A well-designed beginning can signal to a congregation right away that the homily is going to be addressed directly to them. The homily will be drawn from the readings of the day, yes, yet it will not be “about the readings” but about the congregation in their relationship with God. That is, it will not exactly be a message about Scripture but a message about the congregation drawn from Scripture (cf., Jay Adams, Truth Applied, p. 38).
The idea is not that you need to start with a question like the one in the title of this article. Any other kind of statement could also be used. Rather, the point is to communicate clearly and early that you are going to speak about the congregation and its life in God through Christ.
In order to pursue this and other ideas, this article will review a homily given by Fr. Dan Jones on August 12, 2012, the 19th Sunday in ordinary time, year B. I am grateful to him for allowing us to reflect on it. You can find a recording of the homily here: http://www.shms.edu/sites/shmssandbox.drupalgardens.com/files/YrBSun19-2012-08-12.mp3.
Fr. Dan informs us that the congregation he addressed in the archdiocese of Detroit was “quite mixed—farmers, blue-collar folks, medical professionals, lawyers, a mayor, business professionals, a number of PhDs—all kinds.” He focused on the sacrificial nature of the Eucharist by opening the meaning of the Gospel statement, “The bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world” (Jn 6:51b. This citation and the rest in this article are quoted from the NABRE.).
I can see why parishioners would have liked the homily. It clarified many important concepts in an understandable way. When anyone unfolds the meanings of the Word of God, Christians respond positively, because they encounter the Word himself: “My sheep hear my voice” (Jn 10:27).
For example, the homily made the following ideas, and others, quite accessible:
- God wants people’s internal disposition to be right, and external sacrifice without the appropriate state of heart is empty.
- Sacrifice involves the giving of a gift for purposes like expressing love and showing sorrow for wrongdoing.
- Gifts to God are sacrificed or immolated so as to be given over to him completely.
- God wants us to offer sacrifice to him for our good, not because he needs something from us.
- From the time of Adam until the coming of Christ, no adequate sacrifice could be offered to God.
- The Eucharist is the re-presentation in our midst, and the ongoing presentation in heaven, of Christ’s sacrificial gift offered to God.
- Sharing in the Eucharist unites our whole lives to Christ’s sacrifice. The Eucharist can permeate our daily life, so that our whole life is an offering to God.
All this content was effectively drawn from Scripture, which is key in ministry of the Word. At the same time, Fr. Dan noted, “I got to the application aspect rather late in the homily”—and that’s the thought I would like to pursue.
In reflecting on the topic of application, it is worth clarifying two rather surprising facts:
- First, technically speaking, there is no thought or speech without application. Every idea is combined with some notion of the appropriate response to the idea.
- Second, the Scriptures themselves do not mention application as an activity or aspect of ministry of the Word.
I would add that these two facts seem to be directly linked. That is, given that application is always a factor of human thought, there is no need for the Scriptures to call for it to be done; it is always done. Thus, in teaching about ministry of the Word, the Scriptures are interested in specific types of application, not application in general.
In a similar way, a father who gives his son a brush and a can of paint does not tell him simply, “Apply this paint.” He can be pretty sure that curiosity will lead his son to do that anyway. Some application is virtually guaranteed. The father will give more specific instructions: to apply the paint evenly, neatly, on a specific wall and not elsewhere, and so forth.
Since we are looking at Scripture to understand ministry of the Word, and since application is not mentioned in Scripture as an aspect of ministry of the Word, we can expect to find some other way of thinking about homilies. And what we find is that the homily falls under the category that Scripture calls paraclesis, and thus, from start to finish, the homily is meant to be an appeal from God to the congregation about his relationship to them and their relationship to him. It is an appeal addressed to them through the one who preaches: “We are ambassadors for Christ, as if God were appealing through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God” (2 Cor 5:20).
I will say more about the homily as an appeal in a moment. First it would be helpful to consider application in general a bit more.
To say that there is no thought or speech without application means that all ideas include an understanding of the appropriate response to whatever one has come to understand. Analysis of the thought process can take note of the difference between understanding facts and understanding an appropriate response, but in real life every idea will be accompanied by some notion of the appropriate response, that is, by some notion of application.
