First Sunday of Lent: Somewhere over the rainbow and the Kingdom of God

 Have you ever longed to be somewhere else to take you away from your cares and troubles?  With pandemic going on and all the cold and snow this may be something we are all hoping for. The rainbow in today’s first reading reminded me of favorite childhood movie, The Wizard of Oz where Dorothy longed to be taken away from her cares at the end of the rainbow.  Dorothy longed to be in a perfect land beyond the horizon.  She got her wish by being taken to the land of Oz. But Dorothy soon found out that her troubles only got worse in the land of Oz.  

We may yearn to escape and be taken somewhere else, but the rainbow is a reminder

that God is the one to rely on when we have troubles. In today’s first reading God makes a covenant with Noah to never again destroy all the men and creatures of the earth through a flood. God’s reminder of this covenant is the rainbow. It’s fulfilled through Jesus who brings about the Kingdom of God.  

Today’s Gospel is brief but has a powerful message.  In the first part we hear about Jesus overcoming the temptation by Satan in the desert.  There aren’t a lot of details about this encounter, but it gives us great hope.  We’re told: “The Spirit drove Jesus out into the desert”.  Just prior to this John had just baptized Jesus, and the Holy Spirit had descended upon him.  Jesus’ immediate action after the baptism by John is to battle Satan for forty days in the desert.   Jesus resists the devil’s temptations to sin.  Jesus’ victory of the devil begins the process to reverse the consequences of Adam and Eve’s sin, which brought about death. Jesus wasn’t in need of baptism as he is without sin, but by being baptized and tested in the desert, he united himself with our struggles to overcome sin.   His obedience in following God’s will triumphs over Satan and is also triumph for us.   This is Good News!

In the second part of the Gospel Jesus proclaims:  “Now is the time of fulfillment.  The Kingdom of God is at hand.” The Kingdom of God is a prominent theme of Jesus’ ministry.  In proclaiming the Kingdom He’s announces that God’s reign has come through himself.   The people of Israel had longed for God’s reign to come in a Messiah who would overcome the political powers to restore a rightful ruler to Israel. But Jesus was not the mighty ruler they were expecting.  He is a humble servant, who not only came for the people of Israel, but for everyone. 

Jesus continues John’s ministry of calling to repentance and baptism but adds a new dimension.  Jesus proclaims to “Repent AND believe in the Gospel.”  

Another word for Gospel is good news.  What is the good news:  The new covenant established by Jesus in his sacrifice in dying for us so we can have eternal life.  This new covenant makes salvation and eternal life for us by having faith in Jesus. This indeed is good news!

 

The season of Lent is an annual call to conversion to become more Christ like so we can bring about the Kingdom of God. Lent can be a challenging time for us   It’s a time that we deny ourselves through daily sacrifice.   It’s a time set apart by the Church to repent through prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.  These practices are meant to lead us to conversion to become for Christ like so we can help bring about the Kingdom of God and celebrate the Easter Joy of the Risen Lord.   If we keep this destination in mind and unite our sufferings with Jesus it can make the time of Lent one of joyful anticipation.  

We don’t need to go it alone during Lent. Through our baptism we are given the gift of the Holy Spirit to bring about the virtues to help us in our journey.   We can call on our guardian angel to help fight the temptations the devil puts in our way.  We also have our families and faith community who can support us.  But even with this help we may fail in keeping our Lenten observances and yield to our temptations. Don’t get discouraged by these failures.  These failures may not be all that bad, as they help us to realize our need a savior.  When we struggle with our temptations, we can recall that Jesus faced some of the same temptations and is united with us in our struggles.  He understands what we’re going through and has compassion for us.  If we fail in our Lenten disciplines or fall into sin don’t give up.  Ask Jesus for help and start over.  If you need to go to confession, there are plenty of times to receive Jesus’ forgiveness through the sacrament of reconciliation.

