Tag: Saint John Vianney

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Sermon Notes – March 15, 2026 – “God’s Medicine Restores Our Spiritual Sight”

“God’s Medicine Restores Our Spiritual Sight”

 Father Peter Fitzgibbons

March 14 – 15, 2026


Gospel: John 9:1-41

This past week, I’ve been going around the diocese hearing confessions, and they’ve been a lot of fun.  I like driving and listening to music.  It’s very relaxing.  Sometimes I have to stop people during their confessions because they go on and on with all sorts of details I don’t need.  “Father, it was a dark and stormy night. Ships were ablaze on the horizon. Doors were slammed, and there were gunshots.”  I don’t need the whole great American novel.  I just need to know what you did, okay?  If I have questions, I’ll ask them.  One person launched into a political diatribe.   I don’t talk about politics.  But I will tell you, especially during this war we are engaged in, that on my last trip overseas, I was the chaplain to the theatre commander.   Technically, I didn’t have the appropriate security clearance to hear the theatre-level briefings that I did, but the commander told me to stay.  Where we were, CNN, Fox, and Sky News were broadcasting on television.  I can safely say that everything you hear on the news should be prefaced with “Once upon a time.”  What you hear on the news contains only a kernel of truth.  Commentators are not read into any of this, so rash judgments are made.  My advice to you is to follow my example, watch Animal Planet.  YouTube videos of dogs are also good.  They always crack me up, because dogs have so much to say!   So let it go.  We are not privy to what is really going on.  It will make your lives a lot easier.

About once a year, I have to go see the ophthalmologist.  It’s rather fun because they have this machine you stick your head in, and it’s like Star Wars with all these flashing lights.  Also, when you leave, you get a gift.  They give you these funky glasses that look like those you wear to watch 3D movies.  That’s because your pupils have been dilated so that the doctor can see all of the eye.   If you don’t wear those glasses, your whole outlook on life will change when you leave the office.   Instead of thinking, “Oh, what a beautiful day; the sunshine is wonderful,” you’ll come outside and get blinded by the sunlight.  So, put on the glasses.  I had a problem with that one time after an appointment with the ophthalmologist.   My appointment was early in the afternoon, and a little later, I had to drive to Charlotte.  I was driving west, and it was very unpleasant.  I made sure to drive the exact speed limit and not one mile over.  If I got pulled over by law enforcement with my pupils dilated like saucers, I would not enjoy the experience.  If I said, “I was at the eye doctor,” I doubt the officer would believe me.  Law enforcement officers can be very skeptical of people’s excuses.   But why the change?  It was the same beautiful sunlight as when I walked into the doctor’s office, but it changed when I walked out.  Why?  Because the organ receiving the sunlight had changed.  

God’s love and His call for us to be holy can be painful for a soul that has been damaged by sin or steeped in it.   The organ that receives God’s love has changed.  God hasn’t changed.  God is immutable.  I see people from time to time, and they ask me if I’m a Catholic priest.  Yes.  They’ll say, “I used to be Catholic.”  Sometimes I let that slide, but other times I’ll say, “I still am. What happened to you?”   I don’t need that crap.  The way they say it could be interpreted as an insult.   I could have retired by now with a wife and grandkids, having a good time.  I bet none of them are still working at 72.  Obviously, I didn’t get the memo. 

What has changed is the soul that would receive God’s grace, and you see the reaction.  God’s love has not changed.  What has changed is the organ, the soul.  That is why we ask God to restore us so that we can receive His gifts not as punishment but for conversion.  He helps us clear our vision by our repeated use of the Sacraments of Holy Communion and Confession, wiping away all our sins.  The closer we draw to God, the better our spiritual vision becomes, and we are able to realize why people hurt us.   People do stupid stuff; I’ll give you that.  But with our improved vision, we realize that they are all children of God.   Believe it or not, God loves them as much as He loves you.  That hurts because I thought I was His favorite.  What did our Lord say to do for people who are offensive or who do bad things to us?  Pray for them.  Nobody is beyond the mercy of God, and no sin is too reprehensible. 

