San Francesco Catholic Church

22870 S. Nunneley Road, Clinton Township, MI 48035

Call Us: 586-792-5346

San Francesco Catholic Church

22870 S. Nunneley Road, Clinton Township, MI 48035

Homilies

Homily for the 24th Sunday of Ordinary Time, September 15, 2024

If we reflect on this gospel passage (Mark 8:27-35) without a clear concept of discipleship, we would be shocked and bewildered.  Simon Peter is extolled for the tremendous insight from above about the very nature of Jesus, Son of God and Son of Man and then, is chastised and reprimanded with blistering directness by Jesus. “Get behind me, Satan. You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.”  While still in shock, we might want to take this dramatic turn of events and apply it to ourselves.  In life there are ups and downs, unexpec

by Fr. Dino Vanin
Homilies

Homily for the 22nd Sunday of Ordinary Time, September 1, 2024

You disregard God's commandment but cling to human tradition." Mark 7:8  Protestants quote this passage to prove that Holy Scripture alone and not traditions, should be the standard by which our life is guided and lived.  However, they are wrong for two reasons: firstly, the whole Bible was handed down orally by memorized word of mouth, both in the Old and New Testament before having parts of a larger oral tradition put into written form. I can think of only one exception: the gospel which was directly revealed by the Risen Lord to St. Paul (cf. Galati

by Fr. Dino Vanin
Homilies

Homily for the 21st Sunday of Ordinary Time, August 25, 2024

Today’s gospel passage forces us to come to grips with a somber, sad reality: some of Jesus’ disciples, in any epoch, become selective and refuse to abide by those words of life with which they disagree.  It is a repeat of what we see described here as the first case of “cafeteria or smorgasbord Catholics.”  Then many of his disciples who were listening said, "This saying is hard; who can accept it?" John 6:60 … As a result of this, many of his disciples returned to their former way of life and no longer accompanied him. John 6:66  While Jesus’

by Fr. Dino Vanin
Homilies

Homily for the 20th Sunday of Ordinary Time, August 18, 2024

Today marks the fourth Sunday of a vital lesson on the Eucharist in which we are led to consider the natural human resistance to what the Father intends to do for us in the Eucharist, by offering us the flesh and blood of his Son Jesus. To this end, it would be profitable to open our minds and hearts to what Jesus feeds us, first, at the table of God’s Word by imagining what our world would be like without the Eucharist, without feeding on the flesh and blood of our Lord. It would be a world run by human beings but in which God is absent. It would be a wounded, cr

by Fr. Dino Vanin
Homilies

Homily for the 19th Sunday of Ordinary Time, August 11, 2024

In his encyclical “Evangelii Nuntiandi,” (1975) St.  Paul VI writes this: “Man, nowadays, is more willing to listen to witnesses than to teachers.”  So true in every age! Without doubt, what I can teach you has less impact on all of us and on our world than how we, as individuals and as a Community, bear witness to Christ and to his Gospel.  Or, it can be said that the way the Holy Mass, which we attend changes us from within, determines how much we can change the world for the better. Words are cheap, actions are much more effective.  Pra

by Fr. Dino Vanin
Homilies

Homily for the 18th Sunday of Ordinary Time, August 3, 2024

The gospels mention many times that countless people were looking for Jesus. If we are here today it means that we, too, are looking for him.  Some were looking for Jesus because they needed healing, restoration, wholeness, but also grace, light, comfort, patience, courage.  However, others, like the tetrarch Herod, were looking for him out of curiosity (cf. Luke 9:9); the Pharisees with the Herodians looked for him to embarrass him (cf. Matthew 22:16); the religious authorities looked for him to do away with him. (cf. John 5:18).    In t

by Fr. Dino Vanin
Homilies, Uncategorized

Homily for the 17th Sunday of Ordinary Time, July 28, 2024

Today’s gospel passage offers us a way out of a lot of the apprehension and restlessness we experience whenever faced with a daunting situation and we tip toward dejection or even mental paralysis.  And I am talking about challenges much, much smaller than having to feed a crowd of about five thousand men, without counting women and children. (cf. John 6:1-15)  The huge mistake we keep making is as old as the world itself. It is the mistake of confronting serious situations on our own and of assessing them solely considering the resources that we have av

by Fr. Dino Vanin
Homilies

Homily for the 16th Sunday of Ordinary Time, July 21, 2024

Whenever we heed the soft voice of care and empathy whispering in our soul, we might feel so great and so uplifted that we ignore our need to rest and get re-energized.  This is what happened to the first Twelve. Boosted by the enviable feeling with which the Lord rewards good deeds, they were eager to share with him their successes and feats. (cf. Mark 6:30)  The crucial aspect of our human nature, which needs to be pointed out, is that our Lord is constantly aware of our fundamental underlining frailty beyond the peaks of elation and the valleys of d

by Fr. Dino Vanin
Homilies

Homily for the 15th Sunday of Ordinary Time, July 14, 2024

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavens, as he chose us in him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and without blemish before him. In love he destined us for adoption to himself through Jesus Christ, in accord with the favor of his will, for the praise of the glory of his grace that he granted us in the beloved. Ephesians 1:3-6  After reading again this powerful statement by St. Paul, I Googled: “how old is the world?” The agreed upon answer seems to be 4.54 b

by Fr. Dino Vanin
Homilies

Homily for the 14th Sunday of Ordinary Time, July 7, 2024

“…they shall know that a prophet has been among them.” Ezekiel 2:5  This is my unconventional definition of a prophet.  A prophet is a person selected and anointed by God to be charged, imbued, possessed and transformed by his divine words to such a degree that it becomes impossible for his audience to continue to live their lives as if he had never confronted them with those words.  Without a single exception, God’s words are more than challenging; they all come with a warning: “Handle with extreme caution: these words are meant to generate Life

by Fr. Dino Vanin
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