Let’s roughly classify the possible responses under four headings:
1) “Do Immediately: Urgent Priority”
2) “Do Next: High Priority”
3) “Do Later, When Time Allows: Low Priority”
4) “No Action Required”
The responses to Paul’s preaching in Acts 17 provide an illustration of these various responses. At Thessalonica some of the Jews and Gentiles understood what Paul was preaching, and they converted to Christianity. Theirs was a positive response of “Urgent Priority.” Other Jews “became jealous … formed a mob, and set the city in turmoil” (vs. 5)—also “Urgent Priority” but a negative response. Paul moved on to Berea, where the Jews “received the word with all willingness” (vs. 11)—“Urgent Priority” or perhaps “High Priority.” Some of the Jews back in Thessalonica heard about Paul’s success at Berea and “came there too to cause a commotion” (vs. 13)—again, “Urgent Priority” for a negative response.
Paul then moved on to Athens, where the Greek citizens, “as well as the foreigners … used their time for nothing else but telling and hearing something new” (vs. 21)—that is, they had a general disposition toward spending time on interesting thoughts with “No Action Required.” When Paul spoke of the resurrection, “some began to scoff” (vs. 32)—a “Low Priority” negative response. Compare that to the “Urgent Priority” negative response of the Jews who started riots.
Other Greeks at Athens said, “We should like to hear you on this some other time” (vs. 32). If they genuinely meant what they said, it was a “Low Priority” response: “We’ll think about this, but later.” On the other hand, if the response was their way of ending things and returning to other interests, then it was “No Action Required.”
While I was working on this article, I heard a homily that included quite a profound set of ideas about a topic from the Gospel reading of that day. From the point of view of ideas, this was a rich homily. The priest, however, said nothing direct about how to respond to the ideas until almost the end, when he made a general application in a couple of sentences. It is probably worth saying also that his delivery was comparatively non-intense and laid-back.
Afterward I noted different responses on the part of two very active Catholics. One confessed to no longer thinking about the homily as soon as it was over. No application was proposed, so there was “No Action Required.” It seemed appropriate to do nothing.
The other person was very engaged during and after the homily, thinking of specific and important applications not mentioned by the priest. He was also eager to express his ideas. However, the applications he was excited about had to do with other people: they were the ones who needed to listen to the homily! He was confident that his own life was already satisfactory in the area the priest addressed. For now he had checked every relevant item off his to-do list: again, “No Action Required.”
The homily was obviously the result of a good deal of preparation, and it certainly contained worthwhile material. But in the end it was not clear that those who heard it gave a high priority to any particular response.
When a priest gives a homily that explains some doctrine without linking it to an appropriate response, he may be implying that no action is necessary. But it is more likely that he intends to leave the application to the members of the congregation. They will indeed come up with responses on their own, but I wonder how often they will conclude, “No Action Required.”
Now, as I said, the type of application that occurs in liturgical preaching—that is, in homilies—is indicated by the New Testament word paraclesis, which I have chosen to translate “appeal.” (I will explain the choice of the word appeal in a moment, and I plan to post another article that discusses paraclesis in more detail. For now, simply note that both homilies and other kinds of written and spoken preaching and teaching can be types of paraclesis.)
While paraclesis is a more specific concept than application—paraclesis being one kind of application—there are other concepts that are even more specific, expressed by words like paramutheomai, elegcho, epanorthoo, paraineo, parangello, peitho, stereoo, etc. These specific “paracleses” are meant to be encouraging, convicting, correcting, advising, motivating, persuading, strengthening, etc. They all make appeals but appeals of varying kinds.
As to the word paraclesis, there are some New Testament uses of its various forms that are not related to ministry of the Word, and we do not need to examine those here. Of the uses related to ministry of the Word, there are two somewhat different yet associated uses. They are usually translated into English by choosing between two different groups of words.
The most common usage tends to be translated with a choice from the word group appeal/implore/exhort/urge—call this the appeal group. The other usage turns on the word group console/comfort/encourage/reassure—the console group. Sometimes the context forces a choice from one group and not the other. In these cases the console group occurs much less frequently—about once for every five appearances of the appeal group.
Sometimes it is hard to tell which meaning is preferable. In these cases translators tend to be divided in their choices, some using one group, some the other. In addition, notice that the word encourage can belong to either group. It can mean “to strongly recommend” some action, thus fitting into the appeal group; or it can mean something like “to reassure,” thus fitting into the console group.
When the context suggests the use of a word from the appeal group, translators most often favor use of the words exhort or exhortation. I hesitate to translate the Greek that way, however, because the word exhort has come to sound old-fashioned, narrowly religious, or both. Among the other word choices (appeal, implore, urge), appeal seems to me to be the most useful for conveying a meaning that is both accurate to the Greek and understandable in a variety of contexts. One could make a different choice, of course. The main point for this article is to grasp the meaning of the Greek word as it affects ministry of the Word.
