Father Matthew Tomeny, MIC, opens his homily by declaring that the true test of love which distinguishes Christians is the love of the enemy. He reminds us that Christ commands this love, and that it is the hallmark that sets the Church apart from both believers and non‑believers. By examining the lives of the saints, we see that genuine love is measured not by affection but by the willingness to wish the good of the other, especially their salvation, even when that person has caused us great pain.

He cites G.K. Chesterton’s insight that love becomes a virtue only when it embraces the unlovable. Father Matthew stresses that loving those who love us yields no spiritual reward; the real treasure lies in loving those who have nothing good to give us. Drawing on Aquinas, Father Tomeny explains that love is the willing of the other’s good, not a feeling of fondness. He challenges listeners to ask themselves whether they truly love their enemies or merely love the good that can be obtained through them.

To illustrate sacrificial love, he recounts the story of Monsignor Flannery, an Irish priest who, during the Nazi occupation of Rome, built a network of safe houses that saved countless Jews. After the war, the very Gestapo officer whose life he had saved—Colonel Kepler—sought Flannery’s help for his own family. Flannery’s unconditional love led him to aid the former enemy, ultimately guiding Kepler to baptism fifteen years later. This transformation demonstrates how love of the enemy can soften hardened hearts and draw even the most sinful toward God.

Father  Matthew warns against the temptation to seek vengeance, noting that true heroism is not the triumph over evil but the willingness to lay down one’s own safety for the good of the other, receiving nothing in return. He reminds us that God’s love is given freely, without expectation, and that we are called to mirror this divine generosity. While setting healthy boundaries is permissible, the ultimate goal is to love in a way that reveals God’s mercy to the enemy, breaking cycles of hatred and inviting conversion.

He concludes with a prayerful invitation: may the Blessed Virgin intercede for us so that, like Christ and the saints, we may love our enemies out of love for God, allowing His mercy to flow through us to a world desperate for healing. May we each ask for the grace to love without condition, trusting that such love reflects the very heart of the Father.

The readings for this homily: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/022726.cfm

Father Chris Alar, MIC, begins by reminding us that forgiveness is often misunderstood. He explains that we are called to let go of resentment, not to forge a friendship with the one who harms us. Forgiveness, he says, releases the heart from hatred while leaving space for justice.

He then draws us into a powerful story from the 2014 World Apostolic Congress on Mercy. Pastor Mira Garcia, a Colombian mother, endured the murder of her father, the killing of her husband, the kidnapping and death of her daughter, and the brutal loss of her son. Yet, amid unimaginable grief, she chose to care for the very man who had killed her child. By praying to the Blessed Virgin for the strength to forgive, she moved beyond mere forgiveness into true reconciliation—a mercy that restores, not merely releases.

Father Chris emphasizes that the Church calls us to the Sacrament of Reconciliation, not simply the Sacrament of Forgiveness. In that Sacrament, God does not turn us away after we are absolved; He draws us back into communion with Himself. Mercy, therefore, surpasses forgiveness: it heals the wound and rebuilds the broken relationship.

Father Chis warns against “false mercy” that ignores accountability. Justice and correction, offered in love, are themselves works of mercy. We are invited to confront wrongdoing, seek restitution, and yet pray for the grace to forgive, following Christ’s example.

The readings for this homily: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/022626.cfm

Father  Daniel  Klimek, PhD, challenges us to let the Golden Rule become the litmus test of every relationship. He reminds us that the command “do to others whatever you would have them do to you” is not only the law of the prophets but also a mirror of the contrasting dynamics found in the angelic and demonic hierarchies. In the demonic community, power is exercised through control, abuse and isolation, with stronger demons exploiting the weaker. The angelic community, by contrast, models generosity: The seraphim, nearest to God, receive the deepest experience of divine love and willingly transmit that love to the lower angelic and saintly orders, fostering communion rather than division.

Father Daniel invites us to examine our own interactions. Do we, consciously or unconsciously, impose control, emotional abuse, or isolation on others or ourselves? He urges a radical empathy that goes beyond polite respect, asking us to mentally inhabit the other person’s suffering, poverty, and woundedness. Such empathy opens the path to forgiveness, because we begin to see our hurt, not as merely an affront to our ego, but as the consequence of another soul bruised by pain.

