My homily for the 31st Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C, as preached on Sunday 30 October 2022.

The readings proclaimed were Wisdom 11:22 - 12:2; 2 Thessalonians 1:11 - 2:2; Luke 19:1-10. Today's psalm is Psalm 144: "I will praise your name forever, my king and my God."

"Zacchaeus was moved to conversion of heart not because of some externally imposed rules or law, but because Jesus stopped and addressed him personally and by name. The invitation into relationship - for Zacchaeus and for us - is the spur to conversion, to become more and more like what Jesus calls us to be."

The daily excerpt from the Rule of Saint Benedict for 29 October 2022, taken from Chapter 22.

The daily excerpt from the Rule of Saint Benedict for 28 October 2022, taken from Chapter 21.

The daily excerpt from the Rule of Saint Benedict for 27 October 2022, taken from Chapter 20.

The daily excerpt from the Rule of Saint Benedict for 26 October 2022, taken from Chapter 19.

My homily for the 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C, as preached on Sunday 23 October 2022.

The readings proclaimed were Sirach 35:12-14; 16-19; 2 Timothy 4:6-8, 16-18; Luke 18:9-14. Today's psalm is Psalm 33: "The Lord hears the cry of the poor."

"To be truly humble means to recognise that we cannot live the life God calls us to except with the help of God's grace and mercy. If we think we can do it through only our own efforts - and when we judge others the same way - then we are not 'at rights with God'. Unfortunately, that attitude is not limited to the Pharisee of today's Gospel but continues within 'Christianity' down to this very day."

My homily for the 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C, as preached on Sunday 16 October 2022.

The readings proclaimed were Exodus 17:8-13; 2 Timothy 3:14 - 4:2; Luke 18:1-8. Today's psalm is Psalm 120: "Our help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth."

"If we only do the right thing because it leads to a 'quiet life', then we might find ourselves on the wrong side of a right relationship with God. As God is the God of Justice, so God's People are called to a People of Justice."

My homily for the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C, as preached on Sunday 9 October 2022.

The readings proclaimed were 2 Kings 5:14-17; 2 Timothy 2:8-14; Luke 17:11-19. Today's psalm is Psalm 97: "The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power."

"There is nothing we can do in response to God's generous lavishing of gifts upon us except to give thanks and worship. God, being God, loves us so much that he lavishes gifts on us, both individually and corporately, because God loves us, not in any expectation that we must 'balance the books' by undertaking some particular action. In any case, nothing we could do would change God in any way - God is God, and is generous as God chooses to be."

My homily for the 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C, as preached on Sunday 2 October 2022.

The readings proclaimed were Habakkuk 1:2-3, 2:2-4; 2 Timothy 1:6-8, 13-14; Luke 17:5-9. Today's psalm is Psalm 94: "If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts."

"'Increase our faith', the disciples ask Jesus. Yet, Jesus reminds us that our faith is enough, enough to be fanned into a flame that will set the world on fire for the glory of God. Every gift we have been given, including the gift of faith itself, is given to us so that God might be glorified through us."

My homily for the 26th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C, as preached on Sunday 25 September 2022.

The readings proclaimed were Amos 6:1, 4-7; 1 Timothy 6:11-16; Luke 16:19-31. Today's psalm is Psalm 145: "Praise the Lord, my soul!"

"Unlike the rich man we hear about in our Gospel, we are called to use those things God has given us for the sake of those who are at the fringes of society. God's blessings to us are not solely for our comfort or our aggrandizement, but also for those we find at our gates who have a rightful call on our care, our compassion, and our hospitality."