Father John's Homilies

Fr. John's Homilies

"This is to me the essence of every effective homily or sermon: that it serves to enhance that silent but sacred conversation between Christ and a Christian. As each Sunday approaches, every preacher asks himself or herself the question (sometimes in desperation): "What am I going to tell people this Sunday?!" Instead, I suggest we preachers should ask ourselves, "What does Jesus want to tell the people this coming Sunday?" Our job in preaching is to facilitate that conversation in the heart between the believer and the Lord. Jesus reminded His disciples, "He who hears you, hears me" (Luke 10:16). Blessed John Henry Newman, a master preacher in his own right, described it more intimately saying, "cor ad cor loquitur" (heart speaks to heart). When a sermon hits home, it's because the message touched a person's heart, but what's more, the hearer could perceive behind the preacher's words the voice of Jesus Himself."

-Excerpt taken from Fr. John's book "Oh, for the Love of God"