The King's Corner

Homily for the Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time Readings for today's Homily

Today’s Gospel reading is about using our talents wisely.  Almost all of us believe Jesus, through Matthew, is telling us to use our God-given talents wisely, especially to help others.  Yes, we should, but this reading clearly tells us that talents are a form of money.  In fact, a talent was worth about 20 years of wages for a laborer!  So what’s it all about – the message? Jesus begins his parable by saying, “A man going on a journey.”   Who was that man and where was he going?  We only know from Luke’s version of this same parable. He was a man of noble birth going to a distant place to have himself appointed king of his own people.  Then he would return.  Also from Luke, we learn his compatriots disliked him and did not want him to be king.  That’s critical information, and we don’t find it in Matthew’s version.  Although, in Matthew we discover this man was a demanding person harvesting where he did not plant and gathering where he did not scatter.  No wonder his compatrio

I attended a “fair” over at the Brewster “Dog Park” last week.   Wandering by the booths, I came across one set up by Shirley Pieters Vogel.  An inspirational speaker and author of the book wHispers, she took the time to explain who she was and her latest project – the book “Faith, Favorites, Fun, and Fotos of Cape Cod."   I opened her book and flipped through the pages to come across the following story about Christmas.   I know we have a few months to go, but I cannot wait, so I share one of her “author unknown” selections. “There’s a wonderful story about a mother who went to her kindergarten son’s ‘Winter Pageant.’  Because the public school system had stopped referring to the holiday as Christmas, she didn’t expect anything other than fun entertainment about reindeer, Santa Claus, snowflakes, and good cheer.  When her little boy’s class rose to sing ‘Christmas Love,’ she was surprised by its bold title.

As of today we are offering a live stream of our sanctuary 24/7.  If you haven't already heard, this will enable folks to "participate" in daily and weekend masses, weddings, funerals, etc.  This will be a gift to our shut ins and our snow birds.  During the week we will use one camera position.  On the weekend, Judy Warren will operate the camera so different angles/positions can be used.  This will be done primarily at the 4 pm vigil on Saturday.  As we have done in the past, the homily will be posted on our website and on Face Book. This is our latest effort to proclaim the good news! For easy access the link can be found on the homepage of our website under the words WELCOME... or you can check it out now by clicking "Live Stream" .To make it full screen, scroll over the image and click the screen icon in the bottom left corner.

Readings for today's homily We sometimes tell children that there are two magic words, please and thank-you.  In our prayer life, we sometimes focus on the please and not the thank-you.  Please do this, give me that, please, please, please! In Paul's letter to the Thessalonians, we are reminded there is also a thank-you when he says "We ought to thank God always for you, brothers and sisters". Maybe it's a call for us this day to be conscious of the blessings we have in life; perhaps it is other people, or certain situations, or good health, good friends.  Let us focus on the second of the magic words today, thank-you.

Homily for the Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time Readings for today's Homily

Shark Week on Discovery Channel has come and gone, and it continued to attract our attention.  It certainly attracted mine because I work for the Commonwealth’s Division of Marine Fisheries.  Dr. Greg Skomal – whose work with collaborators was profiled during Shark Week – is a friend and a scientist/colleague working for DMF.  I was reminded of Greg’s research by a Thursday Cape Cod Times article, “WHOI exhibit features battered SharkCam.”  I had seen that 1-hour show filmed off Guadalupe Island in Mexico last fall, and I was struck by the great white shark attacks on the SharkCam that Greg witnessed with Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) researchers.  This fascinating footage in crystal-clear waters off a seal beach has become an Internet sensation, according to the Times’ writer Sean Driscoll. Diving up to 100 meters and equipped with video cameras, the SharkCam (modified REMUS or Remote Environmental Monitoring Units) found and followed sharks harpooned-tagged by Gre

Why do skeletons hate winter?  Because the cold goes right through them.  What did the skeleton say while riding his Harley Davidson?   I’m bone to be wild.  What did the skeleton say to his girlfriend?  I love every bone in your body.   What is a skeleton favorite Star Trek character?  Bones.   I could go one, but I won’t. Today’s first reading is one of the best, in my opinion, and is a model for the sort of television shows one frequently sees on the SciFi channel.  It also reminds me of the 2005 long-running television show, “Bones,” a comedy-drama, crime series in which a forensic anthropologist helps solve crimes by examining skeletal remains of victims. We can all relate to bones, especially when they are broken, and a visit to the emergency room is in order for x-rays, diagnoses, and casts.   With me it has been fingers and toes.   One of my sons had a collar bone broken during the last game of his senior year in high school.  Gotta love that pad-skimpy game of lacross

