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Homilies are posted no later than during the week
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7 Easter
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Seventh
Sunday of Easter - Cycle C
John 17, 20-26
The preacher told a story of the GI in New Guinea during World War II.
A retired headhunter showed him with pride his well-used copy of the
New Testament. The soldier dismissed the Gospels as "yesterday." The
tribesman said with no trace of a smile that before they discovered the
Gospels, they were cannibals. He said to the overweight soldier with
just a hint of regret, "Lucky for you that we don't consider the
Gospels `yesterday.' For without them you would have been our delicious
supper tonight."
Without the Gospels we would never know this superb priestly prayer by
Jesus the Nazarene. It was spoken by Him at the Last Supper. The entire
prayer runs twenty six verses of chapter 17. Today's Gospel is but six
verses of the prayer.
Do read the entire prayer when you get home. You will say of the Christ
what one man said of Archbishop Fulton Sheen, "I do not like him as a
preacher. He always keeps me awake."
Bear in mind that Jesus at this point is not speaking to our minds but
to our hearts. He is about to die. Thus, He speaks here, as someone has
said, not as a theologian but as a poet.
The priestly prayer is the longest prayer that we have from the lips of
Jesus. No doubt there were others. But unhappily they were never
recorded. It is only John who took the pains to leave it to us. We all
owe him a serious debt.
The only other prayer that we have of the Nazarene is of course the Our
Father. And we have two versions of that.
Fulton Sheen says this of the priestly prayer in his delightful style,
"(Jesus) taught (us) how to pray the `Our Father.' Now He would say `My
Father.'" And Sheen is right on target as usual. If you take the time
to count them, you will discover that the Teacher addressed God as
Father a total of six times throughout the twenty six verses. In
today's brief section, He will allude directly to the Father three
times. The last time He speaks of Him He salutes Him with the curious
title, "Father, Righteous One."
In these six verses, the Master will stress two points, namely, love
and unity. He mentions love four times and unity five times. One does
not have to be a Nobel laureate to guess what was on His mind. The
author who wrote, "Love is faith with clothes on," read the Christ's
mind exactly. Even the most cursory overview of the last century would
reveal how grossly we have disappointed Him. Perhaps in the twenty
first, each of us may do a better job on both counts. Do remember the
counsel of St Ignatius of Loyola. He said we do not really understand
what God can do with us if we allow Him. Even an ugly piece of wood can
become a major work of art in the hands of a first class artist.
Today's segment of the priestly prayer should really move us
profoundly. In the first two verses, we find the Teacher actually
praying for us. Listen closely, "Holy Father, I pray not only for these
but for those also who through their words will believe in me."
Incredible, is it not? While He was anticipating the arrival of His
executioners, the Master took the time to pray for you and me. You
really cannot get it any better than that. With that kind of backup and
support, who says you and I cannot reform ourselves and become even
today more attractive Christians and Catholics?
So, Jesus exits the restaurant, which was the scene of the Last Supper.
Unlike the apostles, He had only picked at His food. Since it was high
up on a hill, He had a bird's eye view of Jerusalem. He looked at the
attractive residence of the High Priest. There shortly His face would
be slapped so hard by a local tough that His teeth would come loose. To
His left was the palace of the tyrant King Herod where He would be
scorned as a buffoon. Just across the street from that was the fortress
of Governor Pilate. There a kangaroo court would be conducted and a
lynch mob would cry for His neck. And yet the Teacher plays Rabbi
Serene. He never alludes to His murder but rather two times in today's
Gospel, He speaks of His glory. When the going gets tough, the tough
get going.
Is not today a good time to begin our self-reformation? In a world full
of bad news, should we not be good news?
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http://www.st.ignatius.net/pastor.html
7 Easter
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The Lord Ascends--His Power Descends
In
the Diocese of St. Petersburg, Florida, the Solemnity of the Ascension
is transferred from Thursday to the following Sunday. If
you are from another (arch)diocese, you need to check to see if the
celebration on May 16th, 2010 is the Ascension or the Seventh Sunday of
the Easter Season. The homily below is for the Ascension.
Let’s begin today with Moses. You all know the events of Moses
life and the way in which he led the people not just out of Egypt but
to the Lord. Moses didn’t just defeat the Pharaoh of Egypt, he
gave the people the Law of God. He brought them to the border of
the Promised Land. The thirty-fourth chapter of the Book of
Deuteronomy relates that Moses was 120 years old when he died.
