Fr Tom’s Homilies
The woman at the well is an unhappy woman because of her poor choices. Her name was Photina and she had two sons Joseph and Victor. She had lived with five different men over the years and was living with a man who wasn’t her husband when she met Jesus at the well. And her … [Read more…]
Saint Peter in a moment of revelation had publicly acknowledged that Jesus was the Messiah and Savior. He could see himself as Christ’s right hand man in a thriving Kingdom of God. But then Jesus had added words which Peter did not want to hear. Jesus assured him of glory in a resurrection, but only … [Read more…]
At a monastery a younger monk asked an older monk, “How are you?” The older monk replied, “There is still a bit of the devil in me!” The response of the older monk may strike us as a bit odd – yet – it expresses a truth about all of us. There is still a … [Read more…]
It’s easy to be kind and loving towards those whom we like, to our family and friends, to those who are good to us. All this comes naturally. But Jesus expects much more of His followers. In today’s Gospel Jesus tells us to love our enemies, to be good to those who harm us, to … [Read more…]
There is a difference between building a home and building a house. There is a difference between being faithful to a spouse and simply staying married to the same person. There is a difference between being a good driver and never having an accident. There is a similar difference between upholding laws and fulfilling the … [Read more…]
Doctors warn that too much salt is not healthy. Yet salt is a necessary thing and salt brings out the flavor of the food we are eating. Likewise, in winter everything can seem gloomy and dull on those endless gray days. But when the sunny summer days arrive we enjoy the light of the sun … [Read more…]
Saint Luke begins and ends his nativity narrative in the temple. The temple in Jerusalem was a huge complex set of buildings with hundreds of people living in many of these buildings. The Main building of this complex was of course the temple proper. This was a large tall rectangular building which was divided by … [Read more…]
My father, Joe Huff was a firefighter for 34 years in the City of Binghamton, NY. From time to time he would take part in “mock-up” exercises involving burning structures with a team of fire-fighters. Inside a building there would be thick smoke, pitch darkness and extreme heat. They would edge their way around the … [Read more…]
It is to the Old Testament that we must look to begin to understand Jesus as the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. The lamb occupies an important place in the story of the people of Israel. In the first few pages of their sacred text we encounter Abel, son … [Read more…]
For the early Christians, the thought that their Lord had Himself undergone baptism was disturbing, embarrassing and even scandalous. Did the spotless Lamb, the Holy One of God, really acknowledge that He was truly united with sinful humanity by submitting to an act of ritual purification? Why did the Son of God in human … [Read more…]