listen!
2nd Sunday of Lent (A); March 1, 2026 Gen 12:1-4a. Ps 33. 2 Tim 1:8b-10. Mt 17:1-9 Deacon Jim McFadden Our magnificent first reading is a short passage from the beginning of the 12th chapter of the book of…
Category: Homilies
-
We Need Sound and Wise Leaders
8th Sunday in O.T. (C); 02-27-2022 Sir 27:4-7. Ps 92. 1 Cor 15:54-58. Lk 6:39-45 Deacon Jim McFadden There are different levels of spiritual development. As the People of God, we hope that we are moving in the same direction as we strive to realize our destiny to be at-one with the Blessed Trinity…
-
We’re Called to be Happy, to be Blessed
6th Sunday in O.T. (C); 02-13-2022 Jer 17:5-8. Ps 1. 1 Cor 15:12,16-20. Lk 6:17,20-26 Deacon Jim McFadden What does it mean to be happy? What does it mean to be blessed. How can they be found? These are ground-floor, basic the ‘rubber hitting the road’ questions. If we get them wrong, then we’ve…
-
If You Want to be Happy, be Merciful!
7th Sunday in O.T. (C); 02-20-2022 1 Sm 26:2,7-23. Ps 103 1 Cor 15:45-49. Lk 6:27-38 Deacon Jim McFadden The Sermon of the Mount, which may be construed as Jesus’ State of the Kingdom address, is in two parts: (1) the Beatitudes, which describes what it’s like to live in the Kingdom of God…
-
Jesus Jumps into our Boat
5th Sunday in O.T. (C); 02-06-2022 Is 6:18. Ps 138. 1 Cor 15:1-11. Lk 5:1-11 Deacon Jim McFadden One of my spiritual heroes is the Protestant theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer who once wrote that Christianity without discipleship is cheap grace. He walked the talk as he sacrificed his life in his resistance to the Nazi…
-
God Wants to Save Everyone
4th Sunday in O.T. (C); 01-30-2022 Jer 1:4-5, 17-19. Ps 71. 1 Cor 12:32-13:13. Lk 4:21-30 Deacon Jim McFadden Last Sunday’s liturgy had us look at the episode of Synagogue of Nazareth where Jesus reads a passage from the prophet Isaiah that reveals the true interpretation of who He is and in the end…
-
Baptism, Temptations, Homecoming
3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time (C); 01-23-2022 Neh 8:2-4a. Ps 19. 1 Cor 12:12-30. Lk 1-4; 4:14-21 Deacon Jim McFadden An operating principle that governed Jesus’ life is that he saw in others what he saw in himself. In Buddhist literature there is a story where a soldier comes up to a Buddhist monk…
-
God Wants to Marry His People
The Wedding Feast of Cana 2nd Sunday of Ordinary Time (C); 01-16-2022 Is 62:1-5. Ps 96. 1 Cor 12:4-11. Jn 2:1-11 Deacon Jim McFadden St. Paul has compared the relationship between Jesus and his Church as that of a bridegroom and his bride (cf. Ephesians 5:22-23). What that means is that God loves us…
-
Remember the Date of your Baptism!
The Baptism of the Lord (C); 01-09-2022 Is 40:1-11. Ps 29. Ti 2:11-14; 3:4-7. Lk 3:15-22 Deacon Jim McFadden Let’s begin the celebration of the Baptism of the Lord with a short quiz: first, an easy one: what’s your birthday? I presume that nearly all of you got that one right! Second, a more…
-
Struggle to See the Light
The Epiphany of the Lord (C); 01-02-2022 Is 60:1-6. Ps 72. Eph 3:2-3. Mt 2:1-12 Deacon Jim McFadden Today we celebrate the Epiphany, the arrival of the Magi, traditionally described as a trio based on the three gifts they brought as they came to the humble cave of Bethlehem. The Church tells the story…
-
A God Who Gathers
Christmas (C); 12-25-2021 Is 9:1-6. Ps 96. Ti 2:11-14. Lk 2:1-14 Deacon Jim McFadden Christmas celebrates God’s overwhelming desire to be united with us. Sometimes we wonder, why does he bother? He’s perfect—he doesn’t need anything since he is the great I AM. The Psalmist wondered the same thing, when he intoned, “What are…
homilies
Don’t Talk to the Divider!
1st Sunday of Lent (A); February 22, 2026 Gn 2:7-9, 3:1-7. Ps 51. Rom 5:12-19. Mt 4:1-11 Deacon Jim McFadden Each year, the Gospel of the 1st Sunday of Lent presents us with the narrative of Jesus in the…
Ash Wednesday: A Time for pruning
Jl 2:12-18. Ps 51. 2 Cor 5:20-6:2. Mt 6:1-6, 16-18 Deacon Jim McFadden People of God, we come once again, to that great season of Lent, which is a great opportunity to prune away falseness, superficiality, and indifference to…
WWW.DEACONJIM.BLOG 