U.S. archbishop: Catholics need solid preaching, not feel-good fluff

John Thavis of Catholic News Service reported on remarks titled "Preaching: An Ecclesial Vocation" by Archbishop Timothy Dolan when at the Pontifical North American College in Rome a few months ago.

"Maybe the greatest threat to the church is not heresy, not dissent, not secularism, not even moral relativism, but this sanitized, feel-good, boutique, therapeutic spirituality that makes no demands, calls for no sacrifice, asks for no conversion, entails no battle against sin, but only soothes and affirms," he said.

This Easter homily by Fr. Robert deLeon, CSC on John 20:1-9 includes a story about a puppy and a little crippled boy. Precept Austin uses the same story to illustrate Hebrews 4:15. The Sunday before last I heard the same story at St. Al's in a homily on the Gospel reading about the woman caught in adultery (John 8:1-11).