The Joy of the light and life of the world, enters our world, so we can join His family as children of God. Christmas Day Homily

         On behalf of our Pastor, Father Steve Giannini, and myself, Deacon Ron Pirau, I’d like to welcome everyone who have come to celebrate Christmas with us, especially family and friends who are visiting. If you are a parish member, please make sure to extend a welcome to those who have come to celebrate with us.  

We should also be very excited because we’ve been anticipating something special.   I’m sure many children are looking forward to gifts they will receive from Santa, family and friends to celebrate Christmas.   But the gift we should be most excited about is the birth Jesus as a humble little baby.  God, who created the universe, chose to enter our world as helpless little child, dependent on Mary and Joseph to care for him.  How incredible is it that God came into the world as each one of us has. To recapture that feeling of excited anticipation of Jesus’ birth, think about the birth of you own child, grandchild, brother, or sister, or that of a family or friend.  I’m sure you anxiously waited for the new little baby to arrive and were overjoyed when they finally were born. That’s the same joy we can experience in the birth of Jesus.

The Gospel we hear today from John focuses on two things, the light that is coming into the world and the source of the light. At this darkest time of the year, we have the source of life that has entered our world. John takes us through a history of the world from a different perspective than heard in the other Gospels. It’s much shorter and focuses on the divinity of Jesus, the Word who was with God and is God, was there from the beginning. Jesus is God and in choosing to enter the world in human form, becoming one of us, he manifests a new beginning for humanity We heard from John:

 

What came to be through him was life,
        and this life was the light of the human race;
    the light shines in the darkness,
        and the darkness has not overcome it.

 

Jesus chose to enter the messiness of humanity, which can be rather dark, with its pain and suffering, to be a light of hope, the hope to become one of God’s family through belief in him as God’s Son. We also heard from John:

 

But to those who did accept him
he gave power to become children of God, 
to those who believe in his name, 
who were born not by natural generation 
nor by human choice nor by a man’s decision 
but of God.
    And the Word became flesh
        and made his dwelling among us,
        and we saw his glory,
        the glory as of the Father’s only Son,
        full of grace and truth.

 

We can enter the God’s family as his children, by believing in his only Son.Jesus belonged to a family like each of us.   

 

    The geologies in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke connects Jesus to the messiness human family he has entered.  These genealogies are a little different to serve the intended hearers, the People of Israel, and Gentiles, the whole of humanity. to help them understand salvation through prophecies that relate to them. Luke recounts the birth of Jesus coming to us as a helpless little baby lying in a manger, dependent on Mary and Joseph to care for him. He came into the world as each one of us did, sharing in our humanity. But he left our world in a different way.  At his resurrection, the tomb was empty.  Christ had taken on human form, and when he rose from the dead his human body was still with him. He still stayed one of us and is still part of our human family today. The child who was in the manager, lives on, and we can live on with him.

Jesus’ birth is something we can be extremely joyful about because his coming restored humanity’s relationship with God, because he came to save us from our sins. As a vulnerable little baby, we can humbly approach him in wonder and awe that he became one of us, so we could be saved by him. In knowing that Jesus had a human family likes us, with all its messiness, we realize that we don’t need to be perfect, to become members of his family.  He invites us to be part of his family by being faithful, believing He is God’s Son who came to save all of us from our sins.  In Jesus public’ ministry he purposely invited people who were much less than perfect to be part of his family: the Samaritan women at the well, Zacchaeus the tax collector whom he dined at his house, and Mary Magdalene whom he cast out seven demons. Jesus came to these people to restore their relationship with God.   He comes as a little baby into our world to do the same for us. Sin breaks our relationship with God, but Jesus can restore that relationship through the gift of Baptism to become God’s adopted children. When we sin again, God can restore that relationship through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. And to sustain our relationship with God, the gift of the Eucharist, God with us, in the presence of his Body and Blood, He gives us the grace to do so.   Let us be joyful, that God came to be us as a little baby, and continues to be with us in the Eucharist, until he returns in glory.

Be joyful in Jesus' birth into our human family, so we can join His family as children of God. Homily for the Christmas Vigil

On behalf of our Pastor, Father Steve Giannini, and myself, Deacon Ron Pirau, I’d like to welcome everyone who have come to celebrate Christmas with us, especially family and friends who are visiting.  This is a time of year when many of us have family and friends who come to join us for this joyful celebration.  If you are a parish member, please make sure to extend a welcome to those who have come to celebrate with us.  

