread, and people ask, “Where’s the free food?” He tells Nicodemus that we must be born again to enter Heaven, and Nicodemus is left wondering how it’s possible for a full-grown man to re-enter his mother and be born a second time. And today is a similar theme of Jesus speaking spiritually, while the Samaritan woman is thinking only of solving earthly problems. But gradually, bit by bit, she comes to the realization of who Jesus is and what He’s offering…and it is far better than unlimited water.

            First, some background. In 922 BC, the Kingdom of Israel split in two. The tribe of Judah remained in the south with one other tribe, while the other 10 stayed in the north and became the nation of Israel. But a couple centuries later, the Assyrians attacked Israel and carried them off to exile. Into the now-empty land, they settled five foreign pagan tribes, each of whom brought their own pagan gods to the land.

            When Israel was able to return in the 520s BC, they found their land occupied. But unlike the tribe of Judah, who separated themselves from their pagan neighbors, Israel began to intermarry with the pagans and corrupt the pure Jewish bloodline – these people became known as the Samaritans, after their largest city of Samaria. As a result, the Jews would not allow the Samaritans to worship in Jerusalem – instead, they had to set up a separate temple on Mount Gerazim. This is why the Jews and the Samaritans had such animosity – the Jews saw the Samaritans as dirty half-breeds who had corrupted the worship of God with paganism.

            But as part of the Father’s perfect plan, Jesus was to reconcile all people with God, even these dirty half-breeds. It says that Jesus “had to” pass through Samaria. It wasn’t a necessity, since most Jews just took an alternate route around the country of their enemies – but He “had to” in the sense that this was the Father’s plan. He rests at a well – if you know the Old Testament, you know that the patriarchs – Isaac, Jacob, Moses – met their wives at a well. Resting here is a deliberate choice, because Christ is going to try to win over her heart. Christ’s Bride is the Church, and this Samaritan woman will be a prized member.

            She comes at noon, alone – a strange occurrence, because in Jesus’ day women drew water in the cool of the morning and evening, and always in groups for safety. To come alone at noon means this woman is an outcast. Jesus breaks with convention on every level – He converses with a woman alone, a Samaritan, and asks for something that would break Jewish purity laws – to share a cup of water together.

            The woman is initially confused by the request. But Jesus tells her that He has a greater gift: living water. In Jewish parlance, “living water” simply means running water, like a brook – this is a much more sanitary option than the stagnant water of a well. So she is intrigued, and hopeful that she will no longer have to perform the task of drawing water. But, again, she misunderstands – Jesus is speaking of the Holy Spirit, which is like Living Water – the Spirit causes all virtues to grow in us like water grows plants, and cleanses us of sin like water cleanses the body. The woman responds cynically – but also ironically, as she asks, “Are you greater than Jacob, who gave us this well?” She is expecting Him to say no – when in reality, He is far, far greater than Jacob.

            So Jesus speaks about her illicit marriage situation and reveals the five husbands. This is a symbol of those five pagan nations with whom the Israelites had intermarried. Instead of remaining faithful to the true God, the Samaritans had committed spiritual adultery with pagan ones. The woman, recognizing that Jesus is a prophet, asks Him a theological question. She’s not trying to change the topic so much as she sees an opportunity to settle the great dispute that had been raging for five hundred years between the Samaritans and Jews: how should God be fittingly worshipped?

            Jesus answers that, currently, the Jews have it right: the Temple in Jerusalem is the place to worship. But He also tells her that this is coming to an end – there will be a new right worship of God: the Holy Mass. And we know that in 70 AD, a generation after the death of Christ, the Temple of Jerusalem was destroyed and never rebuilt. Because we are now, right here at this very Mass in Monroe, giving God the worship in spirit and truth. We can call the Mass “true worship” because the Mass will last until the end of time – there will never be another form of worship more pleasing to God. The Jewish sacrifices were only a shadow of the Sacrifice of the Mass, which makes present in an unbloody way the Sacrifice of Christ on Calvary. The Cross is re-presented here, which makes this is the perfect offering, the true worship, and it will last until the end of time. We sing at every Mass, “We proclaim Your Death, O Lord, and profess Your Resurrection, until You come again” – the Mass will never end until Christ returns. Literally at every single minute of the day, somewhere in the world, the Mass is being offered. What the prophet Malachi stated in the Old Testament has been fulfilled in the Mass: “For from the rising of the sun even unto its setting, my name shall be great among the Gentiles; and in every place incense shall be offered unto my name, and a pure offering.”

