Bishop Bambera’s Homilies 2025

HOMILY
Charismatic Conference
18^thSunday in Ordinary Time – August 3, 2025

Just a few weeks ago, I returned from Quebec City in Canada after having been privileged to participate in the Vatican’s International Catholic / Pentecostal Dialogue. Five years ago, I was appointed the Catholic co-chair of the dialogue that consists of sixteen participants from around the world.

The goal of the dialogue is to foster mutual respect and understanding between the Catholic Church and Pentecostal leaders and churches in light of the prayer of Jesus that all may be one. You need to know just how important the Catholic Charismatic Renewal is to this Dialogue and the profound respect that our Pentecostal brothers and sisters have for the Renewal.

At the end of our time together, the co-chairs typically offer a reflection on the topic at hand. I want to share with you a story that I conveyed in my reflections. For me, the story focuses on what it means to authentically live what we pray and believe. … I’ve shared this story before, not in this setting, but during other liturgies that I’ve celebrated. If you’ve heard it already, forgive me!

One evening last winter, during some extremely cold days, I led a Holy Hour in one of our parishes in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament. Coming home from that time of prayer, I had an experience that touched my heart profoundly.

I live in the parish house right next to our cathedral church here in downtown Scranton. I drove into the alley behind the cathedral, passed by the church and then the parish house and eventually pulled into the garage. I turned off the car, closed the garage door and walked out of the side door of the garage, searching for my key to get into the house as quickly as possible because of the cold. But just as I was ready to open the door, I heard a voice coming from behind a locked gate between the garage and the house.

The voice came from a man whom I’d never seen before in the downtown and who looked quite obviously to be homeless. … “Father – it’s cold. Can you help me out?” … “What can I do for you, sir,” I asked. … “I’m hungry,” he said. … I asked him if he had been to Saint Francis Kitchen, a kitchen that we operate which is just a few blocks from the cathedral and serves meals twice a day. … “No,” he said, “It was closed by the time I got there.” … “And I need a place to stay. It’s cold and I won’t survive out here.” … I asked if he had gone to our shelter, which is also just a few blocks from the cathedral. … “Yes, but it’s filled. Can you help me?”

I must admit that by that point, I was very cold, I wanted to get into the warmth of my house – and I wondered if I was being set up. Was this poor soul simply looking for a few bucks to buy cigarettes or drugs or something to drink? Everybody on the streets in the city knows where our kitchen and shelter are located and their hours of operation. What should I do? I would have been of little support to him if I simply enabled an addiction.

Mercifully, as I was struggling with what appeared to me to be a set-up, some better angels spoke to my heart. What if he was telling me the truth? How could I turn someone away who was in such need?

While not feeling particularly proud of myself, I dug into my pocket, pulled out some cash and gave him enough to buy something to eat and to stay in a local hotel. I don’t know if I truly helped the man, if I complicated his life or if I had been taken over by a slick operator.

So, I left it all up to God to sort out. I felt a little bit guilty for wondering about his honesty. But then I took some quiet consolation in trusting that, as best I could, I tried to be authentic in my prayers and as a witness to what I believe as a Christian. … Remember those words of Jesus? “When I was hungry, you gave me food. But when Lord? As often as you did it to the least of my brothers or sisters, you did it to me.”

My encounter with that unknown soul at the door to my house on a bitterly cold winter night did something that I won’t soon forget. Yes, it disrupted my peace – a peace that I had experienced from a time of prayer during the Holy Hour that I led in a parish church just a short time before. But that disruption was a gift! It forced me to confront some ultimate questions in my life as a Christian. … What are my priorities in life? … What’s most important to me as a person – as a bishop – or more significantly, as a Christian? … Where do I look to find what I believe will provide me with true fulfillment, meaning and peace in my life?

In today’s gospel, Jesus was approached to settle an argument over an inheritance. Not surprisingly, Jesus responds to the request not by taking sides but by addressing the greed that has brought both sides to near blows. He tells the parable of the rich man who loses perspective on what is most important in life. Things – possessions – created an illusion for him and began to control his life, causing him to be oblivious to the needs and concerns of others.

The foolish, rich man’s priorities were all messed up. He failed to realize that life is often precarious, that we are all merely pilgrims on a journey in this world, that there are very few things in this world that endure and go with us from this world to the next, and that tomorrow may never come. … The rich man wasn’t criticized by Jesus because he was rich. He was criticized, sadly, because he had lost his way.