Who here is excited about having family and friends to be with you at Christmas? We should also be very excited because we’ve been anticipating something special.    I’m sure many children are looking forward to gifts they will receive from Santa, family and friends to celebrate Christmas.   But the gift we should be most excited about is the birth Jesus as a humble little baby.  God, who created the universe, chose to enter our world as helpless little child, dependent on Mary and Joseph to care for him.  How incredible is it that God came into the world as each one of us has. To recapture that feeling of excited anticipation of Jesus’ birth, think about the birth of you own child, grandchild, brother, or sister, or that of a family or friend.  I’m sure you anxiously waited for the new little baby to arrive and were overjoyed when they finally were born. That’s the same joy we can experience in the birth of Jesus.

Jesus belonged to a family like each of us.  We heard about his human family in the beginning of the Gospel of Matthew.  You may have zoned out hearing this long list of strange sounding names. A few may have been familiar, such as Abraham and David, but most were quite different, such as Aminadab and Zerubbabel.   Who are all these names, and why did Matthew include them? 

He did so because Jesus’ lineage was very important to the people of Israel.  

Family heritage is very important to many of us as well.   How many of you have researched you own family lineage?  When we learn about our family, we may discover some interesting people in our lineage.  My wife has roots that go back to the civil war with relations to General George Pickett from the Union side and General Robert E. Lee on the Confederate side.   We may also learn about some people who have a bit of a checkered past, and many others who are just very ordinary.

Mathew recounts the genealogy of Jesus to fulfill prophecy and show us that Jesus family is much like ours. Some in Jesus’ family line have questionable backgrounds that may not have been considered appropriate for the Jewish Messiah.   The five women listed in the family line were all Gentile, except Mary, were powerless and marginalized. There were several kings mentioned, but most were known of not being faithful to God.  The most significant was that of King David, which is important in the prophecy of the Davidic Kingdom enduring forever.   When Joseph says yes to God in taking Mary into his home, he formally adopts Jesus by naming him and fulfills the prophecy of the Messiah coming from David’s line. Jesus’ human family includes those who are famous, infamous, and many ordinary people, much like each of us.

While Jesus has a human family, he is divine as well because he is also the Son of God.    We hear that Joseph is distressed about Mary being with child, before they formally

came together as a married couple, so God sends an angel in a dream to reveal the conception was by the divine power of the Holy Spirit. Joseph also learns the child is to be named Jesus and he will save the his people from their sins.   This was important to the Jewish people fulfilling the prophecy from Malachi,

 

Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
        and they shall name him Emmanuel, which means “Go is with us”.

 

Jesus’ birth is something we can be extremely joyful about because his coming restored humanity’s relationship with God, because he came to save us from our sins. As a vulnerable little baby, we can humbly approach him in wonder and awe that he became one of us, so we could be saved by him.  In hearing about Jesus family line, we realize that we don’t need to be perfect, to become members of his family. He invites us to be part of his family by being faithful, believing He is God’s Son who came to save all of us from our sins. In Jesus public’ ministry he purposely invited people who were much less than perfect to be part of his family: the Samaritan women at the well, Zacchaeus the tax collector whom he dined at his house, and Mary Magdalene whom he cast out seven demons. Jesus came to these people to restore their relationship with God.  He comes as a little baby into our world to do the same for us. Sin breaks our relationship with God, but Jesus can restore that relationship through the gift of Baptism to become God’s adopted children. When we sin again, and in our imperfect humanity we will, God can restore that relationship through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. And to sustain our relationship with God, the gift of the Eucharist, God with us, in the presence of his Body and Blood, He gives us the grace to do so.   Let us be joyful, that God came to be us as a little baby, and continues to be with us in the Eucharist, until he returns in glory.

Be a humble servant to be greatest in God's Kingdom - Homily for 31st Sunday, Cycle A

The closing words in today’s Gospel is how Jesus defines greatness in the Kingdom of God: The greatest among you must be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled,  but whoever humbles himself will be exalted. Being humble or a servant may not define greatness by the world’s standards, but Jesus teaches us how greatness is achieved in the eyes of God.

The Scribes and Pharisees practices were quite contrary to the way of greatness that Jesus described. They may preach God’s word, but their actions don’t show it. The essence of what Jesus was telling the crowds and disciples about these religious leaders was:  Do what they say, but not what they do.  

    The Scribes and the Pharisees were the so called “Proclaimers of the Word of God and keepers of the Law.” They were in positions of religious authority to lead the people, but their hearts were far from God. They were all about seeking honor, praise and reaping the benefits from their positions of authority. Jesus admonished these leaders for being self-serving rather than serving the people of God. The Pharisees wore religious garb to remind people of their special positions. The phylacteries were boxes that contained God’s word worn on their foreheads and their upper left arm. They would enlarge these to be more noticeable. Their outer cloaks had tassels on four corners of the garment. They lengthened these to appear more pious. They added complexity to the Law of Moses adding many additional rules which numbered 613. This was a constant burden for the people to keep track of all these rules. They also relished prestigious titles such as rabbi so people would take notice of them. This was totally contrary to what these leaders were called to do.  Their role was to foster a relationship between the people and God, but they hindered it and were only concerned about honor for themselves. Jesus taught the people that the Father in heaven and the Christ, were the ones to be given honor, not to the Scribes and Pharisees.