Saint John Vianney is the patron saint of parish priests.   He was walking one day when a lady approached him.  He said, “My child, how are you?”  She said, “Curé, you know that my husband fell off a bridge and died recently.  I heard that you could read souls.  My husband is in hell, right?”   Saint Vianney said he didn’t know.  The lady became a bit irate and said, “What do you mean you don’t know.  He did this, and he did that!”   After summing up the litany of her husband’s misdeeds, Saint Vianney said to the woman, “There was a long time from when he left the top of the bridge to when he hit the water.  There was enough time to say, I’m sorry.”  It was perhaps an act of imperfect contrition that would keep that man out of hell.  So, we have no idea. 

Like the sunlight, God’s love does not change.  His love is immutable.  It is the organ that receives His gifts that has changed.  It has been damaged by our sins and by the sins of others.  I will give you a great example, and you may have seen it.   Never come up behind me when I don’t know you are there; you will not get a good reaction.   That was caused by the sins of others.  We all have our sufferings, but God gives us the medicine so we can regain our spiritual sight. 

Father’s Reflections:

I told some priests how drugs can be your best friend in the spiritual life.  When I was working in Hospice, I was visiting with this one patient in Room 4.   He was a helicopter pilot in Vietnam.  He survived, became Catholic, and then became a priest.  He left the priesthood and got married.  Now he was in hospice.  I asked him if he would like to receive Last Rites.  He said, “No.”  Okay, I didn’t take it personally.  So, I left the room, got a cup of coffee, and waited until the drug cart came by.  About 10 minutes later, I went back into his room and asked, “Would you like to receive Last Rites now?”  I’ll take that as a “Yes.”  Sometimes, morphine and fentanyl can be your best friends in hospice.  It’s how you can use them to your advantage.  I don’t like taking ‘no’ for an answer; I just wait until patients pass out. 

How will you apply this message to your life? ________________________________________

You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to AnnunciationCatholicAlbemarle.com, clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” and 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 12, 2025 – “Forgiven and Forgotten”

“Forgiven and Forgotten”

Father Peter Fitzgibbons

October 11-12, 2025

Gospel: Luke 17:11-19

Leprosy is often mentioned in Scripture.  Now, because I’m not Dr. House although I have watched every episode, I wasn’t sure what Leprosy is.  This was pre-Google, so I looked it up in this book that in those days we called an encyclopedia.  Leprosy is now called Hansens Disease.  It is very rare in this country, and we have very effective treatment for those who get it.   Leprosy will literally eat you alive, and you will rot to death.  Your nose and fingers fall off, and your face becomes disfigured.  In the Old Testament, people with Leprosy were banished because the disease is contagious.  Father Damien, now Saint Damien, was a priest from Belgium.  When he heard that a leper colony in Hawaii had no priest, Father Damien went to the bishop and asked if he could be sent there.  The bishop told him, “If you go, you cannot go back.”  That was the law.  Yet, Father Damien said, “I will go.”  So, he went to work in the leper colony.  When he heard that a supply ship would be coming and that it had a priest on board, Father Damien wanted the priest to hear his confession.  So, he got into his boat and rowed out to the ship but, according to the law, the captain of the ship could not allow him on board because he had been exposed to Leprosy.   Undeterred, Father Damien made a public confession from his boat while the priest stood at the top of the ship.  One of the last pictures of him shows his face rotting away and some of his fingers are missing.  Having Leprosy is not the best way to go.  By the way, after Father Damien’s death, all the signs of Leprosy left him. 

A lot of diseases have distinct smells.  We all smell wonderful when we come to church with our different aftershaves and perfumes.  But when I open the church on Monday mornings, a wall of different aromas hit me in the face, and I’m reminded of my time in the Army and the gas chamber.  It was a real treat for the senses.   We all have two aromas; one comes from holiness, and the other comes from the sin in our souls.  If our soul has sin, it smells.  You may be wondering, “Father, how do you know that?”   Saint John Vianney, the Curé d’Ars, could smell it.  There could be a long line of people waiting for Confession, and he would come out of the confessional, sniff around, point to someone in line, and say, “You are first.  You have mortal sin in your soul.”  He could smell the mortal sin in that soul because we all have it.  Leprosy affects the outside of the body while sin rots our souls from the inside.  Our souls die of mortal sin more immediately while unrepentant venial sin is a slow death.  But we can go to our Good Lord to be cured in the Sacrament of Penance.  We can get treatment for the infection and rot in our souls.  By the way, when we receive the Sacrament of Penance, one of the best prayers never said is “thank you.”   