If you haven’t chosen what to do for the Lenten disciplines of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving yet, I’d like to offer some for consideration.   The first is to slowly pray the Our Father daily and pick one section of the prayer to focus on.  Meditate on how you’re living out this prayer in your daily life.   Really focus is on, “thy Kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven”.  Think about how you are bringing about the Kingdom of God to those close to you and also to those most in need.  A great way to bring about the Kingdom of God is to actively practice almsgiving and fasting.  Consider whatever you give up and dedicating time or money to support the Lenten ministries of the Outreach or Johnson County Senior services that the parish is supporting this year.  A final suggestion is to read an entire Gospel from start to finish.   The shortest Gospel is Mark and is being read during this year for the Sunday readings.  One of the best ways to come to know the good news of Jesus is to read the story about him.    If you finish before the end of Lent is over, start another Gospel.  These practices will help you “Repent and believe in the Gospel.”

So, as we being this Lent remember the sign of rainbow of God’s covenant with us and set your sights on the Kingdom of God.   The new covenant of Jesus promises us eternal life if we have faith in him. Through God’s love the waters of baptism bring us new life in Christ.  Our baptism provides the  grace of the Holy Spirit to live a virtuous life and resist temptations to sin.  It also helps to make the Kingdom of God present to those around us through our acts of service to others.   As we prepare to receive the Eucharist let us all thank God for the Holy Spirit and his angels who help us on our Lenten journey.  

Homily: Third Sunday of Ordinary Time: The call of the fishermen to become fishers of men:

         Today we hear about the beginning of Jesus public ministry in the Gospel of Mark. He

proclaims: This is the time of fulfillment.  The Kingdom of God is at hand.  Repent and believe in the Gospel.  Mark’s Gospel moves swiftly with Jesus inviting fisherman to help in his mission of proclaiming this message. I really like Jesus’ choice of fishermen to help with catching people for His Kingdom.

    Fishing is something I realy enjoy. When you go fishing the right equipment is needed to catch the fish: poles, bait, hooks, lures, and nets. The main goal is to attract the fish so you can catch them. When you’re fishing you also need to go out to find them.   You don’t just wait on the shore for them to come to you. You need to know go out in order to catch them.    This may be going out in deep waters in the middle of a stormy night or to hidden coves amongst the brush early in the morning.  Fishing can be disappointing when you don’t catch any, but when you do it brings great joy. It takes perseverance and hard work to be a good fisherman. I think these qualities is what Jesus was looking for when he called Simon, Andrew, James and John to follow him in his mission.

How were the apostles supposed to catch people? By following the lead of Jesus in proclaiming the Good News to those who were most in need. The coming of the Kingdom of God gave hope to the Jewish people. It meant liberation from oppression by the Romans. But the Kingdom of God that Jesus was preaching meant something more: the joy of eternal life in the presence of the Lord.

How did Jesus show the apostles how to catch people for this Kingdom? By their actions of going out to show love for their neighbor, healing and restoring those who were isolated from the community.   This type of love is known as Agape. I read a quote this past week by Martin Luther King Jr that made this point very well: Agape is something of the understanding, creative redemptive goodwill for all men.   When you rise to love on this level, you begin to love men, no because they are likable, but because God loves them.   You look at every man, and you love him because you know God loves him. This type of love is something we really need in our world today given all the violence and division we’ve recently experienced in our nation.

The twofold proclamation of Jesus was to repent and believe in the Gospel. This repentance came about through an encounter with Jesus.  Jesus reached out to those who were isolated from the community due to an illness, possession, or a different culture. These people were isolated because it was thought that their affliction was due to their sins, and were excluded from being able to worship with their community. Jesus went out to encounter these people in their own environment, listening to them, and healing them so they could return to their community.  Through this encounter a conversion came about that led them to become his disciples.The story of the Samaritan woman at the well is a good example of an encounter with Jesus that led to repentance and becoming a disciple of Jesus.

We all know many people who are in need of conversion. Some have never encountered Jesus or heard the Good news in a positive way. They may have only heard of eternal punishment that would come their way if they didn’t make a change in their life.  A negative message like this is not the way to attract people to become a disciple of Jesus. If you want to catch people for Jesus it must be done with love. We can follow this same example of Jesus of encountering others to listen to their needs with love, and not judging or condemning them.    This is something we really need to bring about conversion in our world today.

