Archive for the ‘Feast Day Homilies’ Category

« Older Entries

The Rock of Our Redemption

April 11, 2026

Divine Mercy Sunday
By Fr. Victor Feltes

The Roman pagans believed it was impious to kill someone inside of their city walls yet their leaders wanted the public to witness their executions. So on Good Friday, Christ was led out to a location near Jerusalem’s gates close enough to the road and city such that many passersby would read the sign above the head of “Jesus the Nazarene, the King of the Jews.”

That place was situated inside a long-exhausted quarry from which limestone blocks had once been cut to build the Holy City’s white walls and buildings. Many years before Good Friday, the laborers discovered a certain outcropping there where the stone was fissured and pocked and judged unfit. So they quarried out all the stone around the spot, leaving behind a mound of rock behind.

That small hill came to be called “Golgotha” in Greek and “Calvary” in Latin, meaning “The Place of the Skull.” That rock became the site of Jesus’ crucifixion and death. It was a secondary fulfillment of this passage from today’s 118th Psalm: “The stone which the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.” So what was the primary fulfillment of that prophecy? Who is the stone and who are the builders?

St. Peter while being questioned by the Jewish priests and scribes in the Book of the Acts told them, “Jesus Christ the Nazorean whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead… He is the stone rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone.” The Jewish religious leaders were the builders who rejected Jesus unfit to be their Savior. Governor Pilate and King Herod were builders too, political leaders who sought to promote their power, who judged Jesus to be useless for their purposes. You and me are builders too, building our lives through our choices, and when we knowingly, freely choose to sin we are denying Jesus in that aspect of our lives.

Now we do not earn salvation by our works, any more than we could earn the Sacrament of Baptism. Baptism and salvation are gracious gifts because God has loved us first. St. Paul writes, “God proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.” But it is important that we respond to Christ and love him back. Jesus does not force us to embrace him and his Kingdom; we can spurn him and his gifts through unrepentant grave sins. Jesus cautions us, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the Kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.” So if we reject Christ as our Rock through serious sin, how can he be restored as our cornerstone?

On Easter Sunday evening, Jesus bodily appeared in the Upper Room saying “Peace be with you.” He reassured his disciples and proved that he was truly risen by showing them his wounds. Then Jesus 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.” Jesus does not empower them in this way to no purpose. The Sacrament of Baptism forgives all sins preceding our baptism. But for the forgiveness of grave sins committed after our baptism, we see Jesus entrusts his priests with authority to forgive sins through the Sacrament of Reconciliation (also known as Confession or Penance).

Even if you have no grave sins to confess, regular confession and forgiveness of your minor sins is just good spiritual hygiene. It’s an encounter with Jesus Christ in which we receive healing, good counsel, and renewed grace for growing in our faithful, fruitful Christian love. In the Sacrament of Reconciliation, the stone rejected by the builders becomes our cornerstone anew. By the Lord is this done and it is wonderful in our eyes. The Lord has made this day of Divine Mercy; let us be glad and rejoice in it!

Posted in Confession, Feast Day Homilies, Homily, Jesus Christ, Passion, Sunday Homilies | Leave a Comment »

This is the Day

April 5, 2026

Easter Sunday
By Victor Feltes

The day we celebrate Easter Sunday can fall anywhere between March 22nd and April 25th on the calendar. It floats around year-to-year based on calculations about the first full moon of spring. Easter Sunday lands on April 5th this year, as it did 11 years ago and will twice again this century, 11 and 22 years from now. But do we know the actual historical month, day, and year of Jesus’ Resurrection? Yes — by combining details we find in the Gospels with other known historical facts, we can find this date exactly.

For starters, St. Luke’s Gospel tells us the public ministry of St. John the Baptist began “in the 15th year of the reign of [the Emperor] TiberiusCaesar,” which was 29 AD. And the Gospels indicate Jesus’ public ministry began sometime after that point. We also know that Pontius Pilate, who condemned Jesus to death, ruled as governor of Judea from 26 to 36 AD. So Jesus’ public ministry must have begun after 29 AD at the earliest and ended by 36 AD at the latest, giving us a range of seven years.

The Gospels also record that Jesus was crucified, died, and was buried on a Friday, specifically, a Friday immediately preceding that year’s Jewish feast of Passover. That particular Passover was “a solemn one” for the Jews since it landed on a Saturday, the Jewish Sabbath day, a circumstance which only happens occasionally—like how Christmas Day only sometimes lands on a Sunday. And we know all of the dates and corresponding days of the week when Jews celebrated Passovers in the 1st century. During that seven-year timespan between 29 AD and 36 AD, the Jewish Passover landed on Saturdays only twice: in 30 AD and 33 AD. So which of these two was the year of Christ’s Passion, death, and Resurrection? We can know which through a final Gospel clue.

Within St. John’s Gospel narrative he makes note of three distinct Passovers, which indicates that Jesus’ public ministry lasted at least two years. Since we have already established that Jesus’ multi-year ministry began after St. John the Baptist’s did in 29 AD, 30 AD is ruled out as coming too early to be the first Easter. Therefore, the actual historical date of Jesus Christ’s Resurrection was Sunday, April 5th, 33 AD; the 5th day of April, just like our Easter this year. Indeed, “This is the day the Lord has made!”

From knowing the April 5th, 33 AD date of Easter Sunday, we can know that Jesus’ Holy Thursday Last Supper was on April 2nd and that Jesus’ Good Friday crucifixion, death, and burial was on April 3rd. We can also deduce from the date of the first Easter that Jesus’ bodily Ascension into heaven was on May 14th and that the Holy Spirit’s Pentecost Sunday descent from heaven was on May 24th. These are interesting bits of knowledge, but please remember this more important lesson from them: Our Faith is not a fairy tale from “once upon a time.” The events of Christianity actually occurred at real times and real places.

So stop only half-believing the Gospel. Stop only half-hoping in the great promises of Christ. Stop holding off God’s incredible love for you at arm’s length. Fully embrace the Good News. Peacefully rest in Christ’s goodwill toward you. And fully rejoice in our loving God, loving him back with your full obedience and devotion. “This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad!”