       It can be disappointing when we have leaders who don’t practice what they preach. We see this all the time in business and political leaders. We’ve sadly experienced it in some of our own religious leaders. To keep from being discouraged, we need to keep in mind that most of our bishops, priest, deacons and religious, truly desire to humbly serve God’s people in the model of Christ the servant. They desire to help bring people to a loving relationship with Jesus, to administer the sacraments to bestow God’s graces, and to lead the people in loving their neighbor by feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, housing the homeless and visiting those in prisons.

I’ve personally had some disappointments over the past few years with some Church leaders.  There have been a few things that have helped me to keep from being discouraged. Saint Paul words from the second reading summed up very well what has helped me:We too give thanks to God unceasingly, that in receiving the word of God from hearing us, you received not a human word but the word of God, which is now at work in you who believe. By daily giving thanks to God in prayer for his Church and praying with God’s Word daily has helped me to give me encouragement. Our bishops, priests, deacons, and religious need our prayers of gratitude to support them in their lives of humble service to bring people the gospel of Christ.

Another thing that has helped to encourage me are countless stories of humble service through the lives of the Saints.  This past week we celebrated All Saints Day where children dressed up as their favorite saints and processed into Mass. This reminded me of

one of my favorite saints, Saint Lawerence. He was a Roman deacon under Pope Saint Sixtus II. Four days after this pope was put to death, Lawrence suffered martyrdom. As deacon in Rome, Lawrence was charged with the responsibility for the material goods of the Church, and the distribution of alms to the poor.  When Lawrence knew he would be arrested like the pope, he sought out the poor, widows, and orphans of Rome and gave them all the money he had on hand, selling even the sacred vessels of the altar to increase the sum.  When the prefect of Rome heard of this, he imagined that the Christians must have considerable treasure, and he summoned Lawrence asking that these treasures brought to him. Lawrence replied to the prefect, “The Church was indeed rich. I will show you the valuable part. But give me time to set everything in order and make an inventory.” After three days he gathered a great number of blind, lame, maimed, leprous, orphaned, and widowed persons and put them in rows. When the prefect arrived, Lawrence simply said, “These are the treasure of the Church.” The prefect was so angry he told Lawrence that he would suffer martyrdom. He had a great gridiron prepared with coals beneath it, and had Lawrence’s body placed on it.  After the martyr had suffered the pain for a long time, legend has it the Lawrence made his famous cheerful remark, “It is well done. Turn me over!”

The work of St. Lawrence continues even to this day. Last weekend my wife and I went up to our hometown of Griffith, Indiana and had dinner at a restaurant owned by a friend from

high school. I had not seen my friend in years, and it was good catching up with him. He shared with me that he had been really stressed out over the last few years finding employees to work for his business. The next day he sent me a text which said. “It was good to see you and Linda last night.  Remember to ask God to help your old buddy and send me several good cooks so I don’t have a heart attack.  In response to his text message, I did an internet search to find out who the patron saint of restaurant owners was.  It was Saint Lawrence.   

I took a picture of St. Lawrence that was hung on the wall in my office and sent a novena prayer to my friend to request for St. Lawrence’s intercession in prayer to help with

this business. I received the following text from him last night:I have to tell you what happened after you sent me the prayer.  All this happened shortly after you texted me the prayer.  We needed a dishwasher and at 9am a guy that just moved in down the street asked if we were still looking for a dishwasher. The night before he came in to pick up a pizza and saw my help wanted sign on the door.  He came in and I hired him on the spot. He’s been working out well so far.  Then the same day I had a cook who had worked for us previously and was a good worker at one time but started to slip at work when he got into heavy drinking.  He texted me and said he went away for a while to get help and said he has stopped drinking.  We hired him back and so far, so good. The Power of Prayer. Thank you, Ron!

St. Lawrence’s story, and many other Saints stories serve as models to encourage us, to be humble servants so we can be greatest in the eyes of God. As we continue today in being strengthened through the Eucharist let us strive for greatness as Jesus taught us, in being humble servants.   Let us also pray in gratitude in support of our religious leaders to be models of humble service for us in word and deed to help lead us in doing the same.

