"I also admonish and exhort the brothers that in their preaching their words be studied and chaste, useful and edifying to the people, telling them about vices and virtues, punishment and glory; and they ought to be brief, because the Lord kept his words brief when he was on earth." - Saint Francis of Assisi - Chapter IX, Approved Rule
In this final stretch of Advent, as we prepare our hearts to celebrate the birth of our Savior, our readings today invite us to ponder and reflect with our Blessed Mother. We have spoken in our last few homilies on the fruit of the Holy Spirit which gives us an abiding peace – joy. Today we reflect deeply on what true joy is and how it is intricately linked to humility in the presence of God.
In questo tratto finale dell'Avvento, mentre prepariamo i nostri cuori a celebrare la nascita del nostro Salvatore, le letture di oggi ci invitano a meditare e riflettere con la nostra Madre. Nelle ultime omelie abbiamo parlato del frutto dello Spirito Santo che ci dona una pace duratura: la gioia. Oggi riflettiamo a fondo su cosa sia la vera gioia e su come essa sia strettamente legata all'umiltà al cospetto di Dio.
As we gather on this final Saturday of Advent, our readings resonate with a profound message of hope, joy, and divine presence. In the passage from Zephaniah, we are invited to "shout for joy" and to exult because the Lord has removed our judgment and is with us as our Savior. This proclamation speaks to us as we come to the concluding days of Advent—preparing for the arrival of our King, who brings peace and dispels our fears.
In questo ultimo sabato di Avvento, le nostre letture risuonano con un profondo messaggio di speranza, di gioia e di presenza divina. Nel brano di Sofonia, siamo invitati a “gridare di gioia” e a esultare perché il Signore ha rimosso il nostro giudizio ed è con noi come nostro Salvatore. Questo annuncio ci parla mentre ci avviciniamo ai giorni conclusivi dell'Avvento, preparandoci all'arrivo del nostro Re, che porta pace e dissipa le nostre paure.
As we celebrate the last days of the Advent season, we are drawn into the profound messages embedded in today’s readings from Isaiah and the Gospel of Luke. Both passages reveal a deeper call for trust in God’s promises, giving us a prophetic vision that is not only rich in history but also strikingly relevant to the world we live in today.
Mentre celebriamo gli ultimi giorni del periodo di Avvento, siamo attratti dai profondi messaggi contenuti nelle letture odierne di Isaia e del Vangelo di Luca. Entrambi i brani rivelano una profonda richiesta di fiducia nelle promesse di Dio, offrendoci una visione profetica non solo ricca di storia, ma anche straordinariamente rilevante per il mondo in cui viviamo oggi.
Reflect and pray on the Word of God, and allow it to penetrate your heart as it did the Poverello from Assisi, Saint Francis. God's Word is sent to set us free, to experience life in abundance as His sons and daughters. Each week, homilies will be posted ahead of time as regards the daily mass readings! We are currently in Year B of the Liturgical Cycle.
If you were able to include anything to one of the homilies you read and reflect on in this website, what would it be? Let us know in the comment section directly beneath each homily, and we may just add your insight to it! You have a lot of wisdom to contribute. Have a look at the "How This Website Works" tab for more detailed information.
We might not be psychotherapists, or mathematicians, but we can help with your immortal soul. Let a friar assist you in what you may need as you travel along your own journey to the Father. Check out our "Services" tab, where all our services are free of charge and are provided as a ministry to God's people in gratitude and reverence.
Welcome! We hope you'll consider staying with us for a while, especially given this is an ad-free site! Wonderful right?
The "franciscanpreacher.com" is a website designed to invite all its visitors, under the inspiration and patronage of the founder of the Friars Minor, Saint Francis of Assisi, to delve deeper into the day's Bible readings for Holy Mass and can even serve as an additional aid to those who are entrusted with the lofty privilege of preaching the Good News of our Lord Jesus Christ. Aside from the homilies, in the future we hope to have some audios which will serve the same purpose. We ask your patience as this is a labour of love under construction.
In the spirit of Jesus' poverty and humility which Saint Francis was wholeheartedly devoted to, and which he loved and honoured as his "Lady Poverty", since it helped him tremendously to better trust in God and his divine providence, all the services, homilies, audios and videos that are offered here on this website are absolutely free of charge in obedience and reverence to our Lord's command: "As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give." Matthew 10:7,8.
We are delighted to freely give of what we have and we hope our content does you some good, maybe even a lot of good, given we entrust it all into the hands of our heavenly aids, Saint Francis, Saint Joseph, Our Blessed Mother, and ask these to in turn hand it all over to Jesus to do with it what he likes.
Praised be our Lord Jesus Christ, now and forever. +
