UMD NEWMAN CATHOLIC CAMPUS MINISTRY

Homily from the Third Sunday of Lent. "When it comes down to it, I don't like man-made religion anymore than you do. That's why I'm Catholic: because we realize that Jesus said in Matthew 16, 'You are rock. And upon this rock I will build my Church.' If you choose to be Catholic, or if you were raised Catholic, you were brought into not a man-made religion, you were brought into a God-made religion." Mass Readings from March 3, 2013: Exodus 3:1-8, 13-15 1 Corinthians 10:1-6, 10-12 Luke 13:1-9

Homily from the Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time. "''You're a good boy? That's not what I need, I don't need a bunch of good little boys.' Jesus looks at us and says, 'I don't need a bunch of good little girls.' He says, 'You lack one thing. You're good, but you could be more than good. You could be mine.' That's the difference. Jesus does not need a bunch of tame, nice, good little boys and girls. He needs people who belong to Him.'" Mass Readings from October 14, 2012: Wisdom 7:7-11 Hebrews 4:12-13 Mark 10:17-30

Homily from the Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord. "Do you know what that word 'witness' actually is in Greek? The word 'witness' in Greek is 'mártys', which actually in English is the word 'martyr'. Jesus said to His Apostles, 'It's a springtime, the first springtime. And in this springtime you will be My martyrs. You will be My witnesses.' ...In the new springtime, what the Church needs is for us to be witnesses. Because it's springtime, it's time to plant some seeds. And the blood of the martyrs is the seeds of the Church." Mass Readings from May 12, 2013: Acts 1:1-11 Ephesians 1:17-23 Luke 24:46-53

Homily from the Fifth Sunday of Lent. "Whenever we take a good thing and make it the ultimate thing, we enslave ourselves. And we have to obey the #1 commandment of every one of these false gods, every one of these counterfeit gods, every one of these idols. The #1 commandment is this: 'Thou shalt perform.' No matter what it is. To get money? Perform. To get success? Perform. To have a good reputation, you have to act a certain way. 'Thou shalt perform.' ...The reality is this: our main problem with idols is that we think that we need them." Mass Readings from March 17, 2013: Isaiah 43:16-21 Philippians 3:8-14 John 8:1-11

Homily from the Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time. "If I am going to love God with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength, love means keeping His law. When you and I obey His commandments, that's an incredible, powerful act of love. What does pride do? It brings me in on myself. What does love do? Love calls me out of myself. Love sets me free from the tyranny of my feelings. Actual love, the command, sets me free from the dictatorship of my emotions. Because even when I don't feel like it, I am called to live in love." Mass Readings from November 4, 2012: Deuteronomy 6:2-6 Hebrews 7:23-28 Mark 12:28-34

Homily from the Thirty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time. "What's one of the reasons you and I offer sacrifices? One of the reasons is because you and I need it. ...In the old covenant, they understood the power that money can have over someone's heart, how it could enslave someone, because almost nothing can enslave someone like money can. So they said right away to just give God your best, give God your first fruits. And the question I can ask myself tonight is this: do I give God my best? Or do I give God whatever's left?"Mass Readings from November 11, 2012: 1 Kings 17:10-16 Hebrews 9:24-28 Mark 12:38-44

Homily from the Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time. "We have a God who had all strength, and He emptied Himself of all strength. We have a God who had all power, and He emptied Himself of all power. Why? So that not only would we know ourselves, but also so that we could know HIM. ...When I know me, I know humility. When I know Him, I know confidence. Because I know a God who has an atoning love for me, He is not afraid and He is not ashamed to embrace my weakness. He is not ashamed to pour out His strength so that I can be strong." Mass Readings from October 21, 2012: Isaiah 53:10-11 Hebrews 4:14-16 Mark 10:35-45

Homily from the Second Sunday of Easter, Divine Mercy Sunday. "What is in you that makes God love you? What in you draws God to love you so much? What in you draws God to choose you so much? I'll tell you what: your brokenness. Your woundedness. What is in you that draws God to love you with a Love that will never end is your need. What caused God to race after your heart, to race after the human race? Not our greatness, but our brokeness. Nothing attracts God's love more than your lowliness. Nothing attracts God's love more than your brokenness. Nothing makes God love you more than your wounds." Mass Readings from April 7, 2013: Acts 5:12-16 Revelation 1:9-11,12-13,17-19 John 20:19-31