I always tell people that if they want to be beautiful or handsome they should be holy, and neither time nor disease will be able to take it away from them.  Have holiness in your soul.  Saint Teresa of Calcutta and Saint John Paul II come to mind.  Saint Teresa was not exactly a candidate to be a runway model, but she was beautiful because she carried the living Christ in her soul.   At the end of his life, Saint John Paul II was drooling and shaking but everybody wanted to be near him because of the purity of his soul and the presence of Christ within him.  This is how we evangelize – not by giving away free stuff or having concerts – but by telling people what the Good Lord has done for us.  Our sins are forgiven.  The greatest experience of God’s love is the experience of His forgiveness.  Our sins are forgiven and forgotten.  The State of Washington, like other states before them, tried to pass a law that would require me to reveal whatever I heard about abused children during Confessions.  I cannot and would not do that: 1) I’m old and I don’t remember who the heck came to Confession; and 2) I don’t hear individuals; I hear souls.  I hear sick souls coming in for God’s medicine.  Do I remember all that stuff?  No.  But what I do remember is their love of God and when I give them absolution, the love of God for them.  No matter how bad you think your sins are, God will forgive and forget everything. 

I have been a priest for 42 years, thanks to the goodness of God and His infinite patience.  There is not one sin that has ever affected me except my own.  I have done some interesting things, but that is immaterial compared to the love of God.  Nobody’s sins are going to frighten me.  I tell people in church and at hospitals, “I’ve seen more body parts than you will ever have, so cover up.  I’m not impressed.”   I’ve been a priest for a long time, and I’ve been around the world.  I’ve been there and done that.  If you have a sin I haven’t heard before, I’ll pay you for the privilege of hearing it.  But do you know what impresses me while I’m hearing confessions?  It’s not the sins.  I am impressed by the love that people have to come to Confession, open their souls, and to give what they have.  The worst things people have to confess is what God wants in the Sacrament of Penance.  In exchange, He will give them the best which is Himself.  This is why I say that the most neglected part of the Sacrament of Penance is to say, “thank you.”  Do not take God’s love for granted.

Each night before I go to bed I try to say, “thank you.”  Then I think of how inadequate my gratitude is because I cannot possibly repay God for all that He has done for me.   But that is what we should do – to thank Him for His great love for us.  The greatest part of His love is manifested in His forgiveness of our sins.  By doing so, He saves us from spiritual death in the next world to come.

Father’s Reflections . . . This week I was visiting a lady who is in a nursing care facility.  I went into her room and began talking to her to get a sense of her consciousness and focus.  I said, “Your accent isn’t from around here.  Where did you grow up?”   She was confused and couldn’t quite put it all together, so I said, “That’s okay.  I don’t remember where I grew up because I never grew up.  I’m Peter Pan.”  She thought that was hilarious and laughed.  My work here is done.

How will you apply this message to your life?  ________________________________________

You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to AnnunciationCatholicAlbemarle.com, clicking on “Blog,” then “Categories,” and then “Sermon Notes.”   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 – March 23, 2025 – “God Does Not Want Us Separated From Him”

 “God Does Not Want Us Separated From Him”

 Father Peter Fitzgibbons

 March 22 – 23, 2025


Gospel:  Luke 13:1-9

In the past two months, I have done seven funerals…I must be good at it.  On Friday, I had a double header— a father and son.  I asked the family why we couldn’t hold both funerals together.  But they said, “No.  Our mother hated our father, who was her ex-husband, so we have to have two separate funerals.”   But maybe she would just like to come to gloat and make sure he’s dead.   Well, that wasn’t happening, so we had two separate funerals and committed both of their souls to Almighty God and His mercy.   

In the Gospel, we hear that God gives the vineyard owner’s tree another year to see if it produces fruit.  God gives us all the time we need to make our way to Heaven.  Do you know why He does that?   It’s why God made you…because He loves us.  Why does God give us time to repent?  Also, because He loves us.   God doesn’t want anyone to be separated from Him, and He is always pleading for our mercy.  He spoke from the Cross seven times, which is called the seven last words.  The sixth time He spoke from the Cross, He said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:24).   We do not know how grievous sin is. 

