Category: Homilies

I post the text and audio of my Sunday homilies here for anyone who wants to go back to something they liked or catch something they missed. I sometimes include links to resources that I mention, so that you aren’t left guessing how to follow up on anything I may have challenged you to do.

I put up every weekend homily and the homilies for special feast days like Christmas or the Assumption.

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Homily for the 33rd Sunday of Ordinary Time: Fighting to the End

Posted on November 14, 2021November 14, 2021 by Father Albert

33rd Sunday of Ordinary Time, B November 14, 2021Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/EJS5nbER25o The end of the world. In one sense, we should fear it. In another, we should look forward to it. Fear it because it means destruction and suffering and death. Jesus himself calls it “tribulation” and Daniel the prophet is told “it shall be a time unsurpassed in distress.” Yet, we should look forward to it because it also means the end to our long battle… final victory. The angels will gather God’s “elect” and the “wise shall shine brightly.” That’s us… if...Read More

Homily for the 32nd Sunday of Ordinary Time: The Offering That Counts

Posted on November 7, 2021November 7, 2021 by Father Albert

32nd Sunday of Ordinary Time, B November 7, 2021Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/l4a-ELiF_rE “What can I possibly offer? I don’t have much money, influence, or talent, what difference will it make?” Have you ever asked yourself that question? Maybe when you read some bad news or perhaps when challenged to serve our community or God’s Church? I know I have. I think most people face some version of that doubt. Well, then I have good news. Jesus doesn’t care how successful your efforts are, he only cares that you give what you do have. “This poor...Read More

Homily for All Saints Day 2021: To Ascend the Mountain

Posted on November 6, 2021November 6, 2021 by Father Albert

All Saints Day November 1, 2021Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/Y-Gh-k4lSQk “Who can ascend the mountain of the LORD? or who may stand in his holy place?” So our psalm asks… it’s a version of the question “who goes to heaven?” Fitting on All Saints Day, the day we celebrate all those who have gone to heaven, whether we know their name or not. This is a day of joy, of celebration, of victory, of thanksgiving… the very meaning of the word Eucharist. Yet, it is also a day of wondering, “what will it take for...Read More

Homily for the 31st Sunday in Ordinary Time: Inside Out

Posted on October 31, 2021October 31, 2021 by Father Albert

31st Sunday of Ordinary Time, B October 31, 2021Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette [No recording this week.] This is a rare moment in the Gospel. Why? Most of the time, when someone asks Jesus a question, he responds with another question or parable or warning. He rarely just answers the question plain and simple. There are many reasons for this – the question was a trap, the answer is not a piece of information but a change of heart, or the answer is beyond words and Jesus is trying to invite wonder and mystery. Yet, the full...Read More

Pastor Column: Casti Connubii V

Posted on October 24, 2021October 24, 2021 by Father Albert

From the bulletin of October 24, 2021 Now we return to the document from Pope Pius XI on marriage. Last we left off, the Pope reiterated the standard teaching of the Church against abortion and artificial contraception. From this point, the pope moves onto the related topic of eugenics. Eugenics is supposed to be the science of healthy breeding, but in practice it turns out as a crime against human nature. Some doctors and scientists wanted to help the human race become healthier, so they tried to regulate who could have children with whom and some even went so...Read More

Homily for the 30th Sunday of Ordinary Time: Seeing The Way For What It Is

Posted on October 24, 2021October 24, 2021 by Father Albert

30th Sunday of Ordinary Time, B October 24, 2021Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/T3KOCEk2Qws “What do you want me to do for you?” Like you don’t know, Jesus? The man is a blind beggar, why make him ask for what we all know he wants? Because that’s how prayer works. That’s how faith works. Prayer is not conveying information to God, it is expressing desire. It is fostering desire. It stirs up faith and prepares the heart to receive. A desire honestly expressed changes us, not God. The answer is not always what we expect. There is...Read More

Homily for the 29th Sunday of Ordinary Time: Aspiring to Greatness

Posted on October 18, 2021October 18, 2021 by Father Albert

29th Sunday of Ordinary Time, B October 17, 2021Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/YMh_jINNQ5k “You can do whatever you set your mind to.” No, you can’t. This claim is made all the time by parents, teachers, advertisements, and politicians in our culture. Children are filled with this idea from the time they are very little and hear it repeated constantly until some brutal encounter with reality shatters this fragile illusion. Then they must choose between being willfully naive, coldly cynical, or coming to a greater realism. And few people really get to that last one. I once...Read More

Homilies for the 27th & 28th Sundays of Ordinary Time: What We Have In Common

Posted on October 10, 2021October 10, 2021 by Father Albert

27th Sunday of Ordinary Time, B October 3, 2021Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/XevZjQ6nALs “It is not good for the man to be alone.” God knows this, he isn’t just figuring it out. Neither is he surprised that none of the animals prove “to be a suitable partner for the man.” He is not showing the animals to Adam as part of an experiment, he is doing it as a lesson for Adam, for all mankind. He is teaching us that we are not meant to be alone… that we are meant to be in communion with...Read More

Homily for the 26th Sunday of Ordinary Time: Riches That Burn

Posted on September 26, 2021September 26, 2021 by Father Albert

26th Sunday of Ordinary Time, B September 26, 2021Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/FnF5xxxFkwU Here we are, the prophetic crescendo of the letter of St. James. And when I say “prophetic,” I don’t mean James is predicting the future but that he, like many prophets before him, strongly warns us about sin, death, and judgment. And James gets this preoccupation with damnation from his cousin, Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. Hell is real and people do go there. Damnation is real. It isn’t some medieval masochist who came up with the idea of eternal fire, but...Read More

Homily for the 25th Sunday of Ordinary Time: Love or Passion?

Posted on September 19, 2021September 19, 2021 by Father Albert

25th Sunday of Ordinary Time, B September 19, 2021Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/PQeOTknERwA Love God and love your neighbor. It’s our mission statement and it is the greatest commandment. Love of neighbor in particular is the driving theme of St. James’ letter that we’ve been working through for a few weeks. Today, James addresses one of the great obstacles to actually doing this: why is it so hard to love our neighbor? To embrace poverty and sacrifice in order to be closer to God? In a word, your passions. What is a passion? Your passions are...Read More