Homily from the Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time. "Now when it comes to marriage, you don’t even have to bring morality into this whole thing. There are all sorts of unnecessary non-essential elements to marriage. But again, what makes marriage a unique relationship in all of humanity? Is it love? No. Lots of relationships have love. Is it commitment? No. Lots of relationships have commitment. What makes marriage unique? It is that it is a specific union of hearts and wills, culminating in biological unity oriented towards the creation of life." Mass Readings from October 7, 2012: Genesis 2:18-24 Hebrews 2:9-11 Mark 10:2-16

Homily from the Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time. "Anyone who claims to love God but doesn't love the person next to them is a liar. ...Caring for the poor, caring for orphans, caring for widows, this is the essential identity of the Church, not something extra. But if we don't care for the poor around us, we are not the Church." Mass Readings from September 30, 2012: Numbers 11:25-29 James 5:1-6 Mark 9:38-48

Homily from the Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time. "Here is the secret: Jesus Himself was free from that slavery to be significant, He was free from the slavery to be jealous. There was no one more significant, whoever walked the face of this Earth, than Jesus. No one more powerful, no one more wise, no one with as much to offer. But what did He do? What was the most significant thing that He wanted us to remember? At one point, the miracles were stripped away. At another point, His beauty was stripped away. At another point, His power is stripped away. Even His ability to move is stripped away as all of His clothes are stripped away. And all we're left with is this image of this insignificant Man on this insignificant Wood of this insignificant tree." Mass Readings from September 23, 2012: Wisdom 2:12,17-20 James 3:16-4:3 Mark 9:30-37

Homily from the Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time. "Here is the big question: We might say with our lips, "This is who I believe God is..." Do we put that faith into practice? ...We might come here, and again, in a few moments we're going to stand up and profess our faith, but if I haven't been living like I actually believe this, then my faith is worse than useless: it's actually condemning." Mass Readings from September 16, 2012: Isaiah 50:5-9 James 2:14-18 Mark 8:27-35

Homily from the Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time. "When it comes to Jesus, He is going to be so patient with you. There is room to fail in grace. But do not be deceived, Jesus will not settle for a sub-par life. In Christ, there is room to fail. And in grace, there is room to sin ehen it comes to life with Christ (not that we plan on it.) ...But there is room to fall down, there is room to make mistakes. Why? Because in the spiritual life and in following Christ, I don't care how long you have been doing it...we are all, in this room, beginners. Which is good news, because beginners have room to fail. Beginners can ask question. Beginners need help." Mass Readings from September 9, 2012: Isaiah 35:4-7 James 2:1-5 Mark 7:31-37

Homily from the Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time. "The Church says that your deepest self, your most authentic self, is revealed to you in Jesus. And Jesus fully reveals man to himself. I think my problem is this: my vision of my life is too small. My vision of my authentic self, to which I am going to be true, my vision of my true self is actually too small. But when I meet Christ, He begins to ask me for more than I am willing to give, He is asking me to start living in a way that's bigger than I am willing to live. But then Christ begins to say this: 'Do you want to know who you really are? Then stop looking at yourself and start looking at Me.'" Mass Readings from September 2, 2012: Deuteronomy 4:1-2,6-8 James 1:17-18,21-22,27 Mark 7:1-8,14-15,21-23

Homily from the Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time. "Here is the Father, pouring Himself out in love to the Son. The Son receives that love and pours Himself back out in love to the Father. And that love is so real, that it is actually a third Person, called the Holy Spirit. ...Nothing more truly images God's deepest secret than Marriage. Why? You have the Groom, the husband pours himself out in love fully to his Bride. She receives his love and pours her love back. And if everything goes right, nine months later, that love has a name. That is why we say we can't mess with Marriage. Why? It's not because we don't like it or we don't want to, but because it's not messing with the incidentals, it's messing with the actual, essential identity of who God Himself is in and of Himself." Mass Readings from August 26, 2012: Joshua 24:1-2,15-17,18 Ephesians 5:21-32 John 6:60-69