Sunday Sermon, March 18 -- The Seven Last Words of Jesus (Father Ryan Erlenbush, Sunday Sermon)

The "Seven Last Words" are the seven last phrases spoken by our Savior as he hung for three hours dying upon the Cross.


The First Word - Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. (Luke 23:34)

The Second Word - Amen I say to thee, this day thou shalt be with me in paradise. (Luke 23:43)

The Third Word - When Jesus therefore had seen his mother and the disciple standing whom he love, he said to his mother: Woman, behold thy son. After that, he said to the disciple: Behold thy mother.  (John 19:26-27)

The Fourth Word - Eli, Eli, lamma sabacthani? That is, My God, my God, why hast thouh forsaken me?  (Matthew 27:24)

The Fifth Word - I thirst.  (John 19:28)

The Sixth Word - It is finished.  (John 19:30)

The Seventh Word - Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit.  (Luke 23:46)

Sunday Sermon, March 11 -- Veneration of the Crucifix (Sunday Sermon, Father Ryan Erlenbush)

"As Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of man be lifted up."

Jesus refers to the Book of Numbers, chapter 21. We consider the history of the Old Testament event and the importance of devotion to the Crucifix in the life of the Church. Also, answering varied objections that Protestants make to the image of Christ Crucified, as well as objections made against religious statues.

Sunday Sermon, March 4 -- The History of the Sacrament of Confession (Father Ryan Erlenbush, Corpus Christi Parish)

An overview of the History of the Sacrament of Confession, and what each age of the Church can teach us. First, a reminder of the three acts of the penitent: Contrition (sorrow for sin and resolve to never sin again), Confession (naming our sins, and all mortal sins according to name and number), and Satisfaction (performing our penance, and living a penitential life).

The early Church teaches us that true contrition and a firm resolve never to sin again are the most important aspect of confession.
The early Church also teaches us of the joy of reconciliation of the sinner with God and with the Church.
The monastic period teaches us that penance is important.
The scholastic period and early modern period teach us of the importance avoiding occasions of sin.
The current age of the Church seems to focus primarily on the "nuts and bolts" of the method of confession, the naming of sins and the memorization of the formulae. While this is important, we must remember that the most important part of confession is to be truly sorry for our sins and to be firmly resolved never to sin again.

Sunday Sermon, February 25 -- The Testing of Abraham, Faith in the Resurrection (Father Ryan Erlenbush, Corpus Christi Parish)

Sermon for the Second Sunday of Lent, on the testing of Abraham and the sacrifice of Isaac as a prefigurement of the Cross of Jesus Christ.

Mount Moriah is the place where the Jewish Temple was later built. On the far side of that mount is an outcropping which was later called Golgatha. Jesus carried the wood of the Cross up the very same slopes where Isaac carried the wood for the sacrifice.

Further, we know through St Paul's Letter to the Hebrews that Abraham had explicit faith in the resurrection from the dead -- for he reasoned that, if he did sacrifice Isaac on the mountain, God would raising him back to life and fulfill the promises through him.  (Hebrews 11:17ff)