Catholic Homilies (Fr. Phil Bloom)

Catholic Homilies

Had a Great Fall "God formed our bodies and breathed into us the breath of life. Yet we fell and are broken....'" (February 26, 2023 - First Sunday of Lent)

We Need Lent 2023 "You may have seen the study released by Center for Disease Control and Prevention. It shows levels of persistent sadness have increased among our children - especially our teenage girls. Among boys they found....'" (February 22, 2023 - Ash Wednesday)

My Way or God's Way? "At the end of his life, Frank Sinatra admitted he hated the song, especially when it became associated with Slobodan Milosevic. While he was in prison for war crimes against Bosnian Moslems..." (February 12, 2023 - Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year A)

Ego-Drama vs. Theo-Drama "Lincoln, perhaps better than any other American, expressed that ones lives are not about oneself, but part of God's plan..." (February 5, 2023 - Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year A)

We Need Jesus "A Seattle reporter asked Bill Gates if attends church. Gates responded, "I can think of more productive ways to spend a Sunday morning..." (December 25, 2022 - Christmas)

Isaiah Week 4: Asking for a Sign and Rejecting Fake Piety "Sometimes people use fake piety to reject God. I remember once inviting a guy to church. He pointed outside and said, 'This is my church'.." (December 18, 2022 - Fourth Sunday of Advent, Year A)

Isaiah Week 3: Music and Flowers "The young priest who prayed over me told me to claim my healing and in the name of Jesus rebuke any pain and swelling..." (December 11, 2022 - Third Sunday of Advent, Year A)

Isaiah Week 2: The Peaceful Kingdom "I think of John Wesley. He's one of my heroes. He made a vow that before he died he would distribute all his possessions to the poor..." (December 4, 2022 - Second Sunday of Advent, Year A)

Isaiah's Prophecy Fulfilled Culiacan is also known as the murder capital of Mexico. An artist named Pedro Reyes asked citizens to donate firearms so he could turn them into shovels..." (November 27, 2022 - First Sunday of Advent, Year A)

Stewardship & Christ the King "Like many of you, I have found that when I give, God's gifts return in abundance. Jesus is our king - from him we receive all and to him we owe all...." (November 20, 2022 - Christ the King Sunday, Year C)

Confident in God's Grace "Even though the evil one attacks us relentlessly, we have confidence in God's grace..." (November 6, 2022 - Thirty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C)

The Lord and Lover of Souls "Jesus is the Lord and lover of souls. He calls even the most wretched sinners. That gives hope to ordinary bumblers, like you and me..." (October 30, 2022 - Thirty-First Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C)

Reaching Out to Hurting Sinners "Our starting point will not be politics, but the Gospel. We have an excellent Gospel today to help us address our divisions..." (October 23 2022 - Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C)

He Will See to it Justice is Done "Young people are particularly sensitive to injustices. When we see injustices we want reparation, but we are usually disappointed. Pope Benedict wrote..." (October 15 2022 - Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C)

Gratitude vs. Control "Human beings seem born with a desire to control. It's necessary for survival but we can learn gratitude like in today's Gospel. . .." (October 9, 2022 - Twenty-Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C)

Stir Into Flame "I have a fireplace in the rectory. Fr. Narciso could make it heat the whole house. I struggled to get the paper to catch fire.. .." (October 2, 2022 - Twenty-Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C)

Not Only Acts of Generosity "For some people the enemy is MAGA Republicans, for others liberals. They are wrong. .." (September 25 2022 - Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C)

Challenges Ahead "We could avoid so much conflict if we fixed this truth in our minds..." (September 18, 2022 - Twenty-Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C)

Time to Retire "someone told me this humorous recruitment slogan: Become a priest: the pay is not good, but the retirement plan is out of this world! In today's Gospel, Jesus make a reference to that retirement plan...." (August 28, 2022 - Twenty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C)

The Way Forward "even though you don't find a direct condemnation of abortion in the Bible, one of the earliest Christian catechisms, called the Didache or the Teaching of the Twelve Apostles says this, 'you shall not abort a child or commit infanticide.'...." (August 21, 2022 - Twenty-First Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C)

