Body, Love, Glory: Homily for Corpus Christi 2024

Corpus Christi, B                                                                                                        June 2, 2024Fr. Alexander Albert                                                               St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/SHuPAApGo2A Last week, I spoke about “union” as if it was obvious that it was something everyone would want. Well, maybe it isn’t obvious to you. Maybe you aren’t sure what I mean by union and therefore aren’t sure why it’s something you would want to “will” for yourself or “will” as the “good of the other person.” What is union? Why do we want it? A friend of mine shared a story with me about a young man who was...Read More

Being Love: Homily for Trinity Sunday 2024

Trinity Sunday, B                                                                                                       May 26, 2024Fr. Alexander Albert                                                               St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/LWnwLJEZS3w Three weeks ago, I focused on the teaching that God is love. But what is love? “Love is to will the good of the other.” If God is love, then this means that God’s very existence is to will the good of the other. We tend to think of existence or being as this kind of passive reality. If you ask me “what are you doing?” and I answer “existing,” you’d probably think “ah, so he’s doing nothing” and you’d...Read More

What is the Holy Spirit? Homily for Pentecost 2024

Pentecost, B                                                                                                                May 19, 2024Fr. Alexander Albert                                                               St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/J6WTq0Qr46k What is the Holy Spirit to you? Really, I should say “who” is the Holy Spirit because the Holy Spirit is a person! Yes, Jesus sometimes talks about the power of the Holy Spirit in a more abstract way, but we see the personal dimension in today/tomorrow’s gospel. Jesus says “But when he comes, the Spirit of truth, he will guide you to all truth.” Hear how personal that is? “He will guide you.” So, while Pentecost is about the fantastic...Read More

The Gift of Going Away: Homily for the Ascension 2024

Solemnity of the Ascension, B                                                                                   May 12, 2024Fr. Alexander Albert                                                               St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/bORFb1E3u2M St. Paul tells us that Jesus “ascended on high; he gave gifts to men.” What gifts? The power of the Holy Spirit to become witnesses of Jesus to the whole world. Power for exorcisms, healings, miraculous communications and survival. And not just to the Apostles long ago. To this day, these signs happen throughout the world in conjunction with the proclamation of the gospel by laity and clergy alike. Neither does this power to bear witness only come in...Read More

The Greatest Fan of Obedience: Homily for the 6th Sunday of Easter 2024

6th Sunday of Easter, B                                                                                               May 5, 2024Fr. Alexander Albert                                                              St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/rh1VdxHvkg8 I’m not much of a sports fan. I rarely watch any games. I don’t follow sports news. Maybe the 4th quarter of a Saints game, but only if they’re in the playoffs. If I’ve got nothing going on and some friends invite me to watch the Superbowl, I’ll go and enjoy myself. Baseball, however? I’ve never been a fan. It’s probably that I’m too easily distracted and too impatient, but I just can’t watch it. Yet, for some reason...Read More

Joseph, the Worker of Renewal: Homily 2024

Memorial of St. Joseph the Worker                                                                            May 1, 2024Fr. Alexander Albert                                                               St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/UR0pIbqjhS0 Jeanerette is a dying town. Dying, but not dead. Nor is it without hope. Though it may never be quite what it was 100 or even 40 years ago, there is nonetheless reason to hope it shall yet be better than it is now. But that hope cannot lie in governmental policy or the sudden arrival of outside investors. Both of those can greatly help or greatly harm our prospects, but neither can be the foundation of a lasting hope....Read More

A Silence That Conquers: Homily for the 5th Sunday of Easter 2024

5th Sunday of Easter, B                                                                                   April 28, 2024Fr. Alexander Albert                                                               St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/yvVT2H8I6Y8 Darkness is the absence of light. Cold is the absence of heat. You can’t “get rid of” darkness and cold. You can only overcome them by adding light and heat. So also with evil. Evil is the absence of good. We don’t defeat evil just by fighting it really hard or running away from it. We defeat evil by running toward what is good and by allowing good to fill us such that it pushes evil away. But what about silence? Sure,...Read More

Love So Absurd: Homily for the 4th Sunday of Easter 2024

4th Sunday of Easter, B                                                                                   April 21, 2024Fr. Alexander Albert                                                               St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette I love animals. I grew up with dogs, I often play with pets when I visit people’s homes, and I enjoy adorable animal videos as much as anyone. For all that, however, I’d never actually risk my life for some sheep. They’re cute and all, but they’re still just animals. Which is why we should be struck by what Jesus says. A good shepherd lays down his life for his sheep? Tell that to the wife whose children no longer have a father...Read More

Hear, See, Touch: Homily for the 3rd Sunday of Easter 2024

3rd Sunday of Easter, B                                                                                   April 14, 2024Fr. Alexander Albert                                                               St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/CJpKIwhq6Js It’s a funny thing, being a priest. All the time, I don’t have to say or do anything for people respond differently to me. Double-takes, subtle changes in posture, eagerness to talk to me or to avoid me, hearing the same jokes over and over. Without me even thinking about correcting them, people will apologize for cursing in front of me. Sometimes I do ask but even when I don’t, people will volunteer why they don’t come to Mass. One I hear...Read More

A Body Made Real: Homily for the 2nd Sunday of Easter, 2024

2nd Sunday of Easter, B                                                                                  April 7, 2024Fr. Alexander Albert                                                               St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/w5q5Gk1QIFI Does it sound like a cult to you? When you hear that first reading describing the early Christian church, perhaps everyone being “of one heart and mind” sounds a bit like not letting people think for themselves. Perhaps having “everything in common” and no one claiming “any of his possessions [as] his own” sounds a bit like a hippy commune. Perhaps letting the Apostles distribute wealth “to each according to need” sounds a bit like giving the leaders too much power and...Read More