[PS: The April 5th, 33 AD date of the first Easter corresponds to the Julian calendar which we use to record ancient dates. By 1582, the Julian calendar had drifted ten days out of synch with the solar year, so Pope Gregory XIII skipped ten days forward to introduce the more enduringly accurate Gregorian calendar we use today. Therefore, the calendar date of the first Easter according to our current system would be April 1st, 22 AD.]

Posted in Feast Day Homilies, Homily, Resurrection, Salvation History, Sunday Homilies | Leave a Comment »

Behold Jesus Christ

April 3, 2026

Good Friday
By Fr. Victor Feltes

The four Gospels’ Passion accounts are rich in things for one could preach about. But on Good Friday the Church instructs that “after the reading of the Lord’s Passion, the Priest gives a brief homily.” So here is one short reflection on the Passion.

Pilate goes out and says to the crowd, “[Behold], I am bringing him out to you, so that you may know that I find no guilt in him.” And indeed, Jesus is completely innocent. Having had Jesus whipped, brutally scourged, Pilate tells the crowd, “Behold, the man!” And Jesus, weakened and suffering, indeed shares in our humanity. Then for a third time, Pilate says, “Behold!” Mocking Jesus and the mob, Pilate says “Behold, your king!” And yet Jesus, crowned with thorns, clothed in purple, and seated on the judgement seat, is indeed our Lord.

In the Passion, we finally behold the fulfillment of what St. John the Baptist twice announced at the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry: “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. … Behold, the Lamb of God.” Behold Christ upon his Cross for us; our innocent brother, our saving sacrifice, our loving Lord: “Jesus the Nazorean, the King of the Jews.”

Posted in Feast Day Homilies, Homily, Jesus Christ, Passion | Leave a Comment »

“Do This In Remembrance Of Me”

April 3, 2026

Holy Thursday
By Fr. Victor Feltes

You’ve heard of sermons and you’ve heard of homilies but there is a difference between the two. A sermon is given on whatever topic the preacher chooses, but a homily unpacks some aspect of the liturgy’s readings or prayers. The Church requires that the preaching at Mass be a homily, adding that it “should take into account both the mystery being celebrated and the particular needs of the listeners.” But the Church ordinarily does not specify what particular themes are to be preached. Holy Thursday’s evening Mass, however, is a rare exception. For tonight’s Mass, the Roman Missal instructs that “the Priest gives a homily in which light is shed on the principal mysteries that are commemorated in this Mass, namely, the institution of the Holy Eucharist and of the priestly Order, and the commandment of the Lord concerning fraternal charity.” I see all three of these mysteries reflected in Jesus’ Last Supper command: “Do this in remembrance of me.”

Jesus Christ, in order to never depart from his own, and to leave us a pledge of his love, and to make us sharers in his saving mysteries, instituted the Holy Eucharist. And he commanded his apostles to celebrate it until his visible return, thereby ordaining them priests of his New Covenant. Now I try to celebrate Catholic liturgies how the Church asks us to, because that is an expression of our obedience to Christ. But I saw a norm in the ritual for this Holy Thursday’s Mass which I had somehow never noticed before. The Missal says that at the beginning of tonight’s Mass “the tabernacle should be entirely empty.” That is why—as you likely noticed—our tabernacle is empty, its doors are open, and the vigil light is absent. This sign an excellent reminder that without the Last Supper, without the priesthood, without priests, we would have no Eucharist. Give thanks to God sometime at prayer for all the good things he has given you through the ministry of his priests. And if perhaps you feel a calling to the ordained priesthood yourself, I urge you to earnestly pursue it. If that is your vocation, it is the greatest thing you can do with your life.

Jesus also speaks his command to “do this in remembrance of me” in another sense to his entire Church as well. God’s people have celebrated the Holy Mass throughout all the centuries ever since as the memorial of Christ’s Passion, death, and Resurrection. But this memorial is not merely a ritual of mental recollection. Devout Jews of past and present have celebrated their Passover feast as more than a mere remembrance, but as an actual renewal and a personal reliving of God redeeming them from Egypt. They teach that “in each and every generation every [Jewish] person must regard himself as though he had come forth from Egypt as a slave.” Likewise for us, the memorial of the Holy Eucharist, received from the Lord and handed on to us, is a renewal and authentic personal experience of our deliverance and salvation through Jesus Christ.

The Priesthood and the Holy Mass are important, but these great things, without love, gain us nothing. When Jesus commands “do this in remembrance of me” he also intends us to must practice the love he models for us. At the Last Supper, when he took his very self—his own Body and Blood—into his hands, he gave these to his disciples and humbly washed their feet. Jesus “loved his own in the world and he loved them to the end.” And he told them, “What I am doing, you do not understand now, but you will understand later… I have given you a model to follow, so that as I have done for you, you should also do.”

Therefore, on Holy Thursday we remember how Jesus Christ commands his priests offering the Eucharist to “do this in remembrance of me,” and commands his Church gathering for the Mass to “do this in remembrance of me,” and commands each one of us as he shows us perfect love to “do this in remembrance of me.”

Posted in Feast Day Homilies, Homily, Last Supper, Love | Leave a Comment »

Help Through Our Good Fridays

April 3, 2026

Palm Sunday
By Deacon Dick Kostner

Last Sunday you heard me talk about how the Light of Christ is charged through the Body of Christ which is represented by Christ’s bride he calls his Church, human people baptized and energized with faith. Today we will see “Act Two” of Last Week’s Homily where we see the human side of Jesus as he contemplates the conclusion of his mortal life through the Way of the Cross. It begins with a prayer in the Garden to the Father wondering if maybe the cup might pass from him. With His prayer ending, but “not my will but thy will be done!”

The Passion begins on a happy note where Jesus experiences the joy of his presence with the people he loves. It is a happy day, with Jesus feeling good about the relationships he has made with people he loves. But we all know that what goes “up” usually comes “down” in this imperfect world we live in. He is well aware that his time is near to accept human suffering and human death so that people he loves can be cleansed of their sins by and through the sacrifice of the Lamb and his resurrection and victory over death, allowing his people to live in knowing that death is not the end but rather the doorway to their home in heaven.

