The authority of God is in listening, in caring, in forgiving, and in loving as God loves us.

 

Twenty Ninth Sunday in OT  B  2021

 

This Gospel about the brothers James and John asking the Lord for positions of honor in the kingdom of God at the Lord’s right and left hand.

 

This is one of my favorite Gospels for me to identify with.  James is my patron saint and I have a brother John.  And I must confess to you that pride easily gets the best of me wanting to be recognized and wanting to be successful.

 

In the scriptures of my own life, as far back as I can remember, as a Little League baseball player at Genesee Valley Park, losing a ball game seemed like the end of the world.  Thanks to my sainted mother, she helped to understand it was just a game and the sun was going to rise the next morning.

 

As a student in the seminary, with much encouragement from my dad, getting high marks and doing well academically was very important.  There was a definite competitive to myself.

 

After ordination, I have been very much blessed with a variety of priestly assignments.  I am grateful for the confidence the Bishop and others have placed in me.  I was beginning to feel like the apostles James and John.

 

The apostles James and James were on the inner circle of the apostles and so you might guess that would want to take the next step and see if they would get that extra recognition.  And so, they asked the Lord for the two prime places of honor in the Kingdom  of God.

 

 

There’s no doubt about it.  Competition is as keen today as it was during Jesus’ time.   Human nature hasn’t changed much in the last two millennia.  We are still driven to be No.1, to earn the most, achieve as much as we can, be recognized for our accomplishments, to have that seat at the “big table.”

 

I can identify with the ambition of James and John and get easily caught in pride and self-centeredness.

 

 

 

But as to opening up his apostles to the true meaning of discipleship, Jesus is so disappointed, because they are thinking of power and glory and praise and all these great, wonderful things, and he is thinking of his own death.

 

And so he says to them,

“Can you drink the cup that I drink?”

 

The cup is the cup of suffering.  Are we able to be followers of the crucified Christ, the Christ who came not to be serve but to serve, the Christ who was willing to lay down his life out of love for each and everyone of us.

 

And then he says,

“or be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?”

 

We usually think of a little child being baptized, a new life being baptized. Baptisms of infants is such a precious part of my ministry and brings much to all.

 

But the word baptism means “to be immersed in water.”

 

And the whole story of baptism is we are immersed and drowned in the waters that we might die to our old lives and be brought up out of the waters and live to the new life in Christ.

 

This is why I so prefer immersion baptism so that we may be immersed in the life giving water of Jesus.  But we must know that to be immersed in the life of Jesus in to enter into the paschal mystery – the dying and the rising of Jesus.

 

And so,Jesus knows that he is going to be baptized means that he must die, but in three days he will rise again.

 

James and John said: “We can drink of the cup and we can be baptized with the baptism,” not understanding at all what they are talking about.

 

But Jesus softens and he looks at them and he knows in the future they will return and he says to them, “Yes, someday you will have to drink the cup and someday you will be baptised in this kind of baptism.

 

“But to give you places in heaven, that is not for me to talk about, that is for the Father. It is the prerogative of the Father to speak of rewards, to speak of the things that you are crying out for so much.”

 

 

But the other disciples hear about it and they protest.  Why do they protest?

They are jealous. They, too, want the first places at the table. They, too, want to be honoured. They, too, want power. They, too, are in the competition game. They want to be winners and not losers — finally. They have been losing their whole life and now this man is going to make them winners.

 

And Jesus listens to them squabbling. These are the men that he’s going to found the Kingdom of God?

 

These are the men that want the authority of the world. As we well know, in this life, you do not rise high unless you want power, unless you are somewhat arrogant and forceful. It’s a world in which the authority of the world is based on might and power.

 

And Jesus is offering the authority of God.

And what is the authority of God?

 

The authority of God is not in domination. It is not in winning.

The authority of God is in loving. It is in silence. It is in quietness. It is in accompaniment, a quiet presence. It is in listening. It is in caring. It is in accepting.

It is learning how to love the way the Father loves, because the Father is a giver and not a taker. It is learning how to love the way Jesus loves, so great that he will lay his life down for his people.

 

And this great mystery, that we take so readily today into our own lives, is not understood, or not heard, by the Apostles.

