Fr. Joe Dailey occasional homilies
Send us a textNew Testament scholar, Fr. Francis Moloney, OSB, in his essay, “A Body Broken for a Broken People”, writes, “Jesus eats with people who fail, even at the Last Supper.”I have Mass on Sunday, June 22 at St. Isidore @ 9:30/11:30 amfrjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textEver since I heard the news of Brian Wilson's death this week, I keep hearing over and over in my head, “God only knows what I'd be without you.” The song reassures us that love will never end. “As long as there are stars above you, you never need to doubt it. I'll make you so sure about it.”I have Mass at St. Isidore on Sunday, June 15 @ 7:30/9:30 amthe 7:30 am Mass will be live-streamed https://stisidore.church/worship-online/frjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textIn the Acts of the Apostles, on the day of Pentecost, THEY were all in one place together. A few verses earlier Luke told us exactly who THEY are: Mary the Mother of Jesus was there, along with about 120 persons.I have Mass on Sunday, June 8 at St. Isidore @ 9:30/11:30 amfrjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textSo before leaving them, he tells his disciples to go back to Jerusalem and there wait for the coming of the Holy Spirit. If they want to find Jesus, they will find him in the Christian community, in the midst of their every day lives.I have Mass on Sunday June 1, at St. Isidore @ 7:30/9:30 amThe 7:30 am Mass will be live-streamed https://stisidore.church/worship-online/
Send us a textAlthough we refer to Scripture as the “Word of God,” it is Jesus of Nazareth who is the "Word of God" made flesh and dwelling among us. So this collective memory is fluid and dynamic.I have Mass on Sunday, May 25 at St. Isidore @ 9:30/11:30 am.frjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textWhile the story of the Bible begins with a garden, it ends in a city. The new Jerusalem is the fulfillment of all human dreams for the community. This is not a vision of individuals communing one-on-one with God or Jesus, but rather an interdependent community, a city, living out the essential nature of human life.I have Mass on Sunday at St. Isidore @ 7:30/9:30 amfrjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textHow appropriate that we welcome a new shepherd as the Bishop of Rome on this 4th Sunday of Easter, that we call Good Shepherd Sunday. The whole world was stunned Thursday afternoon to hear the name of the American Cardinal, Robert Francis Prevost, chosen to be our new pope. He has taken the name Leo XIV. I have Mass on Sunday, May 11 at St. Isidore @ 9:30/11:30 amat St. John Fisher @ 6:00 pmfrjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textIn our Easter readings from the Gospel of John, there are a series of encounters between various groups of disciples and the risen Lord. But in each of the three episodes, one of the disciples is singled out as if a dance partner with the risen Christ.I am away this weekend celebrating First Communion with my Grand-Niece.frjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textJesus speaks clearly to this moment, not with words, but with a gesture; He showed them his hands and his side.I have Mass on Sunday, April 27at St. Isidore, 7:30/9:30 amat St. Andrew, 5:00 pmfrjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textIn John, no well-informed angels rushed in to explain the missing body. Mary had expected to find at least a corpse; instead she found a void, an opening in the darkness.I have Mass on Easter Sunday Morning at St. Isidore @ 7:30/9:30 amThe 7:30 am Mass will be live-streamed. https://stisidore.church/worship-online/frjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textI will be at St. Isidore this Sunday for all three Sunday morning Masses: 7:30/9:30/11:30 am; I will preside at the 7:30/9:30 am Masses, but I will be part of the passion proclamation with several readers at all three Masses.The 7:30 am Mass will be live-streamed. https://stisidore.church/worship-online/I have mass on Easter Sunday at 7:30 AM and 9:30 AMFrjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textThey place the woman alone beside Jesus, which, as it turns out, is exactly where Jesus wished to be. Beside the sinner. I have Mass on Saturday, April 5, at St. Andrew, 5:00 pmI have Mass on Sunday, April 6, at St. Isidore, 7:30/9:30 amthe 7:30 am Mass will be live-streamed https://stisidore.church/worship-online/frjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textI preached a different homily at the Mass for the 2nd Scrutiny with the Elect (Catechumens), using the readings for Cycle A: John 9, the Man Blind from Birth.https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/033025-YearA.cfmfrjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textOne