Author: Father Albert

Pastor Column: Leo XIII and Government

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From the bulletin of November 1, 2020      With the election already upon us, it is a good time to look at Pope Leo XIII’s encyclicals on the government. Pope Leo XIII lived during a time of great social change (the late 1800s) and was very socially conscious. While he was pope, he issued several letters dealing with the specific conditions of Catholics in Germany, Belgium, Italy, Spain, France, Peru, and others. He also wrote a few letters addressing the question of Church-State relations in a general way. A particularly helpful encyclical is Immortale Dei: On the Christian Constitution of...Read More

Pastor Column: Leo XIII and Marriage

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From the bulletin of October 25, 2020      In February of 1880, Poe Leo XIII issued an encyclical on Marriage. Titled Arcanum Divinae, it was meant to reinforce the Church’s understanding of marriage and address a couple of relevant questions around that subject. We won’t cover the whole document, but focus on what he says about divorce, mixed marriages, and the involvement of the government.      Marriage is founded on the two principles of unity and indissolubility. These two reflect the love of God for humanity and Jesus raised marriage to a sacrament precisely so it could represent the marriage...Read More

Homily for the 30th Sunday of Ordinary Time: To Turn

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30th Sunday of Ordinary Time, A                                                                  October 25, 2020Fr. Albert                                                                                St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/APlAuQRr7DA “For they… openly declare… and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God.” Could be said of you? St. Paul is basically bragging that the Thessalonians’ service of God is so obvious that other Greek pagans are noticing and being drawn to the Gospel, to conversion. Would he say the same of the people in Jeanerette? Well, if we want that to be the case, we have to imitate their example. Notice what Paul...Read More

Homily for the 29th Sunday of Ordinary Time: Whose Image?

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29th Sunday of Ordinary Time, A                                                                  October 18, 2020Fr. Albert                                                                                St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/Z0uUkbw-MKg “Whose image is this?” With this question, Jesus sets up his brilliant response to the trap set for him. The pharisees and Herodians, who are normally enemies, team up to ensnare Jesus with this question about taxes. If he opposes taxes, he is guilty of treason. If he simply says to pay taxes, the Jews could accuse him of siding with the pagan Roman empire against God’s chosen people and the promised land. You see, for ancient people, religion...Read More

The 2020 Election and the Catholic Conscience

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This is a post meant for Catholics who want to know how to form their conscience to vote in the election. So, if you reject the Church's teaching in some way, then this post may not be helpful to you. I am not interested in debating Church teaching here. This will already be a pretty long article, so we are taking for granted that the Catholic Church's actual doctrine (not rumors or the opinions of various priests/bishops) is true and not tossing around even more words trying to get to that starting point. Please read this not as a simple...Read More

Homily for the 28th Sunday of Ordinary Time: The Feast of Hope

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28th Sunday of Ordinary Time, A                                                                  October 11, 2020Fr. Albert                                                                                St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/UyhN9eSo6tA And the award for the most commonly misused bible quote goes to “I can do all things in [Christ] who strengthens me.” Bumper stickers, business logos, sports mottos, and many others love to use this uplifting quote. And why not? Life can be tough, so people often need a reminder that there is hope, that we can survive. The problem is that using this quote incorrectly will only make things worse. When you use this to motivate a sports team...Read More

Pastor Column: Leo XIII and Thinking

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From the bulletin of October 11, 2020      Philosophy. Today, that’s a word that automatically evokes boredom. People hear it and think of intellectuals who are out of touch or of absent-minded professors rambling about things that don’t matter. And there’s some good reason people react this way. Too often, philosophy is all abstract and disconnected from reality. Bizarre theories and horrendous moral arguments have come out of philosophy. The philosophies behind the Holocaust and people like Stalin are certainly evil and deserve to be discredited. So, our popular culture treats philosophy in general as something not worth paying attention...Read More

Homily for CHS Ring Mass: Loving Through Disgust

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Memorial St. Francis Xavier Seelos, Monday, Week 27 OT                         October 5, 2020Fr. Albert                                                                                            St. Peter's, New Iberia Disgusting. Probably dead or will be soon, the man oozing fluids on the side of the road should be avoided. I’ve got to get to work… I’ve got to stay clean so I can keep my responsibilities… I’m too rushed and it won’t help anyway. Maybe going over there will put me in danger too. These thoughts, or something like them, probably went through the minds of the priest and Levite as they passed by the beaten man. In 1866,...Read More

Homily for the 27th Sunday of Ordinary Time: Have No Anxiety

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27th Sunday of Ordinary Time, A (focus on 2nd reading)                             October 4, 2020Fr. Albert                                                                                St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/PLIfPvti7nA “Therefore, I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that will produce its fruit.” Does that statement make you anxious? The Jewish leaders that Jesus is talking to are certainly anxious. The life and teaching of Jesus threaten to change their hard-won power in Jerusalem and their anxiety and anger drive them to the point of having Jesus arrested, tortured, and executed. As God turns...Read More

Pastor Column: Leo XIII and Socialism

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From the bulletin of October 4, 2020      Our next pope is Pope Leo XIII, who reigned from 1878 to 1903. He wrote the most encyclicals of any pope and was also responsible for laying the foundation of what people call Catholic Social Teaching. This refers to the collection of Church teachings on justice, government, business, and other day to day social realities. From the very start, Leo XIII made social ills a particular focus of his pontificate.      His first encyclical is titled Inscrutabili Dei Consilio: On the Evils of Society and focuses on the fact that human society...Read More