Last Monday, the 47th presidential term began in the United States. A day after the inauguration, on Tuesday, January 21, 2025, Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde, the spiritual leader of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington, delivered a powerful sermon at a national prayer service held at Washington National Cathedral. Her sermon highlighted the ethical challenges facing the nation and called for a deeper commitment to mercy, justice and compassion. Addressing pressing issues such as the treatment of immigrants and the rights of LG.B.T.Q. individuals, she made a direct appeal to President Donald Trump, who was present in the congregation. 

The reaction—for good and ill—to Bishop Budde’s sermon got us thinking here on the Preach team. Since launching the podcast, we’ve asked many of our guests how as Catholic leaders they can best balance preaching with politics. Where’s the line between speaking truth to power and staying true to the faith, the Scriptures— the Word of God? In this episode, we’re revisiting  a few of those conversations to explore how some faith leaders navigate the challenge of speaking out without compromising their spiritual mission when addressing political issues from the ambo.

Listen to the full conversation with guests featured on this episode

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When Roger Schutz, a Protestant minister from Switzerland, founded the Taizé community in 1940 in a small village in Southern Burgundy, France, amid the turmoil of World War II, he envisioned it as “a parable of communion.” Brother Matthew, the first Anglican and Englishman to lead this unique Christian community as its prior, reflects on Brother Roger’s vision: “It was a way of saying that what we lived as a community together should be like a sign that didn’t need too much explanation.”

On “Preach” this week, released during the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity—a celebration observed by Christian churches worldwide—Brother Matthew, preaching for the Third Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C, emphasizes the importance of moving beyond theological debates to focus on fostering reconciliation and communion among Christians. “I think that’s one of the challenges that we face—how to dare to go towards the other, even when you know that you’re not going to agree,” he says. “Because if we can’t do that, then this parable doesn’t work.”

Read the Scripture readings and full text of this week’s homily

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“Race has become something that, in many homes, in many places, is encountered when you see it on the news,” says the Rev. Kareem Smith. “But to look at it as a gift, to see other people as a gift and what they have to offer as something that is beautiful—that is to see the creation of God.”

On “Preach” this week, the Rev. Kareem Smith, pastor of St. Michael the Archangel Church in Co-op City, the Bronx, reflects with host Ricardo da Silva, S.J., on the Gospel reading for the Second Sunday in Ordinary Time—the wedding at Cana. Connecting the scarcity of wine and the tension between Jesus and his mother to modern challenges like racial justice and political divides, Kareem points to the tension many feel as Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Donald Trump’s second inauguration fall on the same day, Jan. 20, 2025. “There’s this breakdown in conversation,” he says of the state of the nation. “We desire to be heard, but are we failing to listen?”

Kareem, who is also president of the National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus, emphasizes Mary’s words—“Do whatever He tells you”—as a call to trust God to transform scarcity into abundance and view divisions as opportunities for renewal through humility and faith.

Read the Scripture readings and full text of this week’s homily

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On Christmas Eve, Ukrainian families create a living Nativity scene by spreading straw across the floor and placing hay beneath the dinner tablecloth. “This gesture connects the birth of Jesus to the natural world, with the presence of the field permeating the home,” Metropolitan Borys Gudziak says.

Portuguese families observe Noite da Consoada (Night of Comfort and Consolation) with a humble meal of salt cod, cabbage and potatoes. “The idea is to echo the simplicity of the day,” Ricardo da Silva, S.J., shares with Metropolitan Gudziak. “Jesus was born in this very simple setting.” These practices, Ricardo suggests in this year’s final episode of “Preach,” remind us not only of Christ’s simplicity but also offer a nudge for preachers: “The best thing to do is to preach simply.”

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Metropolitan Borys Gudziak of the Ukrainian Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia leads the Ukrainian Catholic community in the United States. Born in Syracuse, N.Y., he holds a doctorate in Slavic and Byzantine cultural history from Harvard University. He was the founding president and rector of the Ukrainian Catholic University in Lviv, Ukraine, from 2002 until 2012, and served Ukrainian Greek Catholics in Western Europe until 2018.

His preaching is deeply influenced by his dear friend and mentor, Henri Nouwen, who was known for his emphasis on simplicity and authenticity. “People today know Henri from his writings,” he says, “but I would say his preaching was an order above because it was personal.” The metropolitan recalls what he learned from hearing hundreds of Nouwen’s homilies when he was a student at Harvard. “Henri just said: ‘Keep it very simple. Use keywords many times.’”

And it is this ability to communicate simply that the metropolitan shows in his Christmas Eve homily, when he uses vivid expressions like  “the clear odor of the manure” and “the bells of the cows.” By drawing on Nouwen’s wisdom, the metropolitan invites us to approach the Christmas mystery with renewed awe, wonder and openness.