 

As faithful citizen's learn and take action to make the Heavenly Kingdom present among us

Jesus said to them "Then repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God." This may be a familiar saying of Jesus, but what point was he trying to make?  Some background on the situation may be helpful to provide some insight. The Pharisees were the Jewish religious leaders who would act pious, but in their hearts were far from God.  They

were constantly trying to accuse Jesus of violating the Jewish laws. The Pharisees were also in opposition to Roman’s whose emperor Caesar, claimed to be divine.  Roman currency had Caesar’s image stamped on one side and his claim divinity on the other.  The Pharisees would not permit Jews to use the coins, as Caesar’s image was a form of idolatry.  Moneychangers exchanged Roman coin for unmarked copper coins for trade in the Jewish community. The Herodian’s were a group of Jews who supported the Romans, so they could receive favored treatment.  They would inform the Romans of anyone who opposed them.  Herodian’s did not have anything in common with Pharisees. 

Why would these two opposing groups come together? So, Jesus could be trapped and put him to shame, to get rid of him. They thought that by asking Jesus if it were lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, he would be in a no-win situation. If Jesus said it was ok to pay the taxes the Pharisees would turn the Jewish people against him.  If Jesus said paying taxes was unlawful the Herodian’s would report him to the Roman authorities and have him hauled off to prison. The Pharisee’s had it all worked out to get rid of Jesus.

But Jesus knew their hearts were up to no good. True to form Jesus catches them in hypocrisy by asking for a coin used to pay the census taxes. The Pharisees produced a Roman coin, but if they were practiced what they preach, they would not have any.  The answer Jesus gave them is not what they expected: to pay what’s due to both Caesar and to God.  The Jews were living under Roman occupation and had to coexist with them.  If they did not pay the tax, they would be subject to punishment or even death by the Romans.  So, paying the census tax to peacefully coexist was a necessity.

Jesus was trying to make a point to his adversaries: God is the one they owe their greatest debt.  The Herodian’s and Pharisees were both Jews. As Jews they were to give their all to God: to love him with all their heart, mind, and soul and to love their neighbor as their self. They owed everything to God because he is author of life.  The Herodian’s and Pharisees were only concerned about themselves and all the privileges they received, rather than being the selfless servant as Jesus was. They weren’t open to Jesus as being the Messiah and his message of making present the Kingdom of Heaven by loving God and neighbor.  

We are blessed to live in the United States where we are free to worship God and have the right to vote for those who govern us. Unfortunately, some of our elected leaders and government policies and laws do not follow the ways our faith teaches.  God has allowed these leaders to be in power. We are called to pray for them to govern justly, respecting human life and dignity, family and education, social justice, and religious liberty. As Catholics, we live in the world, but we are not of the world. While we are citizens of the United States, our ultimate citizenship is the Kingdom of Heaven. If there is something contrary to God’s ways in our government, we can promote changes to help make the Kingdom of Heaven present. 

How can we do this? By learning about what our Catholic faith teaches about social issues that affect the common good. The Indiana Catholic Conference is an organization that can

help us learn about these teachings. The Indiana Catholic Conference is the public policy voice of the Catholic Church in Indiana. They advocate for policies that promote social teaching of the Catholic faith in our government. School choice vouchers which has benefited many of our school families is one of the policies advocated by the Indiana Catholic Conference. Their website has a wealth of information to learn and stay informed about social issues and what the Church teaches at a state and national level. 

Actively getting involved to support change is another way we can make a difference.  A model for promoting change through peaceful ways on social issues was Dorothy Day.  In her younger days in the 1920’s, Dorothy was involved in movements to protest unjust labor

practices, joining in on picket lines and writing for labor newspapers about injustices. She was not Catholic but would spend time in church praying in the presence of the Eucharist, while being involved in these movements.  After the birth of her first child and deciding to have her baptized, she finally decided to become Catholic herself. She intensively lived her faith, attending Mass daily, which shaped the rest of her life. Shortly after becoming Catholic Dorothy started the Catholic Worker Movement remained actively involved in peaceful movement throughout her life, being jailed when she was protesting nuclear weapons, and again at the age of 75 in support of conditions for migrant farm workers.  Pope Francis said about her during a speech to Congress in 2015, "Her social activism, her passion for justice and for the cause of the oppressed, were inspired by the Gospel, her faith, and the example of the saints,"  Dorothy Day’s cause for Sainthood is currently in the final phases.

As citizens of the United States, we are subject to taxes just like the Jews were to the Romans.  As citizens of heaven, we’re called to help bring about the Kingdom of Heaven. We can actively do this by promoting social issues consistent with our faith, through our participation as citizens of our country.  The currency we use has an important reminder on it: “In God we trust.”  This is a reminder for us that God is the one we really owe everything:  our country, homes, families, and our own lives.  As we come forward for the Eucharist today let’s thank God for all he has given us and ask for the grace to enable us to give Him all our heart, mind, and soul.

