Sermons

“A time will come, the hour will strike, the moment will arrive for these eyes to close and for the soul’s eyes to open. Then we shall see a new world, new beings, a new creation, a new life without end” (Elder Ephraim of Arizona). What will it be like to take our last breath and open the eyes of our soul on the other side? In some manner, it will be like seeing for the first time. We will look back and realize how vain all this was. All our little disputes, all our fear for

“When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, ‘Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven’” (Matthew 9:2). Chicago comedian, Sebastian Maniscalco, gives a skit about our angst when the doorbell rings. Twenty years ago, he says, when your door bell rang, it was a happy moment. “It’s called company.” The whole family shot off the couch. Everybody ran to the door — kids sliding in their socks, mom fetching the cake she saved for just such an occassion — a visitor had arriv

Today's homily will be a reflection on Holy Pilgrimage, addressing the Great Commandment in Matthew. 22:34-46, my recent experience at a monastery in Illinois, and the words below on sanctifying space. GOSPEL READING: Matthew. 22:34-46 "When the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together, and one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him.‘Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?’ He said to him, ‘ “You shall love the L

“Repentance opens the heavens, takes us to Paradise, overcomes the devil. Have you sinned? Do not despair! If you sin every day, then offer repentance every day!” St. John Chrysostom writes these beautiful words. Repentance is the joy of Christianity. It is the hallmark of our faith. The rest of the world cannot repent. It can regret. It can despair. But in Jesus Christ, we have a place to come, to wash, and heal. Repentance is the secret gift Christ came to offer. In the Ort