Homilies

Homily – Ascension – Year A – Fr Jeremiah Browne (#southafrica #eswatini #swaziland #Botswana) Some time back, I heard someone saying that if you don’t, at one time or another, doubt nearly every aspect of the Christian faith, then maybe you are not taking it seriously enough. At one level that’s a kind of shocking

Homily – 6th Sunday of Easter, A – Fr Jeremiah Browne (National Director of the Pontifical Mission Societies #Southafrica #Swaziland #Botswana #eswatini) During the 1992 Summer Olympics, Englishman, Derek Redmond, had his heart set on winning a gold medal in the 400m race. He had been forced to withdraw from the previous Olympics because of

Homily 5th Sunday Easter – A – Fr Jeremiah Browne (National Director of the Pontifical Mission Societies #southafrica #Swaziland #eswatini #Botswana) “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God still, and trust in me.” Do you ever find yourself with a troubled heart, worrying about this, that or the other thing? I recently

Homily – 4th Sunday of Easter – A – Fr Jeremiah Browne (National Director of the Pontifical Mission Societies #southafrica #Botswana #eswatini #Swaziland) During the dark days of apartheid when the government tried to shut down opposition by cancelling political rallies, Desmond Tutu decided that he would hold a church service in defiance of the

Homily – 3rd Sunday of Easter, A – Fr Jeremiah Browne (#southafrica #Botswana #eswatini #Swaziland) Some years ago, Rabbi Harold Kushner wrote a book with a striking title: When Bad Things Happen to Good People. That title has stayed with me because it touches a question that doesn’t go away. Why do decent people suffer

Homily – 2nd Sunday of Easter – Year A – Fr Jeremiah Browne (National Director of the Pontifical Mission Societies #southafrica #Botswana #eswatini #Swaziland) There is a moment most of us recognise, even if we rarely name it. It is the moment when something inside us begins to close. A disappointment. A failure. A hurt

Homily – Easter – Year A – Fr Jeremiah Browne (national Director of the Pontifical Mission Societies #SouthAfrica #Swaziland #eswatini #Botswana) As I reflected in preparation for Easter, the question of what the resurrection is all about kept coming up. Is the resurrection wishful thinking? Did it really happen? Was it a real event in

Homily – Good Friday – Year A – Fr Jeremiah Browne (National Director of the Pontifical Mission Societies #southafrica #Swaziland #eswatini #Botswana) Today we stand at the foot of the Cross at a loss for words as we witness the betrayal, suffering, and death of a just man. Judas betrays with a kiss. Peter denies

Homily – Holy Thursday – Year A – Fr Jeremiah Browne (National Director of the Pontifical Mission Societies #southafrica #eswatini #Swaziland #Botswana) Some time ago, Archbishop Weakland of Milwaukee was interviewed and asked about the challenges that young people face identifying as Catholics. He famously replied: “If younger people are having an identity problem as

Homily – Palm Sunday – A – Fr Jeremiah Browne (National Director of the Pontifical Mission Societies #southafrica #Botswana #Eswatini #Swaziland) Viktor Frankl, a psychiatrist and survivor of the Nazi concentration camps, once wrote: “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any