Being open to change like St. Francis to encounter Jesus, Homily for 26th Sunday Cycle A

        Thus the last will be first, and the first will be last. This is the closing line from the Gospel of last week. How will the last be first? Today’s Gospel may shed some light on this.    It’s set right after Jesus triumphant entry into Jerusalem that we typically hear on Palm Sunday. It’s followed by Jesus entering the temple where he drives out the money changers and cures many of the blind and the lame. In praise the people acclaim about Jesus, “Hosanna to the Son of David”. This made chief priests in the temple angry and jealous of Jesus.   They did not believe in Jesus divine power, but the people did.   They questioned Jesus’ authority on his teachings and actions. Whereby Jesus asks them if John’s baptism was of heavenly or human origin. They refused to answer, because their authority would be questioned. So Jesus tells them a parable about two sons asked to work in their father’s vineyard and asks the chief priests, which son follows the father’s will.  They answered correctly that the son who first refused, but then changed his mind, was the one who followed the father’s will.  This was a pretty obvious answer, and Jesus used it to make a point for them to change their minds about him. He told the chief priests that tax collectors and prostitutes, would be entering the kingdom of God before them. That chief priests probably thought that tax collectors and prostitutes would be last in God’s kingdom. This must have seemed an insult to the chief priests.  But, it wasn’t Jesus intention insult them, but rather challenge them change their minds. The chief priests were too proud of the positions of power, to consider John’s prophecy that Jesus was the Messiah. The tax collectors and prostitutes had little to lose in their humility, but much to gain in believing in Jesus as Lord.

We live in a culture today, that competes with our faith in Jesus, that he is Lord of our life. Is Jesus Lord of our entire life, or only parts of it? Our culture promotes as its highest value the freedom of the individual to do whatever they choose, as long as it doesn’t hurt someone else. Unfortunately this results in choices that can be quite hurtful to the person, resulting in actions that are sinful. Sin not only affects the individual, but also affects the community, the Body of Christ. If we’re influenced by the culture, it leads us to picking and choosing when to follow Jesus and when not to follow him.

Saint Paul offers some words to Philippians in the second reading today, that is very relevant to us today. The Philippians were new converts to Christ, and many of them were retired military loyal to the Roman Empire. In their military service they were required to give honor to Caesar as Lord, who was consider divine, and to follow the ways of the Roman Empire. In their new found faith, Jesus was their true Lord, who gave them eternal life, but they probably struggled fearing persecution. St. Paul was encouraging them to humbly follow Christ as Lord through the Holy Spirit in all they do for the good of both themselves and others. Christ gave them the perfect example of humility, as he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness, and found in human appearance, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to the point of death, death on a cross.

We can’t totally follow Jesus as Lord only on our own power. The grace of the Holy Spirit through Baptisms and Confirmation helps us to be united in heart, minds, thinking, and love with Jesus. October is Respect Life month. There are many life issues where the culture is at odds with the Church: abortion, IVF, care for the poor, immigration, euthanasia, contraception, and the death penalty just to name a few. I used to struggle with some of these issues myself, because I did not fully understand why the Church taught certain positions, but only what the position of the Church was. In humility I finally took some time to investigate and understand why the Church taught what it taught. Some teachings were hard to understand, but through a conversion of heart, I was able to change my mind to be supportive of the Church’s teaching. In understanding these issues, I realized that some of the things I supported were contrary to Church teachings and sinful.  Through the Sacrament of Reconciliation, I was able to restored in my relationship with God. To be honest this was a relief of not having to decide for myself, but in humility following Christ as Lord, and the Church that he gave us to follow.

A model for us to follow in changing our minds to follow Christ is Saint Francis. As a young man he was caught up in trappings of the world. He was from a wealthy middle class family and enjoyed being the life of the party, often paying for the frivolous activities his friends enjoyed.  He had dreams of being a knight and got his chance to engage in a battles defending his hometown of Assisi, resulting in him being injured.  While he was recovering he was being prepared for a new way of life, following Christ. He still had some challenges though, as he was repulsed to by having anything to do with lepers, the least of those in society. But in an encounter with a leper, where he gave alms and kissed his hands ridden with sores, he met Christ, which changed his heart and mind to follow Christ in poverty and humility. St. Francis had several other encounters with the Lord, eventually leading him to receiving the stigmata, though wounds in his hands and feet that Jesus suffered. This eventually led St. Francis to founding a religious order that still has tremendous impact today. Pray for St. Francis intercession for each of us to be open to changing our minds as he did in following Jesus as Lord and His Church’s teachings, strengthened by the grace of the Holy Spirit and the Eucharist we are about to receive.