 

And so it is Jesus comes together and he explains it to them. And he explains it to them in these words:

Jesus summoned them and said to them,
“You know that those who are recognized as rulers over the Gentiles
lord it over them,
and their great ones make their authority over them felt.
But it shall not be so among you.
Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you will be your servant;
whoever wishes to be first among you will be the slave of all.
For the Son of Man did not come to be served
but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

 

Nest Sunday is Missionary Sunday.  Sometimes we think it is that we are sent out to kind of convince the whole world that we are right and they are wrong, that we have the truth and they don’t.

 

This is very far, not from the Apostles’ thoughts, but from the thoughts of God.

We are sent into this world to listen and to heal, to care and to reach out. We are,  sent into this world to learn how to love not as people love, to learn how to love as God loves.

 

And God gives His only begotten Son that he should offer his life that we might understand that God’s love is so great that He gives everything into our hands.

 

May God give you the gift of peace and a missionary spirit of listening, of compassion, of caring, and loving as God loves us.

Respect Life -- we become our best selves in loving and sharing and giving with each other.

 

Twenty Seventh Sunday in OT  B  2021

 

On this first weekend of the month of October, we are celebrating respect life weekend.  We are celebrating the dignity of every person God has created.  We are all made in the image and likeness of God.  From the first moment of conception till the day we are placed in the grave, each person’s life is to be respected and is very much deserving of our love.

In the first scripture reading from the Book of Genesis, the Lord God said: “It is not good for the man to be alone.”  God has created us for relationship.  The need for companionship is basic and God-given in each of us.  We become our best selves in loving and sharing and giving with each another.  We are made for each other.  God created us to share life and life in all its abundance.

Simply put, no person was made to be an island, in isolation from community.  Through God’s eyes, humanity is complete in partnership and in love.  We are better together.

In a session with some faith-filled children,  I asked them why they thought God said:  “It is not good for man to be alone.”  They responded so beautifully and honestly:  One said: “We need friends”….another “I love my mom and dad and brothers and sisters”….Another said:  “It would be so boring.”  Another said:  “Jesus wants us to love one another.” 

Even at a young age, maybe especially at their age, children know they are safe and very much loved in their family.  They know they are their best selves when they are kind, when they have friends, and when they love others.

The need for partnership and companionship and love is best expressed most beautifully in the marriage vows:  “I, John, take you, Mary, to be my wife.  I promise to be true to you in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health.  I will love you and honor you all the days of my life.”

Marriage is part of God’s loving plan of salvation.

Jesus, the great teacher, goes back to God’s original plan of creation.  God has created us to be in relationship.  When the examiners of Jesus brought up the question of divorce, Jesus turned it into a discussion of the dignity of each person and the fact that human beings are made for loving one another as truly as we are made to love God.

In his interchange with the Pharisees, Jesus went far beyond the question of divorce to teach about the meaning of human relationship in general.   Jesus went beyond the legality of the law.  He called people to discern God’s will as that which promotes life-giving relationships in each and every situation.

Marriage is a school of love and forgiveness.  When two people get married they bring with them to their marriage normal human weaknesses and discover weakness in the other which previously they did not know.    In the sacrament of marriage, it is not just two people coming together in love; the sacrament of marriage unites the couple with Jesus and brings them God’s blessing.

The faithfulness of God to this couple is lived out in the sacrament of marriage.  God is always faithful to us his people.  God is always faithful to the Church.

 

Our respect life theme fits very well with our commitment to the Catholic Ministries Appeal  (CMA).  The Gospel imperative for us clearly is the need to go beyond the boundaries of our parish in witnessing to the dignity and beauty of all human life.  We are to move our comfort and reach out in sharing our resources with people in need thought our 12 county diocese.

 

Our parish goal is $89,950.  This is a bit of a stretch for us but certainly it is not an unreasonable goal.  None of us get a  free pass in our to share what we have with those in need.  Our goal is high because we have been blessed by our loving, giving God with many blessings.  May we support the CMA, not  begrudgingly, but willingly with generous hearts.  For God loves a cheerful given.

 

Respect life is part of our parish’s DNA.  As such, we are called to support the dignity of human life with people in need throughout our diocese.  Personally, I will give generously to the CMA , and I will increase my giving over last year.  I would ask you to do the same if you are able.