We are all called to repentance as well so we can enter the Kingdom of God.  Each week we have an opportunity to do so for ourselves and also as a community when we come together at Mass. We join together in the penitential rite recalling our own sins as a worshipping community.   In the penitential rite the priest asks God for his mercy on us, that He forgive our sins and bring us to everlasting life.  Through the Mass we receive the mercy of God in the Eucharist. This is the Good news that we all hope for!

        The Eucharist along with the Sacrament of Reconciliation continually helps us repent so that we can be disciples of Jesus and enter his Kingdom. As you leave Mass today remember to persevere in loving others, even those you may not like, so you can help Jesus catch people for the Kingdom of God.

Homily, Fourth Sunday of Advent: Listening and saying yes to God

         Today starts the fourth week of Advent. We’ve all been preparing for the Lord’s coming at Christmas. We may have been busy getting ready for Christmas putting up decorations, buying presents, and figuring out how to celebrate the holiday safely. Some of us have had to cut back this year and won’t be able to be with our loved ones. Christmas this year seems a bit different from the past and may be a bit challenging.   With all the challenges we’ve gone through this year, it may be good to reflect on why God sent his Son to be with us, pondering in our hearts like Mary did. 

        In today’s Gospel the angel Gabriel is sent by God, to announce to Mary that she would

conceive a child.  The angels greeting, “Hail, full of Grace.  The Lord is with you.”, is troubling for Mary. This usual Hebrew greeting would be, shalom, meaning, “peace be with you”.    The greeting she hears, Hail, is in Greek and means rejoice or Joy.    The second part of the greeting: “full of grace!” is also related to joy.  Why would Gabriel use this greeting?  Because joy and grace belong together announcing the good news of the Gospel.  Mary ponders this greeting, reflecting on it in her heart on what it means.

The angel then tells her, “Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son and you shall name him Jesus” and “The Lord will give him the throne of David his father,  and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of this kingdom there will be no end”.  The angel is rejoicing in the gift of the Holy Spirit that brings about the conception of Jesus, a name that means: GOD SAVES.  This greeting is a sign that salvation is coming for all people, both Jews and Gentiles.  THIS is truly GOOD NEWS.  

Mary reflects in her heart on the angel’s greeting and seeks to understand what it means.  Mary was betrothed to Joseph, a step on the way to marriage. Having a child before marriage was definitely not in her plans. This could jeopardize her marriage plans and even be a threat to her own life. This would be troubling for Mary.  Gabriel consoles her by saying, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God”.   

Mary’s pondering leads to a question.   She’s in dialogue with God’s messenger and listening to him. This is a good model for us to follow, in our prayer life. Prayer is dialogue with God.  It’s not just about asking God for something, but also having a conversation and listening to God. We can learn from Mary to reflect in prayer when faced with troubling situations, and to try understanding them in God’s overall plan. 

Mary seeks to understand how it’s possible for her to conceive a child without being with a man.  The angel answers Mary, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.   Therefore, the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God”.  To reassure Mary the angel tells of her cousin, Elizabeth, who was childless, beyond childbearing age, and now is six months pregnant. He finishes with “nothing will be impossible for God.”

Mary pondered and chose to say YES: “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.  May it be done to me according to your word”.   Mary was free to say yes or no, just like we are.    It’s amazing that exalted God, who created humanity, would rely on a humble young woman’s response to restore humanity.   This yes set-in motion the reversal of Adam and Eve’s no to God and brought about the salvation of humanity through the birth of Jesus. 

It’s said that Mary’s yes to God allowed her to conceive through her ears.   What seemed to be a troubling situation for Mary, turned into the most joyful event for all of humanity. By pondering in her heart in dialogue with God she came to understand God’s will for her.