In summary, as you prepare a homily, instead of thinking about making an application of certain truths, think about making an appeal on God’s behalf, as a man sent by him to do just that and only that. And instead of thinking about beginning with a distinct section that gives some explanation of Scripture or doctrine and then moving to a second distinct section that makes an application, think about making some particular divine appeal from beginning to end. Explanations of Scripture or doctrine will be included insofar as they are pertinent parts of an appeal about God’s relationship with Christians as his children, and about their relationship with everything else in light of their relationship with him.
How can that be done? I would like to answer by examining the letter to the Hebrews. Hebrews can be especially helpful because the author sees his letter as a paraclesis: “I ask you to bear with this message of encouragement [paraclesis]” (Heb 13:22); several other versions translate, “this message of exhortation.”
For the sake of this discussion, I will accept Ceslaus Spicq’s analysis of the author and audience of the letter (L’Epitre aux Hebreux, Librairie Lecoffre, Paris, 1952 [vol. 1], 1953 [vol. 2], hereinafter EH). He makes a compelling case that the author was Apollos, a Jew raised in Alexandria (cf., EH, vol. 1, pp. 197–219). Apollos is mentioned in Acts 18:24–28 and in other places in the New Testament.
Concerning audience, Spicq concludes that they are a large group, hundreds or even thousands, of former Jewish priests whose conversion to Christ has led to the loss of their homes and possessions and to exile from Jerusalem. He believes they ended up in either Caesarea or Antioch (EH, vol. 1, pp. 220–252).
Since we are trying to learn from Scripture, we want to notice how the author of Hebrews makes a divine appeal all the way through the letter. Below is a list of some of the ways he does it. Additional examples can be found in other parts of Hebrews and in other books of the New Testament. One does not have to include all these in a single homily, though some are always necessary.
1. Speak about things that are of urgent interest to the congregation in their relationship with God. You can speak about something whose importance they already realize, or you can open their eyes to something new.
The rhetorical skill of the author of Hebrews is remarkable. This may lead preachers to conclude that the forms of effective rhetoric are the main things to emulate in his teaching. But there is something in this letter far surpassing rhetorical skill in importance: the topics treated are of urgent interest to the particular audience. The audience knows this letter is about them and their relationship to God. Responses to their urgent issues make up the bulk of the content of Hebrews.
The former priests who receive this letter have lost their status in society, their possessions, their homeland, and more—precisely over the issues treated in the letter. They have come to believe what their former priestly confreres have not accepted: that God now offers a new covenant to mankind, fulfilling and superseding the previous one; that the eternal high priest of this new covenant is Jesus Christ; that Christ has opened the way into a sanctuary in heaven, not made by human hands; and so on. These issues are not urgent in the same way for Gentile Christians, while for priestly families they touch on key questions of their lives—past, present, and future.
In short, if you address an audience’s urgent issues in their relationship to God, they will know at each step of the way that you are speaking about them. It’s like the song “Killing Me Softly” (Charles Fox and Norman Gimbel, 1972). The singer tells about going to a concert by “a young boy, a stranger to my eyes.” She was riveted: it seemed as if “he found my letters and read each one out loud.… He sang as if he knew me in all my dark despair.” She was “embarrassed” in front of others attending the performance; she feared that they would recognize her awful secrets. She wished the performer would stop singing, “but he just kept right on, strumming my pain, … telling my whole life.”
In the homily that we are considering, Fr. Dan might address the concerns of his congregation by asking them the title question, “What brought you to Mass today, while others stayed away? What draws you here, and what are they doing instead? Perhaps some are simply relaxing; others might be engaged in an enjoyable pastime like golf—or watching golf on television. Some could be using the time to earn money or to spend it. Others might be catching up on chores. But you have given up those possibilities in order to be here for Mass. What’s the difference? Why are you here while they are not?”
The answer could be: “You have come because of your commitment to a relationship with God. You know your relationship to him supersedes other things, like the pursuit of relaxation or income. Your individual reasons might vary, from not wanting to offend God to simply loving God and wanting to be in his presence; but in some way you are here because you care about your relationship with God.” This kind of answer could naturally lead into the topic that Fr. Dan chose for the homily, which was the significance for his congregation of the fact that they have been caught up into the sacrifice of Christ.
If you speak about what is already of interest to people in their relationship to God, they will know you are speaking about them. And if God also wants their minds to be opened to something else beyond their current interests, then your task will be to demonstrate that this too is important in God’s eyes.