As I Have Loved You Week 8 - Freedom "Christ gives us true, basic freedom, but the devil tries to entice us into a false freedom. He tells us, "don't worry, you can do anything you want with your body. It doesn't matter..." (June 26, 2022 - Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C)

As I Have Loved You Week 7 - The Gift of Presence "People often quote Woody Allen: 'Showing up is 80 percent of life. Sometimes it's easier to hide at home in bed. I've done both'..." (June 19, 2022 - Corpus Christi - Body and Blood of Jesus, Year C)

As I Have Loved You Week 6 - Why God Delights in Us "We have the capacity of insight that enables us to have a sense of humor and get immersed in stories..." (June 12, 2022 - Trinity Sunday, Year C)

As I Have Loved You Week 5 - Substantial Love "In all this something stands out. We aren't talking about any old love. We are not talking about cheap love..." (June 5, 2022 - Pentecost Sunday, Year C)

As I Have Loved You Week 4 - Active Listening "One of our deepest needs is for someone we trust to listen. In that regard I think of my brother Mike..." (May 29, 2022 - Ascension Sunday, Year C)

As I Have Loved You Week 3 - Holy Spirit as Advocate & Guide " Since the death of brother, I've been thinking a lot about this new heaven and new earth. Also at my class reunion, I learned that of the 35 of us ordained in Rome, twelve have died.'.." (May 22, 2022 - Sixth Sunday of Easter, Year C)

As I Have Loved You Week 2 - New Heaven and New Earth " I think of my sister-in-law who lost her son in a tragic fire. She is a woman of great faith, but the tears continue. She looks forward to what John describes as the 'new heaven and the new earth'.." (May 15, 2022 - Fifth Sunday of Easter, Year C)

As I Have Loved You Week 1 - Moms "The child may have died by miscarriage, abortion, disease or accident. There's an ache that does not go away in this life..." (May 8, 2022 - Fourth Sunday of Easter, Year C)

Forgive and You Will be Forgiven Week 11 - Peter Sums It Up "Today, as we conclude this series on forgiveness, we see that Peter sums it..." (May 1, 2022 - Third Sunday of Easter, Year C)

Forgive and You Will be Forgiven Week 10 - Mercy in the Face of Suicide "Chris did not pray for his grandmother, even at the funeral. He thought she had no hope since she took her own life. Ten years later as young working man, he attended a retreat where he made a General Confession. The priest introduced him to the Divine Mercy and showed him a way to pray for his grandmother..." (April 24, 2022 - Divine Mercy Sunday)

Forgive and You Will be Forgiven Week 9 - Leave Behind Contempt and Embrace Forgiveness "Arthur Brooks, an American social scientist and Harvard professor, writes about a marriage counselor who says he can usually tell in the first interview which couples have hope and which do not...." (April 17, 2022 - Easter Sunday)

Forgive and You Will be Forgiven - Mercy Stronger than Misery "Because of Christ's Blood, even the most vile people can receive redemption. I think of Rudolf Hoss, the commandant of the Auschwitz Concentration Camp..." (April 14, 2022 - Good Friday)

Forgive and You Will be Forgiven - Passover Lamb & Washing of Feet "One of my favorite memories is an evening when my niece Tonya brought a basin of water and knelt down before my mom, saying 'Grandma, can I was your feet'...." (April 14, 2022 - Holy Thursday)

Forgive and You Will be Forgiven Week 8 - Who Are "Them"? "Others used Jesus for perverse pleasure - like the guards at Dachau who forced prisoners into ice cold showers then turned the water scalding hot..." (April 10, 2022 - Palm Sunday, Year C)

Forgive and You Will be Forgiven Week 7 - Resisting Cancel Culture "Cancel culture in some form has always been with us and we see how Jesus responded to those who wanted to literally destroy the woman caught in adultery..." (April 3, 2022 - Fifth Sunday of Lent, Year C)

Forgive and You Will be Forgiven Week 6 - Dying and Coming Back to Life "Rather than take advantage of their new possibilities, they kept dreaming about the food they had in Egypt. When I was in Peru a guy visited who instead enjoying Peru's unique food, he kept saying, as soon as I get home, I'm getting a Whopper!..." (March 27, 2022 - Fourth Sunday of Lent, Year C)