Ten years for each of the tribes of Israel. Moses life revealed
the work of God. Just before Moses died he laid his hands upon Joshua,
his closest aide. Joshua was filled with spirit and wisdom and
the people obeyed him and did as the Lord commanded. And
following Joshua’s commands, the walls of Jericho fell down.
Now
let’s move on to Elijah. Elijah was the greatest and most
powerful of all the prophets up to his time. He called a famine
upon the people due to their embracing pagan ways. He defeated
the prophets of Baal on Mt. Carmel in splendid fashion, and then called
down rain. You can read all about Elijah in First and Second Book
of Kings. Towards the end of Elijah’s life, a man named Elisha became
his closest follower and aide. Elijah knew his time on earth was
ending and asked Elisha what he could do for him. His aide asked
for a double portion of the prophet’s spirit. Elijah said that
this is difficult, but if you see me being taken up into heaven, then a
double spirit will indeed rest on you. Suddenly a chariot of fire
and horses of fire came between the two, and Elijah was swept up by a
whirlwind into heaven. Elisha called out to his master.
When he could see him no longer, he picked up Elijah’s mantle that had
fallen and calling upon the power of Elijah he struck the water of the
River Jordan, and the river parted in two. Elisha continued on in
the power of Elijah.
In
today’s first reading, in the Acts of the Apostles, and repeated in
today’s Gospel, Jesus appears to his disciples. His body is not a
resuscitated corpse. He appears in the power and might of
God. He ascends into heaven and, just as in the case of Moses and
Joshua, Elijah and Elisha, His Power descends upon the disciples who
will now become apostles. Jesus’ Power is the Holy Spirit.
Two
men are watching the disciples gazing up into heaven. “Men of Galilee,”
they ask, “Why are you standing there looking up at the sky?” Who
are these two men. Are the angels? Perhaps. More
probably, they are the same two men who appeared on the Mountain when
Jesus was transfigured, and the disciples witnessed the Lord’s power.
You remember these men: Moses and Elijah. You remember what they
discussed: how God’s plan for the Kingdom of God would be carried out
by Jesus in Jerusalem. In the Gospel of Luke’s account of Easter,
there were also two men who appeared to the women at the tomb on Easter
Sunday. Perhaps these two also were Moses and Elijah asking the
women why they sought the living among the dead.
It
is not the physically weak and dying Lord of Good Friday who ascends
into heaven. It is the Powerful Judge of the Living and the
Dead. And just as Elisha and Joshua were not just simple
observers of their masters’ departure, but continued their work, the
disciples now continue Jesus’ work in His Spirit and with His Spirit.
We
have not been called by Christ simply to be observers of His Life. We
have not been called simply to be historians. We have been called
to continue His Power. Joshua called on the Lord and the walls of
Jericho fell down. Elisha called on the Lord, and Elijah’s Spirit
was felt to such an extent that a general in a neighboring country,
Naaman, heard about Elisha and traveled to Jerusalem seeking a cure for
his leprosy. We have been called to continue the work of the
Lord. We can call upon the Lord, and his Power will
work through us to transform the world into the Kingdom of Love.
This
is the time of year that people are listening to speeches at high
school and college graduations. Invited guests, principals and
valedictorians tell the graduates to build on their last four years and
use their education to make the world a better place. This is
great. The Ascension can be understood in the same terms.
We have been brought from spiritual childhood to assume an adult
responsibility in the Kingdom of God. The analogy ends there,
though. We are not dependent upon what we have learned. We
have so much more. We luxuriate in the Presence and Power of
God.
We
are Joshuas. We are Elishas. We are the disciples who have
been entrusted with the Spirit of God to serve His People.
Sometimes loneliness overwhelms us. It overwhelms everyone at
times. Sometimes we think about our mistakes, our sins, and we
become despondent. Everyone at some time or other asked himself
or herself, “How could a person like me, a person who is inclined to
sin do God’s work?” Everyone suffers from crippling guilt
at times in his or her life. Everyone makes the mistake of
letting the past destroy the present and eliminate the future.
When we feel we are all alone, when we feel that we are not good
enough, we need to remember that Jesus did not ascend and then leave us
destitute. No, He left us with His Power, His Presence, His
Life. And he didn’t leave us to spend the rest of our
lives contemplating our belly buttons. No, He empowers us to
bring His Presence to all, beginning with our families and then
extending to the entire world.
Moses’ hands were laid upon Joshua; Elijah’s mantle fell upon Elisha;
and the Holy Spirit descended from the Father and Son. May we
have the courage to continue the Work of God.