of the characters that I think we overlook in the story is the fatted calf. Do you know how much the fatted calf weighs? About 750-800 pounds. Reconciliation is for the whole community.I have Mass on Sunday at St. Isidore @ 7:30/9:30 amThe 7:30 am Mass will be live-streamed. https://stisidore.church/worship-online/I have 5:00 pm Mass on Saturday, April 5 at St. Andrewfrjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textThe fig tree is standing in for the cross. Only by standing under the cross will we be able to understand how God is leading us out of the place of slavery and death into a land of promise and abundance.I have Mass on Sunday, March 23 at St. Isidore @ 9:30/11:30 amfrjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textRudolph Otto defined the sacred as “mysterium tremendum et fascinans” —a fearful and fascinating mystery. That mysterious Other who draws us almost irresistibly, at the same time fills us with awe and even dread.I have Mass on Sunday, March 16at St. Isidore, 7:30/9:30 amat St. Andrew, 5:00 pmthe 7:30 am Mass will be live-streamed https://stisidore.church/worship-online/frjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textThe devil tempts Jesus three times with the little word, "If." "If you are" is supposed to cause Jesus to doubt that he is the Son of God and feel the need to prove it.I am off this weekend. Next Sunday I will have Mass @ St. Isidore at 7:30/9:30 am and St. Andrew @ 5 pm.frjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textIt's the beam in our own eye that makes the world look splintered. You know how it is with pointing fingers, one is pointed, but three are pointing back at you.I have Mass on Sunday, March 2nd at St. Isidore @ 7:30/9:30 amThe 7:30 am Mass will be live-streamed https://stisidore.church/worship-online/frjoedailey@mac.com
Send us a textThe Greek word for grace is CHARIS. When Jesus builds his rhetorical crescendo, criticizing reciprocal love (even sinners do that!), the word translated as “credit” is CHARIS. The phrase is better translated, “If you love those who love you, what grace [CHARIS] is that to you?” I am away this weekend.frjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textKeeping my eyes fixed on Jesus, I find the center, a level ground on which to stand. Jesus is the still point in a turning world. Like a tree, planted by the water, I shall not be moved.I have Mass on Sunday, February 16 at St. Isidore @ 7:30/9:30 amThe 7:30 am Mass will be live-streamed https://stisidore.church/worship-online/
Send us a textSimon Peter is all in. He is entirely present to himself; not just Simon, the big hearted, impulsive man, “If you say so, I will let down the nets.” But Peter as well, the one who will hand Jesus over out of fear: “I don't know him!”I have Mass on Sunday, February 9at St. Isidore, 9:30/11:30 amat St. Andrew, 5:00 pmfrjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textThe child masks the power of God in apparent weakness, yet it is in just such weakness that the true power of God's saving love is revealed. I have Mass on Sunday, February 2, at St. Isidore @ 7:30/9:30 amThe 7:30 am Mass will be live streamed. https://stisidore.church/worship-online/frjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textI was reading about Handel's famous “Largo” from the Opera, “Xerxes.” I found the music, sat down at the piano and played it. Reading music is a lot like reading the Word of God. Living the Word of God is like playing the notes. The music only comes alive when played, otherwise it is just black dots on lines on a page. When the melody of God's Word becomes the song in our lives, we become doers, and not mere hearers of the word. The Word becomes flesh in us.I have Mass on Sunday, January 26 at St. Isidore @ 9:30/11:30 amfrjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textThe Fourth gospel reveals Jesus' glory through a series of seven signs. It stands to reason that Jesus's first public “sign” takes place at a wedding feast, for Jesus himself is the marriage of divinity and humanity. (Icon by Greta Leśko)I have Mass on Sunday, January 19at St. Isidore @ 7:30/9:30 amat St. Andrew @ 5:00 pmSt. Isidore 7:30 am will be live-streamed. https://stisidore.church/worship-online/frjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textLike a shepherd gathering the lost, the glory of God is the sons and daughters of God coming home. (Reading Isaiah 40:1-5,9-11)I have Mass on Sunday January 12 at St. Isidore @ 7:30/9:30/11:30 amThe 7:30 am Mass is live-streamed https://stisidore.church/worship-online/frjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textThere is a wonderful line in The Shack: Mack asks Jesus, “Do all roads lead to you?” He replies, “Not at all. Most roads don't lead anywhere” – and then adds, “What it does mean that I will travel any road to find you.”