BIG C CATHOLICS

Fr. Philip N. Powell, OP, PhD  St Dom/Carmelite Laity/OLR, NOLA ( Click here for today’s readings )  Job is not a happy man right now. He's lost everything. His life is drudgery. He's a like a slave who works away his days in the sun, longing for shade. All his nights are troubled. He's soaked in months of misery. Restlessness while trying to sleep; hopeless while he's awake. He says, “. . .my life is like the wind; I shall not see happiness again.” We know all too well why Job is having such a tough time. He's lost everything. His wealth. His health. His family. All of it. He might be able to suffer well under his material losses, but he's lost one thing that all of us need most. He's lost his purpose. He's lost his end, his reason for living. If he had a purpose, he could look forward and place his losses within a bigger plan to reach that goal. But without a goal, Job has no way to give his suffering meaning. Jesus has a purpose. Paul has

Fr. Philip N. Powell OP, PhD Church of the Incarnation Priest of the Archdiocese of New Orleans ( Click here for today’s readings ) I believe that most of us are idolaters. Now there’s a way to begin a homily! Idolaters. Most, if not all, of us. Think about what it is that you spend the most time worrying about, mulling over in your head. What is it that claims the most time, most attention in your day? What is that you call on when you are anxious or feeling insecure or doubtful? What is it that you call on to build up your confidence, your trust? Does stress become an occasion of sin for you: some form of gluttony—food, drink, sex, public piety. Or maybe some form of pride: a false sense of self-sufficiency, or an arrogance that comes from your created beauty or talent. What gods do we run to when things get stressed out, ragged around the edges? What gods do we worship in the silence of our hearts? Ah, but the temptations are legion, right? A whole pantheon of worthl

Fr. Philip N. Powell OP, PhD Church of the Incarnation, Univ of Dallas Priest of the Archdiocese of New Orleans ( Click here for today’s readings ) (Delivered in 2005. Edited to reflect the current Church calender.) Wow. I know of no other way of expressing my amazement at today’s readings…. One from the prophet Malachi, delivering a dire warning from the Lord to his priests: “If you do not listen, if you do not lay it to heart, to give glory to my name…I will send a curse upon you and of your blessing I make a curse. You have turned aside from the way, and have caused many to falter by your instruction.” Again, I say, Wow! We have another from Paul describing his apostolic work among the Thessalonians: “We were gentle among you…with such affection for you, we were determined to share with you [the gospel and our very selves] so dearly beloved had you become to us…Working night and day in order not to burden any of you, we proclaimed to the gospel of

By Father Philip N. Powell OP, PhD It is the most dangerous announcement ever made: “Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.” The angel Gabriel, sent by God to Mary, greets the virgin by telling her that she is most graced, wholly blessed, chosen, and attended to by the Lord. Very, very dangerous. And Mary knew Gabriel's announcement was dangerous. Luke tells us, "[Mary] was greatly troubled...." Greatly troubled?! Troubled…and wise. Mary pondered the angelic greeting with dread. She understood that this particular, unique grace picked her out of all God’s human creatures. She understood that receiving an angel from the Lord meant a mission, a purpose beyond a mortal end; a life of singular graces; an honored life of doing the Father’s will for His glory. Dangerous for Mary? Absolutely! Dangerous for us? O, Yes! Mary is being asked by the Lord to serve as bearer of the world’s salvation. To be the vessel of the Word, and the Mother of a redeemed nation. Sayin

Fr. Philip N. Powell OP, PhD The Nativity of Christ, or Christmas ("Christ Mass"), celebrates one of the most important events of the Church:  the incarnation of the Son of God.  Like the Trinity, the Virgin Birth, the Resurrection, etc., the Incarnation is one of those rock-bottom Christian beliefs that most Christians assent to but probably don't really understand.  Though Catholics all over the world affirm their belief in the incarnation every Sunday by reciting the Creed, how many could explain this tenet of the faith in the simplest terms? Let's start with a story... The archangel Gabriel appears to Mary and announces to her that God has chosen her to be the mother of the Christ Child, His Son.  Mary says, "Your will be done" and the Holy Spirit descends on Mary, giving her the child.  Nine months later the Christ is born in Bethlehem. Simple enough story, right?  If we left the incarnation there, we would still have the basic truth of Chris

June's blog of note, Domine mihi hanc aquam! , has long been a fixture of the Catholic blogosphere. Since November, 2005, Fr. Philip Neri Powell, a Dominican seminary professor, formation advisor and parish priest, has preached and commented about Christ, the Church, popular culture and events of consequence. Featured are Fr. Powell's thought provoking homilies through which readers know and love the mind of Christ. The wide ranging scope of HA's subject matter is reflected in a quote from Pope Benedict XVI displayed on the blog's masthead: "A [preacher] who does not love art, poetry, music and nature can be dangerous. Blindness and deafness toward the beautiful are not incidental; they are necessarily reflected in his [preaching]." In addition to faithful homiletics, readers are just as likely to see advice for discerning a religious vocation , a presentation of original paintings or a polemic against the "Culture of Death." Domine mihi hanc

On Sundays when homilies by Fr. René Butler, M.S. and Fr. Charles Irvin are not available, I will feature homilies by Fr. Thomas Lane, S.S.L., S.T.D. Fr. Lane is Associate Professor of Sacred Scripture at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Maryland on the campus of Mount St. Mary’s University. He previously ministered in Ireland. My first priority is bring you the best in Catholic preaching from priests who offer faithful, thoughtful, informative instruction. I'm grateful to the aforementioned for their contributions. For homilies and reflections by Fr. Butler visit his page . For homilies, videos and related content by Fr. Irvin see his website . For homilies, Bible study and more by Fr. Lane see his website . In addition to these homilists, I would like to thank  Fr. Philip Neri Powell , OP,  Fr. Daren J. Zehnle , K.H.S., Fr. Michael Woolley and  Fr. Michael Najim  for letting me publish occasional articles of theirs. Last but not least, I am grateful to you