Fr Tom’s Homilies
The third Sunday of Advent is called “Joyful Sunday” as Christmas draws near. This time of year is meant to be a time of joy, but it can be a time of sadness for some for a variety of reasons. Some of us struggle to find joy at Christmas because we confuse joy with feeling good. In … [Read more…]
We all spend a lot of time getting ready for Christmas with gifts, cards, decorating, cooking, visits to Santa, shopping, caroling and presentations. Why do we do all this? “Well, everyone else is doing it,” you might say. There’s some truth to that, because after all, we want to join those who are celebrating the … [Read more…]
They will beat their swords into plowshares, their spears into pruning hooks. This is from the first reading this weekend from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah. At the end of World War II, the nations of the world decided that an international organization could best prevent war, and the United Nations was established. Since that … [Read more…]
The Good Thief, whom we now call Saint Dismas, said quite amazingly that God, in the person of Jesus was dying with them. Why did he say such a thing? The answer might be found in a 1966 Time Magazine article that asked, “Is God Dead?” This blasphemous article suggested that modern man no longer needed God, … [Read more…]
Two weeks from now the season of Advent will begin. That’s when the most important preparation for Christmas begins. This preparation is meant to help us to celebrate God becoming Man. Advent celebrates the two comings of God-made-Man, His physical coming in the flesh at Bethlehem and His spiritual coming as King of the universe … [Read more…]
The first reading for this Sunday is intense. In 165 B.C., a new King, Antiochus Epiphanes decided that everyone in his domains should follow Greek practices. Many Jews went along without complaint as they wanted to be part of the new modern Hellenistic culture. They built gymnasiums where they would exercise in the rather immodest … [Read more…]
Last week we had the parable of the tax collector and the Pharisee in the Temple. This week the Gospel names Zacchaeus as that tax collector. Why were tax collectors lumped together with other sinners? The way taxes worked in the Roman Empire was that the Romans enlisted the help of locals offering them a … [Read more…]
For some, it is difficult to walk into a Church. Some have been away from Church for weeks, months, or years. For others, that know they have failed to live up to their Faith. It can be scary to look at the tabernacle. We want to join the Tax Collector in the back of Church … [Read more…]
The Gospel presents the healing of ten lepers. They were hideous, having horrible sores all over their bodies. They had bells which they rang while calling out continually, “Unclean, unclean.” The healthy would do everything possible to avoid them. Jesus told them to go and show themselves to the priests in the Temple to be … [Read more…]
It takes courage to practice faith, because just like courage, every act of faith carries within it a certain amount of fear. Those who hide from life and making commitments know very little about either courage or faith. Faith like courage is gutsy; it demands commitment to something or someone beyond us. Faith like courage … [Read more…]