Category: Sermon Notes

Transripts of weekly sermons

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Sermon Notes – October 8, 2023 – “We Do Not Know”

“We Do Not Know”

Father Peter Fitzgibbons

 October 7 – 8, 2023

Gospel:  Matthew 21:33:43


While I was proclaiming the gospel, I thought about the servants the master dispatched.  They were cursed at and thrown out.   I can empathize with that.  I’m glad you are sitting down because I’m sure you will be stunned when I tell you that sometimes I have not been treated very well by people. Shocking, isn’t it?  Blanch and John’s little boy has been mistreated.  I’ve been cursed at and thrown out of patients’ rooms.   My cousin yelled at me one time while I was attending my aunt’s funeral.  She said, “You still believe in this stuff?” to which I replied, “Yeah, what happened to you?”   Our Lord created us out of love, sustains us in His love, and wants us to respond to His love so that we can be with Him for all eternity.   That’s why He not only sent prophets, but He also sent His Son to remind of us His great love.  People treated them not so well.   He begs us to respond to His gifts.  He begs us not to grow weary or to become jaded.   He begs us to continue the walk to salvation.  He tells us in the Gospels, point blank with no grey area or ambiguity, what we should do and not do.   And if we happen to stumble, He gives us the means by which to pick up our cross and follow Him.  He continues to show His everlasting love because He doesn’t want anyone to be separated from Him for all eternity.  That’s not His plan.  That’s our plan, not His. 

We are called to judge people for we will know them by their fruits.   I do not want to eat a sandwich made by someone who just came from the bathroom without washing their hands.  Call me fussy, but I do not like that, and I’ve been to some pretty disgusting places.  So, you will know them by their fruits, but you can never judge them for eternal salvation.  You can never judge people beyond God’s mercy.  About eight years ago, I was making my rounds in Hospice and a nurse came up to me and said, “Father, the patient in Room 3 has a statue of Buddha in his room.”  So, I went into the patient’s room, and we talked for a while.  He was a Marine during World War II.  He had three island landings, and the second one hit him badly.  It took him out of the game, but they fixed him up and sent him back in.  The third one hit him so badly that he could no longer be a Marine.  So, we were sitting there talking and he said, “I’m Buddhist.”  Now it was time to talk about the elephant or the Buddha in the room.  We take people where they are.  The patient asked me if I knew anything about Buddha, and I said not much.  I mean I know if you rub the fat guy’s belly it’s supposed to bring you wealth.  But that’s about it.  What did Buddha say to the hot dog vendor?  Make me one with everything.  The patient loaned me a book about Buddhism, and I took it home and read it.  The next time I saw the patient, I told him that I had read the book and that it was very interesting.  Then he told me why he became a Buddhist.  After his tours of duty during World War II, he was sitting on an island, and he looked down at his left arm where he was wearing a silver ID bracelet.  There were 28-29 notches on the bracelet which meant he had personally put the whack on 28-29 Japanese soldiers.  Marines get up close and personal.  When he came home from the war, he tried to be a good husband and father.  He talked to the clergy to find help for what was going on inside him.  But he could not find the answer for the damage the war had done to him, so he found peace in Buddhism.  I can live with that.  I came out of the room and told the nurses not to worry about the Buddha.  The Buddha is fine.  The upside of the story is that this patient got better and left Hospice although not in the usual way.  He actually walked out of Hospice and moved to Florida to live with his daughter. 

We had this woman come into hospice at the VA.  She was acting very ugly and was throwing staff members out of her room.  If she was in a good mood, she would let one nurse and one doctor enter her room.  Finally, one of the chaplains went in and talked to her.  Know why she was in Hospice even though she was only in her early thirties?   She put herself there by living a very bad life.   She was self-medicating because of the severe abuse she experienced as a child.  Some might say, “She doesn’t know Jesus, so she’s not going to Heaven.”  You know, I wouldn’t be so sure about that considering the crosses she has had to carry.  That’s why we don’t judge other people. 

We don’t judge people because we don’t know the crosses they carry.  We don’t know what the heck has happened to them or to those they love.  God judges that.  The Gospel says, “And other sheep I have which are not of this fold” (John 10:16).  We don’t know, so we pray for them, and we implore the merciful judgment of God’s mercy upon them.  In the future, I will probably be thrown out of more rooms.  Will it hurt my feelings?  Maybe.  But that’s what I’m supposed to do.  Before HIPAA rules, which every hospital and nursing home has, the staff would let me know when someone was dying, and I would go in and say the Prayer for the Departing Soul.   I’ve told the funeral directors here that if someone doesn’t have anyone to pray for them at their graveside, call me and I will come and say the Prayer of the Dead.   Because we are all children of God created in His image and likeness.  We all deserve that.  We don’t wish for God’s judgment on anyone.  If we do, we are wishing it for ourselves.   We don’t know the agony other people have endured, so we implore God’s mercy on them. 

How will you apply this message to your life?  ________________________________________

You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to annunciationcatholicalbemarle.com and clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” then “Sermon Notes.”  On a cell phone: click on “Blog” and then “Menu.”  Scroll to the bottom and click on “Categories.”  Sermon Notes are also available on the Church’s Facebook page at ola.catholic.church.  Click on “Groups” and then “Sermon Notes.”

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Sermon Notes – October 1, 2023 – “Love is an Action Not an Attendance Record”

“Love is an Action Not an Attendance Record”

Father Peter Fitzgibbons

September 30 – October 1, 2023

Gospel: Matthew 21:28-32

28“What is your opinion? A man had two sons. He came to the first and said, ‘Son, go out and work in the vineyard today.’ 29 He said in reply, ‘I will not,’ but afterwards he changed his mind and went. 30 The man came to the other son and gave the same order. He said in reply, ‘Yes, sir,’ but did not go. 31 Which of the two did his father’s will?” They answered, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Amen, I say to you, tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you. 32 When John came to you in the way of righteousness, you did not believe him; but tax collectors and prostitutes did. Yet even when you saw that, you did not later change your minds and believe him.

I heard you had a rather long and interesting sermon last week. Mine may not be as long, but I’ll give it a shot.

Love is an action. It is not an emotion. Our good Lord calls us to respond to His love by living a life of charity and self-sacrifice. Some will say, “Father, I went to Catholic school, and I’ve always gone to church.” Now, the lawyer in me says, “I don’t care that you have been to church. But did you go into the church?” There’s a difference. I’ve been to the hospital, but that doesn’t make me a doctor. “But, Father, I’ve been to church all my life.” That’s great. I’ve been going to the bathroom all my life, but that doesn’t make me a toilet!