            The woman then talks about the Messiah, and Jesus responds with a powerful Greek phrase: “Ego eimi”. We translated it as “I am He” but it literally means “I AM” – the Divine Name. Recall when Moses met God in the burning bush, he asked God His Name, which was “Yahweh” – I AM. This means that God is the source of all existence in the universe, that He is Being Itself, and that all time is present to Him. And this very Creator God is made incarnate in Jesus Christ, sitting by a well in front of this loose woman from a half-breed tribe.

            We could go on, but I think there are two practical takeaways from this Gospel. First, it doesn’t matter what we’ve been through or what we’ve done, but God is constantly seeking to win your heart back to Him. You could be an outcast, an adulteress, a public sinner, from the “wrong race”, but Christ thirsts for your love, and is reaching out to you at this very moment. The woman came to faith and repentance, and then became a passionate evangelist as she told everyone about Jesus – no matter your past history with sin or rejection, you are also loved, called to holiness, and given a share in His mission of leading souls to Heaven.

            Second, how we worship is important. I meet many people who say, “Oh, I have a great relationship with God, but I don’t go to Mass.” We cannot have a good relationship if we ignore how He told us to praise Him! Jesus was clear about the proper way to worship God when He gave us the Eucharist and said, “Do this in remembrance of Me.” So the Mass is the highest act of worship we can engage in, and if we wish to have a right relationship with God, then the Mass is the way to give Him the praise He deserves.

            This story of Jesus meeting the Woman at the Well is a powerful story – not a physical miracle of Jesus, but an even more valuable interior miracle of an outcast woman finding faith, hope and healing in Christ.

Lent 2 - The Road to Glory Leads Through the Cross

 

Homily for Lent 2

March 1, 2026

The Road to Glory Leads Through the Cross

 

            The world loves a good Cinderella story – rags-to-riches, where a person in abject poverty and suffering ends up with a glorious ending. We have one like that in our Catholic Faith – St. Germaine Cousins.

             She was born with a deformed hand and a skin disease. Her mother died in childbirth and because of her deformities and disease, her stepmother forced her to live out back in the barn. She never received a bit of kindness from her stepmother or her other siblings, and was forced to endure the cold winters and hot summers and loneliness, with only bread and water as her sustenance. Yet she never complained, and would speak kindly to her cruel stepmother (sounds like a Catholic Cinderella, right?). She attended daily Mass and prayed the Rosary frequently, and would often give her meager bread to beggars. Because of her intense love for the Lord, miracles started happening around her – at times the swollen river would part so she could attend Mass, and when she would be off at Mass, she would plant her shepherd’s crook in the ground and no sheep ever wandered away. People began to notice her holiness and came to her for advice, even though she was only in her late teens! Finally, her stepmother relented and allowed her back in the house, but she refused, wanting to offer her sufferings as penance for sinners. She died at the age of 22.

            Okay, so where’s the “riches” part of this rags-to-riches story? Well, as a saint in Heaven, she is receiving far more glory and joy than can ever be imagined: the vision of God for eternity, no suffering, the company of the saints, life without end – does this not more than make up for what she endured on this earth?

            One of the most profound truths in the spiritual life is that the road to Heaven leads through the Cross. Always, always, always. St. John of the Cross writes, “[We must] come at last to see that it is quite impossible to reach the riches and the wisdom of God except by first entering the thicket of much suffering. The gate that gives entry to these riches is the Cross. Many seek the joys that can be gained through it, but few desire to pass through it.”

