Immersed in Christ: Saturday, June 26, 2021

Responding in Kind (and Kindly)

It takes two to tango. If the congregation doesn’t do its part, the quality of the homilies will decline until, in the words of Pope Francis, "the laity will suffer from having to listen to them and the clergy from having to preach them!” But if preacher and people do their part, “the homily can actually be an intense and happy experience of the Spirit, a consoling encounter with God’s word, a constant source of renewal and growth (The Joy of the Gospel, no. 135).

The most certain way to “get something” out of the readings and the homily is to listen for something we believe God is saying to us that we can respond to in decisions, in action. If we do this at every Mass, we are making the homily happen. We are interacting.

When we take a fresh look at the homily, we may find ourselves hearing things at Mass have never heard or noticed before. Then we will have something to carry out to others. That is evangelization.

Take Action: Listen to the homily and find one concrete thing you can do this week to put the words you have heard into action in your life. Make the decision. Carry it out!