Author: Father Albert

To Give, To Receive

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Fourth Sunday of Advent, A                                                                          December 22, 2019Fr. Albert                                                                                St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette How are you at giving gifts? What about accepting them? Some people have a knack for getting the perfect gift for every person in their lives. Me? Not so much. But you know who does give the perfect gift every time? God does. He knows what you want, he knows what you need, he knows everything. Humanity as a whole, however, isn’t very good at accepting gifts, like children who don’t appreciate the gifts of food, shelter, education and everything else...Read More

The Colors of Life

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Third Sunday of Advent, A                                                                            December 15, 2019Fr. Albert                                                                                St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette Color. In her ardent desire to use all of creation in teach us about Christ her bridegroom, the Church loves to use color. Green, the color of orderly growth throughout the year. Red, the color of the blood shed by Christ and his martyrs and the color of the fires of the Holy spirit. White, the color of holiness and purity. Gold, the color of royalty and celebration that often complements the colors of the higher feasts. Blue, the color of...Read More

Given to Fulfill

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Second Sunday of Advent, A                                                                         December 8, 2019Fr. Albert                                                                                St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette “The wolf shall be the guest of the lamb.” “The baby shall play by the cobra’s den.” “Justice shall flourish in his time and fullness of peace for ever.” These are Messianic prophecies from Isaiah and the Psalms. What do you think? Have they come true? Does Jesus – the Messiah – really keep these promises made to the ancient Israelites? Even a quick look shows us war, injustice, and violence even in nature itself. Does that mean we can’t trust...Read More

The Contradiction of Kingship

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Solemnity of Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, C                                       November 22, 2019Fr. Albert                                                                                St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette Are you not the Christ?! Prove it! That cry has echoed in the world from even before the Crucifixion. Parents of sick children, victims of unjust war, refugees of natural disaster have all railed against the claim that an all-loving God is truly in charge. The thief is not asking about Jesus’ last name. Christ means “anointed one,” which is a synonym for King. “Are you not the Christ” is the cry to God that wonders if his...Read More

The Blackest Day of the Year

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I confess, I hate Black Friday. I hate it when my cousins leave Thanksgiving evening to participate or even when the go during the day on Friday. I hate it when friends have to miss events to work that day. I hate it when it clutters up the media with hyperbolic claims about once-in-a-lifetime-but-really-twice-a-year deals. I hate it most of all when the inevitable death by trampling fills the news by the time Saturday morning rolls around. Forgive me Father, I have hatred in my heart... And yet, this blog post is not just some angry rant. It's an argument...Read More

The End Is Near

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Thirty-Third Sunday of Ordinary Time, C                                                     November 17, 2019Fr. Albert                                                                                St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette Repent! The end is near! Repent! To most people, that kind of preaching is a joke, a caricature of a crazy man, out-of-touch with reality, working against his own goals. And yet, any Christian who takes scripture seriously has to acknowledge at least one preacher who made it work: Jesus himself. Jesus began his public ministry with almost the same words: repent, for the Kingdom of God is at hand! Now, at the end of his public ministry, what does Jesus...Read More

What We’re Waiting For

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Thirty-Second Sunday of Ordinary Time, C                                                  November 10, 2019Fr. Albert                                                                                St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette Just what are we waiting for? Christians are always talking about heaven… wanting to go there after death, but what does that mean, exactly? Much we don’t know, but there is actually a good bit that we do. Sadly, there are a lot of bad ideas about heaven out there and getting the wrong idea could really mess up your chances of getting there. So, what are we waiting for when we die? In short, we are waiting for the resurrection...Read More

Your Mission

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Thirty-First Sunday of Ordinary Time, C                                                      November 3, 2019Fr. Albert                                                                                St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette What is your mission? The Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost. But his mission didn’t end with him. We are his body the Church and that mission continues today. Every single one of us shares in that mission to seek and to save what was lost. The first step is to be saved, to let God find and save you. But you’re going to get away with just a general reminder to be a good...Read More

What You’re Meant To Be

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All Saints Day                                                                                                 November 1, 2019Fr. Albert                                                                                St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette “There is only one tragedy in the end, not to have been a saint.” The novelist Leon Bloy once wrote that, and he was right. All the other things in this world that we call tragic will disappear and be nothing at the end of the world.  All the money, all the fame, all the power in the world will end when this world ends so it’s not tragic when we fail to get these things. In the end, a person...Read More

Winning By Humility

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Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time, C                                                           October 27, 2019Fr. Albert                                                                                St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette The battle continues. Last week, Christ called us to the combat of perseverance in our prayer. This week is the battle against pride.. Pride is often subtle and those filled with it rarely see themselves clearly enough to know it. So, here are some practical ways to keep your personal prayer free from pride. Don’t compare yourself to others. The reality is that you are unique. Your relationship with God is unique. There are things about you and your relationship...Read More