For those who follow the teaching of Jesus this means that the Passion of Christ is also the crystal ball of our future. Fifty plus years ago I began my journey to become an attorney to join my brother and dad in their practice. My place of study was in Chicago. What I did not know is that the school I was attending had a rule that all students had to maintain a GPA of 80% on the one final exam that was given at the end of each semester. Failure to attain that would put you in the a state of probation. The schools policy was that students would only be allowed to go on probation once in order to continue on with the school. The tests consisted of about ten essay questions on a set of facts which needed to be analyzed to find the issues, the rules of law governing those issues, and then to apply the rules of law to those issues. The tests were timed allowing ninety minutes to complete. In my case I ran out of time and failed to answer two of ten questions posed. This required me to answer the other eight questions without missing any facts, rules, or application of those rules which I failed to do.

Like Jesus, I feared that the odds were against me in being able to complete my required three years of education to become a lawyer. Like Jesus, I prayed for guidance as to whether I could be successful in attaining my goal and vocation of being able to help others solve legal problems they may encounter. Like Jesus I put my choices in the Fathers hands for an answer. I got a response quickly through my dad. I remember quizzing my dad on the same question for his response and his response to me was to “tough it out.” One of my best friends in law school was Bob. Bob and I would sometimes go across the street to a bar to unwind after classes. One day I confessed to Bob that I was on probation and that the odds were against me that I could evade going on probation again with five more semester tests ahead of me as I never had enough time left to complete all the questions that needed to be answered. He agreed with me that the time posed a threat in completing all the questions. He thought for a minute and said “Dick do you outline each question before you try and apply the rules to the facts?” I laughed at him and said how can I do that when I am already running out time in answering the questions? He said look, you need to do that for if you complete outlining all the questions first the instructor will know that you have identified 95% of the issues and laws governing and needed in resolving the issues involved even if you fail to do the final job of applying the facts to the rules of law!

I took Bob’s advice and Bob and I were part of the twelve individuals who graduated from my law school from an original class of over two hundred students. I recently did a Google search in order to see if I could find a way to make contact with Bob who now practices law in Chicago. I was successful and was able to make contact with him last year. I thanked him and told him that I would not of been able to become a lawyer without his help and support, without him having recharged my flashlight so I could see through the darkness of a “Good Friday.”

We all will encounter in this life downers that seem to be insurmountable. We like our Teacher will need to go to the Garden and have a chat with our Heavenly Father on how to proceed during “Good Friday” times. The good news is that the Father is listening and will dispatch the Body of Christ agents, the “Bob’s” in my story, to help us overcome those seemingly “insurmountable events” and lead us to the bright light of His Easter Sunday Resurrection. Let us close with a prayer:

Lord,
may everything we do
begin with your inspiration
and continue with your saving help
Let our work always find its origin in you
And through you reach completion.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Amen.

Posted in Feast Day Homilies, Sunday Homilies | Leave a Comment »

A River of Life

January 12, 2026

Baptism of the Lord
By Fr. Victor Feltes

When you think of the Jordan River, you maybe imagine a broad and impressive body of water, but you could toss a rock from one bank of the Jordan River to the other. Yet, unlike the many streams and rivers flowing through our green countryside, the Jordan River is one of very few which pass through that mostly arid land. This is the body of water Jesus chose for his baptism; a humble river of life flowing through a desert. Joshua had led God’s Old Covenant people into the earthly Promised Land through this river. Jesus, the new Joshua, leads God’s New Covenant people into the true Promised Land through his holy baptism.

Jesus did not need John’s baptism for himself. John the Baptist perceived this too and tried to prevent him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and yet you are coming to me?” But Jesus insisted, so John relented, “to fulfill all righteousness.” Jesus is baptized not to be made holy by the water but to make the water holy, so that this most plentiful substance upon the face of the earth could be used in Christ’s gateway sacrament all throughout the world. Jesus was baptized to allow us to be united to him through baptism.

The water, the decent of the Spirit, and the voice of the Father all reflect effects of Christian baptism. Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan reflects what occurred for you and me when we were baptized. Through baptism, our souls were cleansed, the grace of the Holy Spirit was imparted to us, and we were acknowledged as a beloved children of God. Perhaps we take these things for granted: that sins can be forgiven, that the divine can dwell within us, that we can be more than mere slaves to the transcendent God of the universe, that we can be treasured sons and daughters of God. We must remember and appreciate these things, for things that go unappreciated can be neglected to our loss.

The Jordan River flows about 150 miles on the eastern border of Israel, south from the Sea of Galilee down into the Dead Sea. These bodies of water present a spiritual allegory. They symbolize a spiritual reality. The Sea of Galilee is a large freshwater lake full of life. Its water pours out into the Jordan River, and this river flows through the desert to bless its shores with life. But these waters ultimately descent 700 vertical feet down into the Dead Sea, to the lowest place on earth, where it has no place else to go. So there the water sits, evaporating away in the heat, leaving behind trace amounts of salt, which overtime causes the Dead Sea be extremely salty, permitting no plants, fish, or other visible life to live. The pure waters from above, received through the holy stream, bear no life in that recipient. Likewise, the sacraments offer grace from above, through a stream of living water, but in the unrepentant soul they bear no life.

If you are in grave sin, for God’s sake, for your sake, and the sake of those around you, repent and be reconciled to God through his Sacrament of Confession. On Saturday, I had the pleasure of celebrating the first Confessions of our second graders. They were a bit nervous beforehand, but afterwards when I asked them how they felt they answered: ‘Good! Great! Awesome!’ Besides the joy of a cleansed soul and conscience, something that Confession gives is a new beginning, the strength and focus to begin anew. Jesus desires for his graces to flow through you as a fruitful blessing in this spiritually-arid world.

The words of Isaiah in our first reading point to Christ, and you are in Christ because of your baptism. So Isaiah’s inspired words are spoken of every soul in a state of grace: Thus says the Lord: “You are my servant whom I uphold, my chosen one with whom I am pleased, upon whom I have put my spirit; I, the LORD, have called you for the victory of justice, I have grasped you by the hand; I formed you… a light for the nations, to open the eyes of the blind, to bring out prisoners from confinement [and darkness.]”

