Expert: Griff Ruby - 7/5/2009

Question
I attended a mass where after the gospel was proclaimed instead of a homily, the priest showed some slides and spoke about the goals of a synod recently held. Is this permissible?

Answer
That depends upon whether or not the mass in question was Catholic or Novus Ordo.  If it was Novus Ordo, then the only "rule" is that there are no rules and anything goes.  It will do no good to report this priest to anyone since no action will be taken.  The priest will not draw a reprimand, will not be given a "talking to," might instead even be praised for his "bravery" in breaking down yet another boundary.
Despite Benedict XVI's supposed reputation for being some sort of Latin-Mass saying arch-conservative, surprisingly little of what he has done has been in keeping with such a reputation (though there admittedly have been some few things).  Even his own flout him with no concern or worry.  Not long ago he made a worthy statement to Africa to the effect that condoms are not the way to stop the spread of AIDS, but abstinence is.  Good words, and a genuinely golden moment in which he almost managed to sound like a pope.  But I tell you now that if some individual priest in Africa were subsequently to spend his "homily" preaching about how supposedly "wrong" Benedict XVI was to say that, such a priest would far more likely be in line for a red hat than a reprimand.
No, looking for Catholicism in the Novus Ordo is like looking for a virgin in a brothel.  Get thee hence to some "traditional Catholic" Latin-Mass saying congregation which upholds the entirety of Catholic Tradition and where such liturgical (and other) aberrations are altogether unheard of.  It may be quite far away, so far that one can attend only a few times a year, or even only once every several years, but such is as it was in any mission country and is now worldwide now that the whole world is mission country all over again.
In the Catholic Church, the homily in a Mass exists to expound upon the readings of the day and apply them in a manner that edifies and spreads devotion.  Of course, announcements may be made and therefore used to mention that such a thing took place and that "booklets about this are available in the back for you to pick up as you leave, if you are interested."  On other words, there are proper ways to present such things on a given Sunday morning, but slicing out the homily and replacing it with a media production is not one of them.