13th Sun of OT Year C Homily

We keep hearing the word "freedom" getting thrown around. We hear about the freedom that is present inside of our nation, the freedom that people want in their individual lives to not be told what to do with their own body, parents probably hear about the freedom that their children desire, we hear about the United States Council of Catholic Bishops and the Fortnight for Freedom, and today we hear Saint Paul speaking to the Galatians concerning freedom. We therefore must ask ourselves what freedom is and what freedom is not. We know in the words of Saint Paul and by proper reason that if we lack freedom we will find ourselves being slaves to something. The catechism states that freedom is "the power, rooted in reason and will, to act or not to act, to do this or that, and so to perform deliberate actions on one's own responsibility. By free will one shapes one's own life. Human freedom is a force for growth and maturity in truth and goodness; it attains its perfection when directed toward God, our beatitude."

From this paragraph from the catechism we can see that our pursuit towards our relationship with God is what brings about our freedom or our lack thereof. We often see our relationship to God in a harmful manner because through laws such as the commandments or the necessity to go to confession our freedom is being pulled away from ourselves and we become slaves. Instead of this harmful understanding of God and religion we should see the true reality of liberation that comes through the living out of the commandments and returning to the mercy of God in the Sacrament of Confession. To live out the commandments is to allow ourselves to become free because we are no longer being kept captive by the weight of the world. In prayer and within our relationship to the sacraments we begin to encounter God more and more and in return slowly remove all that holds us as slaves inside of this life until we are slowly set free in the name of Christ who is perfection itself.

The Evangelist Luke displays the freedom that Christ Himself had entered into by stating: "he resolutely determined to journey to Jerusalem." Christ fully understood what would await Him within the city of Jerusalem. He understood that this journey to Jerusalem would begin to unfold the reality of the cross to His life. He had the freedom to enter into the city and embrace the cross or to avoid this city and run from His relationship with His Father. He used His freedom to "resolutely determine" that His journey into Jerusalem would not bring about the slavery of death, but instead would open Him up to the freedom of love. If He would of "resolutely determined" to journey away from Jerusalem He would have chosen to become a slave to Himself and would of turned away from the freedom that would be displayed to world upon the cross. From Christ's wounded Hands spread out upon the cross we see the true meaning of freedom where love is both given and received.

In the true meaning of "freedom" we encounter Christ who approaches us with these words: "follow me." These words are not bestowed upon our ears in order for us to remain slaves to the world. Christ's response to each of these people who were concerned with discipleship was to liberate themselves from everything that was holding them back from it. We cannot allow ourselves to be enslaved by the false opinions of the world brought about by our lack of knowledge, laziness, sinfulness, fear, or lack of commitment to the Gospel of Christ. With these words we are not to go back with Elisha to the world, but instead are to embrace the message of Christ out of love. If we are to allow ourselves to truly become free we will never be slaves of any power but will always freely make ourselves servants to our brothers and sisters in the name of Christ. We will join Christ upon the summit of love that is the cross in offering ourselves out of love and by our true discipleship grow towards the freedom of God and away from slavery.

Freedom will never be found without Christ. Christ takes us and leads us towards freedom with His invitation to follow Him. Even if voices come to our ears that proclaim that this is freedom that is being offered we must test it to the image of Christ. To this image we must place the natural order of the world that must be respected in order for true freedom to be found. Life must always be held as sacred because it was given to us by God. Marriage was instituted so that man and woman could join together and become one flesh. The human person is not just mere flesh because we are all temples of the Holy Spirit. Each and every marital act must out of necessity retain its intrinsic relationship to the procreation of human life. Charity and pastoral care must be shown to all people because we have been transformed through our relationship to Christ. In Christ we will find the true spirit of freedom that will lead us away from the enslavement that comes when natural law is not followed.

This day may each of us grow in our freedom by drawing ourselves towards the beatific vision of God through prayer and our actions. May we be willing to follow after Christ submitting ourselves to Him, so that we can begin to truly be set free from all that enslaves us inside of this world. May we follow after the cross and the perfect offering of love that was bestowed upon the world through our relationship with all those whom we encounter. May we join in prayer during this Fortnight for Freedom that true freedom will be brought into the world instead of the enslavement that comes when we lose the sight of God and begin to act against natural law. Freedom is not something that we invent for ourselves or that the government bestows upon us. Freedom comes to us from God as a gift that is constantly calling each of us back into communion with Him.

12th Sun of OT Year C Homily

Through baptism we have entered into a profound relationship with Christ that calls us to continuously orient ourselves towards Him. In the reality that in baptism we have been clothed with Christ we entered into true liberation from sin and our uncleanness. These waters have taken us scattered in our common thought and have made us one in Christ Jesus. In this one faith that we share we must always be concerned with our faith and our ability to live it out faithfully from within the world. Our faith cannot be taken nonchalantly or be exiled to the Church alone. Instead the faith must become the expression of our very lives no matter if we are inside this Church, at school, at work, among our friends, or wherever we may be. To be one with Christ means that our lives circle around Him constantly in our thoughts and our deeds. When our thoughts or deeds begin to loosen its grasp from our relationship with Christ we must return to His mercy and trust in a spirit of grace and petition.

