NEW DELHI, Jan. 22 -- While addressing 800 priests of the Diocese of Rome in the Basilica of St. John Lateran on January 13, Pope Francis called the clergy to bear credible witness to Christ and to keep their homilies brief and direct, reported the Vatican News. He reportedly told the priests that their sermons "must go straight to the heart, cover issues in daily lives and steer clear of overly sophisticated subjects" and should be limited to 8 minutes.

There is a pertinent statement by the character Nicodemus in the movie, 'Jesus of Nazareth', directed and produced by Franco Zeffirelli. "I saw in him the word of God becoming alive". If a homily is to touch the hearts and minds of the faithful, it is to be lively. Now, the question is h...