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http://www.geocities.com/seapadre_1999/
* available in Spanish - see
Spanish homilies
7 Easter
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Disappear
vs. Leave
(May 16, 2010)
Bottom line: Although Jesus has disappeared from our sight, he did not
leave us. And he tells us, "You will be my witnesses."
Today we celebrate the Ascension of the Lord. Our first reading gives a
clue to the meaning of this mystery. You will notice that St. Luke does
not speak about Jesus "going away," but that "a cloud took him from
their sight." There is a difference between "leaving" and
"disappearing." When someone leaves, it suggests separation, even
finality. When a person disappears from sight, he might still be very
close - in another room. Or even closer. Have you never had the
experience of thinking that someone has disappeared, but then realized
he is standing right next to you? The fact that the disciples no longer
see Jesus does not mean that he has gone from them.
At the beginning of the twenty-first century, we are in a better
position to understand how someone can disappear from sight - and still
be very close. We have movies like "The Matrix" that involve a separate
dimensions of reality - one unseen by the other. And scientists are now
speaking about the possibility of parallel universes or "multiverses."
All this should not sound strange to us. As Christians we have always
known that a parallel realm exists, that it has an effect on our
everyday reality and that we can interact with it.
Jesus wants us to know about this other dimension - and he wants
something else. He wants us to witness to it. You will notice that the
word "witness" comes up in both the first reading and the Gospel. Pope
Paul VI said, "The world needs witnesses more than it needs teachers."
You know, it is relatively easy to be a teacher. Most people are eager
to share their knowledge - and especially their opinions. It is much
harder to be a witness: To tell others what onr has experienced. That
can be risky and demanding. Two people can live under the same roof and
never share their deepest experiences.*
What are the experiences Jesus wants us to share - to witness to
others? It could be a lot of things, but today's Gospel gives us the
starting point: "Repentance, for the forgiveness of sins."
Let me tell you about a man who gave a powerful witness to repentance
and forgiveness. He was a slave trader, with little religious feeling.
Or to be more accurate, whatever religious sentiment he had, he numbed
with alcohol. Once when he piloted a slave ship across the Atlantic, a
violent storm broke out. Something caused him to cry, "Jesus, have
mercy on us." Wen the storm subsided, he reflected on what happened -
and he gave up the slave trade. The captain was John Newton. You can
see his name in our parish hymnal; he wrote a song that begins with
these words, "Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch
like me..."
Now, you and I may not have had such a dramatic experience as John
Newton. We haven't enslaved others for personal gain. Or have we? We
have not bought and sold other human beings, but at times we have not
treated someone as a person, but as an object, an instrument of selfish
desires.** We have sinned, but - like John Newton - we can repent and
beg forgiveness. We can open ourselves to the "amazing grace" that lets
us make a fresh start. And like Newton, we can witness to what Jesus
has done for us.
Each person here has a story - an experience of Jesus' amazing grace.
That story has enormous power. Sometimes we complain about our bishops
and other spiritual leaders, that they need to do more. Fair enough,
but we also need to ask what we are doing. Are you and I witnessings to
our faith?
As the school year comes to an end, we are also wrapping up our
religious education programs. We look forward to a bit more time with
family and friends. And hopefully, some recreation. Will we also be
witnesses - to forgiveness, to hope, to a new beginning? Will we show
that we believe in the new dimension Jesus has opened for us - by
prayer, by making Sunday Mass our priority? Those are the things our
children will remember more than any lecture. They might forget your
words of wisdom, but they will remember your witness. They will
remember your reverence, your prayer, your practice.***
Jesus has ascended into heaven and he wants us to be his witnesses.
Like the apostles, we start in Jerusalem, that is, right where we find
ourselves. In gentle ways we can witness to Jesus' power, to how he he
gives forgiveness - a second chance. Although Jesus has disappeared
from our sight, he did not leave us. And he tells us, "You will be my
witnesses."
**********
*We have a special challenge today. Even when describing a personal
experience, people tend to fall into the irritating habit of using the
second personal pronoun ("you"). Recounting some personal struggle
(grief, addiction, etc.) they make it sound like a lecture: "Well, you
start doing crazy things. Then you just come to a point where you
realize you're not getting anywhere. You face what's happening and you
move on..."
**Pornography is a clear example, but in other ways we treat people as
objects. When I examine my conscience at the end of the day, I reflect
on how I have treated people: Did I see the other person as an object
(that is, someone I could get something from or a nuisance, who I
wanted to get away from) or did I see the other person as a fellow
human with an eternal destiny?
