Sermon 16 - Unpaid Bill

Up, not out

A homily for the 30^th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Sir 35:12-14, 16-18, 2 Tm 4:6-8, 16-18, Lk 18:9-14

When we hear about a natural disaster or a manmade tragedy (and, yes, dammit, they’re made mostly by men), how do we react? How do we act?

Probably the first thing we do is consider how much loose change we have, or whether we’re willing to skip a pumpkin spice latte this week, so we can send a few bucks to whatever charitable organization is taking the lead on relief efforts.

And with the ability to donate online, we can make a tiny bit of difference without getting off the couch. Website or app, click here, card information already stored, type in the CVV afresh, submit.

And for less than a dollar a day…

Yeah, we all know those commercials, don’t we?

Continue reading Up, not out

It keeps you running

A homily for the 29^th Sunday in Ordinary Time, October 16, 2022

Ex 17:8-13, 2 Tm 3:14-4:2, Lk 18:1-8

In the 2007 movie “Run Fatboy Run,” a ne’er-do-well man who’s made an infamous name for himself by running away from commitments accepts a challenge — a macho dare, really — to run in a marathon.

The character played by British comic actor Simon Pegg is an out-of-shape cigarette smoker whose feeble attempts at training leave him totally unprepared to finish the race, let alone compete in the first place.

But there he is at the starting gate, arriving in barely the nick of time, running because of jealousy and insecurity.

Not exactly the best motivation to stride 26.2 miles.

Continue reading It keeps you running

I’ll be back

For those kind souls who have asked: My online homilies will return for the 29^th Sunday in Ordinary Time, October 16, 2022.

Thank you for your continued reading, pondering, commenting and sharing.

I needed a little pause, that’s all.

You’ll know them

Some brief thoughts in lieu of a homily* for the 26^th Sunday in Ordinary Time, September 25, 2022

Am 6:1a, 4-7, 1 Tm 6:11-16, Lk 16:19-31

Everything we have is a gift, even if we are convinced otherwise, even if we are convinced that we did it all ourselves.

Even if we supposedly earned or won everything we have on this Earth, we earned it or won it with innate skills or talents or intellect or sheer dumb luck that themselves were gifts.

Continue reading You’ll know them

Trustworthy, loyal, helpful…

A homily for the 25^th Sunday in Ordinary Time, September 18, 2022

Am 8:4-7, 1 Tm 2:1-8, Lk 16:10-13

Trust.

It’s at the heart of every relationship: personal, business or governmental. It underpins every transaction.

It’s the first byword of the Boy Scout Law: A Scout is trustworthy.

A trust — a structure that manages finances for someone or some group — ensures stability and security in perpetuity.

And speaking of finances, even our money says simply, “In God We Trust.”

Trust is an absolute.

Continue reading Trustworthy, loyal, helpful…

Return trip

A homily for the 24^th Sunday in Ordinary Time, September 11, 2022

Ex 32:7-11, 13-14, 1 Tm 1:12-17, Lk 15:1-32

A news article about the cleanup of a toxic-waste dump quoted an environmental scientist about the contaminated soil.

It’s like a kitchen sponge, he said. You can rinse a sponge and squeeze it again and again, but you never get all the soap or dirt out of it, no matter how many times you try, no matter how hard you try.

You can get really close, but that’s it.

Which is exactly what happens when we seek forgiveness.

Continue reading Return trip

Yard sale

A homily for the 23^rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, September 4, 2022

Wis 9:13-18b, Phmn 9-10, 12-17, Lk 14:25-33

The late great George Carlin had a bit in which he lampooned Americans’ obsessive materialism. Everything, he would say, was about stuff.

We go to work to make money to buy stuff. We buy houses to keep our stuff in. When we’ve bought more stuff than our houses can hold, we buy bigger houses.

And then someone invented storage units.

Meanwhile, the bumper sticker reminds us: Live Simply So That Others May Simply Live.

Continue reading Yard sale

Aw, shucks

A homily for the 22^nd Sunday in Ordinary Time, August 28, 2022

Sir 3:17-18, 20, 28-29, Heb 12:18-19, 22-24a, Lk 14:1, 7-14

Imagine for a second that you’re a top-flight horseback rider and you’ve just won a coveted blue ribbon.

Or maybe you’re a quilter, and you’ve won a blue ribbon.

Or a chef, and you’ve achieved Cordon Bleu.

The applause is deafening. Your family and friends and total strangers are cheering for you, clapping for you, patting you on the back, maybe asking for your autograph.

Then it’s time to say a few words.

Continue reading Aw, shucks

Best unkept secret

A homily for the 21^st Sunday in Ordinary Time, August 21, 2022

Is 66:18-21, Heb 12:5-7, 11-13, Lk 13:22-30

When we come across something fascinating or exciting or uplifting, do we keep it to ourselves?

Or do we share it with our families and friends — the old “you tell two friends, and they’ll tell two friends, and so on…” from the shampoo commercial? Do we start the fire of exponential growth?

What if something we find fascinating or exciting or uplifting flips the status quo on its head? Does that change what we decide to do?

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Make the leap

A homily for the 19^th Sunday of Ordinary Time, August 7, 2022

Wis 18:6-9, Heb 11:1-2, 8-19, Lk 12:32-48

Flo wants us to bundle our homeowners’ insurance with our other policies.

The Property Brothers say our burglar alarm system should be fully integrated with our electronic house-management system.

And the Geico Gecko … well, he/it does have that cute British-ish accent.

We spend a lot of money protecting the things we spent a lot of money on.

Continue reading Make the leap