God gives us the time and means to achieve our salvation because He doesn’t want anyone to be separated from Him.  He loves us.  Love is His nature.  He created us out of love.   But we have free Will, and we all sin.   He keeps following us, hoping that we will reform so that we may have life and have it to the fullest in the Kingdom of Heaven.   We were created to experience happiness in Heaven, and He provides us with the time and means to get there and to achieve our salvation.   Anybody in hell is a self-made man or woman… I don’t want to be sexist or transphobic.  People go to hell because they turn their backs on God and flip Him off.  “Hey, I’m a self-made man and I can do what I want.”   People who do not want God’s help wind up in hell.  God did not want them there.  He did not create us to be in hell.  But even at the point of death, they turned their backs on God’s love.  I have a little technique that I use at the VA Hospital, and hopefully I’ll have a chance to teach it to my replacement before I retire.  When I see older men, and sometimes older women, at the VA, I wait until they are bombed from their meds to give them Last Rites just in case I don’t see them again before they pass.  There are so few of us priests nowadays, so I always do that. 

A guy came by my office on Friday, and he asked me, “Why did they hit Christ 39 times?”  Because hitting Him 40 times would have been illegal.  It was terrible, but that was to show us how evil sin is.   Meditate on that… the 39 strikes with a whip.  That’s how bad sin is.  God gives us the means for salvation, and He is always calling us even unto the point of death.  Unfortunately, I receive calls to administer Last Rites to people when they are already at the funeral home, and I have to say, “No, it’s a little late for that.   They need to be a little warmer than they are now.”   Last Rites must be given within two hours of clinical death or before signs of rigor mortis.  Additionally, the body must be intact and not scattered throughout creation.  Remember, I was an Army chaplain and a chaplain at a trauma center.  The Sacraments are for the living.   When I administer Last Rites to someone after clinical death, I always say under my breath, “Si vivis – If you are living.”  I say it in Latin and in a low tone so that the family cannot hear me. 

That’s how much God loves us.  No matter how bad we think we are or how bad the things we have done are, He does not want us separated from Him.   I’ve gotten out of my sick bed to give Last Rites to someone because that is what God wants.  One time I was going up the stairwell at a hospital, and a nurse was coming down the stairs.  She asked me, “Are you a priest?”   Yeah.  “Somebody in ICU needs Last Rites.”   Okay.  So, I went to the ICU, gave the patient Last Rites, and I never saw her again.  I do know she died.  Sometimes it just happens.  When I was still an Associate Pastor, I served as the Catholic chaplain at Presbyterian Hospital in Charlotte, which is now part of Novant Health, Atrium Health, and Mercy Hospital.  So, I had a busy job.   One day, I was at Novant Hospital, deciding which wing to visit first.  Once I made the decision, I walked into a patient’s room, and a man in the room said, “My wife is dying. Would you give her Last Rites?”   Certainly.   As I administered the Last Rites, there is a point in the Rites that states, “At or near the point of death, say these words.”  And it was at that precise moment that the woman took her last breath.   So, I said: “Go forth, Christian soul.”  I have that part down after 40 years of practice.  It is by the grace of God that you have a priest at your deathbed, especially here in the South.  God loves us even to the point that He will accept imperfect contrition.  There are two kinds of contrition: perfect and imperfect.  Perfect contrition is one in which you are sad because you offended God, whom you should love with all your heart.   Imperfect contrition arises from a desire to avoid hell: “I don’t want to go to hell, so I’m going to do this just in case.”   Either is sufficient to avoid hell and enter heaven.   However, perfect contrition significantly reduces the time spent in Purgatory. 