And unfortunately, we’re often just as shortsighted. We can become so self-centered and self-sufficient that we shut ourselves off from the simple aspects of life in which we find the love and presence of God. … We refuse to be interrupted in our goal of securing the things we want and that we believe will satisfy us. … And as a result of misguided priorities and pursuits, so many of us wind up being burdened with the most devastating poverty: an empty life filled with material things, yet devoid of the things of God that remain with us always in this world and that we carry with us into the next: gratitude, forgiveness, compassion, peace and love.

For us as Christians and authentic disciples of Jesus, the focus of our lives is never meant to be about amassing fortunes or achieving great celebrity. Our purpose is to accept God’s unconditional love in our lives and, in turn, to love and serve one another as God has loved us and served us in Jesus – totally and completely, without condition or limit.

Somebody once offered this reflection. I have never forgotten it. … One day, everything you own – from the ring on your finger – to the glasses on your face – to the shoes on your feet – to the belt around your waist – will one day belong to somebody else. … That also goes for the money in our bank accounts, the furniture in our homes and the cars that we drive. … Everything will belong to somebody else.

So why do we place our hope in the things of this world? … The world will tell you that the only thing that is important is what you get out of life – not what you can give. … That’s why so often there is a reluctance to serve and a fear of sacrifice among many. … That’s why so many in our world go hungry while others prosper. … That’s why some regard a child in the womb as an obstacle to a career. … That’s why some see an aged parent as an inconvenience. … That’s why some will tell you that religion is simply a crutch for the weak and the misguided. … That’s why I was conflicted and uncertain when I encountered a beggar at my door on a cold winter night.

My sisters and brothers, no matter how much you or I see ourselves as the center and sole concern of the universe, none of us will find a life of meaning, purpose and lasting peace if we refuse to look beyond ourselves, our own needs and our own priorities. We weren’t created that way. We’re born into a family, and we’re baptized into a community of believers. By our very nature, we are called into relationship, just like God is a relationship – a relationship of love between Father, Son and Holy Spirit – a relationship of love that wraps around creation, loves us throughout life and calls us to reflect that same love in our relationships with one another.

So, when the world says that religion is a crutch for the weak, ask yourself what seems more like a crutch in life to you. … A shiny new car that loses its value as soon as you drive it away from the car dealership? … A stock portfolio that’s never big enough and that can disappear with one bad day on Wall Street? … A trip to a far-off land that comes and goes in an instant? … A sparkling ring that can be stolen from you in a heartbeat? … Or a relationship with the living God who created the heavens and the earth – who promises us life and peace – who pledges to walk with us, even in life’s darkest moments – who assures us that he is with us always, so “Be not afraid?”

My sisters and brothers, every one of us this day is reminded of the radical decision that we Christians face each moment of our lives. The decision we face is our response to the call to discipleship – a response that demands that we live our lives with singular focus. The focus we are called to embrace is not upon the things of this world – nor a focus upon the treasures that we so often seek to acquire. The focus that we are called to embrace as authentic disciples is the Gospel of Jesus, his life and his love. … The cost of discipleship comes at a considerable price. … But it is the only way in which we will find our peace.

HOMILY
17^th Sunday in Ordinary Time, July 26, 2025
Saint Ann’s Novena Closing Mass

What a joy to be together this night! Praise God for the gift and blessings of this Novena! … I know that you join me in offering words of gratitude to Father Jim O’Shea, Provincial of the Passionist community, to Father Richard Burke and the members of Saint Ann’s Monastery, to Father Jim Paisley, pastor of Saint Ann’s Parish, as well as to the parishioners, friends and supporters of Saint Ann’s for making this incredible time of prayer and worship available to us all. On your behalf, I especially want to extend our thanks to Father Martinez and Father Kiddy for preaching this 101^st novena to Saint Ann. You have touched our community deeply and we thank you.

We don’t often have the opportunity to hear a gospel like the one that was just proclaimed as we bring this solemn Novena to Saint Ann to a close. While we’re celebrating the Memorial Mass for Saints Ann and Joachim as we do every year on July 26^th, the readings this evening come from those of Sunday, of the 17^thWeek in Ordinary Time. These scripture passages are quite providential as we bring these nine days of prayer to a close, aren’t they?

Listen again to Jesus’ words: “Ask and you shall receive; seek and you shall find; knock and the door shall be opened to you.” They sound like the blueprint that we’ve been following throughout this novena. I suspect that there has been a good amount of asking – seeking – and knocking our parts, imploring Saint Ann and a host of heaven’s saints to intercede on our behalf with God.

Let me share with you a conversation that I had with a parishioner, years before I was appointed Bishop of Scranton. I’ve never forgotten it. The parishioner was a devoted, albeit feisty member of the parish who, despite her candor – and probably because of it – was one of my favorites. She was extremely faithful and omni-present at parish events, always eager to help those who were struggling and always capable of making you laugh, being blessed with an incredible Irish whit!

