What's to be done about the homily?

[puzzleannie]

MIL tivos the Mass on EWTN and fast forwards through the homily, but she is 87 so I cut her some slack.

I am spoiled because our pastor is probably the best homilist in the diocese. He literally blew us away yesterday. His homilies during Advent and Christmas were superb but this was over the top. He can talk for a half hour or more and it never seems too long (except for people waiting for parking for the next Mass). It is so refreshing to hear the truth after so many years of folksy chit chat and watered down doctrine and mushy morality.

 

[InOurLady]

I can relate on several levels. I have a local channel that broadcasts Holy Mass, not EWTN, and the Mass is valid and licit, but the homilies are not even pious fluff! I would love to fast forward through some!

I am truly blessed to not only have access to “netmil(name removed by moderator)'s”
church, but also another in the same diocese that gives not too long, Catholic doctrinal teaching in the homilies. I cannot imagine not having this blessing!

Blessed be God!

 

[maryjk]

I am spoiled because our pastor is probably the best homilist in the diocese. He literally blew us away yesterday. His homilies during Advent and Christmas were superb but this was over the top. He can talk for a half hour or more and it never seems too long (except for people waiting for parking for the next Mass). It is so refreshing to hear the truth after so many years of folksy chit chat and watered down doctrine and mushy morality.

Sounds like our priest. He is the best homilist that I have heard. When my Mom came to visit for the holidays she asked if we get homilies like that even week. Yep, we sure do. They are always well thought out, relating to the Gospel and to my life.

 

[Cristiano]

I have seen people complaining before the homily was too long. People complained because the homily was to theological, too abstract and they could not relate it to their immediate lives. People complained because the homily was to down to earth and to critical from the moral point of view, they said that the Church should be more open minded. People complained that they are not taught the basic of Catholicism, and that the priest should do a homily with Catholicism for dummies.

Often people think too much about themselves (I am not referring to the OP) to just sit down, listen and trying to make the better of it. Most of these people do not realize how privileged they are in being able to attend Mass every Sunday, to participate to the sacrifice on the Calvary. The same people that do not even know where the confessional is and then complain that the lines are too long and that they have better things to do with their time.

 

[Elzee]

My second favorite priest, right after our wonderful pastor (May God Bless them both and give them long life) got up for the Homily at the 6:30pm Holy Mass yesterday.
He stated that this is his time to say Holy Mass and it is clearly stated in the bulletin. He prays and is led by the Holy Spirit. He understood that many of us would like to hear stories but that is not what he is led to say. So if you want a good story, pick another Holy Mass.

I love this man. He is Hellfire and brimstone. Yesterday he talked about the Wedding at Cana (from the gospel) and stated that we do not have peace in our families because we don’t have Christ as the center. When dad is praying with the kids and mom is down watching tv (or just the opposite) we do not have Christ as the center of our homes.

Just as with the wedding, the people did not go to Christ directly but to Mary. She did not say, I can fix it, she said, “Do what He tells you.” If we invite Mary to our households, ask her to intercede for us, there is Christ. For without Mary and Christ in our homes, we have no peace.

Now some may have wanted jokes and stories, but this is where the Holy Spirit led him. And God Love him, it sure spoke to me!!!

And then there’s our priest who obviously doesn’t understand the context of this story or the use of the term ‘woman’ in Jesus’ time, and basically told our congregation how Jesus put his mother in her place by his response to her. The one time in years he mentions our Blessed Mother and he insults her.

 

[turtleoompa]

We are very fortunate. Our priests keep the homily at 7 minutes. Apparently, our Bishop thinks if the homily is over 8 minutes then they will loose the people’s interest. They make their points from the Gospel or one of the readings. Very clear and the points relate to modern day.

 

[Traditional_Ang]

I’m glad you have found a great parish that gives you spiritual meat instead of cotton candy.

What should the rest of us do?

wynd,

Move…

Otherwise, insist on better from your pastor and support his efforts to improve.

