[Father Kavanagh 28th Anniversary as a priest.]
The past couple of weeks have been extra-ordinarily busy for my family and me – all good stuff, but just busy all-day, every-day it seems. When I find myself over-extended, which I admittedly do too often, I find myself of going through the motions of completing task X, Y, and Z without investing lots of thought or emotion to each task. The risk in doing this is that I miss the joy of life, which is the happiness that comes in loving and being loved from our everyday experiences. We must realize that we are called to know, experience, and share with others God’s great love for us and the great joy that comes from this love.
Throughout the Easter season, which concludes this Sunday with Pentecost, we have been celebrating this great love of our God. We celebrate our God who, out of love, sent his Son to us to teach us how to love and heals our broken relationship with God, by his obedient and humble death on the cross; and it is our loving God who also gives us his Spirit, which we celebrate today, to help us and comfort us as we live out our Christian lives of love and service to God and others.
The Holy Spirit, which the Apostles received at Pentecost and we receive in the Sacraments of Initiation – Baptism and Confirmation, is a wonderful gift from our loving God. We credit the Pentecost event with the start of the Church, and more importantly, with the movement of the Apostles from fear and doubt to boldly praising our loving God and proclaiming his love to all.
The tradition of the Church lists twelve fruits of the Holy Spirit, which result when we, like the Apostles, give ourselves completely to God’s love. When we put aside our own agenda and love and trust God completely, then God, through his Holy Spirit, generously pours out in our lives: charity, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty, self-control, chastity.
I can attest to this! When I place my complete trust in God – putting aside my own agenda or worries – then and only then am I truly at peace and I am a better husband and father, son and brother, friend and co-worker, a better deacon in service to you and the Church. When I do this, the fruits of the Holy Spirit are present in me and I have a glimpse of the eternal happiness that God offers.
However, I am not perfect. And possibly like you, I too often find myself consumed by doubt and insecurity, pride and selfishness, all of which keeps me from loving as I should. So too often I find myself unable to love as I am called to love and feeling incomplete because I am not living as I am called to live.
But here is truly the Good News: our God loves us so much that he knows our faults and weaknesses, is willing to move beyond our self-imposed limitations, and gives us – without condition or hesitation – the gift of his Holy Spirit to help us to live as we are called to live. These gifts of the Holy Spirit are:
1. Wisdom, which is the desire to direct our whole life to God
2. Understanding, which enables us to know more clearly the mysteries of faith
3. Counsel, which warns us of the sin and evil in our world
4. Fortitude, which strengthens us to do the will of God in all things
5. Knowledge, which enables us to discover the will of God in all things
6. Piety, which is the love of God and helps us to obey Him out of love
7. Fear of the Lord, which places in us a dread of sin and fear of offending God
It is these gifts that help us to live as the Christian men and women we are called to live. Maybe, you are living very busy lives and not experiencing fully God’s love; maybe you are in a place between despair and hope, that Father Kavanagh spoke of last weekend; or maybe you are struggling with an addiction, an illness or a very difficult relationship. So, I encourage you, wherever you may be, to ask in your daily prayer for the gift of the Holy Spirit you need most that day. And, trust that if you ask, God will provide!
In concluding, I offer this prayer for you and me from the Rite of Confirmation:
All powerful God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, by water and the Holy Spirit you freed your sons and daughters from sin and gave them new life. Send your Holy Spirit upon US to be OUR helper and guide. Give US the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of right judgment and courage, the spirit of knowledge and reverence. Fill US with the spirit of wonder and awe in your presence. Amen.
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Saturday, May 14, 2011
HOMILY - Fourth Sunday of Easter (Year A)
Today’s readings draw us even closer to Jesus. The readings for this Fourth Sunday of Easter, as known as Good Shepherd Sunday, help us to focus our attention on our relationship with Jesus, the Good Shepherd.
The custom of focusing on Jesus as the Good Shepherd during the Easter season is a very ancient practice. As early as the fifth century, we read of individuals, like Pope Leo the Great, who describe this intimate connection between the Shepherd and his sheep to explain our relationship with Jesus – a connection that begins at our Baptism and is strengthened in the Eucharist.
In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus is trying to teach the Pharisees who he truly is. Pulling both from the Old Testament and from the common experience of Jesus’ time, Jesus uses the metaphor of gatekeepers, shepherds and sheep to describe who Jesus truly is. Jesus is the gatekeeper who opens the way for us to God. As the shepherd, Jesus leads his sheep to God. It is Jesus who has come from God and who leads us to God the Father.
As the good shepherd, Jesus perfectly cares for his sheep – for each one of us. He is in a loving relationship with us – even to the point of insult, suffering, crucifixion, and death. Jesus knows us by name and invites us to enter through the ‘gate’ from sin and death to eternal peace and joy. As proclaimed in the Gospel, Jesus has come in order to give us life, and to give it more abundantly.
In return, the sheep know their shepherd’s voice and respond to his voice. Like the disciples on the road to Emmaus in last week’s Gospel, we can say that our ‘hearts are burning’ whenever we are Christ’s presence – we know in our hearts and our minds the desire we possess to be in relationship with him. Too often, however, we don’t know how to respond or, more often, we choose not to respond.
For this reason, we need great men and women in the Church to teach us how to respond and to give us the example and encouragement to respond as we should. Christ the Shepherd who nourishes and safeguards his flock provides for us the example of such humble service to God and others. While each of are called and anointed at Baptism to follow Christ’s example of service to God and his Church, we need, in a special and specific way, great men and women willing to consecrate their life exclusively in service to the Church and its members.
