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 14th Sunday of Ordinary Time: Prophetic Patriotism

Posted on July 4, 2021July 4, 2021 by Father Albert

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

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

Posted on June 27, 2021June 27, 2021 by Father Albert

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

Posted on June 13, 2021June 13, 2021 by Father Albert

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

Posted on June 11, 2021June 11, 2021 by Father Albert

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

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

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

Posted on May 30, 2021May 30, 2021 by Father Albert

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

Pastor Column: Charisms

Posted on May 23, 2021May 23, 2021 by Father Albert

From the bulletin of May 23, 2021 As this weekend is Pentecost, I thought we’d pause our journey through Papal documents to look at some teachings on the Holy Spirit. Should everything go according to plan for my homily (I’m writing this on the Monday before), I will preach about the charisms of the Holy Spirit. If you haven’t yet heard that homily, you may want to do that first. As I say in the homily, the charisms are not about your personal holiness - that’s what the seven gifts are for. These are about building up the Church...Read More

Homily for Pentecost Sunday: A Spirit Greater Than the Force

Posted on May 23, 2021May 23, 2021 by Father Albert

Pentecost Sunday May 23, 2021Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/aqRManLgTZ0 “May the force be with you.” You may have seen this quite a bit on the internet at the beginning of this month, a reference to the popular fictional world of Star Wars. The opportunity for making a pun on the 4th of May is just too good to pass up. Of course, Catholics often add their own flare by responding “and with your spirit.” It think it’s fun. What I don’t think is that force is a good analogy for...Read More

Homily for Ascension Sunday, B: The Work of Love

Posted on May 16, 2021May 16, 2021 by Father Albert

Ascension Sunday, B May 16, 2021Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/vQfcazDSmdE The Bishop asked that this letter be read during the homily: "Dear Brothers and Sisters of the Diocese of Lafayette, the third commandment of God obliges us to keep holy the Lord's Day. This commandment is fulfilled when we give God the most perfect worship possible, the worship of Jesus Christ himself in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. We also observe it by works of charity, spiritual reading, and refraining from unnecessary servile labor to spend time with family...Read More

Homily for the 6th Sunday of Easter: Complete Person, Complete Joy

Posted on May 9, 2021May 9, 2021 by Father Albert

6th Sunday of Easter, B May 9, 2021Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/QDA_Q1Qbjb8 “I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and your joy might be complete.” Perfect! Isn’t that exactly what we want… what we’ve been talking about this whole Easter season? Who doesn’t want complete joy? Well then, what is it Jesus says that makes this possible? “If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love.” That kind of sounds...Read More