Tag Archives: Hope

December 14, 2015

4th Sunday of Advent – Leap for Joy

By Fr. Andrew Ricci

leap-foro-joy

Study:  Where do you find joy in your life?  How can you foster joy in your heart?

Pray:  Is there something in your heart that is suffering?  Ask the Lord to touch and bless your concerns.

Serve:  How can you bring joy to others?  How can you share Christ’s love with someone in need?

4th Sunday of Advent Readings

Fr. Andrew’s Homily Podcast

The encounter between two pregnant women – Mary & Elizabeth – reveals the Good News of Jesus Christ even while he was still in the womb.  Elizabeth carries her son John, a child blessed to her and her husband Zechariah in their old age.  The infant “leaped for joy” in the womb of his mother Elizabeth when Mary (and Jesus) drew near.

I like the phrase “leaped for joy” on many levels:

  • It flows directly from our notion of the Good News of Christ.
  • It speaks to a deep longing in our hearts.
  • It wakes us up to the power and beauty of life right here and now.
  • It challenges us to reconnect with joy, especially when we feel joyless.

Friends, Christmas is just around the corner…are we ready?  I’m not talking about shopping, travel plans, or food preparation – I’m talking about our hearts.  Are we ready to welcome Jesus Christ into our hearts…with JOY?

It is easy to get caught up in the distractions and stresses of life.  Life carries its own challenges, and if we are struggling with added pressure, worry, anxiety and fear it can seem overwhelming.  Sometimes we can empathize with Ebenezer Scrooge!

Yet the Gospel message transforms the listener.  Christ comes into our world to bridge the gap caused by sin.  We have the promise of new life!  Thus, in the remaining days to Christmas, I suggest the following:

  1. Cultivate gratitude for the blessings of your life.
  2. Take time for daily prayer, and offer your deepest needs to the Lord.
  3. Give yourself permission to savor the beauty and delight of the season.
  4. Make an effort to connect with loved ones…and possibly seek reconciliation with enemies.

When Christmas comes will be able to welcome the Christ child with joy?  May this last week of Advent give us the time and opportunity we need to prepare ourselves for the coming of the Lord.

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December 9, 2015

Catholic Inspiration is One Year Old!

By Fr. Andrew Ricci

1st Podaversary I

Fr. Andrew’s Podcast – Catholic Inspiration is 1 Year Old!

I want to say a joyful THANK YOU for all who have downloaded and shared my podcasts this past year!  Here are a few quick facts:

  • One year in operation
  • 133 Podcasts
  • Sunday Masses, Daily Masses, Retreats, and Presentations
  • +21, 800 Downloads

What started initially as just a simple record of homilies has now grown to an average of 2-4 podcasts/week.  I am touched by the response I have received from people across the country, and I am honored to share my ministry here at Cathedral with you.  There is no charge for “Catholic Inspiration” and no requests for donations – this is an extension of my pastoral work here in the Diocese of Superior.

My one request: if you find these podcasts helpful – please share them with your loved ones!  Practically, that means:

  • Share these posts and podcasts with your friends on Facebook or other social media
  • Feel free to tell others who you think would like to follow (that whole “word of mouth” thing)
  • For those of you who use iTunes: go to “Catholic Inspiration” and give me a rating and review!

My only wish is for more people to draw near to Jesus Christ and one another through Study, Prayer, and Service.  May Year Two – which is blessed to coincide with the Year of Mercy – be filled with graces for us all!

1st Podaversary II

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December 1, 2015

Daily Mass: A Vision of Hope. Catholic Inspiration

By Fr. Andrew Ricci

Three Great Things

Fr. Andrew’s Daily Mass Homily Podcast (Tuesday of the 1st Week of Advent)

The first reading from the prophet Isaiah proclaims a vision of the world – filled with hope – that happens after “a shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse.”  May this Good News help us to make course corrections in our life today, so that we will be ready for the Lord’s return.

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November 24, 2015

Daily Mass: Facing the Future. Catholic Inspiration

By Fr. Andrew Ricci

Three Great Things

Fr. Andrew’s Daily Mass Homily (Tuesday of the 34th Week of the Year)

How do we face the changes of life?  How do we look to the future with hope?  The Answer: with the help of Jesus Christ!

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November 19, 2015

Daily Mass: Jesus Wept. Catholic Inspiration

By Fr. Andrew Ricci

Three Great Things

Fr. Andrew’s Daily Mass Homily Podcast (Thursday of the 33rd Week of the Year)

Jesus wept over the city of Jerusalem.  He sees the tribulation that will come, and he opens his arms to embrace the sadness…that he might touch it and bless it.  May we turn to the Lord in our moments of sorrow and allow his grace to guide us.  Sorrow is not the end, and with God’s help we will face our tears with hope.

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October 27, 2015

Daily Mass: Little Actions, Big Results. Catholic Inspiration

By Fr. Andrew Ricci

Three Great Things

Fr. Andrew’s Daily Mass Homily – Tuesday of the 30th Week of the Year 

The images of a mustard seed and yeast remind us that little things can bring about big changes.  The spiritual virtue of Hope empowers us to face our lives with the grace of Christ, who will work through us in little ways to make a difference in the world.

