Good and Loyal Shepherd

2nd Sunday after Easter 2013
The sacrament of Holy Orders was instituted by Jesus Christ so that His visible presence on Earth would be continued after His Ascension.  He desired that the graces that would bring us to Heaven would be poured out through His ordained ministers.  Through the priests He makes His Will known to the faithful and guides them on their journey.  The priest is called to live and act in imitation of Christ.  We should never stop thanking God for the truly good shepherds He has sent us.  Our good priests show us leadership in confusion, teach us the meaning of true charity, and we celebrate their perseverance in their holy vocations.
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The Three Give Testimony

Low Sunday 2013
This Sunday does not have the liturgical splendor of Easter, and it is in comparison to that feast that it is called Low Sunday.  We made promises on Easter to love Christ and to put away the things of the devil.  Although we do not know the true state of our souls, we should examine our spiritual life and ask ourselves if we have made any progress.  The Gospel account of today is a truly exquisite example of God’s mercy.  We are quick to judge the Apostles for their doubts, but how often do we struggle with doubts of our own?  The sacrament of Penance was instituted on the evening of Easter Sunday.  We see Christ in the Holy Eucharist, but we must still believe.  We are told that St. Mary Magdalen was one of the first to see the risen Lord because, despite her sins, she remained faithful at the foot of the Cross.  May we ever retain the effect of the Paschal mysteries in our lives.
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The Covenant Has Been Renewed

Easter Sunday 2013
We have now had the culmination of the whole Lenten season. We have been catechumens and penitents in preparation for our union with Christ in the Holy Eucharist. Now we walk with Christ in the liturgy. Our Lenten time of training began with the season of examination, then we had to follow Christ to Jerusalem. The Blessed Mother offered her Son on the Cross for each one of us. We have now renounced Satan and proclaimed our faith. We may be small and afraid, just as the Apostles were, but Our Lord had not forgotten them and he has not forgotten us. All order is restored by Christ’s words, “peace be to you.”
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Aid on Our Journey to Heaven

Easter Vigil 2013
All that Our Lord won for us on Calvary – the justification, divine life, and divine assistance He merited – could not be given to us until He rose from the dead.  The wounds He still has on His body are like channels of grace.  We are united to our living Redeemer in Heaven.  Through the signs of the liturgy, all the gifts of Heaven are brought down and applied to each of us.  One of the first gifts we are given is faith.  The Light of the World illumines our souls in the midst of the darkness of the devil.  If we are true followers of Christ, we do not walk in darkness but have the light of life.  This truth is represented by the powerful sacramental of the Paschal Candle.  As the Hebrews followed the Pillar of Fire through the desert to the Promised Land, we follow Christ through all the trouble and bitterness of our lives.  We sing a hymn of joy, because, through our faith, all our trials only increase our happiness.  We are ready to recommit ourselves to the promises we made in baptism.  Now we are prepared to enter the gates of Heaven which have been opened to us.
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The Honor of Our People

Sermon From
The Feast Of The Assumption 2012
At the moment of the Blessed Mother’s visitation, when St. John the Baptist leapt in the womb of Elizabeth, Our Lord was only three days old in the womb of the Virgin Mary. This is a biblical condemnation of the modern belief that the life of the child only begins after birth – an argument used to excuse the murder of the unborn.

The Blessed Mother did not carry herself to Heaven by her own power, she was assumed, body and soul, by the power of Almighty God. She was raised to the highest position in Heaven, second to the Holy Trinity, because of the degree of divine life she possessed. Sanctifying grace makes us lovable in the eyes of God, and it is the greatest of God’s gifts. The first fruit of Sanctifying Grace is sublime and supernatural divine love. We are not meant for this life. There is a place destined for us where there is no more sorrow or fear, and the Assumption of the Blessed Mother is the promise that one day we might enjoy it.
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The Extraordinary Gift of Faith

Today is one of the only times when a dogma of the Faith was proclaimed by the angels. Our Lord predicted that the preaching of the Apostles would be confirmed by the miracles they would work.  Even a cursory knowledge of Church history gives ample confirmation of these words.  Miracles aid in belief, but they do not cause the virtue of faith.  We should pray for an increase of faith every day of our lives.

The Apostles were commanded on this day to make the world Christian, and we are put to shame when we remember the heroism of the missionaries who sacrificed their lives to follow that command.

Our Lord has prepared a throne for us in Heaven and gives us a foretaste of this coming happiness every time He comes to us in Holy Communion.
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Our Daily Duty

5th Sunday after Easter 2012
As we near the end of this season of great happiness, the Church never ceases to rejoice. St. James gives practical advice in this Epistle for the practice of virtue and avoidance of bad example. The theme of this Mass is one of prayer and sacrifice.

On this day on which we congratulate our mothers, we must remember the primary purpose of marriage and the evil of artificial contraception. The vocations most attacked by the world are those sacramental vocations of marriage and the priesthood. We thank God for the gift of good mothers who work alongside the priests for the salvation of souls.
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The Qualities of a Glorified Body

3rd Sunday after Easter 2012
The name “Extreme Unction” means the “last anointing,” because this sacrament is only given when the danger of death is imminent. It is in our last moments that the devil has his final chance to strike out at God by tempting us to sin. Oftentimes this sacrament provides health to the body in addition to its spiritual aids.

Easter is the guarantee of the resurrection of all the just. The preternatural qualities possessed by the glorified bodies of the just at the end of time will include impassibility, subtlety, agility, and clarity.
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A True Shepherd for the Sheep

2nd Sunday after Easter 2012
Catholics should be familiar with the lives of the saints, from the great Evangelists like St. Mark, to humble servants like St. Zita.

No one can read the story of the Good Shepherd without feeling some degree of warmth in his heart.  This beloved parable followed the cure of the man born blind.  First Our Lord describes Himself as the door to the sheepfold, then He shifts the metaphor to refer to Himself as the shepherd.  It is the obligation of the shepherd to bring his sheep to pasture so they might eat and drink, but as the Good Shepherd Our Lord declared Himself willing to sacrifice His very life for these creatures who are infinitely beneath Him.  This is the obligation of every priest and bishop, to offer his life in order to ward off the enemy and to nourish his flock.  This parable is a prophecy that at the end of time all the scattered sheep will be gathered together under the one Good Shepherd, never again to be separated.
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The Eyes of Faith

Low Sunday 2012
We should all pray for a happy death because we cannot merit it without asking for God’s grace in those last moments. We should also frequently ask that all the punishment due to our sins be removed on our deathbed by the reception of Extreme Unction. The Church has always taught that the priest can not only forgive sins but remove the punishment due to them.

This Mass is about faith, but we must remember that no saint has had great faith without great humility. It is only when we realize how much we need help that we ask God for help. We possess nothing good which we have given ourselves. Even faith is a gift from God for which we cannot take credit. Humility is the foundation, faith is the walls, and charity is the roof of the great structure God has built in us.
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