Homily for December 9, 2012: 2nd Sunday of Advent

[Click here for readings.] Last week, the music world lost a giant: jazz legend Dave Brubeck.  He died Wednesday, the day before his 92nd birthday.  He was the first jazz artist to sell a million records; he was only the second one, after Louis Armstrong, to make the cover of TIME magazine. He was also [...]

Homily for December 8, 2012: Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception

[Click here for readings.] In his new book about the infancy of Jesus, Pope Benedict mentions one powerful detail in the gospel we just heard—and it’s something that I have to agree is striking. It is Mary’s aloneness. The pope wrote: “I consider it important to focus on the final sentence of Luke’s Annunciation narrative: [...]

Homily for December 2, 2012: 1st Sunday of Advent

[Click here for readings.] If you wanted to sum up the meaning of Advent, this beautiful and haunting season of waiting, you could do it with just one question: What are you waiting for? Most people, I suspect, would say, very simply, we’re waiting for Christmas, the birth of Jesus. But the gospel this Sunday [...]

Homily for November 25, 2012: Solemnity of Christ the King

[Click here for readings.] This Sunday, on the Solemnity of Christ the King, I was preparing to preach about how royalty is really alien to us Americans, how the concept of a King is something foreign to our sensibilities. But an experience Friday proved me wrong. I made the mistake of going to the mall [...]

Homily for November 18, 2012: 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

[This Sunday, my parish is celebrating the closing of its centennial. Bishop DiMarzio will be on hand, along with several priests who have close associations with the parish, for a massive concelebrated Mass at 12:30.  Also in the mix: a horde of altar servers, plus drums, timpani and a full choir.  According to the program, [...]

Homily for 32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

[I'm not preaching this weekend, but here's my homily from the same Sunday in 2009. -- DGK] We hear this gospel story, about the widow’s mite, and tend to think of it as a lesson in giving, and great sacrifice. And that is true.  It’s a lesson we need to hear, especially in these hard [...]

Homily for November 4, 2012: 31st Sunday in Ordinary Time

[Click here for readings.] By remarkable coincidence —or maybe divine planning —this gospel reading is as relevant and as urgent as this morning’s headlines. In this passage from Mark’s gospel, a scribe asks Jesus to name the most important commandment.  Jesus not only tells him that, but also tells him the second most important one, [...]

Homily for November 1, 2012: All Saints Day

[Click here for readings.] Yesterday morning, I went to the store to pick up a few things.  While I was in line, a little girl came in, six or seven years old, wearing a pink costume and carrying a small plastic pumpkin.  She tried to get the attention of the guy behind the counter “Trick [...]

Pope’s homily at today’s canonizations: “These seven generous disciples of Christ…”

Complete text, via Vatican News: The Son of Man came to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many (cf. Mk 10:45) Dear Brother Bishops,Dear brothers and sisters! Today the Church listens again to these words of Jesus, spoken by the Lord during his journey to Jerusalem, where he was to accomplish [...]

Homily for October 21, 2012: 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time

As most of you know, today the Holy Father formally declared a number of new saints, including two from New York, Mother Marianne Cope and Kateri Tekakwitha. I think it is a special and unexpected grace that Kateri was declared a saint during our parish centennial.  She is literally a part of this church. If [...]