Saint John Vianney, the Cure of Ars and patron saint of Catholic parish pastors told a story about walking down the road one day when a lady approached him.  She said, “Father.”  Father Vianney said, “Good morning, my child.”  The woman said, “You know my husband died.”  Yes.  “He was not a nice guy.  He hit me, he drank, he ran around on me, and he did a lot of other bad stuff.”    She gave Father Vianney a whole laundry list of bad things her husband had done.  Then she said, “Father, you can read souls.  He’s in hell, isn’t he?”   Father Vianney replied, “I don’t know.”  “What do you mean you don’t know!!”    By this time, she was getting ugly.  Father Vianney said, “There was a long time after he left the bridge until he hit the water. He had enough time to say, ‘I’m sorry.’”   Either way – whether it was perfect or imperfect contrition – would have been sufficient to save his soul from hell.   When I was an assistant at St. Gabriel’s, there was a man who served me breakfast.  He had a tattoo on his arm, and I knew what that tattoo meant.  During World War II, he served as Adolf Hitler’s personal bodyguard.   These were really bad guys – the worst in the German Army.  But he died reconciled to Christ and the Church.  That is how great God’s love is for us, and we are to lead everyone to His mercy.   

How will you apply this message to your life? _________________________________________

You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to AnnunciationCatholicAlbemarle.com, clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” and 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 11, 2024 – “It’s Not About Us”

“It’s Not About Us”

Father Peter Fitzgibbons

August 10 – 11, 2024


Gospel:  John 6:41-51


In the church, we have stained-glass windows and the Stations of the Cross which represent the bible in pictures.   The Rosetta window above the altar displays the 15 mysteries of the Rosary which is also Scripture.  Way, way back before the Protestant’s so-called Reformation, we had these things.  Why?  One reason is because a lot of people couldn’t read.  It wasn’t their fault; they were just trying to survive.  Also, people didn’t have enough money for books because they had to be written on parchment or sheepskin.  It was very tedious work for monks to do.  When people came to church, they could see Scripture with their eyes, and as the priests were preaching, they would point out the various mysteries of the faith. 

The whole point of Scripture is to bring attention to Christ especially Christ incarnate in the Tabernacle.  This brings up something funny; in the so-called Reformation, their attention was solely on Scripture.  So, what did Protestants do?  They got rid of visible Scripture in their churches.  The stained-glass windows and Stations of the Cross were all gone.  I thought you loved Scripture.  So why did you get rid of the visible Scripture?  No one has answered that question for me yet. 

Everything we do is directed at the Tabernacle. We have proved that our Lord is in the Most Blessed Sacrament.  We have seen the evidence.  When we take our Lord away and denigrate the Blessed Sacrament, people leave in droves.  We come to Mass for a Who not a “what.”  I read a ritual book that stated, “The liturgy is the work of the people.”  No, that makes it a high school play.  The liturgy, which is the Mass, is Christ.  It’s a Who not a “what.”  You got that wrong and you flunked Theology 101.  That phrase never shows up anywhere in Church history.  I may have been sick a day or two while in seminary, but we were never taught that.  And I guarantee you that Saint Thomas Aquinas never wrote that.  Nor did Saint Louis de Montfort or Saint John Vianney.  People said, “We have to focus on the liturgy.”  So, they moved the Tabernacle to another location in the church to a place where you would be lucky to find it with a native guide.  When I got here, I started putting things back where they belonged, and people said, “Vatican 2 said this, and we have to do that.”  I said, “Okay, fine.”  I don’t want to get in trouble with anybody.  I get into enough trouble with local law, so I don’t need the Church law after me too.  Oh, did I say that out loud?  Show me where the Church decreed that.  I had a professor who was at Vatican 2.   Abbot Walter was a counselor at Vatican 2, and he claims they never said that.  Does anybody want to give out Communion?  Come on up.  No!  Does anybody want to perform surgery?  Come on up; we’ll give you a knife.  Have a good time.   No!   Everything is placed with reverence for the Eucharist.  Nobody is supposed to go beyond the altar rail except for the priest and those who have business at the altar.  And as soon as they finish, they leave.  The Tabernacle is supposed to be in a pronounced location.  When Bishop Jugis came in, God bless his soul, he had everything put back where it belonged. 

Every couple of centuries or so the Church has to do some housecleaning.  If some is good, more is better.  That’s true for hundred-dollar bills and pizza.  Everything else, not so much.  “We need more statues.”  No.  Statues are nice, but it gets so cluttered you can’t find our good Lord.  So, the Church has to do a little housecleaning and say, “That’s all very nice, very sweet, but it has to go away” so we can focus on our Lord.  All the Gospels in the past couple of weeks have been focused on the good Lord.  “I am the Bread of Life.”  The focus is always on Him and not on you, not on me, and not on the worshipping community.  By the way, I have no idea what “worshipping community” means.  Granted, I’m not the brightest bulb in the circuit.  Just as an aside, I was poking around on the internet to see what my classmates are up to, and I discovered that one of my classmates at my old diocese is now a monsignor.  Suck up!  He was Roman anyway.  When you are Roman, it’s like having graduated from West Point in the Army.   “You are all equal.”  No, you’re not.

