Twenty-Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time
Full Mass Video
Twenty-Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time Homily Transcript
–HOMILY–
Okay, faith is a theme of our readings this weekend.
Increase our faith, the apostles ask.
But before we get to the gospel,
Let’s talk a little bit about Habakkuk,
Our prophet from the first reading.
Habakkuk is one of the minor prophets we call,
Not because he’s not important,
But his book is very short.
And so you could read it,
It’s just only a couple chapters or so.
Habakkuk is a prophet around the 7th century,
6th century BC.
This is a time when, like most of Israel’s history,
The Israelites are in trouble.
They’re being threatened by the Babylonians.
The Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem
And the temple is a massively significant moment.
So Habakkuk is kind of leading up
To this disastrous experience.
Habakkuk sees it coming
Because you see the Babylonians, they are north of Israel,
Kind of like modern day Iraq
If you can picture the map of the middle east.
They go south, they bypass Israel
And they attack Egypt and they conquer Egypt.
So Habakkuk sees this coming.
After they conquer Egypt,
They’re going to make their way up north
And they’re going to go after Israel.
Now Habakkuk is really frustrated
Because no one’s listening to him.
This is the deal with all the prophets.
None of the kings, none of the priests listen to God.
They don’t listen to the prophets
Who are God’s spokespeople.
The kings are corrupt.
They think we can withhold the Babylonians,
We can stand them off because God’s on our side
But the problem is they’ve abandoned God.
They’re not worshipping him,
They’re not following proper practices.
So they’re sort of arrogant.
What Habakkuk is trying to get the Israelites to do
Is surrender, humble themselves,
Maybe make some deal with the Babylonians.
What Habakkuk essentially foretells is,
‘Look, we’re going to be destroyed.
There’s nothing really we can do to stop this
And we have to persevere in our faith.
We’re going to lose everything.
We’re going to lose our temple,
We’re going to lose our land, we’re going to lose our homes
And yet we won’t lose what’s most important.
That is basically our soul because God is with us.’
And so he’s trying to give the people hope
That when all is lost, we still have God
And so we have to keep the faith.
Keep the faith.
Okay, and that’s why Jesus will say,
Talk about faith here in our gospel.
So everything can be lost.
You could lose your health,
Everything, but God is still by your side.
So when the apostles say increase our faith,
Okay, there’s two different kinds of faith here.
There’s one type of faith that just is like,
Do you believe in God or not?
Okay, if you like, kind of you believe
Or you don’t believe.
But then there’s a faith that’s like a growing faith
Or what some will say is actually better called trust,
Trust or surrender.
And this is what needs to be increased.
Yes, we believe God exists,
But do we really believe that he is with us?
Do we believe that when we’re suffering
And when everything has been taken away from us,
That God still has a plan?
And this is what the apostles realized they need more of.
They believe that Jesus is real, that God is real,
But they’re struggling to trust him.
Because at this point in the gospel,
Jesus is sort of up the ante.
The teachings he’s given are now much more challenging.
So before he was doing all these great miracles,
He was giving the sermon on the mount,
Everyone was just kind of happy and in love with Jesus.
But now it’s getting tougher.
He’s going after the pharisees,
People are starting to persecute him,
And he’s giving them this ultimate message
Of you need to pick up your cross and follow me.
And so the apostles realized like,
‘Whoa, this is much harder than what
We signed up for originally. So, Lord, please-
Increase our faith.
Give us that trust in you.’
And that’s a prayer we need to make every day of our lives,
Especially in the midst of suffering.
And maybe when we receive communion
Or spiritual communion in a few moments,
That can be our same prayer to Jesus.
Lord, increase our faith, help us trust in you.
Amen.
–HOMILY–
Homily Video
Twenty-Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time Homily Transcript
–HOMILY–
Okay, faith is a theme of our readings this weekend.
Increase our faith, the apostles ask.
But before we get to the gospel,
Let’s talk a little bit about Habakkuk,
Our prophet from the first reading.
Habakkuk is one of the minor prophets we call,
Not because he’s not important,
But his book is very short.
And so you could read it,
It’s just only a couple chapters or so.
Habakkuk is a prophet around the 7th century,
6th century BC.
This is a time when, like most of Israel’s history,
The Israelites are in trouble.
They’re being threatened by the Babylonians.
The Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem
And the temple is a massively significant moment.
So Habakkuk is kind of leading up
To this disastrous experience.
Habakkuk sees it coming
Because you see the Babylonians, they are north of Israel,
Kind of like modern day Iraq
If you can picture the map of the middle east.
They go south, they bypass Israel
And they attack Egypt and they conquer Egypt.
So Habakkuk sees this coming.
After they conquer Egypt,
They’re going to make their way up north
And they’re going to go after Israel.
Now Habakkuk is really frustrated
Because no one’s listening to him.
This is the deal with all the prophets.
None of the kings, none of the priests listen to God.
They don’t listen to the prophets
Who are God’s spokespeople.
The kings are corrupt.
