Sermon Notes – April 14, 2024 – “There is Only One Truth”

“There is Only One Truth”

Father Peter Fitzgibbons

April 13 – 14, 2024

Gospel: Luke 24:35-48

35 Then they told their story of what had happened on the road and how they had recognised Him at the breaking of bread. 36 They were still talking about all this when He himself stood among them and said to them, ‘Peace be with you!’ 37 In a state of alarm and fright, they thought they were seeing a ghost. 38 But He said, ‘Why are you so agitated, and why are these doubts stirring in your hearts? 39 See by My hands and My feet that it is I Myself. Touch Me and see for yourselves; a ghost has no flesh and bones as you can see I have.’ 40 And as He said this He showed them His hands and his feet. 41 Their joy was so great that they still could not believe it, as they were dumbfounded; so He said to them, ‘Have you anything here to eat?’ 42 And they offered Him a piece of grilled fish, 43 which He took and ate before their eyes. 44 Then He told them, ‘This is what I meant when I said, while I was still with you, that everything written about Me in the Law of Moses, in the Prophets and in the Psalms, was destined to be fulfilled.’ 45 He then opened their minds to understand the scriptures, 46 and He said to them, ‘So it is written that the Christ would suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, 47 and that, in His name, repentance for the forgiveness of sins would be preached to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses to this.

I looked this up: there are over 12,000 Protestant denominations. Protestants say they believe in Scripture; however, they must be reading different books than Catholics. God wants us to find our truth. Philosophically, there can be only one truth. There is one God and one truth. There is no different faith for Yankees than there is for people in Aquadale. There is not a different faith for people with different skin tones. We have only one faith and one truth. The Catholic Church teaches the truth.

I get these questions all the time. I see a group of Baptist guys on Mondays at Parkway House. They are good old boys, and I always go up and talk to them. Some of them will start quoting Scripture and ask if I am familiar with it. I feel like saying, “Dude, see this collar? I went to school and, believe it or not, I earned a master’s degree. I really did study, and I have a diploma to prove it.” So yeah, I think I know Scripture. I have people coming up to me all the time trying to prove me wrong. The Catholic Church wrote the Bible, so I know what it says and what it means. “Well, I don’t think it means that.” Do you argue with your doctor too? There is one truth. The Church teaches the truth, and we call that tradition. Truth is also contained outside of Scripture. In John’s gospel, he admitted that Scripture does not contain everything (John 21:25). So, we have the whole truth that the Church has taught from the beginning.

We have all sorts of people who have been “gifted” by the spirit, and they claim, “truth to power.” Uh-Huh. When someone uses that phrase, I always say, “I’ll get someone to check your meds because it sounds like you are on a real ego trip.” In the Catholic Church, those people have fallen by the wayside. They’ve all gone bye-bye. They say, “We have a new and better way. Christ told us so.” How’s that working out for you? Probably not really well. If we stick to what Christ said, we get what He promised: peace and joy in our souls, all the happiness that is possible in this life, and eternal life in the next. We have an inkling of what Heaven is like.

A lot of people say, “I don’t care what happens to my body; the body isn’t important.” Yes, it is. Our Lord said, “See by My hands and My feet that it is I Myself. Touch Me and see for yourselves.” At the end of time, we will have our bodies back . . . our souls will be reunited with our bodies. Nothing imperfect can be in the presence of God. There is only a temporary separation of our soul and body, so at the end of the world, we will receive our bodies back to serve our Lord and love Him. We will be reunited with our bodies and rejoice in Heaven. Hopefully, I won’t be eating fish! Please, Lord!! Although I am sure He will make me like it. This is our future. We will have our bodies back and not the weak and frail ones we have now, but bodies made perfect. We will be able to recognize each other in Heaven because the Apostles recognized our good Lord. If we do as we are told, that is our future. If not, let me know how that works out for you.

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.”


