Father Matthew Wiering Podcast

Why We Struggle so much in Relationships

Today's return to the Sundays in Ordinary Time gives us one of the foundational biblical texts: The story of the aftermath of the Fall. While God created the man and the woman in a state of perfect harmony with Himself and with one another, we see how quickly these relationships fall apart when the man and woman commit the original sin. May we be convicted that sin always brings disorder and seek to encounter continually the only One who can heal us from the disorders of our heart, the New Adam, Jesus Christ!

What is the Catholic Mass?

We go back to the basics today on this Corpus Christi Sunday with our Gospel reading from the Last Supper. The Apostles would not have understood Jesus when he took bread and said, "This is my body," and when he took wine and called it "the blood of the new covenant." Yet less than 24 hours later the Apostles would have seen Jesus shed blood and offer his body on the altar of the cross. At every Catholic Mass, which is done in response to Jesus's command, "Do this in memory of me," the Cross and Resurrection is made present again, and grace upon grace is poured upon all who are there for the mystery.

The Most Fulfilling Thing We Can Do

In today's Gospel, in the context of their loving relationship of deep friendship, Jesus invites Peter to make a gift of his life. In this homily from the last Mass with our graduating seniors, we explore what truly satisfies us in life.

Am I Hearing the Holy Spirit or the Evil Spirit?

On this Pentecost Sunday, the Church gives us as a second reading Paul's list of the fruits of the Holy Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, self-control, etc. These are the signs that accompany the Holy Spirit. St. Ignatius of Loyola, in his "Rules for the Discernment of Spirits," gives us something very similar: A basis for how we can tell whether it is the Holy Spirit we are listening to or the Evil Spirit.

Be Joyful and Get to Work!

The Ascension of Jesus is a great mystery, and we realize this as we reflect on the reaction that the disciples have to witnessing their friend and lord Jesus depart from this earth. Instead of being downcast, the Gospels tell us that the disciples were joyful and immediately got to work preaching and witnessing to the Resurrection of Jesus. They understood that Jesus's visible presence was now passing into the Sacraments and, via the Sacraments, into them. May this be our cause for joy and action, too, that Jesus is Risen and we are his witnesses!

What does it mean when the Bible says "God is love"?

There are religions that claim that God loves or does loving things, but it is only Christianity that makes the strange claim that "God is love". In this homily we talk about what this means and apply it to our lives.

On Grapes and Vines (Remaining in Jesus)

Today we celebrate the 1st Communion of a number of our young people, and we have the perfect Gospel to prepare us for this gift. Jesus gives us the very familiar biblical images of grapes and vines, which tell us so much about how we must live in imitation of Jesus (by being willing to be crushed like grapes) and how we have the strength to do this (by remaining on the vine that is Jesus).

The Grace to be a Good Shepherd

On this Good Shepherd Sunday, we take a closer look at St. Peter, who gives a fiery speech to the religious authorities in the 1st Reading from the Acts of the Apostles. There is no better example of the transformation that can come from grace than St. Peter, who went from denying even knowing Jesus out of fear to fearlessly witnessing to him in front of those who could imprison or even kill him. At the Last Supper, Jesus says to Peter, "I have prayed for you, Peter, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brethren." Jesus's prayer remains efficacious today, as we look to the Successor of St. Peter, as the guardian and guarantee of the faith of Jesus.

From Fear and Guilt to Peace and Joy

In this account of the Resurrection from Luke, we begin in a similar way to last week's Gospel from John: The disciples are gathered together in the Upper Room in Jerusalem. Out of fear they have locked themselves in to keep any enemies out. We can only imagine the fear that they feel, that what happened to Jesus will also happen to them. But we can also only imagine the guilt they must have felt: Each had abandoned Jesus in his time of need. Yet it was precisely into that bad spiritual space that Jesus entered and speaks not words of condemnation but rather, "Peace be with you". And he shows them his hands and his side. This encounter with the living Lord changes their fear and their guilt into joy. May our encounter with the Risen Lord at every Mass do the same!

God's Easter Gift is Forgiveness

The Gospel tells us that on the evening of Easter, Jesus appears in the locked Upper Room to his disciples, who were obviously in a state of misery -- grieving and confused, fearful that what happened to Jesus would happen to them, and guilt-ridden because of how they abandoned Jesus. Yet Jesus's first words to them were not, "You have really disappointed me," or, "Did you learn nothing from me over the past three years," but rather, "Peace be with you." And the effect that these words and the sight of his wounds had on them was immediate: "The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord." May the whole Church, and each of us, individually, know the gift of His Forgiveness this Divine Mercy Sunday -- his Easter gift to the Church!