God with Us: Encountering Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew. By Edward Sri. Reviewed by Lawrence Montz. (skip to review) The Lighthouse. By Michael D. O’Brien. Reviewed by K.E. Colombini. (skip to review) A Legacy of Preaching, Vol. I: Ap … [Read more...]
Book Reviews – June 2020
June 24, 2020 by Book Reviews
At Mass with Jesus on Calvary: Reflections on the Prayers of the Mass and the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist By Fr. Gene Martens, SJ. Reviewed by Fr. James Swetnam, SJ. (skip to review) Hope to Die: The Christian Meaning of … [Read more...]
The Call of the New Evangelization for Preachers
February 26, 2020 by Fr. Charles Fox
Although the new evangelization is new in several respects, its message is the timeless Gospel of salvation through Jesus Christ, following St. Paul, who writes, “What we preach is Christ crucified” (I Cor 1:23). At the heart of the pre … [Read more...]
“Many Shall Come from the East and the West”
A Comparison of the Preaching of Augustine and John Chrysostom
February 12, 2019 by Sr. Mary Dominic Pitts, OP
Introduction “Many shall come from the East and the West and will recline with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob at the banquet in the Kingdom of Heaven” (Mt 8:11). The two great preachers of the fourth and fifth centuries — John Chrysostom, Bisho … [Read more...]
The Words Men Need to Hear
A Priest Speaks to College Seminarians
September 18, 2018 by Fr. Timothy Shea Valentine
Speak only the words men need to hear, the things that really help them . . . (Ephesians 4:29) Introduction The effects of language—for good or ill—first occurred to me when I was five, during the summer before kindergarten. As my broth … [Read more...]
Lessons from a Patristic Homily
May 18, 2018 by Brandon P. Otto
In learning how to craft homilies, it is worth studying past master homilists; from these masters, we can learn masterful techniques. Reading those who wrote in one’s own native tongue is, of course, a necessary thing: Newman would probably … [Read more...]
An October Mystagogy
A Proposal
November 27, 2017 by Fr. Benjamin Roberts
We count people in October. Each year in the parishes of the dioceses of the province of Atlanta, we count the number of people who are attending Mass each weekend. The reason for the choice of this particular month has been lost to … [Read more...]
Early Fall Reading
September 8, 2017 by Book Reviews
The Concept of Woman: Volume III: The Search for Communion of Persons, 1500-2015. By Sister Prudence Allen, R.S.M., Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2016. 546 pages. Reviewed by Joshua M. Evans, Ph.D. Revelation. Catholic Commentary on Sacred … [Read more...]
Questions Answered
July 21, 2017 by Fr. Brian Mullady, OP
Question: Does a homily mean something other than a sermon? Online dictionaries seem to show them to be interchangeable. I have for years now believed homilies to be based on Scripture, and sermons might cover a range of topics, not … [Read more...]
What Lessons Do Thomas Aquinas’s Sermons Hold For Modern Preachers?
June 12, 2017 by Dr. Randall B. Smith, Ph.D.
Son: “All the men who were ordained with me seemed to think that the faculty of preaching will come to them as a matter of course.” Father: “Then I pity their congregations.” —Canon Twells, Colloquies on Preaching It is strange to th … [Read more...]
Springtime Reading
May 29, 2017 by Book Reviews
Proofs of God: Classical Arguments from Tertullian to Barth by Matthew Levering. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2016. Reviewed by Matthew K. Minerd, Ph.L. Speaking from Within: Biblical Approaches for Effective Pr … [Read more...]
From Benedict to Francis
A Brief Survey of Papal Teaching on Preaching, 1917-2013
December 20, 2016 by Fr. Benjamin Roberts
On the fifteenth of June in 1917, Pope Benedict XV issued the encyclical, Humani Generis Redemptionem, “On Preaching the Word of God.” This is the most recent papal document which was devoted specifically to preaching, at least at the level … [Read more...]
Ten Commandments for Transformative Preaching
November 29, 2015 by Deacon Edward McCormack, PhD
When people walk into church for Mass, they are searching for meaning. Psychologist William Damen, in his book, The Path to Purpose, tells us we are living through a crisis of meaning. Our superficial culture of consumption and … [Read more...]
Fall Reading for October 2015
October 26, 2015 by Book Reviews
Rebuilding Your Message: Practical Tools to Strengthen Your Preaching and Teaching. Michael White and Tom Corcoran. (Notre Dame, IN: Ave Maria Press, Rebuilt Parish Book, 2015) 224 pages; $15.00. (Reviewed by Jon M. Ericson) Family and … [Read more...]
Preaching the Homily and the New Evangelization
June 13, 2015 by Deacon Peter Lovrick
Preaching in all its forms is indispensable to the Church’s mission given to her by Jesus Christ: “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching the … [Read more...]
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