 

Be assured that every cent of our CMA giving is used to support the needed and worthwhile ministries of our diocese.  You can be assured that you will never regret being generous with people in need.

 

In the second Scripture reading, the sacred writer says that Jesus was made perfect through suffering.  For us too, our relationship with Jesus is deepened through the sufferings we experience.  The cross, suffering in our life is part of our sharing in the paschal mystery of the Lord.  We are to die to ourselves so that we may live more fully in the life of Christ. 

As we celebrate respect life this weekend, may we respect the life and the dignity of all those who have experienced  pain and suffering.  The beauty of our respect life theme is that people most in need – for those who are divorced and those who have experienced brokenness in relationship – are people whom the Lord welcomes and forgives and desires them to be reconciled to the God who desires reconciliation with one and all.

May we be a faith community that is deeply committed to respecting all human life, and may this commitment lead us to support our annual diocesan CMA that enhances the human dignity of all the people in our diocese.

 

May God give you peace and a spirit of generosity.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We follow a God who can work through anyone, any place, any time.

 

The twenty sixth Sunday in OT B 2021

 

 

The Scriptures today remind us that God dwells within all people, from our earliest ancestors in faith, to all of us in this present day and age.  Moses came to the realization that God was deeply immersed in all of the chosen people, not just a few.   In the first reading from the book of Numbers, the biblical writer features the people encamped with Moses, and God bestowing upon them a share of the divine prophetic spirit that has been given to Moses.

 

God dwells in each of us.

 

In the Gospel, the disciples try to stop someone who was driving out demons just like them. They had to learn that their way was, in fact, a much narrower way than the Lord’s way, and that their narrow perspective was an obstacle to the Lord’s work getting done. Those they judged to be ‘not one of us’, Jesus regarded as ‘for us.’

 

One of the most difficult things for people of faith to acknowledge is that we can’t put limits on God.  It’s impossible to set boundaries in which God can work.

 

In contrast to his disciples, Jesus was able to recognize and encourage goodness wherever he found it. He knew that the Spirit blows where it wills. He was alert to the presence of the Spirit in anyone.

 

We follow a God who can work through anyone, any place, any time.

 

The main point is that we all have a role to play in recognizing and supporting the working of the Spirit in each other. Towards the end of his first letter to the Thessalonians, Paul says, “Do not quench the Spirit.” (Thess 5:19) How do we quench the Holy Spirit in others?  There are several examples. We can become a stumbling block, an obstacle, to God’s working in their lives. We can quench the Spirit in others and hinder the good work that God is doing through them for a whole variety of very human reasons. We can be motivated by jealousy, as Moses suggests Joshua was in today’s first reading.

Like the disciples, we can refuse to acknowledge God’s good work in the lives of others because they are not ‘one of us’, because they belong to a different church or religion or ethnic group. We can also be dismissive of the good someone else is doing simply because it is not the way we would have done it, forgetting that the Holy Spirit works in many diverse ways in people’s lives.

 

So what message do we take home this Sunday?  The mark of a true disciple and steward of Jesus Christ is an attitude of encouragement, accompaniment, compassion and acceptance of the gifts of others.

 

This message is most appropriate for our generous support of the Catholic Ministries Appeal.  We are called to share our financial resources beyond the confines of our parish  to support people in need throughout our diocese.  The Spirit of God dwells in everyone, and they are much deserving of our support.  The CMA stands for what is good and worthwhile in our diocese reaching out to the poor beyond the confines of our parish boundaries.

 

From the perspective of the Gospel demand, we cannot not reach out beyond our comfort zone to serve the needs of our larger diocese.

 

In the second Scripture reading, James warns against being obsessed with earthly things that rust and corrosion will claim one day. The Letter of James provides a deeper understanding of how the prophetic spirit works.  James addresses the wealthy of the community.  All that they have gained through injustice will come to naught.  The wealth around which they have centered their lives will become worthless, and their lives will follow suit.  Justice will be served for those who have been treated unjustly.  Thus, acting in accord with the Spirit, James delivers a stinging message to the rich of his community whose wealth is ill-gotten.   James reminds his readers that our God numbers the most unlikely people among his “righteous.”

