Homily at 23:10

Matthew 14

When people suggest that Jesus never announces in the Bible that he is the One, True God, they are wrong.

One of the signs that Jesus uses to illustrate that he is Lord is his mastery over the waters—water is chaos, and God brings order out of chaos.

Storm on the waters, Jesus walks on the water.

Jesus announces at this moment, "Ego Eimi"—or "I Am," which is the name of God from Exodus 3:14. "Do not be afraid, it is I." "I am."

The New Testament doesn't just tell us He's God, he shows us all throughout the New Testament, and this is just one of many examples.

Whatever challenges you, stick with it, you'll inevitably see a bunch of improvement.

"Today's homily is for those who have taken the first step." Now, God is going to take you to the "elite" status, because you are called to a profound maturity in Christ. Jesus calls you to an excellence, a maturity, and a holiness that is far above what we can attain on our own.

Romans 5:3—St. Paul says "rejoice in your sufferings, because suffering produces endurance, endurance produces character, and character produces hope."

Matthew 8: after Christ calms the storm, the disciples say, "Who is this man?" because they know there is something sui generis about him. Not just anyone calms the waters...

"I know you've heard God say, 'come deeper.'"

Origin says, "What is this boat into which Jesus forced the disciples to embark? Is it perhaps the conflict to which one goes unwillingly, as it were..." No one becomes mature as a Christian if you don't get in the boat and follow Christ. You cannot be a true Christian until you're willing to face the wind and the waves and the trials that come when you follow the path of Christ.

"Give us real growth and holiness. Lord, help me get in the boat to face the storm."

"Lord, we rejoice in our sufferings—and I know that hope does not disappoint us."

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18th Sun. Of Ord. Time | Seeking Your Space | August 2, 2020 | Fr. Brian Larkin

John 1—Jesus came into the world, but the world did not receive him.

John 15:18—"If the world hates you, know that it has hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love it's own."

We are not of this world.

All over the New Testament, it says if you believe in Christ, you don't belong to this culture; you do not belong to the world.

"Church is the Communion, and the fellowship

of those..."

When Jesus goes home to Nazareth, they rejected him.

There are ways we stand up for the Church in this world, but when it comes down to it, we should not be surprised as the world rejects us increasingly more. Christ tells us in the Gospels that this will happen.

"You Crown the Earth with Your Goodness"—Book of sermons by Balthazaar

Balthazaar tells us the interstices (?) in between spaces cracks in masonry where tiny flowers grow. That is the life of a Christian. ✝️

If you follow Christ into the desert, you will all have a space—you won't have a big one, but it'll be your own—and God will provide an abundance for you.

Don't fear the desert. "I promise you, there is abundance in the desert."

Details about Our Lady of Lourdes Roman Catholic Church in Denver, Colorado:

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Homily at 21:30

1 Kings 3: "Solomon, ask me for what you want." —God to Solomon. Solomon is known for his wisdom, and for being David's son, and for prefiguring Jesus. He is the son of the great King David, who appointed Solomon as his successor. At this point, Solomon became the 3rd king of Israel—Jesus fulfills the prophesy and became the much "greater Solomon." 2 Samuel 7—The Sandlot (God tells Solomon one of Solomon's descendants will rule for•ev•er) Solomon built the Temple, and God tore it down, and rebuilt it in three days. In the New Testament, Jesus refers to himself as the son of David. Christ fulfills this prophesy by building the New Temple, as the new son of David. Jesus built the true temple, where he said, "You are Peter and on this rock, I will build my Church."—The true Church—the Church of the living God.

Jesus is the true "wise man," and anyone who listens to "these words of mine will become like the wise man." If we listen, we become wise.

Crux to pray with this week:

The image of modesty is the image Solomon uses to describe the beauty in the image of God. "God, give me wisdom. Lord, protect me from the dangers and the sirens of the world, but help me to resist them."

Proverbs: Solomon wrote the book of Proverbs for his son: one of the themes of Proverbs is the two types of women—Lady Wisdom "does not wisdom call?" In Chapters 1 & 8, Lady Wisdom says to you, "Come follow me."

In Proverbs 2,3, & 9—Lady Folly, or The Seductress. She sits at the door of her house. She takes a seat at the high places of the town. She calls out to them and says, "stolen water is sweet, and bread eaten in secret is pleasant, but he does not know that the dead are there."

Solomon teaches us that in our soul, there are two voices. Which voice will you follow?

"The cynic is someone who knows the cost of everything, and the value of nothing."

Pray for protection from the cynical voice of the world, and know in the depths of your heart and mind, that when you sell everything for the Lord, God you gain the greatest treasure, ever, forever.

"Wisdom is a far greater beauty, with a far greater depth."—Fr. Brian Larkin

Let us cry out for insight, as Solomon suggests.

Details about Our Lady of Lourdes Roman Catholic Church in Denver, Colorado:

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Join us for our Livestreamed Mass, recorded from Our Lady of Lourdes in Denver, Colorado.

Homily at 26:12

Matthew 13 contains the 7 parables about the Kingdom of Heaven.

"I want to talk about 'building paradise.'"

