Follow the official channel of Fr. John Louis for weekly Sunday homilies and sermons that will draw you closer to our Lord Jesus Christ. Thank you. Subscribe to this channel over here https://www.youtube.com/Frlouis?sub_confirmation=1 Website: https://www.frlouis.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FrJohnLouis THE REAL PRESENCE OF JESUS IN THE EUCHARIST https://www.frlouis.com/real-presence-jesus-eucharist-3/ REPENT, FOR THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS AT HAND https://www.frlouis.com/repent-kingdom-god-hand/ LOVE OF GOD AND NEIGHBOUR https://www.frlouis.com/love-of-god-and-neighbour-2/ THE RESURRECTION – JESUS MAKES THE IMPOSSIBLE POSSIBLE https://www.frlouis.com/the-resurrection-jesus-makes-the-impossible-possible/ JESUS IS IN CONTROL OF THE STORMS OF OUR LIVES https://www.frlouis.com/jesus-is-in-control-of-the-storms-of-our-lives/ JESUS CHRIST IS RISEN INDEED! https://www.frlouis.com/jesus-christ-risen-indeed-4/ UNLESS A GRAIN OF WHEAT DIES https://www.frlouis.com/unless-a-grain-of-wheat-dies/ MARY, MOTHER OF GOD https://www.frlouis.com/mary-mother-god-2/ GREAT PILLARS OF OUR FAITH: FROM GRASS TO GRACE https://www.frlouis.com/great-pillars-faith-grass-grace/ THE BIGGER THE SACRIFICE, THE GREATER THE REWARD https://www.frlouis.com/the-bigger-the-sacrifice-the-greater-the-reward/ Catholic Homilies and Sermons for the liturgical year by Rev. Fr. Dr. John Kobina Louis of the Archdiocese of Accra, Ghana. #catholicsermons #sundaymass #sundayhomily ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W86aQnX9Yts

http://www.frlouis.com/ Catholic Homilies and Sermons for the liturgical year by Rev. Fr. Dr. John Kobina Louis of the Archdiocese of Accra, Ghana. SUBSCRIBE NOW: http://bit.ly/FrJohnLouis THEME: THE GOOD SHEPHERD READINGS: Acts 2:14, 36-41/ 1 Peter 2:20-25/ John 10:1-10 4th Sunday of Easter Beloved, today, the fourth Sunday of Easter, is also Vocations Sunday. Whereas there are several types of vocations, the focus today is on the priesthood and religious life. We are praying that many more people will accept the Lord’s call to become priests and religious; for the harvest is rich but the labourers are still few. For instance, in the universal Church, the ratio of priests to the lay faithful is about 1:3,000. Now, today is also Good Shepherd Sunday. Jesus, according to the second reading, is ‘the Shepherd and Guardian of [our] souls’ (1 Pet. 2:25). And Jesus Himself declares: ‘I am the Good Shepherd; the Good Shepherd is one who lays down his life for his sheep’ (John 10:11). To understand well what Jesus means by referring to Himself as the Good Shepherd, we need to consider the use of the image of ‘shepherd’ in the Old Testament. The Israelites saw their leaders or kings as shepherds (Ezek. 34). Above all, they saw God himself as their shepherd. Hence, we have the most popular psalm, which runs: ‘The Lord is my shepherd …’ (Psalm 23). Several other Psalms refer to God as shepherd and His people as sheep or flock. One may, therefore, ask: which qualities of ordinary shepherds inspired the Israelites of old to refer to their leaders and even God as shepherds? In this homily, we will consider five (5) of the good qualities which were found among responsible shepherds in the early nomadic communities of Israel: * Constant Vigilance * Fearless Courage * Selfless Sacrifice * Patient Love * Caring Provider ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yMy2AJPFuxE