***A good example of this is Cardinal Newman. He was one of the
greatest intellectuals in Church history, but he recognized that souls
are ultimately not won by arguments and programs, but by credible
witnesses. The truth of the Gospel, he said, "has been upheld in the
world not as a system, not by books, not by argument, nor by temporal
power, but by the personal influence of such men…, who are at once the
teachers and the patterns of it." (From Fifteen Sermons Preached Before
the University of Oxford, Sermon V)
Spanish Version |
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http://www.agreeley.com/homilies.html
7 Easter
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May 16th, 2010 A.D.
Seventh Sunday of Easter Jn. 17/1-11
Background:
Today’s passage is part of what is often called Jesus’s “priestly
prayer” because he is picture as praying for his apostles, the first
priests. While it is legitimate to see the prayer in this fashion, it
is a narrow interpretation, much too narrow for John’s intent which was
to reassure all those in the community for which he was writing and not
only its leaders.
The apostles in this story represent the whole community,
everyone who is embraced by the love of Jesus and therefore by the love
of God. Jesus prays to the Father to take care of each one of his
followers, to protect them from evil, to perfect them in goodness, to
promote their growth in grace. The Irish blessing summarizes exactly
the meaning of this prayer: “Until we meet again, may God hold you all
in the palm of his hand.”
Story:
Once upon a time a great coach was retiring. He and his teams had
won many championships. He was very proud of them and they very proud
of him. He knew that it was time for him to pull back from the daily
grind of practices and the frequent strain and tension of the games. He
was fraying around the edges and he knew it. So did the smarter
players but they loved him so much that they would not admit this even
to themselves. He did not want to leave the school or give up the
sport, not yet anyway. So it was agreed that he would become athletic
director and his best assistant would become the coach. He promised
that he would never interfere in the daily running of the team. Since
he was a man of his word, everyone knew that he was telling the truth.
Yet there was terrible ambivalence in the team. On the one hand they
were glad the coach was doing what was good for him. On the other hand
they didn’t want to lose him, not even the man who was going to take
over as head coach. The old coach would still be around, but in the
background. It would never be like it used to be, like it had been for
such a long time.
At his farewell dinner, the players, the coaches, the
teachers, the parents were all deeply moved. They did not want to say
goodbye, yet they knew the change would be good and that it was wise to
say goodbye. In his farewell speech the coach commended his players to
the new coach. Take good care of them, he said. I know you will and I
promise not to interfere, but take good care of them because I love
them all. This is now Jesus felt about us when he said goodbye to
return to the father in heaven. More important, that is the way he
still feels about us and he has a lot more power than an athletic
director.
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http://www.saintvincentarchabbey.org/homilies/index.lasso
7 Easter
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Gospel
Summary Return to All Homilies
May, 16, 2010
John 17:20-26
Campion P. Gavaler, O.S.B.
Seventh Sunday of Easter
Gospel Summary
This Sunday's gospel passage contains part of the prayer Jesus
addressed to his Father following his Last Supper discourse with its
the promise of the holy Spirit. Jesus prays for his disciples and for
all who will believe in him through their words. The depth and poetic
beauty of Jesus' prayer defies making an adequate prose summary.
Principal elements of the prayer are listed here merely as an aid to
memory for the reader -- communion in the life of Father and Son,
desire that the world come to believe in him, desire that all may see
his eternal glory, desire that the Father's love be in all who believe.
Life Implications
We usually associate the presence of the Spirit that Jesus gave to his
disciples after the resurrection with the audacity with which they
preached the gospel (the parresia of Acts 4:13,29,31). The first
reading of today's liturgy from the Acts of the Apostles alludes to
that understanding in recounting the story of Stephen ("filled with the
holy Spirit") who was enabled to follow Jesus with courage even to
death in his martyrdom. Our gospel passage perhaps is even a more
striking illustration of the belief that Jesus shares his Spirit with
the church.
What could be more audacious than to express in words the intimate
communion of Jesus with his Father in prayer as today's gospel passage
does? The church today continues to pray with the Spirit of Jesus,
particularly in its eucharistic liturgy. The Spirit also guides each of
us in our unique, individual prayer so that we may become more aware
that Jesus lives and prays in us. And the Spirit enables us to live in
the awareness that the Father loves us with the same love that he loves
Jesus. (Raymond E. Brown in his commentary on the fourth gospel calls
this last implication of Jesus' prayer "breathtaking.")