 

 

Even the dogs eat the scraps from the table of their master: Jesus came to save all people - Homily 20th Sunday Cycle A

 

One of the activities that my wife and I really enjoy doing together is watching shows about cooking. Some of our favorite shows are Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, Chopped, and Parts Unknown. We enjoy watching the shows because they involve some of the favorite things we like to do: eating, cooking, and travel. It’s very interesting to learn about all the different cultures, nationalities, and the unique types of food they eat and ways they cook. It’s opened us up to have a better understanding of people who are different from us.  Food is a common element among all peoples of the world, because we all need it to live, and it brings people together of all diverse cultures and nations. Today’s Gospel has a focus on food that may seem a divisive, but eventually leads to a better understanding of God’s salvation for all people. 

Jesus’ encounter with the Gentile Canaanite woman sure doesn’t sound like the Jesus

Artist: Jean Germain Drouais, 1784.

we’re used to. The woman is very respectful to Jesus, calling him Lord, Son of David, but Jesus ignores her. When Jesus says, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel”, it is not at all what we’d expect him say. The woman’s second request for help is met with an insult, “It is not right to take the food of children and throw it to the dogs.” Jews of the day would call Gentiles dogs as a demeaning reference to them. Gentiles were considered a class below the Jews, and they had nothing to do with them.  So, to the disciples, Jesus’ response would be what a Jew was expected say to a Gentile.

Undaunted by the insult the woman gives Jesus spirited comeback: “Please Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps that fall from the table of their masters.”  The woman speaks boldly because of her faith in Jesus’ healing power. He was so impressed by her great faith, that he healed her daughter. This probably stunned the disciples, because Gentiles, were not worthy from a Jewish perspective.  In healing the woman Jesus was teaching them that he was not just a Jewish man, but the Messiah of God, who came not only for the people of Israel, but for all people. Jesus goes along with the cultural norm, ignoring and insulting the Gentiles, in order to change the norm of the culture, that God’s kingdom is for everyone who has faith in Him, regardless of their ethnicity or class in the culture.

This parable is a reminder for us of the universal role of the Church to carry out the Lord’s missionary mandate: Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you (Mt 28:18-19). All persons are created in God’s image and likeness and deserve the opportunity to learn about Jesus so they can freely choose to have faith in him as their savior.

How can we help the Church to carry out this mission to make Jesus known to all people?  It’s not just the clergy and religious that carry out this mission.  They play a big part in leading this mission, but it takes all of us in our own unique way in, planting the tiny seeds of faith that grow over time. There are many people we encounter every day at home, work, school, and where we play or serve that still don’t know Jesus. They may not look, speak, or act like us and we can be apprehensive in getting to know them. We can be like disciples thinking they are not worth paying attention to.  But if we take some time to personally get to know them, learning about their interests, family, and challenges, it can be a first step in showing them God’s love through our friendship.

We might start with some common ground of a favorite food we both like and sharing a meal with them. Henry Nouwen said, “A desire to eat together is an expression of the deeper desire to be food for one another, by being Christ for one another”. There are many people in the world today who don’t experience any love at all, because they are lonely or isolated. By sharing our love with them, they are experiencing God, because God is love.        That could be the first step in carrying out the Church’s mission.

I recently read a story about a ministry reaching out to the people who beg for help at stop lights or exit ramps. We’ve all seen them, and quite often it seems to be the same person day after day.  We can be skeptical and cynical of why they are there, but we can give the benefit of the doubt that they really do need help. It can be so easy to be like the Jews who ignored the Gentiles thinking of them as not worthy of our attention. One of the recommendations to minister to these people was to ask them their names and to give them some socks, a bottle of water, soft snacks along with a prayer card.   Many of these people are alone, homeless, have a mental illness and no family. One person who responded to a ministry volunteer said it was the first time in over two weeks that someone had spoken his name. A few weeks later the volunteer saw the same person again and greeted him by his name and asked how he was doing.  The person recognized the volunteer and responded, “I’m much better now hearing you say my name again and asking how I am doing.  Thanks so much.” This simple action was a sign of God’s love to the person down on their luck.

Simple acts of love and kindness in friendship can open the opportunity for us to share our faith in Jesus with others.  It may be offering to say a prayer with them when they share a struggle with us.   It could be an invitation for them to join us at Mass or to share a book with them. By sharing our friendship with them it shows us we care, and they’ll be receptive to listening to us and our faith in Jesus. May the Eucharist we soon receive strengthen our faith in Jesus and give us the courage to share in friendship our love and faith with all the People of God.

 

Connecting with the lonely and isolated to proclaim God's Kingdom - Homily 11th Sunday Cycle A

 

The Gospel that we heard today comes right after Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount and his travels to towns and villages proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and curing many of their illnesses and diseases.  

Many of those whom he cured were thought to have been enduring punishment from God because of their illness.  

As a result of their conditions, they not only suffered physically or mentally but were also excluded from worship in their faith communities.  

The synagogue was the center of worship for the Jews and was also the hub of social interaction for the people. 