How have you responded to the love God offered you, all the classes you took, all the Masses you participated in and the Sacraments you received? How did you put all of that into action? That is what our good Lord will ask us. “You have My love. What did you do with it?” If you read further along in the Gospel of Saint Matthew, Jesus gives us the final exam questions. Go read it. They are all about how we responded to His love. “Lord, You know I love You.” That’s fine, but Jesus said, “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments” (Matthew 14:15). That is an action. It’s an act of both positivity and negativity. Avoid sin and do good works. I’ll give you one of the 25 exam questions from the Gospel of Matthew. The others you can study on your own: “For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me” (Matthew 25:35-36). Those are the final exam questions, and they are all actions.

So, love is an action. It is not an attendance record. Yes, it’s the part of love that has nothing to do with attendance. It’s a little more than that considering the amount of love God offers us as well as to prostitutes and tax collectors. We are all sinners, and all our sins are vile. Now a Canon lawyer might say, “There’s a difference between mortal and venial sin.” No, no, no. You can play a lot of theological games with that. Basically, when you say “no” to God it is “no” to God. Period. Finito. That’s like comparing the difference between slapping a guy and slapping a baby. Why is slapping a baby worse? Because the baby is pure innocence. The guy may have deserved it…the baby did not. However, it is still a slap.

Love is an action and that is what our Lord asks of us. “I’ve given you My love. Are you giving your love back to Me?” We come here for the Sacraments and for prayer. We need God’s grace so that we have the energy, will, and ability to give those acts of love. His great act of love sustains us. Now He wants our acts of love in return.

[Father, looking at his watch] . . . Well, that was less than 30 minutes.

Father’s Reflections. . .

People ask me, “Father, did you have a good vacation?” Well, I’m still working on the after-action report. Now, I don’t know if this is an up or a down, but I had to let my belt out a notch because I ate like a pig. The food was wonderful. I was having lunch with a friend, a nurse, who I’ve known for 30 years. The restaurant is on the water and is a really nice place. I had seasoned blackened salmon, and I was going to order some fruit for dessert, but I got ice cream instead. My friend said, “You’re a cardiac patient,” which prompted my inner Italian to almost show itself. The next day, she had a birthday party with a huge pumpkin spice cake made with four eggs and butter that I shouldn’t eat. Thanks a lot! I’ll tell you one other story about my trip. I was sitting in the diner [see a pattern here?] where food was being served with a huge side of sarcasm which is always available. I had seen these men in the diner before, and they were talking about this woman whose husband would beat her. So, the woman’s three brothers visited her husband and made him an offer he couldn’t refuse. Afterward, he moved to Virginia. Rhode Island has a huge bay, and everybody has a boat.

How will you apply this message to your life? _________________________________________

You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to annunciationcatholicalbemarle.com and clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” then “Sermon Notes.” On a cell phone: click on “Blog” and then “Menu.” Scroll to the bottom and click on “Categories.” Sermon Notes are also available on the Church’s Facebook page at ola.catholic.church. Click on “Groups” and then “Sermon Notes.”

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Sermon Notes – July 23, 2023 – Love is an Action

Love is an Action

Father Peter Fitzgibbons

July 22 – 23, 2023

Gospel:  Matthew 13:24-43

One of the things I like reading in my hometown newspaper is the obituaries.  Up north, where I grew up, we call it the “Irish sports page.”  Hey, you gotta have fun!  I like reading about what people have done in their lives.  Some people have done amazing things.  At the end of the obituaries, the religious services for the deceased are announced.  I find some of them incomprehensible.  “A celebration of life will be held at a restaurant” or wherever.  Really?  You should have had that a week ago when the person was warmer and could have appreciated it.  He’s dead!   Unfortunately, the same is done for Catholics: “A celebration of life will be held to celebrate their life.”   What the newspapers are printing is heresy and blasphemous.   It denies what the Mass is.  The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is not a celebration of someone’s life.  The Mass is not an “it.”  It’s a “Who.”  It is Christ offering Himself to the Father on our behalf for the forgiveness of our sins.  And we all need that.  Even my sainted mother, who suffered purgatory on Earth because she raised me, needed a savior.   We had a Mass of Christian Burial for her, and I performed it. 

Christ prays for us in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass because, unfortunately, we must leave this world through death.  We all contemplate the end of life.  I seem to be hurrying toward it a little quicker than I expected.  In fact, I’ve been scoping out the best rooms in Hospice.  We were never meant to die, and that’s why we fear death.  Original sin and the sins we have committed since Baptism have that effect.   In the Gospel, Christ said that after death comes judgment.   People don’t like that word.  Know why they don’t like it?  Because they’ve done something wrong.  Do you get nervous when you’re driving up Highway 52 to Salisbury and see a State Trooper or the Sheriff?  People tend to hit their breaks.  But if you’re not speeding, you have nothing to worry about.  I just give the officers a blessing and move on.  I’m grateful they are there like angels watching over us in case somebody gets hurt. 

Sometimes obituaries will say that the deceased person has “gone to see Jesus.”  And that’s true.   When we leave this world, God, Himself, will look at us and ask, “Did you love Me?”  “Did you keep My Commandments?”  That is the standard because that is what He said.  For some, it is not a pleasant meeting.  They only stay for a cup of coffee and then go elsewhere.  Others get to stay in Heaven forever.   How long we stay depends on how we have lived.  According to the Gospel of Matthew, we will be judged according to how we loved and responded to His love. 

There is a course we take in seminary called Eschatology, a study of the last days.  Within that course is a sub-course about the Four Last Things:  Death, Judgement, Heaven, and Hell.  Traditionally, we preach about the Four Last Things during Lent.  When we leave this world, all of us will see Jesus.  How that meeting goes is entirely up to us.  The key thing to note is that God tells us exactly what to do.  “If you love Me, keep My Commandments.”  And He gives us the final exam questions further along in the Gospel of Matthew.   So, you already know what He will ask when you stand before Him.  “Did you love Me?”   “Yes, Lord.  You know I love You.”   He’s not going to accept the same excuse that you give police officers: “Oh, I didn’t see the speed limit sign, Officer.”  No!  He knows what we’ve done because love is an action.   