We need men and women to answer God’s call to priestly and religious life. We need great men and women who are in love with God and his Church and are willing to “leave behind their own narrow agenda and notions of self-fulfillment” to serve God and his Church. We need great men and women, like the Apostle Peter in today’s first reading, who was filled with the Holy Spirit and was willing to risk everything so that others may know God’s great love and mercy. We need great men and women who know and will help us to know, as in today’s Psalm, that the “Lord is my Shepherd, there is nothing else that I want.” We need of great men and women willing to follow Christ’s example and endure insult and suffering for God and his Church. We need great men and women who are willing to lead us in Christ’s mission to give life and to give it more abundantly.
We need great men and women, like Father Kavanagh (Monsignor Ruef) and Sister Barbara, who are willing to selfLESSly serve God and others. We need great men and women, who in their special role in the Church, will fearlessly proclaim the Gospel, teach others of God’s great love for us and how we are to respond to such love, and to model Christian virtue.
We need great men and women like those sitting with us today and like those in the families of our parish to say yes to God’s call to serve his Church.
Pope Benedict has declared this Sunday the 48th World Day of Prayer for Vocations. The Pope in his message for this Day states that: “Vocations to the ministerial priesthood and to the consecrated life are first and foremost the fruit of constant contact with the living God and insistent prayer lifted up to the Lord… in parish communities, in Christian families and in groups specifically devoted to prayer for vocations.” And, so let us pray for those discerning a call to priestly or religious life. AND, let us pray that our parish and its families may be places where we may experience the living God. Let us pray that our parish and our families may be places where we may know of our encouragement and support for vocations. Let us pray that our parish and our families may be places where we feel the warmth of this community as we say “yes” to God and the Church. Let us pray that those discerning a vocation to priestly or religious life, like each of us, may have the strength, the wisdom and the courage to follow our Shepherd, Jesus.
The custom of focusing on Jesus as the Good Shepherd during the Easter season is a very ancient practice. As early as the fifth century, we read of individuals, like Pope Leo the Great, who describe this intimate connection between the Shepherd and his sheep to explain our relationship with Jesus – a connection that begins at our Baptism and is strengthened in the Eucharist.
In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus is trying to teach the Pharisees who he truly is. Pulling both from the Old Testament and from the common experience of Jesus’ time, Jesus uses the metaphor of gatekeepers, shepherds and sheep to describe who Jesus truly is. Jesus is the gatekeeper who opens the way for us to God. As the shepherd, Jesus leads his sheep to God. It is Jesus who has come from God and who leads us to God the Father.
As the good shepherd, Jesus perfectly cares for his sheep – for each one of us. He is in a loving relationship with us – even to the point of insult, suffering, crucifixion, and death. Jesus knows us by name and invites us to enter through the ‘gate’ from sin and death to eternal peace and joy. As proclaimed in the Gospel, Jesus has come in order to give us life, and to give it more abundantly.
In return, the sheep know their shepherd’s voice and respond to his voice. Like the disciples on the road to Emmaus in last week’s Gospel, we can say that our ‘hearts are burning’ whenever we are Christ’s presence – we know in our hearts and our minds the desire we possess to be in relationship with him. Too often, however, we don’t know how to respond or, more often, we choose not to respond.
For this reason, we need great men and women in the Church to teach us how to respond and to give us the example and encouragement to respond as we should. Christ the Shepherd who nourishes and safeguards his flock provides for us the example of such humble service to God and others. While each of are called and anointed at Baptism to follow Christ’s example of service to God and his Church, we need, in a special and specific way, great men and women willing to consecrate their life exclusively in service to the Church and its members.
We need men and women to answer God’s call to priestly and religious life. We need great men and women who are in love with God and his Church and are willing to “leave behind their own narrow agenda and notions of self-fulfillment” to serve God and his Church. We need great men and women, like the Apostle Peter in today’s first reading, who was filled with the Holy Spirit and was willing to risk everything so that others may know God’s great love and mercy. We need great men and women who know and will help us to know, as in today’s Psalm, that the “Lord is my Shepherd, there is nothing else that I want.” We need of great men and women willing to follow Christ’s example and endure insult and suffering for God and his Church. We need great men and women who are willing to lead us in Christ’s mission to give life and to give it more abundantly.
We need great men and women, like Father Kavanagh (Monsignor Ruef) and Sister Barbara, who are willing to selfLESSly serve God and others. We need great men and women, who in their special role in the Church, will fearlessly proclaim the Gospel, teach others of God’s great love for us and how we are to respond to such love, and to model Christian virtue.
We need great men and women like those sitting with us today and like those in the families of our parish to say yes to God’s call to serve his Church.
Pope Benedict has declared this Sunday the 48th World Day of Prayer for Vocations. The Pope in his message for this Day states that: “Vocations to the ministerial priesthood and to the consecrated life are first and foremost the fruit of constant contact with the living God and insistent prayer lifted up to the Lord… in parish communities, in Christian families and in groups specifically devoted to prayer for vocations.” And, so let us pray for those discerning a call to priestly or religious life. AND, let us pray that our parish and its families may be places where we may experience the living God. Let us pray that our parish and our families may be places where we may know of our encouragement and support for vocations. Let us pray that our parish and our families may be places where we feel the warmth of this community as we say “yes” to God and the Church. Let us pray that those discerning a vocation to priestly or religious life, like each of us, may have the strength, the wisdom and the courage to follow our Shepherd, Jesus.
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Homily - Passion Sunday (Year A)
Today, I will simply pose a question and offer an invitation to you.
