Sunday Homilies with Fr. Mike Schmitz

Homily from Palm Sunday of the Lord's Passion. Christianity doesn’t offer comfort. It offers something else. In our culture today, we are able to avoid thinking of death. But death is the inevitable reality of living. Still, the fact that we will all die is not the problem. The problem is that we pretend that we won’t. Mass Readings from March 28, 2021: Isaiah 50:4-7 Psalms 22:8-9, 17-20, 23-24Phillipians 2:6-11 Mark 14:1—15:47

Homily from the Fifth Sunday of Lent. A heart that is too soft has to be protected. A heart that is too tough can’t be touched. What good is it to have a heart that can be hurt by this world? Many choose to numb themselves rather than feel the pain of life. But becoming numb leaves us with a heart that is unable. Unable to feel pain but also unable to feel joy. As Christians, we are called to have a heart like the heart of Jesus: vulnerable and able. Mass Readings from March 21, 2021: Jeremiah 31:31-34 Psalms 51:3-4, 12-15Hebrews 5:7-9 John 12:20-33 Download the Homily Study

Homily from the Fourth Sunday of Lent. A hidden heart is a homeless heart. The people of Israel were brought into exile. It was imposed from the outside. But after King Cyrus game them a way home, many of them chose to live in self-imposed exile. The same is true for all of us who have been exiled by our sin and slavery to death. Jesus has made it possible to step into the light and come home, but many choose to live outside the light...many of us live in self-imposed exile. Mass Readings from March 14, 2021: 2 Chronicles 36:14-16, 19-23 Psalms 137:6Ephesians 2:4-10 John 3:14-21 Download the Homily Study

Homily from the Third Sunday of Lent. Is the question, “Can I trust God?” Or is the better question, “Can God trust me?" There is something that all of us discover about ourselves the moment we have a minute of self-reflection: we have the capacity to do the things we hate. In spite of our best efforts and sincere desires to be consistently good, we have this thing in our chests that ought not to be trusted. We have treacherous hearts. And yet, Jesus entrusts His Heart to ours at every Mass. Mass Readings from March 07, 2021: Exodus 20:1-17 Psalms 19:8-111 Corinthians 1:22-25 John 2:13-25 Download the Homily Study

Homily from the Second Sunday of Lent. Obedience precedes understanding. We are made for adventure. But adventure means mystery and uncertainty. Often, what holds us back from action is a lack of knowing why. But what if there is a better question than “why?”? What if the adventure of obedience means asking “how?”? Mass Readings from February 28, 2021: Genesis 22:1-2, 9-13, 15-18 Psalms 116:10, 15-17, 18-19Romans 8:31-34 Mark 9:2-10 Download the Homily Study

Homily from the First Sunday of Lent. God is not safe, but He is good. Trust is a challenge for all of us. Trust in God is a battle that every person faces at some point in their lives. Often, we might find is easier to trust God if He were a “tame god”, but He is not. This Lent, our invitation is to not only trust in God’s mercy, but also in His justice. Mass Readings from February 21, 2021: Genesis 9:8-15 Psalms 25:4-91 Peter 3:18-22 Mark 1:12-15 Download the Homily Study

Homily from Ash Wednesday. Return to the Lord with your whole heart. We are often tempted to run away from God and from difficult moments in life. We might even be tempted to escape from all that has been taken from us over the past year. But to choose to embrace this moment is to choose to embrace the Lord and His Providence. Mass Readings from February 17, 2021: Joel 2:12-18 Psalms 51:3-6, 12-13, 14 and 172 Corinthians 5:20—6:2 Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18

Homily from the Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time. Every choice comes at a cost. Looking back, there are some things we could have known. And looking back, there are some things we could never have known. But one thing is unfailingly true when seen through hindsight: every decision comes at a price and every choice has a cost. Making the decision is risky, but there are things that are more important than staying safe. Mass Readings from February 14, 2021: Leviticus 13:1-2, 44-46 Psalms 32:1-2, 5, 111 Corinthians 10:31—11:1 Mark 1:40-45 Download the Homily Study

Homily from the Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time. Good times don’t last…and neither do bad times. One of the many things that life teaches us is that life is always changing. To grow is to change. There are times that are good and there are times that are bad. All of us go through good times and bad times and neither of them are permanent. In both good times and bad, Jesus is Lord and He loves the person in a desperate situation and the person in a bright situation. Mass Readings from February 07, 2021: Job 7:1-4, 6-7 Psalms 147:1-61 Corinthians 9:16-19, 22-23 Mark 1:29-39 Download the Homily Study

Homily from the Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time. I learned, but I didn’t grow. Knowledge is powerful. Having lived through this past year, and looking back on what we have been through is essential. We can have learned a great number of things over 2020. But unless we are willing to act on that knowledge, hindsight will be powerless. Mass Readings from January 31, 2021: Deuteronomy 18:15-20 Psalms 95:1-2, 6-7, 7-91 Corinthians 7:32-35 Mark 1:21-28 Download the Homily Study