Tag Archives: Repentance

November 28, 2016

2nd Sunday of Advent – Baptized in Spirit and Fire

By Fr. Andrew Ricci

4x5 original

Study:  Is there anything keeping you from God or another person right now?  What steps do you need to take to make it right?

Pray:  Call upon the Lord for the strength to repent and seek forgiveness.  Remember – the harder it is the more powerful the healing!

Serve:  Is there some way you can be an agent of forgiveness?  How can you bring people closer to God and one another?

Mass Readings – 2nd Sunday of Advent 

John the Baptist comes on the scene blazing like a torch as he exhorts the people to repent of their sins.  He minces no words with the Pharisees and Sadduccees; rather, he makes it clear that the path to God leads through the good fruit of our actions.

John is blunt and direct.  There is no spin in his message, no soft touch.  He comes to us as a verbal bulldozer, seeking to carve out a direct route that leads to the Lord.  I can only imagine what it was like to be in his presence, eager to hear his words yet feeling the sting of his speech.  After all, repentance is a great thing to talk about…but often painful to put into practice.

And yet nothing brings about healing faster than forgiveness.  When relationships are wounded and we find ourselves in a broken and fragile place, repentance clears the ground and allows us to rebuild our lives in an honest and direct fashion.

Repentance has some key components:

  • Knowing good from bad
  • Taking ownership for when our actions have been bad
  • Seeking to turn away from the bad and strive to embrace the good
  • Claiming the mercy and grace of God to renew our lives
  • Asking for forgiveness and putting it into practice

As we prepare in this Advent season for the birth of the Messiah, we have the opportunity to examine our hearts and consider what is not worthy of the Lord.  Using a good examination of conscience or just the common sense in our souls we have the chance today to repent of our sins, seek forgiveness from God and one another, and live each day in the light and power of Christ.

John tells us that while he baptizes for repentance, the Lord will baptize us in Spirit and fire – allowing us to draw into the very heart of God’s love.  Only through repentance will we be able to encounter the burning intensity of divine charity; for when we stand before the Lord whatever is not fitting will burn away.  May we cast out whatever is not worthy, and prepare to welcome His holy fire with open hearts.

***************

St. John the Baptist Preaching, Luca Giordano, 1695.

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | posted in Ordinary Time

November 25, 2016

Daily Mass: Final Judgment. Catholic Inspiration

By Fr. Andrew Ricci

the-last-judgment

Fr. Andrew’s Daily Mass Homily Podcast

Mass Readings – Friday of the 34th Week of the Year

We acknowledge that at the end of time there will be a final judgment – where our lives will be examined and we will either be saved or damned in the light of our relationship with Jesus Christ.

**********

The Last Judgment, Michelangelo, 1536-1541, Sistine Chapel, Vatican.

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , | posted in Ordinary Time, Podcast

October 30, 2016

31st Sunday of the Year: Responding to the call of Christ. Catholic Inspiration

By Fr. Andrew Ricci

At the Altar

Fr. Andrew’s Homily Podcast

Mass Readings – 31st Sunday of the Year

Zacchaeus responds to the call of Christ, and shows us how we can respond to the Lord everyday – both in our personal lives and our support for one another.

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , | posted in Ordinary Time, Podcast

October 24, 2016

31st Sunday of the Year – The Lord comes to seek and save what was lost

By Fr. Andrew Ricci

climb-a-tree

Study:  Consider a moment when you were publicly put on the spot.  How did you react when others scrutinized your actions?

Pray:  Is there a stirring in your heart to change something difficult?  Ask the Lord for the grace to make it happen.

Serve:  Are there people in your life who are trying to make a change for the better?  How can you support them?

Mass Readings – 31st Sunday of the Year

What shall me make of Zacchaeus?  The Gospel of Luke shows this encounter between him and Jesus.  Consider these points about Zacchaeus:

  • He is a chief tax collector – no one likes him!
  • He is wealthy and powerful.
  • He is “short of stature” so he has to climb a tree to see Jesus.
  • He repents, giving half his possessions to the poor and promising to pay back fourfold to anyone from whom he has extorted money.