 

For those of us who have worked hard and fairly for the resources we have, there is no free pass from the Gospel challenge.  Plain and simple, we are to share the blessings that are ours.  What we have is meant to be shared with those in need.  This is the purpose of the Catholic Ministries Appeal.

 

Our goal is $ 224,136.  This is one of the highest goals in the diocese, although not the highest.  The goal is high, but the goal is not unreasonable.  The goal is high because God has blessed us in our parish with many, many blessings.  These are to be shared.  The Gospel leaves us no wiggle room.  We are to share our blessings with those in need.  I assure you I will personally be generous in contributing to the CMA and ask you to do the same.

 

My guarantee to you is that you will never regret your generosity to others.

 

My prayerful question for us is what do we consider our true treasures to be?  Our true wealth is to be found in our love and service of one another.  Love and hospitality live on in the giver and the receiver and do not fade away like temporary earthly treasures.

 

This Sunday’s readings invite us to ponder the ways of our God whose prophetic Spirit has been poured out freely upon all people, all creation.  Rather than quenching the Spirit in others and hindering the good work that God is doing through them, we are urged to recognize, encourage, affirm and share our blessings with others.

 

 May God give you peace and a spirit of generosity.

Peter was right but not right enough.

 Twenty Fourth Sunday in OT  B  2021

 

In today’s Gospel, Jesus asked his disciples two questions.  The first was an information, polling question:  Who do people say that I am?  The second was a more personal spiritual question:  “Who do you say that I am?”  Peter responded:  “You are the Christ.”  Peter was right, but not right enough.  Peter has the right answer, but not the right meaning.  Peter had hoped that the long-awaited Messiah was to be regal, powerful, and a strong leader.   Peter did not understand the words of Jesus that the Son of Man must suffer greatly and be rejected and be killed and rise after three days.

Unaware, as yet, of the true nature of Jesus’ identity, Peter tried to set aside the unthinkable notion of a suffering Christ.  Jesus was explaining to his disciples his upcoming suffering, passion, death and resurrection.   For Jesus this is what the meaning of Messiah is, and this is the straight truth.

There is a crossroads in the journey of faith for many of us in our discipleship of the Lord Jesus.  We encounter that crossroads when we personally have to deal with suffering and struggle.  Sometimes that suffering is of our own doing -- dealing with the weaknesses and the demons within each of us – or sometimes the suffering comes from having to deal with realities we cannot control or manage -- as in illnesses or death of someone close to us.

In the face of dealing with life’s struggles, what happens to the piety and the prayerfulness of days gone by?  In speaking to the first disciples, Jesus is saying you indeed will experience rejection, the cross, and ultimately death.  This is the meaning of discipleship.  What is our understanding of our discipleship of the Lord Jesus?

The Scriptures today are inviting to reflect on the meaning of our discipleship of the Lord Jesus.  The Scriptures, in a sense, want us to restart our baptismal commitment, how we are to live as the disciples of Jesus?

Jesus asks us the same question he asked the first disciples:  Who do you say that I am?   Like Peter, it’s easy to give the right answer.  When we shortly profess the creed, we are giving the right answer for our discipleship of Jesus.  But as for Peter and so for us, it’s not enough to give the right answer in the words we speak.  How we live our lives validate the words we say in professing the creed.

 

 

The Scriptures today are teaching us about the meaning of discipleship.  In what situations of life are you willing to embrace suffering as a means of embracing the cross in your journey of discipleship?   In the big picture, denying yourself and taking the cross is far more than giving up candy during Lent.  It is a complete reordering of our principles and priorities in order to “restart “baptismal commitment.  Turning away from self-centeredness, we embrace other-centeredness and God-centeredness.

--There is no one we will not forgive.

--We are committed to share what we have in the service of others.

--We are simply going to be kind to each person we share life with today.

--Prayer, our relationship with the Lord, is going to be a daily part of our DNA.

 

May we restart our baptismal commitment by seeking to serve, rather than being served, and by our willingness to deny our self so that we can more fully embrace our discipleship of the Lord Jesus Christ.

This weekend, we celebrate the 20th anniversary of 9/11.  How does our discipleship of the Lord Jesus help us to pray and reflect on this 20th anniversary of 9/11?

