Tag: Heaven

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Sermon Notes – June 20 – Look Busy!

“Look Busy!”

Father Peter Fitzgibbons

 June 12 – 13, 2021

Gospel:  Mark 4:26-34

The only thing we should have pride in is the mercy of our good Lord.  From His pierced heart, flows the river of Sacramental love so that we may have life and have it to the fullest in this life and in the next.  It is our means of salvation.  What we should be proud of, and the only thing, is our Savior’s love.  It’s not a sin or a debauchery. 

Now, let me tell you what you must do to get to heaven. You have to do one thing, and it’s extraordinary.  You know what it is?  You may be thinking, “Oh, God!  Father, please, I’m having enough problems with the ordinary stuff!  What the heck are the extraordinary things?”  Well, although it’s extraordinary, it’s not hard.  God doesn’t ask us to do hard things.  The extraordinary thing we have to do is do ordinary things ordinarily; in other words, do routine things routinely.  Do the same things day after day after day. 

Jesus said, “If you love Me and wish to be My follower, take up your cross every day and follow Me.”  So, we take up our cross and follow Him.  Now, our goal is progress…not perfection.  This includes saying our prayers, not choking the you-know-what out of someone who desperately needs it, and practicing spiritual and corporal works of mercy.  When I say “practicing,” I mean practicing just like doctors practice medicine.  It’s not perfect, but they keep trying.  Another way to carry our cross is by going to Mass every Sunday and on Holy Days, and maybe even on other days of the week.  The doors are open, and on weekdays, we don’t take up a collection.  So, you’re welcome to come in and get extra credit.  You also can carry your cross by going to Confession once a year…every three months is better.  Who wants to walk around with all that doodoo staining your soul that affects the body, mind, and spirit.  You’ll have a much better attitude.  We have much better vision and self-awareness when our souls are bathed in the most precious blood of Christ.  These are the ordinary things we can do ordinarily…the routine things we can do routinely, and that’s the extraordinary part. 

Because we do ordinary things, some may be tempted, and it’s a grave temptation, to stop, because they think that they are not progressing, they think they aren’t good at it, or they believe it’s not benefitting them.  All of that is a lie by the devil.  “I don’t think my medicine is helping me get well, so I’m going to stop taking it.”  That’s not going to lead to a good outcome.  Likewise, if we stop doing ordinary spiritual works of mercy, that also won’t lead to a good outcome.  The extraordinary part is when we keep doing it and doing it…whether we enjoy it or not.  We embrace the suck.  I don’t enjoy eating fish. But, I have to eat it, because it was prescribed by my doctor. That’s doing an ordinary thing ordinarily.  If I don’t follow my doctor’s advice, it’s a sin against the Fourth Commandment and a sin against the Fifth Commandment, because I would be endangering my life unnecessarily.     

Is doing ordinary things ordinarily a lot of fun?  No.  “Father, you’re a professional.”   Yes.  “Do you always enjoy your prayers?”  No.  If you catch me in the morning around 7:30, I’ll be over here saying my prayers.  You will notice, if you see me day after day, that I’m not walking on air.  I’m not levitating.  I’m not in mystical ecstasy every time I say the Rosary.  I’m not always happy.  Do my prayers always thrill me?  Oh, heck no!  Do I want to listen to one more whiner who comes in to complain?  “Oh, Father, it’s too hot in church!” Oh, shut up.  Do I want to listen to that?  No.  But, remember, everything we do should be focused on Him, our Beloved.  The things we do are acts of love to our dear Lord and are not done to please ourselves.  When you are tempted to stop doing ordinary things ordinarily, the focus is on you.   I’m not much but I’m all I think about…that’s one of my favorite sayings.  Whatever we do, whatever our gifts of love for our Lord are, big or small, they are acts of love and devotion to our Savior. 

Now, as you know, in the Oval Office at the White House, there’s a phone that goes from the United States to the Soviet Union in case there is a nuclear war so that people don’t end up in a mushroom cloud.   In the Vatican, there is also such a phone.  Remember the bat phone?  It’s kind of like that.  This phone doesn’t go from the Vatican to the United States or to Russia.  It goes from the Vatican to Heaven.  It’s not used, but occasionally the housekeepers come along and dust it like any other piece of furniture.  This phone had never rang, but, one day it did.  Whoa!  I doubt it was a wrong number.  Everyone was too scared to touch it.  No one but the pope could answer the phone, so, they found the Holy Father, brought him in, and he picked up the phone.  The pope said, “Yes, Lord. Yes, Lord.”  The pope smiled and put the phone down.  By that time, everyone in the Vatican had gathered around.  “Holiness, who was it? Speak to us!”  The pope said, “It was God.”  “What did He say?”  The pope responded, “He’s coming back soon.”  “Holiness, what should we do?”  The pope answered, “Look busy!” 