Tax collectors were despised in the Jewish culture.  They were Jews who collaborated with the Roman Empire and often used unscrupulous ways to get money from their neighbors.  Thus the title “sinners” was commonly given to them as people who flagrantly rejected God’s law.

Now add to this attitude the element of the ridiculous.  Here is a wealthy, powerful, short, sinner…standing in a sycamore tree to see Jesus!  Something is going on in his heart, and as the crowd blocks his view (and he can’t get near) he does the only thing he can to glimpse the Lord.

And that means that he stands out.  His repentance – and God’s merciful grace – now become a public act.  People see Zacchaeus and Jesus, they grumble, and the Lord shows that no one is left out of God’s mercy.  Here are a few final questions to ponder today:

  1. Like Zacchaeus, is there something in me that is calling for a change of heart?
  2. Am I willing to make a change, even if it means calling unwanted attention to myself?
  3. Am I like the crowd, grumbling when someone experiences mercy?

God’s mercy is present to the world.  Zacchaeus made the change, encountered the Lord, and received the transforming grace of Christ.  His example shows us the way to experience the love of Jesus in our hearts today.

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , | posted in Ordinary Time

October 22, 2016

Daily Mass: Repent! Catholic Inspiration

By Fr. Andrew Ricci

Confessional

Fr. Andrew’s Daily Mass Homily Podcast

Mass Readings – Saturday of the 29th Week of the Year

The Lord makes it clear in Luke’s Gospel that we all need to repent of our sins and turn to the Lord.

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , | posted in Ordinary Time, Podcast

February 29, 2016

4th Sunday of Lent – Two Sons

By Fr. Andrew Ricci

A man & two sons

Study: Reflect on your life for a moment.  When was a time you really (REALLY) messed up?  When was a time you were upset that others didn’t “get what they deserve” when it came to punishment?

Pray:  What in your life needs God’s forgiveness and mercy right now?  Ask for the Lord’s grace.

Serve:  How can you reach out to others, to foster reconciliation and a new beginning?  How can you help heal a situation in your life?

4th Sunday of Lent Readings – Year C

Fr. Andrew’s Homily Podcast

Who doesn’t know the parable of the Prodigal Son?  This story told by Jesus has 3 main characters:

  • The Father – who reaches out to his sons
  • The Younger Son – who is reckless and wasteful in his sins
  • The Older Son – who is angry and unwilling to forgive his brother

Let’s start with the Younger Son.  He messes up – no question about that.  He presumes his inheritance, wastes it on sinful living, and is reduced to abject poverty through his own fault.  Finally, at the end of his rope he comes to his senses and asks for mercy, if only to be a servant in his Father’s house.

The Older Son is dutiful, hard working, and faithful.  He does his duty and carries out every command.  Yet when he hears how the Father celebrates his younger brother’s return he is angry…it’s not fair!

Finally the Father.  Note how the Father goes out to both of his sons.  The Father takes the initiative:

  • with the Younger Son he runs out to meet him and assure him a place in the household
  • with the Older Son he goes out to meet him to encourage forgiveness and welcome

Perhaps we might use the next few days to consider this simple question:  Which Son am I?  Have I made some really bad mistakes, caused harm, and wounded relationships with others?  Have I held on to a grudge, nursing old injuries, unwilling to forgive and seek reconciliation?  Or perhaps we are a mixture of both – making our share of messes and denying mercy to those in need.

Whatever we discover about ourselves, we will find our Father who comes to meet us where we are and lead us to a deeper level of grace.  May we return to the Lord in our need and be filled with the grace of healing reconciliation.

********************

If you are looking for more material to help you this Lent, you might consider this list of presentations I have offered over the last couple of years.  Feel free to check it out and share if you find it helpful:

Podcast Resources for a Powerful Lent

 

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , , | posted in Lent

February 25, 2016

Daily Mass: Repent and Hope in the Lord. Catholic Inspiration

By Fr. Andrew Ricci

Three Great Things

Fr. Andrew’s Daily Mass Homily – Thursday of the 2nd Week of Lent

Daily Mass Readings

The parable of Lazarus and the rich man bring the urgent need for repentance to light.  The season of Lent repeatedly reminds us to turn away from our sins as we find our hope in the grace and mercy of God.