Forgive and You Will be Forgiven Week 5 - God Uses Even Our Offenses "Jesus could have denounced Pilate but instead he asks a question..." (March 20, 2022 - Third Sunday of Lent, Year C)

Forgive and You Will be Forgiven Week 4 - Foundation for Forgiveness "The first reading tells about Abram sacrificing 'a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old she-goat, a three-year-old ram'. According to commentaries, three years represents the age of full growth, full strength and greatest perfection..." (March 13, 2022 - Second Sunday of Lent, Year C)

Forgive and You Will be Forgiven Week 3 "We live a society that is quick to judge and delights in cancelling others. That cannot be the way for us. Our lives are precarious - temptations bring us to the edge of catastrophe..." (March 6, 2022 - First Sunday of Lent, Year C)

Forgive and You Will be Forgiven - Ash Wednesday "Vladimir Putin commands weapons deployed only once - when we dropped atomic bombs on Nagasaki and Hiroshima. Today's nuclear weapons are magnitudes more powerful. At the beginning of the nuclear age, someone asked C.S. Lewis...." (March 2, 2022 - Ash Wednesday)

Forgive and You Will be Forgiven Week 2 "Three young men circled the cab. One of them pulled the door open and wrenched the wallet from my hand. I asked the children what the thief had stolen from me.." (February 27, 2022 - Eighth Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year C)

Forgive and You Will be Forgiven Week 1 Before I went to Peru, I watched Bishop Barron's videos on The Fading of Forgiveness. They contain so much truth. He described the inability to forgive that has taken over our society. .." (February 20, 2022 - Seventh Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year C)

Discovering Life's Purpose Week 8: Do Whatever He Tells You "People who try to construct their own happiness, more often wind up with vinegar rather than choice wine. I think of poor Madonna..." (January 16, 2022 - Second Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year C)

Discovering Life's Purpose Week 7: Is God Well Pleased with You? "Is God well pleased with you and me? For sure, you and I are capable of greatness because we have a soul and a body created in God's image..." (January 9, 2022 - Baptism of the Lord)

Discovering Life's Purpose Week 6: Science "Some people want science to govern our lives. They consider science the only valid knowledge. This view is called 'scientism'...." (January 2, 2022 - Epiphany Sunday)

Discovering Life's Purpose: Making a New Beginning "Now, shepherds were rough men. They often had to spend nights outdoors and ward off attacks from wolves and thieves. Some scholars say shepherds were the rednecks of Palestine....." (January 1, 2022 - Mary the Mother of God)

Discovering Life's Purpose Week 5: Family is Essential "We need the Holy Family if we are going to form the families God desire. And make no mistake, God created us for family. For most this means matrimony..." (December 26, 2021 - Holy Family Sunday)

Discovering Life's Purpose: Jesus Shows Worth of the Body "Some say it doesn't matter what they do with their body, only the mind counts. That's not what Jesus says. For him, the body, the flesh matters greatly..." (December 25, 2021 - Christmas)

Discovering Life's Purpose Week 4: Stillness and Silence "Pope Benedict observed: 'We are no longer able to hear God - There are too many different frequencies filling our ears.'..." (December 19, 2021 - Fourth Sunday of Advent, Year c)

Discovering Life's Purpose Week 3:The Voice of Conscience "Some people think conscience means personal opinion. They will say things like 'I know the Church says abortion is wrong, but I follow my own conscience.' Or..." (December 12, 2021 - Third Sunday of Advent, Year c)

Discovering Life's Purpose: Beauty/ Descubrir el Proposito de la Vida: Belleza "Every experience of beauty can lead us to Mary - and finally to God himself. Toda experiencia de belleza - musica bella o una flor - puede conducirnos a la belleza de nuestra madre y al final de las cuentas, la belleza de Dios mismo.." (December 12, 2021 - Our Lady of Guadalupe - Spanish with English summary at beginning)

Discovering Life's Purpose: From the Moment of Conception "We try to fix things on our own. We dream about creating heaven on earth, but we wind up creating even worse hells. The truth is we cannot do it on own. We need God...." (December 8, 2021 - Immaculate Conception)