This year with the pandemic we’ve all had plans that did not turn out as expected. We all know people who have gotten sick or have died, many have lost jobs, and significant events in our lives have been canceled or postponed.   We’ve all struggled with isolation and being away from loved ones.     We definitely did not plan what we’re going through, and it’s been troubling for all of us. In this time of trouble, have we pondered in our hearts like Mary asking God what this all means? It may be a call for us to be in relationship with God listening his will for us, to be saved by his Son Jesus.  We will soon be celebrating the birth of our savior, Jesus, whose name means “God Saves”. The exalted God chose to be born humble that he might disclose majesty through this very humility.  He chose to be born as a baby to live among our imperfect humanity in order to save the world.

Let’s use the last few days of Advent to ponder in our hearts and have a dialogue with God just as Mary did. May we be open to God’s will and grace for each of us, especially to be saved by his Son. St. Augustine said that Mary first conceived Christ in her heart by faith before she conceived him in her womb.   As we approach the birth of Christ, may we seek to have this same faith and to say yes to follow God’s will.   May the Eucharist we are about to receive gives us the strength us to respond as Mary did. 

 

 

Homily for the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe: Serving our Shepherd King by being his sheep who serves others

 Today we celebrate to Solemnity of Christ the King.  We are at the end of the Church year in a church calendar.  Next week starts the season of Advent.   As we get near the end of the year the readings are focused on the end times, when Christ returns.   Our Lord and Savior will come in Glory, which is something we should all look forward to.   When he comes the Kingdom of heaven will be fully realized.   Why was the Solemnity of Christ the King instituted?   It was done recently by Pope Pius XI in 1925 as a reminder of the spiritual loyalty of the Christian faithful of who their true King is, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  He did so to battle the ideologies that were emerging at the times in Europe and Russia.   

The concept of a king may be foreign to us who live in the United States.  We battled for our independence from a King over two hundred years ago.  Our form of government is a republic, and we have the privilege to elect our leaders. We just recently went through that.  If we don’t like our leader, we can always vote to change them.  In a Kingdom the subjects are supposed to be loyal to their king, whether they like the king or not.  This can be a challenge for us in our American understanding of a leader.

The reading from Ezekiel give us an image of a king who cares for his people.  The image given to us is that of a shepherd king.   This was not what most of the Kings were like in Ezekiel’s time.   Many of the kings were self-serving and only concerned about themselves. The people of Israel needed hope of a leader who would be merciful and just. A shepherd is one who cares for his flock and will give his life to defend them.   The shepherd will rescue the sheep and seek out the lost that are scattered.  He will lead them to pastures to feed them.   The injured and sick he will heal.   This shepherd king surely cares for his people.   While this king cares for his people, he is also one who will pass judgement.   We’re told that shepherd king will judge between one sheep and another, between rams and goats.   

This is a reminder that there will be a judgement by our Lord.

The image of the sheep and goats is a good one.  Have any of you ever been to a petting zoo?    I’ve taken my children their when they were young.   One of the common things to do is to feed the goats.  After you get some food from the dispenser the goats start coming over.  It starts with one, but usually ends up with many goats all trying to make their way in to get some food.  There is usually a bully who nudges his way in front of all the smaller ones, even chasing them away.  It kind of gets annoying after a while.  The image of the goats is that they only seem to want something and don’t want to give.

In contrast sheep are usually more docile and humbler. They follow the shepherd leads.   The sheep offer the shepherd their gift of wool that continually grows throughout their life. The wool is made into cloth for clothes and blankets.   This image of the sheep is that they are giving of themselves.  Jesus uses these images in the Gospel in comparing the subjects in the Kingdom.  

Jesus tells his disciples that there will be a judgement coming when the Son of comes.  

It will be like when a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, the right on the sheep and the goats on the left. Those on the right will be the sheep.  They were giving of themselves to the king living the Beatitudes.   They cared for the hungry, gave drink to the thirsty, closed the naked, welcomed the stranger, cared for the sick, and visited the imprisoned.   When they cared for the King’s subjects, they cared for the King, Jesus, who came to them in each person who was cared for. The sheep would receive their eternal reward. The goats are the ones who did not care for the those in need in the Kingdom.  In their negligence they did not care for the King, and for this they would go off to eternal punishment.  

