Lenten Mission: Day 4: Prefer Heaven: On Repentance & Salvation ~ Fr. Matlak

About this sermon

On this final day of the Parish Mission at St. Thomas Aquinas, we are invited to rediscover the true purpose of Lent — not merely as a season of suffering or rules, but as a journey of restoration, joy, and divine mercy. Through this powerful homily, the priest reflects on the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus, the four last things — death, judgment, heaven, and hell — and how repentance and grace lead us back to our God-given identity. Drawing wisdom from Fulton Sheen, St. Isaac the Syrian, and St. Philip Neri, this mission calls each of us to prefer heaven above all else. This message challenges the modern, comfort-driven mindset and brings us face to face with the reality of divine love, justice, and eternal joy. 🙏 “Lent is joy. God is joy. Heaven is joy. Only the devil is everything else.” ⏱️ Timestamps 0:00 – Introduction & Gloria 0:38 – Fulton Sheen: Faith and Proof 1:00 – The Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus 1:29 – The True Purpose of Lent: Restoration of Glory 2:58 – God or Despair: The Ultimate Choice 3:46 – Dispositions of True Repentance 4:55 – Jeremiah and the Danger of Trusting in Man 5:54 – Understanding the Four Last Things 6:08 – Death as an Act of Mercy 6:42 – Judgment and Mercy in God’s Plan 7:32 – Hell, Heaven, and Purgatory Explained 8:38 – St. Isaac the Syrian on Hell as Rejected Love 10:16 – The Lenten Life: Choosing Heaven 11:00 – The Love That Cancels Out Suffering 11:55 – Overcoming Sin and Temptation 13:03 – The Power of Prayer and Fasting 14:52 – Living the Resurrection in Daily Life 15:42 – Joyful Saints: Witnesses of the Risen Christ 16:26 – Focus on Heaven, Not Others’ Failings 17:00 – St. Philip Neri: “I Prefer Heaven” 18:09 – Lent is Joy: Prefer Heaven Always https://www.stacharlotte.com/homilies #CatholicHomily #LentReflection #PreferHeaven #StThomasAquinas #CatholicFaith #FultonSheen #CatholicChurch #CatholicPreaching #Repentance #LentenJourney #FaithAndGrace #HeavenAndHell #CatholicMission #TraditionalCatholic #CatholicSermon #StPhilipNeri #FourLastThings #MercyOfGod #CatholicTeaching #SpiritualRenewal 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴 Support Catholic Businesses here - https://sensusfidelium.com/catholic-businesses/ Sensus Fidelium Press - https://sensusfideliumpress.com/ Sensus Fidelium Apps - https://sensusfidelium.tv/ Support Sensus Fidelium - https://sensusfidelium.com/donate-support/ 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴 🙏🏻PLEASE HELP OUR CHANNEL GROW 🙏🏻 ▶️ 1. Become a Channel Patron: https://www.patreon.com/SensusFidelium ▶️ 2. Visit the website https://www.sensusfidelium.us for Gueranger, Saint of the Day, Apologetics, Meditation by the Saints, Scripture Study and more. ▶️ 3. Subscribe to Other Video Platforms 🔴 BitChute --- https://www.bitchute.com/channel/Sensus_Fidelium/ 🔴 Rumble --- https://rumble.com/c/c-298311 🔴 My Catholic Tube - https://mycatholictube.com/videos/sensus-fidelium-channel/ 🔴 LBRY.tv --- https://lbry.tv/@SensusFidelium:c 🔴 ODYSEE - https://odysee.com/@SensusFidelium:c 🔴 UGETube - https://videos.utahgunexchange.com/@Sensus%20Fidelium 🔴 BrandNewTube - https://brandnewtube.com/@SensusFidelium 🔴 GabTV - https://tv.gab.com/channel/Sensus_Fidelium 🔴 GloriaTV - https://gloria.tv/Sensus%20Fidelium 🔴 Brighteon - https://www.brighteon.com/channels/sensusfidelium 🔴 GTTR - https://gettr.com/user/sensus_fidelium ▶️ 4. Paypal, Bitcoin, Anedot, Stripe, Square & PO Box donations - https://sensusfidelium.com/donate-support/ ▶️ 5. YouTube: Click Subscribe, then Click "Notification Bell" = 🔔 Please "Like" our videos so that Youtube shares it to others by clicking the "Like" thumbs-up under the video = 👍🏻 ▶️ 6. Please share this video 📲, and help others find Christ inside the Catholic Church! Please share this video on Facebook and Twitter using the share button. ▶️ 7. Follow on Social Media: 🔴 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SensusFidelium/ 🔴 Twitter: https://https://twitter.com/Sensus_Fidelium 🔴 YouTube: Click Subscribe, then Click "Notification Bell" = 🔔 🔴 Parler: https://parler.com/profile/Sensusfidelium/posts 🔴 SP3RN: https://www.sp3rn.com/community/pages/14-sensus-fidelium 🔴 GAB: https://gab.com/Sensus_Fidelium 🔴 Bastyon: https://bastyon.com/sensusfidelium 🔴 GETTR: https://gettr.com/user/sensus_fidelium 🔴 INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/sensusfidelium/ 🔴 Telegram: https//t.me/RealSensusFidelium ▶️ 8. Follow on iTunes: 🔴 https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/sensus-fidelium-catholic-podcast/id1477010758

Topics

• Salvation
• Repentance
• Heaven & Eternity