This week on Preach, we launch a new series: Preaching for the Sacraments—how homilists can bring depth and imagination to their preaching during some of the Catholic Church’s most meaningful rites.
To set the stage, host Ricardo da Silva, S.J., speaks with Anthony Ruff, O.S.B., Benedictine monk and professor of liturgy at Saint John’s School of Theology and Seminary in Minnesota. Together they unpack what sacraments truly are—and how to preach them with both depth and imagination.
“A sacrament is not a vending machine where we put the thing in our action and then the thing comes out automatically,” Anthony explains. “God acts through symbols such as water and oil and laying on hands and exchanging the peace with one another and singing together.” Grace is not dispensed mechanically, but unfolds through real human experience: “If I’m becoming more human and growing in community, I’m being divinized.”
Preaching at sacramental celebrations must therefore begin with the lives of those gathered, not abstract theology. “I really try to say, what’s the word that will be Christ for them, that will resonate with their experience?” Anthony reflects. “We really have to think about the whole life of this community—and then our homily is a part of that.”
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Also in this episode
- Why sacraments aren’t “magic”—and what they really do
- How symbols like water, oil, touch, and song convey God’s grace
- What not to do when preaching at weddings, baptisms, and other sacraments
- How to preach the Word of God in everyday life
- Why the whole celebration—not just the homily—preaches
- The preacher’s role in helping people see the grace already present
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