St. Joseph Church Homilies

On the first Easter, Mary Magdalene went to do something very sad but ordinary, to honour the body of Jesus with traditional burial rituals. But as it turned out, through God’s power, that first Easter would be anything but ordinary: the tomb was empty; Jesus had risen. There are times when ordinary is welcome: when...

Often we like ordinary, when feelings of peace and contentment become the normal. But there’s also moments when ordinary is not so welcome. Ordinary can become monotonous. When children get tired of the ordinary days of summer break, they might complain of boredom. When purpose, growth and meaning become difficult to find, ordinary becomes unwanted....

There’s many times when we like things to be ordinary. The ordinary can bring a sense of peace and safety. Stress is lower when there’s no fear of unexpected things coming up. But there’s also moments when we don’t like the ordinary so much. What’s ordinary can become boring. When children get tired of the...

Battered fish: it’s one of the great symbols of Good Friday, isn’t it? Maybe many here are hoping for a short homily so they can get a good place in the line at the Captain George’s after our celebration. Another of the most recognized symbols for Good Friday is the crown of thorns. For anyone...

During a fairly violent persecution of Christians, followers of Jesus were forced to celebrate Mass in secret. Those identified as Christians were imprisoned and executed. At the end of Mass, someone would covertly bring the Eucharist to the Christians who were imprisoned for their faith to help strengthen them. The priests and deacons couldn’t go...

You would think that a healing miracle, a sign of God at work in the world, would be something worth celebrating. A blind man was healed; that ought to have been a great cause for celebration; it had never been done before and was a real sign of God’s presence and a great cause for...