Login \| Contact



Homilies Advent Advent Week 1 Year A Week 1 Year B Week 1 Year C Week 2 Year A Week 2 Year B Week 2 Year C Week 3 Year A Week 3 Year B Week 3 Year C Week 4 Year A Week 4 Year B Week 4 Year C Christmas Baptism of the Lord Year A Baptism of the Lord Year B Baptism of the Lord Year C Epiphany Year A Epiphany Year B Epiphany Year C Holy Family Year A Holy Family Year B Holy Family Year C Mary Mother of God Year A Mary Mother of God Year B Mary Mother of God Year C Mass at Midnight Year A Mass at Midnight Year B Mass at Midnight Year C Back to the Boat Heaven to Earth, Sea to River Lent Lent Week 1 Year A Week 1 Year B Week 1 Year C Week 2 Year A Week 2 Year B Week 2 Year C Week 3 Year A Week 3 Year B Week 3 Year C Week 4 Year A Week 4 Year B Week 4 Year C Week 5 Year A Week 5 Year B Week 5 Year C Ash Wednesday "Do You Want to Be Healed?" Holy Week Passion Sunday Year A Passion Sunday Year B Passion Sunday Year C Holy Thursday Good Friday Easter Vigil Easter Sunday Easter Sunday Year A Easter Sunday Year B Easter Sunday Year C Easter Season Week 2 Year A Week 2 Year B Week 2 Year C Week 3 Year A Week 3 Year B Week 3 Year C Week 4 Year A Week 4 Year B Week 4 Year C Week 5 Year A Week 5 Year B Week 5 Year C Week 6 Year A Week 6 Year B Week 6 Year C Week 7 Year A Week 7 Year B Week 7 Year C Pentecost Pentecost Year A Pentecost Year B Pentecost Year C Ascension Ascension Year A Ascension Year B Ascension Year C ORDINARY TIME Ordinary Time Wks 2-7 Ord. Time Week 2 Year A Week 2 Year B Week 2 Year C Week 3 Year A Week 3 Year B Week 3 Year C Week 4 Year A Week 4 Year B Week 4 Year C Week 5 Year A Week 5 Year B Week 5 Year C Week 6 Year A Week 6 Year B Week 6 Year C Week 7 Year A Week 7 Year B Week 7 Year C Ordinary Time Wks 8-13 Week 8 Year A Week 8 Year B Week 8 Year C Week 9 Year A Week 9 Year B Week 9 Year C Week 10 Year A Week 10 Year B Week 10 Year C Week 11 Year A Week 11 Year B Week 11 Year C Week 12 Year A Week 12 Year B Week 12 Year C Week 13 Year A Week 13 Year B Week 13 Year C Ordinary Time Wks 14-19 Week 14 Year A Week 14 Year B Week 14 Year C Week 15 Year A Week 15 Year B Week 15 Year C Week 16 Year A Week 16 Year B Week 16 Year C Week 17 Year A Week 17 Year B Week 17 Year C Week 18 Year A Week 18 Year B Week 18 Year C Week 19 Year A Week 19 Year B Week 19 Year C Ordinary Time Wks 20-25 Week 20 Year A Week 20 Year B Week 20 Year C Week 21 Year A Week 21 Year B Week 21 Year C Week 22 Year A Week 22 Year B Week 22 Year C Week 23 Year A Week 23 Year B Week 23 Year C Week 24 Year A Week 24 Year B Week 24 Year C Week 25 Year A Week 25 Year B Week 25 Year C Ordinary Time Wks 26-31 Week 26 Year A Week 26 Year B Week 26 Year C Week 27 Year A Week 27 Year B Week 27 Year C Week 28 Year A Week 28 Year B Week 28 Year C Week 29 Year A Week 29 Year B Week 29 Year C Week 30 Year A Week 30 Year B Week 30 Year C Week 31 Year A Week 31 Year B Week 31 Year C Ordinary Time Wks 32-34 Week 32 Year A Week 32 Year B Week 32 Year C Week 33 Year A Week 33 Year B Week 33 Year C Week 34 Year A Week 34 Year B Week 34 Year C Letting Go of the Tree Major Feast Days All Souls 1 All Souls 2 Body and Blood of Christ Year A Body and Blood of Christ Year B Body and Blood of Christ Year C Christ the King Year A Christ the King Year B Christ the King Year C Peter and Paul Apostles Trinity Sunday Year A Trinity Sunday Year B Trinity Sunday Year C In Memoriam Memorial of Victory "Up to Jerusalem" Sacred Humanity Homiletic Bibliography Bibliography Pt I (A-G) Bibliography Pt II (H-N) Bibliography Pt III (O-Z) Commentary