Yesterday I described Sister Elizabeth Johnson’s book “Ask the Beasts: Darwin and the God of Love.”   I also mentioned her previous book “Quest for the Living God.”  To my surprise, after reading the article “Stakes are high as LCWR heads into annual assembly” in the August 15-28 National Catholic Reporter, I learned that Johnson was to be honored by the Leadership Conference of Women Religious despite being warned by a top Vatican official [Cardinal Gerhard Müller] that honoring her would be considered provoking the Holy See and U.S. Bishops.   That honoring occurred on August 15 at which time Sister Johnson said, “To this day, no one, not myself or the theological community, the media, or the general public knows what doctrinal issue is at stake.”   LCWR represents about 80 percent of sisters in the United States. I must admit I’m still trying to understand what’s going on.  It seems in 2011 the Committee on Doctrine of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops concluded her book

Deacon Paul Harney in his blog last week highlighted an interview with Pope Francis who listed his top 10 secrets to happiness.   Number 7 was:  “Respect and take care of nature.  ‘Environmental degradation is one of the biggest challenges we have,’ he said.  ‘I think a question that we’re not asking ourselves is: ‘Isn’t humanity committing suicide with this indiscriminate and tyrannical use of nature?”  Being on Cape Cod and so close to pristine and gorgeous environments, seemingly undegraded, we tend to forget the abuse and devastation occurring elsewhere in the U.S. and throughout the world as population pressure with its many consequences squeezes out the natural inhabitants – plant and animal alike.   Much is slip sliding away, and, in fact, is gone forever. Elizabeth Johnson, author and Professor of Theology at Fordham University, describes why this must stop.  To do so she suggests we: “…Ask the beasts to teach you…the hand of the Lord has done this.  In his hand is the so

Have we rohr’d recently?  Being a fan of Father Richard Rohr, a Franciscan priest and author of more than 20 books, I wolfed down his latest entitled, “Silent Compassion: Finding God in Contemplation.”   As usual, Father Rohr challenges us to be honest with ourselves and others, especially with those of other faiths.  Consider, “…Either you see God in all things, or very quickly you cannot see God anywhere, even in your own species.  And yet, we Christians have spent the last 500 years since the Reformation dividing and deciding where God was, believing God is in our church, but not yours.  Interestingly enough, we determined it was usually ‘my church’ that God preferred and where God resided.  It was the very lie that Jesus tried to undo among his own chosen people, and he experienced the same backlash.” Rohr then speaks of judging others that we all do because we have “judgmental, comparative, and competitive minds.”  He says, “Jesus refers to this judgmental mind.  That’s why

Today’s first reading is hard to swallow for any man who has lost his wife from illness, accident, or old age.  Consider that Ezekiel said, “The word of the LORD came to me: Son of man, by a sudden blow I am taking away from you the delight of your eyes , but do not mourn or weep or shed any tears. Groan in silence, make no lament for the dead, bind on your turban, put your sandals on your feet, do not cover your beard, and do not eat the customary bread.  That evening my wife died …” Few men would ever claim, “God purposefully took my wife away,” although some might simply say, “It was God’s will.”  I say, “Balderdash!”  I much prefer to believe, in a metaphorical way, that God weeps with me and shares my lament.   And why not?!   My wife and I were both made in the image and likeness of God, and through our marriage we were both of one flesh.  Like any good, constant, and compassionate companion, the Holy Spirit within shares my broken-heartedness and is the love within me offeri

Homily for the Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time Readings for today's Homily

I’m a dog lover.  Many of us are although there are many that love dogs’ evil counterparts – cats.   I apologize to cat lovers, although just google “evil cats,” and you’ll see what I mean. We find that dogs are mentioned in today’s Gospel.  Specifically, Jesus says to the Canaanite woman: “It is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs.”    The woman says in reply, “Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps.”  What’s wrong here?  It sounds like Jesus is being cruel to this woman who, by the way, does not take what he says lying down – like a dog at its Master’s feet.  She speaks up; wants her daughter healed; and won’t take “no” for an answer even when Jesus, at first, wouldn’t even talk to her (according to Matthew who likely wrote the narrative to make his Jesus-related point).

In the relatively short time that he has been Pope, it would be nearly impossible not to see an image of Pope Francis with that warm friendly smile as he engages the crowds around him.  I find it nearly impossible to not stop what I'm doing to read or watch or listen to the facts around the images. But the truth is that his appeal comes not from Francis being Francis, but from Pope Francis being Christ-like in all his actions.  Such as choosing to live in more humble accommodations, going out at night in disguise to minister the the homeless and inviting some of them to share breakfast with him on his birthday.  The list of such acts of compassion and love by this man goes back decades and grows longer each day. Last Month the Holy Father gave an interview to the Argentine weekly "Viva" in which he listed his Top 10 secrets to happiness and I've included them here below. 1. “Live and let live.” Everyone should be guided by this principle, he said, which has a sim

Readings for today's Homily We hear in the Gospel today that we need to become like little children.  I think we can all identify with the image of a young child, say 10-12 months, who reacts instinctively to a smile or a sound that can make the child smile.  There's a sense of wonder and awe with the world. Maybe you and I need to recapture that; that we become so dull we don't see the greatness that is in life.  Could we not just smile like a little child?