You might not be called to cry out or shout, making your voice heard in the streets, breaking this and crushing that. But Jesus wants to use you as his powerful instrument to work transforming good in this world. The Lord is still quietly saving souls through his faithful ones, who receive his graces and pour them forth. Cooperate with him for this; for him, for yourself, and for the good of many.

Posted in Baptism of Jesus, Christian Perfection, Feast Day Homilies, Homily, St. John the Baptist, Sunday Homilies, Typology | Leave a Comment »

The Embarrassments of the Magi

January 3, 2026

Feast of the Epiphany
By Fr. Victor Feltes

How often do you feel awkward or embarrassed? I think the Magi felt that way repeatedly in today’s Gospel story.

Who were the Magi? Ancient civilizations east of Israel (such as the Persians and Babylonians) bestowed upon their men of learning the title “Magus.” The Magi we commemorate this day (traditionally identified as Saints Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar) apparently studied the heavens—a useful skill for tracking the rainy seasons and deciding when to plant and harvest. The visionary Jewish Prophet Daniel, six centuries before Christ, had served as a wise man in Babylon. Perhaps he left behind instructions about the star to watch for as the signal of the Messiah’s birth.

Some speculate the Star of Bethlehem was a comet, others say it was a supernova, but given the clues in the text and in history the best explanation suggests it was a planet seen in some unique position relative to the other lights of heaven. This is plausible because the ancients regarded the planets as ‘wandering stars’ moving across the fixed constellations. The word “planet” comes from the Greek word for “wanderer.” But whatever sign the Magi beheld, it convinced them a new heir to the Jewish throne was born. So they packed valuable gifts and traveled far from their homeland to honor this newborn king.

St. Matthew records, “When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, in the days of King Herod, behold, Magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, ‘Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star at its rising and have come to do him homage.’” But there was no newborn king be found there; at least, no baby in Herod’s household descended from King David, as the Jewish scripture prophesies required for the Christ. This surprised the Magi and perhaps they doubted themselves. “Did we misread the stars? Was the wisdom we were following merely a myth? Did we come all this way for nothing?” But then there was a new ray of hope.

“Herod called the Magi secretly and ascertained from them the time of the star’s appearance. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, ‘Go and search diligently for the child. When you have found him, bring me word, that I too may go and do him homage.’” After their audience with the king, they set out on the short journey from Jerusalem to Bethlehem. “And behold, the star that they had seen at its rising preceded them…” This was a sign reconfirming their mission, and “they were overjoyed at seeing the star…” The star somehow “came and stopped over the place where the child was. …And on entering the house they saw the child with Mary his mother. They prostrated themselves and did him homage. Then they opened their treasures and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.”

This house in Bethlehem was far humbler than Herod’s great palace. And if even the Magi were not embarrassed to lay face down upon that lowly floor, it must have felt awkward for the Magi to present the luxury gifts they had brought to this needy family. Rather than incense or gum resin, the Holy Family could have gotten more use from blankets, baby clothes, or a goat. But this seeming mistake was providential. The Magi’s gift of gold would come in handy later when the Holy Family was hiding away in Egypt. And besides that gold for a King, the other gifts of the Magi were prophetically symbolic: frankincense, used in temple worship, for a High Priest and Deity; and myrrh, used in Jewish embalming, for a Savior born to die and rise.

“And [then the Magi,] having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, …departed for their country by another way.” Did the Magi share this dream with the Holy Family before departing? If not, how did St. Matthew ever learn of this detail? Regardless, if the Magi recognized a warning of danger in this dream, they may have felt mortified again that their visit to Bethlehem may have placed a target on the Holy Family’s backs. The Magi’s mission had announced in Jerusalem the birth of Christ, but it also led to the flight of the Holy Family to Egypt and Herod’s massacre of the innocents. Yet even Herod’s freely-chosen evil was foreseen by God, who received the souls of his Holy Innocents as martyrs for Christ and fulfilled what was foretold through the Prophet Hosea: “Out of Egypt I called my Son.”

We do not know what this new year ahead holds for us. And like the Magi, sometimes our honest efforts will produce experiences of awkwardness and embarrassment, problems and seeming failures. But even if we don’t always know what we are doing, the Lord knows what he is doing. So strive to please and serve him, and never give up on your life journey’s mission. For just as he did with the Magi, the Lord will incorporate all of our faithful efforts into his great providential story.

Posted in Feast Day Homilies, Homily, The Magi | Leave a Comment »

How Did St. Luke Know?

January 1, 2026

Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God
By Fr. Victor Feltes

At the Annunciation, when the Archangel Gabriel greeted Mary using an exalted title, saying “Hail, highly favored one! The Lord is with you,” Luke records that the Virgin Mary “was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.” Nine months later, after the visit of the shepherds at Christmas, today’s Gospel reading says “Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart.” And then twelve years after that, when the boy Jesus was found in the temple and he said, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” Mary did not understand what Jesus said to them, but Luke records “his mother kept all these things in her heart.” Mary pondered, reflected on, and all kept these things in her heart. That raises a question: how did St. Luke know these facts to include them in his Gospel?

Did Luke have mystical visions? Did God infuse him with hidden knowledge? That is not how St. Luke describes how he wrote his Gospel. He writes: “Since many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the events that have been fulfilled among us, just as those who were eyewitnesses from the beginning and ministers of the word have handed them down to us, I too have decided, after investigating everything accurately anew, to write it down in an orderly sequence for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may realize the certainty of the teachings you have received.” So St. Luke investigated, he did research for his Gospel, and probably interviewed first century eyewitnesses to the events he records. How would folks naturally come to know what Mary pondered, reflected upon, and kept within her heart? By her telling people. That is why some call the early chapters of Luke’s Gospel “The Memoirs of Mary.”

When people pick up praying the Holy Rosary for the first time, their focus tends to be on saying the right words and tracking the beads. But as they get more experienced and comfortable, their focus can shift toward each of the mysteries, and contemplate their deeper meanings and implications. Is it any surprise that the Holy Spirit would providentially promote into history’s most popular Marian devotion the pondering, reflecting upon, and holding in our hearts the events of salvation history? The Holy Rosary is a transforming contemplation with Mary upon the great things God has done.