http://www.frlouis.com/ Catholic Homilies and Sermons for the liturgical year by Rev. Fr. Dr. John Kobina Louis of the Archdiocese of Accra, Ghana. SUBSCRIBE NOW: http://bit.ly/FrJohnLouis THEME: TO GOD AND CAESAR READINGS: Isaiah 45:1, 4-6 / 1 Thess. 1:1-5 / Matthew 22:15-21 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time Our God is unique and supreme. He, thus, declares: “I am the Lord, and there is no other; besides me there is no god” (Isaiah 45:5; part of today’s first reading). Though supreme, God made use of a Persian King, Cyrus, to save the Israelites from their captivity in Babylon (cf. first reading). If God who is supreme makes use of Kings or human leaders to achieve a purpose for the good of His people, then, He expects us to cooperate and collaborate with our leaders for the good of our nation. Therefore, while on the one hand, we are obliged to worship the only true God, on the other hand, we have to contribute towards the development of our nation. Our Lord Jesus Christ succinctly expresses these twin obligations of ours in the statement: “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s” (Matt. 22:21; part of today’s gospel reading). Unfortunately, however, some Christians have either misinterpreted or misapplied this statement. For instance: * Some Christians use this biblical verse to justify why they can serve God while performing some indigenous religious practices which are contrary to the Gospel values. * Others use it to justify remaining Christians while seeking spiritual protections from unchristian sources or powers. * Others, too, use it to justify their involvement in social activities which are contrary to the Gospel values. * Still, some drunkards use this verse to justify why they drink excessively. Beloved, none of the above applications is right. The statement of Jesus, as we know, was His answer to a question asked by a coalition of Pharisees and Herodians. They asked Jesus whether it was against the Law of Moses for Jews to pay taxes to the Roman Emperor, Caesar. To make His answer clear to the Pharisees and Herodians, Jesus drew their attention to the image and inscription of Caesar on the coin used for paying the Roman taxes (cf. Matt. 22:15-21).  Since the payment of lawful taxes is intended for developments beneficial to a community or a nation, the Lord enjoins us all to fulfill this obligation. ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPeMEJxhm10

http://www.frlouis.com/ Catholic Homilies and Sermons for the liturgical year by Rev. Fr. Dr. John Kobina Louis of the Archdiocese of Accra, Ghana. SUBSCRIBE NOW: http://bit.ly/FrJohnLouis THEME: Jesus Is More Than A Prophet READINGS: Deuteronomy 18:15-20/ 1 Corinthians 7:32-35/ Mark 1:21-28 4th Sunday in Ordinary Time As the days of earthly life of Moses drew to an end, he assured the Israelites that God would raise a prophet like him who will mediate His message to them.  Thus, according to today’s first reading, Moses said: ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brethren – him you shall heed’ (Deut. 18:15). In fulfilment of this assurance, God raised up, not only one but several prophets in the course of the history of the Israelites.  Then, in the fullness of time, God sent One who is greater than all the prophets – namely, His own Son and our Lord Jesus Christ (Heb. 1:1-4). Therefore, beginning with the characteristics of a prophet mentioned in Deuteronomy 18:15-20, this homily highlights the fact that Jesus Christ is far more than a prophet. From today’s first reading four characteristics of a prophet could be identified: * He is taken from among humans * He listens to God’s word * He proclaims God’s word to his people * What he says comes to pass Our Lord Jesus Christ satisfies all the above four criteria of a prophet and so during His earthly ministry some people identified Him as a prophet (e.g. Mark 8:27-28). Jesus, however, is far more than a prophet.  This is because, in the first place, though Jesus was born as man at the appointed time, He is the very Son of God (John 1:14-18).  He is, first and foremost, divine. Secondly, though like a prophet, Jesus listens to the Father, He is the very Word of God. He is the Word without whom nothing was created and through whom everything was created (John 1:1-3). Thirdly, as the Word of God, Jesus speaks not like other prophets (who say: ‘thus says the Lord …’); rather, He speaks with authority (‘I say to you …’). For instance, the authority with which Jesus speaks amazes His audience in today’s gospel reading (cf. Mark 1:22, 27). Fourthly, more than any other prophet, what Jesus says comes to pass. The pronouncements of Jesus are as effective and powerful as the words spoken by His Father at the beginning of creation. For instance, at the beginning, God said, ‘Let there be light’ and there was light.  Similarly, in today’s gospel reading, Jesus commands the evil spirit to leave the possessed man and the result is instant (Mark1:21-28)! Elsewhere in the gospels, even the stormy wind and waves instantly obey the command of Jesus (e.g. Mark 4:35-41). So, beloved, though He came into our midst as a m ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGO6aflmKLI