Read the Scripture readings and full text of this week’s homily

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On Gaudete Sunday—a day in Advent dedicated to rejoicing—the Rev. Justin Lopina will surprise his congregation by focusing his homily on sin. As the newly assigned pastoral administrator at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Wauwatosa, Wis., he believes that our fear of sin—what he calls “our fear of letting God down”—often robs us of joy. Justin joins host Ricardo da Silva, S.J., to discuss how John the Baptist’s call to repentance in the Gospel for Gaudete Sunday leads to joy more than simply moral obligations. They also explore the essentials of great preaching, emphasizing the importance of using one’s body and physical presence and keeping homilies short (around 8 minutes) to maintain the congregation’s attention.

Read the full text of this week’s homily and Scripture readings.

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How can a preacher deliver a homily that captures the hopes of younger audiences—from toddlers to teens—while keeping parents and the entire congregation engaged? It’s a tall order, but in this special “Preach” episode, host Ricardo da Silva, S.J., tackles this challenge in another panel discussion, this time with three America Media colleagues and parents: Tim Reidy, deputy editor-in-chief; Kerry Weber, executive editor; and Heather Trotta, vice president of advancement. Together, they share their experiences of nurturing their children’s faith and reflect on what makes for a homily that connects with everyone.

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“Preach” is made possible through the generous support of the Compelling Preaching Initiative, a project of Lilly Endowment Inc. 

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Sam Sawyer, S.J., editor-in-chief of America Media, returns to “Preach” to discuss his Advent homily series, designed to be more cohesive than the usual week-to-week, stand-alone Sunday homilies that preachers typically prepare. Sam shares with host Ricardo da Silva, S.J., how Pope Francis’ latest encyclical, Dilexit Nos, inspired him to create these homilies for the season, specially commissioned for Homiletic & Pastoral Review.

Over the four weeks, Sam leads the congregation through a four-part reflection on the heart: awakening the heart, trusting its activity and passion, recognizing our heart’s capacity to desire something greater, and embracing God’s grace in our heart as it overflows from within us

Read the full text of this week’s homily and Scripture readings.

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“Preach” is made possible through the generous support of the Compelling Preaching Initiative, a project of Lilly Endowment Inc. 

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This episode is a re-airing of our 2023 episode for the feast of Christ the King.

The Scripture readings for the Solemnity of our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, invite us to interpret the Scriptures through a lens that is perhaps less common for this celebration. Agbonkhianmeghe Orobator, S.J, tries to imagine ways in which the readings for the last Sunday of the liturgical calendar, “can be perceived less as a hierarchical, patriarchal or monarchical depiction of who God is in Christ through the Spirit, and more about how God relates to us; in humility, in care, in tenderness.” 

Father Orobator, a Jesuit of the North-West Africa Province, is an internationally acclaimed theologian and a convert to Catholicism from traditional African religion. He is the dean at the Jesuit School of Theology at Santa Clara University.

On this week’s “Preach,” Orobator shares with host Ricardo da Silva, S.J., how thinking of the Gospels as stories can subvert hierarchical, monarchical, and even patriarchal readings of the Scriptures. 

Read the full text of this week’s homily and Scripture readings.

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“Preach” is made possible through the generous support of the Compelling Preaching Initiative, a project of Lilly Endowment Inc. 

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When Thomas Massaro, S.J., hears underdog stories, he recognizes the various ways they parallel biblical narratives. “I’m a moral theologian, so I pretty much have to do this,” he says. “It’s part of my task to reach for some moral implications.” Those implications? If you’re a preacher, don’t moralize at the pulpit—especially when you are preaching on the first Sunday after the 46th United States presidential election. Instead, adopt the perspective of the underdog, and humbly strive to build bridges between people who come to Church with opposing viewpoints. 

In this episode of “Preach” for the 32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B, Tom joins Ricardo da Silva, S.J. to discuss how preachers can avoid polarizing issues while keeping an eye toward social justice.

Tom is a scholar of Catholic social thought. He holds the Laurence J. McGinley Endowed Chair in Religion and Society at Fordham University in New York. His most recent books include Pope Francis as Moral Leader (Paulist Press, 2023), and Mercy in Action: The Social Teachings of Pope Francis (Rowman & Littlefield, 2018).

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“If scripture is the living word of God, then it has something to say about anything,” the Rev. John Kartje reflects on this episode of “Preach” just ahead of the United States presidential election. His advice to his congregation: live out your Christian faith every day, regardless of the election outcome. “When you wake up next Wednesday, the political world will have changed,” he says, “But the world transformed by the life, death, resurrection, and sending of the Holy Spirit changed 2000 years ago. And your world changed on the day of your baptism.”

John joins Ricardo da Silva, S.J. on “Preach” to explore how to preach about civic responsibility before the election. John cautions against the tendency to “live like the ancient Israelites” who trusted in temporary, precarious human leaders rather than the eternal high priest, Jesus Christ.

A native of northwest Indiana and now a priest of the Archdiocese of Chicago, John currently serves as the rector and president of the University of Saint Mary of the Lake/Mundelein Seminary. He holds a Ph.D. in astrophysics from the University of Chicago, which has enabled him to embrace mystery in both his scientific research and his religious vocation. He has also served as campus chaplain at Northwestern University and as a parish priest.

Readings and transcript of John's homily

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