When I work with people who are passing, I ask them if they have made their peace with God.  God always wants to save us even at the point of our death.  Heaven was stolen once by the Good Thief on the Cross, and it can be stolen again.   Many in my hospital work have been able to steal Heaven at the last minute.  I have baptized several people while they were on their deathbeds, and one wasn’t even Catholic, but he wanted to be baptized.  They realize that they want peace.   I never mention the “D” word.  The Hospice staff don’t understand how I do that.  I just never bring it up.  I let them bring it up because they have to accept it.  You don’t take away someone’s crutch without giving them another one.   If they are Catholic, I ask them if they would like to be anointed with the Last Rites “just in case.”   I tell those who have made their peace with God, that at some point our good Lord will come for them.  And they will see Him coming with a smile on His face and arms wide open to embrace them.  So, open your arms and run to Him and know that there will never again be a risk of losing Him by sin.   

The good news and bad news for us is the same . . .  We are going to die.  If I go to hospice care, I’m having bacon at every meal.  What’s the worst that can happen, right?  We are all going to die.  But the good news for those who love God is that it is not bad news.  We will be with the One who has loved us all our lives beyond all our imaginations and Who will forgive anything if we say we are sorry.  That’s the good news.  We will have joy and peace forever. We will be far more able to help those we love to come to the same place we are.  Never be discouraged.  The fear of death is normal.  We were not supposed to die.  But the more we love God, the more that fear recedes from us.

Father’s Afterthoughts . . .
I want to thank everyone for my birthday party last week.  I must be losing my situational awareness with age because I had no idea.  Even though the party took four months of planning, it was a complete surprise.   Now, at the Spanish Mass today, I’m going to yell at them.  They know that I don’t understand a lot of Spanish, and so they talked about plans for the party right in front of me!  But I want to thank you for your kindness.  It was overwhelming, humbling, and a bit embarrassing. 

Mary Connor, a shut-in from our parish, passed away on Saturday.  She had all the Sacraments of the Church, and now she is at rest.  When I saw her on Thursday, I asked her how she was feeling, to which she replied, “I feel like bleep!”  I almost said, “Well, you look it.”  But I didn’t.  So, please pray for her soul. 

How will you apply this message to your life?  _______________________________________


You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to annunciationcatholicalbemarle.com and clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” then “Sermon Notes.”  On a cell phone: click on “Blog” and then “Menu.”  Scroll to the bottom and click on “Categories.”  Sermon Notes are also available on the Church’s Facebook page at ola.catholic.church.  Click on “Groups” and then “Sermon Notes.”

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Sermon Notes – September 17, 2023 – “We Cannot Give What We Do Not Have”

“We Cannot Give What We Do Not Have”

 Father Peter Fitzgibbons

 September 16 – 17, 2023

Gospel:  Matthew 18:21-35

This sermon has been felon-approved by the folks at FU (Felon University; i.e., the prison).  Remember, I have often told you that to study scripture you have to study it in the language and culture in which events occurred.  Otherwise, you won’t understand the extreme significance of our Lord’s words.  For example, consider the question, “Lord, if my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive him? As many as seven times?”   Now, if you have a family like mine, before their number was reduced considerably, sometimes they can really tick you off.  When my brother would make me mad, I’d wonder if it was the sixth or seventh time and if I should forgive him.  But our Lord said, ‘”I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven.”  Catholic school math tells me that is 490 times that I must forgive.  I could reach that number at a family reunion! 

In Aramaic, seven is a perfect number – it is zero, a perfect circle, and so it is infinite.  Our Lord said, “seventy times seven” or beyond infinity.  Why did He use that language?  Because while most modern languages today have comparative and superlative tenses, Aramaic and Hebrew did not at the time.  Remember when spies were sent to the Promised Land?  When they came back, they said that the people there were as numerous as grasshoppers and as tall as giants.   No, they weren’t.   There were just so many people that the spies couldn’t count them all, and the people were huge.  When Jesus fed the 5,000, not counting women and children, do you think the apostles were doing a head count?  1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. . .   No.   It’s like when the diocese asks how many people were at church.  Well, the church was full, so there were 300.   The numbers are hyperbole. . . a number beyond counting.   

Our Lord used that hyperbolic phrase, “seventy times seventy” because that is how great God’s mercy is.  God’s nature is mercy and love.  So to deny everlasting mercy would be to deny Himself.   No matter how badly you think you’ve sinned, He absolutely forgives and forgets.  The only thing God cannot forgive is our not asking for forgiveness because He will not violate our free will.  We can keep things to ourselves although He already knows.  So, don’t think you are keeping anything from Him.  It is our choice to love Him or not.  Receiving His mercy is one of the greatest experiences of God’s love.  And that experience of God’s love enables us, as Saint John Paul II said, to go from the Sacrament of Penance which is the Sacrament of His mercy and love to the Sacrament of Holy Communion and Mass.  We can have a deeper appreciation, bond, and love for the Sacrament of Penance which leads to other Sacraments.  When someone says, “Father, I don’t need to go to confession,” I tell them that they also don’t need Holy Communion.  “What do you mean, Father?”   Did I stutter?  (My new favorite phrase.)  Then I ask a series of questions.  Who do you see in Holy Communion?  “Jesus Christ.”  Very good.  Who is Jesus Christ?  “The Savior.”   What does He save you from?  “Sin.”  And if you have no sins, you don’t need Mass and you don’t need to receive Holy Communion.   We all need a Savior. 

We cannot give what we do not have.  Likewise, we cannot forgive others if we have not experienced forgiveness.  Because of our diminished intellect and fallen nature, we tend to judge our spiritual nature by our feelings.  When we are called to forgive others, we might say, “I don’t feel like forgiving that person.”   However, Jesus used a declarative sentence when He said, “Forgive.”  Nowhere in the Gospels did He ever ask, “How do you feel about that?”   Our Lord doesn’t care how you feel.  Forgiveness is an act of the will.  Our feelings are diminished and don’t always lead us in the right direction.  The right thing to do goes beyond our feelings and inclinations.   When I eat fish – Eugh! –  I do not feel like eating fish!  I hate fish!!  Damn doctors!   But I have to eat it.  Did the doctor ask if I like fish?  No!   Did he tell me to eat it?  Yes.  Quack!   For many years, I thought bacon was a health food.  God really has a way of laughing at us.  But eating fish is the right thing to do, so I reluctantly choke it down. 

