Author: Father Albert

Homily for the 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time: The Lord Is Our Shepherd

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16th Sunday of Ordinary Time, B                                                                              July 18th, 2021Fr. Albert                                                                                St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/VD8LvVmGWeM “Like sheep without a shepherd.” It’s too easy to make these readings about pointing fingers; To point at the pope’s latest controversy or at the failures of various bishops or at whatever pastor did whatever you think was a problem. Online I’m sure you’ll find homilies and articles and blog posts that do exactly that this weekend. What good will it do? If you hear a homily or read something that uses the first reading and takes...Read More

Homily for the 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time: The Kingdom of Healing

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15th Sunday of Ordinary Time, B                                                                              July 11th, 2021Fr. Albert                                                                                St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/_mTau59tI44 Repentance, Exorcisms, and Healings; three characteristics of the Apostle’s ministry seen in this passage. To this day, they remain a core part of the Church’s mission. The Church exists to proclaim the Kingdom of Heaven. Indeed, the Church is the kingdom of Christ already present in mystery. That’s what St. Paul is talking about in that really complicated second reading. There is a mystical reality that’s something deeper than bureaucracy, buildings, and bishops. The Church is Christ’s...Read More

Pastor Column: Dante

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From the bulletin of July 11, 2021      After a long hiatus, I’d like to return to our journey through the writings of various popes. You may remember that we last looked at Pope Benedict XV (1914-1922) and his encyclical on preaching the Word of God. Today, we’ll take a look at a timely letter of his on the famous poet Dante Aligheri.      Dante was an Italian poet who lived 1265-1321. He is most famous for a long epic poem called The Divine Comedy. It consisted of three parts: The Inferno, The Purgatorio, and The Paradiso. It is a...Read More

Homily for the 14th Sunday of Ordinary Time: Prophetic Patriotism

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14th Sunday of Ordinary Time, B                                                                              July 4th, 2021Fr. Albert                                                                                St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/NGyzAF_kXfA “He was amazed at their lack of faith.” Just a few verses before, as we heard last weekend, Jesus raised someone from the dead! He cured a woman simply because she touched his clothes with faith. Coming from the joy of being able to reward such faith, Jesus is astounded at the contrast, the hard-heartedness of his own friends and family that blocks them from seeing similar miracles. As an aside, if you’re wondering about the brothers...Read More

Pastor’s Column: Liberty

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From the bulletin of July 4, 2021      As we celebrate our Independence day, it is a fitting time to learn a little about the one Catholic who signed the Declaration of Independence: Charles Carroll of Carrollton. He was also the cousin of Archbishop John Carroll, who was the first Archbishop in the United States.      Born in 1737 in Annapolis, Maryland, Charles was a very well-to-do, very well-educated citizen of the English colonies despite the fact that he was originally born out of wedlock. His parents married in 1757 and after his education, his father entrusted Carrollton Manor to...Read More

Homily for the 13th Sunday in Ordinary Time: Vending Jesus

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13th Sunday of Ordinary Time, B                                                                              June 27, 2021Fr. Albert                                                                                St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/6A679v2gTuE Jesus is not a vending machine. You can’t just go to Jesus, put in some faith, and then get what you want back. Yet, many people treat it like this. You can almost excuse them because it kinda seems to work in the gospels. Every time Jesus encounters someone with faith, he performs a miracle. When four friends bring a paralyzed man, he sees their faith and heals the man. He repeatedly tells people to have faith...Read More

Homily for the 11th Sunday in Ordinary Time: Expecting the Kingdom

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11th Sunday of Ordinary Time, B                                                                              June 13, 2021Fr. Albert                                                                                St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/RjBofkd3nsE I first arrived in Jeanerette in February, about the time that those little yellow flowers take over just about every open space they can find. Each year since, I’ve looked forward to that time of year, especially since the yellow ones are then followed by white ones, then pink and blue and now we’re seeing the purple ones. As a community so rooted in farming, the spontaneity and variety of these flowers are an important reminder that...Read More

Homily for the Sacred Heart of Jesus on my 5th Anniversary: A Real Love

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Sacred Heart of Jesus, B                     5th Anniversary of Ordination                         June 11, 2021Fr. Albert                                                                                St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/wtPxYLspLDs Five years ago today, and very nearly to the hour, I was ordained a priest in a different Church named St. John the Evangelist. It was our Cathedral, and it was the first priestly ordination in the diocese for our new bishop, Douglas Deshotel. There’s a reason for the specificity and it’s not because I think I’m special. My ordination is not about me. It is the concrete manifestation of God’s ongoing love for us. This...Read More

Homily for Corpus Christi: To Be Holy

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Corpus Christ, B                                                                                                         June 6, 2021Fr. Albert                                                                                St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/fBzupiSJ_MA On October 10, 2020 in Assisi, the Church beatified a young Italian named Carlo. He was born in 1991, meaning he would be younger than me if he were still alive. He is the first millennial to be beatified, which is the last step before being canonized as a saint. When we say that word – saint – we tend to picture 16th century nuns or old miracle-working priests or paintings with halos. We imagine them praying or fasting or...Read More

Homily for Trinity Sunday: Faith Beyond Reason

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Trinity Sunday, B                                                                                                       May 30, 2021Fr. Albert                                                                                St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/ZMDF8JDjlcc It’s unreasonable, irrational even… isn’t it? At the very heart of the Christian faith is this illogical claim about who God is. The Trinity is One God and Three Divine Persons. It’s not like there’s three people who each have their own thoughts or make their own decisions. One God means one mind and one will. They don’t just agree with each other, they think the same thoughts and make the same decisions as one God. Yet, there are three...Read More