Our Lord, Christ the King, left us his Church to help us become the disciples that are the sheep that will be invited to the eternal reward.  We are fed by his Word and the Eucharist to give us Grace to serve as his disciples.  As his disciples we can serve those who are hungry, thirsty, sick and in prison through the ministries we have in our church.  The Harvest Food Pantry and Thanksgiving food distribution helps us feed the hungry and thirsty.  Our Care and Jail ministry volunteers visit those in sick and in prison.  Our donations to the Christmas store clothe the naked.  All our individual efforts in the little ways we show love to our neighbor help us care for our King, who we see in each person we help who is in need. 

So, as we celebrate Christ the King, our shepherd King, who cares and nourishes us, let us strive to serve as his loyal subjects in his Kingdom.  We can do so by caring for those in need, seeing the face of Jesus in each person we care for.  By doing so we can be like the sheep who received their eternal reward to be with our Lord and Savior.

 

 

Homily, Third Week of Ordinary Time: The law of love can change our troubled world

 We have all been through some challenging times over through past year. There has been the pandemic that has isolated many of us to keep us healthy.  Then there was the civil unrest due racial tensions in many communities including our own.   The leaders of our government are engaged in a contentious and uncivilized battle in national elections. There is quite a bit of division in our country and it can be discouraging. What are we to do?  St. Paul gives us some good advice: Receive the word in great affliction, with Joy from the Holy Spirt, so that you can become a model for all.

The Word we hear in the first reading from Exodus and Matthew’s Gospel are linked closely by showing love of neighbor.  In Exodus the people of Israel were given instructions by God of how to treat people who were in distress, aliens, widows, orphans, and the poor.   The people of Israel had all been aliens themselves in exile and had prayed to God to be restored to their homeland. God reminds them that he hears the cry of those in need and cares for them in his compassion. 

Jesus is challenged by the Pharisees in the Gospel.  There were 613 laws in the

Jewish faith and all were considered of equal importance.  It was impossible to keep them all. The Pharisee wanted to know which was most important.  Jesus boiled it down to two.   First to love God with all your heart, soul, and mind.  The second was to love your neighbor.    Jesus told them this summed up the entire law and the prophets.   

The Pharisees made it so hard to be in good relationship with God by keeping so many laws.  Jesus made it simple, by showing love, which is what God is. How do we show our love for God?  By spending time with him.   Jesus instructed us to love God with all our hearts, souls, and our mind.   Matthew’s version is a little different than the other Gospels, in Jesus telling us to use our mind, rather than strength.   By using our mind spending time reading God’s word in Scripture we can come to know our Lord and how he calls us to live as his disciples.  When we really love someone we want to know everything about them.   We don’t just spend a few minutes every now and then.  We want to know what they like, how they think, and what make them happy so we can show our love for them.  The more time we spend with reading God’s word, the more we can come to love Jesus.

How do we show our love for our neighbor?  If we keep in mind that each of us is made in the image of God it can help us to love them.   By seeing Jesus in each person we can come to love them.   Jesus went through the same suffering and pain that many of us go through to save us. We all know that some people are a challenge and it may be hard to love them.   This is impossible in our human weakness, but we have received help to do so.  The grace of the Holy Spirit in baptism and confirmation gives us the strength to love as God does.   The Eucharist we receive as our spiritual food helps us to become like Jesus.   When we turn from Jesus in sin Confession helps us to return to a right relationship with God to be in union with him. Through the sacraments it helps us to love others as God loves us.  

God’s love is directed toward caring for the needs of others.   If we think of love as how we can be of service to others, we can love as God loves.    This is a love that brings about unity.    By being models of God’s love and doing it we joy we can help bring the change to help our troubled world in the place we have the most influence, in our families and with our friends.  By doing so we can spread this love and draw others to be disciples of our Lord Jesus showing our love for God and neighbor.

 

 

 

Amazing Grace how sweet the sound 

that saved a wretch like me.    

I once was lost but now am found.  

Was blind but now I see.