They think we can withhold the Babylonians,
We can stand them off because God’s on our side
But the problem is they’ve abandoned God.
They’re not worshipping him,
They’re not following proper practices.
So they’re sort of arrogant.
What Habakkuk is trying to get the Israelites to do
Is surrender, humble themselves,
Maybe make some deal with the Babylonians.
What Habakkuk essentially foretells is,
‘Look, we’re going to be destroyed.
There’s nothing really we can do to stop this
And we have to persevere in our faith.
We’re going to lose everything.
We’re going to lose our temple,
We’re going to lose our land, we’re going to lose our homes
And yet we won’t lose what’s most important.
That is basically our soul because God is with us.’
And so he’s trying to give the people hope
That when all is lost, we still have God
And so we have to keep the faith.
Keep the faith.
Okay, and that’s why Jesus will say,
Talk about faith here in our gospel.
So everything can be lost.
You could lose your health,
Everything, but God is still by your side.
So when the apostles say increase our faith,
Okay, there’s two different kinds of faith here.
There’s one type of faith that just is like,
Do you believe in God or not?
Okay, if you like, kind of you believe
Or you don’t believe.
But then there’s a faith that’s like a growing faith
Or what some will say is actually better called trust,
Trust or surrender.
And this is what needs to be increased.
Yes, we believe God exists,
But do we really believe that he is with us?
Do we believe that when we’re suffering
And when everything has been taken away from us,
That God still has a plan?
And this is what the apostles realized they need more of.
They believe that Jesus is real, that God is real,
But they’re struggling to trust him.
Because at this point in the gospel,
Jesus is sort of up the ante.
The teachings he’s given are now much more challenging.
So before he was doing all these great miracles,
He was giving the sermon on the mount,
Everyone was just kind of happy and in love with Jesus.
But now it’s getting tougher.
He’s going after the pharisees,
People are starting to persecute him,
And he’s giving them this ultimate message
Of you need to pick up your cross and follow me.
And so the apostles realized like,
‘Whoa, this is much harder than what
We signed up for originally. So, Lord, please-
Increase our faith.
Give us that trust in you.’
And that’s a prayer we need to make every day of our lives,
Especially in the midst of suffering.
And maybe when we receive communion
Or spiritual communion in a few moments,
That can be our same prayer to Jesus.
Lord, increase our faith, help us trust in you.
Amen.
–HOMILY–
Full Mass Video
Twenty-Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time Homily Transcript
–HOMILY–
Okay, faith is a theme of our readings this weekend.
Increase our faith, the apostles ask.
But before we get to the gospel,
Let’s talk a little bit about Habakkuk,
Our prophet from the first reading.
Habakkuk is one of the minor prophets we call,
Not because he’s not important,
But his book is very short.
And so you could read it,
It’s just only a couple chapters or so.
Habakkuk is a prophet around the 7th century,
6th century BC.
This is a time when, like most of Israel’s history,
The Israelites are in trouble.
They’re being threatened by the Babylonians.
The Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem
And the temple is a massively significant moment.
So Habakkuk is kind of leading up
To this disastrous experience.
Habakkuk sees it coming
Because you see the Babylonians, they are north of Israel,
Kind of like modern day Iraq
If you can picture the map of the middle east.
They go south, they bypass Israel
And they attack Egypt and they conquer Egypt.
So Habakkuk sees this coming.
After they conquer Egypt,
They’re going to make their way up north
And they’re going to go after Israel.
Now Habakkuk is really frustrated
Because no one’s listening to him.
This is the deal with all the prophets.
None of the kings, none of the priests listen to God.
They don’t listen to the prophets
Who are God’s spokespeople.
The kings are corrupt.
They think we can withhold the Babylonians,
We can stand them off because God’s on our side
But the problem is they’ve abandoned God.
They’re not worshipping him,
They’re not following proper practices.
So they’re sort of arrogant.
What Habakkuk is trying to get the Israelites to do
Is surrender, humble themselves,
Maybe make some deal with the Babylonians.
What Habakkuk essentially foretells is,
‘Look, we’re going to be destroyed.
There’s nothing really we can do to stop this
And we have to persevere in our faith.
We’re going to lose everything.
We’re going to lose our temple,
We’re going to lose our land, we’re going to lose our homes
And yet we won’t lose what’s most important.
That is basically our soul because God is with us.’
And so he’s trying to give the people hope
That when all is lost, we still have God
And so we have to keep the faith.
Keep the faith.
Okay, and that’s why Jesus will say,
Talk about faith here in our gospel.
So everything can be lost.
You could lose your health,
Everything, but God is still by your side.
So when the apostles say increase our faith,
Okay, there’s two different kinds of faith here.
There’s one type of faith that just is like,
Do you believe in God or not?
Okay, if you like, kind of you believe
Or you don’t believe.
But then there’s a faith that’s like a growing faith
Or what some will say is actually better called trust,
Trust or surrender.
And this is what needs to be increased.
Yes, we believe God exists,
But do we really believe that he is with us?
