Homily: Feast of St. Philip Neri
Feast of St. Philip Neri
Philip Neri is the patron saint of joy. He was born in Florence in 1515. He was going to be a merchant, but then had a conversion. He went to Rome, lived in poverty. He studied philosophy and Theology. He then began a life of charity where he nursed the sick of the city.
He had an ecstatic experience one day when he was praying in the Catacombs in 1544. It was as if a ball of fire entered his mouth and dilated his heart. This affected his physical condition the rest of his life. A physician examined his body when he died and found that he had broken ribs that allowed his heart to expand and contract beyond what was normal.
The spiritual experiences he had were truly extraordinary. He was convinced by his spiritual director to be ordained a priest. He started what was known as oratories where priests worked together doing apostolic work. He ministered during the time of the reformation. People were turned off by the pomposity of the church. Philip Neri never wanted to take himself too seriously. A favorite line of his was, “A heart filled with joy is more easily made perfect than one that is sad.”
Philip Neri was very self-effacing. He never wanted to be perceived as proud although he was a talented preacher and teacher who brought many to believe in Christ. He disliked clerics who wore vestments and clothes that were too gaudy in order to draw attention to themselves.
Philip Neri would deliberately come to meetings with his beard half shaved off. He once preached a sermon where he deliberately mispronounced every word. He also tied a pillow to his head and walked down the street.
Philip Neri hung a sign on his office door which said, “The House of Christian Mirth.” Whenever I take myself too seriously, I try to remember St. Philip and it brings a smile to my faith.
Reflection Questions:
- Is religion a serious business? Do I think Jesus ever laughed?
- Philip Neri made fun of himself. Am I ever able to do that? Can I do that more often?
Dear Parishioners,
Tonight, we have Baccalaureate here at Sacred Heart. I would ask you to pray for the students who are graduating from Alleman. This is not an easy time for our young people.
I was interested in a commencement address that was given by Dwayne Wade at Marquette University recently. If you do not know Wade, he was a professional basketball player. I did not expect a great address, but he gave a very profound talk.
He spoke about two things. The first was rebounding from failure. He had several instances in his life when he thought he had run into insurmountable obstacles, but people encouraged him at those moments, and he was able to succeed. The second thing he emphasized was solitude. He shared how when he had to make important decisions or solve big problems, he had taken time to be by himself to sort things out and had made better decisions.
His talk reminded me that we never know a person until we take time to listen to them. His talk is available online.
May Our Lady of Peace pray for us,
Fr. Mark
P.S. I am sure Our Lady’s heart is breaking as she observes the mass shootings in Buffalo and Texas. We ask her to intercede this day.