In Part 4 of That They May Have Life, we continue our morality series by moving through the Fourth Commandment’s reach into civil society and then turning to the Fifth Commandment: “You shall not kill.”

We begin with Jesus’ teaching from the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5), where the Lord deepens the commandment beyond the external act of murder to the interior roots of anger, contempt, and vengeance. From there we explore why every human life is sacred, what the Church teaches about abortion, euthanasia, suicide, and scandal, and how Catholics are called to protect life with both truth and mercy.

We also address legitimate defense, the responsibilities of civil authority, the Christian duty toward the common good, and the Church’s role in making moral judgments when fundamental human rights or the salvation of souls is at stake. The session concludes by previewing the next series on the sacraments.

• Matthew 5:21–48 (anger, purity of heart, truthfulness, mercy, love of enemies)
• Luke 10:27 (love of God and neighbor)
• Matthew 22:37–40 (the greatest commandments)
• Mark 1:15 (repent and believe in the Gospel)
• Matthew 10:37 (loving Christ above family ties)
• Matthew 22:21 (render to Caesar…)
• Acts 5:29 (we must obey God rather than men)

• Recap: beatitude, repentance, law and grace, the Decalogue
• The Fourth Commandment and the “domestic church”
• Civil society, authority, and conscientious objection
• Witness of Blessed Franz Jägerstätter and A Hidden Life
• The Fifth Commandment: why human life is sacred
• Abortion: truth, mercy, and the Church’s positive duty to support mothers and families
• Euthanasia vs. allowing natural death (ordinary vs. extraordinary means)
• Suicide: the objective evil of the act, diminished culpability, and Christian hope
• Scandal, gossip/slander, bodily integrity, organ donation, and peace
• Legitimate defense, punishment, just war principles, and the death penalty as a prudential judgment

• Ask: Where do anger, contempt, or vengeance take root in my heart?
• Protect life with both conviction and compassion—especially by helping people in crisis
• Pray for leaders and seek the common good without losing charity
• Remember: the Lord’s call is not perfectionism, but conversion toward love

Next week we begin a new series on the sacraments, starting with Baptism and Confirmation.

On the Second Sunday of Lent, the Church gives us the Transfiguration—every year—because we need what the disciples needed: hope. Fr. Will unpacks why Jesus brings Peter, James, and John up the mountain, and how this glimpse of glory strengthens them for the Passion and the “scandal of the Cross.”

From there, the homily connects the Gospel to the Lenten series on the deadly sins, focusing on sloth (acedia): not simply laziness, but a spiritual lethargy that comes from forgetting what we were made for. When we lose sight of heaven, we grow indifferent, distracted, and even frantic—pouring energy into what doesn’t last while neglecting our true mission.

The antidote is zeal: remembering that every Christian is called to holiness, and that our vocation is lived out in concrete love—prayer, conversion, and daily sacrifice, especially toward the people closest to us.

• The Transfiguration strengthens hope: Jesus shows both who He is and what we are made for.
• Jesus prepares the disciples “against the scandal of the Cross.”
• Sloth (acedia) is not merely laziness—it's sorrow at spiritual joy and forgetfulness of our mission.
• Zeal is the opposite of sloth: remembering our vocation and investing in love of God and neighbor.
• Holiness begins “here”: in our homes, our parish, and the relationships God has entrusted to us.

🔗 Take the Parish Survey (3 minutes, anonymous): https://bit.ly/4rskqSB

EPISODE OVERVIEW

In this first installment of our Lenten series on The Seven Deadly Sins, Deacon Chris explores the spiritual roots of gluttony and greed. Through the lens of Genesis and the Temptation of Jesus in the desert, we discover that the real battle is not about food or money — it is about trust.

Temptation begins when we believe God is small. From there, we grasp for substitutes.

This episode challenges us to examine:

How we use comfort to numb deeper hunger

How we cling to control instead of trusting the Father

How Lent can enlarge our desire for God

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Hunger is not sinful — it can be holy.

Gluttony is the refusal to be empty.

Greed is the fear of dependence.

The devil tempts us to live as orphans.

Jesus overcomes temptation by remaining the Son.

Freedom begins with a pause and a simple prayer.

PRACTICAL CHALLENGE

Before reaching for your default comfort, pray:

“Jesus, what am I really hungry for?”

Wait five minutes.

Reclaim your freedom.

SCRIPTURE REFERENCES

Genesis 3:1–7
Romans 5:12–19
Matthew 4:1–11

Ash Wednesday always contains a striking tension.

Jesus tells us in the Gospel:
“Take care not to perform righteous deeds in order that people may see them.”

And yet, today, we receive ashes on our foreheads — visible to everyone.

So what is happening?

In this homily, Fr. Will explains that ashes are not a display of righteousness. They are a confession of weakness. Ashes are what remains after something has been burned. They remind us of our mortality, our dependence upon God, and our need for repentance.

“Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”

Ash Wednesday confronts us with reality: death is coming. Pride is real. Sin wounds us. And we need a Savior.

Lent is not about self-improvement or spiritual performance. It is about reconciliation. As St. Paul pleads: “Be reconciled to God.”

Through prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, we take up battle against pride — the root of all sin — and learn again how to receive grace rather than trying to control everything ourselves.

Now is the acceptable time.
Now is the day of salvation.