Besides praying more Rosaries this year, I suggest more contemplation at the end of each day. Ask the Holy Spirit to show you the victories and failures from the day, to give thank and praise and ask pardon and new strength. Such daily self-examinations (or examens) are recommended by saints for spiritual growth. And as one year ends and a new year begins, I suggest devoting some time to pondering like Mary. Reflect upon the past year and consider the year ahead, holding in your heart all the good things which are yours in Christ.

Posted in Blessed Virgin Mary, Feast Day Homilies, Homily, Rosary, St. Luke | Leave a Comment »

Holy Family Lessons

December 28, 2025

Feast of the Holy Family
By Fr. Victor Feltes

Modern popes (including St. Paul VI, St. John Paul the Great, and Benedict XVI) have reflected upon and recommend the Holy Family of Joseph, Mary, and Jesus as a model, an example, for all Christian families to contemplate and learn from. This morning I wish to share some insights for children and parents, husbands and wives, drawn from the Holy Family. First, a reflection on Jesus in relationship to his parents.

The Archangel Gabriel told Mary at the Annunciation, “Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus.” Then, when an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream he said, “[Mary, your wife,] will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus…” And St. Luke records that indeed, “when eight days were completed for his circumcision, he was named Jesus…” So Jesus was named by both Joseph and Mary, though his name originated with God. Adam was given authority in the Garden of Eden, reflected by him authoring the names of his wife Eve and all the animals. Jesus’ mother and foster-father were likewise given authority over him, and Luke writes that Jesus “was obedient to them.”

We just heard Sirach’s words that “God sets a father in honor over his children; [and] a mother’s authority he confirms over her sons,” and we heard St. Paul urging “Children, obey your parents in everything, for this is pleasing to the Lord.” St. Paul notes elsewhere that amongst the Ten Commandments, “Honor your father and mother” is the first commandment with a promise—“so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.” And Sirach observes that those who revere and honor their parents receive many earthly and heavenly blessings.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that “as they grow up, children should continue to respect their parents. They should anticipate their wishes, willingly seek their advice, and accept their just admonitions.” It says, “obedience toward parents ceases with the emancipation of the children; [but] not so respect, which is always owed to them.” And “as much as they can, [children] must give [parents] material and moral support in old age and in times of illness, loneliness, or distress.” Jesus supported his parents in the Holy Family. St. Joseph is the patron saint of a happy death because Jesus and Mary would have comforted and cared for him on his deathbed. And one of Jesus’ final deeds before he died on the Cross ensured that his widowed mother would be cared for.

This Sunday’s Gospel reading offers husbands and wives another valuable reflection from the Holy Family. After the Annunciation, the Gospels record no more angelic messages being given to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Her husband, Joseph, however receives multiple messages through dreams. First, the angel of the Lord tells Joseph not to fear receiving Mary his wife into his home. Then, as Herod is poised to hunt down the Christ Child, the angel tells Joseph to take Jesus and Mary to Egypt. Once Herod dies, the angel directs Joseph to take them back to the land of Israel. Finally, once Joseph has led his Holy Family back to Israel, he is warned in a dream not to live in the region of Bethlehem (Judea) and decides instead to resettle back up north in Nazareth.

Those messages from heaven came to the leader of the Holy Family, and Mary had to trust and entrust herself to Joseph. Joseph was called to servant-leadership, loving his wife and their child self-sacrificially, even as Christ loves the Church. Mary, in turn, was called to be subordinate to her husband, like a priest to his bishop. Of course, I am not obliged to obey my bishop in things that are immoral or irrational, but otherwise the Lord wills me to be obedient to him as my leader. I can voice my personal preferences to him and I ought to raise my concerns with him, but the ultimate decision and responsibility falls to him. Likewise, St. Paul writes, “Wives, be subordinate to your husbands, as is proper in the Lord.” And elsewhere St. Paul teaches in the Spirit, “As the Church is subordinate to Christ, so wives should be subordinate to their husbands in everything.”

Children and parents, husbands and wives, may all of us learn from the Holy Family as our example. And may their prayers beside the throne of God the Father gain us abundant graces to be great and fruitful saints in their likeness.

Posted in Blessed Virgin Mary, Feast Day Homilies, Homily, Marriage and Family, Saintly People, St. Joseph, Sunday Homilies | Leave a Comment »

A Manger Sign

December 25, 2025

Christmas Day
Fr. Victor Feltes

The shepherds were in the countryside keeping night watch over their flocks when an angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone around them. The angel proclaimed “good news of great joy”: a baby born that day in Bethlehem, a Savior who is Christ and Lord. And the angel gave the shepherds a confirming sign: “You will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.” Seeing a newborn baby swaddled (that is, snugly wrapped up in cloth) would not have been an unusual sight back then. As the Old Testament author of the book called The Wisdom of Solomon writes: “In swaddling clothes and with constant care I was nurtured. For no king has any different origin or birth; one is the entry into life for all…” A much stranger sight for the shepherds on Christmas would be to see a baby in a manger.

Now when I was a kid, I thought the manger in any “manger scene” was the Holy Family’s barn or shelter, but that’s mistaken. A manger is not a building but a feedbox for dry feeds, like grain, for animals to eat. On Christmas, one such manger served as a makeshift cradle. Once the herald angels had departed, the shepherds excitedly said to each other: “Let us go, then, to Bethlehem to see this thing that has taken place!” They went in haste into Bethlehem and found the Holy Family, with the newborn King lying in the manger.

The angel had told the shepherds “this will be a sign for you.” Seeing the child in the manger confirmed that they had found the Christ, but this Savior in the manger is a sign for us in another sense. The name of the city of Christ’s birth, Bethlehem, means “House of Bread” in Hebrew. Finding our Lord inside a box for eating grain within the House of Bread is a sign for us foreshadowing the Holy Eucharist. Jesus would go on to teach us, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world.”

God’s Son became man for a closer unity with humanity; “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” The shepherds in the countryside and the Magi in a distant land were called to draw nearer to Christ at his dwelling place in Bethlehem. But Jesus offers and calls us to an even closer union with him, within this church, his dwelling place. Jesus declares, “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. … Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me.” When Jesus teaches us to pray for daily bread he wants us to eat more than only once or twice a year. As normal food sustains our natural lives, so we need “the Bread from heaven” to sustain our spiritual lives, to remain in Christ and he in us.

