“How do we move people to action with our preaching? How do we ignite their hearts? We must live what we are preaching. And always, the first step in preparing a homily is to pray. To preach, we must be based in prayer.”
The quote is from Fr. Mark Mastin, SCJ (pictured above, far right), speaking during the concluding panel discussion at last week’s 8th Annual Preaching Conference held at Sacred Heart Seminary and School of Theology.
“I was delighted that this year’s conference brought together wonderful speakers who broke down the various levels of meaning for key words used in the readings for the upcoming Lenten season,” said Fr. Mark. “Many attendees expressed their appreciation for the way each speaker uncovered new and profound meanings in familiar biblical words. For example, Dr. Charles Hughes-Huff discussed the Hebrew words hesed, torah, and yir’â—each addressing different aspects of God’s relationship with us and our relationships with others, encompassing concepts such as mercy, love, obedience, and a mother’s commandments to her children, etc. Dr. Katherine Milco explored the distinction between Kairos and Chronos, explaining how one refers to God’s qualitative, opportune moments with humanity, while the other represents quantitative, linear time.
“Rabbi Joshua Herman examined a passage from 1 Samuel 16, analyzing the word ‘ruddy’ used to describe David. He explained that this word can refer to hair or skin color, connect to Adam (the earth), and be associated with blood, life, and even the birthright of Esau, Jacob’s twin brother, and Isaac’s son, as recounted in Genesis 25…
“The conference was a profound opportunity to deepen our understanding of scripture and enrich our preaching for the Lenten season.”