This spirit of grace and petition that was spoken about through the writings of the Prophet Zachariah is a must for all the baptized faithful. Petition is something that we must do if we will allow ourselves to have Christ placed at life's center. We often begin to make our prayers or petitions when we are in need of something, but are unable to endure each day in this necessary foundation of life. We should offer our prayer unceasingly in our lives no matter if we find ourselves at a moment of great joy or great sorrow. Prayer is our ability to trust in God and His divine love. We must always be willing to enter into this great gift that comes to us from God and be willing to leave all of our needs here. The moment that we allow our lives to become so complex and busy that we lack time for prayer we will be allowing ourselves to slowly erode our lives away from our relationship with Christ. We cannot allow our lives to fall apart in this manner, but must react to what was begun in baptism by allowing ourselves to return to Christ.

With the vigil of Saints John Fisher and Thomas More, which was celebrated this past Saturday, we began our Fortnight for Freedom. The Fortnight for Freedom is our ability to respond to our call that comes to us from our baptism and is our ability to join in the gift of prayer on behalf of our nation and the preservation of religious liberty. Currently within our country there exists many new laws which threaten our ability to proclaim the Gospel, but from our entering into the waters of baptism we must respond with our concern because we have put on the clothing of Christ. We must always be willing to enter into a spirit of prayer because it surrounds us with Christ and therefore we must do the same for this country that we love. "In the face of the many serious threats that we face concerning our religious liberty, the Church, cannot remain silent, nor can it cease to beg the Lord for our rights." In baptism we have all become one in Christ and must be concerned with the preservation of the Gospel message to the world.

Pope Benedict XVI said that religious liberty is the "most cherished of American freedoms," but firmly believed that this liberty was being weakened inside of the United States. Some of the issues that we currently face must be mentioned, so that we can be aware of what is taking place inside of our society. "The August 1st deadline to comply with the mandate of the Department of Health and Human Services for all employers, including the Church, to provide health insurance for contraception, sterilization, and abortion-inducing drugs. For more than a year, the bishops, Catholic citizens, and religious leaders of various faiths have attempted to work with the government to secure an exemption from the mandate. Unfortunately, the government has been unwilling to provide an exemption for the vast majority of faith-based organizations, including Catholic hospitals, universities, and charitable organizations."

In addition to the mandate, there are other threats to religious freedom: new laws which prohibit the Church from offering spiritual and charitable assistance to undocumented immigrants; laws that have effectively closed Church-run adoption agencies in Boston, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C. due to being unwilling to allow the adoption of children to same sex couples or unmarried opposite-sex couples who cohabit, after years of excellent performance by the Migration and Refugee Services in administering contract services for victims of human trafficking the federal government has changed its policy to require this organization to offer or refer for contraceptive and abortion services in violation of its Catholic teaching, and an expected Supreme Court decision that may attempt to redefine marriage in United States law.

As we begin this Fortnight for Freedom we must realize that it is our duty to defend the faith that we share. May each of us continue to educate ourselves in these areas, and be willing to speak to our representatives in order that our religious liberty may continue to be protected and defended, we can also offer acts of reparation such as meatless Fridays or fasting one day a week, and most importantly may we enter into prayer for this wonderful nation. This Fortnight for Freedom is not about politics, but is about God and our relationship to God. It is about our freedom and our ability to use it to give our loving service to Jesus Christ. Our baptism calls us to give this witness in our lives and no matter what this reality requires us to lose from our lives; may we be willing to do so in order that we may rise to newness of life and take up our crosses and follow after Christ.

St. Joseph & Eucharistic Prayer

"With Blessed Joseph, her Spouse," will now be included in Eucharistic Prayers II-IV. We should already notice this line from the Roman Canon because it was added to this Eucharistic Prayer in 1962 by Blessed John XXIII. This action was promulgated under the authority of Pope Francis and initially moved forward by Pope Benedict XVI. In hearing these words may we grow in our devotion to Saint Joseph and allow his fatherly care to be extended into our lives. 

Eucharistic Prayer II

Have mercy on us all, we pray,

that with the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God,

with blessed Joseph, her Spouse,

with the blessed Apostles,

and all the Saints who have pleased you throughout the ages,

we may merit to be coheirs to eternal life,

and may praise and glorify you

through your Son, Jesus Christ.