********************

If you are looking for more material to help you this Lent, you might consider this list of presentations I have offered over the last couple of years.  Feel free to check it out and share if you find it helpful:

Podcast Resources for a Powerful Lent

Hope

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , | posted in Lent, Podcast

February 22, 2016

3rd Sunday of Lent – Repent

By Fr. Andrew Ricci

Desert sunset

Study:  Reflect on a time when you were forgiven.  What steps took place to make it happen?

Pray:  Is there something in your life that’s prompting you to repent?  Ask the Lord for the strength to do it!

Serve:  Is there a situation in your life that you can help bring healing and reconciliation?  How might you be an instrument of God’s grace?

3rd Sunday of Lent Readings – Year C

Fr. Andrew’s Homily Podcast

Here’s a quick recap of the readings this week:

  • 1st Reading: Moses encounters God in the Burning Bush
  • Psalm: The Lord is kind and merciful
  • 2nd Reading: Paul reminds the Corinthians not to grumble, like the people did with Moses
  • Gospel: Jesus calls us to repent

On the one hand we hear how God takes pity on our plight, has great mercy, and longs to heal and love us.  On the other hand, we also hear the crucial need to repent – to turn away from our sins and draw near to the Lord.

Remember this: God requires our repentance so that we can freely receive his mercy and forgiveness.  Reconciliation means nothing if we aren’t sorry for what we have said and done.  What’s more, without repentance we cannot begin to comprehend the unconditional love of Jesus on the Cross.

So what is our path to repentance?  Consider these basic steps:

  1. Take time to review a good Examination of Conscience.  If you haven’t looked at one for a long time, click here to see several versions from the US Bishops.
  2. After you have reflected on the Examination, what speaks to your heart?  What sins is your conscience bringing up in your life?
  3. If the sin is against another, sometimes the easiest thing is simply to go to the person and say “I’m sorry” or “I forgive you.”
  4. If the sin is bigger, make the effort to go to Confession – one of the greatest gifts we possess in the Church.

The Lord is calling us – out of his awesome grace, mercy, and forgiveness – to repent.  Make this Lent extra special, and may all of us take the time to review our hearts and be about the business of God’s healing love.

********************

If you are looking for more material to help you this Lent, you might consider this list of presentations I have offered over the last couple of years.  Feel free to check it out and share if you find it helpful:

Podcast Resources for a Powerful Lent

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , | posted in Lent, Podcast

February 17, 2016

Daily Mass: Repentance. Catholic Inspiration

By Fr. Andrew Ricci

Three Great Things

Fr. Andrew’s Daily Mass Homily Podcast – Wednesday of the 1st Week of Lent

Jonah preaches to the people and they repent – through the signs of sackcloth, fasting, and supplication.  When the people ask Jesus for a sign he recalls what happened at Nineveh, and he invites us to offer this “sign” of repentance that comes from our hearts – turning from sin and following the Lord.

********************

If you are looking for more material to help you this Lent, you might consider this list of presentations I have offered over the last couple of years.  Feel free to check it out and share if you find it helpful:

Podcast Resources for a Powerful Lent

Confessional

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , | posted in Lent, Podcast

February 10, 2016

Ash Wednesday. Catholic Inspiration

By Fr. Andrew Ricci

Three Great Things

Ash Wednesday Readings

Fr. Andrew’s Homily Podcast

Ashes are common in our daily life – every fire leads to them.  But note these two qualities:

  • They are dirty
  • They are lifeless

Welcome to the reality of sin: The ashes we wear are an outward sign that we wish to turn away from all that soils our souls and harms our hearts.  May the words we hear today help us to seek the cleansing life that comes from Christ.  The words are clear:

Repent, and Believe in the Gospel!

********************

If you are looking for more material to help you this Lent, you might consider this list of presentations I have offered over the last couple of years.  Feel free to check it out and share if you find it helpful:

Podcast Resources for a Powerful Lent

Ashes

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , | posted in Lent, Podcast