Catholic Life Faith & the Cult of Pleasantness Fatherhood and Family Holy Marriage, Holy Family Jesus Calls Me Friend Outdoor Plumbing Works of Mercy Defending the Catholic Church Confession Living Letter Bathing Often Eucharist Divine Authority Human Pride Mother of God Persecution Philosophy Priesthood and Papacy Respect for Life Gospel of Luke - Study Luke Chapters 1 - 2 Luke Chapters 3 - 4 Luke Chapters 5 - 6 Luke Chapters 7 - 8 Luke Chapters 9 - 10 Luke Chapters 11 - 12 Luke Chapters 13 - 14 Luke Chapters 15 - 16 Luke Chapters 17 - 18 Luke Chapters 19 - 20 Luke Chapters 21 - 22 Luke Chapters 23 - 24 Questions & Answers Catholic Beliefs Fortitude: Gift or Virtue? Great Commandment Hierarchy of Truth Same-sex Partnerships Catholic Practices Holding Hands at Mass Wearing Shorts at Mass Hierarchy Church Hierarchy Hierarchy of Truth Why Does Church Need a Pope and Bishops? Liturgy Holding Hands at Mass Hymn Resource for Mass Lay Ministry - Liturgy Substituting Song for Sign of Peace Wearing Shorts at Mass Relationships Devotion and Trust Marriage and Celibacy Tell Him the Truth Thorn in Your Side Respect Life Does Ignorance Justify Abortion? Human Personhood On the Subject of Cloning Sacraments Does the Eucharist Reveal Jesus? Male Priesthood of Christ World Affairs Immigration Worries Mercy, Justice and World Affairs Unite on United Nations? Walking with the Word - Lessons Walking with the Word - Lessons A-M Blessed Are You Deep Water "Father, Forgive Them" Garden, Stable & City of God - Part 1 Garden, Stable & City of God - Part 2 God Knows God Loves You Because God's Heart of Love Humanity of Man "Lamentation" "Let Us Go Down" - Part 1 "Let Us Go Down" - Part 2 "Let Us Go Down" - Part 3 "My Power in You" Walking with the Word - Lessons N-Z New Growth on an Old Vine New Wrinkle on an Old Story "One Degree of Glory to Another" Proof of Peace Reason & Acting Reasonably Solomon's Ring Standard of Dress for Mass Sword of Sorrow "Take Off Your Shoes" Take Up Your Cross - Part 1 Take Up Your Cross - Part 2 "Thou Little Tiny Child" True Food - Part 1 True Food - Part 2 Watch, Hat and Scissors Word of Justice, Word of Mercy Reflections Christmas Present Clean White Corporal Christian Prayer Delivered from Fear Do You Love Me More? Elegant Recovery Entrust the Sick to God Faith and Choosing Faithful Follower Friendship with Christ Good Physician He Gave Me Wings Heaven's Ecology I Don't Need the Church Last Defense Living Biography of the Church Love Is Hungry Making Bread Thoughts on Merton Our Lady of Divine Grace Remnant Saying Yes to God Self-reflection Sentences Armor of God Counting Your Blessings Passage on Peter's Boat Virginity Sock Puppet Sun, Mast and Horizon We Lament Window of Receptivity Would He Die for One? Devotions Divine Mercy Chaplet Indulgence Novena Litany of the Sacred Heart Lord's Prayer Our Lady of Divine Grace Rosary Fatima Rosary Vigil Rosary Saint Therese Centenary Chaplet Seven Last Words of Christ Various Authors Augustine of Hippo Benjamin Franklin Clement of Alexandria Ignatius of Antioch John Henry Cardinal Newman J.R.R. Tolkien Michel Quoist Pope Benedict XVI Pope Pius XII Various Prayers Blessing for a Pregnancy Circle of Faith Choice Vines For Fathers For My Son For Spiritual Fatherhood Gathered Like Wheat Grateful Praise Healing Medicine Hidden Wisdom Hour Has Arrived No One Else but God O Lord Your Love O Shepherd Prayer for the Military Sake of Blessing Sweet Grapes Teachable Heart Thousand Years To All but You O Lord To Father Son and Spirit Wheat and Grape