Eucharistic Prayer III

May he make of us

an eternal offering to you,

so that we may obtain an inheritance with your elect,

especially with the most Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God,

with blessed Joseph, her Spouse,

with your blessed Apostles and glorious Martyrs

(with Saint N.: the Saint of the day or Patron Saint)

and with all the Saints,

on whose constant intercession in your presence

we rely for unfailing help.

Eucharistic Prayer IV

To all of us, your children,

grant, O merciful Father,

that we may enter into a heavenly inheritance

with the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God,

with blessed Joseph, her Spouse,

and with your Apostles and Saints in your kingdom.

There, with the whole of creation,

freed from the corruption of sin and death,

may we glorify you through Christ our Lord,

through whom you bestow on the world all that is good.

10th Sun of OT Year C

Next weekend our Holy Father invites us to orient our prayers towards the lives of the aged, the sick, the dying, the unborn, the physically and mentally challenged, and the lives of all those who suffer. He especially invites us in doing so to reflect upon Blessed John Paul II's Evangelium Vitae, the Gospel of Life, which places its concern with the lives of all of these people. In our modern world we can see a loss towards the respect of the value of life which is seen through abortion, euthanasia, the death penalty, and all sins which are allowed to take hold within society. In this slow erosion of values we lose respect for children especially the unborn, we begin to see no value to suffering because all is about the present moment, we fail to see the human created in the image and likeness of God, and over time begin to find ourselves acting contrary to the Gospel of Life. In the week ahead Pope Francis challenges us to discover the importance of the Gospel of Life so that we can be concerned for all people.

Our Gospel opens us up to the mystery concerning life. In it we encounter this man who was stricken by death, but through the life giving touch of Christ had his humanity restored. We encounter those who carried his lifeless body and stand with awe with them as they encounter this life giving miracle of Christ. We also join with the woman who felt great pain with the loss of her only son and join with her joy at the reality that his life was restored. The Church Fathers attributed a lot of status to this woman because she was seen as the Church. In her tears are found the concern that the Church must have for all of the life of the faithful. The Church must remain concerned with those who find themselves in the state of sin and bring us to Christ to find mercy. The Church must also remain concerned for the well being of all of humanity, so that life can be protected and defended. We cannot silence the Church's voice from within society because she always walks along with us in our needs known and unknown and looks out for them.

Before his call to conversion Saint Paul was a great persecutor of the Church, but through his encounter with the risen Christ he found true meaning for his life. Despite the sins of his past he was given hope to turn away from his errors and follow constantly after the Gospel. This gospel that came to him was not of human origin, but came as a revelation from Christ. It was through this revelation that he was given his mission to spread the Gospel of Christ throughout the earth. This is the same mission that all of us must constantly be reminded of. This is especially reminded throughout the words of Evangelium Vitae. If we are to proclaim Christ from the midst of the world we will be proclaiming the message of life itself. We will be showing to the world that new life can bestowed upon us and that we all have the ability to leave the oldness of sin that brings death to our souls behind. As Christians we must be willing accept this within our lives and to fear not in our mission to proclaim and defend life always.

Elijah ,as a prophet of God, saw the great need that this woman had for her son to be saved. Elijah did not give up hope, but instead entered into the upper room to enter into a spirit of prayer. For us to discover the Gospel of Life we to must enter into a spirit of prayer allowing ourselves to open wide to a contemplative outlook towards life. In this outlook we can begin to see life as the gift that it truly is because all of creation is a reflection of God. With this understanding we can begin to truly revere and honor every person. God as the creator and bestower of all life constantly calls us to be alive with our joy of celebrating within eternal life. We enter into this great joy each time that we share in the Sacraments of the Church because they bring us into communion with God the giver of all life. Through prayer and the Sacraments we should enter and more each day into this reality and should allow our hearts to enter into this participation to grow in our awe and wonder at the gift of life.

Through our participation in the glory of life that comes from God we are all called to respect human life and dignity. We can answer this call to accept the Gospel of Life by allowing its message to enter into our own families. The family is able to answer this call through prayer and the raising of children within the faith. As a family the concept of the gift of self can be shown and lived out displaying the reality that we do not exist to chase after our own pleasures. Within the family the faith can be fostered and all can begin to see the true meaning of suffering and death. In the family can prayer be fostered where we are thankful for the gift of life, glorify God, and in the midst of pain and suffering be given the strength to endure with hope. The family is the "sanctuary of life" and within this world it must be fostered and protected within our own homes. The woman of our Gospel was concerned for her own family and desired that it would have life bestowed upon it.

This day may each of us desire to join with this woman's hope for life. May we foster the Gospel of life within our own homes and allow the life that is found there to spread out into the world. It is our mission as Christians to always be concerned with the Gospel of Life and we must be willing to share this Gospel with the world. We must be willing to see that all life is sacred no matter how young or old. Let us not become overburdened at those moments when we must face the reality of suffering, but instead orient ourselves with hope towards Christ who is always willing to restore us to life. For us to be pro-life is to contribute to the "renewal of society" because we are concerned with the common good where the dignity of the human person is always respected and defended. In our celebration of life may we always give praise to the Lord who has rescued us from death and brought us to new life.