First, the question…in the loving memory of Monsignor McFarland (may his soul rest in peace), I ask you: “Are you better today, then you were Ash Wednesday?” Let me ask this even more specifically, as we reflect on today’s readings: “Are you more obedient to God’s will today then you were on Ash Wednesday?” “Are you today more like Christ, who was obedient to God the Father even to the point of death?” While not necessarily physical death, death to pride, lust, hate, fear – whatever it is that keeps you from trusting unconditionally and loving without limit, just as God loves us. If not “better,” then Monsignor McFarland would say two things, which I now say to you: “why not?” and “it’s not too late!”Pray over whatever it is that has kept you from being a better Christian man or woman. And then be filled with the grace of the Eucharist that we are about to receive to have the courage and the wisdom to be more like Christ tomorrow then you are today.
And second, an invitation…I invite you to join us in our parish’s Holy Week celebrations. Father Kavanagh has reminded us throughout Lent that we are on a journey of purification and enlightenment in our relationship with God – just not our candidates preparing to join the Church, but each one of us. The liturgies of Holy Week – especially the liturgy of Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter – lead us to experience the goal of our faith journey: the great joy of God’s love for us. The publication Living with Christ, recalls beautifully that “as we revisit the events of the final tumultuous week in Jesus’ life – the Last Supper, his passion and death, and his Resurrection - we are plunged by memory and ritual into the mystery that reveals and defines the meaning of Jesus’ existence and of our own. His story is our story, and what happened to him is the pattern for what is happening now and what will happen to us in the future.” So, I invite you to celebrate these liturgies and experience God’s great love for you. For some, I know that this will be a difficult invitation to accept – there is work, and practices or games, or other commitments. I ask you to pray and make the commitment – and sacrifice, if necessary – to join us this week. I hope and pray to see your family and you this week. May God bless you.
First, the question…in the loving memory of Monsignor McFarland (may his soul rest in peace), I ask you: “Are you better today, then you were Ash Wednesday?” Let me ask this even more specifically, as we reflect on today’s readings: “Are you more obedient to God’s will today then you were on Ash Wednesday?” “Are you today more like Christ, who was obedient to God the Father even to the point of death?” While not necessarily physical death, death to pride, lust, hate, fear – whatever it is that keeps you from trusting unconditionally and loving without limit, just as God loves us. If not “better,” then Monsignor McFarland would say two things, which I now say to you: “why not?” and “it’s not too late!”Pray over whatever it is that has kept you from being a better Christian man or woman. And then be filled with the grace of the Eucharist that we are about to receive to have the courage and the wisdom to be more like Christ tomorrow then you are today.
And second, an invitation…I invite you to join us in our parish’s Holy Week celebrations. Father Kavanagh has reminded us throughout Lent that we are on a journey of purification and enlightenment in our relationship with God – just not our candidates preparing to join the Church, but each one of us. The liturgies of Holy Week – especially the liturgy of Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter – lead us to experience the goal of our faith journey: the great joy of God’s love for us. The publication Living with Christ, recalls beautifully that “as we revisit the events of the final tumultuous week in Jesus’ life – the Last Supper, his passion and death, and his Resurrection - we are plunged by memory and ritual into the mystery that reveals and defines the meaning of Jesus’ existence and of our own. His story is our story, and what happened to him is the pattern for what is happening now and what will happen to us in the future.” So, I invite you to celebrate these liturgies and experience God’s great love for you. For some, I know that this will be a difficult invitation to accept – there is work, and practices or games, or other commitments. I ask you to pray and make the commitment – and sacrifice, if necessary – to join us this week. I hope and pray to see your family and you this week. May God bless you.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
HOMILY - First Sunday in Lent (Year A)
In last Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus tells us that “Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock.” Jesus is telling us that we must listen to what he is teaching us – we must hear it and obey it – and we must act, we must put into action in our life what he says. If we do this, if we ground ourselves on his words by loving and serving God and others, then we will be like a house built on rock – unwavering in the midst of any challenge or temptation. It is like that skilled athlete training continuously, single-minded, undistracted and completely focused on achieving her athletic goal. For us as Catholics, we must also train continuously, single-minded, undistracted and completely focused on achieving on our goal – Heaven.
I can only image that it was with just such discipline that Jesus withstood the three temptations of the devil in today’s Gospel. And it is just such discipline that will allow us to withstand the temptations in our life that distract us from our goal of obtaining eternal happiness and peace. Jesus was so grounded in who he was and what his purpose was that he was not going to be easily distracted by the devil. We must be just as disciplined in what we say and by what we do.
Our Lenten journey is an opportunity to re-focus and re-ground our lives in this discipline of our faith. And it is at the end of this Lenten journey – the Easter celebration – that we find both our inspiration and model: Jesus Christ. Jesus suffered, died and rose for us, so that we might be in the right relationship with our God and that we might experience Heaven. It was Jesus, as St. Paul reminds us in today’s second reading, “through one righteous act,” freed us and gave us life; through the obedience of Jesus, we will be made righteous. It was Jesus’ complete love for, trust in and obedience to God the Father that is also an inspiration and a model for how we are to live our lives – lives of love, trust and obedience to God our Father.
When we place our unconditional love and complete trust in God and when we are fully obedient to God’s plan for us, we are liberated. Liberated from power of sin. While we may still experience temptation, like Jesus, we will be so grounded in who we are and what we are called to do, that we will resist whatever temptation to sin is placed before us.
When we place our unconditional love and complete trust in God and when we are fully obedient to God’s plan for us, we also are able to move beyond our own wants and consider the needs of others and serve them. This is an important part of our faith life – that we not only avoid sin, but that we actively love. Certainly this means clothing the naked, feeding the poor, giving shelter to the homeless, visiting the sick. This also means that we are called to promote economic justice.