This exclusion resulted in isolation and loneliness.

For many this isolation was much worse than the effects of their illness. 

Jesus knew their conditions were not due to punishment, and he cured them to restore their relationship with their faith community to make them whole again.  

These people needed to be treated with love, not isolation and exclusion.

Jesus is moved with compassion, and he takes the initiative to do something about it.

As I was traveling this past week, I heard the news on the radio of a US Surgeon General health advisory that was occurring in the United States, an epidemic of loneliness and isolation. 

It was said that this epidemic was occurring prior to the COVID-19 pandemic where over half of U.S. adults were experiencing significant levels of loneliness. 

The COVID-19 pandemic made it even worse.

The effects of loneliness on physical health can increase risk for premature death comparable to smoking daily.   

The impact of loneliness on mental health can double the risk in developing depression.   

The US Surgeon General stated: While the epidemic of loneliness and isolation is widespread and has profound consequences for our individual and collective health and well-being, there is a medicine hiding in plain sight: social connection.

A Harvard Study, Loneliness in America, indicated that the pandemic has deepened an epidemic of loneliness.  

It reported young adults are some of the most significantly affected by loneliness. 

Over half of the lonely young adults in the study reported that in the past few weeks that no one “had taken more than just a few minutes” to ask how they were doing to make them feel like the person “genuinely cared”.  

A recommendation of the study to alleviate loneliness was “Working to restore our commitment to each other and the common good.”

It stated: Loneliness is a bellwether not only of our country’s emotional and physical but moral health.

In this age of hyper-individualism, the degree to which Americans have prioritized self-concerns and self-advancement and demoted concern for others in many communities has left many Americans stranded and disconnected.

We need to return to an idea that was central to our founding and is at the heart of many great religious traditions: We have commitments to ourselves, but we also have vital commitments to each other, including to those who are vulnerable.  

To carry out His mission to care for the people Jesus appoints the twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits to drive them out and to cure every disease and illness.   

They are then sent out with the instruction, not go to pagan territory or Samaritan town, but to go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel to proclaim the “Kingdom of heaven is at hand” and to cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, and drive out demons. 

These twelve disciples, except for Judas Iscariot, are the apostles who would become the first bishops to go out to establish the Church after Jesus' Ascension.  

Their mission was to not only cure the people of their diseases but to restore their relationship with the community.

Jesus in his great love for us gave his life in sacrifice to reconcile us with God and save us, even though we were sinners. 

This is the good news of the Kingdom of Heaven that Jesus sent his apostles to proclaim. 

He continues to care for us today through His Church, the Body of Christ, made up of bishops, priests, deacons, religious, and lay people who gather in worship through the Eucharist to remember and participate in His saving action of love. 

When we come together as a Church community each week do so because of our need for God and each other.

There are so many people today in isolation and loneliness in our culture who are like the people Jesus had pity for who were troubled and abandoned.  

How can we proclaim the Kingdom of God to them and cure their illnesses and diseases and drive out demons?  

We can start by following Jesus' instructions to go to the lost people of Israel, which for us is our own family, friends, and neighbors. 

If there is someone we have not seen or heard from in a long time we can send a card or a letter to let them know we are thinking about them.  

Or we can make a phone call to see how they are doing and really take time to listen to them. 

That may be followed up with an invitation to meet them for a meal, an activity they enjoy doing, or even to join you at Mass. 

Connecting with people on a human level and letting them know you care for them may be just what they need to break out of their loneliness and isolation.  

And through this human connection, we can share with them the good news of the God who takes the initiative to save us because of his great love for us and to make his Kingdom present in our world.

 

 

Homily for the Solemnity of the Ascension: Don't just stand there looking at the sky, call on the Holy Spirit

 

We heard in the first reading today of the two men saying to the disciples after Jesus was taken up into the clouds, “Men of Galilee, why are you standing there looking at the sky?”     

 

The disciples must have been dumbfounded thinking what in the world just happened here?  

 

Jesus had miraculously risen from the dead 40 days earlier, and now he has vanished into the clouds. 

 

This must have been a shock and they were probably in fear of what is going to happen now that Jesus is gone.

 

They are given some reassurance by the two men that Jesus would return just as he was seen going away to the heavens.

 

He would also continue to be with them always in Sacraments which would only be possible by the coming of the Holy Spirit.

 

Today we celebrate the Feast of the Ascension.  

 

This is the belief of our faith that we proclaim each time we recite the Creed, “He Ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.”  

 

What did the Ascension mean to the disciples and what does it mean to us today?

 

Jesus had ministered public for three years, suffered and died on the cross, rose from the dead, and appeared to the disciples in his Glorified body for forty days.  

 

He had appeared many times over this period and spoke to them about establishing God’s Kingdom.  

