How synodal listening transformed this preacher's homilies and faith community

Preach: The Catholic Homilies Podcast

Brett Williams tries to connect his homilies from week to week. “Our discipleship isn’t limited to Sunday to Sunday,” he says; it needs to be seen “within the context of our ongoing journey.” He cautions that this path may include moments when “it seems dark, and there doesn’t seem to be any progress,” as well as times when it’s “fantastic, easy, wonderful to be a disciple of Jesus.” He believes that “when we create either a series or a linkage between Sundays, people start to see this journey more clearly.”

Brett serves as the pastor of St. Joseph Catholic Church in Durban, South Africa, and previously chaired the synod committee for the Archdiocese of Durban. He openly acknowledges that his ordination at the age of 35 made him a “late vocation.” Prior to entering the seminary, he pursued a career as a college lecturer and served as an international cricket umpire for two decades.

Listen to Brett’s homily for the 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A, on this week’s episode of “Preach.” After the homily, he shares with host Ricardo da Silva, S.J., a Jesuit priest from South Africa, associate editor at America, and associate pastor at the Church of St. Francis Xavier in Manhattan, how the practice of synodal listening, really listening to each other, has shaped his preaching.

Read the full text of this week’s homily and Scripture readings.

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