 

Gracious God, our world changed with the 9/11 attacks.  We have seen how easily buildings fall and how quickly lives can end.  As we remember 9/11, may it remind us that you are our only true security.  Give us your strength to face the memory of this attack and the changes it made in our lives.  Give us your compassion to help each other and recognize need around the world.  Give us your hope as we face an uncertain future.  Give us your peace.

 

Gracious God, we lift to you in prayer all those who died in the Twin Towers, at the Pentagon, and on United Airlines flight 93 in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

 

 

We entrust them to your loving care.  Console their families, friends, and all who mourn this loss in the hope that all who trust in you find peace and rest.

 

We pray for those who courageously responded to provide aid and comfort for the afflicted.  May their painful memories of that day be healed and transformed into strength and positive resolution.

 

We also pray for ourselves as we seek your strength and guidance.  We live in the aftermath of this tragedy and under the shadow of future acts of aggression.  We stand in need of your assistance.

 

Enable us, Dear God, to put an end to fear:

 

--By resolving to live lives that are based on respect for one another.

 

--By resolving to live with much peace in our hearts and never settle disagreements in our lives in a violent way;

 

--By resolving not to fall into the trap of blaming entire ethnic groups, races or religions in response to acts of hostility;

 

--By resolving that justice, not revenge, prevail in our world.

 

                                                                                                                                   

Let us resolve that in the face of hatred, we will show love; that in times of despair, we will be voices of hope and creators of new dreams; that in times of darkness, we will be sources of light.

 

Let us resolve that we will never regard forgiveness as weakness, but rather as a source of strength in our lives and in our world.

 

And let us honor the memory of nearly 3,000 individuals who died on September 11, 2001 by resolving, with your help Almighty God, to truly live this way so You may be glorified, and Your love made known to others through us.  Amen.

 

May God give your peace.

 

 

 

                

FAITH OVER FEAR.

 

TWENTY THIRD SUNDAY IN  OT  B  2021

 

Today’s Liturgy of the Word presents a compassionate God who unmistakably says that all lives matter.  God makes no distinctions between classes of people.  The Scriptures reveal a God who makes the poor rich in faith.

 

Today’s scriptures speak to one of our fundamental Gospel theme:  Love your neighbor, no exceptions.

 

In the first Scripture reading from the prophet Isaiah,  “Thus says the Lord:  Say to those whose hearts are frightened:  Be strong, fear not!  Here is your God, He comes to save you.”

Isaiah serves as God’s mouthpiece, encouraging the people to be stronger than their fears because God is coming to save.  What an important truth that is to mark our discipleship of the Lord Jesus.  We are to be stronger than our fears.

The fear the Israelites were told to avoid was the paralysis that comes from relying on self rather than on God; this is the type of fear that strangles faith and prevents growth.  Fear not, urged the ancient prophet.  Look instead at God, who comes to save.

How does it go with the fears of our lives?  Do you fear that this pandemic will change your life forever?  Do you have a fear that you don’t have the finances that you need?  Do you have a fear about a brokenness in a significant relationship?  Do you have a health fear for yourself or someone you love?  Do you have a fear that your addiction is getting the best of you?

The clear message is expressed in three words:  FAITH OVER FEAR.

 

 

 

 

 

In the Letter of James, the apostle is emphatic:  Show no partiality as you adhere to the faith.  It is our blessing to serve the needs of one and all regardless of how they are dressed or regardless of their social status.  God chooses the poor to enjoy the gift of faith and become heirs of the kingdom.

In the Gospel, the people brought to him a deaf man who had a speech impediment and begged Jesus to lay his hand on him. 

 This deaf person had some beautiful soul friends.  Have we brought anyone to Jesus lately, physically and in prayer?  Is there anyone we should invite and pray for?  Do you have anyone you would recommend to participate in the parish RCIA? 

All of us are missioned to bring people to Jesus.  As a parent, you are missioned to bring your children to Jesus.  As a community of faith, we are missioned to help bring each other to the Lord.

A second sentence in the Gospel worth noting:  Then Jesus took the man with the speech impediment off by himself away from the crowd. 