The only thing we should focus on is our good Lord in the Most Blessed Sacrament.  “I am the Bread of Life.”  It’s not about what you sing or who brings the gifts to the altar.  It’s all about Who is in the Tabernacle.  That is our faith.  Everything points to our Lord in the Most Blessed Sacrament and our focus should be only on Him.

How will you apply this message to your life?  ________________________________________

You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to AnnunciationCatholicAlbemarle.com, clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” and 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 – January – 14, 2024 – “Heart Speaking to Heart”

“Heart Speaking to Heart”

Father Peter Fitzgibbons

January 13 – 14, 2024

Gospel: John 1:35-42

 I visit a lot of different groups.  Remember the song, “The In Crowd”?  We’re all old enough to remember that song, right?  I have two different groups that I’m “in” with . . . the shut-ins and the lock-ins.  This sermon has been approved by my lock-ins at the gated community whom I saw on Wednesday.  In the gospel, Jesus said, “You are Simon the son of John; you will be called Cephas” – which is Greek and translated as Peter” or “Rock”  (John 1:35-42).  This was a big deal.  Go back to the Old Testament when God called Abram.  What did God do?  He said, “You will be called Abraham, and you will be the father of My holy people.”  God wasn’t like me who gives people nicknames.  This was a dramatic shift.  However, He had reasons for changing people’s names.   

 What is the secret to prayer?   In the Gospel, Samuel said, “Speak Lord for your servant is listening” (1 Samuel 3:10).  That is the whole secret to prayer.  I am guilty of speaking so quickly that most times my mind has to catch up with my mouth.   I don’t often see a prayer like the one to Saint Jude for hopeless causes.  Sometimes I read in the newspaper that if you pray a certain prayer nine times for nine days, you’ll get what you want.  Over the four years of seminary, I was probably sick for a day or two.   But I never heard about celestial extortion.  Really?  “I’ve got the secret to prayer. Light a candle and put on a prayer shawl.”   Why?  Are you cold?    Do you honestly think God doesn’t know what we need?  He knows what we want and desire.  But He keeps us alive by saying “no” sometimes to our prayers even if they are perfect.   If He gave us everything we want, we might not stay close to Him.  Probably the reason I haven’t made Monsignor after 40 years is to keep me humble.  Well, that didn’t work.  We come with our prayers and rattle them off.  Of course, I say mine very quickly, and I have a whole laundry list of things to tell God.  Whew!  I’m done with my prayers.  But apparently, God isn’t listening because I asked Him about this yesterday, and it’s still not done.  He has fallen down on His job.  Maybe He forgot.  I know He’s busy but come on!  I’m a busy guy too, and I have things to do!   If He would just do what I ask, things would be so much better.  It’s good to get all these things off our souls by telling Him what we need, what we want, and what we think He should do.  He laughs.  You have to admit when we tell God what He needs to do, with His divine sense of humor, it cracks Him up.  “Oh, I hadn’t thought of that.  Thanks a lot; I really appreciate it.” 

