26 September 2024 - Thursday of the 26th week of ordinary time – Ecclesiastes 1:2 and 2:21-23

St Cosmos and St Damian were put to death in the Diocletian persecutions in the Roman empire in the early 4th century. Tradition passes down that they were twin brothers who were originally from Arabia but who studied science together in Syria, working as doctors.  They are the patron saints of doctors, surgeons, chemists, and pharmacists. There are some saints from the early Church of whom we don’t know much, but they were revered by the faithful and many stories have been passed down about them. 

The words from the book of Ecclesiastes get our attention this morning: “Vanity of vanities!  All things are vanity!” On the surface, those words might appear pessimistic and cynical, but what do they really mean?  The Hebrew word “hebel” that is translated into the English word “vanity,” literally means breath or, more specifically, for the fleeting vapor we see when we breathe into cold air.  Ecclesiastes is telling us that life can be like a fleeting breath, filled with emptiness and futility. We human beings often attach ourselves to material things, thinking that these things will make us more secure or more appealing, that these material things will satisfy our desires and our needs and make us feel like we have meaning in life. But these things often leave us empty and wanting more, especially when we compare them to the eternal life that awaits us in God’s kingdom. Perhaps the message from Ecclesiastes is not very comforting, but it calls us to reflect upon life and our earthly existence.

26 September 2024 - Thursday of the 25th week in Ordinary Time - prayers of the faithful

Lord Jesus, you bring healing to us and you forgive us our sins. 

Christ Jesus, you bring us the Father's love. 

Lord Jesus, you came that we might have life in its fullness.

Prayers of the faithful:

Priest: We present our prayers to our heavenly Father: 

1. That the leaders of the Church may preach with faith and courage, spreading the Gospel message throughout the world.

2. That our governmental leaders will gain wisdom from God during these challenging times as they lead their people.  

3. That Christian missionaries may be blessed and protected.

4. That we may continue to care for our neighbors — in good days and bad.  We pray for those who are struggling with depression, mental illness, and addictions.  

5. That our community may be strengthened. May comfort, healing, and new life be brought to all parishioners.

6. For the sick & shut-in. For the repose of the souls of the faithful departed. For the souls in purgatory. 

7. For the prayers we hold in the silence of our hearts. 

Priest: Heavenly Father, as we are gathered by the word of life and as we are supported the sacraments, we present our prayers through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, as he is our Lord forever and ever.  

25 September 2024 - prayers of the faithful - Wednesday of the 25th week in Ordinary Time

Lord Jesus - you are the Beloved Son of the Father. 

Christ Jesus - you are our Savior and Redeemer. 

Lord Jesus - you proclaim the values of justice and compassion. 

Priest: In faith and hope, we bring our prayers to our heavenly Father. 

1. That our Church leaders may help us profess in word and deed that Jesus is Lord. 

2. That we may increase our awareness of God’s grace at work in our lives, that it may help us share more fully in the life of the Trinity. 

3. That we may trust in God’s providence to lead us in our evangelization efforts and in our proclamation of God’s kingdom. 

4. That our students and teachers may learn together as they grow in wisdom. May God will protect them and guide them throughout the school year. 

5. For a deeper appreciation of the beauty and dignity of life. 

6. For those who have died, especially our loved ones, family members, and friends, for their eternal life with God.

7. For the prayers we hold in the silence of our hearts. 

Priest: As we continue our journey of faith during these days of ordinary time, we present our prayers through your Son Jesus Christ, our Lord forever and ever.  AMEN.

Prayers of the faithful - 24 September 2022 - Tuesday of the 25th week in Ordinary Time

Lord Jesus - you call us out the reality of our lives. 

Christ Jesus - you bring us healing and renewal. 

Lord Jesus - you call us to unity and solidarity. 

Priest: As we unite our prayers with the prayers of the community of saints, we present our prayers to our heavenly Father: 

1. That we may be open to all the gifts that different cultural, ethnic, economic, educational, and age groups bring to our community. 

2. For all who exercise authority may follow in the footsteps of Christ in being servants to others and attentive to those in need.