Our Lord gave us a way to deal with all those feelings and resentments we have for others.  He said, “Pray for them.”  Pray for those who hate and persecute you.  One, they may be wrong; and two, they may be right, and we really are jerks.   Who knows.  But we pray for them, and we pray for ourselves so that we can get our distorted feelings and emotions back in check.  People say, “Father, you must hear lots of juicy things during confessions.”  Not really.  After the first week of hearing confessions, it’s like being stoned to death with popcorn.  If you have a sin I’ve never heard, I’ll name it after you.  Some people come to confession very upset, and I ask them what they have done.  “Well, I did this.”  Sometimes the hardest thing about hearing confessions is not laughing.   Really?  You are definitely pole-vaulting over mouse droppings here.   But what I hear while being stoned to death with popcorn is their great love.  I hear what people say and what they don’t say.  They realize they have sinned and have cut themselves off from God’s love.  They love God and want to come back and open their souls up to receive God’s love.  That’s what I hear, and I really do listen.  You aren’t going to sneak one in on me.  “Father, I talk cruelly to my dog and my cat.  I did some speeding.  I killed two people and umm…”  Whoa!  That’s called an Oreo confession.  But besides that, I hear the love for God.  And that’s what priests are listening for.

Father’s Reflections . . .

On Friday, I was doing my ACLS or CPR recertification, and I was working on a very expensive and sophisticated mannequin that would tell me if I needed to go deeper, faster, slower, or move my hands.  And all of a sudden, the mannequin went “de-de-de Woo-Bunk” and completely shut down.     So, I did the only thing I could . . . I pulled the sheet up over the mannequin, turned out the light, and closed the door as I left.  I’m a hospital chaplain; I’ve done this before.

How will you apply this message to your life?  ________________________________________

You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to annunciationcatholicalbemarle.com and clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” then “Sermon Notes.”  On a cell phone: click on “Blog” and then “Menu.”  Scroll to the bottom and click on “Categories.”  Sermon Notes are also available on the Church’s Facebook page at ola.catholic.church.  Click on “Groups” and then “Sermon Notes.”

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Sermon Notes – September 10, 2023 – “Hey Homey, You’re in a Minefield!”

“Hey Homey, You’re in a Minefield!”

 Father Peter Fitzgibbons

 September 9 – 10, 2023

Gospel:  Matthew 18: 15-20

Because we are all baptized, we are called to carry our crosses each day on the road to Calvary.  All of us will pass from this life and see God.  Some of us will stay only for a cup of coffee while others will get to stay longer.  If we are faithful, we will have a graduation ceremony in Heaven.   There are a lot of other people also on their way to Calvary.  We are called to encourage one another on the way to salvation.  It is important that we are not too sensitive when someone says, “Father, you are a real pain in the patootie.”   I already know that, and I’ll try to be better.  Sometimes, we are blind to our own faults, and we may start wandering off the path Christ has set for us.  We are called to warn others, “Hey homey, get over here.  You are wandering off the path and into a minefield.  Don’t go there.  Bad move!”   Saint Paul said, “I make up with my body what is lacking in the sufferings of Christ.”   So, we help one another by our prayers, sufferings, and works to help them carry their crosses.  And conversely, they help us carry ours. 

Instead of the terms “admonition” and “correction,” I prefer the term “encouragement.”  You don’t know anything about the crosses people are carrying and whether their crosses are their own fault, the fault of their parents, or the fault of their siblings.   We have no idea of the life they have led.  So rather than admonishing or correcting someone, I prefer encouraging them because it goes a lot further.  Sometimes a correction or threat is just an attention-getter.  But once you have their attention, encourage them.  In religious life, we call that fraternal correction.  However, it is usually infernal correction.  Our Lord said, “Why do you notice the splinter in your brother’s eye, but do not perceive the wooden beam in your own eye?”   We tend to think of ourselves as superior because, well, we are us.   I like to use fraternal encouragement.  Most people know they’ve made mistakes, so you don’t need to remind them.   They need encouragement to try to do the right thing to get back on, and stay on, the path Christ has set for us.  It’s hard to take up our daily crosses.  So, we need to encourage one another.   That’s why God gives Himself to us in the Sacraments.

I remember once running a Physical Training (PT) test.  The Army has since then changed the rules, but before when someone was failing – and you don’t want anyone to fail – when nobody was looking, you would pick them up and run with them.  Their feet would barely touch the ground.  And if an official was around, we would set them down and say, “Now run.”   We were running this one PT test, and I had my assistant run back to encourage the stragglers because nobody wants to take the test again.  This one soldier said, “I can’t do it, Sir!  I can’t do it!  I’m going to be sick!”  Shut up!  You can do it.  She made it, and she made it within the timeline.  And true to her word, she was ill.  Oops!  Later, she came back to me she said, “Thank you for helping me.” 

We are called to encourage one another with our crosses on our way to salvation.  A couple of things about our crosses and encouraging others with theirs is that we all have them, and we are no more holy than anyone else.  Even if someone is at fault, and even if it approaches the level of Civil Law, you cannot make it public because doing so would be scandalous and sinful.   Bishops are very good at scandal.  They really are.  You have to give people a way back and a way to regain their good name.  It is very hard for some people in the Church to do that even though, according to Civil Law, you can have your record expunged.  We have to allow people a way back because we are men, not angels. 

A priest once told me he had been suspended.  Now, I’m not a Canon lawyer, but I’ve seen one on television.  I asked this priest if he had received a letter.  He had not.  I told him that once he received a letter, it would tell him what he had done and what he needed to do to come back.  This is a medicinal remedy and not a punishment.  We are not in the punishment business; we are in the helping people obtain salvation business.   Remember, the amount of mercy we show is the amount of mercy we will receive.

Father’s Reflections . . . Monday is the anniversary of 9/11, and it reminds me of a quote by George Orwell: “People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf.”  And having worked with some of them, yes, we did.

I had an interesting phone call the other day.  Usually, the calls I get go like this: “Father, yada yada yada, blah blah blah.”   And my response is, “Oh not again!  Please, just leave me alone!”  But this call was really nice and interesting.  The person said, “Father, I’m not a member of your parish, but I have Covid, and it’s terrible.  Would you please pray for me?”  Thank you!  I love messages like that.   It was a really nice phone call which is better than the ones I usually get. And yes, I did pray for the caller.   