One day as she was reflecting upon a prayer that she had offered for some time that had recently been answered, she said to me with all seriousness, “Father, when I die, I think I’m going to go to hell!” I was knocked over by her words and asked, “Why on earth would you, of all people, ever say such a thing?” Her response, “God has been so good to me throughout my life and has answered so many prayers, I can’t imagine that he can put up with me for all of eternity. At some point, he’s going to have to give up on me!”

Now, I chalked a bit of this conversation up to the blarney that she often tossed about. But I also believe that through what she said, we can all discover something about ourselves … and God.

Simply put, that parishioner’s assessment of God begs a question. How do we understand – how do we see God in relationship to us – his people? More than we might want to admit, many of us often approach that relationship and prayer as if we’re in control and it’s our responsibility to get God’s attention and more significantly, to warrant God’s love and mercy. … How many of us have said something like this to God during this novena or at some point in your prayers: “I have a problem here Lord, which you may or may not know about.” … “I recognize that you must be a little busy these days, Lord. Just saying that I could use a little attention!” … Or worse yet, sometimes we feel we have to wriggle things out of God, and we yield to the “let’s make a deal mentality.” … “I know I don’t deserve a response from you Lord, but if you do this for me, I promise to do that!” … We’ve all been down these roads at some point or another, haven’t we?

If we’re honest enough to admit such struggles with prayer – which I hope we are – it would be well to go back to the question I raised a moment ago, “What is my image of God?” “How do I perceive God in relationship to me?” … Our answers to those questions have a lot to do with how and why we pray. … So too do these words that come from the sacred scriptures: God is love! … So, let’s look at how Jesus teaches us to prayer.

In this evening’s gospel, Jesus teaches us that the first thing that we need to do in our prayer is to begin by saying, “Our Father in heaven, holy be your name.” … In other words, right out of the gate, we acknowledge that any relationship with God automatically places us in relationship with one another. And so, we pray our Father, not my Father or your Father. We are bound to one another – to every soul who is humble enough to approach the Lord – at least from God’s perspective. And in that reality, the first movement on our part in prayer is to praise God for his holiness, mercy and love for all people.

We continue, “Your kingdom come.” Not my kingdom or my will or my way – but yours. For you, O God, have put this entire creation in place and have given us life. Your will should be good enough for us!

We then pray, “Give us each day our daily bread.” … Give us what we need this day – not ten years down the road or when we retire. Give us today what we need today to be your faithful followers.

And finally, we conclude by asking God to forgive us our sins, mindful of the fact that if we are bold enough to ask for forgiveness, we must be generous enough to forgive those who have hurt us.

Do you see anything unique about this prayer that Jesus taught us? Do you sense what lies at its heart? Prayer is not about manipulating or convincing God to respond to what we need or want. … Prayer – as Jesus experienced it and taught it – is all about trust – trusting that the God who has given us life and loved us through his Son, Jesus, all the way to the cross, is not about to let us go.

Brothers and sisters, we’re called to be faithful disciples – but we will never be righteous enough to warrant God’s mercy and love. That is pure gift. As such, it’s not up to us to keep our world patched together. It’s up to God – by God’s choice and according to God’s plan! … Recall these words from Saint John’s gospel, “For God” – God, not us – “so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.”

These are difficult and challenging times, just as they were for Jesus’ disciples. … Our world is polarized and filled with voices of hate, often rooted in religious and cultural differences. … In our own brokenness, some of us unwittingly discriminate against others because of the color of their skin, the way they speak, their country of origin, their lifestyle, and what they don’t have. … The poorest among us suffer while the privileged pay little heed to their needs. … Immigrant and refugee families – the foundation for this great land – are struggling today and living in fear, right here in our city. … And far too many of us grieve losses and suffer due to the consequences of age, illness and sin.

In such unsettled times, brothers and sisters, this novena has given us the opportunity to turn to the only power that can sustain us and carry us forward with hope. God! That’s why we’ve gathered once again in this sacred space as faithful souls have done for 101 years. And we gather, not because we are righteous but because we are all in need of God’s mercy and love!

These days of prayer during this annual Novena to Saint Ann are a treasure beyond imaging for those of us who seek God in our lives. … Why? … Because God is here, giving us hope in times of struggle and challenge. What a gift!

As we bring this novena to a close, may we hold within our hearts words from our late Holy Father, Pope Francis. “Let us follow the path that the Lord desires. … Never allowing ourselves to be tarnished by pessimism or sin, let us seek and look upon the glory of God, which shines forth in us all, men and women who are fully alive through faith.”

