Homilies and Other Writings

  We celebrate Christ the King. He is King. But what does it mean to be a king? It’s not simply to have power, or authority over other people. We know many people who have power, and we would never say that Jesus is like all of them. Jesus is a good king, a great king. What does it mean to be a good king? A good king is a good shepherd. He takes care of the sheep, not of himself. A good king is a good father, who holds you accountable, who asks you for responsibility. A good father does not let you do whatever you want, but only whatever is good for you. Because a good father cares about you, and knows what is good for you. Children think they know what is good for them, but parents know when their children are wrong and correct them. A good father rebukes his children, a good king punishes the wicked. The only way a family keeps in order is by establishing rules. We cannot all use the car at the same time, so we need to organize ourselves. The only way the civil community ...

(Homily for November 5 th , 2023) Let me make a commentary on the first reading (Malachi 1:14b-2:2b, 8-10). I hope these reflections help us to better understand our Church and our different roles in it. “And now, O priests, this commandment is for you.” The fact that he is a priest does not mean that he does not have a boss. The priest has authority but his authority is not absolute. He is a father, but not the Father. The priest is not “another” father of God’s people: the only Father of God’s people is God himself. Instead, the priest is father under the Father, the priest is father in the Father. “And now, O priests, this commandment is for you.” What is this commandment? It is “to give glory to my name, says the LORD of hosts.” In the Gospel, the pharisees and the scribes used their God-given authority for their own benefit, to give glory to their own name. They loved to be greeted by people on the streets and to be called “Rabbi” by the people. In a similar way, the pri...