A homily (from Greek ὁμιλία, ''homilía'') is a commentary that follows a reading of scripture,
/ref> giving the "public explanation of a sacred doctrine" or text. The works of

Origen Origen of Alexandria, ''Ōrigénēs''; Origen's Greek name ''Ōrigénēs'' () probably means "child of Horus" (from , "Horus", and , "born"). ( 185 – 253), also known as Origen Adamantius, was an early Christian scholar, ascetic, and the ...

and

John Chrysostom John Chrysostom (; gr, Ἰωάννης ὁ Χρυσόστομος; 14 September 407) was an important Early Church Father who served as archbishop of Constantinople. He is known for his preaching and public speaking, his denunciation of ...

(known as

Paschal Homily The Paschal homily or sermon (also known in Greek as ''Hieratikon'' or as the Catechetical Homily) of St. John Chrysostom (died 407) is read aloud at Paschal matins, the service that begins Easter, in Eastern Orthodox and Byzantine Catholic c ...

) are considered exemplary forms of Christian homily. In

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of t ...

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched ...

, and

Eastern Orthodox church The Eastern Orthodox Church, also called the Orthodox Church, is the second-largest Christian church, with approximately 220 million baptized members. It operates as a communion of autocephalous churches, each governed by its bishops via ...

es, a homily is usually given during

Mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different ele ...

(

Divine Liturgy Divine Liturgy ( grc-gre, Θεία Λειτουργία, Theia Leitourgia) or Holy Liturgy is the Eucharistic service of the Byzantine Rite, developed from the Antiochene Rite of Christian liturgy which is that of the Ecumenical Patriarchate ...

or Holy Qurbana for Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches, and Divine Service for the Lutheran Church) at the end of the Liturgy of the Word. Many people consider it synonymous with a

sermon A sermon is a religious discourse or oration by a preacher, usually a member of clergy. Sermons address a scriptural, theological, or moral topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law, or behavior within both past and present contexts. ...

. The

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

word homily is derived from the

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic pe ...

word ὁμιλία ''homilia'', which means intercourse or interaction with other people (derived from the word ''homilos,'' meaning "a gathering"). The word is used in ("wicked ''homiliai'' corrupt good morals"). The related verb is used in (as ''homiloun''), and in (as ''homilei''), both used in the sense of "speaking with". The word later came to have a more technical sense. According to ''The Catholic Encyclopedia'',

was the first to distinguish between ''

logos ''Logos'' (, ; grc, λόγος, lógos, lit=word, discourse, or reason) is a term used in Western philosophy, psychology and rhetoric and refers to the appeal to reason that relies on logic or reason, inductive and deductive reasoning. Aris ...

'' (sermo) and ''homilia'' (tractatus).

Roman Catholic Mass homily

The General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM), the official document governing the celebration of

, states that:

Other senses

Contemporary

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

clergy often use the term 'homily' to describe a short

, such as one created for a wedding or

funeral A funeral is a ceremony connected with the final disposition of a corpse, such as a burial or cremation, with the attendant observances. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember and respect ...

. In colloquial, non-religious, usage, ''homily'' often means a sermon concerning a practical matter, a moralizing lecture or admonition, or an inspirational saying or platitude, but sermon is the more appropriate word in these cases.

Footnotes

Bibliography

* Origen. (2010). Homilies on Leviticus, 1-16. United States: Catholic University of America Press. * Marriott, C., Chrysostom, J., Morris, J. B. (2015). The Homilies of S. John Chrysostom, Archbishop of Constantinople, on the Epistle of St. Paul the Apostle to the Romans - Scholar's Choice Edition. United Kingdom: Creative Media Partners, LLC. * St. John Chrysostom commentary on the Psalms. (1998). United States: Holy Cross Orthodox Press. * '' Instructions to Preachers'' from "Sermons for all the Sundays in the year", ''Dublin : Duffy'' (1882) by Alphonsus Liguori *

External links

www.christianhomily.com
Sunday and Feast Homily Resources in English and Homily Videos in Malayalam by Fr. Abraham Mutholath
Daily Homilies WebsiteRead Malayalam and English Homilies, Reflections and Talks By Archbishop Soosa Pakiam, Metropolitan Archdiocese of Trivandrum2002 General Instruction of the Roman Missal – England and Wales edition (pdf)
{{Authority control Christian genres Christian sermons Christian terminology Homiletics

Roman Catholic Mass homily

Other senses

See also

Footnotes

Bibliography

External links