Dominica Pentecostes 19 May 2024  The Church concludes the Holy Season of Easter today with this great solemnity of Pentecost.  Pentecost is the celebration of that day when, after having prayed for Christ’s promised gift, the Holy Spirit descended upon the early Church, with His gifts and power being poured out upon the Apostles and disciples.  Pentecost being the birth of the Church, the Church being vivified by the Holy Spirit, is such a beautiful feast that it was a natural choice when I was choosing the date to observe with you my 25th anniversary of ordination to the pries ..read more

Homily for Pentecost Sunday by Fr. Stephen Hamilton. Celebration of 25 years of priesthood. Reading I Acts 2:1-11 Responsorial Psalm 104:1, 24, 29-30, 31, 34 Reading II 1 Cor 12:3b-7, 12-13 Gospel Jn 20:19-23 ..read more

Dominica in Pasqua VI 5 May 2024  My Kindergarten teacher, Sister Mary Samuel, taught my class the Rosary.  When we small kids naturally started putting the rosary over our heads, Sister told us gently: “Now children, we don’t treat it like jewelry, or something just to wear.  We treat it respectfully as something we use for prayer.”  After Sister’s example and lesson, it was a man whose dedication to Mary and the Rosary most stands out to me and has impacted me greatly.  That man was my maternal grandfather, Jack Ryan.  At the end of his life, in and out of consc ..read more

Homily for the Sixth Sunday of Easter by Fr. Stephen Hamilton. Reading 1 Acts 10:25-26, 34-35, 44-48 Responsorial Psalm Ps 98:1, 2-3, 3-4 Reading 2 1 Jn 4:7-10 Alleluia Jn 14:23 Gospel Jn 15:9-17 ..read more

Homily for the Fourth Sunday of Easter by Fr. Stephen Hamilton. Reading 1 Acts 4:8-12 Responsorial Psalm Ps 118:1, 8-9, 21-23, 26, 28, 29 Reading 2 1 Jn 3:1-2 Alleluia Jn 10:14 Gospel Jn 10:11-18 ..read more

Dominica in Pasqua IV 21 April 2024  The Gospel passage for this Sunday is familiar.  We hear the Lord declare that he is the Good Shepherd.  It is a tender image.  The Lord Jesus is not simply claiming to be a good shepherd in a superficial way, as if to use the image only to put a nice sentiment in the minds of disciples.  He is also making a contrast between himself and those who are bad shepherds, what the text refers to as a “hired man” and other translations call a “hireling” and even a “mercenary”.  There is an Old Testament precedent for this image of the ..read more

Dominica in Pasqua II Divine Mercy Sunday 7 April 2024  In my homily for the Easter Vigil and Easter Sunday I suggested that our “Alleluia” returns in this season and is joyful precisely because, if we have used Lent well, when the “alleluia” is suppressed, then we have confronted the reality of our own sins and the sinfulness in mankind’s history.  This admission of our guilt can serve to make us more aware of what God has done for us in saving us.  And thus, it makes us more grateful and joyful in signing out “Alleluia” in this season of the resurrection.  Praise the Lord ..read more

Easter Vigil & Sunday 30 & 31 March 2024    At Easter we return to our familiar singing of “alleluia”.  That word originates from the Hebrew and means “Praise the Lord” or “God be praised.”  One of the distinctive liturgical features of Lent is that the alleluia has been suppressed these past many weeks.  We are accustomed to the alleluia before the Gospel, but we use a different Gospel acclamation throughout Lent.  In some religious communities and in some parishes there is the practice as Lent gets started of marking that suppression of the alleluia by t ..read more

Homily for Second Sunday of Easter, Sunday of Divine Mercy by Fr. Stephen Hamilton. Reading 1Acts 4:32-35 Responsorial Psalm Ps 118:2-4, 13-15, 22-24 Reading 2 1 Jn 5:1-6 AlleluiaJn 20:29 Gospel Jn 20:19-31 ..read more

Homily for Holy Saturday At the Easter Vigil in the Holy Night of Easter by Fr. Stephen Hamilton. Reading I Gn 1:1—2:2 Responsorial Psalm Ps 104:1-2, 5-6, 10, 12, 13-14, 24, 35 Reading II Gn 22:1-18 Responsorial Psalm Ps 16:5, 8, 9-10, 11 Reading III Ex 14:15—15:1 Responsorial Psalm Ex 15:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 17-18 Reading IV Is 54:5-14 Responsorial PsalmPs 30:2, 4, 5-6, 11-12, 13    Reading VIs 55:1-11 Responsorial Psalm Is 12:2-3, 4, 5-6 Reading VI Bar 3:9-15, 32--4:4 Responsorial Psalm Ps 19:8, 9, 10, 11  Reading VII Ez 36:16-17a, 18-28 Responsorial Psalm Ps 42:3, 5; 43:3 ..read more