I share this point, because it is timely and relevant as our state legislature debates the elimination of collective bargaining.
In our Catholic tradition, justice places the good of the person at the center of all economic activities. It stresses that the economy exists for the person, not the person for the economy. It challenges society to measure the moral effectiveness of our economic practices by how well they strengthen families and provide for the poor and vulnerable. Our Church’s teaching on justice has also long recognized that all people have the right to economic initiative, to productive work, to just wages and benefits, to decent working conditions, to organize and join unions or other associations, and to engage in collective bargaining.
This doctrine of the Church promotes mutual partnerships where both the needs of labor and the needs of management are freely and openly acknowledged and addressed. It challenges both unions and management to work for the common good, to make sacrifices when required, and to adjust to new economic realities.
I share NOT because I am advocating for one side or another on any particular piece of legislative. However, I do share this teaching with you as an encouragement to engage in this debate honestly with these principals in mind. And, like everything in our life, if we are grounded in the teachings of Jesus and his Church, we will be disciplined to resist the temptation to think selfishly and we will be able to consider how our words and actions can help those in need. This is what we are called to do.
The author Mary Birmingham writes that the Genesis account of Adam and Eve, which was read in today’s first reading, is not an exercise in despair, but rather a reflection of hope: hope in the God of mercy and compassion. In our human weakness, we will not always be as strong in the face of temptation – as Jesus was, we may be more like Adam and Eve. And we may not be as charitable to the needs of others as we are called to be. We will be disobedient and sin. But the great joy of our faith is that our God is full of mercy and compassion. And, so we pray, as we begin our Lenten journey: “Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned.”
I can only image that it was with just such discipline that Jesus withstood the three temptations of the devil in today’s Gospel. And it is just such discipline that will allow us to withstand the temptations in our life that distract us from our goal of obtaining eternal happiness and peace. Jesus was so grounded in who he was and what his purpose was that he was not going to be easily distracted by the devil. We must be just as disciplined in what we say and by what we do.
Our Lenten journey is an opportunity to re-focus and re-ground our lives in this discipline of our faith. And it is at the end of this Lenten journey – the Easter celebration – that we find both our inspiration and model: Jesus Christ. Jesus suffered, died and rose for us, so that we might be in the right relationship with our God and that we might experience Heaven. It was Jesus, as St. Paul reminds us in today’s second reading, “through one righteous act,” freed us and gave us life; through the obedience of Jesus, we will be made righteous. It was Jesus’ complete love for, trust in and obedience to God the Father that is also an inspiration and a model for how we are to live our lives – lives of love, trust and obedience to God our Father.
When we place our unconditional love and complete trust in God and when we are fully obedient to God’s plan for us, we are liberated. Liberated from power of sin. While we may still experience temptation, like Jesus, we will be so grounded in who we are and what we are called to do, that we will resist whatever temptation to sin is placed before us.
When we place our unconditional love and complete trust in God and when we are fully obedient to God’s plan for us, we also are able to move beyond our own wants and consider the needs of others and serve them. This is an important part of our faith life – that we not only avoid sin, but that we actively love. Certainly this means clothing the naked, feeding the poor, giving shelter to the homeless, visiting the sick. This also means that we are called to promote economic justice.
I share this point, because it is timely and relevant as our state legislature debates the elimination of collective bargaining.
In our Catholic tradition, justice places the good of the person at the center of all economic activities. It stresses that the economy exists for the person, not the person for the economy. It challenges society to measure the moral effectiveness of our economic practices by how well they strengthen families and provide for the poor and vulnerable. Our Church’s teaching on justice has also long recognized that all people have the right to economic initiative, to productive work, to just wages and benefits, to decent working conditions, to organize and join unions or other associations, and to engage in collective bargaining.
This doctrine of the Church promotes mutual partnerships where both the needs of labor and the needs of management are freely and openly acknowledged and addressed. It challenges both unions and management to work for the common good, to make sacrifices when required, and to adjust to new economic realities.
I share NOT because I am advocating for one side or another on any particular piece of legislative. However, I do share this teaching with you as an encouragement to engage in this debate honestly with these principals in mind. And, like everything in our life, if we are grounded in the teachings of Jesus and his Church, we will be disciplined to resist the temptation to think selfishly and we will be able to consider how our words and actions can help those in need. This is what we are called to do.
The author Mary Birmingham writes that the Genesis account of Adam and Eve, which was read in today’s first reading, is not an exercise in despair, but rather a reflection of hope: hope in the God of mercy and compassion. In our human weakness, we will not always be as strong in the face of temptation – as Jesus was, we may be more like Adam and Eve. And we may not be as charitable to the needs of others as we are called to be. We will be disobedient and sin. But the great joy of our faith is that our God is full of mercy and compassion. And, so we pray, as we begin our Lenten journey: “Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned.”
Saturday, February 12, 2011
HOMILY - Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)
This past week’s readings for the daily Mass recall the two stories of creation from the Book of Genesis. These stories have great meaning and purpose for us as Christians. Two important truths about God our Creator are, first, we are made in God’s image and likeness and we are made good; and second, we are given free will to choose how we live in relationship with our Creator. Both of these truths are wonderful statements about the great love God has for each one of us.
Today’s readings remind us in special way of this second point – of the freedom God gives us. We were not made as machines or robots that simply follow orders or commands; rather, out of love, God gives us free will to choose whether to be in relationship with Him. The Book of Sirach tells us that we have choices to make and our choices have consequences. God places before us “life and death,” “good and evil” and if we choose God and place our trust in Him, we will be saved and have life.