Viewing others through “supernatural eyes,” as Fr. Daniel puts it, means recognizing the inherent human dignity both of ourselves and of our neighbors.

The readings for this homily: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/022226.cfm

Father Chris  Alar, MIC, invites us to reconsider the Genesis story in light of both tradition and modern discoveries. He notes that scientific genealogy now points to a single ancestral woman, reinforcing the plausibility that Adam and Eve were actual historical persons. He stresses that the biblical account employs symbolic language to convey theological truth, not to serve as a scientific textbook. The garden, he explains, symbolizes the state of grace—a divine communion that humanity originally shared with the Father. By locating the entrance of Eden to the east, the ancient tradition connects the garden with the tabernacle and the Holy of Holies, the most sacred space where God dwelt among his people.

Father Chris distinguishes the two creation narratives, showing that one offers a chronological outline while the other provides a vivid visual metaphor of God shaping man from the earth. He reiterates that humanity is a unique composite of matter and spirit, endowed with a rational, immortal soul that separates us from animals. The episode of the tree of knowledge, according to Fr. Chris, is less about acquiring moral awareness and more about the tragic attempt to seize God’s legal authority over good and evil—a theme that mirrors contemporary attempts to legislate morality.

Father Chris also links the garden imagery to the Church’s Sacramental life, describing the tabernacle as a miniature Eden where the Holy of Holies resides. He reminds listeners that the Sacraments are the ordinary channels through which God continues to offer the grace first granted in Eden. By understanding these layers, we can love our faith more deeply and recognize that the Our Father, the Mass, and the Sacraments are extensions of that original divine intimacy.

During this Lenten season, Fr. Chris encourages the faithful to use the disciplines of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving to enter more fully into the mystery of Eden, allowing the heart to be transformed by the same grace that first animated Adam.

The readings for this homily: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/022426.cfm

Father Mark Baron, MIC, invites us to move beyond a superficial recitation of the Our Father and to let this prayer become the heartbeat of our Lenten journey. He reminds us that the season of Lent began with Ash Wednesday, calling us to the three classic practices of prayer, fasting and almsgiving. These disciplines are not ends in themselves; they are pathways that lead us into a richer relationship with the Holy Trinity.

Father Mark stresses that Jesus warned against “babbling like the pagans,” whose prayers were empty repetitions aimed at manipulating distant gods. In contrast, our Father knows our needs before we ask, and He invites us into an engaged, relational dialogue. Father Mark explains that God created us as image‑bearers so that we can reflect His holiness in our words, deeds and community life. When we pray the Our Father slowly, chewing each petition, we align our will with the Father’s, asking that His kingdom come, His will be done, and that we receive daily bread, forgiveness and protection from temptation.

He points out that true prayer requires the support of the Sacraments—the Eucharist, Confession and the other means of grace that sustain us when our human strength falters. By receiving the sacraments we open ourselves to the grace that makes our repeated prayers meaningful rather than mechanical.

Father Mark also addresses a common misunderstanding: that repetitive prayer is “babbling.” He notes that Scripture itself contains beautiful repetitions (e.g., the Psalms) and that Jesus Himself prayed the night before His Passion, demonstrating that sustained, heartfelt prayer deepens faith. Likewise, contemporary worship songs often repeat refrains to embed truth in the heart.

The readings for this homily: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/022326.cfm

Father Chris  Alar, MIC reminds us that works do not earn salvation; only God’s grace saves (CCC, 1987). Yet the Church teaches that we must co‑operate with that grace. As Fr. Chris explains, each soul faces a particular judgment at death, meeting Christ in His human nature, and later a general judgment when Christ returns to judge all humanity (see Jn 5:22‑23). The Scriptures picture this final assembly in the “valley of Jehoshaphat,” drawn from Joel 3:2, where angels separate the good from the bad.

Father Chris contrasts David’s flight from Jerusalem with Jesus’ deliberate return to be judged, showing that avoidance leads to condemnation while Christ embraces the sacrifice for our redemption. He cites the familiar parable of the wheat and the weeds (Mt 13:24‑30) and the separation of sheep from goats (Mt 25:31‑46) to illustrate the ultimate sorting of souls.

