Lent Archives - Page 3 of 3 - Albert the Ordinary

Homily for the 2nd Sunday of Lent: Woken to Glory

Posted on March 13, 2022March 13, 2022 by Father Albert

Lent Sun 2, C March 13, 2022Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/TY0G80EN9fQ “Stay woke.” Perhaps you’ve heard some variation of this phrase. Maybe it’s a positive thing to you or maybe you think of it as a kind of insult. Like so many catchphrases, the meaning has shifted over time and it means different things to different people. It was originally meant to encourage people to stay alert to what is really going on behind the scenes… to see past what “the man” tells you. Or it’s being sensitive to injustices that permeate our...Read More

Homily for the 1st Sunday of Lent: Cycle of Victory

Posted on March 6, 2022March 6, 2022 by Father Albert

Lent Sun 1, C March 6, 2022Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/WTKMEYA2nX0 Identity. Trial. Thanksgiving. This is the pattern for us in life and the pattern laid out for us at the beginning of Lent. It begins by knowing who we are and what makes us who we are. This identity is challenged, attacked, tried by the Adversary, Satan. And what sustains us through it all is to receive the gifts of God and return it to him with thanksgiving. Jesus was just baptized in the river Jordan. He is revealed as the Son...Read More

Pastor Column: Spring Ember Days

Posted on March 5, 2022March 2, 2022 by Father Albert

[Note: This is not the homily. That can be found here.] You may remember that I’ve often invited you to join me in observing the Ember Days. The Ember Days are a traditional time of prayer and fasting connected to each season of the year. The idea is to sanctify – to make holy – each season. While not as popular now, the practice of fasting has always been a central part of the Christian call to holiness. It purifies our attachment to food, reminds us of the fact that many go without, and gives us a chance to...Read More

Homily for Ash Wednesday: Now Is The Time

Posted on March 2, 2022March 2, 2022 by Father Albert

Ash Wednesday March 2, 2022Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/mkRPK6aA8UQ “Now is the day of salvation.” This is similar to a popular piece of advice: “live in the present moment.” There’s a piece of truth in that popular adage. The reality is that we only have the present. The past is gone and the future is not here. The present moment is most real, most important. But this only goes so far. Another, related popular dictum is “live with no regrets” as if being in the present moment justifies never considering past mistakes. If all...Read More

Homily for the 5th Sunday of Lent: Perfection

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

5th Sunday of Lent, B March 21, 2021Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/r1BJFiqQXE8 This Lent, beginning with Adam and Eve, we saw God’s firm opposition to evil, especially as shown with Noah and the great flood. In Abraham’s willingness to offer up Isaac, we saw the importance of faith shown through obedience to things beyond our understanding. With Moses and the Ten Commandments, we encountered the paradox that real freedom is not doing whatever we feel like but being free enough from sin and our impulses to do what is truly good....Read More

Homily for the 4th Sunday of Lent: Hope of Victory

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

4th Sunday of Lent, B March 14, 2021Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/LWCH83GpMoA We are losing. At least, that’s what it looks like. And that is a key part of this next step in our journey through the fundamentals – the hope of victory. In the battle of good vs. evil, this battle for freedom fought with the weapons of obedience, we must remember what victory really looks like if we are going to avoid discouragement. The first reading is from the end of the Jewish bible and it speaks of what...Read More

Homily for the 3rd Week of Lent: Freedom

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

3rd Sunday of Lent, B March 7, 2021Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/zooLk_rNUqo Freedom. The next step in our journey is to understand the fundamental value of freedom. It might seem a strange thing to talk about when our readings include a list of “you shall not”s and we see Jesus literally using a whip to interrupt other people’s business, yet that really is the core of what’s happening here. Our first reading should have sounded pretty familiar to you; it’s the Ten Commandments. They are given to Moses on Mount Sinai...Read More

Homily for the 2nd Week of Lent, B: The Victory of Obedience

Posted on February 28, 2021February 28, 2021 by Father Albert

2nd Sunday of Lent, B February 28, 2021Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/bKRDZq1mVXk Obedience. In our journey through the fundamentals, it is time to look at the reality of obedience. Last week took us through that fundamental conflict of Good vs. Evil, begun with original sin and carried on today in the heart of every human person. After promising never to use a flood to destroy evil again, God gives us the sign of a rainbow, which foreshadows the way in which he will overcome evil once and for all, by aiming it’s...Read More

Homily for the 1st Sunday of Lent: Good vs. Evil

Posted on February 21, 2021February 21, 2021 by Father Albert

1st Sunday of Lent, B February 21, 2021Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/X6n0iIVvAAI Good versus evil. This concept is part of nearly every story ever told and central to all the best ones. Some people may talk about these two forces as a necessary part of the balance of the universe, the yin and yang or, to borrow an idea from Star Wars, the dark and light sides of the force. But even then, no sane person actually wants evil to be equal to good. The Jedi talk about balance, but strive continually...Read More

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