The prayer of Jesus is not past tense: as Risen Lord Jesus prays in the
eternal now with the same desire of love, and invites us to pray with
him in company with all the angels and saints. This is the truth that
the second reading of today's liturgy from the Book of Revelation calls
to our attention. And this is the truth Saint Augustine taught newly
baptized Christians in his Easter Sunday sermon of the year 415. In the
eucharistic liturgy we already now are participants with the Risen Lord
in the liturgy of heaven. "You are urged to lift up your hearts. That
is only right for the members of Christ. If the head had not gone ahead
before, the members would never follow. So our head is in heaven. That
is why, after the words Lift up your hearts, you reply, We have lifted
them up to the Lord."
Jesus continues to pray that all may be one just as the Father and he
are one in order that the world may come to believe. In Jesus' mind,
the unity and love among his followers will draw all people to believe
in him. The separation and hostility among Christians surely is a
scandal in the strictest sense -- an obstacle to belief. "See how they
attack one another" seems so often to have replaced the saying of
pagans about Christians in the ancient world, "See how they love one
another." We might recall that at the Last Supper Jesus was aware that
he would soon become the innocent victim of violence. Nevertheless,
Jesus refused to save himself by responding to violence with "sacred"
violence, however justified that response might appear. He experienced
God as loving; therefore, he could not be anything else. He knew that
even "sacred" violence results only in deeper separation and deeper
hostility. It cannot transform the human heart. Only the Father's love
in Jesus and in us can work that supreme miracle.
Campion P. Gavaler, OSB
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http://www.christusrex.org/www1/mcitl/lowhome.html Meeting Christ in the Liturgy
7 Easter
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Seventh
Sunday
Acts 7, 55-60; Psalm 97; Revelation 22, 12-14. 16-17.20; St. John 17,
20-26
Alleluia! Christ is risen!
The Risen Christ, who is One, is present in and through his Body the
Church as one single communion of believers throughout the world. This
radical unity of the Church, "one, holy, Catholic and apostolic" is not
incidental to the Church but is rather constitutive, of absolute
necessity for the identity of the one true Church of Christ. The risen
Christ is present to the members of his Body, and to the whole world,
through the unity of all believers who embrace the apostolic Faith
propounded preserved and defended by the universal Church.
Christ bestowed unity on his Church from the beginning. This unity, we
believe, subsists in the Catholic Church as something she can never
lose, and we hope that it will continue to increase until the end of
time." (UR 4, art. 3.) Christ always gives his Church the gift of
unity, but the Church must always pray and work to maintain, reinforce,
and perfect the unity that Christ wills for her. This is why Jesus
himself prayed at the hour of his Passion, and does not cease praying
to his Father, for the unity of his disciples: "That they may all be
one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be one in
us,...so that the world may know that you have sent me." (John 17:21;
cf. Heb 7:25.) (CCC 820)
We are one in the Father and the Son by the Holy Spirit of love. Others
will know we are Christians by our love and compassion which makes us
like the Father: forgiving, serving and seeking the salvation of all
whom we meet.
I look forward to meeting you here again next week as, together, we
"meet Christ in the liturgy", Father Cusick
(Publish with permission.) http://www.christusrex.org/www1/mcitl/
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http://www.ctk-thornbury.org.uk/
7 Easter
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Feast of the Ascension
Today we commemorate a crucial point in the story of our salvation.
Christ having done all that he came to do now ascends to the Father.
His great work is now handed on to his disciples to bring to
completion. But this is no task that can be worked out in a few years.
No, it is an undertaking that will take his followers till the very end
of time to bring to its glorious conclusion.
The role we undertake as members of the Church is to spread the Good
News throughout the earth and to live our lives in such a way that they
give glory to God. Our ultimate goal is that all nations and people
will come to worship the one true God and Jesus Christ whom he has sent.
You might be wondering why God has chosen to entrust this great work to
a group of weak and fallible human beings. Surely God could utter the
command and all people would bow down and worship him, if that’s what
he really wants.
The only problem is that by issuing such a command people everywhere
would be under the obligation to worship God. It wouldn’t be their
spontaneous free choice; it would be done out of compulsion and not out
of love.
So God chooses us inadequate and feeble creatures to convey his
message, his Good News, to the people of the world.
It is important to understand that God does not want us to worship him
because he needs it or because he would gain any advantage from it. It
would not add one jot to his greatness nor would it inflate his ego in
some strange way. God does not desire our worship and devotion because
it will do him any good, but because it will do us good.
