Tag: faith

For Glory: Homily for the 5th Sunday of Lent, A

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5th Sunday Lent, A March 26, 2023Fr. Alexander Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/AKSYbw8Q1jQ “Could not the one who opened the eyes of the blind man have done something so that this man would not have died?” Yes. The answer to that question and others like it is yes. “Can’t God just stop people from suffering? Isn’t He all powerful? Couldn’t he heal all cancer, stop all violence, save all children?” Yes, he could do those things just as he could have simply prevented Lazarus from dying. Not only did Jesus not prevent Lazarus’ death, he didn’t even hurry....Read More

That We Might See: Homily for the 4th Sunday of Lent

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4th Sunday Lent, A                                                                                          March 19, 2023Fr. Alexander Albert                                                              St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/pgY0F1AJOE0 “Jesus had made clay and opened his eyes on a sabbath.” This line is an important clue to what’s going on here. Do you know what it’s telling us? What reference it’s making that helps us understand?... Whenever the New Testament says or describes something we don’t understand, it’s a good idea to ask “what part of the Old Testament is this referring to?” This is a great tip – people are always coming up with crazy theories about the book of...Read More

What We Don’t Want To Be True: Homily for the 3rd Sunday of Lent

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3rd Sunday Lent, A                                                                                March 12, 2023Fr. Alexander Albert                                                     St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/g-i1keyBh1A The philosopher Peter Kreeft once summarized the 2 main ideas of atheism as: One, there is no God. Two, I hate him. A lack of faith is rarely purely intellectual. It is almost always connected to some kind of anger or resentment at who they thought God was supposed to be. It’s also pretty similar to what we see with this woman at the well. Jesus’ goal in this conversation is to give the water of life to this woman. But he first...Read More

Light in the Darkness: Homily for the 2nd Sunday of Lent

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2nd Sunday Lent, A                                                                                         March 5, 2023Fr. Alexander Albert                                                              St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/tPmcRz_qgxs To shine with the radiance of God, we must endure the cross. This is why Jesus tells his apostles not to share this glorious vision until after he has risen from the dead. It is why St. Paul tells Timothy and us to “bear your share of hardship for the gospel,” because what makes the gospel “good news” is this awareness of suffering and the cross. History bears this out. God promises to make Abraham into a great nation. You know your...Read More

Homily for Ash Wednesday: Why are you Here?

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Ash Wednesday                                                                                              February 22, 2023Fr. Alexander Albert                                                              St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/NmYF9BYwq58 Why are you here? Why take the time? It’s not a Holy Day of Obligation. It’s the middle of the week, so it’s not exactly convenient for people working today and probably an interruption for those on vacation. Now, I am glad you’re here, but the question is still important because how you answer that question determines whether or not this time is wasted. Is it to just to get ashes smeared on your forehead? I hope you realize that these ashes aren’t magical....Read More

Homily for the 7th Sunday of Ordinary Time: Imperfect Steps Toward Perfection

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7th Sunday OT, A                                                                                            February 19, 2023Fr. Alexander Albert                                                              St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/ELSRlOhK-0k I’m not what I could be… I’m not who I could be. Has any honest person not thought this to themselves? We imperfect human beings have an innate awareness that there’s something more to life that what we currently experience: some greater pleasure, some better situation. Imagining ourselves as better looking, smarter, stronger, more skilled, more well-connected… anything. There’s an innate desire for perfection. At the same time, who hasn’t also felt like that better situation is not actually possible? “I’m not...Read More

Homily for the 6th Sunday of Ordinary Time: No Loopholes

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6th Sunday OT, A                                                                                            February 12, 2023Fr. Alexander Albert                                                              St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/pZA-jAkq_zQ You have heard it said, “do not miss Mass on Sundays,” but I say to you that everyone who goes to Mass on Sunday, but purposely comes late or leaves early has already skipped Mass in their hearts. And whoever comes to Mass but plays on their phone or tunes everything out has insulted God rather than worshipping him. You have heard it said, “you can go to confession to get your sins forgiven,” but I say to you that whoever goes...Read More

Homily for the 5th Sunday of Ordinary Time: Salty or Sterile

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5th Sunday OT, A                                                                                           February 5, 2023Fr. Alexander Albert                                                              St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/ABe_E_BBg5U “You are the light of the world.” Think about a room full of candles. It’s pretty easy to read with ten candles lit, but not so easy with only one. And an unlit candle or a hidden lamp is almost worse than useless, casting shadows where it should be adding light. “If salt loses its taste, with what can it be seasoned? It is no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.” Do you know what happens...Read More

Homily for the 4th Sunday of Ordinary Time: Blessedness and Joy

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4th Sunday OT, A                                                                                            January 29, 2023Fr. Alexander Albert                                                              St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/05AboWUvaQk They are true, you know. These beatitudes, these promises of blessedness are not rhetorical… Jesus isn’t just trying to make a point. What he says is true. There is real blessedness, real joy to be found in each one of these examples. And no, it’s not just a future happiness that he’s talking about. The reasons he gives are in the future tense – will inherit, will be comforted – but the description of blessedness is right now – blessed are they....Read More

Homily for the 3rd Sunday of Ordinary Time: What is the Gospel?

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3rd Sunday OT, A                                                                                            January 22, 2023Fr. Alexander Albert                                                              St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/Ff0rBm0UKoI Jesus went around “proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom…” St. Paul tells us he was called preach the Gospel. Indeed, Jesus every one of us to proclaim the gospel. What does that mean? How do we do that? There’s two things consider: what the Gospel is and whether we let it actually enlighten our lives. First, what is the gospel? Where do we look to understand the gospel best? There’s this book I’ve just read from. There’s the four gospels of Matthew,...Read More