Tag: love

Not By Sight: Homily for the Funeral of Unclaimed Bodies 2026

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Funeral Mass for the Unclaimed Bodies                                                      March 5, 2026Fr. Alexander Albert                                                           St. Mary Magdalen, Abbeville https://youtu.be/7l4POdGvkYs “We walk by faith, not by sight.” It’s a common expression among us Christians. We often hear it in preaching and in the lives of the saints. We’ve just heard the part of scripture it comes from: St. Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians. And the context of that saying is important because it tells us what the original point was. It is meant as an expression to help us face death because none of us can see past death. And...Read More

The Rules of Love: Homily for the 6th Sunday OT 2026

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6th Sunday of Ordinary Time, A                                                            February 15, 2026Fr. Alexander Albert                                                          St. Mary Magdalen, Abbeville https://youtu.be/9p8fk5Jcj84 Ladies, if you had walked into the house yesterday to find three roses and a box of chocolates inside a grocery bag on the counter and him off playing a game or something, how would you have reacted? It’s certainly better than if he ignored the day completely. Now compare that to if you walked in the house to find him holding those same three roses, smiling and greeting you with enthusiasm, if he had that same box of chocolates, but presented them...Read More

A Father’s Approval: Homily for the Baptism of the Lord, 2026

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Baptism of the Lord, A                                                                      January 11, 2026Fr. Alexander Albert                                                            St. Mary Magdalen, Abbeville https://youtu.be/sJHGxSiOQ6k Why are you here? Why do you go to Mass, pray, do the Catholic thing? Habit? Someone else making you do it? Curiosity? Fear of Hell? Motivation in human beings is strange. Animals have instincts that tell them what to seek. They are biologically programed to want food, water, sleep, affection, pleasure and so on. We want those things too, but under the surface, there’s a whole mess of tangled motivations. You feed, shelter, and show affection to an...Read More

Viva Cristo Rey: Homily for Christ The King Sunday 2025

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Christ the King, C                                                                   November 23, 2025Fr. Alexander Albert                                                          St. Mary Magdalen, Abbeville https://youtu.be/UcLneADiZKo Ninety-eight years ago today, the Mexican Jesuit priest José Ramón Miguel Agustín Pro Juárez was led before a firing squad in Mexico City. The Mexican government had severely restricted Catholicism at that time. So, Padre Miguel Pro continued to minister in secret. Eventually, he was caught. On the morning of November 23, 1927, Miguel Pro, holding a rosary in one hand and a crucifix in another, blessed the men about to shoot him and knelt to pray. He then stood and extended his hands like...Read More

Seeing the Kingdom of God: Homily for St. Frances Cabrini

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Thursday Week 32 OT           St. Frances Xavier Cabrini                  November 13, 2025Fr. Alexander Albert                                                         Vermilion Catholic, Abbeville Audio Recording: The movie Cabrini is well made and fairly compelling to watch. It does a good job of portraying just how hard it was for St. Frances Xavier Cabrini to do her work, showing the obstacles, the reluctance of some Church leaders, and how bold and persistent Mother Cabrini could be in the face of those challenges. It conveys well her love for the poor and her witness to human dignity. For those reasons, it’s worth watching. But it misses something...Read More

What We Know: Homily for All Souls Day 2025

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All Souls Day                                                                                     November 2, 2025Fr. Alexander Albert                                                               St. Mary Magdalen, Abbeville https://youtu.be/-50x9MAY37M “I know he will rise.” Not “I believe,” not “I think,” not even “I hope.” I know he will rise. How? How can this unimportant woman from a small town outside of Jerusalem know someone will rise from the dead? Because faith is not a guess or an opinion. It is a supernatural conviction of truths that are beyond our natural reason. Faith is not opposed to knowledge. It is not opposed to reason. It is an extraordinary way of knowing. Of course, it is...Read More

A Different Target: Homily for VC School Mass Sept 11, 2025

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Thurs, Week 23 OT - I                                                                                   September 11, 2025Fr. Alexander Albert                                                               Vermilion Catholic, Abbeville https://youtu.be/rQJiCOuXWt0 It’s supposed to be different. It’s supposed to make us stand out. The Gospel way of life is meant to make us different. “Other schools aren’t so strict about uniforms or Sunday practices.” Yeah, most schools don’t have Christ at the center. “Other kids get smartphones when they’re 8.” Is being like other kids your only goal? Don’t you see? Jesus wants us to live a different kind of life. I gave some random examples, but I could just as easily...Read More

Approaching Angels: Homily for the 22nd Sunday OT 2025

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22nd Sunday of Ordinary Time, C                   Confirmation                           August 31, 2025Fr. Alexander Albert                                                               St. Mary Magdalen, Abbeville https://youtu.be/o8x7dHl8nBg N.B. This Mass featured a confirmation. The homily is slightly different from those given at the other weekend Masses. “You have approached…” That’s what our second reading tells us and that is especially true for you today, Jacob. Confirmation is a sacrament of initiation, a sacred ritual that draws you more fully into the Church. Unlike the old testament, the old covenant, this approach isn’t on a mountain with fire and trumpet blasts and the terrifying, booming voice of God. Though...Read More

The Restless Heart Made Strong: Homily for School Mass Aug 28 2025

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Thurs, Week 21 OT - I                       St. Augustine                                      August 28, 2025Fr. Alexander Albert                                                               St. Mary Magdalen, Abbeville https://youtu.be/NmvMULMh9Lo “What are you looking for?” Sometimes in confession, I ask that question of the person confessing. Especially when their sins seem to involve chasing thrills or pleasures, I want them to reflect on what they thought they would get our of committing those particular sins. Today is the memorial of St. Augustine, one of the greatest saints of the Church and one of the most significant figures of human history. Why is he so great? Because he went looking, seeking,...Read More

Fighting Fire with Fire: A Chastity Homily – 20th Sunday OT 2025

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20th Sunday of Ordinary Time, C                                                                   August 17, 2025Fr. Alexander Albert                                                               St. Mary Magdalen, Abbeville https://youtu.be/zXt_IGG5bNU “Fight fire with fire.” One tactic for fighting a wildfire is to deprive it of fuel by burning the areas in front of it. Fire can’t burn what’s already been burned. That tactic is enlightening when we consider Jesus’s pyromaniac proclamation, “I have come to set the earth on fire and how I wish it were already blazing!” Is the reason it's not blazing perhaps because the world has already been burned? Of course, the fire Jesus speaks of is a metaphor for...Read More