Last week, Deacon Matthew reminded us of Jesus’ challenge to be the light and salt to the world and the unique and important role each of us has in this mission. Jesus continues his Sermon on the Mount in today’s Gospel by giving us very specific and practical ways that we can be the light and salt to the world. In each of Jesus’ examples in today’s Gospel we are reminded that we have a choice – a choice to love or not. We have the choice for anger or peace; for lust or discipline and respect; to divorce or to up hold the sanctity of marriage AND of our husband or wife; and the choice to make our words honor God or not.
For many of us, these are hard words to hear and are even harder words to follow. It is often not easy to love as we are called to love because we may have never loved that way before or because we may have never been loved by another in that way before. This is also hard, because Jesus is calling us to do more than just the minimum – he is calling us to greatness. And this is the point of Jesus’ Sermon and his statement that he has come to fulfill the law. He wants us to know that God’s commandments are more than just a set of rules. He wants us to know that they are given to us so that we might know God’s love for us and so that we might in turn share that love with others.
You may be like me when you hear this Gospel proclaimed and think that I have certainly failed to love as Jesus calls us to love. Well, don’t be discouraged – there is hope. God in his great love is ready to forgive and to help you and me to do better, so that we can experience the love, the joy, the peace God offers us now and eternally.
To be the Christian men and women we are called to be, St. Paul states us in today’s second reading that we must know and trust in God’s wisdom, not the wisdom of this world. God’s wisdom has been made known to us through the Holy Spirit and we must follow this wisdom. AND we must not be misled or fooled into following what popular culture say is good or right, which may conflict with what God commands of us. For example, such wisdom of the day holds that marriage is a matter of convenience that we can simply ditch when things become difficult; or that the dignity and sanctity of life is not absolute and it is okay abort, execute, and euthanize life. We are called to a higher standard, we are called to follow God’s wisdom, to follow God’s command to love.
Our Christian lives require great humility and trust in Jesus Christ. It is Paul who readily acknowledges in his letter to the Corinthians of his weaknesses and limitations in his ministry to the Corinthians and who is grounded in the truth of God’s love, which motivates him, strengthens him, and frees him to be the man he is called to be. In the same way, we must seek greater humility, be quick to acknowledge our weaknesses and be ready to place our trust in God, and in doing so be empowered by God to be the great Christian we are called to be.
We have a choice. We can chose to respond to the challenge to love presented to us in today’s readings in basically one of two ways. We can say: “I feel overwhelmed and full of doubt, I am weak, I can never respond as God wants me to, I am just not capable of doing this.” OR, we can say: “I trust you God, and with your help because I am not capable of doing this alone, I can and will do this – I will love you and others as you have commanded me to love.”
And, here is the good news: you can do this, and I invite and encourage you to do it! I say this for two reasons. First, this is what God wants! This is what God made us to know and do. And, second, because this is God’s will, God generously gives His grace to help us achieve this. He gives us his grace in the Sacraments, especially in the Eucharist that we will receive in just a couple of minutes, and in countless other ways so that we can experience his incredible outpouring of love for each one of us.
Jesus promises us in today’s Gospel that “whoever obeys and teaches these commandments will be called greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” With God’s help, let us chose to love as Jesus commands us, so that we too may be called greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
Today’s readings remind us in special way of this second point – of the freedom God gives us. We were not made as machines or robots that simply follow orders or commands; rather, out of love, God gives us free will to choose whether to be in relationship with Him. The Book of Sirach tells us that we have choices to make and our choices have consequences. God places before us “life and death,” “good and evil” and if we choose God and place our trust in Him, we will be saved and have life.
Last week, Deacon Matthew reminded us of Jesus’ challenge to be the light and salt to the world and the unique and important role each of us has in this mission. Jesus continues his Sermon on the Mount in today’s Gospel by giving us very specific and practical ways that we can be the light and salt to the world. In each of Jesus’ examples in today’s Gospel we are reminded that we have a choice – a choice to love or not. We have the choice for anger or peace; for lust or discipline and respect; to divorce or to up hold the sanctity of marriage AND of our husband or wife; and the choice to make our words honor God or not.
For many of us, these are hard words to hear and are even harder words to follow. It is often not easy to love as we are called to love because we may have never loved that way before or because we may have never been loved by another in that way before. This is also hard, because Jesus is calling us to do more than just the minimum – he is calling us to greatness. And this is the point of Jesus’ Sermon and his statement that he has come to fulfill the law. He wants us to know that God’s commandments are more than just a set of rules. He wants us to know that they are given to us so that we might know God’s love for us and so that we might in turn share that love with others.
You may be like me when you hear this Gospel proclaimed and think that I have certainly failed to love as Jesus calls us to love. Well, don’t be discouraged – there is hope. God in his great love is ready to forgive and to help you and me to do better, so that we can experience the love, the joy, the peace God offers us now and eternally.
To be the Christian men and women we are called to be, St. Paul states us in today’s second reading that we must know and trust in God’s wisdom, not the wisdom of this world. God’s wisdom has been made known to us through the Holy Spirit and we must follow this wisdom. AND we must not be misled or fooled into following what popular culture say is good or right, which may conflict with what God commands of us. For example, such wisdom of the day holds that marriage is a matter of convenience that we can simply ditch when things become difficult; or that the dignity and sanctity of life is not absolute and it is okay abort, execute, and euthanize life. We are called to a higher standard, we are called to follow God’s wisdom, to follow God’s command to love.