How will you apply this message to your life?  Are you doing routine things routinely?  Are you coming to weekend Mass and going to Confession at least once a year?  Are you practicing corporal and spiritual works of mercy?   

You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to https://annunciationcatholicalbemarle.com/ and clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” and then “Sermon Notes.”  From a cell phone, click on “Blog” then “Menu” and then “Categories” (located at the end of page).  There is also a search box if you are looking for a specific topic.

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Morning Offering – We Have a Soul to Save

“See, my children, we must reflect that we have a soul to save, and an eternity that awaits us. The world, its riches, pleasures, and honors will pass away; heaven and hell will never pass away. Let us take care, then. The saints did not all begin well; but they all ended well. We have begun badly; let us end well, and we shall go one day and meet them in heaven.”
— St. John Vianney

//The Catholic Company//

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Sermon Notes – May 2, 2021 – His Sacred Heart

“His Sacred Heart“

Father Peter Fitzgibbons

May 1 – 2, 2021

Gospel:  John 15:1-8

I was talking to one of my fellow chaplains with whom I share an office at the VA.  We call it the cell.  So, I said to my cell-mate, “Hey Gary, you’re a bright guy, even though you went into the Air Force, you’re a bright guy.”  He was too old for Girl Scouts, but he does have a master’s degree in Divinity.  “Where are the green pastures that our Lord, the Good Shepherd, leads us to give us repose?”  Gary said “Heaven.”  That’s true.  Then, I said, “Would you say that, before we get there, He leads us to heaven on Earth…to a place in His Sacred Heart?”  That is Heaven.  Our Savior’s heart beats with love for us, and our two hearts will beat as one in Heaven.  The Good Shepherd calls us, not just to follow Him, but to be part of His Sacred Heart and to take our rest there.  It is in our Lord’s Sacred Heart that we will find peace and rest for our souls. 

Our Lord said in Matthew 11:30:  “…my yoke is sweet and my burden light.”  The sweet yoke is our crosses that are just for us and not for anyone else.  In that lovely green garden and pasture where He gives us repose, He also gives us strength, courage, and consolation as we carry our cross.  We carry our cross with the Good Shepherd, if we let Him, so that we are able to carry it for our redemption and the redemption of others.  And sometimes, but not nearly often enough, we will find joy in it.  We will find joy in carrying our cross. 

The Good Shepherd would like to lead us to His Sacred Heart.  Saint Augustine said, “Our heart is restless until it rests in thee.”  We will find peace for our souls which is what our souls need, but we try to fill it with every person, place, or thing.  In His Sacred Heart, we will find rest.  We will find strength, and we will find contentment.  We walk with our Lord by the way of the Cross.  First He leads us to His Sacred Heart, and then He walks with us all the way through to our passion and death.

How will you apply this message to your life? Will you let Him help you carry your cross for your redemption and the redemption of others?

Father’s Afterthoughts: 

I had a meeting with the Bishop the other day.  Sadly, I’m still not a monsignor.  I had to drive 50+ miles to hear that bad news.  Anyway, I felt safer in Iraq while driving to Charlotte on Hwy 485.  Those people are crazy!   I was never so glad to see Walmart in Locust and Mecklenburg County in my rear view mirror.  One thing we discussed at the meeting is that, in the next couple of months, the Bishop will probably reinstitute the Sunday Mass obligation.  When he does, the Mass will be a bit longer than those I’ve been giving. 

I really don’t like the word “obligation.”  Are you are obligated to remember your mother’s birthday or remember her on Mother’s Day?  If you have to be told that, you need to be taken outside with a few of the guys for a chat.  We come here out of love.  If we say, “Oh, I’m too tired” or “I’m too whatever,” we lose the opportunity to grow in love. 

Also, keep in your prayers, Father Michael Kottar.  He’s 57 years old and a great priest.  Father Kottar has been diagnosed with bovine spongiform encephalopathy or Mad Cow Disease.  There is no treatment, so please keep him in your prayers. 

You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to https://annunciationcatholicalbemarle.com/ and clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” and then “Sermon Notes.”  From a cell phone, click on “Blog” then “Menu” and then “Categories” (located at the end of page).  There is also a search box if you are looking for a specific topic.

