2022 Lent Mission - First Conference: The one thing necessary is to save your soul. To do this you need supernatural grace, faith, hope and charity. Yet few are saved. Many men only have natural hope and succumb to despair and presumption. As faithful Christians, foster a confident and true hope in God’s unfailing promises.
2022 Lent Mission - First Sermon: The title of our Lenten Mission are words prayed at the foot of the altar before Holy Mass begins. They summarize the struggle that we face every day of our life. In these sermons, we shall consider the connection between Hope and the Mass. Three great objects of our hope, all of which are very present at Mass, are: [1] The Cross, [2] The Precious Blood, and [3] The Immaculate Heart of Mary.
Catholic manhood is under attack. Modern men suffer from effeminacy of the body, mind, and will. Man is attached to pleasure and fears that which is difficult. He suffers an inability to seek the truth, preferring emotion over truth. He rationalizes and justifies everything to get what he wants. Christ's rebuke of the Apostles during the storm illustrates three points integral to a manhood: [1] Christ wanted them to face something difficult and overcome fear. [2] Christ was intentionally asleep; wanting them to wake Him. [3] Christ called the Apostles to get into the boat, to cast out into the deep. [...]
The vast majority of men live as if there is neither hell nor Heaven; as if God will not judge us. Perhaps we believe these truths, but don't reflect upon them. Man takes all possible care for worldly affairs, but attends not to the salvation of his soul. Impress upon yourself three great truths. [1] Few shall be saved. [2] The salvation of your soul is the most important of all affairs. [3] You have to work hard to save your soul. Judge the value of all things from the vantage point of your soul's eternity. Do not follow the great [...]
Time belongs to God. It is not ours to do with as we wish. Time is meant to be used in the service of God and to save our immortal soul. We need much conversion with regards to how we think about time. This is why the Church gives us the Liturgical Year. Every day is focussed upon one of its three great cycles. Do you best to live according to the liturgical year. The better you do this, the more you draw upon the graces you need for salvation. As brief examples, consider how you view and live Septuagesima and [...]
The latter six Mysteries from the Infancy and Childhood of Christ clearly manifest and admirably summarize the Holy Family. The Mystery of Christ can't be fully understood apart from the Holy Family; for Christ does not just bring us salvation, but He does so with and through the Holy Family. Our response to these Mysteries must not just be to believe, love and obey, but also to reflect upon them -- and to do so with faith! Let us consider the Flight into Egypt. This Mystery provides many important lessons for how we are to save our souls, especially in these [...]
Who could be so barbarous as to destroy his own past? I am angry at those who seek to destroy the Traditional Mass. They have not been satisfied by an iconoclasm in which ugliness reigns. Now they insist that their formless liturgy is the unique and only liturgical expression of the Latin Rite. I say a liturgical revolution is unacceptable. Yet a righteous anger is not easily controlled. We must have charity. We can be thankful for the clarity this has yielded: they are two different Rites which can't coexist for long. Heed the example of St. Francis de Sales, who [...]
The Catholic family is in decay. Two things families are not accomplishing on a wide scale are [1] establishing a firm Catholic identity and [2] fighting against the spirit of the world. Our youth lack a clear identity. Parents, be consistent! Don't give up and allow your family to be entrenched in worldliness. The world is the enemy and is seeking to destroy the souls of your children. Be in love with your vocation - with forming saintly souls for Heaven!
Consider the Twelve Mysteries of Christ's Infancy and Childhood. The Holy Family suffers much and endures many trials. Why? Because they are obedient to God's holy will. So how should we respond to these Mysteries? With obedience. What of those who are fearful and have heard this 'virus-crisis' excuses them from Sunday Mass? Meditate upon the connection between Christ's Presentation in the Temple, His Sacrifice on Calvary, and the Mass. Imitate Our Lady.
Devotion to the Child Jesus means devotion to the Mystery of the Incarnation. Meditate on the mysteries of His sacred Infancy to grow in love for Him. These mysteries highlight His humility, poverty, obedience and love. In particular, consider that He purposefully chose each of these events to begin His saving mission on earth. To love Him you must strive to imitate Him. For example, every one of us can be more detached from the world; by this we imitate His poverty.
