14 Intercom • July/August 2017

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them, words long forgotten by me; Irecognise the work of the Spirit in that.All I need to do is to give people enoughto keep going for the week, until thefollowing Sunday. I started in 1984 by preaching in amoralistic way (‘we should, ought to,etc.’) preaching provocatively butentertainingly. My preaching has evolved,with God’s help and a bit of study – andmaturity. As a result, I look for anencouraging word (I need one as much asthe people listening to me). The homily isalways based on the readings: I look atthe Gospel first, or the First Reading.Sometimes the Second Reading appealsto me; even the Psalm can be a mightyspringboard (when all else fails).

HOW I PREPARE A HOMILY My secret for preaching is the same as forsurviving parish ministry, simply: pray,take a day off, work and rest. This is howmy Sunday homily evolves. Each Monday,

Just Preaching – The Essentials

Iam not an expert on preaching. I don’thave any training; I just preach. And Ibelieve that preaching the Word of God

is the most important thing I do as a priestand always has been in every assignment. I have been a priest for almost 33years, working in seven different parishes(suburban, commuter-belt, Americanurban and rural Irish). I was involved withIntercom and provided resources forpreachers – but never used them myself! To me, preaching God’s word is themost important thing I do. Every Sundaymy aim is to bring good news, not to giveout about the world or the Taoiseach orDonald Trump, or Brexit, or those in frontof me, but to bring some good news tobear on people’s lives in a way thatencourages . There is always somethingworth sharing in God’s word, sometimeschallenging, always different and new. I don’t have to ‘do it all’. I have heardpeople talk about homilies I gave in thepast and how much those words affected

aer Mass, I pick up the followingSunday’s missalette and fold it into myshirt pocket. I take a first look at thereadings in prayer later that day andmentally note my initial thoughts. I allow the readings sit in thebackground for the week, as I go aroundthe parish, letting what people sayresonate with me; sometimes a story willemerge, or a dri, or an opening gambit,a way to start. My prayer each day is 30minutes with the Lord, focussed on thefollowing Sunday’s readings: ten minutesto ease myself into the Lord’s presence,ten minutes with the Word and tenminutes on its implications, both for meand for the homily. Each Tuesday I take as a day off, sothere’s no overt homily preparation thatday, though it’s probably in the back ofmy mind. On Wednesdays there is a cupof tea aer Mass with some olderparishioners. Lots of topics come up(about hospitals, schools, money worries,

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blessing, can you sum up your homily intwo or three sentences, (about the lengthof a text message)? Share the thoughtsthat seem most important to you at thatmoment, unscripted, from the heart:that’s the message to take home. I believeit’s vital.

FeedbackReaction to homilies flows freely in cityparishes, maybe big towns too (I have noexperience of these). It’s harder to hear inthe country, where people have a mortalfear of falling out with you. Feedback can still be gained from:• observing whether people are

listening (eye contact); • listening well to what people say aer

Mass (be at the door as people leave,what they say can help you nuanceyour words for the next Mass);

• what your friends say (most priestshave ‘safe houses’ where they cantruly relax and be themselves; ask yourfriends there for an honest verdict).

RECURRING CHALLENGES FOR THEPREACHERHolydays of obligationIn my opinion, these are never asimportant as Sundays, so they deserveone day’s preparing and no more.Holydays should not interrupt the flow ofpreparation for the Sunday homily (butsometimes they do). The bottom line isthat the few who come to Mass onworking holydays deserve anencouraging word.

Weekday MassI rarely preach at a weekday Mass, and if Ido it’s ‘off the cuff’. Maybe in the seasonslike Advent and Lent, a brief few wordsmight inspire those who make the effortto be there.

family issues, etc.): a good reality checkfor preaching. On Thursdays there’susually school visitation – and each daythere are visits to homes, hospitals,funerals, etc, as well as that half hour inprayer. On Saturdays, I pray with thereadings again, then light a candle, sayEvening Prayer and finally write down thehomily, every word of it (about 400 wordsor less). It takes about four minutes topreach it. Then I breathe a sigh of relief!

FIVE ESSENTIALSThere are five essentials for preaching (inmy experience): a pastoral heart, beingheard, silence, the ‘focal scoir’ andfeedback.

A Pastoral heartHaving a pastoral heart means listeningto the needs of the people in the parish asa pastor (or listening to those you meet inany ministry situation). Take people’sproblems and dilemmas to heart. Keepthem in the background as you preach.Sometimes a thing you say may help aparticular situation but always keep eachsituation in mind and be careful not tohurt anyone.

Being heardYou must be clearly audible when youpreach. Check microphones, and moreimportantly check the way you use them.Ask your friends if you can be heard.

SilenceYour homily is formed in silence (in yourprayer) and makes its home in silence.You achieve this by allowing a few quietmoments aer you preach, so that peopleget a chance to reflect and take yourwords to heart.

‘Focal scoir’At the very end of Mass, aer theannouncements, before the final

BaptismsI preach a short, accessible homily atbaptisms, on a piece of God’s word thatappeals to me (usually it’s the same oneeach time!). Standing near the familymeans they challenge me to speak theirlanguage (I always use a microphone sono baby can ‘shout me down’).

Reception of RemainsAs at baptisms, when I am officiating at aremoval, I preach a similar butpersonalised homily on a piece of God’sword that appeals to me, usually alsoreferring to the symbols used in theceremony – pall, holy water and candle.

WeddingsMy suggestion is to ask couples not toinclude the Gospel in the nuptial Massbooklet, then possibly use the followingor the previous Sunday’s Gospel — withan adaptation of the homily you arepreparing or have given.

FuneralsPick a Gospel that seems to reflect wellthe life or the death of the deceased andpreach on that. Also have a few ‘anytimeuse’ homilies for back-up.

Next SundayFor next Sunday’s homily, start today,even if you’ve never prepared a homilybefore. God will help you and the peopleyou preach to will be grateful to you.

Fr Paddy Mooney PP Glenamaddy onSaturday evening last with some of theyouth and TY students from GlenamaddyCommunity School with their teacherNiamh O’Flanagan who participated in theliturgy and singing in an upliing Mass forstudents sitting examinations in June.They are photographed beside the ‘ParishExam Tree’ which is located in the church.People can write and hang the names onthe tree of those preparing for exams andthey will be remembered in all our Massesuntil the end of June.

Fr Bernard Cotter is parish priest atNewcestown, Bandon, Co Cork

Email: frbernard@eircom.netHe is co-author with Diana Klein of

How to Survive Working in a Catholic Parish,which contains a chapter on

Communication in the Parish. The above article is based on an address given

at the annual assembly of clergy of the Diocese of Kerry, in Killarney earlier this year.

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