 

This familiar Christian hymn was composed by John Newton in the mid 1700’s. John was a notorious slave trader and he lived a life of immorality. In his own words he, “made it a study to seduce and tempt others to a life of debauchery”.    Early in John’s life his mother taught him Scripture, but she died when he was only seven.   His father, a merchant navy captain, took John with him, traveling the seas which led to the sinful practices in his life that were far away from God.

 

On one of the journey’s a huge storm had raged for 11 days.   The ship was battered, and one

side was almost completely destroyed. John, so exhausted from the storm, had to strap himself to the helm to keep safe.   Fighting the raging storm for eleven hours and fearing for his life John had much time to think about.  He realized his life was a wreck that was going down like the ship in the storm.   Recalling a Scripture, he learned from his mother it brought a change in his heart:

 

But since you refuse to listen when I call

and no one pays attention when I stretch out my hand, 

I in turn will laugh when disaster strikes you; 

Then they will call to me, but I will not answer.

 

John felt he was beyond hope and being saved.

 

As I prepared for this homily the first reading really stood out to me:

 

Seek the LORD while he may be found,

Call him while he is near.  

Let the scoundrel forsake his way, 

and the wicked his thoughts: 

let him turn to the LORD for mercy;

To our God, who is generous and forgiving.

 

The Prophet Isaiah prophesy was directed the lost sheep of Israel who were far from God to come back into a relationship with Him.   God’s response was one of mercy rather than vengeance for their misdeeds. 

 

I think all of us here are seeking the Lord, but we all know people who are not.   Many of them are our own family, friends, and co-workers.    How can we help them to seek the Lord?   How has God placed others in our lives to invite them to work in God’s vineyard? This may be hard for some of the people we know. They may be bitter from a past hurt and have turned away from God.    We may have a strained relationship with some of them due to disagreement that has gone unresolved.   They have traveled down the path of sin and destruction and their lives seem beyond hope of ever returning to a relationship with God.  Our thoughts may be like the first workers in the vineyard who answered the call and toiled the longest.    We’ve been close to God all our lives and receive our eternal reward for working hard in the vineyard. Why should someone who has been away from God for years living in sin receive the same reward when they’ve put little effort into it?   This seems unjust in our human way of thinking. 

 

But as we heard in Isaiah:

 

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, 

Nor are your ways my ways, says the LORD.

 

God generously offers his grace of mercy and forgiveness to those who seek him.  

When we call out to God it brings him great joy, especially for those who have been far away from him. He wants to be in relationship with us. This is amazing grace. This can be very hard for us to understand, but its’ Gods way.    

 

How can we be instruments of God’s love and mercy helping others to seek him out?   First, we can continue to seek the Lord ourselves and live following his ways.  Second, we can invite others to be in relationship with God.   One good way to start is to pray for those who don’t have that relationship.   For some people that may be the only thing we can do, but it’s the most important thing.   We may not be in a good relationship with them and can’t be the one has a direct influence on them.  But we can pray to God to place others in their lives who can do so.

  

If we do have relationship with them the best thing, we can do is be their friend, spending time with them, and getting to know them. This may be a challenge if their life is contrary to God’s ways. But if we seek out common interests that are appropriate, we can do this. It may be as simple as setting up a time to talk about a common interest as a sport, hobby, or their work. By spending time with them it shows that you care about them. A starting point to introduce God may be to offer a prayer for them if they are struggling with an issue in their life.  This may lead to an opportunity where eventually you can share your relationship with God and invite them to be in relationship as well. They may not have had anyone who has ever done so. We can be God’s instruments of mercy and forgiveness to invite others to work in the vineyard.

 

Returning to John Newton’s battle at sea, it seemed he was beyond saving.  But as the storm raged on, John’s thoughts turned to Christ transforming his life.  John turned to studying the Bible, prayer, and reading Christian literature. He tried to be a good example as a disciple of Christ for the sailors and slaves on ship.   He left slave-trading and later felt a call to ministry where he ministered for over 42 years preaching the Gospel of Christ in England.   He composed many hymns to support his ministry, one them being, “Amazing Grace”, which was a personal account of his own transformation. 