CATHOLIC PRIEST -- WEEKLY HOMILY -- Mar 14

AND HE arose and came to his father. But while he was yet at a distance, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. And the son said to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son." [Lk 15:20-21]

Artist: Victor Luciano Rebuffo

(1903 - 1983)

Buenos Aires, Argentina

GOD KNOWS ^_[1]

NOT SCRIPTED SCENES

1. Each character in a dream, as some contend, represents a particular aspect or concern of the person who is dreaming. Identifying one's primary dream self is not difficult, but he may be reluctant to admit that the "bad guy" or critical parent in a dream is his secondary dream self and not a "guest". However condensed, elaborated, or distorted the imagery one experiences in dreams, the secondary self may at times be more revealing.

2. Frustratingly symbolic and elusive, dreams generally are not scripted scenes in which persons, other than the one dreaming, are invited to act in starring roles inside his head. Dreams mysteriously work below the ego to sort out psychogenic issues of the day, unresolved conflicts, and the sheer volume of thoughts, images and emotions accumulated during wakefulness. Occasionally, dreams reveal something of the person dreaming.

ENDLESSLY VARIEGATED

3. We perceive that the dream content consists of recognizable elements or fragments of conscious experiences and perceptions. Dreams are mysterious. They are seemingly random, endlessly variegated and sometimes disturbing. No person may control the content, sequencing or intensity of his dreams. Conscious rationality is one way of speaking about human reason. Awareness is another, and it is this all-encompassing latter that the dream process must address.

4. The next time you wake from a significant dream, give some attention to its important figures. Perhaps each figure in the dream stands for some critical aspect of your own personhood. What could this dream person strongly represent? What might this dream and its symbols say about you, about who you are, and what you are dealing with?

UNLOCKING THE MYSTERY

5. Dreams are often rich, extravagant and sometimes very informative. It is this rather dreamlike quality that makes Luke's story of the Prodigal Son the most beloved and compelling parable of all. We love this parable because it functions as a key, a key which unlocks the mystery of our humanity and our relationship with God. The parable offers many insights and many lessons—chief among them being the rich and extravagant reality of God’s mercy.

6. Who could read this parable and not conclude that within himself exists both sons--the younger, selfish, arrogant and wasteful in uneasy coexistence with the older son who is cold, harsh, and hard. We would like to think, as evidence of human hopefulness, that we could be the father whose heart is a reservoir of generosity, love and mercy.

WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

7. Clearly, we see something of ourselves in each of the three characters of the parable. The father, the older son, and the younger son, each represent the best and the worst in us, the royal road of pleasure and the way of sorrows, rejection and acceptance, folly and wisdom, betrayal and mercy, mourning and celebration. The parable, whatever its peculiar elements, addresses the question: What does it mean to be a more humane human being?

8. We could not begin to exhaust the possibilities of meaning in this story. Jesus’ parable is amazingly effective at uniting his mission as story-teller with the experiences of his listeners. Each brings a multiplicity of nuances, variations, and subtlties to the text. Parables are meant to be heard rather than read. But readers everywhere—Christian and non-Christian alike—are not left out. Anyone who reads this story seriously may say at the end, I understand.

