Your Sunday Sermon Notes: 5th Sunday after Pentecost (N.O. 15th Sunday)

Too many people today are without good, strong preaching, to the detriment of all. Share the good stuff.

Was there a GOOD point made in the sermon you heard at your Mass of obligation for the 5th Sunday after Pentecost (15th Ordinary in the Novus)?

Tell about attendance especially for the Traditional Latin Mass.  I hear that it is growing.  Of COURSE.

Any local changes or (hopefully good) news?

A few thoughts of my own, HERE.

About Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Fr. Z is the guy who runs this blog. o{]:¬)
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12 Comments

  1. maternalView says:

    Attendance about the same as every other week. That is the church is full for the 7 am TLM (including families with young children). The later TLM is usually standing room only.

    Father spent time explaining the 8th commandment in light of the epistle today. I so appreciate it when he explains these things in depth. He spoke of not just lying but murdering with your words through gossip, etc. He did address how we speak about priests and bishops and to remember their souls through ordination are configured to Jesus so when we speak of them we speak of Jesus (I hope I got that right).

    Homilies like this are helpful to me. Plus I can follow along and remember what he said. Some homilies in other churches are so many words– word salad I think it’s called– with a lot of touchy, feely that I usually can’t follow or remember it later.

    I want to mention that last Saturday’s first Saturday Mass was standing room only with confessions continuing even as Mass was over. It’s the most crowded I’d seen it yet. I’m new there so it maybe due to the nicer weather but every first Saturday since the new year seems to have an increase in attendance.

  2. Mike says:

    I went to a TLM in a Virginia Suburb. Well-attended. Beautifully sung with a schola of four ladies. Homily asked to realize how utterly dependent we are on God’s grace. I’m a visitor at this parish. Have been for years. It’s a nice respite from the boomer-musicals at my own parish, which, for daily Mass, is actually great. Makes me long for the wisdom of Benedict XVI in all things liturgical.

  3. Today we live in a world that permits everything but forgives nothing. To withhold forgiveness is to choose suffering (not the redemptive kind). Forgiveness is the triumph of good over evil and love over hatred, and so to forgive really does mean regaining your brother. Memory is the greatest obstacle to forgiveness, but to feel again the pain of the injustice you suffered does not mean that you have not truly forgiven, but is an occasion to forgive again — seventy times seven times.

  4. Not says:

    Father spoke about something he is guilty of…railing, railing about many things, railing against Pope Francis, which received a big laugh.
    Yes, we all have to refrain our lips from speaking evil. As much as these things trouble us , prayer is the answer.

  5. JSzczuka says:

    TLM: Fr delivered excellent homily, starting with St Peter’s epistle, talking about how much ranting and railing we do – about things in the world and in the Church, contrasting it to what we might be doing instead – blessing, praying, studying the word, studying the Fathers and the traditional devotions. He called attention to the virtues listed in the first verses of being merciful, modest and humble. He transitioned to the gospel, emphasizing importance of exceeding the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees who did everything correctly in the externals. He called attention to Jesus’ blunt declaration that unless we do better, we WILL NOT enter the kingdom of heaven. He ended speaking about the tongue again and admonished us all, and included himself, to do better.

  6. Gregg the Obscure says:

    I assisted at an Eastern Catholic Mass today, at the invitation of a friend. Deeply reverent and, to be frank, somewhat alien. Their setting of the Sanctus was sublime though, as was the chanting of the Scriptural lessons.

    Homily was on St. Matthew’s account of the Gerasene demoniacs – two men were possessed and in such a rough condition they couldn’t live around anyone else until the Lord cast out the demons into a herd of swine, which caused the townsfolk to invite Him to leave.

    Father mentioned that this part of the country had been ravaged by war not long before and that it was occupied by Roman troops. The Romans, like nearly all gentiles, liked to eat pork. The locals compromised their religion to raise swine to provision the occupiers. When the Lord heals us of something, it doesn’t mean life will get easier, indeed it may get very much harder. But it will be better. It will be participation in the cross that is individually tailored to each of us. The Gerasene townsfolk weren’t willing to let go of that which was keeping them from a right spiritual life. Are you?

  7. JSzczuka says:

    Not: I think we may have gone to the same mass, LOL! :)

  8. exNOAAman says:

    Got new hearing aids and understood much of what Father said…for the first time in years. (Hopefully not a fluke)
    NO mass gospel of the good Samaritan. Fr pointed out that the victim traveled from Jerusalem to Jericho represents going from good to sinfulness. He was left “half dead”. This is us … on our way to spiritual death. Only Jesus can save us.
    First time I’ve heard that angle.

  9. TonyB says:

    We have a Deacon visiting us from the FSSP, and he’s been giving the sermons lately.

    Today’s sermon was about gossip and backbiting, defamation and calumny, and how it is very easy to sin when being critical of others. I’m not certain I understood all his points.

    There were about 190 people at the 8 a.m. Mass this morning. I don’t know about the High Mass numbers.

  10. I don’t have a good point about a sermon but an observation now that I can attend mass again after two years staying at home.

    The local parish church here was torn down at the start of the pandemic right after the one and only Traditional Latin Mass to ever be held here. (attending at which were people who were usually too shy or scared to come to any other mass, like this confused transgender guy who seems convinced there are people looking to beat him up lurking around ever corner.)

    Once the pandemic started the church was torn down and there was no mass close enough for my family to go to. We thought about taking an overnight ferry to Osaka to go to Mass but could never make it work financially.

    The local priest was still living in the rectory and saying mass on Sundays but you had to be invited to attend and I was never invited.

    Recently, a new church building is being built and is almost finished. With fewer restrictions in place now everyone is allowed to come to the rectory for mass. Since not everyone will fit in the room where the mass actually happens (due to social distancing) there are two other rooms set up with chairs and a TV. We can watch what happens via camera.

    Now observations:

    1:Everyone was really happy to see me again. It was strange cause I usually thought that I was mostly disliked because I didn’t agree with the previous liberal priest. The old woman who used to be a nun even hugged me. Everyone thought I had left the country. They even asked me if I was doing anything to arrange another TLM there. Apparently no one has yet read or even heard of Traditionis Custodes and I’m not going to tell them.

    2: When it came time for communion I thought it was really strange for them to be doing communion in the hand. Most of the people probably hadn’t washed their hands since leaving home. Someone could have touched a surface with the virus on it and then once they receive communion the virus travels and then the person puts it in their mouth. Before going to communion I told my sons to wash their hands before going up there. I’m just happy to get to go back to mass that I don’t feel I can insist on communion on the tongue right now but there’s no reason to infect ourselves when it is preventable.

    3: Once I was thinking about it, if the virus spreads from talking loudly, shouldn’t the congregation try to stay silent as much as possible, at least until the pandemic finally finishes?

    Just my observations. Not trying to say anything more than that. Like I said everyone was very happy to see me and there were even some of my students there who wanted to come and tell me that they too were Catholic.

  11. Ms. M-S says:

    Anita Moore, Thanks for your comment!

  12. misanthrope says:

    Another packed Low Mass at 8:00 am, filled with young parents and their growing families. Father pointed out some of the stained glass windows which were installed when the church was built in the 1850’s that were paid for by parish groups (women’s sodality, etc.). There are both new men’s and new women’s groups being formed at our parish.

    Sermon on forgiveness, well done as usual. We have a High Mass at 10:00 am which is also full. Parish continues to pick up new members in the wake of TC and its ‘supporting’ documents.

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