A Reflection on how Fr. Michael McGivney was a model for the New Evangelization. ...read more

Recently someone asked me why Pope Francis keeps mentioning the devil, as if the devil actually existed (see Fr. Rosica’s recent post, Why in the devil does Pope Francis speak so much about the prince of this world? )This person alleged that, just as ogres and leprechauns, devils do not exist. But the Catholic Church is ...read more

On Wednesday August 6, we celebrate the Feast of the Transfiguration of our Lord on Mount Tabor. We also remember with gratitude Venerable Pope Paul VI (Giovanni Battista Montini) who died this day thirty-six years ago at the age of 80. The Final Years of Pope Paul VI Excerpt from his Apostolic Exhortation “GAUDETE IN DOMINO” ...read more

For the last couple of weeks I’ve been sharing with you some of the content from a conference in homiletics that I recently attended as part of St. Augustine’s Seminary’s 100th anniversary celebrations (Read part 1, part 2, part 3 and part 4). There are many ways to prepare a homily, but preaching experts agree ...read more

Learn more about the lifeSt. Alphonsus Liguori, Bishop and Doctor of the Church to commemorate his Feast day on August 1st. ...read more

Proclaiming the Word: Part Four Last time we looked at why a homily must be scriptural, pastoral, catechetical and liturgical and that there should be one key message (focus) and one suggestion as to how we can respond to that message (function). These are great suggestions for organizing your text. However, no matter what, the ...read more

I recently took a trip to Québec City where rich history and beautifully restored buildings attract millions of visitors each year. Especially this year, with the first ever Holy Door outside of Europe and Québec’s two newest saints! I delighted at the shrines of newly canonized St. Francois de Laval and St. Marie de L’incarnacion, ...read more

On the Feast of Mary Magdalene – July 22 “Love the sinner, hate the sin.” The famous catchphrase first appeared in the letters of St. Augustine, when he wrote, “With love for humanity and hatred of sins.” It was later included in the autobiography of Mohandas Gandhi as “Hate the sin and not the sinner.” ...read more

Last time  I wrote about what makes a good homily and what is an image of a preacher.  At the preaching conference, most of the presenters dedicated their talks to how a homilist should prepare. “Prepare the homilist; not the homily” was a phrase used by Cardinal Thomas Collins of Toronto during the keynote opening ...read more

As I wrote last Sunday, last week I attended a preaching conference as part of St. Augustine’s Seminary 100th anniversary events. It was a who’s who in preaching, with all the talks by homiletics experts from all over North America. I think about homilies all the time. Not so much because I have to prepare ...read more