Sermons from 2020 (Page 2)

That is a very interesting story from Jesus. [To see the words of the gospel, click here.] The enemies of Jesus go up to trap Jesus. Who are they? Two groups: one group is from Pharisees, the leaders of the Jewish people; the other group is from King Herod. The two of them are opposite to each other, but both of them come together. Why? Because they both see Jesus is a challenge. The religious leaders saw Jesus wanted to…

On this Sunday, Jesus tells us the story of a banquet. [To see the words of the gospel, click here.]  A king is celebrating the wedding of his son. Some people refuse to come; others are welcome. Many times Jesus used banquets and dinners to teach us something. Eating with Jesus changes us. We are with Jesus right now in the Eucharist. When we come together at Mass, He is with us.  So, here are some of the examples when…

Last Thursday October 1 we honored a special saint, Saint Therese. Sometimes she is called The Little Flower. She seemed to live a very simple quiet life in a convent. She died in 1897 at the age of 24. But she left us a beautiful book, the story of her spiritual journey, a  story about how to be a holy person, how to come closer to Christ and become more and more like Him. Her idea is very simple. The…

Let me talk about the second reading from St. Paul. He says, “Be humble; think of others as being more important than you.”  [To see the second reading, click here.] “Humble” means what? It means:  Me, I am an awful person, a failure; I am no good; I am deflated? Is that what it means? No! “Humble” means being honest. I am honest about myself. I am honest about other people. I am honest before God. Look at the words…

Let me give you the background to the story that Jesus tells. [To read the words of today’s gospel, click here.]  It is the time of the grape harvest, just before the rains come. The longer the grapes stay on the vine the sweeter the grapes will be. But if the rains come and the grapes have not been harvested, then the grapes are ruined. So the farmer knows that the time is coming very quickly. He wants to get…

Today, Jesus talks about forgiveness.  [To read the words of the gospel, click here.]  If a person hurts me, is it easy to forgive that person? No, it is not easy to forgive. And yet we have the words of Jesus that we need to forgive one another. Every day we pray the Lord’s Prayer, the Our Father. The words of the prayer are, “Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.” We want to forgive;…

Today the Lord reminds us we belong to one another, and we must be responsible for one another.  This is the 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time.   Today in the gospel Jesus tells us how to act with a person who is doing wrong. [To see the words of the Gospel, click here.]  Remember, in the very beginning of the Catholic Church, the number of people following Jesus was small. So one person acting badly in the small community hurt everyone.…

In today’s Gospel, Jesus is going to Jerusalem and He tells his followers He will suffer and die at the hands of his enemies. Peter comes up and says, “Lord, this cannot be; we will not allow it to happen.” Jesus says to him, “You are like Satan; you are tempting me. You are encouraging me not to do what my Father in heaven wants me to do.” (To see the words of the gospel, click here.) Jesus says, if…

Today we have another story about Peter. He is an interesting man. He is the leader of Jesus’s followers, during the time when Jesus was on earth, and also after Jesus ascended into heaven.  What can we learn from the story of Peter? In the story today [To see the words of today’s Gospel, click here.] Jesus asks, “Who do people say that I am?” His followers give different answers — Elijah, John the Baptist, Jeremiah, one of the prophets.…

Yesterday, August 15, is a special day every year, honoring Mary, the mother of Jesus. It tells the story of her assumption.  What does it mean? When Mary died, she was buried. But her body did not stay in the ground to waste away and become dust again. Jesus brought his mother’s body up into heaven. So now in heaven we have two glorious people, fully human: Jesus and Mary. So let me talk a little bit about Mary today.…