If you think about it, kneeling in worship before Almighty God is the
place where we ought to be. If God is the author and sustainer of our
being; if we owe him everything; if he is the fountain of our
forgiveness and salvation then surely down on our knees before him is
precisely where we ought to be most of the time.
It is only due to our complete lack of understanding and our total
inability to appreciate his true greatness that we fail to worship him
every moment of the day.
What will happen when the Kingdom of God is fully realised is that we
will be put in right-relationship with God. At the moment we are out of
harmony with him, we largely go our own way and mostly we find
ourselves ignoring him.
Of course, when we talk about all nations and peoples worshiping God we
are using symbolic language. We don’t know what it will be like on that
day. We can’t even begin to describe what it will entail and, to be
honest, the word worship doesn’t really convey to the ordinary person
very much at all.
To get a glimpse of what is meant we need to look to the lives of the
saints, those who have come to know and love God closest of all during
their journey here on earth and who spend far above average lengths of
time worshiping him. Again, to the man in the street the saints seem to
live rather boring lives; but a closer look soon proves that the last
thing they are is boring.
The saints see the hand of God at work everywhere. The saints live
their lives lost in prayer –looking at them we might think that what
they are doing is boring, but to them it is sheer ecstasy. The words
that they use to describe what we call mystical prayer are drawn from
the vocabulary of love and love, as we all know, is anything but
boring.
How is it that we complete this task that Christ laid before the
Apostles on Ascension Day? The answer is, as always, in the text. After
explaining what he had accomplished Jesus tells the Apostles, “You are
witnesses to this.” That then is our task: to be witnesses. There are
two aspects to the role of witness 1) to actually experience the
subject in question and 2) to tell others about it.
Obviously one comes before the other. You can’t give witness to
something that you have not experienced. Some people here might feel
that their experience of God has been inadequate up to now and
therefore they don’t think that they have anything to communicate to
others.
I suggest that this sort of thinking is actually wide of the mark. If
you are sitting in Church this morning it is surely because you already
have some experience of God. It is surely because you hope and trust in
him and because you know that it is in celebrating his Eucharist that
we can come closest to him. You came here this morning quite freely and
must therefore have had a good reason and the reason must be because
you already know God and want to spend time with him and do what he
wants.
Now while you might not have reached the heights of mystical prayer,
that’s already quite a lot. Let me suggest that, compared to people
around you, you actually know God quite well. There are surely times in
your life when you have been very close to him, times when he was the
only one you could rely on, times when you spent extended periods in
prayer. If that’s not experience of God, I don’t know what is!
It is this that the people in the world around us want to know about.
They thirst for meaning and purpose; all too often they find themselves
filling up the empty holes in their lives with material possessions,
and all kinds of inappropriate things.
They want to hear from us. Or maybe, they don’t want to hear from us
but want to see people who do find their lives fulfilling and who have
direction and moral purpose. They want to look at us from afar and only
later, when they are already convinced that what we are doing is right,
come to know us better.
I was talking to someone recently who had spent some time in a mental
hospital –a more common experience than many of us might think. They
were feeling especially depressed and anxious about their mental
condition and among all these difficulties were experiencing doubts
about their faith.
Anyway this person went to mass in the hospital in the hope at least of
finding some peace and tranquillity. The priest came along to say the
mass and our friend was deeply impressed that he treated these
psychiatric patients just the same as he treated his own parishioners
in the Church. He just accepted them and talked to them normally even
if the behaviour of some was a bit bizarre.
That priest didn’t know he was giving quite a powerful witness to
Christ on that particular day, but he was. It certainly gave our friend
the hope and faith that was needed at that low point of their life.
This is the sort of thing that any one of us could do, treating other
people in a kind and respectful way. Fundamentally treating other
people as Christ would treat them.
This is witness. This is transforming. This is what God wants us to do.
Christ rose from their midst and returned to the Father. In our text
Luke tells us that they worshipped him and went back to Jerusalem full
of joy. That’s exactly how it ought to be for us each Sunday as we
return home from the Eucharist, going back to our ordinary lives full
of joy and trust in the Lord.
Our neighbours see us go to mass every Sunday morning. But its how they
see us coming back that is our real witness to them.
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Father Bonar will not be posting homilies for Cycle B to allow himself
time for other projects. His collection of homilies (including homilies
for Cycle B) is available at www.clydebonar.com.
7 Easter |
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These
homilies may be copied and adapted for your own use;
however, they may not be commercially published without permission of
the author. |
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