Division, Desecration, Dedication

On the occasion of the third night of Hanukkah, Fr. Pat talks about the divisions God built into creation, about the consecration and desecration of sacred space, and about dedication of God's temple and of ourselves.

Fr. Pat reflects upon the encounter between Jesus and the woman with the chronic bleeding who touched the hem of His robe.

On the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, Fr. Pat reminds us that the Cross ought to be the lens through which we examine every question and regard every problem; it is what gives godly shape to the Christian life.

There’s a sense in which The Vocation of Mary was the most special and the most common. In this homily given on the Feast of the Dormition in 2010, Fr. Pat considers these two vocations of our Lord's Mother.

Fr. Pat compares an event from the life of Xerxes as told by Herodotus in Book 7 of The Histories to a similar event in the lives of Paul and his companions as told by Luke in Acts 16:1-12.

In this homily from the Sunday of St. Mary of Egypt in 2008, Fr. Pat discusses the occasion for the writing of the Gospel of Mark, the response of the Apostles to the cross, and the question Jesus asks James and John in the 10th chapter of Mark, which is the same question He asks us as we approach the chalice.

The 9th chapter of the Gospel of Mark opens with the account of the Transfiguration, then is immediately followed by the the story of Jesus healing a boy possessed by an unclean spirit, a spirit which Jesus’ disciples were unable to cast out. Fr. Pat makes three observations about faith which we can learn from this story. The painting Fr. Pat refers to is The Transfiguration by Rafael.

Both Saint Paul and Faust, the man who sells his soul to the devil, have something to say about faith, hope, and patience. Fr. Pat considers the great divide between these two men.

In this homily from 2008 preached on the Feast of the Forty Martyrs of Sebaste (which was also Forgiveness Sunday), Fr. Pat reminds us of the great cloud of witnesses surrounding us. The text is Hebrews 12:1-10.

When the Apostle Paul lists faith, hope, and love as a triad of things that abide, he takes care to assert that the greatest of these is love. In this homily from Vespers on January 5, 2014, Fr. Pat examines these three things more closely.