Tag: Holy Spirit

Francis

A homily for the Twenty-Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time, October 4, 2026 (but mostly to wrap up the Season of Creation)

Isaiah 5:1-7, Philippians 4:6-9, Matthew 21:33-43

Important information to start: The kittens in the photo are not our cats. I don’t have a group shot of our three, with their vastly divergent personalities. We’ll discuss them shortly.

Also important: Today’s passages from Scripture remind us that inviting our sisters and brothers to a closer relationship with our Creator God is a career, not a job; a marathon, not a sprint. And every single one of us is called to that vocation, using all of our unique God-given skills and talents and creativity to succeed.

Now, here’s the main Big Deal, since we’re speaking of our Creator God:

Continue reading Francis

Newtonian

A homily for the Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time, September 27, 2026

Ezekiel 18:25-28, Philippians 2:1-11, Matthew 21:28-32

Sir Isaac Newton’s Third Law of Motion states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.

Or, in the case of youngsters and other immature people, every action that somebody considers unfair is met with a double dose of pouting and stamping feet.

But what’s most unfair is how some of us view fairness.

Continue reading Newtonian

Rage

A homily for the Twenty-Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time, September 13, 2026

Sirach 27:30—28:7, Romans 14:7-9, Matthew 18:21-35

Please also see my reflections on 25 years after 9/11/2001

Today’s Scripture passages prove there are no coincidences with God. If ever the three-year cycle of readings just happened to mesh perfectly with world or national events, this is it.

Today, we hear of unity as children of God, and of the power of and necessity for forgiveness.

Forgiveness…

Continue reading Rage

Families we choose

No homily for the Twenty-First Sunday in Ordinary Time, August 23, 2026

Isaiah 22:19-23, Romans 11:33-36, Matthew 16:13-20

When I was in formation to become a deacon, our mentors repeated early and often that, after God, family comes first. The families we’re born into, and the families we assemble as we journey through this life and the next.

This weekend, my family has come first.

Today’s passages from Scripture, fortunately, are profound, with self-evident messages.

I’ll be back next week (is that a promise or a threat?).

Gray matter

A homily for the Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, July 26, 2026

1 Kings 3:5, 7-12, Romans 8:28-30, Matthew 13:44-52

If we count all the noses in the world, we discover that there are 8.3 billion-with-a-B people on Earth. Here in the USA, we make up almost 350 million members of our human family. We’re quite a crowd.

Every one of the 8.3 billion of us — North and South Americans, Africans, Europeans, Asians, Australians and even Antarcticans — has a brain. It’s been that way for tens of thousands of years, maybe even millions.

That’s quite a gift. Thank you, God!

Continue reading Gray matter

Stew

A homily for the Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, July 19, 2026

Wisdom 12:13, 16-19, Romans 8:26-27, Matthew 13:24-43

Some people can be fussy about what they eat and how. Some picky eaters insist that certain foods cannot touch other items on their plates. No gravy near their peas and carrots, no syrup near their eggs. And no pickles, ever.

Semi-fussy folks may eat one item at a time, clearing away the broccoli before the beef, even when they’ve been wokked together.

And there’s a good argument to be made for this: Individual flavors and textures deserve to be savored, remembered for their uniqueness.

But we also know that great chefs devote immense and intense time and skill to craft recipes that pair complementary or contrasting ingredients to create something new, fascinating and even more memorable than Harvard beets. A concoction to be experienced in its entirety, a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts.

God is the greatest chef of all.

Continue reading Stew

To have and to hold

A homily for The Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi), June 7, 2026

Deuteronomy 8:2-3, 14b-16a, 1 Corinthians 10:16-17, John 6:51-58

We are tactile people. When we say, “I’ll believe it when I see it,” whatever “it” turns out to be, what we really mean is we’ll use all of our available senses to determine if something is real.

All five senses, if we’re so blessed, and a little bit of imagination, too.

That’s why, in the early days of Amazon.com and other online shops, many of us would visit traditional brick-and-mortar stores first to check out this item or that. To hold it, shake it, listen to it, smell it, maybe try it on for size. And then we’d whip out our smartphones or head home to our computers and order the item for delivery tomorrow for 30 percent less than the other guys were charging.

Because we saw it and felt it, we believed.

Which is why the Eucharist is such an extraordinary gift.

Continue reading To have and to hold

Unto Caesar

A rerun of some homilies for The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, May 31, 2026

Today’s readings: Exodus 34:4b-6, 8-9, 2 Corinthians 13:11-13, John 3:16-18

This weekend, I’m working at the polls for early voting in New Jersey’s 2026 Primary Election. On Friday, I saw a clergyman in Roman collar and cross wearing a John 3:16 cap. It was dually appropriate for casting a ballot and for this weekend’s “brand-name” Gospel.

I’m linking to three homilies from my archive. I’ll post something fresh next weekend.

Peace and blessings!

All in all: https://bill.zapcic.com/all-in-all 

Trio: https://bill.zapcic.com/trio

Proud to profess it: https://bill.zapcic.com/proud-to-profess-it

 

A better idea

A homily for Pentecost Sunday, May 24, 2026

Readings for the Mass During the Day

Acts 2:1-11, 1 Corinthians 12:3b-7, 12-13, John 20:19-23

Just for a moment, let’s imagine that today is the first Pentecost, and we are Christ’s disciples, all gathered together.

Which we are.

The Holy Spirit descends on us, and gives us … what? Tongues as of fire floating above our heads? Every one of us who ever learned “stop, drop and roll” would probably do our best to extinguish them before they set our hair on fire.

No, in 2026, we’d have little light bulbs over each of us, those little symbols of — DING! — I’ve just had a brilliant idea.

We’ve just been inspired.

Continue reading A better idea

Heel and heal

A brief homily for the Sixth Sunday of Easter, May 10, 2026

Acts 8:5-8, 14-17, 1 Peter 3:15-18, John 14:15-21

Important stuff first:

  • Happy Mother’s Day to all mothers, grandmothers, godmothers, and everyone who cares for people the way a mother does. I send you joy and deepest thanks, especially as I miss my long-deceased mom. 
  • Congratulations to the youngsters in our parish and all over the world who received their First Holy Communion this weekend, and throughout the Easter season. May you always feel the love of God at the center of your lives.

• • •

The other day, I heard a promo for an NPR program whose host intended to detail how having strict limits or rules or other constraints can actually enhance creativity.

She pointed to the story about how Dr. Seuss bet publisher Bennett Cerf $50 that he could write a book using a vocabulary of only 50 words. And we all came to like Sam I Am, even if we may disagree about “Green Eggs and Ham.” The meal, not the book.

Continue reading Heel and heal