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October 20, 2015

30th Sunday of the Year – Divine Power

By Fr. Andrew Ricci

Extension Cord

Study:  Where have you seen signs of God’s grace at work in your life?  How did it change you?

Pray:  Are there people or circumstances in your life that are wounded or hurting?  Pray for healing power!

Serve:  Do you see someone in need?  How can you help them?

30th Sunday of the Year Readings

Fr. Andrew’s Homily Podcast

The readings this week reveal a common theme of divine power:

  • 1st – The Lord delivers his people
  • Psalm – “The Lord has done great things for us”
  • 2nd – Christ the great high priest
  • Gospel – Jesus heals blind Bartimaeus

Throughout these scriptures the Lord comes with dynamic energy: liberating, saving, healing and redeeming.  This is Good News!  In the midst of the challenges and struggles of human life we find Jesus coming to us – meeting us where we are – with the transformative power of his grace.

With this power in mind, I would suggest two points for consideration this week:

  1. What in my life needs to receive the Lord’s power?
  2. How can I share my life to give the Lord’s power?

Let’s start with receiving.  Where in my life am I wounded, hurting, or helpless?  Do I identify with Bartimaeus, calling upon the Lord for pity?  If so, our prayer (in private and at Mass) can be directed to heaven…asking for the grace we need to keep going.

Giving means we allow the Lord’s power to work through us.  Giving requires that we see the needs of those around us, determine a proper response, and act in a manner worthy of Christ.  We become the Lord’s hands and feet in service to others; our words speak encouragement and hope.

God continues to work with power in our world today, giving us all the opportunity to open our hearts to the endless grace of Christ.  May we draw near to the Lord with confidence and allow his strength to work through us as we touch the hearts of those we meet.

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October 18, 2015

29th Sunday of the Year – The Cup of Suffering – Catholic Inspiration

By Fr. Andrew Ricci

Three Great Things

Fr. Andrew’s 29th Sunday of the Year Homily Podcast

Jesus Christ shows us that suffering is a pathway, not a destination.  Through suffering we experience a purification – whereby we grow and discover new insights through the process of challenge, pain, and difficulty.  God permits suffering that we might be changed…for the good.  For remember: the suffering of Good Friday will be transformed into the joy of Easter Day.

We are thus consoled and challenged by these words.  Consoled, in that we take hope that the triumph of Christ on the Cross will one day be our triumph.  He understands our suffering (he’s already been through his own) and we can cling to his mercy and grace.

Challenged, in that we are invited to drink from the cup of suffering.  Like Christ, we pray that the cup will pass by, but like Christ we will accept what God sets before us – opening our hearts to God and allow this process to transform us.

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April 5, 2015

Easter – Transformed by the Resurrection – Catholic Inspiration

By Fr. Andrew Ricci

Three Great Things

Fr. Andrew’s Easter Homily Podcast (7 minutes)

This homily was given on April 5, 2015 at the Cathedral of Christ the King in Superior, WI.

Their lives were changed; the sorrow cast from the shadow of the Cross is now transformed by resurrection glory…He’s alive!  The grace of Jesus Christ inspired the disciples to go out to the world – carrying their crosses – with the power of the Lord’s triumph.

Christ brings this transformation to us today; his power continues to work in the world.  May we open our hearts to the resurrection…and be transformed!

 

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April 4, 2015

Easter – a Sunrise of Strength and Hope

By Fr. Andrew Ricci

Resurrection

Study:  Where in my life have I discovered God’s strength and grace?  How have others helped me?

Pray:  Where do I need God’s strength right now?  Call upon the Lord with boldness to face the challenges of life.

Serve:  How can I be an instrument of God’s strength to another?  How can I help someone today?

Easter Vigil Readings

Easter Day Readings

Fr. Andrew’s Homily Podcast (7 minutes)

I can only imagine the surge of excitement that went through the disciples as the word was shared.  Beyond the agony of the Cross and the sorrow of the Tomb on that first day of the week the message was proclaimed:  He’s Alive!

And everything changes.  This group of disciples – bound by fear and selfishness – are transformed with a new strength and conviction.  Their encounter with the Risen Lord will empower them to face the obstacles of this world with joy and hope.  They have seen the risen Christ…what is there to fear?  They have embraced the one who has conquered sin and death – there is NOTHING that can shake their confidence in the light of Easter morning.

This same strength comes to us.  Like the first disciples, we can turn to Jesus and allow his saving grace to renew us with a strength far beyond our own.  We can claim a hope that sustains us in the midst of our challenges and struggles.  The Easter sunrise brings light to the darkest corners of our hearts.

What in our lives needs to be touched by Jesus Christ?  We are invited to boldly come forward, receive his resurrection strength, and face whatever this world presents with confidence: the victory of Christ enlivens us to travel through life with the conviction that the grace he gave his disciples continues in our hearts today.

May this Easter season be a time of transformation and renewal; a time where we embrace the gift of our lives with a new freedom and conviction.  In the light of this Easter, may we follow the one who leads us from sin and death to the abundance of life…in this world, and the world to come.

Happy Easter!

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The Resurrection, Sebastiano Ricci; 1715-1716, oil on canvas, 883 mm x 1,187 mm, Dulwich Picture Gallery, London, England.

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