Lifeissues is mainly concerned with publishing thoughtful articles directly related to issues raised in Evangelium Vitae. However, from the very beginning, we have also published a few related homilies, notably by Fr. Al Cariño, O.M.I., Fr. Tony Pueyo, and others.
Please use the pulldowns below to select a homily by Liturgical Calendar date.
I once observed a wood carver. He carved designs into chairs, tables, and cabinets. He was fully concentrated as he worked. He worked on each piece of furniture as if it was the only furniture he would carve. Each of his work was a piece of art and appreciated by the buyers. Not only was he trying to please the buyers. He wanted to please himself . He was exercising stewardship over his talent.
We are daily confronted with choices. We can choose the light or the darkness. We can choose noble thoughts and follow them or we can allow our dark impulses to govern us. By some quirk of human nature, our own curiosity leads us to the dark. People who have experimented venturing into the dark side found it an uphill journey to go back to the light. Ask the young men and women who are trying to get out of the grips of drug addiction. Ask the alcoholic who is trying to recover from his habit. Ask the curious seeker who tried witchcraft.
This world is not ours; it does not belong to any one nation, nor is it the common property of all nations—the world does not belong to the United Nations. It has been entrusted to Christ. He said it. And our work, our fundamental obligation, is to serve Christ's interests.
God entered into a covenant of Life with his people from of old, and the prophets spoke untiringly of the demands of that covenant, both in regard to what the people owed God and what they owe one another.
It's natural for Christians to refer to the congregations they belong to as "my church," but thinking that we really "own" the church can be a problem. In our text from Matthew, Jesus tells a parable directed at the religious authorities of his time in Jerusalem who acted as though they owned the temple and the community associated with it. Even though he was rejected by those authorities, Jesus has become the foundation of the church that is called to proclaim him.
Jesus presents the church as a vineyard, one in which we can engage in fights or in fruitful labor. When harvest time comes, he wants us to be able to give good produce to God.