iPadre: Fr. Cooper's Homilies

What's in Your Wheelhouse? - 17th Sunday in OT

I want to ask you this morning, “What’s in your wheelhouse that you can offer Jesus?” Giving to His Kingdom isn’t just about giving material gifts. Giving to His kingdom is about giving yourself. Have you a specific skill that Christ can use for the betterment of the world? What’s in your wheelhouse that you can offer Jesus? A young lad had five barley loaves and two small fish that he offered the Master, and look what happened. Can you imagine how that young man felt when he got home? Can you imagine his excitement as he tried to tell others? You and I can know that kind of excitement. All we have to do is to give Jesus what is in our wheelhouse!!

When I am Weak, I am Strong - 14th Sunday in OT

Can you hear St. Paul testifying about what God had done in his life? “Look at me,” he would say, “I once persecuted the church. Look at me, a man who has to battle this humiliating affliction--this thorn in the flesh. Yet Christ has used me to plant churches all over the known world.” St. Paul was a man of tremendous intellect. He was also a man of unquestionable persuasive powers. Perhaps if it had not been for his thorn in the flesh, he would have leaned upon his own ability rather than the power of God working through him. And you and I would never have heard the name of Paul of Tarsus. That’s the way God works. St. Paul's weakness became his strength. His scar became a star. His hurt became a halo. And the same thing can happen to us--if we don’t give into our weaknesses, and if our weaknesses causes us to rely upon God.

Reclaiming Religious Freedom - 13th Sunday in OT

On Wednesday, Americans will celebrate Independence Day, a day which affords us a great opportunity to consider the freedom we enjoy today – and may so often take for granted. How many men and women have given life and treasure to purchase for us our right to liberty? One of the most precious freedoms we enjoy as Americans is the Freedom of religion. Unfortunately, in the past decade, we have seen multiple assaults on religious liberty. We pray that we can proclaim Christ in Peace, but no one will prevent us from our mandate to proclaim the Kingdom of God! This Independence Day, that us renew our “eternal vigilance” before everything we know is taken away from us. Just as Jesus Christ died to give us true freedom, so many of our countrymen have died to give us the liberty that we possess and enjoy and dare I say, so often take for granted.

His Name is John! - Nativity of John the Baptist

In one of the more remarkable moments of the Gospel, Elizabeth defied family tradition with one succinct phrase: “He will be called John.” As the Gospel indicates, the name is not an accident. It was pronounced by the angel Gabriel to Zechariah – and its meaning serves to send a message to the world. Some translations have it as “Gift of God” or “Graced by God.” But in one interpretation that I like, the name means “God is gracious.” And so it was, that before this child uttered a word, just with his name, announced the hope that would come with the Christ. God is gracious!

How Do You Answer the Door? - 10th Sunday in OT

The Rule of St. Benedict, written by St. Benedict of Nursia 1,500 years ago, has instructions for a very specific role in the monastery—the porter in charge of answering the door. The porter’s job is to open the door to the monastery when someone knocks. Not much of a role, you say? It actually is. One contemporary Benedictine author notes, “The way we answer doors is the way we deal with the world.” God is calling us to the privilege of opening the doors of our lives to each other, to welcome each other as family. So open your door with reverence and love!

Corpus Christi 2018 - Are You a Man or a Mouse?

On this Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ, we are summoned to deepen our faith in the Lord, present in the Eucharist and acting through His Sacraments. Routine may have dulling effects, but it cannot be such that we receive the Lord of glory each Sunday in any way that would be called mindless. Ask the Lord to anoint your mind so that you never forget your need for the Eucharist. Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His Blood, you have no life in you (cf Jn 6:53). However, receive this great gift worthily and with a communion that befits the Holy Communion to which we are summoned. Be a MAN and not a MOUSE!

Why am I Afraid? - Trinity Sunday

It is so beautiful that we can talk to God as our loving Father. That we can walk with Jesus as our brother. And that we can live by the light and the gifts of their Spirit of love. But, fear is our enemy. We need to know this. And many of us need to make a commitment to living boldly for Christ. Many of us need to start living out our adoption as sons and daughters of God. So in this Holy Mass and all throughout this whole week, let us pray for the grace to deepen our awareness of the Blessed Trinity’s loving presence within our souls. And let us remember the words of Jesus: "I am with you always, until the end of the age."  

God's Way, God's Will, & God's Time - Ascension of the Lord

So the transition described by St. Luke in the Acts of the Apostles is complete. Christ has left the earth. Now the burden of the Kingdom is on the shoulders of the Church. But we needn’t worry. The Holy Spirit is with us and so we will witness amazing, miraculous events as long as we focus on His way, His will, and His time. Christ’s Kingdom is coming. And all who worship the Lord Jesus will one day share in the final victory. Praise be to God!

The Command to Love - 6th Sunday of Easter

Where does love come from? It comes from God alone. What does it look like? It looks like a man hanging on a Cross in our behalf. What does such love require out of us? It requires us to move beyond “need love” to “gift love.” To look around at others who are in need of God’s love and to give it to them--not asking what they can do for us, but remembering what Christ has done for us. This is my command,” Jesus said to his disciples, and also to us: “Love one another.”

Have You Been Pruned? - 5th Sunday of Easter

Christ is the true vine. We are the branches. And we have but one job. That is to bear fruit. We could be doing so much more for the sake of the Kingdom, but we have forgotten that our main task is to make a difference in the world. There is another question besides, where is your fruit? That question is, have you been pruned? It is only after we have been pruned that we can bear the most splendid fruit of all. Pruning can be painful. When the owner of the vineyard prunes a vine, not only does he cut away all the dead wood. He also cuts away some of the live wood. “The vineyards in the early spring look like a collection of barren, bleeding stumps,” says one Bible scholar, “but in the fall they are filled with luxuriant purple grapes. As the farmer wields the pruning knife on his vines,” he continues, “so God cuts dead wood out from among His saints, and often cuts back the living wood so far that His method seems cruel.  Nevertheless, from those who have suffered the most there often comes the greatest fruitfulness.” Can you do that? Can you take any adverse trial and pray, “Lord, is there some way you can use this event to prune me and cause me to bear more fruit to your glory?”