Father, thank you again for your Homilies and your blog. And indeed, these are times of great uncertainty and confusion not only here in the US but around the world.
Regarding the topic of abortion, it is something very hurtful for everybody but I am sure, especially for those women who have made that sad choice in their life, or who couldn't find help to make a good choice.
I am sure around the world many women make the wrong choices due to horrible and sad circumstances in their lives, and this evil in their lives brings about other evils.
In many parts of the world life is threatened by hunger, disease, cataclysms, poverty, despair... We pay little attention to this. The media here in the US hardly show these hardships at all in the news, these stories hardly make any headlines here.
Perhaps this is a topic with images or narration that do not "sell" well, or perhaps we do not like to see these things when we are enjoying a nice supper and we wouldn't give the ratings they need.
Even here in the US, how many women loose hope every day and fall into despair due to drugs, addictions or other circumstances?
All we Catholics should work hard to restore hope in our lives and the lives of others..with the help of good Priests and our Lord.
These are just some humble thoughts from a returning Catholic.
Father, thank you for posting this! You are a modern day St. Augustine in the content and rhetorical skill of your sermons, which I hope one day will be collected and published. The Church is desperate for good preachers, Father, and you are simply the best, I hope your bishop recognizes this. Perhaps he could let you teach in the seminary?
Father, what sort of reaction did this homily get from your little flock?
Thank you for the compliments. I have never been compared to St. Augustine before. I can only hope to one day be as good a preacher and as holy a man as he was.
The reaction to this homily from my parishes has been overwhelmingly positive. It is my experience that most Catholics want substance. Most of them know that they do not know their faith as well as their parents and grandparents did and they want to be challenged to grow in their knowledge of Christ and His Church.
Surely there are always a few who are offended, but that's the case no matter where you are or what you say.
Pray for me, so that I can be more and more like Christ the High Priest.
I am part of Fr. C's flock, and my family and I thought this homily was great. My teen-age son leaned over and said, "Mom, this is your kind of homily" and he was right. We are blessed to have such an awesome priest in Fr. C. who is unafraid to speak the truth, and who does so in love.
Thank you, I thought this a good and direct sermon in general, but I believe you stated our voting responsibility very poorly (just after the 8 minute mark):
“But since we don’t live in a perfect world, and there’s no such thing as a politician that perfectly reflects the Church’s teaching on life, well then we must choose the lesser of two evils. We must support candidates who most closely reflect the truth about abortion.”
This comes across more like Republican Party propaganda than authentic Church teaching. We must never choose evil. (I understand that we may vote for a candidate in spite of his or her advocacy of evil policies as long as we continue to work against those policies, but that’s not what you said.) Since the 2010 elections are almost upon us, rather than carrying on here, I ask that you create a new post on the topic so we can carry on the discussion on the home page.
May the Lord preserve him, and give him life, and make him blessed upon the earth, and deliver him not up to the will of his enemies. [Ps 40:3]
Let us pray for Paul our Bishop.
Heavenly Father, in these trying times when the spirit of the age threatens Christian values, give our bishop holiness of life and wisdom to direct and guide our diocese so that we may grow in your love. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
I am a priest of the Diocese of Sioux Falls currently serving as Pastor of Ss. Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Dimock, SD and Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Ethan, SD all while working on a S.T.L. from the Liturgical Institute in Mundelein, IL.
6 comments:
Father, thank you again for your Homilies and your blog.
And indeed, these are times of great uncertainty and confusion not only here in the US but around the world.
Regarding the topic of abortion, it is something very hurtful for everybody but I am sure, especially for those women who have made that sad choice in their life, or who couldn't find help to make a good choice.
I am sure around the world many women make the wrong choices due to horrible and sad circumstances in their lives, and this evil in their lives brings about other evils.
In many parts of the world life is threatened by hunger, disease, cataclysms, poverty, despair... We pay little attention to this. The media here in the US hardly show these hardships at all in the news, these stories hardly make any headlines here.
Perhaps this is a topic with images or narration that do not "sell" well, or perhaps we do not like to see these things when we are enjoying a nice supper and we wouldn't give the ratings they need.
Even here in the US, how many women loose hope every day and fall into despair due to drugs, addictions or other circumstances?
All we Catholics should work hard to restore hope in our lives and the lives of others..with the help of good Priests and our Lord.
These are just some humble thoughts from a returning Catholic.
Father, thank you for posting this! You are a modern day St. Augustine in the content and rhetorical skill of your sermons, which I hope one day will be collected and published. The Church is desperate for good preachers, Father, and you are simply the best, I hope your bishop recognizes this. Perhaps he could let you teach in the seminary?
Father, what sort of reaction did this homily get from your little flock?
Vanessa,
Thank you for the compliments. I have never been compared to St. Augustine before. I can only hope to one day be as good a preacher and as holy a man as he was.
The reaction to this homily from my parishes has been overwhelmingly positive. It is my experience that most Catholics want substance. Most of them know that they do not know their faith as well as their parents and grandparents did and they want to be challenged to grow in their knowledge of Christ and His Church.
Surely there are always a few who are offended, but that's the case no matter where you are or what you say.
Pray for me, so that I can be more and more like Christ the High Priest.
Vanessa,
I am part of Fr. C's flock, and my family and I thought this homily was great. My teen-age son leaned over and said, "Mom, this is your kind of homily" and he was right. We are blessed to have such an awesome priest in Fr. C. who is unafraid to speak the truth, and who does so in love.
N
No offense, but I would recommend that priests do not have facebook pages. There's not much to be gained from it and it can lead to other problems.
Thank you, I thought this a good and direct sermon in general, but I believe you stated our voting responsibility very poorly (just after the 8 minute mark):
“But since we don’t live in a perfect world, and there’s no such thing as a politician that perfectly reflects the Church’s teaching on life, well then we must choose the lesser of two evils. We must support candidates who most closely reflect the truth about abortion.”
This comes across more like Republican Party propaganda than authentic Church teaching. We must never choose evil. (I understand that we may vote for a candidate in spite of his or her advocacy of evil policies as long as we continue to work against those policies, but that’s not what you said.) Since the 2010 elections are almost upon us, rather than carrying on here, I ask that you create a new post on the topic so we can carry on the discussion on the home page.
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