St. Joseph Church Homilies

Ashes, fasting, Stations of the Cross: Lent is filled with all kinds of traditional practices that lead us to consider one basic truth no one really disputes: things aren’t exactly right in the world. Sure, there’s plenty of good things to enjoy and many live good lives; creation is filled with all kinds of beauty...

So, in the Gospel for today, we hear about a moment when Jesus healed an unnamed man of leprosy. One part of the miracle I find interesting is how, right after healing the man, Jesus asks him to go to the priest and make an offering. Leprosy was a deadly and contagious disease, to be...

Most stories feature a hero and at some point in most stories, the hero is challenged with some form of suffering or torment. It doesn’t matter if the story is in a book or a movie, in the theatre or mini-series; the hero of almost every good story encounters suffering at some moment in their...

For a few weeks now, we’ve reflected on joy. It all started with an examination of the happiness we all search for. Everyone wants to be happy and the quest for happiness, either for ourselves or for those we love, guides many decisions around how to use time, money and effort. Happiness is a kind...

We’ve been exploring for a couple weeks now, our search for happiness. Everyone wants to be happy and the search for happiness guides a lot of what we do. Parents make all kinds of sacrifices so their children will be happy. Maybe some made New Year’s Resolutions hoping to be able to look back on...

Everyone wants to be happy. Some make New Year’s resolutions because they want to be happy. Parents make all kinds of sacrifices hoping their children will be happy. Maybe you wished others a “Happy New Year” because you want others to be happy. We began reflecting last week on our efforts to find happiness because...

If you’ve made any New Year’s Resolutions and managed to keep them so far, your year is off to a good start. We reflected on resolutions last year but didn’t explore what motivates us to make them. Of course, the resolutions we make can take many different forms, but what motivates us to make resolutions...

Happy New Year, everyone. In the Gospel reading for today’s feast, a feature that strikes me is the how the shepherds were motivated to go to Bethlehem. We remember from Christmas how the shepherds heard some Good News from a choir of angels. With very little discussion after the experience, this group of witnesses drop...

I don’t know if this is really true or not, but I like to think that our Church celebrates the feast of the Holy Family right after Christmas because over the last week, many have spent some time with family and for those who didn’t, their minds were probably filled with thoughts of their family....

Maybe there’s some here who have been facing some conflicts during these days leading up to Christmas. The stress of preparing for the feast can be a real test of patience leaving behind some irritability. Or maybe your children have had a little too much sugar; that’s a real threat to peace. Or maybe the...