I’ve found a church where the Gospel is preached, but we still haven’t successfully negotiated unification with the See of Peter. :crying:

YBIC, Michael

 

[puzzleannie]

every homily, no matter how dry, boring, long or short, has a word for you, if you will only listen. work first on interior attitude and receptivity to the word God has for you in this Mass. Prepare for Mass with the intention of desiring union with Christ and listening and hearing his Word. Participate attentively, contemplatively, fully in all of the Mass. When your attention wanders draw it back, looking at the altar of sacrifice or the crucifix, or the priest–person of Christ–is a good way to do that. Disregard all distractions, babies, coughing, bad music, etc. and return your focus to Christ.

Give up the habit of rubric policing, simply focus on Christ present, Christ teaching, preaching, healing, sacrficing, giving himself.

Somewhere in that Mass God will speak to you, so you must be attentive. It may not always be in the homily or readings, it may be in the songs, even through a banal lyric, in the common prayers. Listen especially to the Eucharistic prayer, and to the prayers that are often overlooked, the collect and communion prayer.

If you enter the Church expecting to be bored, insulted, babied or scandalized, you probably will be. If you come expecting to approach Christ, hear him and become one with him in the sacrifice in worship of the Father, and commissioned to serve and evangelize, you will be. That is true of every Mass, no matter how long, short, dry, uninspired the preaching, how badly performed the music, how uninvolved the congregants.

one of the dryest most boring sermons we ever heard, from a retired priest in another city, contained to most illuminating teaching on the sacrament of baptism I have every heard. If we had turned him off because of his manner, we would never have profited from a sermon that was literally life-changing.

 

[netmilsmom]

And then there’s our priest who obviously doesn’t understand the context of this story or the use of the term ‘woman’ in Jesus’ time, and basically told our congregation how Jesus put his mother in her place by his response to her. The one time in years he mentions our Blessed Mother and he insults her.

Oh Holy Lord, give me strength!!!

 

[netmilsmom]

Give up the habit of rubric policing.

Where is that in this thread?

 

[hilde_the_dog]

This thread made me glad that acouple of weeks ago I had to fill out a form reviewing the homily of our transitional deacon gave.They handed out about 20 forms at my mass. They had been handing them out the last three weeks at different masses at which he gave thge homily. At the seminary they go over each response to improve their skills and relevance. What they do latter is beyond me.

 

[palmas85]

And then there’s our priest who obviously doesn’t understand the context of this story or the use of the term ‘woman’ in Jesus’ time, and basically told our congregation how Jesus put his mother in her place by his response to her. The one time in years he mentions our Blessed Mother and he insults her.

This and similar things are routinely used by Protestants to show that Mary was just another person and nothing special, even to Christ. sad to say it is also becoming more and more prevalent among Catholics as we drift ever further into a sola scriptura mentality.

 

[jpjd]

(For those too young to know, the sermon as it was then called was in fact formerly an interruption to liturgy and one could read one’s favorite junk novel during it without being irreverent, though I suppose that would have been impolite… The modern homily is considered the conclusion of the liturgy of the word and is, unfortunately, in the improvisatory hands of whoever is delivering it.)

(bolded emphasis is mine)

Coincidentally, just last Sunday a priest explained to us the difference between a sermon and a homily. A sermon is when the minister decides on a theme to talk about, and selects the readings to support it. This is typically the Protestant way. A homily is when you have pre-determined readings, and the minister frames his talk around the readings, to explain and illustrate them. Because the Catholic Church determines the readings in the cycle of readings and the priest has no choice in them, a homily is the Catholic way.

I’m not aware that the priest was ever able to select the readings, which is the only way his talk could be called a sermon. Do you really mean to say that the homily used to be called the sermon, that is to say, that at one point in time the priest could choose his readings? I don’t think so.

 

[Cavaille-Coll]

One thing that carries through almost anything else in a homily is the personal conviction of the priest, that he loves, believes, and practices what he preaches.