Sermon Notes – April 7, 2024 – “You Must Be Willing to Try”

“You Must Be Willing to Try”

Father Peter Fitzgibbons

April 6 – 7, 2024

Gospel: John 20: 19-31

When we go to Confession we are praying scripturally.  Now, this doesn’t happen very often, but I pray it happens to you because it will comfort and strengthen your faith.  We kneel and say, “Bless me Father for I have sinned.”  Our image of each other through the grate in the confessional is a bit hazy on purpose because I’m not supposed to recognize anyone.  In the hazy light, you may think that Father is growing a beard and has hair.  He has a certain glow about him, and he looks healthy because he doesn’t have that pale look he usually has.  Is that the father we know?”  Yes and no.  It’s my human body but you’ve been given the eyes of angels because you see Christ on the other side of that partition.  It is Christ who forgives sins.  It is Christ who hears your confession.  In His hand, He holds the chalice that is filled with His Precious Blood from His sacred wounds.  When He gives you absolution, He dips His hand into the chalice and anoints your soul with His Precious Blood for the remission of your sins.  As the Pentecostals say, “You’ve been washed in the blood.”  All your sins are forgiven and forgotten.  Your soul is infused with sanctifying and actual grace.  It is Christ who forgives your sins.  He uses my human nature just as our Good Lord heals you through the actions of good physicians and nurses.  This is one of the gifts He gives us and the fruits for which He sacrificed Himself so that we may have eternal life and forgiveness of our sins. 

I went to confession two weeks ago.  I do not ask you to do what I will not do myself.  Belief is proved by action.  Sometimes it is frightening to go to confession.   It can also be frightening to go to the doctor.  “Oh, my goodness!”   Going to the dentist can also be a really pleasant experience.  But why do we get nervous?  The doctors are going to do the best they can for you, reassure you, and make your life more pleasant.  That’s what I try to do on my hospital rounds.  It usually happens with drug addicts and alcoholics in the Emergency Room.  They are all nervous and upset.  I remember one man who served in Afghanistan as an Army first sergeant, and he was crying his eyes out.  He said, “You are going to throw me out of here!”  I said, “We don’t shoot our wounded.”  After that, I usually take out my business card and write my cell phone number on the back.   I tell them, “If you have a problem while you’re here, call me.  I know people.  If you have a problem, I’ll get it taken care of.”  In my 13 years at the VA Hospital, I’ve never had anyone call me. 

I always like it when people say, “We have scriptural beliefs.”  Really.  “We are a bible believing church!”  Really.  Scripture says that “Jesus did many other signs in the presence of [his] disciples that are not written” (John 2:30).  Not everything was written down.  After three years of ministry, if that’s all He did, He didn’t do much.  But the Word stayed with the Apostles which is called “tradition” and they taught it.  If you believe in Scripture, then go to Confession because He gave the power to the Apostles, bishops, and priests to absolve sin (John 20:21-23).  It says that in the black part of scripture not the white part. 

But we are all scared to go to Confession.  Why, I don’t know.  Actually, I do know.  It’s our pride.  Because you think that you are going to tell Christ, which is me acting in His person, something I haven’t heard before.  Very unlikely.  Moral Theology is a class we took before the Penance course at seminary, and it consisted of two very thick textbooks.  I’ve had people say, “Oh, I’ve committed every sin in the book!”  Okay, let’s see.  So, you married your first cousin and had relations with her?  “No, Father!  Okay, that’s one chapter from the textbook gone.  Did you fool around with animals?  “No!”  Okay, that’s another chapter gone.  The textbooks are getting thinner and thinner as we talk.   My point is that you are not going to surprise me.  It’s like when I go into hospital rooms and patients pull their bed sheets up around their chins.  I wish they all did that, but I tell them that I’ve seen more body parts than they will ever have. Occasionally, I have to say that to the Spanish because some of them wear very low-cut dresses.  Cover up!  I’ve seen more than that in the hospital. 

We have to say what we are sorry for as best as we can.  I cannot prescribe something for that which I don’t know about.  Doctors would never prescribe anyone pain medicine who said, “Oh, I have a terrible headache!  I need some oxycontin.”  The doctor is not going to say, “No problem, and I’ll make the prescription refillable too.”  Nope.  That would never happen.  If they did that, they would be over at FU (Felon University), and I’d be visiting them there.  In fact, I met a PA (physician’s assistant) at FU who was there for doing that same kind of funny stuff.  The physician may want to take a little peek because the problem could be sinuses, or it could be a brain tumor.  It’s the same with spiritual life.  The medicine I prescribe for your soul will depend on what I know.  The one thing priests cannot forgive is people who live in an objective state of sin.  For example, they have a bad marriage, or they are in a relationship that they are unwilling to leave or even try.   If you are unwilling to try, I cannot help you.  “Hey, I’ll give you cancer treatments if you’ll stop smoking.”  “But I don’t want to stop smoking.”   My older brother did that.  He had Hepatitis C, and the doctor said that he could cure it if he stopped drinking.   My brother said, “Nope,” and he did not have a good outcome.  We are all sinners, but you have to be willing to try. 

