The Faith That Refuses to Let Go | Matthew 15:21–28

 

The Faith That Refuses to Let Go | Matthew 15:21–28

Have you ever prayed for something so long that you began to wonder if God was even listening?

In this homily, we encounter the Canaanite woman—a desperate mother who comes to Jesus pleading for her daughter. At first, Jesus seems silent. Yet she does not walk away. She kneels. She trusts. She persists.

Her story reminds us of a powerful truth: God’s silence does not mean God’s absence.

Jesus ultimately tells her, “O woman, great is your faith!” What He praises is not her background, status, or accomplishments, but a faith that refused to quit—even when heaven seemed silent.

This Gospel also challenges us to see others differently. The disciples saw an interruption; Jesus saw a soul. We are called to notice the lonely, forgotten, struggling, and overlooked—and to see them through the eyes of Christ.

If there is a prayer you have almost stopped praying, pick it up again. Bring it before the Lord. Keep trusting. Keep believing. Refuse to let go.

Because sometimes God may seem silent…but He is never absent.

🎙️ The Faith That Refuses to Let Go
Deacon Pat Kearns
Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish

#CatholicFaith #CatholicHomily #NeverStopPraying #TrustInGod

WHY HOLY WATER?

 

WHY HOLY WATER?
The Hidden Meanings Behind Catholic Traditions — Episode 1

Why do Catholics dip their fingers into holy water when they enter a church? Is it simply an old tradition—or is something much deeper happening?

In this first episode of The Hidden Meanings Behind Catholic Traditions, Deacon Pat Kearns explores the beautiful meaning behind holy water.

Holy water calls us back to our Baptism, when we first became members of the Body of Christ. It reminds us that we belong to God, invites us to renew our baptismal promises, and points to the cleansing and life-giving power of God's grace.

And when we bless ourselves with holy water, we aren't performing an empty ritual. We are making the Sign of the Cross and remembering who we are: baptized sons and daughters of God, called to live differently because we belong to Christ.

Sometimes the Catholic practices we perform almost automatically contain profound spiritual truths—if we slow down long enough to understand them.

🎙️ Join me for Episode 1: Why Holy Water? as we uncover the faith hidden within one of Catholicism's most familiar traditions.

The Catholic Journey with Deacon Pat Kearns
Helping Catholics see life through the eyes of faith.

#TheCatholicJourney #HolyWater #CatholicFaith #CatholicTraditions

Walking with Jesus — Episode 12: Pentecost

 

Walking with Jesus — Episode 12: Pentecost
When the Followers Became the Church

We began in Bethlehem with a child lying quietly in a manger.

Now, after walking with Jesus through His life, ministry, Cross, Resurrection, and the road to Emmaus, our journey reaches its final destination:

Pentecost.

The disciples are gathered in the Upper Room. They have seen the risen Christ, but they are still waiting.

Then everything changes.

A sound like a mighty wind fills the room. Fire rests upon them. The Holy Spirit comes—and the frightened disciples who once hid behind locked doors walk into the streets and boldly proclaim Jesus Christ.

Followers become witnesses.
Disciples become apostles.
And the Church is sent into the world.

But Pentecost isn't only their story.

It's ours.

Through Baptism and Confirmation, we have received the Holy Spirit too. We weren't given our faith simply to keep it safely inside a church building. We were given it so that we could carry Christ into our families, workplaces, communities, and world.

Throughout Walking with Jesus, we have asked:

“What would it have been like to walk with Jesus?”

But in this final episode, the question changes:

“Now that I have walked with Jesus… how will I walk differently?”

We began this series with Jesus saying:

“Come, follow me.”

We end with Him saying:

“Go.”

Go love.
Go serve.
Go forgive.
Go proclaim the Gospel.
Go bring Jesus to someone who needs Him.

Join me, Deacon Pat Kearns, for the final episode of Walking with Jesus — Pentecost: When the Followers Became the Church.

Thank you to everyone who has walked this journey with me from Bethlehem to Pentecost.

But The Catholic Journey continues!

Next, we're beginning an entirely new series:

The Hidden Meanings Behind Catholic Traditions

We'll explore the Catholic practices many of us have followed our entire lives and discover the Scripture, history, theology, and spiritual meaning behind them.

And we begin with something most Catholics do almost automatically when entering a church:

Episode 1 — Why Holy Water?

You may never dip your fingers into that little font and make the Sign of the Cross quite the same way again.

Come, Holy Spirit.
The doors are open.
Now go.

#WalkingWithJesus #Pentecost #HolySpirit #TheCatholicJourney

Walking with Jesus — Episode 11: The Road to Emmaus

 

Walking with Jesus — Episode 11: The Road to Emmaus

Have you ever wondered, “Where is God? Why can’t I see Him in what I’m going through?”

Two disciples once felt exactly the same way.

On Easter Sunday, they were walking away from Jerusalem heartbroken, confused, and disappointed. Jesus had been crucified, and everything they had hoped for seemed lost.

Then a stranger began walking beside them.

They told Him about their disappointment. They told Him about Jesus. They even told Him, “We were hoping…”

There was just one thing they didn’t realize:

The stranger was Jesus.

The very person they thought they had lost was walking beside them the entire time.

