Last weekend we celebrated the Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, in which Jesus continues and strengthens His Bread of Life discourses. In this time of summer vacation and recreation, Fr. Newton's homily reminds us that, we need spiritual renewal. Like Elijah in the desert, we can feel exhausted and weary of this life, but also like him, our experience of God in these wastelands can provide us with the strength and courage to press on. Fr. Newton reminds us that frequently turning to the Bread of Life, the Eucharist, keeps Christ alive in our hearts and helps us to live out our call to pour ourselves out in love.
In his homily, Fr. Mark share the powerful story of the last days of an old friend who recently passed away from stage-4 colon cancer. They had only recently reconnected during Father's sabbatical, and had several conversations about faith and the Church. At the end, Fr. Mark was able to anoint his friend and give him an apostolic pardon and viaticum (a bit of the Eucharist as food for the journey home), speeding his soul to heaven. He encourages us to invite those fallen away from the faith back to the sacraments: "Our faith is human and divine, and the human part sometimes makes mistakes, but the divine part never does...it is always there, waiting for us."
Check out the readings and homilies in English and Spanish at the links below:
- Readings in English (USCCB)
- Homily: Fr. Mark Innocenti (Audio)
- Homily: Fr. Arockiya Newton (Audio)
- Lecturas en Español (USCCB)
- Homilia: Diácono David Hernández (Audio)