Our Christian lives require great humility and trust in Jesus Christ. It is Paul who readily acknowledges in his letter to the Corinthians of his weaknesses and limitations in his ministry to the Corinthians and who is grounded in the truth of God’s love, which motivates him, strengthens him, and frees him to be the man he is called to be. In the same way, we must seek greater humility, be quick to acknowledge our weaknesses and be ready to place our trust in God, and in doing so be empowered by God to be the great Christian we are called to be.
We have a choice. We can chose to respond to the challenge to love presented to us in today’s readings in basically one of two ways. We can say: “I feel overwhelmed and full of doubt, I am weak, I can never respond as God wants me to, I am just not capable of doing this.” OR, we can say: “I trust you God, and with your help because I am not capable of doing this alone, I can and will do this – I will love you and others as you have commanded me to love.”
And, here is the good news: you can do this, and I invite and encourage you to do it! I say this for two reasons. First, this is what God wants! This is what God made us to know and do. And, second, because this is God’s will, God generously gives His grace to help us achieve this. He gives us his grace in the Sacraments, especially in the Eucharist that we will receive in just a couple of minutes, and in countless other ways so that we can experience his incredible outpouring of love for each one of us.
Jesus promises us in today’s Gospel that “whoever obeys and teaches these commandments will be called greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” With God’s help, let us chose to love as Jesus commands us, so that we too may be called greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
Monday, January 10, 2011
HOMILY - Baptism of the Lord (Year A)
Wouldn’t be great if all of our really big or difficult questions in life had a clear and unambiguous answer like what Jesus receives in today’s Gospel? The heavens were opened for him. He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming upon him. And a voice came from the heavens, saying, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”
Jesus must have known at that very moment with certainly and confidence who he was and what he was called to do. That he is the one anticipated in today’s First Reading when God says: Here is my servant whom I uphold, my chosen one with whom I am pleased, upon whom I have put my spirit; he shall bring forth justice to the nations. God’s anointing establishes Jesus’ authority and inaugurates his public ministry to be the servant-leader who is not interested in fame or power, but peace and justice and love – God’s love for each of us.
Celebrating Jesus’ Baptism is an opportunity for each of us to recall our own Baptism. Like Christ, at our Baptism, we were also called by God, filled with his Holy Spirit, and given the grace to live lives of holiness - to live in the right relationship with God and with others. Today’s First Reading is speaking of Jesus, and also speaking directly to each of us and our Baptismal calling: I, the LORD, have called you for the victory of justice, I have grasped you by the hand; I formed you, and set you as a covenant of the people, a light for the nations, to open the eyes of the blind, to bring out prisoners from confinement, and from the dungeon, those who live in darkness. We are called and anointed to live great Christian lives – I love to stress this with my boys, when I talk with the students at school, and with the players I coach. We are all each called to be great and holy men and women.
Among many other things, being holy means acknowledging and protecting the human dignity of all people, especially those who are the most vulnerable in our society – the poor, the weak and sick, the abused child, the drug addict, the dementia patient, the victim of crime and war, and especially the unborn.
The Catholic Church is a Pro-Life Church. The Church teaches us that we are called to promote and protect the dignity of life, at every stage of life. While we must always love, forgive and show great compassion and care for the sinner, it is never morally acceptable and we must always be opposed to any act that offends the sanctity life.
Catholics are pro-life because our Christian tradition is pro-life. As Pope John Paul II once said, Christians believe that “All human life is sacred, for it is created in the image and likeness of God.” The deliberate killing or disrespect of a human being destroys a unique creation, which God has called specially into existence.
Christian teaching also obliges us to follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ, with whom we are united in our Baptism, and who spoke and acted strongly and compassionately in favor of the most despised and vulnerable persons in society. Jesus touched lepers, spoke with prostitutes, and showed special mercy and tenderness to the sick, the poor, and children. Our society today has many vulnerable persons and we have a responsibility to speak and act in defense of these persons – and to show care and compassion for those hurting and in need.
I urge you to answer your Baptismal call to holiness and seek to protect all life, including the most vulnerable and especially the unborn, and to care for and support those discerning an abortion or who have had an abortion. And there are certainly many things you can do.
If you know someone who is pregnant, give them as much support and encouragement as you can. Let them know that they are loved and their child is loved AND that there IS support and help for them and for their child.
If you know someone who has had an abortion, let them know that they too are loved and encourage them to seek the support, the forgiveness and peace they now need AND which is available to them.
I also invite you to join us tomorrow/this evening in the Gathering Space to hear the powerful story of by Ruth Yorston, Executive Director of the Greater Columbus Right to Life, and her journey from working in the abortion industry to now serving as a leading advocate for pro-life issues in our community.
I also encourage you to learn more about the issue of abortion and other pro-life issues, the Church’s teachings on these issues, and ways to get involved in the pro-life movement. There are also several excellent pro-life CDs on display in the Gathering Space. You can also find many excellent pro-life resources and upcoming events online at the Diocese’s website.
If nothing else, please pray. Pray for a culture of life, not death. Pray for an end to abortion. Pray for the lives lost to abortion – and take some comfort in knowing that their souls are with God in Heaven. Pray for the women who have had an abortion, and for the fathers of those babies, that they may know God’s love, seek forgiveness and be at peace. Pray for women considering abortion, and again for the fathers of those babies, that they find the hope, the courage, the love to seek alternatives to abortion and choose life. Pray for the doctors and staff of abortion clinics that they may see clearly what they are doing and stop. And, finally, pray for all those who work in the pro-life community, that may never tire or compromise in their efforts to end abortion. And I will continue to pray for each of you. May God bless you.
