Readings: Isaiah 9:1-6; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-14 Preacher: Irene Goodwin The Angels sing, “Peace on earth, good will to all on whom God’s favor rests.” Our Christmas readings are so well known that we hardly consider their impact on our lives. I see the readings for Christmas like a Matryoshka doll (Russian Nesting Doll). Each doll is split in the middle.… read more →
Readings: Isaiah 7: 10-14; Romans 1: 1-7; Matthew 1: 18-24 Preacher: Sr. Joan Sobala One of the common misconceptions among Christians is that the Christmas stories—indeed, Christmas itself—is best celebrated by children. It’s true that children love Christmas with exuberance and delight in the stories of Jesus’ birth. They learn early about the generosity of our God who came to be… read more →
Readings: Isaiah 35: 1-6a, 10; James 5: 7-10; Matthew 11: 2-11 Preacher: Sr. Karen Dietz Imagine for a moment holding onto something that is very hot; a roll just out of the oven; a stone heated in the sunshine. Our fingers and hands are sensitive to the heat, and we probably would be passing the object from one hand to the… read more →
Readings: Isaiah 11: 1-10; Romans 15: 4-9; Matthew 3: 1-12 Preacher: Sonja Livingston Edward Hicks was an 18th century Quaker minister and American folk artist famous for a series of paintings inspired by the words from Isaiah we read today. Hicks was so gripped by the imagery of Isaiah 11:6-9, he made 65 paintings of the scene over the last thirty… read more →
Readings: Isaiah 2: 1-5; Romans 13: 11-14; Matthew 24: 37-44 Preacher: Gloria Ulterino As often happens, this homily took on a life of its own. Unbidden. It was the joyful light of today’s First Reading from Isaiah that initially captivated my heart. Immediately I was back on a pilgrimage to Israel some 15 years ago, in the balmy springtime. Specifically, at… read more →
Readings: 2 Samuel 5: 1-3; Colossians 1: 12-20; Luke 23: 35-43 Preacher : Nancy J. DeRycke Just as the attention has settled down around Queen Elizabeth’s death and King Charles’ reign, the Church is celebrating Christ the King—another reflection on “Royals.” Our world (and church?) has a fascination with royalty and power. So perhaps that’s part of the reason why the… read more →
Readings: Malachi 3: 19-20a; 2 Thessalonians 3: 7-12; Luke 21: 5-19 Preacher: Susan K. Roll Several years ago, a group of concerned German Catholics sent a communication to Cardinal Reinhard Marx of Munich-Freising, at that time the Chair of the German Bishops’ Conference and the most prominent prelate in Germany. He was about to take part in a summit conference called… read more →
Readings: 2 Maccabees 7: 1-2, 9-14; 2 Thessalonians 2: 16-3:5; Luke 20: 27-38 Preacher: Brigit Hurley The disciples who were listening as Jesus answered the Sadducees’ trick questions in the Gospel story were no older than twenty-something, and possibly as young as 12. His mother was likely 12 or 13 when she gave birth to Jesus. The prominence given to these… read more →
Readings: Wisdom 11: 22–12: 2; Second Thessalonians 1: 11–2: 2; Luke 19: 1-10. Preacher: Jeanne Mooney Just before the Scripture readings at Sunday Mass, the presider invites children to a special Liturgy of the Word. There they hear, in age-appropriate language, the same verses and prayers as the adults are hearing that day. And they hear a homily applying biblical faith… read more →
Readings: Sirach 35:15-17,20-22; 2 Timothy 4:6-8.16-18; Luke 18:9-14 Preacher: Deirdre McKiernan Hetzler A famous theologian, commenting on St. Paul’s assertion that the gospel can be a stumbling block, once said that the danger is stumbling over the wrong thing! The parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector is a familiar one, isn’t it? So familiar that we often think of… read more →