2. Recall God’s promises to the congregation.
As if treating the urgent issues of their lives were not enough, the author of Hebrews increases the urgency of his message with a series of promises, especially in chapters 10 to 12. In the face of what these rejected priests have suffered, he reminds them that they now have a “better and lasting possession” (10:34). Their persevering confidence “will have great recompense” (10:35), for God “rewards those who seek him” (11:6). They will have “a better homeland, a heavenly one,” and “God is not ashamed to be called their God” (11:16). They “have approached Mount Zion and the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and countless angels in festal gathering, and the assembly of the firstborn enrolled in heaven, and God the judge of all, and the spirits of the just made perfect, and Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and the sprinkled blood that speaks more eloquently than that of Abel” (12:22–24).
For the homily that we are reviewing, there are more than enough Scriptures that state promises from God relevant to the theme of sacrifice. One example: “Then Peter said to him in reply, ‘We have given up [sacrificed] everything and followed you. What will there be for us?’ Jesus said to them, ‘Amen, I say to you that … everyone who has given up houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands for the sake of my name will receive a hundred times more, and will inherit eternal life’” (Mt 19:27–29).
3. Recall God’s warnings.
In the same chapters in which he reminds his audience of God’s promises, the author of Hebrews interweaves a series of warnings, increasing urgency yet again. He speaks of “a fearful prospect of judgment and a flaming fire” (10:27). He warns his audience not to turn back or to treat the covenant blood of Jesus, by which they were consecrated, as unclean (10:29). They will be punished, as were their doubting forefathers who could not endure the trials of the Exodus and “were slain without pity” (10:28). Overall, “it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (10:31).
Warnings can be added to our current homily also: “The daily practice of sacrifice is an important preparation for entering heaven. As Jesus said when he was asked if only a few would be saved, ‘Strive to enter through the narrow door, for many, I tell you, will attempt to enter but will not be strong enough’” (Lk 13:23–24).
Nor do most in the congregation know when they will be called. The person who daily offers his life in sacrifice to God will not be afraid to hear, “This night your life will be demanded of you” (Lk 12:20).
4. Include references to actual events in the lives of your congregation, events that are important in their relationship with God.
The author of Hebrews refers several times to actual events in the lives of his audience. They have heard reports directly from eyewitnesses to the life of Jesus and may even have observed some of the events themselves: “We must attend all the more to what we have heard.… Announced originally through the Lord, it was confirmed for us by those who had heard. God added his testimony by signs, wonders, various acts of power” (Heb 2:1, 3–4).
These former priests also have been involved in the practices of worship at the temple that are mentioned in several places in the letter. The fact that those activities are now definitively in the past for them makes these references particularly striking.
The author also recalls the persecution they experienced: “Remember the days past when, after you had been enlightened, you endured a great contest of suffering. At times you were publicly exposed to abuse and affliction; at other times you associated yourselves with those so treated. You even joined in the sufferings of those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, knowing that you had a better and lasting possession” (Heb 10:32–34). Given that their former comrades in the priestly class still did not believe, and that they themselves had been exiled for their faith, they would also have keenly felt the meaning of the author’s statement, “At present we do not see ‘all things subject to him”’ (2:8).
Fr. Dan made a connection to the experiences of his congregation by relating imaginary scenarios that were universal enough to be relevant for everyone. For example, to illustrate the meaning of sacrifice when offered to God as an outward demonstration of one’s heartfelt love, he talked about a husband surprising his wife: “Here, I bought flowers … just because I love you.” Or, as he said, an outward gift can also show sincerely felt remorse: “I’m sorry. Here’s an expression of my sorrow.” When you mention imaginary experiences like these, you recall the real experiences of your congregation, and they will understand that you are speaking about them and their relationship to God. Of course, if you are aware of real events or experiences pertinent to the topic of the homily, those will also strengthen the power of your appeal.
5. Throughout the homily, speak from the stance of an ordained man of God, sent to preach to this congregation.
Like Jesus, and like others sent by him to preach and teach, the author of Hebrews speaks with authority that comes from being sent by God. He speaks as one who knows something of the mind of God for these people, and who has a responsibility to urge them to follow it. For example, he says: “God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love you have demonstrated for his name by having served and continuing to serve the holy ones. We earnestly desire each of you to demonstrate the same eagerness for the fulfillment of hope until the end” (Heb 6:10–11).
There is usually no need to refer directly to the authority you have been given, because people accept it and expect it. They understand the position of an ordained priest or deacon; it is something you don’t need to earn. Yet it is important to maintain your standing as a man of God in what you say and in how you speak, because it is your role to make an appeal on God’s behalf.