Jesus must have known at that very moment with certainly and confidence who he was and what he was called to do. That he is the one anticipated in today’s First Reading when God says: Here is my servant whom I uphold, my chosen one with whom I am pleased, upon whom I have put my spirit; he shall bring forth justice to the nations. God’s anointing establishes Jesus’ authority and inaugurates his public ministry to be the servant-leader who is not interested in fame or power, but peace and justice and love – God’s love for each of us.
Celebrating Jesus’ Baptism is an opportunity for each of us to recall our own Baptism. Like Christ, at our Baptism, we were also called by God, filled with his Holy Spirit, and given the grace to live lives of holiness - to live in the right relationship with God and with others. Today’s First Reading is speaking of Jesus, and also speaking directly to each of us and our Baptismal calling: I, the LORD, have called you for the victory of justice, I have grasped you by the hand; I formed you, and set you as a covenant of the people, a light for the nations, to open the eyes of the blind, to bring out prisoners from confinement, and from the dungeon, those who live in darkness. We are called and anointed to live great Christian lives – I love to stress this with my boys, when I talk with the students at school, and with the players I coach. We are all each called to be great and holy men and women.
Among many other things, being holy means acknowledging and protecting the human dignity of all people, especially those who are the most vulnerable in our society – the poor, the weak and sick, the abused child, the drug addict, the dementia patient, the victim of crime and war, and especially the unborn.
The Catholic Church is a Pro-Life Church. The Church teaches us that we are called to promote and protect the dignity of life, at every stage of life. While we must always love, forgive and show great compassion and care for the sinner, it is never morally acceptable and we must always be opposed to any act that offends the sanctity life.
Catholics are pro-life because our Christian tradition is pro-life. As Pope John Paul II once said, Christians believe that “All human life is sacred, for it is created in the image and likeness of God.” The deliberate killing or disrespect of a human being destroys a unique creation, which God has called specially into existence.
Christian teaching also obliges us to follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ, with whom we are united in our Baptism, and who spoke and acted strongly and compassionately in favor of the most despised and vulnerable persons in society. Jesus touched lepers, spoke with prostitutes, and showed special mercy and tenderness to the sick, the poor, and children. Our society today has many vulnerable persons and we have a responsibility to speak and act in defense of these persons – and to show care and compassion for those hurting and in need.
I urge you to answer your Baptismal call to holiness and seek to protect all life, including the most vulnerable and especially the unborn, and to care for and support those discerning an abortion or who have had an abortion. And there are certainly many things you can do.
If you know someone who is pregnant, give them as much support and encouragement as you can. Let them know that they are loved and their child is loved AND that there IS support and help for them and for their child.
If you know someone who has had an abortion, let them know that they too are loved and encourage them to seek the support, the forgiveness and peace they now need AND which is available to them.
I also invite you to join us tomorrow/this evening in the Gathering Space to hear the powerful story of by Ruth Yorston, Executive Director of the Greater Columbus Right to Life, and her journey from working in the abortion industry to now serving as a leading advocate for pro-life issues in our community.
I also encourage you to learn more about the issue of abortion and other pro-life issues, the Church’s teachings on these issues, and ways to get involved in the pro-life movement. There are also several excellent pro-life CDs on display in the Gathering Space. You can also find many excellent pro-life resources and upcoming events online at the Diocese’s website.
If nothing else, please pray. Pray for a culture of life, not death. Pray for an end to abortion. Pray for the lives lost to abortion – and take some comfort in knowing that their souls are with God in Heaven. Pray for the women who have had an abortion, and for the fathers of those babies, that they may know God’s love, seek forgiveness and be at peace. Pray for women considering abortion, and again for the fathers of those babies, that they find the hope, the courage, the love to seek alternatives to abortion and choose life. Pray for the doctors and staff of abortion clinics that they may see clearly what they are doing and stop. And, finally, pray for all those who work in the pro-life community, that may never tire or compromise in their efforts to end abortion. And I will continue to pray for each of you. May God bless you.
Thursday, January 6, 2011
HOMILY – Tony Albarano Funeral Mass
On behalf of the Our Lady of Peace Parish, I want to first extend, to Michelle, Vince and the rest of Tony’s family and friends, our great sadness and sorrow at the sudden loss of Tony. He was a very good man and will be missed greatly.
At the Christmas Vigil Mass, the opening prayer invites us to “pray that Christmas morning will find us at peace.” I suspect for many in this Church, Christmas morning was not a time of peace – with Tony’s death occurring just days before. However, it is through our Catholic faith that peace can be found even in the midst of such pain and sadness.
It is our hope that Tony now rests in eternal peace. We recall in today’s First Reading that “the souls of the just are in the hand of God, and no torment shall touch them.” This is my hope for the soul of Tony, who was a good and just man – that he is in the hand of God and that no torment shall ever touch him again! It is my hope and prayer that on this past Christmas morning – and every morning - Tony is at peace. I pray that Tony now “abides with God in love.”
Michelle, I know that this Christmas morning you were not at peace, and really not on any morning since Tony passed away – or really not even since before Thanksgiving Day. And it may be a long while before you find peace again. For now, take comfort and find peace in recalling that short amount of time a week ago you had alone together with Tony. I know that in the midst of great sadness and chaos, during that time together both Tony and you were able to be peace just before he passed away. I know that you will cherish that. Know that the peace and love both Tony and you felt at that moment was real, true and pure – a gift from God in the midst of such great anxiety and pain.