Discovering Life's Purpose Week 2: Reject Extreme Materialism and Extreme Spiritualism "We had a mild version of Gnosticism when I was growing up - Norman Vincent Peale with his Power of Positive Thinking. It influenced many people including Donald Trump. As a young man he was a big fan of the Power of Positive Thinking.'..." (December 5, 2021 - Second Sunday of Advent, Year c)

Discovering Life's Purpose Week 1: Religion and Mental Health "the only group to see improvements in mental health during the past year were those who attended religious services at least weekly (virtually or in-person)'..." (November 28, 2021 - First Sunday of Advent, Year c)

Two Sides of the Same Coin "Thanksgiving and faith are two sides of the same coin. I encourage you to follow these steps of prayer..." (November 25, 2021 -Thanksgiving Homily bilingual)

You're Gonna Have to Serve Somebody "I don't want to be like the guy who at the end of his life left instructions for someone stand next to his casket and sing, 'I did it my way.'..." (November 21, 2021 - Christ the King Sunday, Year B)

Facing the Final Tribulation "The persecution...will unveil the 'mystery of iniquity' in the form of a religious deception offering men an apparent solution to their problems at the price of apostasy from the truth..." (November 14, 2021 - Thirty-Third Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year B)

The End Game Week 3: Seeing Ones Own Sins " A few months ago our president used this phrase: 'we will never forgive, we will never forget.' Now I realize he was trying to express outrage, in this case a justified outrage..." (October 24, 2021 - Thirtieth Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year B)

The End Game Week 2: How Can I Trust God? " Why did she, out of millions, have that reaction and wind up dying, leaving her husband and children devastated?.." (October 17, 2021 - Twenty-Ninth Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year B)

The End Game Week 1: Living Sub Specie Aeternitatis "This the only time in the Gospel that we hear about Jesus looking at an individual with love. Scripture scholar Mary Healy writes..." (October 10, 2021 - Twenty-Eighth Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year B)

Asking the Right Question Week 3: Why Male and Female? "A man called to matrimony must dedicate himself to one woman, to the exclusion of sexual intimacy with all others. Celibacy, the unmarried state, involves renouncing sexual intimacy while recognizing the importance of other forms of intimacy, for example..." (October 3, 2021 - Twenty-Seventh Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year B)

Asking the Right Question Week 2: Eternal Consequences? "Today I want to tell you a secret about hell. I call it a secret because most people don't know..." (September 27, 2021 - Twenty-Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year B)

Asking the Right Question - Week 1 "On Wednesday we had the blessing and inauguration of our new firepit. I was concerned about the ceremony, making sure we had wood for the fire and above, marshmallows. One of the children said.." (September 20, 2021 - Twenty-Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year B)

Basis for Abundant Life "Jesus elaborates twelve sinful thoughts and deeds. In the Greek text the first six are plural, indicating sinful acts - acts of unchastity and theft for example. The last six..." (August 29, 2021 - Twenty-Second Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year B)

Fiftieth Anniversary Homily "When I finished, one of the girls looked at me and said, "Phil, I think you are goin to be a priest." We laughed...'" (August 22, 2021 - Twenty-First Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year B)

Gratitude Week 10: Most Grateful for Mary "This does not take anything away from God. In fact, it glorifies him. A young man might say to his beloved, 'I adore you. You are the most beautiful. You are my life...'" (August 15, 2021 - Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary)

Gratitude Week 9: Two Steps to Life of Gratitude "Besides a good defense, we need a good offense. That's what we see in the first reading..." (August 8, 2021 - Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B)

Gratitude Week 8: The Duty of Happiness "I know children who hurt because dad always appears angry and sad. Likewise, parents suffer when a child never seems happy or grateful..." (August 1, 2021 - Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B)

Gratitude Week 7: Free Choice "I have to say something that pains me: people telling our young people that free choice means they can have someone kill their own baby. I've talked with my great nieces and other young women I love. I say to them..." (July 25, 2021 - Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B)

Gratitude Week 6: Conflict "I begin with an amusing story from my seminary days. I entered the seminary in the final year of Vatican II. Turmoil followed the Council, with Catholics dividing into liberal and conservative camps..." (July 18, 2021 - Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B)