In Episode 11 of Walking with Jesus, we travel the Road to Emmaus and discover a message that speaks directly to our own moments of grief, disappointment, doubt, and unanswered prayer.

Sometimes God doesn't immediately change the road we're walking.

Sometimes He walks it with us.

And like the disciples at Emmaus, we may only recognize later that He was there all along.

We’ll also explore the beautiful Catholic connection between Emmaus and the Mass—Jesus opens the Scriptures and then reveals Himself in the breaking of the bread.

Perhaps the prayer we need today is the same prayer those disciples prayed nearly 2,000 years ago:

“Stay with us, Lord.”

Join me, Deacon Pat Kearns, for Episode 11 — The Road to Emmaus: When Jesus Walks Beside Us and We Don’t Recognize Him.

And then join me for the final episode of Walking with Jesus: Pentecost — When the Followers Became the Church.

We began this journey following Jesus.

At Pentecost, we will discover that now He sends us.

#WalkingWithJesus #RoadToEmmaus #CatholicPodcast #TheCatholicJourney

Walking with Jesus — Episode 10: The Resurrection

 

Walking with Jesus — Episode 10: The Resurrection
When Everything Changed

The stone has been moved.
The tomb is empty.
And everything has changed.

In Episode 10 of Walking with Jesus, we enter the morning that changed human history.

Mary Magdalene approaches the tomb expecting to find death—but instead encounters the risen Christ. Peter and John run to see for themselves. Frightened disciples hiding behind locked doors suddenly hear Jesus say:

“Peace be with you.”

But the Resurrection isn't simply something that happened 2,000 years ago.

It asks something of us today:

Do I actually live like Jesus is alive?

Because if Christ is risen, then death does not get the final word.

Neither does failure.
Neither does sin.
Neither does grief.
Neither does fear.
Neither does your past.

Maybe you're still living through your own Holy Saturday—waiting, praying, wondering where God is.

Remember Mary Magdalene.

When she began walking toward the tomb, Jesus was already alive. She just didn't know it yet.

God may already be doing something you cannot see.

Join me, Deacon Pat Kearns, for Episode 10 of Walking with Jesus as we stand before the empty tomb and rediscover why the Resurrection changes not only eternity—but the way we live today.

The tomb is empty. The story is not over.

And next, our journey continues with Episode 11: The Road to Emmaus — When Jesus Walks Beside Us and We Don't Recognize Him.

#WalkingWithJesus #Resurrection #CatholicPodcast #TheCatholicJourney

Walking with Jesus — Episode 9: Holy Week

 

Walking with Jesus — Episode 9: Holy Week
When Love Walked Toward the Cross

The crowds shout, “Hosanna!” But Jesus knows where this road will lead.

In Episode 9 of Walking with Jesus, we enter the most sacred and heartbreaking days of Christ’s earthly life. We walk beside Him into Jerusalem, sit with Him at the Last Supper, enter the darkness of Gethsemane, witness Peter’s denial, follow Jesus along the road to Calvary, and finally stand in silence before the sealed tomb.

But Holy Week is more than remembering what happened to Jesus. It asks each of us a deeply personal question:

Will I still follow Jesus when I don’t understand what He is doing?

We all experience our own Holy Saturdays—those times when we have prayed, waited, and wondered why God seems silent. Yet the tomb reminds us:

God’s silence does not mean God’s absence.

The Cross looked like defeat.
The tomb looked final.
The stone looked immovable.

But the story wasn’t over.

Join me for this powerful episode of The Catholic Journey as we continue Walking with Jesus through Holy Week.

And stay with us...

Because next comes Episode 10: The Resurrection — When Everything Changed.

Sunday is coming.

#WalkingWithJesus #HolyWeek #CatholicPodcast #TheCatholicJourney

KEEP YOUR EYES ON JESUS (Homily 19th Sunday Ordinary Time - Year A)

 

KEEP YOUR EYES ON JESUS
A Catholic Homily on Matthew 14:22–33

Sometimes life is calm… and then suddenly, the wind changes.

A diagnosis. A struggling marriage. A child who is hurting. Financial worries. The loss of someone we love. Or perhaps simply the exhaustion of carrying more than anyone realizes.

In this Gospel, Peter does the impossible—he steps out of the boat and walks toward Jesus on the water. But then something changes.

The storm doesn't change.

Peter's focus does.

He takes his eyes off Jesus, looks at the wind and waves, becomes afraid, and begins to sink.

And aren't we sometimes just like Peter?

We can become so focused on everything that might go wrong that we lose sight of the One who is already standing in the middle of our storm.

When Peter begins to sink, he offers one of the simplest and most powerful prayers in Scripture:

“Lord, save me!”

And immediately, Jesus reaches out His hand and catches him.

Maybe you're facing a storm today. Maybe you're tired, frightened, uncertain, or even beginning to sink.

You don't need the perfect prayer.

Just reach for Him.

Because sometimes the storm doesn't disappear immediately—but we discover something even more important:

While we were desperately reaching for God, God was already reaching for us.

🎙️ A Catholic Homily with Deacon Pat Kearns
Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish
Sacramento, California

#KeepYourEyesOnJesus #CatholicHomily #CatholicFaith #DeaconPatKearns