Behold, as a messenger of the Lord, I proclaim to you good news of great joy: Jesus Christ, who is Savior and Lord, has come down from heaven. Born long ago in Bethlehem, he remains really present for us here today. Please allow the miracle of Christmas to produce enduring fruit in you. Return here to Christ’s dwelling place each Sunday and holy day, to adore him and receive him in his Holy Eucharist. Through his Incarnation, Jesus chose to become one of us; but through his Holy Eucharist, he wishes to remain one with you.

 

Posted in Feast Day Homilies, Homily, Incarnation, Jesus Christ, Nativity, Real Presence | Leave a Comment »

From Eden to Nazareth

December 8, 2025

Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception
By Fr. Victor Feltes

In the story of Genesis, the Lord God declares to the serpent: “I will put enmity [that is, hostility] between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will strike at your head, while you strike at his heel.” There is more going on here than an account of humanity’s dislike for slithering, venomous snakes. That tempter at the Fall was not a mere snake. The Book of Revelation identifies “the ancient serpent” as “the Devil and Satan.” And the Church saw in that declaration of the Lord God in Genesis the first proclamation of the Gospel, the Protoevangelium, foretelling what God intended to do to accomplish our salvation through Jesus Christ. “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers…” (or literally in the Hebrew) “between your seed and her seed”. That’s curious, since folks typically speak of the seed a man rather than the seed of a woman. Who is this woman whom God decrees to be in a state of opposition to Satan, whose Son would suffer due to the Evil One until he crushed the Serpent’s head?

The angel Gabriel was sent from God to a virgin in the city of Nazareth named Mary. And coming to her, he said, “Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.” Gabriel hails Mary with a title, like people cried “Hail, King of the Jews” during Jesus’ Passion. But the angel is not speaking ironically like Jesus’ tormentors and the angel does not lie. What we translate into English as “full of grace” has a deeper meaning in the original Greek. Heaven’s messenger calls Mary “Kecharitomene,” a perfect passive participle of a word which means “to fill or endow with grace.” Because it is in the Greek perfect tense, it declares Mary was graced as a completed action in the past but with effects continuing to the present. Mary had already been prepared by God for that moment, to become the sinless, grace-filled mother of our Incarnate Lord.

So why did God do this? One reason is so that she could give to God a full and free “Yes.” Once the angel explained that she would give birth to the Messiah and that this child would be God’s Son conceived by the Holy Spirit, Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that “in order for Mary to be able to give the free assent of her faith to the announcement of her vocation, it was necessary that she be wholly borne by God’s grace.” (CCC #490) Mary says “Yes” to God not due to coercive fears, nor from selfish motives, but freely and faithfully on behalf of all Creation and the Holy Church to be.

Another reason God created her pure and filled her with grace, was to make her a fitting mother — not only for her Son but all his Christian siblings, his brothers and sisters, including you and me. She is the New Eve who, by her faithful loving obedience, “became the mother of all the living.” Today we celebrate with Blessed Mary how the Almighty has done great things for her, through which we now have Jesus Christ our Lord and a heavenly mother who knows us and loves us and prays for us now.

Posted in Blessed Virgin Mary, Feast Day Homilies, Homily | Leave a Comment »

Our Crucified King

November 23, 2025

Solemnity of Christ the King
By Fr. Victor Feltes

Our English word “Excruciating” comes from the Latin words for “Cross” and “Torment.” The Romans did not invent crucifixion, the Persians and the Greeks practiced it first, but the Romans more widely used the method. It was an easy way to execute people very visibly, horrifically, and slowly as a warning example to others. Typically, when the Romans crucified someone, they would place a sign above the condemned person’s head to indicate why they were being killed. St. John’s Gospel records that Governor Pilate put a sign on Jesus’ Cross written in Hebrew, Latin, and Greek. You sometimes see the initials “INRI” atop crucifixes. This represents the Latin phrase “Iesus Nazarenus Rex Iudaeorum,” the charge against our Lord. That is, “Jesus the Nazorean, the King of the Jews.” He was killed because of who he was and who he is: Jesus the Christ and the King of the universe.

Of course, the people who killed him did not believe this. They thought he was deluded or a fraud. Hence, the triple call for him to save himself and prove them wrong. The Jewish rulers sneered and said, “Let him save himself if he is the chosen one, the Christ of God.” The Roman soldiers jeered and called out, “If you are King of the Jews, save yourself.” And one of the criminals reviled him by saying, “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us.” Could Jesus have saved himself from his crucifixion?

St. John’s Gospel quotes Jesus before his Passion saying, “No one takes (my life) from me, but I lay it down on my own. I have power to lay it down, and power to take it up again. This command I have received from my Father.” And St. Matthew quotes Jesus later declaring in the Garden of Gethsemane, “Do you think that I cannot call upon my Father and he will not provide me at this moment with more than twelve legions of angels? But then how would the Scriptures be fulfilled which say that it must come to pass in this way?” So Jesus possessed the power to escape the Cross, but that was not the will or plan of God, which the Eternal Son was party to from the beginning. Jesus assumes “our bone and our flesh” to achieve our reconciliation as a descendant of David, “making peace by the blood of his Cross.” Perhaps the Holy Trinity could have inspired less painful prophecies to achieve our redemption and forgiveness of our sins, but Christ’s crucifixion is what they chose. They chose this path to win our love.

Matthew and Mark’s Gospels suggests that the Penitent Thief (traditionally known as St. Dismas) had derided Jesus, too, at first. But seeing the extraordinary way Jesus acted, hearing the things he said, all while crucified, won over that man’s mind and heart. ‘This man has done nothing criminal and this is how he dies? He truly knows my suffering and this is how he lives. This is the Christ I want to be allied with.’ St. And Luke quotes him saying, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.”

That movement saved the man’s soul, and we enjoy the benefit of understanding Jesus Christ even better than him. St. Paul writes that God “proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.” Be moved by this manifestation of God’s great love. Submit to Jesus Christ as your King so that he may be your Savior and one day we may all be with him in Paradise.