(Wm. Paul Young, The Shack)I have Mass on Sunday, January 5th at St. Isidore @ 7:30/9:30 amThe 7:30 am Mass will be live-streamed. https://stisidore.church/worship-online/frjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textBarbara Brown Taylor notices a change of perspective with Christmas. See how Luke describes it in today's Gospel: “The shepherds went in haste to Bethlehem and found Mary and Joseph, and the infant lying in the manger." (Luke 2:16) “Everyone in the story is looking down, at a baby they could all see. The light had moved. It was coming from below, not above.”I have Mass at Holy Name in Birmingham on December 31 @ 4:00 pm.frjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textSometimes this story is called “The Child Jesus Lost in Jerusalem” Or “The Finding in the Temple.” Luke Timothy Johnson names this story “Jesus Teaching in the Temple.” We could look at the losses in our own lives from this perspective, and ask: “What is God trying to teach me through this experience?”I have Mass at St. Isidore on Sunday, December 29 @ 9:30/11:30 amfrjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textIn receiving the gift of God, we, in turn, become the gift. “He gave power to become children of God.” In this interim time, we must be the face of God for each other. To see those who are invisible and smile on those who feel ashamed. I have Mass on Christmas Morning at St. Isidore @ 8:30 amfrjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textLuke gives us Elizabeth's response, "but Mary would have certainly spoken first. ‘Peace, Peace be with you'. And this simple greeting made something vibrate, someone, inside of Elizabeth. And in this vibration, something was said. … Which is the Good News. (Blessed Christian de Chergé, Trappist monk, 20th Century Martyr of Algeria)I have Mass on Sunday, December 22 at St. Isidore @ 9:30/11:30 amI will have Mass on Christmas Morning at St. Isidore @ 8:30 amfrjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textEven Zephaniah, who has been called the “gloomiest” of the prophets, did not give devastation and judgment the last word. Zephaniah kept the last word for joy.“The LORD, your God, is in your midst, he will rejoice over you with gladness, and renew you in his love.”I have Mass on Sunday, December 15at St. Isidore @ 9:30/11:30 amat St. Andrew @ 5:00 pmfrjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textThis weekend the world will gather to celebrate the restored Cathedral of Notre Dame, Our Lady of Paris, which was nearly destroyed by fire in April, 2019. . . If we can do this, if we can put aside our national interests and come together for a common good, how much more could we do together to repair the world?I am away this weekend.frjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textPope Francis read a letter from a Ukrainian student. “When you speak of our pain, when you remember our thousand days of suffering, speak of our thousand days of love, too, because only love, faith, and hope give a real meaning to our wounds.” (Papal Audience at the Vatican, November 20)I have Mass at St. Isidore on December 1st @ 9:30/11:30 amfrjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textFor fifteen days, Maximilian Kolbe occupied the space of death with such a powerful presence and calm that once he had died there was, according to the survivors, a noticeable change in the ambience of the camp. I have Mass on Sunday, November 24 at St. Isidore @ 7:30/9:30 amfrjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textWhat had seemed like the end is a discovery of something we didn't know before. “But the wise shall shine brightly like the splendor of the firmament, and those who lead the many to justice shall be like the stars forever." (Daniel 12:3)I do not have Mass this weekend.frjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textThe widow says nothing, and yet her action speaks volumes. The Greek word for her ‘giving her whole life' prefigures the sacrifice Jesus is about to make. I have Mass on Sunday, November 10at St. Isidore @ 7:30/9:30 amat St. Andrew @ 5:00 pm.The 7:30 am Mass is live-streamed https://stisidore.church/worship-online/frjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textThe new Papal Encyclical, Dilexit Nos, begins, in English, “HE LOVED US”. Dilexit Nos looks inward, to the heart, which Pope Francis describes as “a core that lies hidden beneath all outward appearances, the innermost part of ourselves."I have Mass on Sunday, November 3rd at St. Isidore @ 9:30/11:30 amfrjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a text“How do you expect me to be a saint?” Merton asks. “By wanting to,” Lax