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Sermon Notes – There’s No Apple Pie in Heaven (Darn It)

“There’s No Apple Pie in Heaven (Darn It!)“

Father Peter Fitzgibbons

April 10 – 11, 2021

Gospel:  John 20:19-31

You may remember my sermon on Holy Thursday that was so wonderfully entitled “When a one man band gets hit in the butt with a beer truck, the music stops.”  Our Lord gave the apostles and their successors the ability to carry on with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass throughout the ages so that the fruits He won through His death could be passed on.  He told the apostles if you forgive their sins, they are forgiven.  That happens every generation with every priest.  Any priest who says the Mass has the power to give these gifts and to forgive sins.  We have to hear the sins by the way.  Jesus told the apostles, “If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven, if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”  So, how do we know?  Because people tell us.  The sins we hold bound and do not offer forgiveness for are those you are not sorry for and those you are not going to try to stop.  If you come in and say you are living with two girlfriends as husband and wife, and you are not going to stop, I cannot forgive you because you are attached to the sin.  So, you have now heard part of the penance course. 

Also in the gospel, and the main point I want to get at, is that the transfiguration took place about ten days before the Passion.  Our Lord showed us what the saints are like in Heaven.  They are recognizable, and they know the future because Heaven is the eternal now.  We are in time, but Heaven is not.  Our good Lord shows us what the saints would be like after the resurrection of the body and the General Judgement should we pass that final exam.  The questions come from Matthew Chapter 25… I’ll give you a heads-up so you can prepare for it.  He shows us what it will be like and how to get there.  He shows us that we will have a body and that it will be recognizable and that it can move through walls.  “It’s a ghost!”  No, it’s not.  It has physicality to it.  Touch my hand.  Touch my feet.  In the gospel, Jesus asks for food, and He ate it.  Now, we won’t need food in heaven, which I find quite disappointing. My mother has been gone for several decades, and I was looking forward to her apple pie.  Even her sisters say they can’t bake like my mother did.  Thanks, a lot!  So, there will be no food in heaven, but we know that we will have our body with us.

Heaven is a place.  A physical body needs a place in paradise to be in the presence of God.  Our Lord also teaches us how we can get there.  Probe the nail prints in My hands and the spear marks in My side.  Bishop Sheen said that God will judge us by the resemblance of His Son in us.  He will look at us.  He will look at the three parts of man having suffered with My Son for the admission of sin for the sake of others.  He will look at the body, soul, and spirit.  Not everybody will have physical suffering to the extent Christ had, but everyone will have emotional or spiritual sufferings.  Some suffer greatly depending upon the time, the place, and the person.  This is what our God the Father will look for – to see the marks of His Son.  This is how we become like Jesus, God’s resurrected Child. 

We will have our body reunited to our soul.  Remember, the soul and the body cooperated with Christ, therefore they both will receive the reward.  The soul and body cooperated in sin, so they both need to do the punishment.  Our Lord not only showed us what Heaven would be like, He also showed us how to get there.  As Saint John said in his epistle, “If we love Him, keep His commandments.”   A lot of people forget that one part.   If you love Him, keep His commandments.  After all, His commandments are not burdensome.

How will you apply this message to your life?  Do you love Him?  Are you keeping His commandments?

You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to https://annunciationcatholicalbemarle.com/ and clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” and then “Sermon Notes.  From a cell phone, click on “Blog” then “Menu” and then “Categories” (located at the end of page).  There is also a search box if you are looking for a specific topic.

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“Purgatory Isn’t In The Bible”

Have you ever doubted the existence of Purgatory because you’ve been told it’s not in Scripture? Well, Purgatory is in the Bible, and here’s where to find it.

“How can Catholics believe in Purgatory? Is that even in the Bible?”

Like the word “Trinity,” the word “Purgatory” is not in the Bible. However, the Bible emphasizes that we need to be perfectly pure, without a single blemish, to enter God’s kingdom.

Revelation 21:27 states, “But nothing unclean shall enter Heaven.” In 1 Corinthians 3:15, St. Paul writes, “If any man’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but as only through fire.”

According to Dr. Gerard Verschuuren in his book, Forty Anti-Catholic Lies, “For most of us, the transition from a life on earth to a life in Heaven would be… so shocking that we would need some extra preparation time, as nothing unclean can enter the presence of God.”

Indeed, Scripture supports the existence of Purgatory and the fact that we need to go to Purgatory before we enter Heaven.

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Sermon Notes – How Did They Know?

