Holy Family Year B Homily

Merry Christmas to all of you! Today we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. The celebration of this feast is always most important for us because it serves as a reminder of the Holy Family and thus how our own families on this earth should be centered around them. In our world today we see a shortage of vocations: vocations to the religious life and priesthood, but we also cannot forget placing vocations to marriage on this list. We also see families who have grown apart to the point where individuals live within a home instead of a family who is drawn together. We are given the impression that for those who do enter into marriage that it can easily be thrown away with divorce, or that in order to truly get to know someone you must live with them first outside of the bonds of marriage.

When we reflect upon the Holy Family one of the many things that we should envision is love. The Holy Family had a profound sense of love not only for each other, but most importantly they had a love for God from which all the actions of their life flowed. The Holy Family never attempted to live out the family life exempt from their love for God, but instead this love for God was always placed front and center in their life. How was it then that God chose to dwell among us in the Incarnation? He chose to come as a child, poor and defenseless, born to a woman, and entered into the love of a family. Here He gave us a foreshadowing of how all of our love should be a participation of the love that is found in the three Persons of the Holy Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. As we observe in our Gospel in the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple; Mary and Joseph were dedicated to their faith and thus to God when they brought their Son to be presented in the temple as is prescribed by Jewish law. May our families too decide not to dedicate themselves to the passing things of this world, but instead to be dedicated to love for God and His Law which allows us to live freely.

One of the questions I always ask a couple who I am preparing for the Sacrament of Marriage is what is the Domestic Church? At this question I am usually met with the eyes of a deer staring into headlights because they have no clue what this means. I believe one of the greatest challenges to the family life in this day and age is caused from the breakdown of the Domestic Church. We think that Church is the hour that we spend here and it should be segregated from the other 167 hours of the week. If this is the case it is no wonder why children no longer practice the faith, it is no wonder why marriages begin to fall apart, it is no wonder why we live in a vocation crisis on all levels, and it is no wonder why society no longer wants to speak of God. The Domestic Church is to live out what is found within the Holy Family which is a love directed towards God in all things. It is to promote prayer in the home among the family, it is to attend the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass together, it is to go to confession coming as a family, it is to pray before the Blessed Sacrament as a family, it is to promote vocations within the home, it is to educate children in the faith more so then dropping them off for Religious Education on a Wednesday night, and most importantly it is to have a love for God and His Son Jesus Christ, who came to dwell among us in the second Person of the Holy Trinity; as we celebrate in this Christmas season.

One practice that many families have is to request a priest to come over and bless their home. At the home the priest offers a prayer of blessing and then moves throughout the home blessing each room with Holy Water. This is an important statement of faith because through this blessing the family is asking that everything that takes place within these walls may be directed towards their love for God. The water sprinkled serves as a reminder of baptism and thus the commitments that were made to God on that day. The commitment was not live out life as if it were unchanged, but instead it was a commitment to be dedicated to God in all things.

The struggles to the family life are indeed abundant within this society, but they can be overcome with our sight directed towards the love of God. The Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph serve as a testimony to this truth. May we allow ourself to follow after them and the love that sends them forth to discover what it truly means to be a family held in communion with each other by God. Yes, hardships will arise within our life and within this world, but despite all of these hardships God took on our human flesh and came to dwell among us and in return sanctified the family life to be the path that would lead souls to discover Him and thus to be lead into Heaven. May we indeed allow ourself to follow after this path of love that has been opened wide to us by the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph.

Christmas Homily

Merry Christmas to all of you. Christmas is known as being a night of peace. It was in the lowliness of a manger that Christ our Lord came to dwell among us to usher this peace into the world. Here we discover He who is known as the Word made flesh, which means that God in the event known as the Incarnation took on our humanity and thus came to dwell with us. We refer to this as being a night of peace which is further reflected in the encounter that the shepherds had with Christ. They were found by angels going about the busyness of their everyday life, but they were called to encounter the peace and solace of a little child found in a manger. We to live a life that is busy and which is also filled with many set backs along the way. Our world is filled with injustice, we only have to look at the news to see that this is so, but despite this God takes on human flesh and dwells with us this day to usher peace and joy into our life and into the world.

I have heard this story told many times at Christmas Mass, but today does mark the 100th anniversary of the unofficial Christmas truce of 1914. This truce took place during World War I when soldiers from both sides promised to stop fighting for one night. Instead of battling each other they called truce on Christmas where they joined together to sing "Silent Night." In one soldiers' diary we are told: "Germans shout over us and ask us to play football, and also not to fire and they would do likewise." Another solider would go on to state: "You have no idea how pleasant everything seems with no rifle bullets or shells flying about." Indeed through the coming of the Messiah the world can and does discover peace. The reality that we proclaim today is that God took on our human flesh and thus came to dwell with us.