So, brothers and sisters – ask, seek, knock until God does something. And he will – for those who trust in his love and mercy. He waits to hear us and to answer our prayers.

HOMILY
Mass of Remembrance – July 24, 2025
Isaiah 25:6a, 7-9; Romans 6:3-9; Luke 24:13-35

On the Feast of the Holy Family that we celebrated a few days after Christmas this past December, Pope Francis, in one of his last gifts to the Church, inaugurated the great Jubilee Year of Hope – a blessing to the People of God in so many ways – and a gift to all of us who gather for this Mass of Remembrance. Hope – something that we all seek as we attempt to navigate through the difficult and often painful world of grief and loss.

In announcing the Jubilee Year, Francis offered these poignant words that speak quite powerfully to our hearts this night. “By his presence in the life of the Church, the Holy Spirit illumines all believers with the light of hope. … Christian hope does not deceive or disappoint because it is grounded in the certainty that nothing and no one may ever separate us from God’s love: ‘Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Hardship, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril or the sword? No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord’(Rom 8:35.37-39).”

The Holy Father went on, “Here we see the reason why this hope perseveres in the midst of trials: founded on faith and nurtured by charity, it enables us to press forward in life. As Saint Augustine observes: ‘Whatever our state of life, we cannot live without these three dispositions of the soul, namely, to believe, to hope and to love’”.

That says a lot about why we gather here tonight, doesn’t it? We all cling to whatever we can that might give us hope. We hold on to cherished memories, a photo, some thing or another – and anything that might bring us peace and deepen our sense of hope as we confront the reality of grief and loss.

Yet, for as much as we hold on to memories, they don’t heal our broken hearts, do they? Every one of us would rather have our loved ones with us, in the flesh, breathing and singing in this Cathedral. Why? Because any death, whether it comes after a long, wonderful life or unexpectedly in the life of an infant just a few days old; whether it comes peacefully in one’s sleep, or violently in an accident or by one’s own hands, is painful. And any death can cause profound grief. Even Jesus grieved over the death of his friend Lazarus. Why wouldn’t we?

In the midst of the pain that so often emerges in our lives from the loss of a loved one, however, I beg you not to discount the treasure that comes our way through faith – the treasure that is ours when we pause, as we do this night, to welcome God into our lives and hearts.

As we pray for our loved ones this evening, we do so in the context of the celebration of the Holy Eucharist. Reflect with me for just a moment on the wonderful gospel story proclaimed this evening from Saint Luke: the appearance of Jesus on the road to Emmaus. From the very beginning days of the Church, Saint Luke’s gospel is very clear about the way Jesus continues to be present to his followers – the Church. Jesus is present in the guise of a stranger on the road in the midst of human dialogue. … He speaks through the sacred scriptures. … And Jesus is recognized in the simple act of breaking bread – just as he was with his disciples on the night before he died.

Brothers and sisters, what we encounter here this evening is exactly what those two disciples experienced on the road to Emmaus on the very day of the resurrection. We are at no disadvantage! The very same Jesus is here – in our midst – in this great cathedral. While we can’t see and touch him any more than his disciples did once he had vanished from their sight – he continues to speak to us in the Word of God proclaimed, in our shared fellowship, and in the Eucharist, the sacrament of his body and blood. He is here. He is present to us. And he is as alive as our hearts give him room to live.

If we can so affirm that Jesus is our midst, why would we doubt for a moment that our loved ones who have died are also present?

Saint Paul dispels such doubts in this evening’s second reading from his letter to the Church of Rome. If we have been baptized into Jesus’ death – if we have died with him to sin and embraced his self-giving love – we believe that we will also live with him. The simple blessing of our faith assures us of this reality.

What a great source of consolation! … Yet take care, my friends, that as we seek encouragement from the words of Saint Paul, we continue to embrace our baptismal responsibility to put on Christ and to make the example of his self-giving love our own. Jesus was raised from the dead because of his selfless sacrifice on the cross for our life and our salvation. In the mystery of God, we will find the hope that we need to move forward in peace not solely in memories of departed loved ones, but also in lives of service – lives of selfless love – lives that look beyond ourselves to provide meaning, consolation and hope to those who – like us – suffer, mourn and grieve. Lives that welcome and care for others, just like the two disciples welcomed a stranger on the road to Emmaus.