Gratitude Week 5: Afflictions "We don't know exactly what the "thorn" was. Some think it may have been a form of depression. In Catholic Guide to Depression, Dr. Keriaty explains..." (July 11, 2021 - Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B)

Gratitude Week 4: Country "I looked down on patriotism. Today I consider that attitude a mistake. Pope St. John Paul said this.." (July 4, 2021 - Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B)

Gratitude Week 3: Children "We would like to protect our children from everything hurtful, but we have to recognize that God has a purpose for allowing anguish. St. Augustine said..." (June 27, 2021 - Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B)

Gratitude Week 2: Fatherhood "As I grew older, I realized that masculinity did not mean fulfilling some macho stereotype, but something much deeper..." (June 20, 2021 - Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B)

Gratitude Week 1: Start Small "Recent studies have linked gratitude with increased satisfaction, motivation, and energy; better sleep and health; and reduced stress and sadness..." (June 13, 2021 - Eleventh Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B)

Blood of the Lamb "Since I'm celebrating my 50th anniversary they asked me what I wanted for a jubilarian banquet...." (June 6 2021 - Corpus Christi - Body and Blood of Jesus)

Calling God by His Right Name "Once in the while, I flub a name. For example, at a wedding calling the bride Jennifer instead of Jessica..." (May 30, 2021 - Trinity Sunday)

The Holy Spirit Will Transform You "In Eastern Washington we have high dams that take the power of falling water and transform it into electricity for our homes and to charge our phones. Similarly, the Holy Spirit transforms ..." (May 23, 2021 - Pentecost Sunday)

Meaning of the Ascension "Scholars tells that the phrase 'all that Jesus did and taught' can more accurately be translated 'began to do and teach'..." (May 16, 2021 - Ascension of Our Lord)

Love One Another - What Does it Mean? "I've been a priest almost 50 years and I've never heard someone say, "I love him because he's so emotional." No, what they say is...." (May 9, 2021 - Sixth Sunday of Easter)

I Will Lay Down My Life for the Sheep "That night I lay in bed, my body aching from bruises and scrapes, but I felt good. I was willing to put my body on line to defend the flock...." (April 25, 2021 - Fourth Sunday of Easter)

Why Gnostics Are Wrong "Because of their secret knowledge, the Gnostics thought it didn't matter what they did with their bodies. Thus, they concluded that the commandments did not apply to them. Well, as we heard in our second reading, John has this to say..." (April 18, 2021 - Third Sunday of Easter)

Implications of Bodily Resurrection "Many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh; such is the deceitful one and the antichrist. (II John 1:7) Why does St. John use such strong words?..." (April 11, 2021 - Second Sunday of Easter)

Young Man Clothed in a White Robe "I admit I feel anger at those who rob hope from young people. It would be one thing if they did it by reasonable arguments, but they tend to do by mockery. For example, they tell our children that the Bible is a bunch of fairy tales..." (April 4, 2021 - Easter)

Major Reason People Lose Faith "In relation to Jesus' Passion we see a major reason people lose their faith: the hypocrisy of Jesus' followers. We live incoherent lives...." (April 2, 2021 - Good Friday Veneration of Cross & Communion)

Two Ways to Increase Faith "A person could have as much money as Bill Gates and use it to help others. That still wouldn't save you. We need something more fundamental...." (April 1, 2021 - Holy Thursday Mass of the Last Supper)

Increase Our Faith "Rabbi Benjamin Sendrow observes, 'As a believer I have to explain unjust suffering but the atheist has to explain everything. Everything.'...." (March 28, 2021 - Palm Sunday, Year B)

Lift Up Jesus "Bad as our pandemic has been, we can and should count our blessings. At the same time, other afflictions have accelerated: mental suffering, depression and suicidal ideation plague many people, especially our youth...." (March 21, 2021 - Fifth Sunday of Lent, Year B)

Time to Rebuild "As our seniors and others receive the vaccine, they are beginning to return to Mass. We want to welcome them. We need them to rebuild our parish as we start to recover from the devastation of the pandemic...." (March 14, 2021 - Fourth Sunday of Lent, Year B)

