Lift Up Your Hearts: Homilies And Reflections for the "C" Cycle

This brilliant collection of homilies, which completes the cycle for this series, draws on the Sunday (and feast day) readings to demonstrate the relevance of biblical interpretation to the life of a community and its members. The purpose of each homily is to address listeners who have gathered for worship by helping them to recognize that God is living, present, and active in the world, and also by helping them respond to God's presence by giving praise and thanks, and by living a life that accords with the teachings of Jesus. Taken together they constitute a valuable resource for the homilist in the creation of future sermons of equal relevance to the time and circumstances under which they are delivered. This third volume comes out of the same vision as its companion volumes for the A and B cycles. At the heart of the C cycle of readings is the Gospel of Luke, probably written between 80 and 85 by a gifted storyteller. Pastors, priests, deacons, and anyone who preaches will find this collection of source material to be particularly useful in crafting homilies that are grounded in Holy Scripture and yet relevant and meaningful in today's world. Also, it is written for the churchgoer in search of a helpful reflection on the Sunday readings with the intent of connecting the biblical texts with life. †

James A. Wallace, CSsR, is professor of homiletics at Washington Theological Union.