Know also that that moment was also the product of your marriage together, which had as its goal to make Tony and you better persons – and to ultimately get each other to Heaven. I believe that the peace Tony now knows is because of you and your marriage. I also believe that your marriage to Tony and his love and care for you made you a better woman – a woman who has the strength to endure and in time will find lasting peace in the midst of this tragedy.
In the meantime, know, as we sung in today’s Responsorial Psalm, that the Lord is your shepherd – that anything you might want or need, God will provide. He will provide you comfort and protection, he will guide you and protect you; he will give you courage and nourishment. Pray and God will provide.
Vince, I suspect for you too that Christmas morning did not find you at peace. Your dad loved you and you loved him, too. For now, allow the love that you shared with your father to give you some peace. Today’s Second Reading is something of a pep talk – reminding us of God’s great love for us in the midst of struggle and discouragement. So, take some comfort and find some peace in knowing that you are also loved by God, as a father loves his son.
Vince, your dad was a great man – a caring and loving man, who worked very hard, had a great sense of humor, was brave and self-LESS, and did many wonderful things. Erin, Ryan, Colin and you were blessed to have such a wonderful example of what it means to be a man. I urge each of you to follow his example of being such a caring and generous man, who took serious his role and responsibility to provide for his family – even to the point of being on his death bed and still wanting to go to work (maybe it was the medications or out of habit, but I want to believe that it was also out of a great sense of loyalty to work and out of responsibility to provide for his family that he wanted to go to work on the day he died). What a wonderful example for each of you young men.
Finally, for the many friends and family of Tony gathered here, I suspect that Christmas morning may not have been a time of peace for you either. However, embrace Jesus’ word’s in today’s Gospel and “Do not let your hearts be troubled.” Our Catholic faith professes that by Jesus’ death, resurrection and ascension into Heaven, he has made it possible for us to know eternal peace – to have one of the many rooms Jesus describes in today’s Gospel that awaits us in his Father’s house. This is the gift God offered Tony – and we pray that Tony is now at peace (I will let you image how Tony has deck-out his room) – and this is a gift God offers to each one of us. Let this be a source of hope and encouragement and peace for you.
As we, the community gathered here to remember Tony, continue with this celebration of the Mass, let us all take some comfort and find some peace in what we say and do next.
At the Christmas Vigil Mass, the opening prayer invites us to “pray that Christmas morning will find us at peace.” I suspect for many in this Church, Christmas morning was not a time of peace – with Tony’s death occurring just days before. However, it is through our Catholic faith that peace can be found even in the midst of such pain and sadness.
It is our hope that Tony now rests in eternal peace. We recall in today’s First Reading that “the souls of the just are in the hand of God, and no torment shall touch them.” This is my hope for the soul of Tony, who was a good and just man – that he is in the hand of God and that no torment shall ever touch him again! It is my hope and prayer that on this past Christmas morning – and every morning - Tony is at peace. I pray that Tony now “abides with God in love.”
Michelle, I know that this Christmas morning you were not at peace, and really not on any morning since Tony passed away – or really not even since before Thanksgiving Day. And it may be a long while before you find peace again. For now, take comfort and find peace in recalling that short amount of time a week ago you had alone together with Tony. I know that in the midst of great sadness and chaos, during that time together both Tony and you were able to be peace just before he passed away. I know that you will cherish that. Know that the peace and love both Tony and you felt at that moment was real, true and pure – a gift from God in the midst of such great anxiety and pain.
Know also that that moment was also the product of your marriage together, which had as its goal to make Tony and you better persons – and to ultimately get each other to Heaven. I believe that the peace Tony now knows is because of you and your marriage. I also believe that your marriage to Tony and his love and care for you made you a better woman – a woman who has the strength to endure and in time will find lasting peace in the midst of this tragedy.
In the meantime, know, as we sung in today’s Responsorial Psalm, that the Lord is your shepherd – that anything you might want or need, God will provide. He will provide you comfort and protection, he will guide you and protect you; he will give you courage and nourishment. Pray and God will provide.
Vince, I suspect for you too that Christmas morning did not find you at peace. Your dad loved you and you loved him, too. For now, allow the love that you shared with your father to give you some peace. Today’s Second Reading is something of a pep talk – reminding us of God’s great love for us in the midst of struggle and discouragement. So, take some comfort and find some peace in knowing that you are also loved by God, as a father loves his son.
Vince, your dad was a great man – a caring and loving man, who worked very hard, had a great sense of humor, was brave and self-LESS, and did many wonderful things. Erin, Ryan, Colin and you were blessed to have such a wonderful example of what it means to be a man. I urge each of you to follow his example of being such a caring and generous man, who took serious his role and responsibility to provide for his family – even to the point of being on his death bed and still wanting to go to work (maybe it was the medications or out of habit, but I want to believe that it was also out of a great sense of loyalty to work and out of responsibility to provide for his family that he wanted to go to work on the day he died). What a wonderful example for each of you young men.
Finally, for the many friends and family of Tony gathered here, I suspect that Christmas morning may not have been a time of peace for you either. However, embrace Jesus’ word’s in today’s Gospel and “Do not let your hearts be troubled.” Our Catholic faith professes that by Jesus’ death, resurrection and ascension into Heaven, he has made it possible for us to know eternal peace – to have one of the many rooms Jesus describes in today’s Gospel that awaits us in his Father’s house. This is the gift God offered Tony – and we pray that Tony is now at peace (I will let you image how Tony has deck-out his room) – and this is a gift God offers to each one of us. Let this be a source of hope and encouragement and peace for you.
As we, the community gathered here to remember Tony, continue with this celebration of the Mass, let us all take some comfort and find some peace in what we say and do next.
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