Corpus Christi Year C Homily

We often allow ourselves to get stuck inside of the present moment without being able to see what may lie beyond. I believe this Gospel sums that fact up well through the feeding of the multitude that was present. We might conclude that Christ saw their physical need to be nourished and therefore put the apostles in motion to take care of their physical needs. This of course is true, but Christ was not only concerned about their physical health through His desire for them to be fed. Christ also had the desire to give their souls the spiritual nourishment necessary to live their life of faith. We on this Solemnity of Corpus Christi are reminded of the importance of the Body and Blood of Christ. The Holy Eucharist should not leave us stuck inside of the present moment, but instead make us realize that we are entering into something very profound within the life of faith. Not only do our bodies receive nourishment through the Eucharist, but our souls also receive the nourishment necessary to live the life of faith.

If we analyze anything that lives we know that it must receive the nourishment that is proper to it. A plant is living and thus must receive water and the sun in order to stay alive. Animals must also eat and drink or in time they will die due to a lack of nourishment. Humans are able to take things farther because we can decide for ourselves what we will eat or what we will not eat. No matter our development of tastes we to must eat and drink or in time we will perish from a lack of nourishment. Christ is taking this further inside of our Gospel because our soul needs to receive nourishment as well. We cannot walk through our life only caring about our physical needs, but also must be concerned with our spiritual well being. We must be concerned with giving nourishment to our souls in order that we may continue to journey along this path of faith. To allow ourselves to truly enter into the life of faith through proper preparation to receiving the Eucharist can assist us in giving life to our souls through spiritual nourishment.

On the Evening of the Last Supper Christ took bread in His sacred hands and looking up to Heaven said the blessing. He then distributed the Eucharist not saying take this bread and wine, but by saying this in my body and blood. This statement of faith sums up the foundation of our faith. Without the Eucharist holding us together here on earth as one body of faith we would be lost inside of the plethora of religious opinions which exist inside of the world. The Eucharist is the reminder that this is the Church that was instituted not by man, but by Christ Himself. Christ understood that His time upon this earth was quickly coming to an end. He knew that He would soon be crucified upon the cross to bring salvation into our lives. With His knowledge that these events were going to unfold He did not want leave us alone, but extended the Eucharist into our lives. Christ through this gesture was able to see not only our physical need for bodily nourishment, but was also able to give us spiritual nourishment.

The Second Vatican Council refers to the Eucharist as the source and summit of our faith. This means that the very life of the Church rotates around Christ's Body and Blood. The Church can never cease to distinguish itself with the Eucharist because to do so would cause ourselves to become disconnected from Christ. All of us here must reflect upon the status of the Holy Eucharist in our lives and within our families. Do we always allow the Eucharist to be the center of our lives or do we come here nonchalant and expecting to receive something because it is what everyone else does? The fact that we are not receiving mere bread and wine, but instead are receiving the very Body and Blood of Christ should call us all to a deeper devotion. This devotion should spread out from the Eucharist that we receive into the very way that we react within the world. To receive the Eucharist always calls us back to Christ in order that we may be continuously nourished spiritually.

We must ask ourselves how we can continue to grow in our devotion to the Eucharist each day. This parish is very blessed with perpetual adoration which is the perfect opportunity to find peace and quiet within this loud world in order to place ourselves in the midst of the quiet of Christ. Christ is truly present inside of the Blessed Sacrament of the Altar, but through our many excuses to why we have no time to spend here we must question our faith inside of the Eucharist. To just enter the Blessed Sacrament chapel or this Church where Christ is present and to spend a few minutes in prayer is the perfect way to begin to foster this devotion to the Eucharist. To realize that our parish offers Perpetual Adoration and is always in need of more adorers and to answer that call with the sacrifice of our time could begin to unlock our hearts to grow in the splendor of God. Sunday at 3pm we will have the opportunity to partake in a Eucharistic Procession where we will make a public witness of our faith and the importance that the Eucharist plays in our lives. May this time be a time of renewal for all of us that we may continually nourish our souls spiritually.

If we can follow after the words of the Second Vatican Council and allow the Eucharist to become the source and the summit of our lives we will allow the Eucharist to be placed at life's center. We will allow ourselves to rotate around the Eucharist as this planet rotates around the sun. Without the sun this planet was be lost and so is our lives without the Eucharist. With the Eucharist placed at life's center we will find the never ending challenge towards conversion. May we allow ourselves to be spiritually fed this day by the Body and Blood of Christ and may we react to its reception by our devotion and daily conversion. May we no longer allow ourselves to be stuck inside of the present moment, but realize the Eucharist transcends time and place and gives hope to our lives through its worthy reception,