That Just Man "Pope Francis has asked us to observe 2021 as the 'Year of St. Joseph'. He points out..." (March 7, 2021 - Third Sunday of Lent, Year B)

Guest Homily - Deacon Leon Garcia (February 28, 2021 - Second Sunday of Lent, Year B)

The Battle Keeps Raging "When I was in Peru, I had one book with me, "Christ vs. Satan in Our Daily Lives" by Jesuit Father Robert Spitzer...." (February 21, 2021 - First Sunday of Lent, Year B)

Road to Recovery "You know there have been winners and losers in this pandemic. It's easy to fall into envy and resentment. Much better though..." (February 17, 2021 - Ash Wednesday, Year B)

We Need Cleansing and Healing "The saddest was a girl who lost her dad last November... She said it was made more difficult because they weren't allowed to give hugs. It's like we've become lepers to each other..." (February 14, 2021 - Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B)

Three Gifts You Should Ask For "Bishop Barron took the old question: If a genie appeared to you and said you could have three wishes, what would you ask for? He responded that best presents would be..." (January 3, 2021 - Epiphany Sunday)

Best Thing for Our Children "As we begin the New Year 2021, I ask you to do the best thing you can for your children and spiritual children: Make a new beginning together with Mary and Joseph, focused on Jesus..." (January 1, 2021 - Mary, the Mother of God)

Seniors & the Pandemic "Our pandemic, by and large, spared children and young people - thanks be to God! But that very fact has made us more aware of the needs of our elderly and how much we owe to them..." (December 27, 2020 - Holy Family Sunday)

Meaning of Christmas "Word is intelligence, concept, information. You may have read that once the scientists got the coronavirus genome sequence back in January, it took them only 48 hours to design the actual vaccine..." (December 25, 2020 - Christmas)

God Always Fulfills his Promise "So what can we say about God's promise to David? Well, as we see today, God not only fulfills the promise, but super-fulfills it..." (December 20, 2020 - Fourth Sunday of Advent, Year B)

Rejoice Always! "We have a duty to be happy. The main thing our loved ones want of us is that we be happy..." (December 13, 2020 - Third Sunday of Advent, Year B)

True vs False Comfort "God offers us comfort, but it is not a false or easy comfort. C.S. Lewis said this.." (December 6, 2020 - Second Sunday of Advent, Year B)

Be watchful! Be alert! "In the Roman army if the night watchman fell asleep, the other soldiers would place him in the middle of a circle.." (November 29, 2020 - First Sunday of Advent, Year B)

Gratitude in Time of Pandemic "Like everything else this year, Thanksgiving will be different. Myself, I'll be getting together only with my brother - but we have asked our niece to send over a few slices of turkey.." (November 26, 2020 - Thanksgiving Day)

You Did It To Me "St. Teresa of Calcutta used to teach the "five-finger Gospel." I saw a video of her holding a man's hand, palm up. Beginning with the thumb, she says.." (November 22, 2020 - Christ the King Sunday, Year A)

The Three Blessings of Working for Jesus "Jesus presents a model of Stewardship - the man who worked hard and used his talents to make even more. The Master praises him, giving him three blessings.." (November 15, 2020 - Thirty-Third Ordinary Sunday, Year A)

The Fire of Christ "One of our parishioners, Cathy Lenac, saw a powerful case of judgment. Forty-eight years ago she happened on a young girl who had been violated and left to die..." (November 8, 2020 - Thirty-Second Ordinary Sunday, Year A)

Most Consequential Election "Compared with that, Tuesday's election is small potatoes. Remember how Leon Bloy said that 'the only real sadness, the only real failure, the only great tragedy is...'" (November 1, 2020 - All Saints)

As Yourself "Daryl Davis illustrates the basic principle of Jesus' love: Hate the sin, but love the sinner. In his case he hated the sin of racism, but he loved the sinner.." (October 25, 2020 - Thirtieth Ordinary Sunday, Year A)

Return to God "Two weeks ago we heard about a 15-year-old boy who repaid his soul to God: Blessed Carlo Acutis. Like all young people he had to discover his purpose. He stated it simply, 'To always be close to Jesus, that's my plan'..." (October 18, 2020 - Twenty-Ninth Ordinary Sunday, Year A)