            This is a beautiful image. Imagine that one were to be standing outside of the finest mansion, filled with joy and celebration and riches and love, but the doorkeeper said, “You can come in and take possession for the rest of your life, but first you must endure one hour of suffering.” Hopefully we would say a wholehearted yes to this exchange! And yet, with an eternity with God behind the door of death, so often we are unwilling to make any sacrifices whatsoever to obtain Him!

            But why does the road to Heaven pass through the Cross? For two reasons. First, because in this fallen world, love is suffering. In fact, St. Padre Pio said, “The proof of love is to suffer for the one you love.” If Jesus were merely to prick His finger and shed a drop of His Precious Blood, that would have been enough to redeem the world – but would it be enough to show us the unfathomable depths of God’s love for us? No, for this, He needed the Cross – to show us a God Who would rather die than spend eternity without us. To willingly suffer in union with Christ is the most profound act of love we can give Him; and to willingly suffer for others puts our love into action. Without suffering, love becomes a mere sentimental notion – suffering makes love real.

            Secondly, though, suffering purifies us and strips us of all the idols we make. Have you ever had to rip off a bandage or a piece of tape that had stuck to our flesh? How painful that is! Likewise, we become attached to all sorts of things – some of which are bad things (greed, lust, pride, sin) but some of which are good in themselves but are not our greatest good (attachments to honors, pleasures, possessions, even family and friends). We become so attached that God has to “rip them off” so that He becomes our only love.

            Our Buddhist brothers and sisters believe that desire is the cause of all unhappiness – therefore, they try to eliminate all of their desires, so they might find inner peace. But Christians believe that desires are good when they are ordered properly – we can desire a good steak, but not on a Friday in Lent. We can love our family and friends, but we must love God more. But due to our fallen world and the sin we all struggle with, we tend to have disordered desires – to desire things that are not our greatest good. It is suffering, then, to re-order our desires, when we don’t get what we want (health, money, success, etc) so that we may desire God alone.

            Suffering is unpleasant – that’s why, when Peter gets a glimpse of the glory of Jesus, he wants to build tents. He wants to dwell on this mountain, safe from the cares of this world, with Jesus the King. He will find it much harder to stay on Mount Calvary, with Jesus the Crucified One. And see the parallels here: today Jesus appears with radiant garments, but in forty days He will be stripped of His garments. Today He is flanked by the two great heroes of Judaism: Moses and Elijah, but on Good Friday He will be flanked by two common criminals. There is a brilliant light coming from the cloud declaring Jesus to be the Son of the Father, but on Calvary, the sun will be darkened and even Jesus will cry out, “My God, my God, why have You abandoned Me?” The Transfiguration was a glimpse of the glory, but the glory that can only be obtained by passing through the Cross.

            So do not be afraid of suffering when it comes. It is inevitable in life. But use it well – make it an act of love by uniting it to Christ’s Cross, and let it strip you of your attachments so that you can cling to God alone. And in this way the Cross will be the path leading to the Resurrected glory.

Ash Wednesday Homily - To Be, Rather Than To Appear

 

Homily for Ash Wednesday

February 18, 2026

To Be, Rather Than To Appear

 

            State mottos are funny things. For example, the state motto of Montana is “Gold and silver” – a little blunt! Some are inspiring – New Hampshire is “Live free or die.” Some are just strange – Oregon’s state motto is “She flies with her own wings”. But one stands out for its antiquity: North Carolina’s state motto is Esse quam videri – To be, rather than to appear. That quote originates in the ancient Roman author Cicero, a hundred years before Christ.

            But isn’t this exactly what Christ challenges us today? To be a Christian, rather than to appear as one. Fasting, almsgiving, and prayer are the three great pillars of Lent – but are they merely appearances, or do they point to a deeper desire to truly love Jesus Christ? The ashes we will receive in a short moment – are they just window-dressing on a self-centered life?

            Last summer, a parishioner gave me a watermelon, and it was one of the most perfect-looking fruits I’ve ever seen. No blemishes, perfectly shaped. But as soon as I cut into it, I was offended by the most awful smell – the thing was rotten to the core. I’d rather have an ugly watermelon that tastes great! So it is with Christians – it is more important “to be” than “to appear” to be a follower of Jesus Christ.