 

But the disciple still didn’t get it. 

 

They were focused on the issue of the day: Restoring the kingdom of Israel.  

 

But Jesus had greater plans in mind for them: They were going to witness the Gospel of Jesus to the whole world, not just in Jerusalem.

 

How was this going to happen?

 

The disciples had been following Jesus for the past three years, but they now had a new mission to spread the Gospel throughout the world.   

 

If Jesus were still physically present with them, they’d be limited to where he was physically located in spreading the Gospel.

 

By ascending to heaven, Christ gave them the divine power to accomplish their mission in another way where Christ’s presence is without limits.

 

The Holy Spirit would empower them to proclaim Jesus through the eyes of faith in Jesus' and his real presence in the Sacraments.

 

St. Leo the Great, said this very well:

 

And so our Redeemer’s visible presence has passed in the sacraments. 

 

Our faith is noble and stronger because sight has been replaced by a doctrine whose authority is accepted by believing hearts, enlightened from on high. 

 

This faith was increased by the Lord’s ascension and strengthened by the gift of the Spirit.

 

Jesus’ Ascension also accomplished something else: It opened the doorway to heaven for the rest of humanity.  

 

Jesus is now a powerful intercessor in heaven to reconcile us with Father.

 

Jesus' ascension bridges the gap between heaven and earth.  

 

Where do we find that bridge in the world?

 

In the Church through the Sacraments!

 

 

The Holy Spirit is sent to the disciples so they could spread the good news throughout the world.

 

This brought about the birth of the Church. 

 

In the book of Acts, we hear about the disciple's witness to Jesus' resurrection in their travels far and wide.  

 

They face many trials and tribulations in their travels and flee from one town to another to escape from being injured or killed.  

 

But this is just part of the plan to spread the Gospel and for the Church to grow. 

 

How will they do all this?  

 

Through the Holy Spirit, which is mentioned over 80 times in the Book of Acts. 

 

In Acts, we hear the disciples doing incredible works, healing the sick and raising the dead.

 

Many of the miracles are the same done by Jesus and are made possible through the Holy Spirit to bring people to believe and have faith in Jesus.

 

The Holy Spirit enabled the growth of the Church and gave the disciple power to do great things.

 

They followed Jesus' commission, to make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

 

The Holy Spirit is what makes it possible for Jesus to be with us always until the end of the age through the Sacraments of the Church, especially in the Eucharist.

 

 

The Church is Christ’s Body and where heaven meets the earth. 

 

What and who is the Church? 

 

It’s each one of us, as the Body of Christ, in doing our part in witnessing to the Gospel. 

 

And how do we do this? 

 

By our words and deeds to announce the good news and be Christ-like to others.

 

A famous quote of St. Teresa of Avila sums up our role in spreading the Gospel quite well:

 

Christ has no body on earth but yours.

 

Yours are the eyes with which he looks compassionately on this world.

 

Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good.

 

Yours are the hands with which he blesses all the world.

 

Christ has no body now on earth but yours!"   

 

To strengthen us in this mission we come to Mass each week to receive the graces of the Eucharist to be Christ’s body, hands, and feet in the world.

 

We can also pray daily and listen with our hearts as to where God is calling us to make a difference.

 

The Our Father is a great reminder of this mission when we pray, “Thy kingdom come, they will be done, on earth as it is in heaven”.   

 

 

The world today certainly needs God’s kingdom to come.

 

It’s very much like the first century during Roman rule.

 

There is a lack of respect for the life and dignity of the human person, threats to our religious liberty, and a secular culture that has little concern for God. 

 

At the end of each Mass, we hear the dismissal: Go and announce the Gospel of the Lord, where are sent to make a difference in the world.

 

By each of us living this out, empowered by the Holy Spirit, we can do our part in spreading the good news and making God's kingdom present.

 

Jesus commanded his disciples to witness in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.

 

We can do the same with the people in Greenwood, Bargersville, and Indianapolis in our daily lives.

 

Throughout the day, we can invoke the power of the Holy Spirit to inspire us to spread God’s Kingdom, by praying a short prayer: “Come Holy Spirit”.

 

It can be very simple things we do, that can make a big difference in bringing others to Christ.

 

We can say a kind word to the person who rubs us the wrong way at home or work.

 

We can invite a classmate to play a game who is normally included in our activities.  

 

We can volunteer or donate to a local food pantry or homeless shelter to help people with their basic needs.

 

We can visit someone who is shut-in or at a care facility who doesn’t have any family or friends to visit.

 

So don’t just stand there looking up at the sky.  

 

Call on the Holy Spirit to help make God’s Kingdom present here in the world so people can come to know and have faith in the Lord Jesus by our witness in being Christ’s disciples.