A central point is the necessity of Confession. Unconfessed sins are exposed at judgment, whereas confessed sins are sealed (CCC 1451). Father Chris stresses that God’s justice is always tempered by mercy: “The greater the sinner, the greater the right he has to My mercy” (Diary of Saint Faustina Kowalska, 723). This mercy flows through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, whose prayers unite with ours and draw us toward the divine will (CCC 2675).

Father Chris also addresses contemporary objections that “Jesus did it all, so there is no hell.” He refutes this by affirming human free will: God’s love respects our freedom, and those who freely reject Him choose separation, which is the reality of hell (CCC 1037). As C.S. Lewis observed, “The gates of hell are locked from the inside,” underscoring that the choice belongs to the soul.

The readings for this homily: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/022126.cfm

Fr. Gabe  Cillo, MIC challenges us to examine the condition of our souls: “Who here wants to be healthy spiritually?” The Gospel reminds us that “those who are well need no physician, but those who are sick do” (Lc 5:31; NABRE). In this Lenten moment the priest points to the universal sickness caused by sin, emphasizing that our only cure is the grace of God initiated in Christ.

The Catechism teaches that justification is “the free and unmerited gift of God’s grace” (CCC 1987). As Fr. Gabe explains, the first instant of conversion is wholly God’s initiative; human effort alone cannot bring the dead in sin to life. This aligns with Saint Augustine’s insight that the “doctor of grace” must be empowered by divine mercy, for without Christ’s sacrifice even the Immaculate Conception of Mary rests entirely on His redemptive work.

Turning away from God is likened to turning one’s back on a parent—a gesture of profound disrespect. The priest uses this vivid image to illustrate that rejecting Christ is a betrayal of the Father, while conversion is the act of turning back. Scripture affirms this: “I desire mercy, not sacrifice…that they may turn and be saved” (Hos 6:6; NABRE). The Holy Spirit, moved by love, calls us to repentance, yet the power to change resides in Christ alone.

In practical terms, the homily urges believers to recognize their spiritual illness, to seek the physician of Christ through the sacraments, prayer, and sincere repentance. By embracing the divine bridegroom’s invitation, we exchange the “hand that turns away” for the “hand that reaches out,” experiencing the healing that only God can provide. May this Lenten season become a genuine turning‑back, restoring our health in the Spirit and preparing us for the wedding feast of the Lamb.

The readings for this homily: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/022026.cfm

Father Tyler Mentzer, MIC, invites us to confront this penetrating question, “What are you hungry for?” On the first Friday of Lent, this inquiry becomes a mirror for our own souls, urging us to examine the cravings that dominate our hearts.

The Gospel’s wedding feast imagery frames fasting, not as a punitive rite, but as a preparation for the ultimate celebration of the divine Bridegroom. Jesus asks, “Can the wedding guests mourn while the bridegroom is with them?” (Mk 2:19; NABRE). When the Bridegroom remains present, the feast of love outweighs the austerity of fasting. Yet He also foretells the inevitable departure of the Bridegroom, announcing that “then they will fast” (Mk 2:20; NABRE). This duality reveals fasting as medicinal: a temporary giving up of earthly food that readies us for the future sorrow of the Passion and the ensuing joy of the Resurrection.

The “Catechism” teaches that “fasting is a penance that draws us closer to Christ, the source of true nourishment” (“CCC,” 2043). By denying ourselves food, drink, or sinful habits, we create interior space for the Spirit, allowing the hunger for God’s will to replace the hunger for fleeting pleasures. As Fr. Tyler notes, the Lenten season is a “time of intentional communion with the suffering Christ,” echoing the ancient Jewish practice of fasting on the Day of Atonement (see Lev 16) and its fulfillment in the New Covenant.

Saints Jacinta and Francisco of Fatima exemplify this sacrificial love. Even as children, they offered their meals to the poor, endured bitter suffering, and embraced fasting as a conduit for the conversion of sinners. Their witness reminds us that fasting, when rooted in love for the Bridegroom, transforms personal deprivation into communal charity.

Thus, the Lenten call is threefold:
- Identify the hidden cravings that enslave us — power, pleasure, control, or even the illusion of self‑sufficiency.
- Rebuke those cravings through disciplined fasting — whether by abstaining from meat on Fridays, limiting meals, or refraining from harmful thoughts and words.
- Redirect the resulting emptiness toward the love of Christ, the true Bridegroom who satisfies every longing (see Jn 6:35; NABRE).