As we come to Mass today, we officially begin the season of Advent. It is not only the beginning of a new liturgical year within the Church, but, most importantly, it brings about a time of preparation and anticipation for the coming of our Lord at Christmas. Throughout this season, the Church invites us to…
The Virgin Mary is among one of the greatest gifts that God has ever given to humanity. He knew that all of us needed a mother that we could turn to who would walk with us along the path of discipleship. He knew that we needed someone we could turn to who would help lead…
The passage that we have heard this morning in our Gospel comes at the end of the Sermon on the Mount. At the time, the things that Jesus was saying were viewed as being radical. Throughout the preceding chapters, He was telling His disciples and those who came to listen to Him about a new…
The Lord called Isaiah to be a prophet to the people of Israel at a critical time in their history. He was sent to not only warn them of their impending doom at the hands of the Assyrians but to also reassure them of the promise that God would restore them to glory and greatness.…
Today marks a very special day in the life of the Church. It’s a day when we not only begin a new liturgical year, but it is also a day when we begin an extraordinary time of grace. Today, we begin the Season of Advent, a season when we focus on waiting and hopeful expectation…
Homily for the Memorial of St. Francis Xavier Throughout this first week of Advent, we have been reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah, hearing of the promises that the Lord would bring His people out of misery, suffering, and darkness. The Lord assured His people that He would bring about their liberation and…
Homily for Friday of the 1st Week of Advent In our Gospel this morning, two blind men approach Jesus and ask Him to heal them. They wholeheartedly believed that Jesus was the one who could bring them to freedom from the literal darkness that they had lived for such a long time. Because of their…
Homily for Monday of the 1st Week of Advent Our first reading this morning from the Prophet Isaiah really sums up what we are looking forward to during this Advent season. In this particular passage, God is speaking through the prophet about the promises that He has made to His people. It’s a message that…
Homily for the 1st Sunday of Advent Throughout history, there have been countless times when people have said that the end of the world would happen. In 1910, people thought that Halley’s Comet was going to crash into the earth resulting in some apocalyptic explosion bringing about the end of civilization as we know it.…
Homily for the Memorial of St. Francis Xavier I really truly believe that today’s Gospel is a perfect one to reflect on at the beginning of the Advent season. It challenges us with the question: what (or rather, who) is at the foundation of our faith? Is Jesus the rock whom we have built our…
Fr. Tom Pringle 