How will you apply this message to your life?  ________________________________________

You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to annunciationcatholicalbemarle.com and clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” then “Sermon Notes.”  On a cell phone: click on “Blog” and then “Menu.”  Scroll to the bottom and click on “Categories.”  Sermon Notes are also available on the Church’s Facebook page at ola.catholic.church.  Click on “Groups” and then “Sermon Notes.”

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Sermon Notes – September 3, 2023 – “A Spoonful of Sugar Helps the Medicine Go Down”

“A Spoonful of Sugar Helps the Medicine Go Down”

 Father Peter Fitzgibbons

 September 2 – 3, 2023

Gospel:  Matthew 16: 21-27

From that time on, Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem and suffer greatly from the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed and on the third day be raised.  22 Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, “God forbid, Lord! No such thing shall ever happen to you.”  23 He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle to Me. You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.”  24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wishes to come after Me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me.  25 For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.  26 What profit would there be for one to gain the whole world and forfeit his life? Or what can one give in exchange for his life?  27 For the Son of Man will come with His angels in His Father’s glory, and then He will repay everyone according to his conduct.

Last Friday night I had dinner at Blue Bay, and I had a love/hate relationship with my dinner.   Guess what I had . . . fish.  Did I tell you I hate fish?  But my doctor said if I eat fish at least twice a week, I might live longer.  I guess that is so I can die of something else.  Thanks a lot, Doc!   Appreciate it!   I was thinking about a time when I liked fish.  I’d had a cardiac procedure and when I came back, one of the ladies in the parish brought me a salmon dinner.  I didn’t mind it.  Of course, I was still on medication at the time, and I felt much better!  Perhaps that’s the secret to liking fish.  But that’s just a little cross of mine. 

Whether you love Jesus or not, you will get a cross.  We both love and hate our crosses.  They are meant to help us, so embrace them.  When we carry our crosses, we are fulfilling the command of our Savior.  But we struggle with them, and that is good because it means you love God.  We also hate our crosses.  Nobody likes them.   Some crosses come and some go in accordance with the time of life.   Some we have from the beginning until the end.  And sometimes, we even get extra ones.  We all have our share, and they are heavy enough for us to carry.  We cannot refuse our crosses.  None of them.  Nor can we, like the Protestant churches, remove some of the Commandments because, you know . . .  they’re hard.   Jesus called those people satan.   They take away the redemptive nature of suffering that we are all called to endure like Christ to achieve Heaven. 

Our crosses, like all the Commandments, are not that difficult.  They are not pleasant . . . I’ll give you that.  That’s why God made French dressing.  When I get a slab of Moby Dick on my plate, out comes the French dressing.  Mary Poppins was right . . . a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down.   I have tasted better stuff in the military.  That’s how much I hate fish.  By the way, monkey still tastes like monkey.  Yuck!  One of our crosses is to conform our lives to Christ.  It’s a gift.  How many of you think of their crosses as a gift?   Not many, just as I thought.   But our crosses are like a celestial choke chain so that we don’t wander too far off the reservation.   My evil twin brother, Paul, was very gifted and he had many crosses.  He had two doctorates and a file cabinet full of certifications he had earned.  Saint Teresa of Lisieux said, “Our crosses help keep us small, humble, and reliant on our Savior for there is power in His mercy.”    

Our crosses are redemptive.  As Saint Paul said, “I make up with my body what is lacking in the sufferings of Christ.”   Now a final thought . . . Our crosses are abrasive and a beauty treatment for our soul.  Because I do all sorts of reading (I’m an eclectic reader), I once read about how to remove water marks from furniture.  You take some cigar ash, mix it with water, and rub the mixture onto the water stain.  Because cigar ash is abrasive, it will remove the water stain and bring back the richness and luster of the furniture.   And that’s what our crosses do.  They are abrasive to our souls.  They remove the stain of venial sin.  They also remove the remains of the stain of mortal sin on our souls.  And what do our crosses reveal especially when we are standing before God at our Particular Judgment?  They reveal the true beauty of our soul.  What is the true beauty of our soul?  The image and likeness of God from which we were created.  He will look at us and seek the image of His Son.

How will you apply this message to your life?  ______________________________________


You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to annunciationcatholicalbemarle.com and clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” then “Sermon Notes.”  On a cell phone: click on “Blog” and then “Menu.”  Scroll to the bottom and click on “Categories.”  Sermon Notes are also available on the Church’s Facebook page at ola.catholic.church.  Click on “Groups” and then “Sermon Notes.”

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Sermon Notes – August 27, 2023 – “I Know a Guy”

“I Know a Guy”

 Father Peter Fitzgibbons

 August 26 – 27, 2023

Gospel:  Matthew 16:13-20

Whenever our Lord asked a question, people always got the answer wrong.   So, I didn’t feel too bad as a student.  I’m not the brightest bulb in the circuit.  He asked them, “Who do people say that I am?”  Their answers were all wrong because the voice of people is not the voice of God.   When He asked the apostles that question, what did they say?   The apostles didn’t want to tick Jesus off, so they just went along to get along.  But while all the other apostles were afraid to answer, Simon Peter said, “You are the Messiah, Son of the Living God.”   But that answer didn’t come from Peter alone.  Jesus said, “This was revealed to you by My heavenly Father.”   So, our good Lord renamed him.  “You are Peter, and upon this rock, I will build My church.”   

When you read this passage in English, it is okay.  But when you read it in the original language, it is very striking.  Peter’s name was Simon bar-Jonah or Simon son of Jonah.   Peter is a Greek word meaning “rock.”  Our Lord renamed him Peter just like in the Old Testament when He changed Abram’s name to Abraham.   Abraham became the father of holy people.  When our Lord renamed Peter, he also became the father of holy people in the new body of Christ, the Church.  “Upon you, I will build my Church.”   Now, two things are interesting about that statement.  If you read the original statement, it says “you” in the singular context and not “you” in the plural meaning all the apostles.   Only Peter was given that decision-making authority.   Upon you, personally, I will build My Church.  That’s why the apostles were ticked off.  “Hey, what are we, chopped liver?” “Peter is a bozo.  Come on!”  “Upon this rock, I will build My church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.”   Peter was given the power to bind and loose.  You have to understand that power.  That power is only for disciplinary matters such as fasting and abstinence.  The Church can do that to help people grow in the spiritual life.  The Church could also allow priests to marry because that is a discipline and not dogma.  However, it cannot change divine law because that would give the creatures God created power over Him.   Jesus did not give man the power over God.