Posted in Feast Day Homilies, Homily, Jesus Christ, Love, Passion, Redemptive Suffering, Salvation, Salvation History, Sunday Homilies | Leave a Comment »

The River From The Temple

November 9, 2025

Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica
By Fr. Victor Feltes

This Sunday, the Church throughout the world celebrates the dedication of the Lateran Basilica in Rome, which turns 1,701 years old this year. While St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City is more famous, the Lateran Basilica is the pope’s cathedral, the cathedral of the Archdiocese of Rome. This is why the Lateran Basilica is called “the mother and head” of the hundreds of thousands of Catholic churches around the world. Even if we had to go forward without any of these beautiful buildings, we could still practice our Catholic Faith through celebrating the Sacraments and offering our lives and prayers to God. But for Jews during much of the Old Testament, only one building was their place for sacrificial worship and considered God’s holy dwelling place on earth. In today’s first reading, the Prophet Ezekiel is taken by an angel to that Jewish temple in Jerusalem.

Of this vision, Ezekiel writes: “I saw water flowing out from beneath the threshold of the temple toward the east, for the façade of the temple was toward the east; the water flowed down from the southern side of the temple, south of the altar.” Ezekiel records that trickling water flowing through the gates of the temple and out of the city into the east, somehow becoming a river. The angel declares, “This water flows… and empties into the sea, the salt waters [of the Dead Sea], which it makes fresh. Wherever the river flows, every sort of living creature that can multiply shall live, and there shall be abundant fish, for wherever this water comes the sea shall be made fresh. Along both banks of the river, fruit trees of every kind shall grow; their leaves shall not fade, nor their fruit fail. Every month they shall bear fresh fruit, for they shall be watered by the flow from the sanctuary. Their fruit shall serve for food, and their leaves for medicine.” Ezekiel’s mysterious vision of this miraculous river which purifies and renews, producing abundant life, is a prophesy which finds its fulfillment in Jesus Christ and his Church.

In today’s Gospel, when Jesus forcefully clears out the animal sellers and money-changers from the temple area, the Jews ask him, “What sign can you show us for doing this?” And Jesus answers, “Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up.” The Jews were incredulous at hearing this and said, “This temple has been under construction for forty-six years and you will raise it up in three days!?” But, as St. John the Gospel writer notes in the text, Jesus “was speaking about the temple of his Body.” After Jesus had risen from the dead, his disciples remembered that Christ had said this and understood its significance.

On Good Friday, when the soldiers saw that Jesus was already dead on the Cross, one of them “thrust his lance into his side, and immediately blood and water flowed out.” Today, physicians affirm that the traumas of Jesus’ Passion and death could cause red and clear fluids to build up in his chest around his heart, resulting in “blood and water” flowing out when the spear was withdrawn, just as St. John witnessed. Do we know into which side of Jesus’ body the spear entered — was it Jesus’ left side or his right side?

Recall how Ezekiel saw the water flowing out in his vision: “The façade of the temple was toward the east” and “the water flowed down from the southern side of the temple, south of the altar.” If Jesus on the Cross faces “east” like the front-face of the Jewish temple, then water coming down from the “south side of the temple (of his Body)” would be flowing from Christ’s right side. And 2,000-year-old forensic evidence may actually confirm this detail. The Shroud of Turin, which appears more likely than not to be an authentic image of Jesus’ body in the tomb, after accounting for the image’s mirror-reflective nature, shows a wound in Christ’s right side. St. Augustine and other Church Fathers recognize flowing from Christ’s side the water of baptism and the blood of the Eucharist. In the beginning, Adam was put into a deep sleep and God fashioned a bride for him from the rib of his side. Jesus Christ on the Cross, asleep in death, has his Bride the Church fashioned from his side through his Holy Sacraments. And when the nations are one day assembled before Christ the King, for the Final Judgment described in Matthew 25, it is the sheep gathered to his right side who will be saved.

Now that trickle from Christ’s side is become a mighty river of grace; purifying and renewing, generating abundant new life in whomever and wherever it flows. Faithful Christian people and places which grow close to that river and are fed by its waters shall endure and produce good growth, healing, and nourishment. We are blessed to enjoy this beautiful church, but wherever we worship our true temple and center of grace prepared for us by divine providence across millennia is our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. So with awe, reverence, gratitude, and love, let us turn to him and draw near to his Eucharistic sacrifice.

Posted in Feast Day Homilies, Homily, Passion, Sunday Homilies, Typology | Leave a Comment »

A Vision of the Saints in Heaven

November 1, 2025

Solemnity of All Saints
By Fr. Victor Feltes

On this All Saints’ Day, let us consider what we can look forward to living as saints in heaven one day. But first, how does one get to heaven?

At the moment of death, our immortal souls will separate from our mortal bodies and go immediately to our particular judgment. There we will be judged according to our faith and deeds in Christ, based upon our connection to Christ and our love of God and neighbor. Then our personal punishment or reward will begin: either immediate and everlasting damnation, or entrance into the everlasting blessedness of heaven —either immediately or after the purifying process of purgatory. One day, the dead will arise and the saints will experience a new heavens and new earth in their glorified resurrected bodies. But for now, the saints only experience heaven through their souls (with the Blessed Virgin Mary being a notable exception). When someday, by the grace of God, we are saints in heaven, here are some things we will enjoy.

One thing to look forward to is probably having a perfect memory. A colleague of the genius mathematician and physicist John von Neumann writes “one of his remarkable abilities was his power of absolute recall. …Von Neumann was able on once reading a book or article to quote it back verbatim; moreover, he could do it years later without hesitation. …. On one occasion I tested his ability by asking him to tell me how A Tale of Two Cities started. Whereupon, without any pause, he immediately began to recite the first chapter and continued until asked to stop after about ten or fifteen minutes.” If this is possible with a frail human brain, how much more knowledge could our unhindered souls retain?

Another perk of being a saint in heaven is great ease in doing whatever is best. When in the unveiled presence of God, “we shall see him as he is,” and discerning God’s will should be easy. And our perfected virtues will make it easy to do what is good and right, for we shall be “pure, as he is pure.”

