Sermons

We need to learn the joy of suffering and prepare for martyrdom. The Via Appia is a road leading south from Rome. Days before his death, St. Peter walked along the Via Appia to escape martyrdom. On the road, he encountered Jesus Christ. Astounded, St. Peter asked him: “Domine, quo vadis?” — “Lord, where are you going?” Christ responded: “Eo Romam iterum crucifigi” — “I am going to Rome, to be crucified again.” Every day, the Christian ought to practice martyrdom, not in fear

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Psalm 111:10). The men strained at their nets and could barely pull in the fish. Rocking violently, the boat nearly capsized, tugged down by this miraculous catch. Peter had seen everything. No mortal had this kind of authority over water and earth. It was a terrifying moment, discovering before him God almighty. He trembled and collapsed: “Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!” Fear and awe are virtues nearly gone in

We have a duty, as 21st century Christians, to build a counterculture. 1,500 years ago, a young nobleman was appalled by the moral chaos of Rome. He left the world behind and retreated to the wilderness. He set up an altar in the woods, he prayed, and formed communities based on order, stability, beauty, and worship. St. Benedict exiled himself from mainstream culture and built a new culture anchored on Jesus Christ. We share the same vocation. Here and now, in this little pa

“Amidst the racket and ridicule of people my prayer rises toward You, O my King and my Kingdom. Prayer is incense, that ceaselessly censes my soul and raises it toward You, and draws You toward her. Stoop down, my King, so that I may whisper to You my most precious secret, my most secret prayer, my most prayerful desire. You are the object of all my prayers, all my searching. I seek nothing except You, truly, only You.” ~ A Prayer by St. Nikolai Velimirovich Hunger is the wor