Homily for Christmas 2015

Homily for Our Lady of Guadalupe 2015 (December 12, 2015)

Last Summer I went to see our Mother. I went to Guadalupe to see the Mother of the Lord Jesus and our Mother. I went to Guadalupe to pray for you. I went to Guadalupe to pray for me and for my priesthood. I went to pray at Guadalupe because I knew in the early days of June that our beloved Bishop was entrusting to me and to our parish a new priest. I went to Guadalupe to pray for you, and for him, and for me. Last Summer I went see our Mother at Guadalupe.

Today, we come to see our Mother. We come to our parish Church where Christ is preached and the Sacraments are celebrated. We come to this holy ground on this holy day to honor our Holy Mother. We come to celebrate her for every generation calls her blessed. We come to celebrate the Virgin of Guadalupe, the Mother of Jesus Christ, because through her we meet Him. Through the Virgin Mother Mary, we receive the Lord Jesus. Through the Virgin Mother the Church, we receive the gift of the Lord Jesus. We receive his Word. We receive his Body and Blood. We receive the promise of eternal life in the Kingdom of the All Powerful Father. We receive Mercy.

The Virgin of Guadalupe looked upon Juan Diego with the eyes of mercy. She loved and honored him, even though the world did not love and honor him. She embraced and celebrated his culture, even though the world did not. The Virgin of Guadalupe welcomed Juan Diego onto the land where she stood. She looked upon him with eyes of mercy.

And she spoke words of mercy. The Virgin of Guadalupe spoke to Juan Diego with the invitation of mercy. She asked for a chapel to be built. The Virgin of Guadalupe asked for a place where mercy could be announced. In a land where violence had prevailed, the Virgin wanted mercy to be proclaimed. She looked at Juan Diego with eyes of mercy. She spoke to Juan Diego with words of mercy.

And the Virgin of Guadalupe opened the Door of Mercy. With the flowers that she gave to Juan Diego and her own image, the Virgin of Guadalupe opened the door of Mercy for the heart of the bishop. When the bishop saw the image, he knew the message was true. When the bishop saw the image, his heart was opened in love for his people. When the bishop saw the image, he received the gift of mercy.

Today we come to see the Virgin and she looks at us with eyes of mercy. She looks at each of us with the tender compassion of a mother. She looks at each of us and wants to bring us closer to her. She looks at each of us with the eyes of mercy. She speaks to each of us the word of mercy. She tells us that we are loved. She tells us that we are welcomed. She recognizes each of us as her beloved child and calls each of us by name.

The Virgin of Guadalupe opens the door of mercy for us. She invites us to worship her Son. She invites us to seek his mercy. The Virgin of Guadalupe opens the door of mercy for each of us so that each of us can know the mercy of God.

The Virgin of Guadalupe of looks at us with eyes of mercy. She speaks to us the words of mercy. She opens for us the door of mercy. My brothers and sisters, let us go and see our Mother.

Preached at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, Monroe, NC

Homily for Christmas (December 24-25, 2012)

May Jesus Christ be praised and may his holy Mother pray for us.

In the season of Advent we have been preparing to welcome Jesus Christ.  Tonight, Jesus Christ welcomes us.  We have been preparing to welcome the Lord Jesus as this fulfillment of the promise made to the prophets, as the Savior who has come to redeem us, and as the one who will reveal to us the face of God.  Tonight, Jesus Christ welcomes us to the celebration of his birth.

I was born nine days before Christmas, though ten days earlier than expected.  Normally ten days on the calendar do not make that great of a difference.  However, being born on the sixteenth of December, rather than on the twenty-sixth meant that I was entitled to a Christmas present that year.  My younger sister is certain that the additional Christmas present is the reason that I was born early.  Within the day after I was born, my father asked my mother, “What do you think he will want for Christmas?”  My mother, knowing her new-born son as only a mother can, informed my father that there was a Christmas ornament, a small wooden train, which would be the perfect gift.  My father was sent from the hospital to obtain the small and precious ornament.  This year that ornament is hanging on the Christmas tree in the home of my parents.  Next year the train is moving to Monroe!

“What do you think he will want for Christmas?”  What, my dear brothers and sisters, is the appropriate gift for the Son of God, as we celebrate his birth and Christmas day?  The scriptures reveal to us again and again that the desire of the Lord is that we should live justly, that we should love mercy, and that we should walk humbly with our God.  Those, however, are the gifts that we are called to offer to God every day.  On this special day, on this day when we celebrate his humble birth of the humble Virgin, there must be some small and precious gift that we can give to the Lord Jesus.

“What do you think he will want?”  The animals shared their home, and the angels shared their song.  The shepherds came in haste because a new shepherd had been born.  On this most holy night, the Lord Jesus welcomes us to his cradle, as we have prepared to welcome him.  The gift that the Lord Jesus desires for his birthday, the gift that is so very precious that He would come down from heaven in the silent watches of the night, is us.  All that the Lord Jesus wants is for us to join him at the manger.  The precious gift, desired and treasured by the Lord of heaven and earth, is you and me.  My dear brother and sisters, Jesus wants each of us as his gift for Christmas.  Amen.

Preached at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, Monroe, NC 

We've Made Room in the Inn for You in Monroe this Christmas!