Homily for 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time — Sacred Heart, Prince George, VA “I’m too weak to be a deacon.” I shared these words with a priest in confession a couple of weeks into my life as a brand new baby deacon. And the priest’s response was frustratingly wise: “Good! This is good news!” … Excuse me? How? How is…
I had the great privilege of delivering a talk on media evangelization to Richmond’s chapter of Theology on Tap. Here’s a recording of the presentation: “The machine, the microphone, the screen are our pulpit; the press, the production room, the screening hall and transmission center are like our church. The temptations are many, but we shall make ours the words…
This past January, I went on a silent retreat way out in South Bend, Indiana in preparation for my ordination to the diaconate. Just as I was about to switch off my phone and go into full-on retreat mode, I got the kind of text that nobody ever wants to receive… My Grandma was going in for emergency surgery and…
“And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit.” As I prayed over this weekend’s Scriptures for Pentecost, a word kept jumping off the page over and over — “Fill.” A noise like a strong driving wind… filled the entire house. They were filled with the Holy Sprit. It seems that whenever and wherever the Holy Spirit is at work,…
When our Blessed Mother gave birth to Jesus on Christmas, she gave birth to a Priest. And not just any priest, but THE Priest. The Great High Priest! Our Lord was born for this purpose, as he himself would one day say to Pilate: For this I was born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness…
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you.” I would like to meditate on the peace Jesus wants to give us — but I’d like to do so through the lens of an incredibly ancient prayer — one that we pray just about every single Sunday.…
This homily was delivered at my first mass I served as a deacon at St. Mary’s in Richmond, VA on May 19, 2019 At the end of mass last weekend, after inviting the entire St. Mary’s community to yesterday’s diaconate ordination, Fr Mike shared some off-the-cuff words with us. He said: “It fills me with faith to see young, talented…
This reflection was delivered for my seminary community during Morning Prayer. The reading it is referring to is Judith 8:25-27. Nobody comes out of a crucible alive. It is a white-hot furnace designed to melt down the hardest metals. And yet our reading today says point blank: “Not for vengeance did the Lord put them in the crucible to try…
Today’s Office of Readings from St. Gregory the Great has me reflecting on something very near and dear to my heart, namely… the beautiful gift of social media as a pulpit to preach from. Here’s Gregory’s quote: Pray for us that we may have the strength to work on your behalf, that our tongues may not grow weary of exhortation,…
Readings for the Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time This past weekend, I wrapped up my pastoral year assignment at Our Lady of Mount Carmel by delivering this reflection.