Today we honor the memory of St. Clare, one of the great saints of the church and a contemporary of St. Francis of Assisi.  She was born into a wealthy family and her parents tried to arrange a marriage for her at the age of 15 to a wealthy man.  She resisted, and eventually, after a couple of years, she went to St. Francis who cut her hair and clothed her in a habit; she became the female equivalent of St. Francis. Her order was called the Ladies of the Poor.  If you visit Assisi today, and walk down the hill, you see the convent where she lived and that she never really left.  Lots of people would come to her for advice.  After her death the religious community was renamed the Poor Clares which we still have today. Maybe if we just pause and honor her today we can say to ourselves if she could do what she did, maybe I can do just a little bit more in the sense of being a disciple of the Lord.  Maybe we are not called to be as radical as Clare was, but we probably can do more than

Homily for the Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time Readings for today's Homily

Mark K  Shriver ~ A Good Man “Faith, Hope and Love in Action” Thursday August 7, 2014 at 7:00 PM  ~ Mark will use his father’s example to glean insights about the durability of faith, a faith that demands acts of hope and love. How did Sargent Shriver create the Peace Corps, lead the War on Poverty - including the development of such programs as Head Start, Legal Services, Foster Grandparents, and VISTA - expand Special Olympics around the globe, and still attend Mass on a daily basis? How was he happily married for 56 years, raising five kids all of whom loved him, and always so joyful? Sharing the lessons he learned in writing his New York Times best-selling and Christopher Award-winning memoir, “A Good Man: Rediscovering My Father, Sargent Shriver,” Mark will explore the source of his father’s joy—his faith—and how it sustained him through life. It is this faith that can help us all as we strive to be better men and women, to be as good a human being as Sargent Shriver.

"I'll do the best I can with what God have given me." These were the words uttered by Sargent Shriver as he anticipated the onset of the dreaded altzymers disease. Shriver's legacy is one to be admired from his political achievements to his rock-solid faith and belief in God exhibited in his attendance at daily Mass. Tonight, at 7:00 p.m. at Christ The King, Mark Shriver - Sargent Shriver's son - will speak about the life and times of his father, all of which he has documented in a recently published book.The achievements and the escapade's of Sargent Shriver could be described in  many ways but Mark Shriver may have described it best in the title of his book: A Good Man

The story of the Transfiguration, the feast that we celebrate today, is found in all three of the so-called “synoptic” Gospels – Matthew, Mark, and Luke.  The story is generally placed after the profession of faith by Peter and right before the first prediction of the Passion. Perhaps we can pray the scripture by imagining what the voice said to the disciples is being said to us this day.  “This is my beloved Son; listen to Him.”  How do we need to listen to Christ today?  Not only with our ears, but with our hearts.  What is it that He is urging us to do?  What changes are we to make in our life?  How we are to uphold the practices that we have in spiritual exercises, and maybe even to improve them. “This is my beloved Son; listen to Him.”

What would truly make you happy? Our search for happiness can be hampered by the difficulties, distractions and challenges of life which often times mask what our true happiness should look like. Is true happiness a dollar amount or a material possession? Please join friend, fellow-deacon and clinician Dr. Rick Varieur as he cracks the code on true happiness.

Homily for the Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time Readings for today's Homily

In both of today's readings we see what is rationally and morally right being cast aside so that greed and self-centeredness could prevail. We see this both in the treatment of John the Baptist who was put to death simply to satisfy the whims of Herodias' daughter and we see it in the treatment of Jeremiah  by the politicians who wanted him dead because of his prophesy against the city. In today's world we see a similar infiltration of those who wish to change our religious beliefs on what we know is morally and ethically right. We see this attempt at skewing our moral beliefs whether it be the rejection of our belief that the unborn child has a right to a God given life, to the refusal to accept the children from South America who are here with nothing - in many cases not even a parent. As true followers of Christ we are called to make morally correct decisions, we are called to put self-centeredness and politics aside - we are called to do what is right. Jesus makes i

In late August/early September Christ the King will join Good Shepherd Parish on Martha's Vineyard and St. John's in Pocasset in offering a live stream of our sanctuary 24/7.  This will enable folks to "participate" in daily masses, weddings, funerals, etc.  This will be a gift to our shut ins and our snow birds.  During the week we will use one camera position.  On the weekend, Judy Warren will operate the camera so different angles/positions can be used.  This will be done primarily at the 4 pm vigil on Saturday.  As we have done in the past, the homily will be posted on our website and on Face Book. This is our latest effort to proclaim the good news! Msgr. Daniel F. Hoye