1st Sunday of Advent, Year B – Homily

1st Sunday of Advent, Year BIsaiah 63:16b-17, 19b; 64:2-7Psalm 80:2-3, 15-16, 18-19 (4)1 Corinthians 1:3-9Mark 13:33-37November 29, 2020 Our passage from Isaiah today comes from a time when the Babylonian Exile was ending and the Jews were returning to Jerusalem.  They found the Temple in ruins and their lands pillaged.  It was difficult to see. …

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4th Sunday of Advent, Year A – Homily

4th Sunday of Advent, Year AIsaiah 7:10-14Psalm 24:1-2, 3-4, 5-6 (7c, 10b)Romans 1:1-7Matthew 1:18-24December 22, 2019 It’s almost Christmas but not yet.  We have to wait a couple of more days.  On this Fourth Sunday of Advent, our reading from Isaiah prophesized a birth from a virgin.  Our gospel today tells part of the story …

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Advent Penance Homily 2019

Advent Penance Service 2019Isaiah 57:14-21Psalm 63Matthew 3:1-12December 19, 2019 Christmas is coming but it is not yet here. We get excited for Christmas.  Psalm 63, our responsorial psalm today, is one of my favorite psalms because it expresses our desire to know God with versus like: “My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my …

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3rd Sunday of Advent, Year A – Homily

3rd Sunday of Advent, Year AIsaiah 35:1-6a, 10Psalm 146:6-7, 8-9, 9-10 (Isaiah 35:4)James 5:7-10Matthew 11:2-11December 15, 2019 “Be patient.” “Be patient, brothers and sisters, until the coming of the Lord.”  These are the words that begin our second reading today.  We hear them as we approach our celebration of the First Coming of Jesus at …

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2nd Sunday of Advent, Year A – Homily

2nd Sunday of Advent, Year A Isaiah 11:1-10Psalm 72:1-2, 7-8, 12-13, 17 (3)Romans 15:4-9Matthew 3:1-12 December 8, 2019 Advent is a time to reflect on the coming of Jesus.  Last week’s gospel spoke of the Second Coming.  The birth of Jesus that we celebrate at Christmas is the First Coming of Jesus.  Today our gospel …

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1st Sunday of Advent, Year A – Homily

1st Sunday of Advent, Year AIsaiah 2:1-5Psalm 122:1-2, 3-4, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9Romans 13:11-14Matthew 24:37-44December 1, 2019 Soon it will be Christmas but not yet.  If you look at the stores, Christmas items have been out for a while.  That doesn’t make it Christmas. Before we can celebrate Christmas, we first celebrate Advent.  The season of …

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4th Sunday of Advent, Year C – Homily

4th Sunday of Advent, Year CMicah 5:1-4aPsalm 80:2-3, 15-16, 18-19 (4)Hebrews 10:5-10Luke 1:39-45December 23, 2018 God loves us.  John 3:16 tells us that “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.” Love requires us to be …

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Grant Me the Patience to Wait – Holy Hour Homily

Homily for December 2018 Holy HourGenesis 8:1-14Psalm 25:4-5, 8-9, 10, 14Romans 8:18-27Mark 4:26-29 It is almost Christmas but not yet.  The stores started anticipating Christmas with their displays right after Halloween.  This doesn’t make Christmas come any sooner.  We still have to wait.  We began seeing Christmas decorations at Thanksgiving time but this too doesn’t …

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3rd Sunday of Advent, Year C – Homily

3rd Sunday of Advent, Year CZephaniah 3:14-18aIsaiah 12:2-3, 4, 5-6 (6)Philippians 4:4-7Luke 3:10-18December 16, 2018 In less than two weeks we will celebrate Christmas, a time of hope and joy.  Yet, for now we remain in our season of Advent. We use this time of Advent as a time to prepare for the coming of the …

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