 

As we continue to seek the Lord and receive the Eucharist, lets pray for the grace help others to seek him as well.   Regardless of when we turn to the Lord or the sins we’ve committed, God will be generous in his mercy and forgiveness if we turn to him in sincerity with a contrite heart.  God’s grace is abundantly offered to all who seek the Lord.  

 

 

 

 

Entrusted with the Key to proclaim Christ - Homily, Week 21 Ordinary Time, Cicle A

 I have quite a few keys. In fact, I have so many keys that, I have two separate key rings. Keys are used to safeguard access to places that are important to secure, like your house, car, or safe deposit box. Keys are also given people who are trusted and have authority. I have a few of those keys for my job with the Archdiocese. Sometimes those keys come with the responsibility of making the right decisions. I pray for the Wisdom of the Holy Spirit to guide me in making the right decisions    

    In the Gospel today, Jesus gives Peter the key to the Kingdom of Heaven.  Why did the Lord give Peter this key?  Because Peter acknowledged Jesus as the Christ and the Son of God, revealed to him by the Father. Before this, Peter is known as Simon, but Jesus changed his name to Peter, which means rock to signify Peter’s role in leading the Church.  The Church is the kingdom of heaven on earth and Jesus entrusted Peter with the authority to lead his Church. Peter was called by God for this special role.   He did not ask for or volunteer for this role.   Jesus told Peter, that the gates of the netherworld would not prevail against the Church.   Today, 2000 years later, throughout all the trials and tribulations, the Church still stands to bring salvation to those who profess that Jesus is Christ and the Son of God.

What and who is the Church?   It is all of us who are called to proclaim the kingdom heaven to the world. In order for Kingdom thrive it needs a leader; otherwise those who oppose the kingdom will lead it astray.  Of course, Jesus Christ is our King, but he has also appointed Peter as his leader here on earth carry out his mission of salvation.   

When Jesus gave the keys to Peter, he gave him authority telling him, “whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”Jesus trusted Peter, even though he knew of his human flaws. If you read a few lines after today’s Gospel, Jesus chastises Peter because he doesn’t yet understand why Jesus must die on the Cross.  Peter also denies Jesus three times at his crucifixion as predicted by Jesus. Jesus did not expect Peter to be perfect in his leadership, but to be faithful. After the resurrection, Jesus forgives Peter asking him three times if he loves Jesus.  Peter confirms his love with Jesus telling him, “to Feed my lambs” and “Tend my sheep.” Affirming his leadership role for the Church

Peter’s successors, the Pope and bishops, carry out their responsibility in leading the global Church on earth. Within each diocese the bishops carry out a similar role in continually revealing who Christ is, the Son of God, through their teaching and administering the Sacraments.  Pope Francis and Archbishop Thompson are the two leaders we look to in leading the Church for us today. They are called by God to fulfill this role.  Will they make some mistakes? Like Peter, they are human, and they will make mistakes. But also, like Peter, they are faithful in proclaiming Jesus as our Savior. We can help and support them through our prayers.

The key of authority given to our bishops make the Sacraments possible.   These Sacraments sustain us and to help build up the kingdom of heaven. Our bishops are the only ones who can administer the sacrament of Holy Orders, ordaining bishops, priests, and deacons, and in doing so make possible all the other Sacraments, most importantly the Eucharist.   They also lead and teach us faith and morals of Christian living so we can bring others to faith in Christ.  They have a tough job to do in today’s world as many disagree with them, even many Catholics. We need to keep in mind Jesus called and entrusted Peter to lead His Church and this includes his successors, the Pope and our Bishops.  Please pray for Pope Francis, Archbishop Thompson, and all our bishops with the keys they’ve been entrusted with to lead the Church in revealing Christ as the Son of God and savior to the world.

In closing, I’d like to share a prayer that I pray daily for Pope Francis:

 

Lord, source of eternal life and truth, give to your shepherd, Francis, a spirit of courage and right judgement, a spirit of knowledge and love.  By governing with fidelity those entrusted to his care, may he, as successor to the Apostle Peter and Vicar of Christ, build your Church into a sacrament of unity, love, and peace for all the world.  We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your son who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God for ever and ever. Amen.