Remember once again those words of the great Saint Augustine recounted by Pope Francis. “Whatever our state of life, we cannot live without these three dispositions of the soul, namely, to believe, to hope and to love”. Faith – belief in the power of God – draws us together this night to pray, doesn’t it? No matter how fragile we may think that gift is, the fact that we are present in this cathedral to celebrate the Holy Eucharist affirms God’s presence in our lives. And that very gift of faith opens us up to hope – a hope that only grows when we fortify it by love – by selfless love and service of those whom God places within our lives. … Recall the words of the Saint Francis of Assisi, “For it is in giving that we receive and it is in dying to ourselves that we are born to eternal life.”

Brothers and sisters, I hope and pray that this time of worship is a moment of blessing for you. I hope and pray that through faith, we come to appreciate that we are united forever, not only to the Risen Jesus, but to the great communion of saints who are a part of his body – the Church – the saints of this world and the next – the saints whom we know as our daughters and sons, our husbands and wives, our mothers and fathers, our sisters, brothers and friends who have passed into the eternity of God – and for whom we pray this day.

This great gift – more than all others – is the source of true and lasting hope!

Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul
Saint Peter’s Cathedral
June 29, 2025

It’s not often that we have the opportunity during a Sunday celebration to reflect upon the lives of the two heroes we celebrate each year on June 29^th – Saints Peter and Paul. … As two of the very first leaders within the Church, they make an interesting pair, conveying two very different approaches to life and ministry. Yet both are unwavering in their commitment to serve the Lord.

Today’s gospel passage finds Peter confessing faith in Jesus as Messiah. He expresses his allegiance to Christ even though he does not yet fully grasp all that such an affirmation of faith will require of Jesus, much less himself. Time and trials will teach Peter the full meaning of the faith that he so boldly confessed.

While the gospel presents Peter at the beginning of his life as a follower of Jesus, our second reading from Saint Paul’s letter to Timothy presents Paul near the end of his. He reflects upon how his life has been poured out for the sake of the gospel and how God has stood by him and has given him the strength that he’s needed to face the struggles that have confronted him with hope.

Two disciples of the risen Jesus are presented to us today. Though different, both were convicted in their resolve to preach Christ crucified and raised from the dead – the only source of true life, meaning and purpose for a struggling and broken world. Their determination to proclaim the good news of Jesus’ saving ministry was unwavering – even though they understood very well that the cross of Jesus would be placed upon their shoulders before they would ever glimpse in their own lives the glory of the resurrection.

Today’s first reading from the Acts of the Apostles finds Peter in prison for proclaiming – in both word and deed – the gospel of Jesus. The first persecution of the Christian community came quickly in the Church’s two-thousand-year-old history.

Now fast forward to this gathering of the Church – to this moment of prayer two thousand years later. One would think that for as refined and sophisticated a people as we have become down through the millennia, religious persecution would have diminished more than it has throughout our world. One would think that we would have come to realize the futility of war – the vital need to treat one another with dignity and respect – and the urgency of caring for the lives given to us, all made in the image and likeness of God. But we haven’t, have we?

More than ever, we need to pause and reflect upon the lives of men and women of faith who have given of themselves so fully and completely as to make a difference for good in our world in a lasting way. Peter and Paul – heroes of the earliest days of the Church – remind us of who and what we are called to be as followers of Jesus. We are called, like them, to proclaim Jesus Christ and to live our faith, not just in the creed that we profess or in this moment of prayer but through love and service of our sisters and brothers.

Despite its flaws and imperfections, the Church has always sought to follow the example of Jesus and to embrace his mandate to serve those most in need. All of our vast charitable works, including health care, social services and education, exist because of our faith in Jesus. They are not optional gestures but essential fruits of our faith.

Our late Holy Father, Pope Francis, captured this reality of our faith best in simple words that he would often share as he called us to embrace the heart of the gospel for which Jesus gave his life. “We cannot be inactive Christians. To sit on the sidelines as a follower of Jesus makes no sense. No, we must become courageous Christians and seek out those who need our help the most, beyond the doors of our churches. The moment we step outside of ourselves, we will find poverty and we must respond.”

My sisters and brothers, today we are given both the privilege and challenge of reflecting upon the foundations of our faith tradition as Christians, recognized so profoundly in the lives of Saints Peter and Paul. May their example prompt us to recognize the urgency of living our faith today – of reverencing the lives that God places within our own – and of treating them with respect and dignity not only in our words but by living Jesus’ example in our service to all.

Peter put it best when he spoke these words to Jesus: “Lord, to whom shall we go? We have come to believe that you have the words of eternal life.” … Our union with Jesus will become most authentic when we give him space at the very center of our lives – like Peter and Paul – and allow all our actions to be patterned by his love, grace and mercy.