WITHIN YOUR HUMANITY

9. To ponder this wonderful story is time well spent. To enjoy again its profound lessons of love and mercy is medicine for the soul. Be attentive to the characters of the father, the older and younger sons, and how each has something to say about you, who you are and the person God wants you to be. For our Divine Lesson today, I invite you to consider that, within your own humanity, exists the nature of both brothers of the parable. The character of the father suggests a figure in the supernatural order, perhaps God the heavenly Father, but we are not prevented from appropriating something of the father figure for ourselves.

10. When asked by Peter, "'Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?', Jesus said to him, 'I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven.'" [Mt 18:21-22] By coming to terms with the three persons of Luke's parable and what they represent, you may be able to come to terms with yourself. Consider as well, that your true and lasting home is the Church, and it is within the Church one celebrates the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

For the full reflection, CLICK THIS LINK: GOD KNOWS

APOSTOLATE

Adventus Christi provides reliable Catholic homily resources to Christian faith communities.

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

-- Email Questions about the Catholic Faith to Father Richard Barker! --

RADIO -- EVANGELIZATION

Live Radio! Father Richard Barker's weekly program -- "WALKING WITH THE WORD" (Friday's)

LAUDATE DOMINO

Photo of the Day - Daprato Crucifix. Sanctuary of St. Philip the Apostle Catholic Church, Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, Rev. Richard Barker, pastor.

SENTENCES Mar 14 2010. God is not moonlight or a canopy of stars under which two people make love in the dark. God is a person. He is the fullness of intimate personhood—Father, Son and Spirit. It is God who loves you, and he is worthy of your “yes” to his covenant of love.
God “loves you with an everlasting love” [Jer 31:3] precisely because he is a person. He asks for your undying love in return. He desires your unswerving fidelity to his sovereign divinity and unfailing devotion to the divine-human relationship he offers you.
In God “there is no variation or shadow due to change.” [Jas 1:17] God is perfectly faithful, attentive and devoted to you. He is perfectly aware of your every thought, your every need, your every vulnerability. God desires only your good.
You, a human being, are gifted with a mind and will, not merely for pursuing your human interests and material possessions, but for the purpose of seeking God in faith, and having found him, to accept him.
He wants you to be like himself, to grow into his glory more each day “for this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit”. [cf. 2Cor 3:18] God comes to you every moment of your life, saying, “You, therefore, must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” [Mt 5:48]
If God is a canopy of stars or moonlight, that is to say, a phantasm of your sensuous imagination, your faith has been cuckolded by absurdities and idolatry, even arrogance. Such faith ultimately will be extinguished by paralyzing fear.
If God is a person, you are his beloved, and you cannot be happy until you passionately embrace him as the love of your life. To humbly confess your humanity is to confidently affirm God’s divinity. Admit you need for God. Turn to him and embrace him. Love him. Walk with him. Glorify him.
+++
Mar 11 2010. Satan is called Beelzebul, a variation of the Hebrew Ba’al Zebhubh, meaning literally “lord of flies”. The devil is alive for all eternity, but he is as good as dead now and will be forever, because he hasn’t an atom of goodness nor impulse to be good. He stinks, and his squalid cohort of fallen angels swarm around him like flies on carrion.
+++
Mar 10 2010. “In (Jesus Christ) we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace which he lavished upon us.” [Eph 1:7-8]
The Pharisees, Sadducees and priestly caste imputed grave sin to Jesus and marked him out for death by crucifixion. After all, their task was to enforce the Law which never saved anyone. But the Son of Man was sinless, because he is also the Son of God. The evil that Jesus' accusers saw in him was actually their own sin, the murderous intentions of privileged self-promoting cabals which reject personal culpability for anything. Far from being grateful that Jesus consented to bear their iniquity in his expiation, his enemies reviled him for exposing their white-hot hypocrisy under the glaring sun and daring to extinguish it within his passion's terrible darkness.
+++

GOD KNOWS [1]