SUNDAY HOMILIES

March 17, 2024

FEATUREDCDRBISHOP GOLKAFR. LANGEHSUSAN NCHUBIRI

March 17, 2024

KEY INSIGHTS w/ Timestamps

Embracing suffering and facing troubles is essential for spiritual growth and faith, as seen in the example of Jesus and St. Patrick.

00:00 📖 God will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and Judah, writing it on their hearts so that no one will have to teach anyone.
01:18 📖 Jesus's death and Resurrection brought a new covenant, giving us the spirit to guide our conscience and teach us right from wrong, and Jesus learned obedience through suffering, becoming the source of Eternal salvation.
02:44 🌱 Suffering is necessary for faith to grow, as shown in the story of Jesus' triumphant entry into Jerusalem.
03:49 📖 Jesus' popularity has grown beyond Jews and the people of Jerusalem, and even foreigners and pagans want to see him.
04:50 🌾 Jesus speaks of his impending death as a necessary sacrifice for greater fruitfulness.
05:38 🙏 Embracing suffering and learning from it is the path to holiness, as seen in the example of St. Patrick.
07:05 📖 St. Patrick's faith was perfected in suffering, and Jesus reminds us that troubles must be confronted in order to heal.
08:35 🔥 Confronting evil and facing troubles is the only way to overcome and put an end to it, just like Jesus did by entering his death to break its hold.

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KEY INSIGHTS w/ Timestamps

Dying to oneself and letting go of selfishness in life allows for the abundance of good fruit and the entrance of God into our lives.

00:00 💀 Embrace death as a passage to the next world and anticipate full immersion into the life of God.
00:58 🌱 Embracing death to self allows us to be planted in God's grace and produce abundance of good fruit by letting go of selfishness.
01:49 🔑 Let go of all selfishness, intentional or unintended, including good things like loving relationships, in order to live authentically.
02:36 💡 Love inspired by God is selfless and detached, bringing forth abundance of good fruit in our lives.
03:08 🌱 Reflect on the call to die, embrace literal and practical forms of selflessness, and surrender to God's will for new life.

March 17, 2024

KEY INSIGHTS w/ Timestamps

Through the New Covenant, God desires to be in union with us, and by participating in the Eucharist, we become bound to Jesus and are transformed to be more like him.

00:00 🙏 God will make a New Covenant with the house of Israel, as prophesied by Jeremiah.
00:35 💡 God desires an eternal covenant with us, different from a contract, like the covenant of marriage.
01:00 📖 Jesus desires to be in union with us, much like a husband and wife, and wants to give himself to us again and again at every Mass.
01:23 🙏 By participating in the Eucharist, we become bound to Jesus, take on his attitude, and desire to lay down our lives for others to better know, love, and serve Jesus.
01:53 💡 Every sacramental act is a renewal and enactment of the covenant, uniting us with Christ and making us different.
02:14 🙏 Receive the body and blood of Jesus at mass to have his love written on your heart and life, transforming you to be more like him.

2021 Archive / Recent Reflections

KEY INSIGHTS w/ Timestamps

Not Available

March 17, 2024

KEY INSIGHTS w/ Timestamps

God wants to inscribe his law of love and compassion on human hearts, offering forgiveness and a fresh start based on love and care.

00:00 💬 God wants to inscribe his law on human hearts, contrasting with the practice of inscribing names on stones, walls, and bodies.
00:53 💡 God offers a new covenant of love, forgiveness, and compassion, even when we turn away from Him.
01:42 🌱 Forgiveness and fresh starts are important, but forgetting is the real challenge.
02:21 💡 God demands that we fully open ourselves to new beginnings, cleansing our hearts and minds of hate and guilt to embrace a new start based on love and care.
03:44 🙏 Embracing love, compassion, and mercy to speak against injustices and live in the footsteps of Jesus for a fresh start.

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SOURCE: Father Andrew Ricci

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SOURCE: National Shrine

Introduction

OPTION A

Like a Grain of Wheat

It is not reasonable to look for pain and suffering, yet we know that in life there are certain pains we have to accept in line with our tasks in life – a woman has to pass through birth pangs to bring a child into the world, parents sacrifice themselves for their children, nurses dedicate themselves to lighten the pains of the sick. Yes, the seed has to die in the furrows to give life to a new plant. Today Jesus invites us to follow him in accepting the pain and efforts needed in carrying out our task in life.