Another extraordinary blessing in heaven is having innumerable friends. In St. John’s vision of heaven he beholds “a great multitude which no one could count from every nation, race, people, and tongue.” Every saint in heaven has become an incredible person perfected in Christ’s beatitudes and love. There will be no lack of time to get to know people and with your perfect memory you’ll never forget anyone’s name or stories.

Yet the greatest joy in heaven is the beatific vision of God. Sometimes people worry the restful reward of seeing God and worshipping him forever will be dull. Don’t worry, heaven will never be boring. Every good and beautiful thing in Creation which you have ever delighted in has its origin in God who is supremely good, beautiful, and delightful. You have yet to fully exhaust the joys to be experienced in just one culture in one country in one century of human history, so do not imagine you will exhaust the joys to be found in our infinite God.

These are things to look forward to someday in heaven, but on this All Saints’ Day I wish to remind you that the saints in heaven know us and love us now. Yesterday, an online friend shared with me a beautiful story about the intercession of the saints and he has given me permission to share his story with you.

In January of 2018, his father suffered a massive heart attack at home. In the Emergency Room, they were able to restart his heart, but there was almost 100% arterial blockage and likely serious brain damage from the lack of oxygen. Some of the best doctors in the world could do nothing more to help. So the next day, all the family gathered to share final moments as they withdrew the mechanical life support. My friend writes:

I remember sitting in the room, in the cardiology unit there, praying my brains out for a miracle, as he lay dying. Just focused on nothing else but praying, praying, praying. Eyes closed, focused on nothing else. Praying, praying, praying for some miracle. And then I suddenly wasn’t in the hospital room anymore.

I was sitting on a bench in what to me appeared to be a huge football stadium, or more like a Roman circus (those long chariot tracks), stretching further in each direction than I could see (even the opposite side was so far away I couldn’t see it). And every seat was filled with people, all dressed differently (though most of them were in robes, in the section I was in), and all praying in different languages.

Their prayers collectively seemed like a buzzing, or the sound of a waterfall, because they were individually indistinct—countless voices all praying at once. But it was clear that each one of them were praying, non-stop, for me, my dad, and for everybody in the world.

And it was in that instant that it was told to me that I could stop praying—(“Look, all these Saints have the whole ‘praying for your dad’ thing covered for the moment…”)—and use the few moments my dad had left with us to just be with him, hold his hand, tell him that I love him and say goodbye to him. So that’s what I did. And I’m very grateful to this day that I did.

Why was my friend’s vision of the saints set in a long racetrack stadium? I recognize in this a reference to the Letter to Hebrews, which says, “since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us rid ourselves of every burden and sin that clings to us and persevere in running the race that lies before us while keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, the leader and perfecter of faith.” So be sure to befriend the saints and call upon them, because they know you, and they love you, and they eagerly want you to join their number.

Posted in Christian Perfection, Feast Day Homilies, Heaven, Homily, Last Things, Saintly People, Sunday Homilies | 1 Comment »

Lifted Up & Exalted

September 13, 2025

Feast of the Exultation of the Holy Cross
By Fr. Victor Feltes

During their long Exodus journey, the Hebrews once again began rebelling, despising God and his servant Moses. They even sinfully complained about the Manna bread God was providing for their survival in the desert saying, “We are disgusted with this wretched food!” So God sent venomous serpents—or perhaps he merely lifted his shield of protection around their camp—resulting in many getting snakebitten and dying. So the people repented and pleaded with Moses, who prayed to the Lord. The Lord then commanded Moses to fashion a bronze serpent and affix it to a pole so that whoever looked at it would live. Moses and the Hebrews did not realize this at the time, but that bronze serpent on a wooden pole was a symbol pointing ahead to Jesus Christ who would die for our sins on his wooden Cross so that we may live.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus says: “Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.” Later in John’s Gospel, Jesus uses the same Greek verb to declare, “When I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to myself.” And the inspired author notes, “[Jesus] said this indicating the kind of death he would die.” But this same Greek word for “lifted up” or “exulted” appears again later to recount Jesus’ Ascension and heavenly enthronement. The Book of Acts says, “God exulted/lifted up [Jesus] to his right hand as leader and savior to grant repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins.” “Jesus, exulted/lifted up to God’s right hand, received the promise of the Holy Spirit from the Father and poured it forth….” This is what I want to highlight: how the first lifting up of Jesus leads to the second; his exultation on the Cross leads to his exultation in heaven.

Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God, endured our human suffering and death, even death on a cross. And because of this, God greatly exalted him, and bestowed on him a heavenly glory above any other glory. The early Christians fully believed in Jesus’ death by crucifixion, but they did not depict Jesus on the Cross in sacred art for several centuries. This was partly due to persecution but also because crucifixion still remained so scandalous, horrific, and shameful in their culture. This Sunday, we celebrate the Exultation of the Holy Cross and I want you to behold Christ crucified. Too many are turned away from him—the God who suffered, died, and rose for them—and we see where their dark paths lead. But the message I feel moved to preach to you who have kept your eyes on Jesus and walked with him for years is to understand that our crosses lead to glory.

Each of us is going to suffer in this world and—unless Jesus Christ comes back first—each of us will taste death. But just because you suffer greatly does not necessarily mean you are being punished for doing something wrong like the Hebrews in the desert were. And suffering does not mean that you are not loved by God. (Jesus Christ was perfectly good yet God’s Beloved Son was murdered.) And when you suffer, no matter how incomprehensible or unjust the pain, realize where you are: on your Cross with Jesus Christ. Whatever you endure with him advances his mission of salvation in this world and increases your heavenly glory, for it conforms you to himself. St. Peter wrote, “Beloved, do not be surprised that a trial by fire is occurring among you, as if something strange were happening to you. But rejoice to the extent that you share in the sufferings of Christ, so that when his glory is revealed you may also rejoice exultantly.” Whatever may happen, let nothing deprive you of your Christian peace or purpose and never forget the incredible love that our God has for you and everyone.

Posted in Christian Perfection, Feast Day Homilies, Homily, Redemptive Suffering, Salvation History, Sunday Homilies, Typology | Leave a Comment »

« Older Entries