Do you ever think that Jesus is eager to lead you off by yourself and away from the crowd?  If only we allow him.  There, in quiet intimacy, he invites us to show him our deepest wound, our greatest need, our most shameful sin.  When we dare to do so, we are met with no reproach, no condescension , no impatience.  On the contrary, we are welcomed with love, tended with prayer and patience and either healed or made stronger for the burden that is ours to bear.

In your prayer, allow yourself to be alone with Jesus.  Speak to him from your heart and allow God’s unconditional love to be showered upon you.

In the sacrament of his Baptism, the newly baptized is blessed on his ear so that he will always be able to hear the Word of God throughout his life.  What an awesome God!  As the community of the baptized, we have all received this blessing on our ears to hear God’s Word throughout our lives.

But like the deaf person in the Gospel account, we sometimes have a hearing failure.  And I don’t mean that it is a defect in our mike system – that occasionally

 

 

happens.  What I mean is that we can too easily have a spiritual hearing impediment that keeps from hearing the Word of God in our lives.

Hearing isn’t just a physical act.  We hear a lot of things and don’t really listen to the one who is speaking.  All of us received that blessing of our ears on the day of our baptism.  The journey of faith for all of us is to actualize more and more the grace given to us at our Baptism.  We are God’s beloved sons and daughters.  The love of God lies deep within our hearts.  The blessing on our ears to hear and respond to the Word of God is a lifelong process.

May all of us acknowledge the need to improve our spiritual hearing.  May all of us be thankful for the many ways that we do indeed hear and respond to the Word of God.  As always, we ask for the grace of openness to hear the Word of God that is spoken to us today.

Our smart phones are the way many of us communicate by text and email with one another, is it not.  Our phones are very, very smart.  How many of us email and text one another several times during the day?   Would that we have a spiritual smart phone in which we text and email Jesus several times during the day?  And yet, this is the meaning of prayer.  Our spiritual smart phone is located deep within us -- in our hearts.  May we rely on our spiritual smart phone of our prayer life as often as text and email our best friends.

As is spoken in the children’s classic The Little Prince, “It is only with the heart that one can see rightly.  What is essential is invisible to the eye.”

The miracle of the cure of the deaf person serves as a call to all of us not to be deaf of the message of the Gospel.  In the Gospel, the first word that was heard to the one who was healed was:  “Ephphatha --  that is, be opened.”  That word is spoken to us as well today:  Ephphatha -- Be Opened.  Be open to hearing and listening to the Word of God.  How is the Lord speaking to me today and how is the Lord speaking to you today and how is the Lord speaking to us together today as a community of faith?  The grace we ask for today is the grace of Ephphatha.

As the psalmist tells us:  If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.

May God give you peace and the gift of spiritual listening.

In Eucharist we receive the love of Jesus; in Eucharist we are missioned to live and witness to the love of Jesus in the actions of our lives.

 

Twenty Second in OT  B  2021

 

In the first Scripture reading, Moses said to the people: “Now Israel hear the statues and decrees which I am teaching you to observe; observe them carefully for you to be a wise and intelligent people.”

 

The laws of God’s people serve like an invisible fence -- the fence you put in your yard to keep your dog from wandering into the street or menacing the jogger out for a bit of exercise or wherever your dog would like to wander to.  This fence serves an excellent purpose so that the dog can play in the yard without getting hurt.  So too, the Ten Commandments are our invisible fence that helps us to live in right relationship with one another and with our God.  They make all the sense in the world. 

 

But strict observance of the law doesn’t determine whether God is going to love us or not.   No matter what, God cannot stop loving us.  But the commandments are meant to hold us accountable as to how we respond to God’s great love for us.

 

In the Gospel, we see the anger of Jesus in confronting the hypocrisy of the Pharisees.  Jesus says: “This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.”  Few situations moved Jesus to anger like the hypocrisy of people who distorted the Law’s intent.

 

Please note that Jesus is not venting against the Pharisees because of their fidelity to religious observance and the ritual tradition.  This is a good thing.  Jesus labels them hypocrites because the words they spoke from their lips did not come from hearts filled with compassion.  They worshipped ritually in solemn ways, but this did not translate into deeds filled with love.  