“How Did They Know?“

Father Peter Fitzgibbons

Feb 27-28, 2021

Gospel:   Mark 9: 2-10


We’ve heard this Gospel proclaimed year after year.  But, have you ever wondered how Peter, James, and John knew it was Moses and Elijah?  There were no pictures or artists that could paint them; there was no Facebook, no Tic-Toc, and no selfies.  So, how did they know?  You ever ask yourself that?  Remember, Moses and Elijah died a thousand or so years before the apostles showed up.  So, how did they know?  In the transfiguration, our good Lord gave the apostles, Peter, James, and John, a taste of what Heaven would be like…just a little taste.  They saw the glorified bodies of Moses and Elijah.  They knew it was Moses and Elijah.  They saw them with their eyes. They saw Heaven, and the people there were talking to God.  You will know people in Heaven…if you get there.  If you are concerned about that, come see me, and we can work it out.  But, you will know people in Heaven, and you will be able to talk to them about future events.  In Heaven, everything is now, because God is the Eternal Now and not the past, present, or future.  He is the Eternal Now.  He is present always.  So, you will know and be enlightened. 

There is forgiveness after death – in purgatory.  Moses was in the Promised Land; he was right outside Jerusalem.  God told Moses that he would never enter the Promised Land because he had sinned.  But he did.  So, there is forgiveness after death.  Our good Lord, in this vision, lowered the veil of His humanity to show the apostles part of His divinity.  They saw Heaven on Earth.  He gave them this great revelation of what Heaven is like to prepare and strengthen them for the scandal of the Passion which would happen in less than two weeks.  After all of the miracles they had seen, this was their final gift.  Now, all of us would like to receive consolation and great gifts from God.  We pray for them.  We look for them, and if we get one, we want more.  What are the gifts of consolation?  First of all, they don’t come as often as we’d like.  They usually come before our great trials or afterward as consolations. 

Heaven is only meant for after this life and not during, just as it was for the apostles.  Most of us would like to say, “If I had such a dramatic experience with God, I would have no problem believing and would never doubt the faith again.  I would go to confession more often.  I might even go to daily Mass occasionally.  I just need to be convinced.”  But, scripture is contrary to those statements.  Jesus had three years of public ministry.  How many people did the apostles see raised from the dead?  At least three.  Scripture says that not all of the miracles Jesus performed were recorded.  He fed 5,000 people, walked on water, cured lepers, and the apostles cast out demons.  The apostles saw all sorts of miracles, because they were there.  Yet, where were they ten days later? 

We are like the apostles.  We have these great gifts.  “Oh, I will never doubt again.”  Yes, you will.  We all do.  This is the struggle we have.  We are tempted to be disconsolate.  The devil will say, “Well, if you were better; if you were doing what you are supposed to do, what your Lord said to do,  you would always feel good.”  Blah, blah, blah.  That’s a bunch of spiritual fertilizer.  It’s not true.

Our Lord does not distance Himself from us.  He is always with us, we just can’t see Him.  I was driving up to the VA the other day.  I was doing 60 mph in a 55 mph zone, so I was cool.  From out of nowhere, this van comes up right behind me and passes.  Then, all of a sudden, I see the blue light special.  I didn’t see the trooper, but he was there.  You don’t see God, but He is always there. Your Guardian Angel is always with you.  Just because you don’t see Him, doesn’t mean He isn’t there.  You look for Him.  “I cannot find Him.”  But, He is there.  

You might look at someone, and tell them they look great.  But, a doctor might look at that same person, and tell them they don’t look so good.  The doctor has the eyes of a physician.  I have the eyes of a bozo.  My eye doctor says I’m not ready for a stick and a seeing eye quite yet.  But, it’s how we see it. 

Our Lord is always with us.  He is always giving us signs of His love and His presence.  Sometimes, we overlook consolations, because we are too busy to see them, or we are looking the other way.  Our Lord gives us great consolations. Maybe not as many as we would like, but as many as we need. They come and they go as our Lord sees fit.  Look for small consolations, because He is there.  Make sure you do not give up hope, and do not give in to despair.  You may worry and ask Him, “Lord, have you forgotten about us?  Do you see what is happening?”  Yes, I am here.  You cannot see Me, but I see you, and I am with you. 

How will you apply this message to your life?  Are you overlooking the signs of His love and His presence?

Father’s Afterthoughts…

While I was at the VA, I saw a nurse practitioner I know.  I said, “Doc, can I ask you a question?  She’s a medical professional.  She said, “Sure!”  “Doc, does this mask make me look fat?”  You have to make your own fun at the VA.

You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to https://annunciationcatholicalbemarle.com/ and clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” and then “Sermon Notes.  From a cell phone, click on “Blog” then “Menu” and then “Categories” (located at the end of the page).  There is also a search box if you are looking for a specific topic.