The Sunday within the Octave of Christmas

 

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The Feast of the Nativity of Our Lord

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The Manger Scene in Rochester, NY

 

It has been 800 years since Our Holy Father St. Francis summoned the people of Greccio, Italy, to a manger he had arranged with straw and a breathing ox and donkey.

In a letter to his friend, John of Velita, St. Francis wrote:

"I want to do something that will recall the memory of that Child Who was born in Bethlehem; to see with bodily eyes the inconveniences of His infancy; how He lay in a manger; and how the animals stood by."

Brother Thomas of Celano - the First Biographer of St. Francis of Assisi wrote:

"Jesus embraced both “the humility of the Incarnation and the charity of the Passion” because he came to love us by becoming one of us. Love was the reason for the Incarnation. And love is what Francis wanted to celebrate at Greccio by telling the people of the village and the surrounding countryside that he was going to celebrate Christmas by reenacting the first Christmas at midnight Mass at the friary."

May God Bless you all this Christmas Season.

The Sermon for the Vigil of the Nativity

 

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A Sermon of Bishop Louis Vezelis, OFM

 

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The Third Sunday of Advent - Gaudete Sunday

 

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The Second Sunday of Advent

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A Sermon on Bishop Ngo Dinh Thuc

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The Second Sermon for the Feast of the Immaculate Conception

 

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The Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary

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The First Sunday of Advent

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The Last Sunday after Pentecost

 

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The Feast of St. Catherine of Alexandria

 

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The Feast of St. Elizabeth of Hungary

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The Twenty-Fourth Sunday after Pentecost

 

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The Twenty-Third Sunday after Pentecost

 

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Link to Bishop Madrigal's Website: www.rexsumego.com

The Feast of the Dedication of the Consecrated Churches

 

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The Twentieth Sunday After Pentecost

 

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The Nineteenth Sunday After Pentecost

 

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The Eighteenth Sunday After Pentecost

 

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The Seventeenth Sunday After Pentecost

 

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The Feast of the Stigmata of Saint Francis

 

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The Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost

 

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The Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost

 

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The Feast of the Seven Joys of the Blessed Virgin Mary

 

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The Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost

 

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The Eleventh Sunday After Pentecost

 

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The Transfiguration of Our Lord

 

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The Ninth Sunday after Pentecost

 

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The Eighth Sunday after Pentecost

 

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The Seventh Sunday after Pentecost

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The Sixth Sunday after Pentecost

 

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The Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary

 

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The Fourth Sunday after Pentecost

 

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The Third Sunday after Pentecost

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The Second Sunday after Pentecost

 

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Trinity Sunday

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Pentecost Sunday

Click here for the recording of the Audio Sermon.

Sunday after the Ascension

 Audio sermon recording ( We should strive to develop all our faculties in the love of God - memory, intellect, and will.)

Fifth Sunday of Easter

 Audio recording. (Blessed Mother's Day. Let us all seek the needs of our souls before the needs of our bodies.)

Fourth Sunday after Easter

 Audio sermon recording (Seek first the Kingdom of Heaven)

Third Sunday after Easter

 Audio sermon recording (God is always with us and watching over us even when we can't see Him.)

Second Sunday after Easter

 Audio sermon recording. (Do we hear Jesus? Do we know Him and love Him?)

Low Sunday

 Audio sermon recording (Faith is believing without seeing.)

The Written Sermon for Easter Sunday - 2023

 Dear Friends in Christ,

Jesus greets us today with the words: “Peace be to you.”

This peace was purchased at a great price – the Sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross – the Sacrifice of His human life – of every drop of His Precious Blood. Jesus will not have us forget the cost of our salvation because He keeps in His risen Body every scar made upon His Body. These scars are proof to the disciples that He has truly risen. He is risen and is with us in the same Body He suffered and died in.

The scars on His Sacred Body are no longer ugly or shameful – they are signs of victory and glory. The scars are the confirmation of the peace that Jesus brings to us.

Throughout the Season of Lent, we focused with sorrow and sadness on the sufferings of Jesus. We reflected upon the evilness of our sins that required this Sacrifice of the Son of God. Our thoughts could not help but see in this the love of God for us. There is no greater love. Today, our hearts and minds are filled with joy.

Death was not the end of Jesus. Nor will death be the end of those who love and follow Him. Our sins can be forgiven – our lives can begin anew. Joy fills our hearts and minds with new energy and vigor.

This peace and joy within us does not erase the scars that the wounds of sin have made on our souls. The remembrance of our past spiritual death is kept before us so that we can genuinely appreciate the graces that God has given us. We can see the transformation that grace has made. Far from these scars being to our shame, they become all the more reason to rejoice. The scars become like badges of honor. We were dead, but now we live.