 So, what is prayer?  Bishop Sheen said prayer is heart speaking to heart.  Prayer is not a monologue.  It is not a one-way conversation.  It is two-way communication.  You can’t communicate with someone who won’t shut up.  Hey!  Zip it!  We must listen, and listening is the hardest part.   Listening takes different forms through meditation, quietness, and being interiorly open.  We need quiet inside and out.  Do you know who is perfect at listening?  Nobody; not even monks and religious sisters.  It takes a lot of practice.  We may be sitting there with our minds racing.  Look! Squirrel.  But let the other heart speak to you on the other heart’s terms.   God speaks to us in ordinary ways at His choosing, in His way, and in His own time.  When you tell God what you want, He says, “Thank you very much, Sir.  I’ll get right on that order.”  No.  You’ve got the flow chart on how it works all wrong.   It’s a conversation.  We should sit and listen, which is the hardest part.  It takes time.  When you go to Mass at other churches, they may have a prolonged silence after the readings.  You know, they didn’t go to school, and if they did, they need to get their money back.  A good and proper meditation takes 20 minutes.  We did that in seminary.  We had nowhere else to go, so why not?  We must learn how to quiet ourselves and to listen.  It’s tough because we are all so busy.  Sometimes when we listen, we really don’t like the answers.  However, He knows what is best for everyone, and He loves us more than anyone.  When you receive an answer, be sure to authenticate it because satan will tell us stuff just to make us go off the deep end.  “Well, God told me to do this.”  Uh-Huh.  A friend of mine was a chaplain at a prison in Louisiana.  One of the inmates told him that God had called him to preach.  Really?  Aren’t you the guy who sexually abused his granddaughters?  You might want to rethink that.  You always have to make sure the answer is coming from God.  He does not contradict Himself or what He revealed in Jesus Christ. 

When you come to church, be like the French farmer.  Saint John Vianney was the pastor of a church in a small town in France.  He came to the church to hear confessions.  He saw this little guy sitting there in front of the Blessed Sacrament.  Oh good!  He heard some confessions and when he came back, the guy was still sitting there.  Priests are trained to notice the unusual.  So, Saint John asked the man, “My son is everything okay?”  The man answered, “Yes, Father.”   Saint John said, “My son you’ve been here for hours. What are you doing?”  The man answered, “I am looking at God and God is looking at me.”

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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Saint of the Day – August 4 – Saint John Vianney

Saint John Vianney’s Story (May 8, 1786 – August 4, 1859)

A man with vision overcomes obstacles and performs deeds that seem impossible. John Vianney was a man with vision: He wanted to become a priest. But he had to overcome his meager formal schooling, which inadequately prepared him for seminary studies.

His failure to comprehend Latin lectures forced him to discontinue. But his vision of being a priest urged him to seek private tutoring. After a lengthy battle with the books, John was ordained.

Situations calling for “impossible” deeds followed him everywhere. As pastor of the parish at Ars, John encountered people who were indifferent and quite comfortable with their style of living. His vision led him through severe fasts and short nights of sleep.

With Catherine Lassagne and Benedicta Lardet, he established La Providence, a home for girls. Only a man of vision could have such trust that God would provide for the spiritual and material needs of all those who came to make La Providence their home.

His work as a confessor is John Vianney’s most remarkable accomplishment. In the winter months he was to spend 11 to 12 hours daily reconciling people with God. In the summer months this time was increased to 16 hours. Unless a man was dedicated to his vision of a priestly vocation, he could not have endured this giving of self day after day.

Many people look forward to retirement and taking it easy, doing the things they always wanted to do but never had the time. But John Vianney had no thoughts of retirement. As his fame spread, more hours were consumed in serving God’s people. Even the few hours he would allow himself for sleep were disturbed frequently by the devil.

Who, but a man with vision, could keep going with ever-increasing strength? In 1929, Pope Pius XI named him the patron of parish priests worldwide.

Reflection

Indifference toward religion, coupled with a love for material comfort, seem to be common signs of our times. A person from another planet observing us would not likely judge us to be pilgrim people, on our way to somewhere else. John Vianney on the other hand, was a man on a journey, with his goal before him at all times.

Saint John Vianney is the Patron Saint of:

Diocesan Priests
Parish Priests

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Sermon Notes – September 11, 2022 – “God Loves Them More Than You Do”

“God Loves Them More Than You Do”

