Gospel, Homily and Coffee

The movie “Parenthood” an old old film from 1989 starred Steve Martin as the uptight, but very worried and concerned father. He struggles with what he thinks a good parent is; and in this struggle creates tension with his family. The cathartic moment comes when utter chaos happens in a school play and everyone around him laughs, but he, initially horrified, finally gets it and engages in the chaos and the humor and laughs. Always committed to family, but he needed the humility and the flexibility to be truly engaged in his family. When we priests get together we swap stories. The even older guys also share the infamous stories of days gone by; especially how certain priests after the Vatican II council and the changes that occurred resisted and hated those changes, and just became grumpy mean guys, even yelling at other priests at mass. They were committed, but lacked humility and flexibility. Their days did not end in joy, but in bitterness. Couples married for years and with jo...

Last week I used physics in my homily and someone challenged me to include string theory. I said I could do it. But don’t worry, not in this homily. BUT…  Wherever you are, reach out and touch something; hold onto it. What do you hold? Now, what if I were to tell you that you are not actually touching anything. That in reality at the very very very small level, the electrons that form the atoms on your skin are reacting to the electrons on the atoms of the object you are trying to touch and there is space between them. There is actually no physical contact with the object.  Freaky eh? Now, on the day to day it really doesn’t matter. But still, the reality that we perceive is not always the fullness of the reality that exists. This is a very Catholic sensibility by the way. Think of the definition of a sacrament: a visible sign of an invisible reality. We believe that through objects and words a deeper reality is being communicated to us. A Reality that is much greate...

Physicists for decades have searched for the great theory of everything. They seek to explain how the material universe is connected, from the very very small of the quantum particle to the greatest size of all, the known universe. It challenges them. They believe in the unity of the universe, but do not know how to express it. They believe since as Fr. George Lemaitre, a Belgian Catholic Priest and Physicist theorized that the Universe began from a single point of extreme energy and density. We humans crave unity as well, do we not? We crave it in our relationships with those we love. We wish for it among our connections in the community and in the world. We are social animals, even the best introvert among us, desire union with others, or at least an other. This craving, almost a constant craving, forms our music and art. Think of the longing in our music, this ache of wanting to be connected. And then there is the other part that forms our music and art,,,when unity fails, ...