Attached to this recording is the official insignia of the pope, which consists of a threefold crown with a set of keys. The Pope is the Bishop of Rome. Catholics believe that the Pope has the authority of St. Peter.  In the the gospel, we hear about Our Lord giving the keys of the kingdom of heaven to St. Peter.  We Catholics believe that St. Peter handed on that authority to the Man he established as his replacement; that man being the Bishop of Rome, who in turn handed on that authority to his successors. In my homily this morning, I wanted to make the point that the authority and responsibility of the keys are not absolutely exclusive to St. Peter and his successors; to a lesser or greater degree all of us who are baptized share in the authority and the responsibility of the Keys albeit in union with the successor of St. Peter.  I also wanted to make the point that in various ways we open doors to give people access to Christ and his Divine Mercy, but we must do it with the same profession of faith which St. Peter made; that Jesus is truly Lord and Savior, and the only way to the Father. For more details, you can listen to my homily by using this link to my Sound Cloud Recording.  I gave this homily on August 24, 2014: 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time; Cycle "a" readings; Ordinary Form of the Roman Catholic Mass; 9:30 AM Sunday Mass at St. John's in Rapids City.

Open Wide the Doors to Christ

Fr. Glenn H. Harris is a Roman Catholic Priest: Pastor of St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Rapids City and St. Mary of Hampton, in the State of Illinois in the United States of America; Ordained for the Diocese of Peoria.   This is part of his efforts to implement the "New Evangelization." 

Open Wide the Doors to Christ

Fr. Harris