Father Peter Fitzgibbons

 September 10 – 11, 2022

Gospel:  Luke 15: 1-32

The other day I was making my rounds at the VA hospital, and one of the nurses told me that there was a new addition to Hospice.  I said “Okay” and I went in to the patient’s room.  He didn’t look good at all and won’t make it through the weekend Although they gave him two years in the original diagnosis, his doctors helped him get six years beyond that.  He got eight years when he was supposed to have two.  That shows you how well medicine works.  But now he was on his way to see the Savior.  I was talking to his wife and his sister-in-law was also there.  Very nice and sweet people.  I told them that I needed to ask them some questions because I have to do a Chaplain’s Spiritual Assessment for every patient who comes in.  Mostly, it’s creative writing on my part.  One of the questions is “Do you have any end-of-life issues?”   So how long have you had this chaplain gig?  End-of-life issue means end of life.  Yeah, I’ve got a real issue with that!  Are you crazy?   But they want something in the file, so I create a narrative of what’s happening with the patient to make the hospital happy.  If they don’t see it, they get a little antsy.   So, I asked his wife if he had any particular religion.  She said no.   Did he go to church when he was able?”   No.  He was a very interesting man, and I wish I had met him before he became so ill.  I may have crossed paths with him in the first Gulf War.  His job was explosive ordinance disposal and he disassembled mines and bombs.  He wasn’t exactly the nervous type before that – maybe afterward – but not before.  He was pretty good at his job because he survived it.  And he was blessed because he got a disease – none of us know when we will contract one – and he lived well beyond the original diagnosis.  You never know.  I told him and his family that I would come back to visit on my afternoon rounds.   So, I continued my rounds, visiting other patients.  I ran into the nurse practitioner for Hospice, and she asked me if I had seen the new Hospice patient and given him Last Rites.  I said, “No, he’s not Catholic.  His wife said he is Christian.”    She said, “Well, according to our records, he’s Catholic.”   Okay.  So, after lunch I went on my afternoon rounds, and the wife and sister-in-law were not in the room.  I looked around to make sure the coast was clear and gave the man the Last Rites.  And just as I was finishing, his wife and sister-in-law walked in.  Whew!  I snuck that one in!  I accomplished the mission. . .by any means necessary.  I told the nurse manager what I did, but it was never written down because we didn’t want to cause any more problems.  I’m a real certified weasel, but I’m a weasel for Christ.   

This is how much God loves us.  I have people come up to me all the time, and rightly so, asking for prayers for family members, loved one, needs, worries, fears, and all sorts of troubles we are prone to.  I’m happy to pray for them, but I try to tell them, if I remember, that no matter how much you love this person, God loves him or her much more.  That’s why God created them in His image and likeness.  That’s why He suffered and died for them.  That’s why He is constantly running after them to beg them to embrace Him and His love.  God never gives up.  Read the “Hounds of Heaven,” a poem by Francis Thompson.  God is always running after us, so much is His great love, that even at the moment of death if we say we are sorry for our sins just because we are afraid of dying and the eternal fires of hell and not because we are particularly sorry for them, God forgives us.  That is sufficient and God will forgive us.  Remember the 6th prayer from the Cross: “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.”  One of the greatest experiences of God’s love is His mercy.

Saint John Vianney, known as the Curé d’Ars, is the patron saint for parish priests.  God’s gift to him was that he could read souls.  One day, he was walking along a road in France in an area where his parish was located.  A woman approached him and said, “Curé, you know my husband died.”  Father Vianney said, “Yes.” The woman said, “He fell off a bridge and drowned.  He’s in hell, isn’t he?”  Saint Vianney said, “I don’t know.”   The woman yelled, “You can read souls!  Why don’t you know?  He beat me, he drank, he gambled. . .“  She had a whole laundry list of how bad her husband had been.  “So, he’s in hell, isn’t he?”  Saint Vianney replied, “I don’t know.  There’s a long time from when he left the bridge and when he hit the water.”

Even in that short span of time, he could have said, “I’m sorry,” and that would have been sufficient.  Perfect contrition is if you say “I’m sorry” because you love God.   Imperfect contrition is if you said it because you don’t want to go to hell.  Even so, that is sufficient to receive God’s forgiveness.  So much does He love us.   He sees all our trials, worries, and concerns about those who are near and dear to us.  But remember, God loves them more than you do, and He will never, ever give up on them as long as they have a breath in them.

Father’s Afterthoughts. . .
My day is never dull.  There is always something interesting going on here.  Today, I had a wedding, and the bride came up in a carriage drawn by horses.  I got to pet the horses.  I love horses!  I’m still six years old.  Quoting Sir Winston Churchill, Doctor Eddins, a local physician, said, “There is something about the outside of a horse that is good for the inside of a man.”

How will you apply this message to your life?  ________________________________________

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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” then “Menu” and then “Categories”