6. Make frequent use of the second person.
Today many have strong opinions against using the second person in homilies. I plan to address this question in detail in a future article, comparing the reasons given for avoiding the second person to the approaches of Scripture. For now I simply want to observe that, even though the letter to the Hebrews is one of the books of the Bible with the most frequent uses of the word we, it still makes abundant use of the second person, either directly, in passages like 5:11—“You have become sluggish in hearing”—or by implication, in imperative statements like 10:35—“Do not throw away your confidence.” (Other uses of the second person in Hebrews occur in 3:1, 7, 12, 13, 15; 4:1, 7; 5:12; 6:9, 10, 11; 10:29, 32, 33, 34, 36; 12:3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 14, 15, 17, 18, 22, 25; 13:1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 16, 17, 18, 21, 22.)
Perhaps Hebrews uses we more often than some other New Testament letters because the author is conscious of being a Jew writing to fellow Jews about concerns that he shares with them, things that are not of the same interest to Gentile Christians. In any case, an abundant use of the second person, you, helps make it clear throughout a homily that the one who preaches is speaking about the congregation in their relationship with God.
Note how the question with which I titled this article and the suggestion I made for its answer use the second person. This makes it immediately clear that the homily is about this congregation.
7. Tell stories that are relevant to this particular audience.
This recommendation is somewhat similar to number 4 above. There the emphasis is on the audience’s own experiences; here I am considering narratives about the experiences of other people. You can remind the congregation of stories they already know or tell stories they have not heard before about God’s relationship to people with whom they can identify.
In Hebrews there are stories about Jesus, angels, Abel, Enoch, Abraham, Sarah, Melchizedek, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Aaron, Israel as a whole people, the priests of the old covenant as a group, and others. In seven quick verses, 11:32–38, additional stories are recalled—more than we can count.
People automatically think of themselves in comparison to the characters in stories. There is an even stronger connection when the stories are about people who have a special relationship with the hearers. To the audience of Hebrews, the biblical individuals mentioned are “our ancestors” (Heb 11:2). For Catholics today, stories about the saints are understood as stories about “our ancestors.” The saints belong to us and not to any other group in the same way.
There are plenty of such stories relevant for the homily we are reviewing. Fictional stories can also work, but make sure the congregation understands that they are imagined and not what really happened.
8. Speak about, or even emphasize, whatever distinguishes this congregation from others in their relationship with God.
In the letter to the Hebrews, the author maintains a sense that the people he is addressing have a special identity, distinguishable from the identities of others. As Jews, their history is distinct from the history of other nations. Even now that they have become followers of Christ along with people from other nations, there are still aspects of their lives that are different from those of Gentile Christians. They are also different from Jews who do not accept Jesus. Finally, they are distinct from Jewish priests who have not become Christians.
Any recognition of distinct facts about the audience you address, as long as the point is helpful to the message of the homily, will help them realize you are speaking about their relationship with God. For the particular homily we are reviewing, you might say: “Not only is there a difference between you and those who did not come today, but you also stand at an apparent turning point in the life of the Church. Many people, even from our own families, continue to lose interest in their relationship with God.…”
9. Speak of the congregation in ways that recognize their identity in Christ.
The author of Hebrews calls those he is addressing “holy ‘brothers,’ sharing in a heavenly calling” (3:1); he also speaks of them as sharers in a common “confession” (3:1, 4:14; 10:23). That is, they hold the same Creed, the one faith, with all other Christians. In the homily we are reviewing, one might refer to the congregation as “you who have been incorporated into the sacrifice of Christ.”
In Conclusion
Often a homily is seen as having two major sections: one that explains some doctrine or passage and a second that applies that explanation to the lives of the congregation. Exploring Scriptures, we find a different way of thinking: preaching in the context of worship is a matter of making an appeal on God’s behalf to his children about their relationship to him, and this appeal is presented from the beginning to the end of the homily.
As I said earlier, there is no need to do everything mentioned above each time you preach. However, certain items on the list should guide virtually every homily: clearly refer to the congregation early, in order to show that what you have to say is going to be about them and their relationship to God; speak about matters of urgent interest to them; speak from the stance of an ordained priest or deacon sent to preach; make frequent use of the second person; refer to pertinent events and stories. These are hallmarks of almost every effective appeal on behalf of God.
Incorporating these and other points modeled in the letter to the Hebrews and elsewhere in Scripture does not necessarily entail writing an entirely different homily or adding more content. Rather I am suggesting a reorientation. And this is only one part of the call to “command and teach these things, … attend to the reading, exhortation, and teaching, … be diligent in these matters, be absorbed in them, … attend to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in both tasks, for by doing so you will save both yourself and those who listen to you” (1 Tim 4:11, 13, 15, 16).
Annunciation: Homilies 