Peace Archives - Albert the Ordinary

A Silence That Conquers: Homily for the 5th Sunday of Easter 2024

Posted on April 28, 2024April 28, 2024 by Father Albert

5th Sunday of Easter, B April 28, 2024Fr. Alexander Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/yvVT2H8I6Y8 Darkness is the absence of light. Cold is the absence of heat. You can’t “get rid of” darkness and cold. You can only overcome them by adding light and heat. So also with evil. Evil is the absence of good. We don’t defeat evil just by fighting it really hard or running away from it. We defeat evil by running toward what is good and by allowing good to fill us such that it pushes evil away. But what about silence? Sure,...Read More

How You Treat Your King: Homily for the Christ the King 2023

Posted on November 26, 2023February 3, 2024 by Father Albert

Christ the King, A November 26, 2023Fr. Alexander Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/vSPc8phV1jI You could maybe be excused for thinking that today’s solemn feast is about the end of the world. After all, we’ve been hearing about that subject for a few weeks in our readings and today we hear again about the final judgment. Today also marks the last Sunday of the Liturgical year. Next Sunday begins Advent, which is the start of a new cycle. So, it kind of makes sense that the feast of Jesus Christ, King of the Universe should be...Read More

Pastor Column: Pacem in Terris III

Posted on February 27, 2023February 27, 2023 by Father Albert

[N.B. This is not the Sunday Homily. It is an article for the bulletin of Feb 26, 2023] After a long hiatus, we return to our journey through the document Pacem in Terris by Pope St. John XXIII, written in 1963. Last we left off, we were looking at broad changes in society around the world and breaking open the Church’s teaching about government power and human rights. While the Church does not dictate any single governmental system to be the best, Pope John XIII does highlight the value of dividing powers within the government as well as the...Read More

Homily for the 4th Sunday of Ordinary Time: Blessedness and Joy

Posted on January 29, 2023January 29, 2023 by Father Albert

4th Sunday OT, A January 29, 2023Fr. Alexander Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/05AboWUvaQk They are true, you know. These beatitudes, these promises of blessedness are not rhetorical… Jesus isn’t just trying to make a point. What he says is true. There is real blessedness, real joy to be found in each one of these examples. And no, it’s not just a future happiness that he’s talking about. The reasons he gives are in the future tense – will inherit, will be comforted – but the description of blessedness is right now – blessed are they....Read More

Homily for the 20th Sunday of Ordinary Time: Water and Fire

Posted on August 14, 2022August 14, 2022 by Father Albert

20th Sunday in Ordinary Time, C August 14, 2022Fr. Alexander Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/fS5JI_Jm798 Water and fire. Hearing this Gospel, it might be tempting to focus on Jesus’ promise to divide families, but we’ll miss the point of this if we miss what he’s saying about fire and water. These two have certain things in common: both can be used to cleanse and purify and both can be used to kill and destroy. Often, it is by destroying that they purify. Dirt and grime dissolve in water – are kind of...Read More

Homily for the 14th Sunday of Ordinary Time: The Peace of Disciples

Posted on July 3, 2022July 3, 2022 by Father Albert

14th Sunday in Ordinary Time, C July 3, 2022Fr. Alexander Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/ndBvUYXN4ug If, as I claimed last week, freedom is found in commitment and true freedom found in the right kind of commitments, then how do we find that right commitment? What should expect to see in the freeing sacrifice of freedom that marks the Christian way of life? The same kind of things we see in these seventy-two disciples. The first thing is that they travel in pairs, rather than alone. Why? Wouldn’t it be more efficient...Read More

Homily for the 6th Sunday of Easter: The Way of Peace

Posted on May 22, 2022May 22, 2022 by Father Albert

Easter Sunday 6, C May 22, 2022Fr. Alexander Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/FWmyMx8vzto “My peace I give to you.” Of the many gifts Jesus offers, this is probably one of the most requested. “Pray for me to find peace, Father.” And I do so gladly because, after all, Jesus does promise it right here. But what does that peace look like? How do we recognize it, increase it, cooperate with it? In short, the answer is the Holy Spirit. Notice what Jesus lists right before he mentions peace. “The...Read More

Homily for Christmas: The Beginning

Posted on December 26, 2021December 26, 2021 by Father Albert

Christmas December 25, 2021Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/o5yM9yzUvDY There’s just something about a good beginning, isn’t there? When you first crack open a great book… when the last preview ends and the movie’s title screen comes up… the first day of college… your wedding day… the birth of a child… There’s a sense of possibility, of openness, of hope for more to come. I think perhaps that’s one reason so many people love Christmas. New gifts to enjoy, new memories to make. Not only is it just a week away from New Years, it’s...Read More

Homily for the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God: The Blessing

Posted on January 1, 2021January 1, 2021 by Father Albert

Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God January 1, 2021Fr. Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette https://youtu.be/jy9roxeL15M Merry Christmas! We’re still celebrating it you know. The Christmas season lasts until the middle of January – or even to February 2nd if you follow the old calendar. More importantly, today/Friday marks the 8th day, the octave day of the feast of Christ’s birth. As with music, an octave is the same thing in a different register. Christmas is so important, so profound that we spend 8 whole days re-entering into it, celebrating it, and – as Mary...Read More

Father Alexander Albert

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