Secularism Destroys the Soul "A farm and a business are good things, but these people had made them their ultimate concern. What matters to them are only the things of this world. That's what secularism means..." (October 11, 2020 - Twenty-Eighth Ordinary Sunday, Year A)

Be of the Same Mind "if the conversation turns to politics, priests will disagree, sometimes violently. I've never seen a fist fight, but I've witnessed some heated arguments...." (September 27, 2020 - Twenty-Sixth Ordinary Sunday, Year A)

Are You Envious? "Envy is not simply jealousy which is the desire to attain or possess what the other person has. Envy is the sin of being upset at another's good fortune..." (September 20, 2020 - Twenty-Fifth Ordinary Sunday, Year A)

(I will be in Oregon for 23rd & 24th Sundays. Fr. Armando Guzman will take my place and St. Mary of the Valley will live stream his Sunday morning Masses)

Recover Prayer "During the pandemic some deepened their prayer. Others, not so much...when it comes to prayer all of us need to make a new beginning..." (August 30, 2020 - Twenty-Second Ordinary Sunday, Year A)

They Love Their Freedom "The Persians outnumbered the Greeks a hundred to one. Still, a Greek king named Demaratus warned the Persian emperor that the Greeks will fight to the last man because they love their freedom - and they love their law...'" (August 23, 2020 - Twenty-First Ordinary Sunday, Year A)

Three Steps of Prayer "If we as a church and as a parish are going to recover from our current devastation, we have to return to prayer. The beautiful Canaanite woman models prayer. It has three steps...'" (August 16, 2020 - Twentieth Ordinary Sunday, Year A)

Not Color Blind but Color Blessed "Some people say, 'When I look at people, I don't see race. I don't see their color.' Pastor Warrens responds, 'There's a word for that: liar!...'" (August 9, 2020 - Nineteenth Ordinary Sunday, Year A)

Jesus Reveals Hidden Treasure "We have worked hard to make our church safe, to protect our people. Our protocols are working. We cannot, however, take away all risks..." (August 2, 2020 - Eighteenth Ordinary Sunday, Year A)

Evil is Like the Coronavirus "Like the coronavirus lust is parasitical. It takes over something good. Sexuality is very good... (July 26, 2020 - Seventeenth Ordinary Sunday, Year A)

(Sixteenth Sunday, July 19, Deacon Gene preached)

Glorious Freedom "Freedom does not mean doing whatever I want, whenever I want. No. When a person loses impulse control, it leads to slavery... (July 12, 2020 - Fifteenth Ordinary Sunday, Year A)

I Give You Praise, Father "It seems like yesterday I came here in July of 2009. So much has happened... (July 5, 2020 - Fourteenth Ordinary Sunday, Year A)

Small Things with Great Love "All of us know a smile can make a big difference. When I'm wearing a face mask, however, I can't use my winning smile. But I've noticed... (June 28, 2020 - Thirteenth Ordinary Sunday, Year A)

Fulcrum of History "the most challenging, most fulfilling, most important job I will have during my time on this Earth is to be Sasha and Malia's father... (June 21, 2020 - Twelfth Ordinary Sunday, Year A)

A New Beginning "Especially after the turmoil of the last 20 days, we know we can't return to business as usual. We want a new beginning, a new vision ..." (June 14, 2020 - Corpus Christi Sunday)

What is Heaven? "Deep inside we want to know. I remember in 1977 when the Roots Series came out. It transfixed our nation. ..." (June 7, 2020 - Trinity Sunday)

Healing of Memories "If the Holy Spirit can heal the other person's memory, he can heal your memory and mine - even going back before birth. My mom told me about going to the doctor suspecting she was pregnant..." (May 31, 2020 - Pentecost Sunday)

To Judge the Living and the Dead "Many people turn from God because they fear judgment. The famous movie director, Woody Allen, recently published an autobiography where he tries to explain and justify his life. At the end he says..." (May 24, 2020 - Ascension of Our Lord)

