Tagged: Abraham

Wedding Cake

The Imperfect Rehearsal Dinner – Homily for the 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Today’s readings offer us a contrast between two people visited by the Lord. The Lord comes to their homes, and we see two different reactions; I’m not speaking here of Martha and Mary, but of Martha and Abraham. Now, there are definitely differences between the way Martha responds to her encounter with Jesus, and the way Mary responds. But if we focus only on Martha and Mary, we may get the mistaken idea that Mary’s contemplation is superior to Martha’s service. But by comparing and contrasting Martha and...

Henry V Kenneth Branagh

Henry V and the Transfiguration: Homily for the 2nd Sunday of Lent

One of the greatest speeches in all of literature is the St. Crispin’s Day Speech by William Shakespeare from his play, Henry V. It’s October 25, in the year 1415, and King Henry of England and his men are about to fight the French in what will come to be known as the Battle of Agincourt. Henry’s men are exhausted and sick. They’ve been fighting for months, and they’ve just finished a long and grueling siege of Harfleur castle. As they move across the French countryside trying to...

Simeon and Anna

Good News for Old and Young Alike – Homily for the Feast of the Holy Family

On this first Sunday after Christmas, the Liturgy invites us to celebrate the Feast of the Holy Family. And today the gospel presents the Holy Family’s encounter with two elderly people of faith, Simeon and Anna. In the first and second readings, too, we hear about two more elderly people of faith, Abraham and Sarah. Today there is Good News for both the old and the young. Mary and Joseph bring Jesus to Jerusalem to be presented to the Lord, and one at a time, Simeon and Anna...