Fr. John Riccardo's Podcasts

On the evening of September 12th, Fr. Riccardo celebrated a Mass for victims of sexual abuse.

Fr. Riccardo offers an orientation to the sixth chapter of the gospel of John in this homily from the 10 AM Mass at Our Lady of Good Counsel Church. As the Sunday gospel readings for the next five weeks are from John 6, Fr. John looks at the readings from a perspective of history. How do we respond to Jesus, who is the savior of the universe? The fitting response is to worship Him and to tell others about Him. In an age where so many are wandering aimlessly, it is important to share the message that God cares, and that He is faithful.  

Fr. Riccardo preached at all of the weekend masses at Our Lady of Good Counsel Church this past weekend. In this homily from the 5 PM Mass, Fr. John discusses our reluctance to share the gospel with others. He encourages the congregants to complete a survey found on the parish website that was designed to assess the reasons why we find it difficult to share the gospel message in public. The survey will be active until Friday, July 6th.

Each year Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish School celebrates a Streamer Day Mass to recognize the eighth grade students who will soon complete their final studies at the elementary school. Fr. Riccardo's homily from this year's Mass is presented here.

Fr. Riccardo preached at all of the Masses at Our Lady of Good Counsel Church this past weekend. In this homily from the noon Mass, Fr. John discusses God's vision for his world and for us. He looks at the spread of Christianity in the early church despite legal prohibitions and the importance of Christian witness. Fr. John concludes by asking the congregants, "How is God asking you and me to turn our world upside down with the gospel and the revolutionary and radical love of Jesus?"

Deacon Dave Carignan preached at all of the weekend Masses at Our Lady of Good Counsel Church this past weekend. In this homily from the 8 AM Mass, Deacon Dave discusses the importance of pruning whatever is not of Christ within us if we wish to bear fruit as disciples of Jesus.

In this homily from the Easter Vigil Mass at Our Lady of Good Counsel Church, Fr. Riccardo tells the congregants that God is acting in a preeminent way at the Vigil Mass. While addressing the congregants about to be baptized during the Vigil Mass, Fr. John remarks that through the waters of Baptism, we are transferred to the kingdom of God's beloved Son. He also tells those being confirmed and those already confirmed that they are sharers in the mission of Jesus Christ and are tasked to bring others to Him. When confronting evil and suffering in the world, Fr. John encourages the proclamation of the gospel to bring God's children back to Him.  

Fr. Riccardo discusses the seven last words of Christ from the cross in this reflection from a Good Friday service at Our Lady of Good Counsel Church.

Fr. Riccardo's homily from the Mass of the Lord's Supper.

In this homily for Palm Sunday, Fr. Riccardo draws parallels between the allied invasion of western Europe on D-Day and the Passion. Fr. John tells the congregants that the events described in the Passion are the reason why Jesus became man. Through his victory on the cross, Jesus has rescued us from sin and death.

Fr. Riccardo preached at all of the Masses this past weekend at Our Lady of Good Counsel Church. In this homily from the 10 AM Mass, Fr. John discusses what it means to live as a highly contagious married couple while citing the example of his own parents.

Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish welcomed Abbot Jeremy Driscoll, O.S.B. on the weekend of February 23-25 as he led the 2018 Parish Mission titled The Mass: Supreme Encounter with God in Jesus. Abbot Driscoll also preached at all of the weekend Masses at OLGC. In this homily from the noon Mass, Fr. Driscoll looks at the gospel account of the transfiguration of Jesus (MK 9:2-10) at what this means for us today. On this second Sunday in Lent, we encounter Jesus as the Son of God and on his way to the cross. Through the Eucharist, God can transform us to be highly contagious disciples of Christ.

Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish welcomed Abbot Jeremy Driscoll, O.S.B. on the weekend of February 23-25 as he led the 2018 Parish Mission titled The Mass: Supreme Encounter with God in Jesus. Fr. Driscoll serves as abbot of the Mount Angel Abbey in Saint Benedict, Oregon. Abbot Jeremy has taught theology at the Mount Angel Seminary and the Pontifical University of Sant’ Anselmo in Rome. His publications include What Happens at Mass, a vivid exploration of our ritual words, signs, and actions, that help the reader come to a better understanding of the Mass as an encounter with Jesus Christ. In this final talk of the parish mission titled Communion and Encounter with Jesus in the Transformed Gifts and Being Sent into the World as a New Creation in Him, Abbot Jeremy looks at the Communion and Concluding rites of the Mass.

Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish welcomed Abbot Jeremy Driscoll, O.S.B. on the weekend of February 23-25 as he led the 2018 Parish Mission titled The Mass: Supreme Encounter with God in Jesus. Fr. Driscoll serves as abbot of the Mount Angel Abbey in Saint Benedict, Oregon. Abbot Jeremy has taught theology at the Mount Angel Seminary and the Pontifical University of Sant’ Anselmo in Rome. His publications include What Happens at Mass, a vivid exploration of our ritual words, signs, and actions, that help the reader come to a better understanding of the Mass as an encounter with Jesus Christ. In this second talk of the parish mission titled Bringing Gifts and the Transformation of the Gifts: Encounter with God as a Marvelous Exchange, Abbot Jeremy looks at the Liturgy of the Eucharist.

Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish welcomed Abbot Jeremy Driscoll, O.S.B. on the weekend of February 23-25 as he led the 2018 Parish Mission titled The Mass: Supreme Encounter with God in Jesus. Fr. Driscoll serves as abbot of the Mount Angel Abbey in Saint Benedict, Oregon. Abbot Jeremy has taught theology at the Mount Angel Seminary and the Pontifical University of Sant’ Anselmo in Rome. His publications include What Happens at Mass, a vivid exploration of our ritual words, signs, and actions, that help the reader come to a better understanding of the Mass as an encounter with Jesus Christ. As the parish mission continued on Saturday morning, Fr. Riccardo preached at the morning Mass telling the congregation that only God can conform our hearts to His heart so that we may even love those who have hurt us.

Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish welcomed Abbot Jeremy Driscoll, O.S.B. on the weekend of February 23-25 as he led the 2018 Parish Mission titled The Mass: Supreme Encounter with God in Jesus. Fr. Driscoll serves as abbot of the Mount Angel Abbey in Saint Benedict, Oregon. Abbot Jeremy has taught theology at the Mount Angel Seminary and the Pontifical University of Sant’ Anselmo in Rome. His publications include What Happens at Mass, a vivid exploration of our ritual words, signs, and actions, that help the reader come to a better understanding of the Mass as an encounter with Jesus Christ. In this opening talk of the parish mission titled Gathering to Hear God Speak: Encountering Jesus in the Word, Abbot Jeremy looks at the Liturgy of the Word.

Fr. Riccardo tells the congregation that the focus of Lent should be on what God has done for us. In this homily for Ash Wednesday, Fr. John encourages the school children and congregants to spend time each day in prayer before a crucifix asking Jesus to help them understand His cross.

Fr. Riccardo discusses leprosy in Jesus' time, with particular emphasis on the emotional pain experienced by lepers. Fr. John looks at what Moses prescribed when a leper is healed, and offers three suggestions for Lent: returning to the Sacrament of Reconciliation, attending the Unbound Conference on March 17th, and recitation of the prayer below. Help me Lord, to experience as much as possible, the love that moved you to become man, to save us from the drudgery which is life apart from you. Thank you for loving me by name so much that you willingly shed your blood so that I could go free.

Fr. Riccardo preached at all of the Masses at Our Lady of Good Counsel Church this past weekend. In this homily from the noon Mass, Fr. John continues to breakdown Archbishop Vigneron's pastoral letter Unleash the Gospel while looking at the lives of St. Francis of Assisi and St. Paul. Fr. John remarks that like Francis and Paul, we need new hearts if we are to go out into the world to share the gospel message. As we enter the lenten season, Fr. John proposes praying, "Help us Lord, to experience as much as possible, the love that moved you to become man to save us from the drudgery that is life apart from you."

In this homily for the vigil Mass for the Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God Fr. Riccardo tells the congregation that before we can be disciples, we need to learn how to talk to each other and to listen to each other. Fr. John points out how distracted we can all get by our electronic devices, and suggests moderating our use of these devices so as to become more attentive to each other.