I do this all the time at the VA Hospital for patients who are getting a celestial discharge.  I don’t ask if I can give them Last Rites.  Instead, I say, “I’m going to give you Last Rites, okay?”  They usually say, “Yes.  Thank you, Father.”  Then I will ask, “When was the last time you went to Confession?”  I never ask if they would like to go to Confession.   When I ask them about the last time they went to Confession, I say it in a command-like tone, and that snaps them right back to their military days and they tell me.  Then I ask, “What are your sins?”  Of course, half of them can’t remember because they are usually sedated.  So, I say, “Key question: Are you sorry for all of your sins, those you remember and those you don’t?”   “Yes.”  Right answer, and I absolve them of their sins. 

There are two types of sorrow – perfect and imperfect contrition.  Perfect sorrow or contrition is when you are sorry for hurting the one you love.  You are sorry for offending them because you love them, and they are worthy of all your love as God Almighty is.  Imperfect contrition is when you are sorry because you got caught.  Ask a police officer how many people cry right before they get a ticket.  “I didn’t know!”   Well, here is a ticket as a reminder.  Imperfect contrition is sufficient. 

Remember, just because you don’t see Christ while in the confessional as I act in His person, doesn’t mean He’s not there.  Likewise, just because you don’t see law enforcement officers on Highway 52 while driving to Salisbury doesn’t mean they aren’t there.

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.”


The Catechism in a Year – Day 340 – Scripture and the Liturgy

How do we pray? Prayer is essential for our relationship with the Lord. The Catechism teaches that we must study the Scriptures, learn how to pray, and have the will to pray. Fr. Mike shares two different sources of prayer: the Word of God and the Liturgy of the Church. He explains how the Holy Spirit guides us in prayer and teaches us how to speak with God. Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 2650-2655.

Click on link: https://youtu.be/7cLcQTkLrXM?si=mfgpvdO-80v-Uq-b


Which Jesus Is the Real Jesus?

If you profess to be a Christian, that means that you profess to follow Jesus Christ. But, of course, that presupposes that you know who Jesus is—where he came from, what he came to do, where he went, and what he continues to do until the end of time.

Our understanding of Jesus can be shaped by our parents, our schooling, our culture, and our own ignorance. But, today, Fr. Mike redirects us to the primary revelation about Jesus that we have access to: scripture.


The Catechism in a Year – Day 16 – Senses of Scripture

Fr. Mike examines the two senses of Scripture: the literal sense and the spiritual sense. Together, we further unpack the meaning of the literal sense of Scripture and the three subdivisions of the spiritual sense: the allegorical, the moral, and the anagogical senses. Fr. Mike provides us with scriptural examples of each of the four senses for us to fully comprehend the richness of God’s Word. Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 115-119.

Click on the link to play video: https://youtu.be/KlEbSJZLXH0


The Catechism in a Year – Day 15 – Interpreting Scripture

How do Catholics interpret Scripture? Fr. Mike breaks down the three basic principles for interpreting Scripture: attentiveness to the content and unity of the whole Bible, reading Scripture within the living Tradition of the Church, and attentiveness to the analogy of Faith. These criteria allow the Church to interpret Scripture accurately and prevent us from taking Scripture out of context. Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs are 109-114.

Click on link to play video: https://youtu.be/gS4ndVFUaWU


The Catechism in a Year – Day 14 – The Eternal Word of God

Fr. Mike reflects on the sacredness of Scripture and why the Church venerates Scripture with great reverence. He helps us understand the mystery behind the powerful reality that God speaks to us through human authors. Most importantly, Fr. Mike reminds us that the eternal Word of God is both living and true. Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 101-108.

Click on the link to play video: https://youtu.be/RupRbJjkP6c