One former pastor of mine would be classified by most people as a poor homilist – he lacked organization and eloquence – but his simple and profound, child-like faith (though not childish, as he was quite intelligent) from his farm upbringing in rural Ireland carried through. They may not have been entertained, but they got the message. His successor in the parish was a gifted speaker who gave well-worded and theologically-correct homilies, but didn’t much care for most of his parishioners and didn’t seem to enjoy his priestly life. He wanted to retire, and everyone knew it. I’m in no position to judge their interior lives, but there are certain things a priest cannot hide.

I’d rather hear our local Maronite or Ruthenian priest preach with conviction for half an hour than hear five minutes of a milquetoast homily from Fr. Pseudoagnosticus over at Our Lady of Perpetual Dispensation.

 

[lak611]

(bolded emphasis is mine)

Do you really mean to say that the homily used to be called the sermon, that is to say, that at one point in time the priest could choose his readings? I don’t think so.

The priest never chose his readings, but what is now called “homily” used to be called “sermon”. In fact in the TLM, there is no 3 year cycle of lectionary readings. The readings in the TLM were the same every year for any given Sunday.

 

[Traditional_Ang]

The priest never chose his readings, but what is now called “homily” used to be called “sermon”. In fact in the TLM, there is no 3 year cycle of lectionary readings. The readings in the TLM were the same every year for any given Sunday.

Lak 611:

Most of that Cycle dated from the 5th Cent., emphasized the Gospel of Matthew and included a “Last Gospel” at the end of the Mass (which was usu. the 1st Chptr. of the Gospel of John, & may have been said beginning in the 2nd Cent.)

When that was the case, many priests used a series of sermons from preachers which included the likes of St. John Chrysostom. I’ve heard his sermon for Easter a couple of times, and it’s a more like what you would hear in a Black Baptist or Pentacostal Church than in a staid Catholic or Anglican Church, with the congregation yelling words back at the preacher.

May all of our priests learn to embolden and encourage their congregations as St. John Chrysostom and others did.

Your Brother in Christ, Michael

 

[lak611]

When that was the case, many priests used a series of sermons from preachers which included the likes of St. John Chrysostom. I’ve heard his sermon for Easter a couple of times, and it’s a more like what you would hear in a Black Baptist or Pentacostal Church than in a staid Catholic or Anglican Church, with the congregation yelling words back at the preacher.

Are any of St. John Chrysostom’s sermons available online? Do you have any links? They sound like they would be something I would really like to read.

 

[KatieD]

We are fortunate to have two priests who give wonderful homilies. However, when our new pastor first arrived, he heard complaints about the length of his homilies. I found this so frustrating, because we finally had a man who didn’t rush through the homily in four minutes like the previous pastor, who just wanted to get done and get out (and later resigned abruptly and left the priesthood). His homilies were well thought out and left us with much to think about during the week. Many of us told him to ignore the complainers, because we loved the homilies! Our other priest, from Poland, gave one of the most beautiful homilies I’ve ever heard on the Feast of Corpus Christi. I told him that recently, and he seemed genuinely touched.

I have my own favorites on the EWTN Masses, but I appreciate the deep reverence I see there.

 

[Elzee]

This and similar things are routinely used by Protestants to show that Mary was just another person and nothing special, even to Christ. sad to say it is also becoming more and more prevalent among Catholics as we drift ever further into a sola scriptura mentality.

I don’t understand how priests cannot know very basic theology - especially about the relatively few passages in the New Testament that deal directly with Mary. I would think this would be Seminary 101. Or, shudder at the thought - they know but just don’t care.

 

[Elzee]

Oh Holy Lord, give me strength!!!

(Yes - we’re still there. Putting off a decision is a decsion, I guess, at least for now.)

I was going to say something to him after Mass but I just couldn’t find a way to approach the subject without my disgust and irritation very visibly coming through. So, I figured I had better wait.