Penitential Act
General Intercessions

SOURCE: Bible Claret Liturgy Alive

OPTION B

Walking the Same Road as Jesus

As Lent progresses, we come closer to the heart and meaning of the Gospel: that Jesus must suffer and die for new life to happen. There is nothing here about rules, practices, theological formulae or perfection. Jesus embraced what is painful and frightening to achieve life on our behalf. Those of us who call ourselves Christian must be willing to walk the same road.

Penitential Act
Prayer of the Faithful

SOURCE: National Catholic Reporter: Cycle B Sunday Resources feature series. View the full series.

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UPDATED/ADAPTED FROM CELEBRATION 2018 NOTES

Cycle A (third scrutiny) and Cycle B readings offer a great opportunity to really call the entire assembly to deeper conversion.

Cycle A readings:

Ezekiel speaks of God opening graves and raising the dead; Paul speaks of the body as dead but the spirit as alive; Jesus raises Lazarus from his tomb.

Cycle B readings:

you will also be hearing about death and resurrection: Jeremiah foresees a New Covenant with God; Paul speaks of the suffering and death of Christ; Jesus speaks of the seed dying to produce much fruit.

The thrust of the readings in both cycles is similar because we are approaching the Triduum, three days in which we are all called to die again to sin and selfishness and to rise to fuller life in Christ. The challenge for planners and preachers is to make this call to conversion clear and to invite the assembly to fully enter into the dynamic that shapes the Triduum…

Embracing Lent, Triduum and Easter

It is true, of course, that this is our challenge every week, since every Eucharist draws us into contact with the death and resurrection of Christ. But Lent, Triduum and Easter form the annual cycle that calls us more explicitly and more deeply into the process of conversion. As Lent progresses, that call becomes more and more insistent, leading us to our fullest celebration of the paschal mystery during the Triduum.

How can you help your parishioners recognize this call and embrace its challenge? Preachers and planners might first ask themselves if they are fully embracing the meaning of these central seasons of the liturgical year. If so, what has helped you to do that? If not, what would help you at this point in Lent? Share your insights with other planners and see if the sharing gives you ideas for how to help the larger assembly.

3rd Scrutiny - Creating Petitions for

3rd Scrutiny - Preparing Petitions for

Preachers, of course, have the strongest platform from which to call for deep conversion, but planners should look at the whole liturgy to see where they can support the same call.
The third scrutiny should invite not only the elect but the whole assembly into the death and resurrection experience. Can you create petitions for the scrutiny that strongly focus on our need to die to sin so that we might rise renewed? What about the general intercessions for the Mass? Are there songs that musicians can select (for this Sunday and Palm/Passion Sunday) that focus attention on dying and rising?

Preparing for Palm Sunday

March 24, 2024: Next Sunday's main liturgy, ideally all the Masses, begins with the blessing of palms and the procession into the worship space. Announce this weekend where people should gather when they come for this special service.

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SOURCE: NCR: Cycle B series.

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Featured Resources

Australian Catholics

[contentcards url=”https://www.australiancatholics.com.au/reflection-5-lent-year-b”%5D

[contentcards url=”https://www.australiancatholics.com.au/homily-notes-5-lent-year-b”%5D

5th Sunday of Lent B

[contentcards url=”https://www.english.op.org/torch/the-last-deadline/”%5D

Fifth Sunday of Lent. Fr Robert Verrill preaches on the meaning of Christ’s ‘Hour’.

One day we are all going to die, but if we die with Christ, then when we come to that final deadline that separates life from death, we will be receptive to all the graces we need to be raised up with Christ, and so share in His glorious resurrection.

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ST PAUL CENTER FOR BIBLICAL THEOLOGY – Each week Scott Hahn gives a short reflection on the Sunday Readings. Go deeper in the Word of the Lord video series, a weekly conversation between John Bergsma and Scott Hahn.

THE WORD THIS WEEK brings you engaging videos and other content that are tailored to enhance your understanding of the Sunday readings. The creators of these resources are independent and not affiliated with this website.