Do we believe that when we’re suffering
And when everything has been taken away from us,
That God still has a plan?
And this is what the apostles realized they need more of.
They believe that Jesus is real, that God is real,
But they’re struggling to trust him.
Because at this point in the gospel,
Jesus is sort of up the ante.
The teachings he’s given are now much more challenging.
So before he was doing all these great miracles,
He was giving the sermon on the mount,
Everyone was just kind of happy and in love with Jesus.
But now it’s getting tougher.
He’s going after the pharisees,
People are starting to persecute him,
And he’s giving them this ultimate message
Of you need to pick up your cross and follow me.
And so the apostles realized like,
‘Whoa, this is much harder than what
We signed up for originally. So, Lord, please-
Increase our faith.
Give us that trust in you.’
And that’s a prayer we need to make every day of our lives,
Especially in the midst of suffering.
And maybe when we receive communion
Or spiritual communion in a few moments,
That can be our same prayer to Jesus.
Lord, increase our faith, help us trust in you.
Amen.
–HOMILY–
Homily Video
Twenty-Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time Homily Transcript
Okay, faith is a theme of our readings this weekend.
Increase our faith, the apostles ask.
But before we get to the gospel,
Let’s talk a little bit about Habakkuk,
Our prophet from the first reading.
Habakkuk is one of the minor prophets we call,
Not because he’s not important,
But his book is very short.
And so you could read it,
It’s just only a couple chapters or so.
Habakkuk is a prophet around the 7th century,
6th century BC.
This is a time when, like most of Israel’s history,
The Israelites are in trouble.
They’re being threatened by the Babylonians.
The Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem
And the temple is a massively significant moment.
So Habakkuk is kind of leading up
To this disastrous experience.
Habakkuk sees it coming
Because you see the Babylonians, they are north of Israel,
Kind of like modern day Iraq
If you can picture the map of the middle east.
They go south, they bypass Israel
And they attack Egypt and they conquer Egypt.
So Habakkuk sees this coming.
After they conquer Egypt,
They’re going to make their way up north
And they’re going to go after Israel.
Now Habakkuk is really frustrated
Because no one’s listening to him.
This is the deal with all the prophets.
None of the kings, none of the priests listen to God.
They don’t listen to the prophets
Who are God’s spokespeople.
The kings are corrupt.
They think we can withhold the Babylonians,
We can stand them off because God’s on our side
But the problem is they’ve abandoned God.
They’re not worshipping him,
They’re not following proper practices.
So they’re sort of arrogant.
What Habakkuk is trying to get the Israelites to do
Is surrender, humble themselves,
Maybe make some deal with the Babylonians.
What Habakkuk essentially foretells is,
‘Look, we’re going to be destroyed.
There’s nothing really we can do to stop this
And we have to persevere in our faith.
We’re going to lose everything.
We’re going to lose our temple,
We’re going to lose our land, we’re going to lose our homes
And yet we won’t lose what’s most important.
That is basically our soul because God is with us.’
And so he’s trying to give the people hope
That when all is lost, we still have God
And so we have to keep the faith.
Keep the faith.
Okay, and that’s why Jesus will say,
Talk about faith here in our gospel.
So everything can be lost.
You could lose your health,
Everything, but God is still by your side.
So when the apostles say increase our faith,
Okay, there’s two different kinds of faith here.
There’s one type of faith that just is like,
Do you believe in God or not?
Okay, if you like, kind of you believe
Or you don’t believe.
But then there’s a faith that’s like a growing faith
Or what some will say is actually better called trust,
Trust or surrender.
And this is what needs to be increased.
Yes, we believe God exists,
But do we really believe that he is with us?
Do we believe that when we’re suffering
And when everything has been taken away from us,
That God still has a plan?
And this is what the apostles realized they need more of.
They believe that Jesus is real, that God is real,
But they’re struggling to trust him.
Because at this point in the gospel,
Jesus is sort of up the ante.
The teachings he’s given are now much more challenging.
So before he was doing all these great miracles,
He was giving the sermon on the mount,
Everyone was just kind of happy and in love with Jesus.
But now it’s getting tougher.
He’s going after the pharisees,
People are starting to persecute him,
And he’s giving them this ultimate message
Of you need to pick up your cross and follow me.
And so the apostles realized like,
‘Whoa, this is much harder than what
We signed up for originally. So, Lord, please-
Increase our faith.
Give us that trust in you.’
And that’s a prayer we need to make every day of our lives,
Especially in the midst of suffering.
And maybe when we receive communion
Or spiritual communion in a few moments,
That can be our same prayer to Jesus.
Lord, increase our faith, help us trust in you.
Amen.
Readings
Featured Text
Discover More
Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time
September 28, 2025
Twenty-Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time
September 21, 2025
The Exaltation of the Holy Cross
September 14, 2025
Request Sunday Mass Guide
The Sunday Mass Guide sent to your home address
Spiritual nourishment and updates from the Sunday Mass community
Monthly reflections from Fr. Scott Donahue, our Principal Celebrant