            The dust that will be smeared on your forehead is far less important than turning from your sins. This hour out of your year is far less important than what you do for the remaining 8,760 hours. Will you spend at least 52 of those hours worshipping God at Mass on Sundays? Will you come to Confession during this Lenten season? Will you make Jesus Christ the very reason why you breathe, the very goal that you pursue?

            Once a missionary priest to a foreign land was able to convert the native chief, who was illiterate. The chief was asked by a fellow tribesman, “How will you know about Jesus if you cannot read the Bible?” The chief answered, “I do not need to read the Bible when it is lived out every day in the life of this priest.” Would the same be said about you?

            All Catholic monks and nuns live according to a “Rule of Life” – a document that outlines when to pray, how to fast, what works of charity to perform. But some older monks and nuns are so holy that they are called “The Living Rule” – they live their Rule of Life so perfectly that it’s as if the document has taken life. They didn’t appear to be holy – they were holy.

            And so, as we begin this Lenten season, the goal isn’t to give up dessert so we’re ten pounds lighter by Easter. The goal is to give up all the sins that prevent us from truly being followers of Jesus Christ to the depths of our being. Otherwise, these ashes on our forehead are nothing more than a façade covering up a sinful and empty life.

            I close with the story of one of our great martyrs, St. Ignatius of Antioch. He was a bishop from the second century who was arrested and marched hundreds of miles to Rome where he would shed his blood for his faith in Jesus Christ. Along the way, he wrote letters to the churches in each town he would be passing through, seven in total. His most famous one, written to the Romans, urged them not to try to save him – he was happy to give his life for Christ. He writes to them, “[Do not pray for my rescue, but pray rather] that I may not merely be called a Christian, but really be found to be one.”

            That is my prayer for you this Lent, too – that you may not merely be called a Christian based on the ashes on your forehead, but may truly become one through your repentance and pursuit of Jesus Christ.

Ordinary Time 6 - Beatitudes, Part 3/3

 

Homily for Ordinary Time 6

February 15, 2026

Beatitudes, Part 3/3

 

            Today we conclude our discussion of these great rules for happiness, Jesus’ eight Beatitudes (if you missed the first two in this homily series, you can find them on the St. Jude’s website).

            Jesus goes on to say, “Blessed are the pure of heart.” This refers to the virtue of chastity. Most people view chastity in the negative – don’t have sexual intimacy out of marriage – but it’s actually a positive virtue, as it means seeing another person made in the Image of God and respecting them as such. John Paul II says that the opposite of love isn’t hatred, but rather using. Lust is precisely that – using a person for sexual pleasure – while chastity safeguards authentic human love, the desire to give and not to use.

            The story goes that two bishops were walking through the streets of Rome when a very scantily clad woman passed by. One bishop looked down to the ground in embarrassment, while the other one looked into her face as she walked by. When she had passed, the first bishop reproached the other one and said, “Why didn’t you look away? Didn’t you see what she was wearing…or rather, what she wasn’t wearing?” The wiser and holier bishop replied, “No, I only saw a soul.” Being pure of heart allows us to see God – and it allows us to see God in each person we encounter, because we don’t want to use them for our pleasure, but love them for the child of God they are.

            Our seventh Beatitude is, “Blessed are the peacemakers”. I doubt anyone who uses Twitter could ever qualify! The best way to develop peace, both the inner peace of a right relationship with God and exterior peace, is the virtue of magnanimity. This virtue is the opposite of pettiness. Someone who’s petty is always finding a tempest in a teapot; a magnanimous person has an eternal perspective. Consider – all the stuff we get worked up about, will it matter in twenty-four hours, let alone in eternity? So what if someone cut you off in traffic – what does it really matter? So our mother-in-law insulted us – why do we care so much?

