IT’S been difficult to see the evidence of ‘peace on earth and goodwill toward men’ these last few days as the member states of the United Nations General Assembly concluded their year with a round of furious threats and accusations against each other, in the wake of the united States’ decision to recognize Jerusalem as […]
Category: Homily Notes
The Good News
IN Holy Week and Easter we follow the journey of Jesus through a trial, humiliation, abandonment and a tortured death. But faith tells us that that is not the end. The wonder of Jesus’ Resurrection is matched by a small band of terrified men and women into a compelling force for spreading the Good News. […]
Archbishop Hart Easter Message 2017
IN his Easter message for 2017, the Archbishop of Melbourne, Denis Hart, reminds us that although the Easter message is timeless, it echoes differently from year to year, reflecting the changing world in which we live. Referring to recent tragedies in Egypt, London and the Middle East, Archbishop Hart reminds us that we are, through […]
Blind from birth
THE man is blind from birth. Neither he nor his parents have guilt, but his destiny will be marked forever. People look at him as a sinner punished by God. Jesus’ disciples ask him if the sin is from the blind man or from his parents. Jesus sees it in a different light. From what […]
Samaritan woman at the well
THE scene is captivating. Tired on his journey, Jesus sits down next to Jacob’s Well. Soon a woman arrives to draw water. She belongs to a semi-pagan people, despised by the Jews. Right out of the blue, Jesus begins the dialogue. He doesn’t know how to look down on anyone, only how to look at […]
Gospel Thought: priorities in life
JESUS and the gospel offer us a very different message and set of values. Our dignity and self-worth come from being created and loved by God. This is not to suggest that we ignore ourselves, our families or our jobs. Money is not the root of all evil, it is the love of money than […]
Call to Love
THE call to love is always seductive. Surely, many graciously welcomed Jesus’ call to love God and to love our neighbour. But what they couldn’t imagine is that one day he would speak to them about loving their enemies. However, Jesus did just that. Without any backing from the biblical tradition, distancing himself from the […]
Homily for 23rd Sunday in Ordinary time– Year C
23 rd Sunday in Ordinary – Year C September 4, 2016 Homily The gospel today (Luke 14:25-33) rubs us up the wrong way. Especially on Father’s day, it’s hardly attractive to think of families turning on one another. Worse, ‘hating’ one another. Of course families are good but, in an age where millions of people […]
Homily Points for 4th Ordinary Sunday
Fourth Sunday in Ordinary – Year C January 31, 2016 One of President Barack Obama’s first speeches as President was his ‘Dream’ speech about the America he wanted. It was interspersed with the refrain, “Yes we can!” He is soon to finish his Presidency mired in lost dreams. It would be easy to become cynical. […]
Homily points for 3rd Ordinary Sunday
Third Sunday in Ordinary – Year C January 24, 2016 As a teenager I read the book, A Reason to Live: A Reason to Die, by John Powell, a Jesuit. It scored 4.6 on the Google ‘Goodreads’. Its an old book – 1972 – with an enduring message. I think that books shaped my youth […]