 

Jesus is so clear in His teachings.  He tells that He did not come to destroy the Law and the Prophets, but to fulfill them.  Jesus has no problem with the person who ritually washes his hands and still serves the poor and the needy.  The problem is with us who make sure to wash our hands but never pay attention to the poor and the needy.

 

 

 

 

Pope Francis’ favorite image for the Church is to see the Church as a “field hospital.”  In the field hospital of the Church of the Holy Spirit, we humbly recognize that all of us are sinners.  Using this image can help us to avoid self-righteous attitudes.   The sacraments are not rewards for us who are perfect; rather the sacraments are spiritual medicine for us who are weak. 

 

In today’s Scripture, Jesus gave us a new tradition that begins and ends with love.  He asks us to let love transform our hearts and our souls so that we can transform the world.

 

In the Gospel, Jesus responded to the self-righteous  purity police by citing the prophet Isaiah:  This people honors with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.”  In the second scripture reading, James proclaims:  “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God is this:  to care for the orphans and widows and to keep oneself unstained by the world.”

 

Isaiah accuses the people of being more concerned with ritual defilement than with ethical defilement. 

And so, yes, we can spiritually get lost even when we are obeying the law and seemingly being very religious if our hearts are not filled with the merciful love of Jesus.

 Our discipleship of Jesus is not primarily about legalism; it is about loving God and neighbor.

There is a new elephant in the room of spiritual legalism – whether to wear a mask or not, whether to be vaccinated or not.  I was in a meeting this past Wednesday with some parents of St. Joseph’s School .  Much passion and anger expressed whether children should wear masks in school  when they are indoors and not six feet apart.  The question was whether this should be the decision of the parents or whether there should be a school policy that provides for the health and safety of all the students.

 

My hunch is if we had an open forum right now, we would have both points of view represented rather vigorously.  My point is not to start a debate.  My point is to say we all need to have hearts filled with love and the capacity to listen to one another. 

 

At all times and in all situations, we need to speak our convictions but we all must witness to the love of Jesus in our dialogue with one another.

 

In all truth, all of us probably need to acknowledge a bit of hypocrisy when our egos get in the way of reaching out to people in need and reaching out to people whom we find unlovable for whatever reason.  There is sin in the world and sin in our own hearts.  We always need to recognize our own sinfulness and come before our healing, forgiving God.

The North Star of our spiritual lives is rooted in our faith conviction that there is nothing hypocritical about God’s love for us.  It is unconditional and unending.  I invite you to hold on to the truth:  There is nothing we can do to stop God from loving us.  God is love.

This pandemic crisis is capable of getting all of us stressed out.  May the saving grace for all of us to trust, to be a people of faith and affirm that indeed that is nothing hypocritical about God’s love for us.  This virus does not separate us from the merciful and forgiving love of our God.

Our prayer and liturgy must lead to witnessing to the love of Jesus in our lives.  In the dismissal rite of the Mass, I will say: “Go in peace glorifying the Lord by our lives.”  This is not a simple throw-away statement to head to the parking lot.  This is our call to live the meaning of the Eucharist 24 hours a day.  In Eucharist we receive the love of Jesus; in Eucharist we are missioned to live and witness to the love of Jesus in the actions of our lives.

 

May God grant you peace.

 

 

You and I are stewards of an amazing Gospel message.. God's love for us is not too good to be true.

 

Twenty First Sunday in OT B 2021

In today’s first Scripture reading, Joshua was asking for a decision from the Israelites: “Decide today whom you will serve?”   Joshua goes on to affirm: “As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”

In today’s Gospel, many of the disciples have abandoned ship and returned to their former way of life.  Plain and simple, the demands of discipleship were more than they bargained for.  According to the evangelist John, many of Jesus’ disciples who were listening said: “This saying is hard:  who can accept it?” Jesus then said to the Twelve, “Do you also want to leave?”  Simon Peter answered him, “Master, to whom shall we go?  You have the words of eternal life.”

 

 If you were there at the time would you be one of the many disciples who returned to his/her former way of life or one that stayed with Jesus? Is there any middle ground here?

 Just as Jesus’ question, “Do you want to leave?” was a moment of crisis for some of the disciples, so has been the pandemic a moment of crisis or decision making for us.