Jesus knew what He was doing.  He created male and female.  He said that a man shall leave his mother and father and cling to his wife.  I do believe Jesus understood the full meaning of His words.  “Oh!  We are in the 21st century, and we understand things much better now than Jesus did, so we are going to change things.”   Uh-Huh.  Know what that is?   It’s the heresy of modernism.  “We are in a new age, and we understand things better.”  Ummm . . . No, you don’t.   When I was ordained, I had to take an oath against modernism.  There is a document on file at the Diocese that confirms the oath I took.   Why?  Because we preach now what we preached from the beginning.  The form has changed over the years, but the truth of the Church has not.  Some people have tried to change it, and they’ve gone away one way or another.  God may have revoked their birth certificates; I don’t know but sometimes that does happen. 

Read the Church fathers.  The First Century is now.   And if you have trouble falling asleep, read the works of Saint Augustine.   The works by John Chrysostom are much easier to read.   But reading Saint Augustine will quickly bring on the Zzzz‘s.   He said he had a really wicked life before being converted, but he certainly couldn’t write about it.  My gosh!  What we preach now is what we preached from the beginning.  The Pope is guaranteed the truth as long as he preaches what was given from the beginning.  We should be proud of our history.  Unfortunately, the Church has had popes, bishops, priests, and dare I say, sisters, who were not as holy as they should have been.  “Father, say it ain’t so!”  They caused all sorts of problems in the Church throughout the ages including great scandals.  If you think we are having fun these days, read the Church history.   Now we have electronics that hype up everything.  “Oh my God!!”   Relax.  God is awake all night and is taking care of this.  You don’t trust His promise?  That the gates of hell will not prevail?  Our good Lord is in charge.  Yes, we wish we had more holy priests, bishops, and nuns.  But we are men and not angels.  We are failed human beings standing on the deposit of faith.  Should we be upset and concerned about the future of the Church?  Yes and no.  No, because God is in charge, and He’s going to take care of it.  And yes, but we pray for those who are supposed to exercise the teaching office of the Church. 

Be strong.  When you say the right thing, some people really won’t like it.   I have been cursed out before, but I took it really well . . . “Sniff- Sniff”   Really?   You know the people I hung around with?    On those occasions, I always want to say, “I know a guy.”  You wouldn’t do that up north.  You’d get really hurt, and the cops would just say, “Oh that was a terrible accident!”  In the old days, that happened.  But you pray for them.

The Church has not changed its doctrine no matter how foul the people are who have been entrusted with it.   The promises of Christ were true in the beginning, and they are true now.  Yes, it is a time of turmoil in the Church.  We get nervous, upset, and angry because we see that which has given us life, love, and hope seemingly betrayed by those in it.  The smoke of satan is in the Church.  But God is in charge.  He has not forgotten His Church – His Body.  When Paul was out there putting the whack on people, Jesus asked him, “Why are you persecuting Me?”   God knows exactly what is going on.  Is this time the worst in the Church?  No.  Would we like it to be better?  Oh, heck yeah.  But we trust in our Heavenly Father.  So have faith, have courage, and pray for those who we think are weak and failing in their vocations.   

Father’s Reflections . . .I know that the weather is interesting and that you are all warm.  I’m wearing three layers of clothing, so I know how you feel.  But use this to your advantage.  Would you rather be hot here now or a lot hotter somewhere else later? 

How will you apply this message to your life?  _____________________________

You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to  annunciationcatholicalbemarle.com and clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” then “Sermon Notes.”  On a cell phone: click on “Blog” and then “Menu.”  Scroll to the bottom and click on “Categories.”  Sermon Notes are also available on the Church’s Facebook page at ola.catholic.church.  Click on “Groups” and then “Sermon Notes.”

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Sermon Notes – August 20, 2023 – “We Have No Idea”

“We Have No Idea”

 Father Peter Fitzgibbons

 August 19 – 20, 2023

Gospel:  Matthew 15:21-28

I was visiting a soldier in the ER the other day.  I introduced myself as Chaplain Fitzgibbons and one of the chaplains at the VA Medical Center.  We were talking and getting along really well.  The soldier asked, “What religion are you?”  I told him I am a Roman Catholic and the Catholic priest for the Medical Center.  “Oh.”   Then we talked about the military branches we served in.  A little later, he asked me again, “What religion are you?”   “I’m a Roman Catholic.”  He was in pain and perhaps not the sharpest knife in the drawer.  His wife spoke up and said, “Well, we are Christian.”   Apparently, since I am not their brand of acceptable Christianity, I will not be going to Heaven when the Rapture takes place.  Okay.  Now, if they had not been civilians, I would have gone back to my old days in the military and put them both into a leaning rest because I was tired of looking at their faces.  I would have made it a one-way conversation.  Believe it or not, I do not care to be insulted.   Anyway, I said, “Well, don’t you think our good Lord considers the Crosses other people carry that we don’t see?  Don’t you think He takes that into account at Judgement?”   They said, “No.  You must be a member of this one particular sect.”   Okay. 

We just got a new admission to Hospice.  He is 56 years old, and he had a brain tumor that was removed.  Unfortunately, it has spread everywhere, and he is now in his end-days.  I don’t think I will see him again in this life.   This man was a police officer for 20 years, but when he couldn’t take it anymore, he retired.  Tom Adams will tell you that people can be devious and lie.  Think about all the sorrow and distress that man had to absorb within himself.  I was talking to his sister who is his caretaker.  After he left law enforcement, he moved to Florida to take care of his aging mother who is still alive.  So, this guy had a lot of things going on.  His sister told me that he had never been baptized.  Later, I motioned for his sister to come over to the doorway so that nobody could hear us.  I said, “When the doctor comes by and adjusts his pain meds, he will be bombed and won’t feel any pain as he leaves us.  I will be happy to baptize him then.”  God understands. 

We had this one lady who had Lewy Body Dementia.  Is she in Heaven?  I think she has a pretty good shot at it . . .  probably a lot better chance than me.  She was an Army nurse for 30 years in a field hospital in Vietnam.  Not fun!   She was also physically and sexually abused by her husband who mercifully died.  I met him once, and he seemed like a super nice guy.  However, I got the back story from the nurses and, apparently, he was not a nice guy.  But we were fortunate that we had a nurse who was trained and could help her deal with some of what she had endured.

