Author: frbillnicholas

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WAR IN THE MIDDLE EAST – The Conflict Between Israel & Hamas

With the recent outbreak of war between Israel and Palestine, Fr. Bill offers a Biblical and Historical context in which the current event is being played out.

How can we understand the war in light of the Biblical as well as “secular” History of that region, in light of Jesus’ farewell promise of Peace, well as in light of the Promise God made that All Nations would find Blessing in the descendants of Abraham who make up the kingdom, and subsequent Nation of Israel?

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A CHRISTIAN ATTITUDE ADJUSTMENT

PARABLE OF THE 2 SONS & THE 4 CHILDREN

Homily – 26th Sunday of the Year – A
Matthew 21:28-32

What is the disposition we have regarding living and worshipping as Christians? Fr. Bill preaches on Christ’s Parable of the Two Sons and the Jewish Passover Parable of the Four Children and speaks of how Christians in general and Catholics in Particular can examine and adjust the dispositions from which we all approach our calling to live and worship as followers of Christ.

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DARTH VADER is CATHOLIC!!

Famous Converts to Catholicism
Homily – 25th Sunday of the Year
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Matthew 20:1-16a
The Workers in the Vineyard

The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard tells how different “workers” joined up at different times of the “day”. Fr. Bill preaches how some are born Catholic, while many become Catholic as Converts at different times of their lives, from childhood to the death bed. Who are some of the more famous people who we may or may not know, have converted to Catholicism. Some of them might surprise you.

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SLAVERY, CHRISTIANITY & THE UNITED STATES

Anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation

September 22 is the anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation, declared by Abraham Lincoln in 1862.

Fr. Bill discusses the history of Slavery, how the Bible addresses the issue, its history in Christian Europe and in the Founding of the United States. He threads the needle leading up to the Civil War and Lincoln’s Proclamation, and how the Constitution of the United States did not endorse Slavery, but brought forth everything from the History of Western Europe up to that point to direct the new Nation towards eventual Emancipation.

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THE MANDATE TO FORGIVE

It’s Not an Off Switch
(Parable of the Unforgiving Servant)

Homily
24th Sunday of the Year – A
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Matthew 18:21-35

The Parable of the Unforgiving Servant illustrates Jesus’ command to forgive “seventy-seven ” times. Fr. Bill preaches on the difficulty of this unclassified Mandate from Jesus, what it means, and how we go about the process of Forgiveness.

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9/11, FAITH & PATRIOTISM

From Darkness to Light in Our National Remembrance

For 22 Years we have been remembering the Terrorist Attack on the anniversary of 9/11. But it is not simply one day we should be remembering. Three days later, on September 14, President Bush called for a National Day of Mourning and Prayer in the aftermath of the attack.

Listen as Fr. Bill talks about the importance of that Day of Prayer, September 14; what is celebrated in the Catholic Church, what should be remembered as a Nation, and how it all ties into what we remember in the Anniversary and Aftermath of the 9/11 Attack, and what we celebrate in our Identity and Resolve as both Christians and Americans.

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FRATERNAL CORRECTION – Are We Called to “Judge”

Homily
23rd Sunday of the Year – A
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Ezekiel 33:7-9
Matthew 18:15-20

No one wants to be labeled as “Judgmental”. However, Jesus may want his followers to be just that. Fr. Bill preaches about what Jesus presents in the Doctrine of Fraternal Correction, and what he expects of his Disciples in their task of “Admonishing the Sinner” (Spiritual Work of Mercy #3)

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WHAT WOULD JESUS SAY? – How to Think as God Does

Homily
22nd Sunday of the Year – A
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Jeremiah 20:7-9
Romans 12:1-2
Matthew 16:21-27

Jesus admonishes St. Peter saying, “you are not thinking as God does, but as human beings do”. Fr. Bill preaches on ways we fall into thinking about our faith in God by Human Standards and ways in which we can think more like God, using God’s standards.

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“GO FORTH AND SAY NOTHING TO ANYONE!”

Why Did Jesus Tell His Disciples to Remain Silent?
Homily – 21st Sunday of the Year – A
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Matthew 16:13-20

On numerous occasions Jesus tells the recipients of his miracles to say nothing to anyone. Fr. Bill discusses possible reasons why in light of Jesus’ subsequent question, “Who do people say that I am?”