Jesus is the Sacrificial Lamb, and He always bears the scars of His Sacrifice. Our sins will be before us in eternity. The damned souls will be constantly shamed and hurt by the visible scars reminding them of their evil life. The saints in Heaven will always be comforted by these scars that remind them of the graces of God that brought them back from the dead.

As we rejoice that Jesus has risen, let us not forget the cost of this joy. This season of the Resurrection will quickly pass, as all seasons do. The joy in our hearts should not pass. We should grow in the peace, love, and happiness Jesus has purchased for us. For this to grow within us, we must continually reflect upon Jesus’ sacrifice on the Cross. The Resurrection was only possible because of the Death. His Death was only possible because of the Suffering and Sacrifice. The scars on the glorious Body of Jesus are a continual reminder of this.

Jesus is in Heaven, filled with glory, peace, and happiness. Still, Jesus is also on our Altar in humility, meekness, and mildness, offering Himself continually to God the Father in the Unbloody Sacrifice of the Mass.

We have joy and peace in our hearts today, but we must also be sober and watchful as we imitate Jesus’ humility, meekness, and mildness. We must join our peace and happiness with our sacrifices and self-denial. We need not be overcome with grief as we see our spiritual wounds and scars, nor should we be overwhelmed with pleasure as we behold Jesus risen from the dead and sitting on His Throne in Heaven. Jesus will heal our wounds if we let Him. This means that we must recognize them as wounds. Then, we must want to be free of them. Next, we must agree to do what is prescribed by Jesus to have them healed (repent, confess, and do penance for our sins). Lastly, we should continually thank Jesus for the precious gift He has given us. In this manner, we are not taken to either extreme of the emotional spectrum.

Jesus presents Himself to us in the Holy Eucharist today. He is living. We have cause to rejoice, but we must also be modest and moderate in our joy. He holds out His hand for us to take. There is joy in taking His Hand and following Him, but at the same time we take His Hand, we can feel the scar from the nail that went through His Hand. We know that our own personal sins did this to Him. Joy and love fill our hearts, but so do remorse and sadness.

He has passed from death to Life, and we must pass through death to find our life in Him. He is showing us the way. During Lent, we were encouraged to see or find peace and happiness in our penances and sacrifice, so today, we are encouraged to find soberness, meekness, and mildness in our rejoicing.

May the Immaculate Heart of Mary inspire, guide, and protect us!

Easter Sunday

 Audio sermon morning. (Our spiritual reset.)

Easter Sunday

 Audio sermon recording - midnight. (Live a new life in Jesus.)

Holy Thursday

 Audio sermon recording. (Parting is such sweet sorrow.)

Palm Sunday

 Audio sermon recording (Do we choose Jesus or Caesar as our King?)

Fourth Sunday in Lent

 Audio sermon recording (God has a plan and all things work for our salvation if we let them.)

Third Sunday in Lent

 Audio recording (The devils are relentless experts in attacking us. Our Guardian Angels are there to fight them with us. Together, we can resist all the devils of Hell.)

Second Sunday in Lent

 Audio sermon recording (True happiness is inseparable from sacrifice and suffering.)

First Sunday in Lent

 Audio sermon recording (Follow Jesus in penance and sacrifice.)

Quinquagesima Sunday

 Audio sermon recording. (Lent is beginning. May we follow Jesus as He enters Jerusalem to offer Himself in Sacrifice. We can unite our offerings with His so that they will be acceptable to God.)

Sexagesima Sunday

 Audio sermon recording. (Love the sinner and pray for him, but don't imitate or follow him. Imitate and follow Jesus.)

Septuagesima Sunday

 Audio sermon recording (It is the eleventh hour. Let us love and serve God now like we have never loved or served Him before.)

Fourth Sunday after Epiphany

 Audio sermon recording. (Let us wake Jesus in our souls and put aside all worry and fear.)

Third Sunday after the Epiphany

 Audio sermon recording (We are all different. We need not be scandalized by the various ways that God treats us or by the graces He chooses to give or not give us.)

Second Sunday after the Epiphany

 Audio sermom recording (Marriage is a sacrament. It is not a simple contract between people, but involves vows to God. It encompasses many sacrifices that bring true joy.)

Holy Family

 Audio sermon recording (May we ponder the The Word as Mary did. Then He will grow within us.)

Circumcision

 Audio sermon recording (We should strive to unite our sacrifices with Jesus'. Love one another as Jesus loves us.)