So, we have no idea of who goes where.  We are called to respond to people of different faiths.  Our Lord calls us higher to the Catholic Church.   But we have no idea of the Crosses that other people carry.  Our Crosses are not comparative.  God wants us all to enter Heaven.  Did He go to this woman in the Gospel and say, “You are Samaritan and a dog.”  “Dog” was not a good term back then.  “Do you tithe?”  “Did you give to the DSA?”   DSA is the priest retirement collection.  He asked her none of those questions.  Instead, He gave the woman the gift of faith and love for Him.  God is looking for an excuse to give us the gifts of His love.   He gives them to us all the time and more often if we ask for them.  Sometimes His gifts are not the ones we want.  We cannot see the beauty in them, especially the gift of our Crosses.  They are beautiful things and are what will get us into Heaven.  Sometimes we really don’t appreciate the beauty of our Crosses, but God gives us these gifts because of His love.  Some of these gifts are meant to keep us humble so that we don’t wander off the reservation.  So, we do not judge.  God loves us all.  He asks us all to come up higher and that is a struggle for each and every one of us.  Some days are more difficult than others. 

But we do not judge who gets into Heaven and who doesn’t.  We don’t know.  Only God sees everything.   People in these minor sects say, “Well if you don’t know Jesus Christ, you are not going to Heaven.”  That staggers the imagination.  So let me understand this.  Is God all loving?  Scripture says He is.  He created the world out of love and sustains it out of love.  So, He created the people in Mongolia who have no idea who Jesus Christ is or what a DSA is.  Did God create them out of love just to send them to Hell?   God does not do that.  He wants us all to come to Him.  And remember, we have no idea what Crosses other people are carrying. 

How will you apply this message to your life?  ____________________________________

You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to annunciationcatholicalbemarle.com and clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” then “Sermon Notes.”  On a cell phone: click on “Blog” and then “Menu.”  Scroll to the bottom and click on “Categories.”  Sermon Notes are also available on the Church’s Facebook page at ola.catholic.church.  Click on “Groups” and then “Sermon Notes.”

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Sermon Notes – August 13, 2023 – “Did I Stutter?”

“Did I Stutter?”

 Father Peter Fitzgibbons

August 12 – 13, 2023

Gospel:  Matthew 14:22-33


When you read about the apostles in Scripture, you see the great transformation that happened to them after Pentecost.   Before Pentecost, they always questioned our Lord.  Jesus wanted to see Lazarus who had died.   But the apostles said, “Hey Lord, he has been in the tomb for three days.  He’s way past the sell-by date.  I wouldn’t do that if I were You.”   The apostles were always questioning Him.  Questions are good, but not when you doubt the authority of the one making the request.  Jesus told them to feed the loaves and fishes to the crowd.  “Okay, but it’s not going to be enough.”   Jesus told them to go into town and preach the Gospel, heal the sick, and expel demons.”  They came back to Him surprised that it had actually worked.  They always doubted His Word.  In the Gospel, Jesus instructed Peter to walk toward Him on the water.  Peter did as he was told, but he became afraid and began to sink.  Our Lord asked Peter, “Why did you doubt?”   Basically, our Lord was saying, “Did I stutter?”   Our Lord said, “Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink His blood, you have no life in you.”   “Whoa!  What do you mean?”  It’s a declarative sentence, and He did not stutter.  Deal with it.

We think that we are smarter than the average bear and that we know more than our Lord.  We think that what He asks of us is impossible.   Even though the apostles saw all these miracles, the raising of at least three from the dead – one who was a very dead Lazarus – they still doubted the Resurrection.  Only until they were filled with the grace of the Holy Spirit did they believe that the Resurrection really happened.  Why did Peter allow fear to paralyze him?   The devil uses fear to take us away from our good Lord by saying, “Oh, His commands are impossible” which makes us think, “Oh, I cannot do that.”   Our Lord does not require us to do the impossible.  He only asks for good things which draw us closer to Him.  In the law, if something is impossible, the law does not apply, and you are not culpable.  If you can’t do it, you can’t do it.   Peter was sinking and cried out, “Lord save me.”   They weren’t miles from shore.  This wasn’t Lake Michigan.  Look at the map of Israel . . . there are no Great Lakes in Israel.  There is no Lake Erie.  So, they were not far from shore.  What happened in the Gospel?   Peter jumped into the water, and because he was only a few yards from land, he swam to shore.  Peter was a fisherman, and he could swim. 

Fear will paralyze us, and the devil uses it.  “I can’t do that.”  “The Commandments of God are too hard.”  “The Church must change them.”  “God obviously didn’t know what He was doing, else He wouldn’t ask us to follow His Commandments now in the 21st Century.”   And that’s not true.  His Commandments are not burdensome.  “If you love Me, keep My Commandments.”   That’s all the Commandments are . . . a test of His love and belief in His Word.   They may be inconvenient because we have our own agenda.  But God will never tell us to do something that is impossible or something that will hurt us.  Quite the opposite.  When we don’t fulfill His Commandments, we do self-harm because we cut ourselves off from His love slowly by venial sin or abruptly by mortal sin.   

So, keep your eyes on the Lord and what He said.  Don’t try to overthink it as some do.  “I’m going to fall.  I have sinned!”  You’ll be fine.  Do not be afraid, which is the most common phrase in scripture.  Do not be afraid.    Our Lord asks us to keep His Commandments if we love Him.  They are not burdensome.  “Oh!  I have to go to Mass on Sundays and on Holy Days!  Oh, it’s so hard!”   Oh, please.  If you had a free ticket to the Panthers game, you’d be right there in Charlotte with 70,000 other crazy people fighting traffic.  Yeah, that really sounds like fun.  I haven’t had so much fun since I was in the gas chamber.  Are you kidding me? 