3. For those who reach out to the poor and the marginalized recognize Christ in all whom they serve. 

4. That we may reach out to those who can never repay us, allowing the reign of God to be experienced in our time. 

5. That God's healing love may touch those who have experience abuse, bring them healing, and restore them to the fullness of life. 

6. For the sick and shut-in and for the repose of the souls of the faithful departed. 

7. For the prayers we hold in our hearts today. 

Priest: With joy and hope, we present these prayers through your son Jesus Christ, our Lord forever and ever. AMEN. 

25 September 2024 - homily for Wednesday of the 26th week in Ordinary Time - Luke 9:57-62

We hear one of Jesus’ disciples declare today: “I will follow you wherever you go.”  Those are very easy words to say, especially when we don’t know where the road will lead in our journey of faith, when we don’t know the sacrifices we are going to have to make and what we are going to have to leave behind. We see some many of the saints and so many examples of faith make many sacrifices to serve God and his people. Even with their willingness to suffer for the faith, many of them could never have predicted the trials and tribulations they would endure. When I left for Canada and Ecuador to be a lay missionary, I would not have been able to imagine where that road would have taken me. In a lot of ways, I am glad I did not know. However, I still give thanks for those experiences, both the joys and the sorrows. May we give thanks for our journey of faith, no matter what that journey may be. 

24 Sept 2024 - homily for Tuesday of the 26th week in Ordinary Time - Luke 9:51-56

Back when I was serving at St Jude in Pearl, the pastors of the local congregations read the 31 chapters of the book of Proverbs, one chapter per day. We were paired with one of the other pastors and would then text our insights from that chapter to the other person. I was paired with a pastor from an African American Baptist Church in Pearl who also worked with troubled youth in an after-school program. It was quite interesting to share our insights with each other. In today’s first reading, we hear from the 21st Chapter of Proverbs. One verse stood out to me: “To do what is right and just is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice.” In Ancient Israel, sacrifices were made in the Temple. Some Jews felt that offering those sacrifices were more important than anything else. Perhaps more important than proper conduct. Most Catholics approach confession with sincere and contrite hearts.  Doing penance and going to confession are important. Turning away from our sins is equally important. I hope that we could read the book of Proverbs together as a parish and be able to share our insights with other parishioners. I think that would be a wonderful exercise.  

14 September 2024 - The Exaltation of the Cross - John 3:13-17 - Numbers 21:4b-9

This upcoming Sunday at Mass in Mark’s Gospel (Mark 8:27-35), Jesus tells his disciples and the crowds that if they wish to be his followers, they must deny themselves, take up their cross and follow him; they must lose their life for his sake and the sake of the Gospel in order to save it. Today’s Mass has a similar theme: the exaltation of the Holy Cross, a liturgy that focuses our hearts and our minds on the cross of Christ. 

This feast celebrates the recovery of the cross in the 4th century by St. Helena, the mother of the Roman emperor Constantine, and then the new recovery of this cross from the non-Christians who had seized it. The main focus of this feast is the meaning of the cross, the mystery that we attempt to understand in our faith. 

In the book of Numbers, we hear how the people of Israel died and suffered in the desert after having been bitten by snakes, how God gave them the remedy of a bronze serpent mounted to a pole so that when they looked at it, they would be healed. The serpent that we are bitten by in our modern world is sin. Sin often leads us away from our journey of faith.  In our need to be healed of our sinful state, we are invited to look not at a bronze serpent on a wooden pole, but to the cross of Christ. From that look, we can be healed just as the people of Israel were healed in the desert.

Looking at our modern secular culture through the lens of faith, we see a culture that often encourages sins of all types, as well as an indifference to our faith. Yet, the Gospel message today is that God did not send his Son into the world to condemn it, but rather to be saved through him. We don’t celebrate the cross because we want to suffer for the sake of suffering. We are to be saved through Christ and his death on the cross. His cross brings meaning to our sufferings. We are to unite the crosses we carry to Christ’s cross and Christ’s sufferings. May we rejoice today that we have been saved by Christ’s passion, death, and resurrection, that we are able to journey through life as followers of Christ.