            Magnanimity is seeing things through the eyes of God – so it is no wonder that those who wish to be peacemakers will be children of God. There is a beautiful story from the life of St. Dominic Savio, the schoolboy saint who died at the young age of 15. Two of the boys in his class were in an argument which escalated and they threatened to fight each other after school on the playground. Dominic overheard their tiff, so he met them on the playground after school. Immediately the boys thought he was there to be a tattletale, but Dominic insisted, “I won’t tell anyone about your fight, but on two conditions.” He pulled a crucifix from his pocket and said, “You must first say out loud, ‘Jesus Christ, You died for me, and I am going to offend You by harming my brother, for whom You also died.’ And second, you must throw the first stones at me.” The boys were moved by his courage and kindness, and they immediately dropped their rocks as their anger drained out of them. Dominic could be a peacemaker because he had this magnanimity – the eternal perspective which realized that a sin of anger was far worse than even an injury. Seeing things from God’s eyes!

            If you’re having trouble finding peace, might I recommend the beautiful prayer written by St. Theresa of Avila? It goes like this:

Let nothing disturb you,

Let nothing frighten you,

All things are passing away:

God never changes.

Patience obtains all things

Whoever has God lacks nothing;

God alone suffices.

            This is magnanimity – this leads to peace!

            Finally, Jesus praises those who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness. St. Cyril of Jerusalem once said, “No one can avoid the malice of the wicked, no matter how we live our life.” We could be the best and holiest person around and we will still face persecutions on two fronts: first, misunderstandings from even our friends and family about how we live our faith; and second, persecutions from the Evil One in the form of temptations and spiritual oppression.

            So the virtue in this case is the courage to endure out of love. We can suffer all things if we keep our eyes on the prize: eternal life with Christ. My father used to smoke cigarettes daily, but when he proposed to my mom, she refused to marry a man who smoked. So he gave it up cold-turkey – not easy, but love was a stronger motivator than nicotine. Likewise, we will have courage despite internal and external trials, if our love for God is stronger.

            And how many saints have gone before us who were opposed in their pursuit of holiness! We are given so many heroes who were persecuted – in every country, every age. They believed with every fiber of their being that Jesus was worth living and dying for. One of my favorites is the first Japanese-born saint, St. Paul Miki. He was educated by the Jesuits and converted to Catholicism, becoming a Jesuit priest himself. But the Emperor was suspicious of how this new Western religion was spreading, and felt his power threatened. So he made Christianity illegal in Japan in the late 1500s.

            The government rounded up 26 Christians in Nagasaki. Led by Fr. Paul Miki, they were led up a large hill to be crucified. But as he was dying, St. Paul Miki’s speech was the most significant. First, he proclaimed himself a Japanese – making the point that Christianity was not just a Western religion, but one that could be embraced by every culture. Second, he said, “Now that I am about to die, you would not assume that I would lie. So hear me speak the truth: Jesus Christ is Lord!” He continued to preach the Gospel, even from the Cross. Finally, his final words were: “After Christ’s example I forgive my persecutors. I do not hate them. I ask God to have pity on all, and I hope my blood will fall on my fellow men as a fruitful rain.” He died forgiving the very people putting him to death!

            After the death of the 26 Japanese martyrs, there were no more priests allowed into Japan for three centuries – so the faith had to become deeply hidden. The Bible was passed down orally, and people would gather to pray in secret but they had no more Eucharist. Finally, in the late 1870s, a couple missionary priests returned to Japan and expected to find Catholicism extinguished – but instead, they found 30,000 hidden Christians who approached them cautiously and told them, “Our ancestors said there would be followers of Jesus to visit us once again, but we are not sure if you are the right ones. Can you answer the following three questions: Do you honor Mary? Are your priests without wives? Do you follow the Pope?” When the priests responded affirmatively, the people rejoiced – Catholicism was back in Japan!

            The early Church father Tertullian said, “The blood of martyrs is the seed of Christians.” The faith exists in Japan because of the heroic courage of those 26 martyrs, led by St. Paul Miki, and the courage of those who kept the faith in secret for centuries. We, too, should not be surprised or afraid when trials come in our walk with Christ, but endure them with courage based in a love for God that is stronger than death.

            And thus we conclude the Beatitudes. More than anything, Christ desires our happiness – not an easy life, but the deep fulfillment of a life of sacrifice and virtue, directed to eternal joy!