Just think about what we trade for the love of our good Lord.  And what we trade for the very presence of God, Himself, in the Most Blessed Sacrament and the Second Person in the Holy Trinity Who talked to Moses as one man talks to another.  I use “man” in the Latin sense of the word meaning “mankind” – not male – the way Scripture was originally written.  What is better than that?  No admission fee . . .even better.  No trouble parking . . . even better than that.   We have to listen to our Lord, and that can be tough.  Do you know what class of people find it really hard to listen to the voice of our Lord?  Priests.   There was evidence of that 20 years ago when I arrived here and was looking around.  There was orange shag carpet in the church bathrooms.  Yeah.  I don’t think the good fathers ever listened to the women in the parish.  In their defense, they probably got a deal on it.  Fathers, you gotta listen.  You may be an expert on the Gospel, but you have to listen else you become deaf.   You always must listen for Him amidst the loud noises of our busy lives.  Do what our Lord commands.  And if we think His Commandments are burdensome, perhaps we need to love Him more and ourselves less.

How will you apply this message to your life?  _____________________________________

You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to annunciationcatholicalbemarle.com and clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” then “Sermon Notes.”  On a cell phone: click on “Blog” and then “Menu.”  Scroll to the bottom and click on “Categories.”  Sermon Notes are also available on the Church’s Facebook page at ola.catholic.church.  Click on “Groups” and then “Sermon Notes.”

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Sermon Notes – August 6, 2023 – Busy is Not Your Friend

Busy is Not Your Friend

 Father Peter Fitzgibbons

August 5 – 6, 2023

Gospel:  Matthew 17:1-9

In today’s Gospel, the transfiguration happened about 10 days before our Lord’s Passion.   The Lord gave Peter, James, and John this great gift to show them His power so that they would be strengthened and fortified for the scandal of the Cross . . . the Passion.  He showed them who He was. . .  true God and true Man.  Our Lord lowered the veil of His humanity to show them His divinity.   His face became like the sun.  The three apostles had a foretaste of Heaven.  They saw Moses and Elijah there.  And it begs the question . . . How did they know it was Moses and Elijah?   This happened thousands of years before Facebook, and there were no pictures.  So, how the heck did they know?   Their minds were enlightened in the presence of God.  Moses, Elijah, and others were discussing with our Lord events that were still to come so we will have knowledge of the future.  Remember, Heaven is outside of time.  There is no time in Heaven.  Everything is in the present at once because God is.  They heard the voice of God the Father call out, a theophany or the manifestation of God.  “This is My beloved Son. Listen to Him.”   Peter offered to build three shelters – one for Moses, one for Elijah, and one for the Lord.  Peter said he wanted that moment to go on forever, but it didn’t.    Do you know what is interesting?  If you go back to the Old Testament, Moses disobeyed God when he struck the rock two times.  And the Lord said, “You are not entering the Promised Land.”   And where was Moses that day?  He was in the Promised Land which means there is forgiveness after death.  So, Moses made it to the Promised Land. 

The great spiritual consolations our God gives us are never lasting even though we want them to be.  They only last in Heaven.   Now this is a grave thing about the spiritual life or spiritual direction.  I was thinking about laypeople who say, “I’m a Spiritual Director.”  Uh-huh.  I’m Doctor House because I have watched every show.  That qualifies me, right?  If you say this prayer and do this, you will always be happy.  Really?  Check with a qualified medical professional about adjusting your meds.   We are never always happy.  Remember in the Book of Acts, the apostles were thrown into prison.  Prisons back then were very different.  One, they didn’t have cameras; and two, guess what happened to them . . . they got what we call “an attitude adjustment.”   They had the living you know what beat out of them.  But they rejoiced because they were found worthy to suffer for the Lord.   Our Lord said, “You will suffer for Me.”  He prophesied that we would have many trials and tribulations.  Look at Saint Paul’s letter to the Corinthians.   He was shipwrecked three times, stoned, and scourged.  “Hey God, if this is the way you treat your friends, it’s no wonder you have so few!”   He did not have an easy time of it, but he kept going. 

There is a great temptation when our time to suffer comes and everything seems to go bad.  We don’t feel our prayers, we aren’t being listened to, and it’s the same darn thing day after day.  So, the spiritual life is not always marvelous.  It is more like “Oh, if only I could see God.”   How many of the apostles were in the Garden of Gethsemane?   Only one was at the foot of the Cross.  Yet, in three years they saw all the miracles – at least three risen from the dead.   Think about all the miracles our Lord did.  “Oh, if I had just one big spiritual moment, I’d never doubt again.”  That’s not true.  We are no better than the apostles.  Our good Lord’s consolations to us, His appearances to us, and His gifts to us come not when we want them, but when our Lord decides we need them or as a free act of love to let us know He is always there.  But we tend to forget.  We get wrapped up in our daily lives and events, and the crushing work of staring at the coffee pot and microwave willing them to work faster.    Sometimes, we are so busy that we overlook the obvious.  “I didn’t see the police officer sitting there.”   It’s a big black car marked “State Police.”  How could you miss it?   We have tunnel vision while driving.  Father Adrian van Kaam reminds us in his book that many times we are too busy and tend to overlook our Lord’s consolations.  Our Lord reminds us of His presence and His care in the ordinary, mundane, and trivial events in our lives.  That’s why it’s so important at the end of the day to do an examination of conscience.  Take some time to look back over the day, not to see what you did right or wrong, but to see what our Lord is trying to say.   “Hi.  I love you!  It’s Me.  I’m here.”  We overlook it all. 

A couple of years ago, I was going out to visit someone in the hospital.  As I was walking upstairs, a nurse was coming down them.  She asked, “Are you a priest?”   Yeah.   “I was just going to call you.”  Well, I saved you a dime.  “There is someone upstairs in ICU who is dying.”   I told the family that it was just by chance that I was in town and that I was in the stairwell when I met the nurse.  God loves this person who was passing so much that I just happened to be there to give them Last Rites.  It’s tiny little things like that which show how much God loves us, but we are so busy that we overlook them. 

God gives those moments to us because He knows how fragile we are.  The apostles were always filled with fear, and we are no different.  God always gives us reminders of His love.  Not huge ones because that would scare the you know what out of us, but tiny, little reminders and consolations that we often overlook.  Consoling moments sometimes just show up when we least expect them. God speaks to us about the most ordinary things.  Thank Him for them.  He is aware of our strengths, our pain, and our fear.  He has not left us. 

How will you apply this message to your life?  ___________________________________


You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to annunciationcatholicalbemarle.com and clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” then “Sermon Notes.”  On a cell phone: click on “Blog” and then “Menu.”  Scroll to the bottom and click on “Categories.”  Sermon Notes are also available on the Church’s Facebook page at ola.catholic.church.  Click on “Groups” and then “Sermon Notes.”