How Tremendous Are Your Deeds! "When all is said and done, don't we have to take care of our own problems? Aren't we the ones who have to defeat the coronavirus? As one of our politicians said..." (May 17, 2020 - Sixth Sunday of Easter)

Do Not Let Your Hearts be Troubled "We may not be suffering so greatly as people did during the Civil War or during the pandemic of 1918-1919, still our sufferings are real and for many quite terrible ..." (May 10, 2020 - Fifth Sunday of Easter)

Moving Out of Isolation "Many people have fallen into despair not just because they lose a job but because of the collapse of marriage, church and civic life. ..." (May 3, 2020 - Fourth Sunday of Easter)

Answering Objections "No one denied the empty tomb. What they did was give alternative explanations: That the disciples stole Jesus' body or they somehow revived him..." (April 26, 2020 - Third Sunday of Easter)

Let Go of Your Anger "I've heard people express anger at Trump, at the Democrats, the news media, even the bishops. I've experienced some of that anger myself...'" (April 19, 2020 - Second Sunday of Easter - Divine Mercy)

Honestly Examine the Evidence "If one day you wake up standing before Jesus, you will at least want to say you honestly examined the evidence. You'll want to do more than say, 'well, I watched a program on television or I saw a YouTube video....'" (April 12, 2020 - Easter Sunday)

Why We Long to be Back Together "You can be a good Buddhist by learning how to meditate. Christians also practice meditation but we require something more - physical immersion in Christ through the sacraments...." (April 10, 2020 - Good Friday)

Allow God to Serve You "I miss you and I admit I have had crazy dreams. I dream about doing a parking lot Mass..." (April 9, 2020 - Holy Thursday bilingual)

Power in the Blood "After hearing all the coronavirus symptoms they are wondering if they may have had an early case. A blood test could answer that question..." (April 5, 2020 - Palm Sunday, Cycle A)

The Third Scrutiny "Do we fear death? I don't think most people do. I think C.S. Lewis got it right..." (March 29, 2020 - Fifth Sunday of Lent, Cycle A)

The Second Scrutiny "They know everything, but they cannot see what is right in front of their eyes. They have put Jesus in a box..." (March 22, 2020 - Fourth Sunday of Lent, Cycle A)

The First Scrutiny "Think of the five husbands as five errant paths the woman has taken. She has 'married' herself to wealth, pleasure, honor, power, material things, etc..." (March 15, 2020 - Third Sunday of Lent, Cycle A)

Next Step in Evolution "People often ask when the next step in evolution - the step to something beyond man - will happen. But on the Christian view, it has happened already..." (March 8, 2020 - Second Sunday of Lent, Cycle A)

Immersed in the Scriptures "Now, the devil of course can quote Scripture - but he does it out of context..." (March 1, 2020 - First Sunday of Lent, Cycle A)

Wake-up Call for the Soul "Our young people have helped us rediscover fasting, many of them adopting vegetarian or even vegan lifestyle. Among my young priest friends fasting has come back..." (February 26, 2020 - Ash Wednesday homily)

Be Holy "Cardinal Avery Dulles tells about seeing a church banner that proclaimed: God is other people! He said he wanted to add a comma..." (February 23, 2020 - Seventh Sunday of Ordinary Time, Cycle A)

Eyes on the Prize "Heaven is a place of super-abundance. Even our meanest desires will have a surprising fulfillment. G.K. Chesterton said, 'a young man ringing the bell of a brothel is unconsciously looking for God'..." (February 16, 2020 - Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time, Cycle A)

Thank God Ahead of Time "He kept saying, 'Thank God ahead of time.' Thus Blessed Solanus became salt to heal and sustain others. Perhaps his secret lay in what Paul said..." (February 9, 2020 - Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time, Cycle A)

Better to Light One Candle "I decided I would offer the only type of 'Mass' I could. I would take the pain and impotence I was experiencing and lift them to God for a specific intention..." (February 2, 2020 - Presentation of the Lord)

Jesus' Basic Message "The Proclamation of the Kingdom and the Call to Repentance is not something once and for all. We have to hear it each day. I'd like to now recommend a way of hearing and living that call..." (January 26, 2020 - Third Sunday of Ordinary Time, Cycle A)

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