At that time “many of his disciples returned to their former way of life and no longer accompanied him.” Jesus decides to question the apostles. Jesus then said to the Twelve, ‘Do you also want to leave?’ Make a decision.

A moment of crisis is a moment of choice; it is a moment that puts us in front of the decisions we have to make.

Peter’s response with a confession of faith is an example of faith and trust amid a crisis. Peter responded: “Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.”

This helps all of us to live through moments of crisis. This pandemic is also a time of social crisis.

This is not the time to make changes. It is a moment of fidelity, of fidelity to God, fidelity to the decisions we have made before. Also, it is a moment of conversion because this fidelity will inspire some of us to change for the better. In times of crisis, be very firm in the conviction of faith.

What about our commitment to our discipleship of the Lord Jesus?  Are we able to get in the lane of discipleship and stay in the lane -- come what may?  This is the commitment question the Scriptures are inviting us to reflect upon.

It wasn’t just first century disciples who grumbled, questioned difficult teachings, and chose not to follow Jesus.  People today wonder if the Gospel has anything of value to say to their life situation or to the human condition.

 

In the wake of the clergy sex abuse scandal, has our trust in the spiritual leaders of our Church derailed our trust and our participation in the life of the Church?  AS we deal with the pandemic crisis that has turned our lives upside down, are we now having trouble finding our spiritual footing?  AS more and more people question the rituals and practices of the institutional Church, can we stay in the lane of God’s unending love for us?   Now is not the time to hide.  We need to be honest, to be forthright, to be seen and to come before the light of Christ.

We live in challenging times.  Today’s seeker is bombarded by a myriad of competing claims about where to go and whom to follow.  Deciding what course is not a simple task.  There are too many scandals with spiritual and government leaders.   Sexual morality seems to be up for grabs, our mounting national debt, our escalating environmental questions, the tragic conflict in Afghanistan, ongoing poverty both locally and globally make us want to throw up our hands and cry “uncle.”

In out discipleship of the Lord Jesus, can we say with conviction that Jesus is the North Star of our lives?  It is one thing to be born a Catholic; it is another to choose to remain one.  To be born a Christian could be an accident.  To decide to remain one is a decision.

I entered the seminary at age 14 on my journey to the priesthood 65 years ago, my level of commitment as a 14-year-old has evolved over the years in the joys and the challenges and the struggles in my priestly life and ministry.  Yes, I have been disillusioned by the institutional church; yes, I have seen spiritual leaders in the Church that haven’t walked their talk at times; yes, I am concerned by the declining number of candidates for the priesthood; yes, I can’t say that I am enthusiastic about all the human canonical regulations of our Church.  So, you can ask, why do I stay a priest?

 

I take the apostle Peter in today’s Gospel as my model. In the words of Peter, “Lord, where else would we go?  You have the words of eternal life. I have been and will continue to be a generous recipient of God’s unending love for me.  Jesus has been and will continue to be the North Star of my life.

I am in the lane of being a disciple of Jesus and witnessing to God’s love in the midst of our flawed Church.  Yes, we are flawed.  But we are also loved and forgiven by the unending love of Jesus for us.

You and I are stewards of an amazing Gospel message.  God’s love for us is not too good to be true.  God is faithful in His love for us in all experiences of life.  We are still called to live and share this commitment to faithfulness.

My question for you in your journey of faith has there come that time for you to say that there is no turning back, that Jesus is indeed the way, the truth, and the life, and that we are called to follow Him no matter the course or length or difficulty of the journey.  Oh, sure, there may still be times of doubt or darkness, or dismay and difficulty, but the course is clear; there is no other choice about whom we will follow.  Even in the suffering we experience in life, can we stay in the lane of trusting in God’s unending love for us?

We ask ourselves what are the important commitments of our life?   What is our commitment to God?  How does our discipleship of the Lord Jesus shape the way we live our lives?

What is your commitment level to your family? 

What is your level of commitment to the faith community of St Joseph’s?  Are we a parish community that fosters the development of soul friends that are life giving to our spirit and to our faith life?  As a parishioner, are you more than a pew-sitter?  May we be a community that witnesses to the love of Jesus Christ by our sharing of our love and friendship with one another?

May God give you peace and a sense of commitment to discipleship of the Lord Jesus.