The U.S. bishops will vote on a formal document on preaching at their annual fall meeting, November 12-15, in Baltimore.<\/p>\n
The document, \u201cPreaching the Mystery of Faith: The Sunday Homily,\u201d will be presented by the Committee on Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), chaired by Archbishop Robert Carlson of St. Louis. It is intended in particular for priests and deacons and those who educate seminarians.<\/p>\n
The document cites numerous examples from the Scriptures, including the preaching of Jesus Himself, and encourages preachers to connect the Sunday homily with people\u2019s daily lives. \u00a0It said, for example, that \u201cthe homilist of today must realize that he is addressing a congregation that is more culturally diverse than previously, one that is profoundly affected by the surrounding secular context, and, in many instances, inadequately catechized.\u201d<\/p>\n
The document also emphasizes that \u201cthe homily is integral to the liturgical act of the Eucharist, and the language and spirit of the homily should fit the context.\u201d<\/p>\n
The homily needs to touch people\u2019s lives and enhance their relationship with Jesus, it said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe ultimate goal of proclaiming the Gospel is to lead people into a loving and intimate relationship with the Lord, a relationship that forms the character of their persons and guides them in living out their faith.\u201d It added that \u201cby highlighting his humanity, his poverty, his compassion, his forthrightness, and his suffering and Death, an effective homily would show the faithful just how much the Son of God loved them in taking our human flesh upon himself.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe homily is intended to establish a \u2018dialogue\u2019 between the sacred biblical text and the Christian life of the hearer,\u201d the document said. It added that \u201capt stories that illustrate human experience or the realities of contemporary culture help enliven the homily and open avenues for understanding the meaning of the biblical text\u2026.\u201d<\/p>\n
The document listed qualities needed by the preacher, and said \u201cthe homilist should strive to live a life of holiness\u201d and be well-versed in Scripture.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis Bible should be near at hand\u201d so he is \u201ccarrying it with him when he travels or perhaps staying linked to it by computer or other mobile technology.\u201d The goal is \u201cto see the world through biblical eyes\u201d so he can be \u201cadept at noticing the analogies between the Bible and ordinary experience.\u201d<\/p>\n
Homilists should be in touch with the contemporary culture, the document said.<\/p>\n
\u201cPreachers should be aware, in an appropriate way, of what their people are watching on television, what kind of music they are listening to, which websites they find appealing, and which films they find compelling. References to the more popular cultural expressions\u2014which at times can be surprisingly replete with religious motifs\u2014can be an effective way to engage the interest of those on the edge of faith.\u201d<\/p>\n
The document offers some cautions.<\/p>\n
It warned against using the homily \u201cfor theological speculation,\u201d for example, and said \u201cit would be inappropriate for the homilist to impose on the congregation his own partisan views about current issues.\u201d<\/p>\n
It sees Christmas, Easter, weddings and funerals as times when the assembly includes Catholics who attend Mass only occasionally, and said \u201cThis is obviously not the time to chide such Catholics for their absence.\u201d Instead, it said, this is a time \u201cto invite back those who have lost contact with the Church.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A topic of which there is no shortage of opinions \u2014 preaching \u2014 will be getting more attention next month at the bishops\u2019 meeting in Baltimore. From the USCCB:\u00a0 The U.S. bishops will vote on a formal document on preaching at their annual fall meeting, November 12-15, in Baltimore. The document, \u201cPreaching the Mystery of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":132,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,41,1],"tags":[11165,11193],"class_list":["post-17633","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bishops","category-preaching","category-uncategorized","tag-bishops","tag-preaching"],"yoast_head":"\n
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