answers. “All that is necessary to be a saint is to want to be one. All you have to do is desire it. We are meant to be holy, all of us. We're all called to be saints.” (From "The Seven Story Mountain" by Thomas Merton)I have Mass on November 1st at St. Kieran Catholic Church @ 7:00 pmImage: "The Communion of Saints," Tapestry by John Nava, Los Angelos Cathedral.frjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textThe blind man knows it is "Messiah time," the time when the blind see and the poor have their debts canceled and beggars become citizens again.I have Mass on Sunday, October 27 at St. Isidore @ 7:30/9:30 amI have Mass on Friday, November 1, All Saints Day, at St. Kieran @ 7:00 pmI will post that homily later this week.frjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textThis past Tuesday, October 15, was the feast of the Spanish Mystic, Teresa of Avila. I read this wonderful quote this week from Teresa, “It is foolish to think that we will enter heaven without entering into ourselves.”I have Mass on Sunday, October 20 at St. Isidore @ 9:30/11:30 amat St. Andrew @ 5:00 pmfrjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textLuke paints the picture most vividly. “At that moment, the cock crowed; the Lord turned around and looked straight at Peter.” It's the same verse we read today in Mark's Gospel, "Jesus turned around and looked at his disciples."I have Mass on Sunday, October 13 at St. Isidore @ 7:30/9:30 amthe 7:30 am Mass will be live-streamed. https://stisidore.church/worship-online/frjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textThe Hebrew word for man, ISH, and the word for woman, ISHA, share the same root word, ESH, which is "fire." The words differ by just two letters - a Yod and a Hey, which together form the first part of the Divine Name, YAH. Click for a fuller description of the Hebrew words for Man, Woman and Fire Here is ISH, ISHA, ESH in picture formI have Mass on Sunday, October 6 at St. Isidore @ 9:30/11:30 amfrjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a text“All religions are paths to God. I will use an analogy, they are like different languages that express the divine. (Pope Francis to young people in Singapore)I have Mass on Sunday, September 29at St. Isidore @ 7:30/9:30 amat St. Andrew @ 5:00 pmthe 7;30 am Mass will be live-streamed https://stisidore.church/worship-online/frjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textGod does something beyond anything we could ever have imagined. God takes the place of the one who is cast out.I have Mass on Sunday, September 22 at St. Isidore @ 9:30/11:30 amfrjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textThe cross seems to lead only to death, not life. But when we come to the cross, or rather, when the cross finds us, we discover the way into the deeper life we yearn for, but did not know we wanted.I have Mass on Saturday, September 14, at St. Kieran @ 4:30 pmI have Mass on Sunday, September 15, at St. Isidore @ 7:30/9:30 amThe 7:30 am Mass is live-streamed, or watch replay later. https://stisidore.church/worship-online/frjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textRather than giving us a geography of the Holy Land, Mark is giving us a geography of the Gospel: Jesus is willing to go everywhere, – Even crossing boundaries into Gentile territory – to find people in need of healing and bring them home.I am off this weekend.frjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a textIn September, 2019, The Vatican hosted an inter-religious forum to reappraise the role of Jesus and the Pharisees.I have Mass on Sunday, September 1st at St. Isidore @ 7:30/9:30 am. The 7:30 am Mass is live-streamed. https://stisidore.church/worship-online/frjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a Text Message.You might recognize her signature teaching. “But all shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well.” (Julian of Norwich)I have Mass on Sunday, August 25 at St. Isidore @ 9:30/11:30 amfrjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a Text Message.“The joys and hopes, the grief and anguish of the people of our time, especially of those who are poor or afflicted, are the joys and hopes, the grief and anguish of the followers of Christ as well." (Gaudium et Spes, 2nd Vatican Council)I have Mass on Sunday, August 18 at St. Isidore @ 7:30/9:30 amat St. Andrew @ 5:00 pmI don't know yet if the 7:30 am Mass will be live-streamed. Check this link Sunday morning. https://stisidore.church/worship-online/frjoedailey@gmail.com
Send us a Text Message.We find Elijah at a vulnerable moment; it has begun to dawn on him that the God who called him is not at all the God he thought he knew.I have Mass on Sunday, August 11 at St. Isidore @ 9:30/11:30 amfrjoedailey@gmail.com