Lockheed Martin built a "Eutopian headquarter community" in the early '80s. "You and I are called to a greater hope, and the hope that we have is the Kingdom of God." The Kingdom of God is where God is King—where he reigns. Jesus came to bring that kingdom.

N.T. Wright "This is the image which haunts Isaiah and Daniel in the Psalms: The trees of the field will shout for joy, because God is coming to sort the mess out, and we all know in our bones that that's what we want."

Maybe deep down, the reason we're getting nice countertops is because the world is a mess, and somehow we'll think things will be OK as long as we have a nice kitchen.

"The folly of empire is the attempt to do here and now, in our own strength, that which God has promised that He will do through his Son and by his spirit."

"If you're the Messiah, you're supposed to make things right." But, what's the problem with the world? The problem is sin and hard hearts. But that won't fix it. The way God became King of the World is by the Crucifixion of the Son of God. And you and I as Christians do not believe that some earthly force is going to make things right. It only happens through Christ and the Holy Spirit. We know we cannot build the Kingdom ourselves.

Through the Holy Spirit and the love of Jesus Christ, our lives are transformed. Pray for the Kingdom of God to live inside of you, so this may become a reality. "God, transform us, so we may transform the world."

Matthew 13 Parable/Mirrors Isaiah Chapter 6

Consequences

"Why are you speaking in parables?"

Jesus seems to answer with, "Because I don't want them to."

Our faith is not a "do-over," because it is important. Your life matters. The decisions you make—every choice you make has eternal consequences.

"By this,

My father is glorified—

That you bear much fruit."

This mirrors Isaiah 5—when Isaiah goes looking for a vineyard. What God is looking for in us is the fruit of righteousness.

Jesus speaks in parables as a judgment on the world. Isaiah 6: "go out and make sure that they don't understand." Why isn't God more clear? Why doesn't God want us to understand? If we refuse to hear the Word of God, and admit, "We don't want to listen," there is a consequence: we go deaf, and become unworthy to hear the Word of God. That's what happening in Matthew 13.

The way to transform your heart is to begin to understand your faith.

"God does not promise a smooth path." But, consequently,

"Faith does not crumble under hardship."

When we give our hearts to the world, we begin to become unfruitful. Cut out anxiety so God can grow inside of you.

"Jesus, remove our blindness..."

"...that we may see you, that we may bear much fruit, that we may prove to be your disciples."

—Fr. Brian

Details about Our Lady of Lourdes Roman Catholic Church in Denver, Colorado:

For sacramental inquiries: email [email protected]

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Guest Priest, Fr. Greg Schmitt comes to Our Lady of Lourdes in Denver to speak about the Unbound ministry, which provides food, shelter, and clothing to children and seniors in impoverished countries throughout the world. Please consider a prayerful donation: https://www.unbound.org/MyOutreach/RevGregSchm

Thank you for your generosity!

13th Sun. of Ord. Time | Hierarchy of Goods | Fr. Brian Larkin's 40th Birthday! | June 28, 2020 by Lourdes Denver

Join Fr. Brian Larkin for the celebration of the Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time, live from Our Lady of Lourdes. For more information, visit https://lourdesdenver.org

Although "eccentric" has a societally strange connotation, Father Brian explains the call for fathers to eccentricity in an unconventional, Catholic way.

"Every life contains a center that is eccentric—that is, outside itself." (Balthazar) Your ability to love externally is what saves your soul: every life, fathers, this is why fatherhood as a vocation saves your soul: the natural thing in this world is to make yourself the center of the universe, but something every dad knows, there is a miracle that happens when you have children—you become eccentric, meaning the center of your life is no longer inside of you.

The love of your children, and the willingness to lay your life down for them in and of itself is salvific.

So, how are you loving your children, today? Have you lost your life to your vocation, yet? Because when you do, your children will live as eccentrically as you do, and become avid proponents of Christ.

Fr. Mike Rapp says his good-byes on his way to his new assignment. He offers deep gratitude for the Lourdes community, and recognizes the parish's unique zeal for the evangelization of Christ. His homily melds into the mystery of the gift of the Body of Christ, and how beautiful it is that we are such a small part of a large universe, and yet God still loves us this much—to change our very DNA. We are no longer children of despair, but children of God because he is engrained in our very DNA through the Body of Christ. "It's an identity that reminds us constantly that we are children of the Father, that we are brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ, and that we are filled with the Holy Spirit."

The Blood of the Lamb is the key to unlock the one we are looking for. Just one drop of blood changes our identity.

Revelation 12:11—"They have conquered him by the Blood of the Lamb."

"Because you have the blood of Jesus running through your veins, you will always be children of God, you are assured of the promise that God gave you of your salvation, and nothing can take that away, and that the Accuser cannot threaten you. If you feel threatened, if you feel afraid, remember that you are filled with the life of God.

"Take heart. God is faithful, and he brings us back at every turn."

Thank you, Father Mike Rapp, for all that you have done and inspired at Lourdes. May God keep you in the hollow of His hands, now and always.

Join us for the Corpus Christi Sunday, livestreamed from Our Lady of Lourdes in Denver, CO, June 14th, 2020.

Homily at 9:43

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The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity | Desire for Knowledge | Fr. Brian Larkin | June 7, 2020 by Lourdes Denver