In Part 3 of our Sermon on the Mount series, Fr. Will uses a ninth grade geometry story—an exam covered in red ink—to unpack what Jesus is doing in today’s Gospel.

Christ, the Master Teacher, tells the truth about the human heart. He fulfills the law and then presses deeper, revealing that God desires more than outward compliance—he desires interior conversion.

When we face the “reality check” of our weakness and sin, we usually fall into one of two traps: denial (“I’ll decide what’s right for me”) or despair (“I can’t do this, so why try?”). Jesus offers a third way: humility—admitting we need to change and asking him for help.

The good news is that God doesn’t demand holiness from a distance. The Lord comes close, teaches us, and gives grace to live what he commands. As Jesus promises later in the Sermon on the Mount: Ask and you will receive. Seek and you will find. Knock and the door will be opened.

Readings: Sirach 15:15–20; 1 Corinthians 2:6–10; Matthew 5:17–37

In this session, we turn to Christian morality through the lens of the Ten Commandments—always interpreted in light of Jesus Christ who “came not to abolish but to fulfill” the Law (Matthew 5:17–20). We review the foundations: beatitude as our common end, the call to repentance, and the way law and grace work together. Then we walk through the First Table of the Decalogue (Commandments 1–3) and begin the Fourth Commandment, covering practical questions like the occult/mediums, superstition, reverence for God’s name, keeping Sunday holy, holy days of obligation, and the precepts of the Church. We conclude with Q&A about livestream/TV Mass and the Sunday obligation, then close in prayer.

• Matthew 5:17–20 — Christ fulfills the Law
• Luke 10:27; 1 John — Love of God and neighbor together

• Why the Ten Commandments must be read through Christ
• Beatitude and the moral choices it demands
• Law and grace: the “fence around the playground”
• Commandment 1: no other gods; idolatry; divination/occult; superstition; simony; sacrilege
• Q&A: “mediums,” charisms, discernment, and why Christians should not seek occult power
• Commandment 2: reverence for God’s name; blasphemy; perjury; habitual flippant speech; profanity and speech discipline
• Commandment 3: Sunday worship; rest; culture of Sunday; holy days; precepts; fasting/abstinence; Fridays as penance
• Commandment 4 (beginning): link between love of God and love of neighbor; honoring parents; family as domestic church; duties of children and parents

• Ask: What “idols” compete with God in my life right now?
• Treat God as Father, not a vending machine—avoid superstition in devotional life
• Make Sunday visibly different when possible (worship, rest, joy)
• Recover Friday penance/charity as a quiet, countercultural witness

• Miss Nancy Glover: Catholic Social Teaching (next week)
• Then return to continue Commandments 4–10

In this second homily of our Sermon on the Mount series, Deacon Chris reflects on one of Jesus’ most direct and challenging teachings: “You are the salt of the earth… You are the light of the world.”

Jesus does not offer these words as a future goal or an abstract ideal. He speaks them as a statement of reality. Because we are baptized into Christ, this is already our identity. The question, then, is not whether we are salt and light—but whether our lives actually taste of Christ and shine with His presence.

Using a vivid and memorable image from a college geology class, Deacon Chris explores how salt can lose its savor—not by trying to fail, but by becoming diluted. In the same way, our discipleship is often weakened not by rejection of faith, but by comfort, fear, distraction, exhaustion, or the desire to stay “polite” and unnoticed.

Drawing from Isaiah, St. Paul, and the Gospel of Matthew, this homily makes the call to holiness concrete. Light breaks into the world when we feed the hungry, shelter the vulnerable, refuse to turn away from those in need, and allow our lives to make God visible—not ourselves impressive.

This episode also offers a practical spiritual response: consecration. Rather than trying to design holiness on our own, we are invited to place our lives under the care of those who already belonged completely to Christ.

St. Joseph Consecration (33 Days)
A powerful path for men—and for anyone drawn to St. Joseph’s hidden fidelity, strength, and obedience.
Learn more and begin here:
https://consecrationtostjoseph.org/

Daily prayers PDF:
https://uploads.weconnect.com/mce/c3cf396907a036a9172fc9fcf77650c279dd98b9/33-Days-of-Prayers-and-Daily-Challenge%20ENGLISH.pdf

Marian Consecration (33 Days to Morning Glory)
A beautiful way to learn from Our Lady how to receive Christ, stand firm in love, and reflect His light to the world.
Text available here:
https://nanoten.com/religious/texts/33DMG/index-en.html

As you listen, consider praying with these questions this week:
Where has my discipleship been diluted?
Where have I covered the light God has placed in me?
Who in my life am I being invited to love more concretely?

Jesus does not name us salt and light to shame us—but to reveal who we truly are and to restore what has been hidden or weakened. May this homily help you uncover the lamp, recover the savor, and live in such a way that others glorify our Heavenly Father.

In this homily for the 4th Sunday of Ordinary Time, we begin a three-part series on The Sermon on the Mount, Jesus’ longest and most profound teaching in the Gospel.

Jesus is not merely offering moral advice or spiritual ideals. As the Master Teacher, He invites His disciples to see reality from His perspective. In the Beatitudes, Christ overturns our assumptions about happiness, strength, and success, revealing what truly leads to human flourishing.

This first homily focuses on how Jesus teaches us to see the world as it truly is—and how learning to see through His eyes is essential for authentic discipleship.