It should be hard for us to fathom the reality that we proclaim today. So many desire to become God themselves by the way that they live their life searching after passions and anything which one perceives may be able to make them happy. Some may say we have to keep trying over and over again at this life until we get it right through our own merit as is displayed through the belief of reincarnation. But, what we celebrate today is far different from these two philosophies because for the first time in human history we are able to proclaim through the coming of Christ that God desired to lower Himself to us in all things but sin, by becoming one of us. Through this reality we are not left to work out our salvation for ourself nor are we left to be God for ourself because we lack a standard towards which we should orient our life. By God taking on our humanity we are given the aid that is necessary to overcome all the struggles that life may present and we are also given a standard of how life should be lived out if we are ever to claim that we have lived it to its fullest.

What was is it then that the shepherds or the wise men encountered, but a little child who has been born into the world in the lowliness of a manger. This little child is God in the second person of the Holy Trinity and yet He is found in a manger left poor and defenseless, here He lacks a great palace and Kingdom, here He cannot feed Himself nor can He speak, but He whom shepherds adore and angels sing is truly God made man. Here and now we each give our own response to what we encounter here, by the way that we orient our life towards Him. We are found here at this Church keeping Christ in Christmas and also the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass in Christmas. We are found here with hearts that desire to be filled with the hope and joy that He alone can usher into the world. This hope and joy could never have been found if God never desired to take on our humanity. Yes, He came here in order to free us from our sin, but He also came here out of love for us in order to elevate us towards Him. According to Blessed John Duns Scotus: "God would have become man even if Adam had not sinned, since He willed that in Christ humanity and the world should be united with Himself by the closest possible bond."

Indeed God is love because He desired for us to be united with Him by the fact that He was willing to take on our lowliness. God is love because He realized that there was no other way to atone for the sin that had entered into the world except through the offering of His Son as the perfect sacrifice that was made once and for all. By God taking on our human flesh He ushered joy and hope into a world that had been cast into darkness. With this coming light that is the Word made flesh the whole world now rejoices because it Has been released from its bonds to darkness. Despite the pains that we encounter in our life or see within this world brought about due to the effects of sin, suffering, or loss we know that it is Christ alone who has come to redeem us and to elevate each of these hardships that we endure to a greater purpose where in   time peace and joy will once again spring forth from the darkness.

As we depart from this Church this day we must remember the Christmas message and thus the great love that God continues to shower down upon us. After today most of the world will forget about the sacred mysteries of our faith that have been celebrated here today and will move onto the next secular holiday. We must remember that Christmas does not end here today, but instead the season only begins here and extends on for us until the Baptism of our Lord. We must remember Christ who we encounter today in the lowliness of a manger and thus never forget that our whole life should follow in adoration to Him as the shepherds and magi were able to do. We must also remember this Holy Sacrifice of the Mass that we have assisted with and thus never forget its importance in our daily life because it is here alone where we come to join our prayers and our needs to Christ's salvific act upon the cross and it is here alone where we come to be nourished by the Holy Eucharist which is truly Christ's Body and Blood. May we continue to rejoice during this Christmas season at the hope and the joy that is ushered into the world through God's great love for us. This hope and this joy can be found nowhere except through the love that God shows us by taking on our human flesh in Christ our Lord whom we adore this night.

4th Sunday of Advent Homily (Extraordinary Form)

From the period that stretches from December 17th through the the 23rd we use in the course of our liturgy that which is known as the "O antiphons." These short verses that are used during this seven day period prior to Christmas testify to what was heard during our alleluia verse: " Come, O Lord, and tarry not: forgive the sins of Thy people Israel." The "O antiphons" point to the reality that all of creation is now longing for the coming of the Messiah who will come to dwell with each of us in the town of Bethlehem. They are a statement that all of salvation history is pointing the way towards God who would take on human flesh in the second person of the Holy Trinity. It is only through this reality that we can be saved, so may we continue to grow in our own anticipation of the Lord's coming.

With each of the "O antiphons" that are given something more is revealed concerning the one who is to come. The seven statements that are pointed out concerning Christ are: (1) Wisdom, (2) Lord, (3) Root of Jesse, (4) Key of David, (5) Dayspring, (6) King of the Nations, and finally (7) God. Also, if you are to take the first letters of these words as they are written in Latin you will receive the Latin word: "Ero Cras" "Tomorrow, I will be there." These expressions therefore reveal the nature of the coming of the Messiah and help us to see that from the very beginning it was He who would come to deliver us from our sin as is stated in the second half of our alleluia verse: "forgive the sins of Thy people Israel."

The use of the word "wisdom" reveals that Christ was the Word who was with His Father from the very beginning. In other words we can say that there was never a time when the Word did not exist. "Lord" is a word attributed by the Jewish people to God which further reflects for us the many covenants worked out in human history, and how it is Christ who is the fulfillment of all of these covenants. In the burning bush the Lord appeared to Moses and would go onto lead the Israelites out of slavery as Christ comes to liberate us from our bondage towards sin. It is from the royal line of David that Christ comes to us, so therefore we refer to Him as the "Root of Jesse" which further points out that He will come among us to die upon the tree of the cross. "Key of David" points towards the passing of the keys of a Kingdom which ultimately are handed down to our true king, Christ, who comes into the world to reign in a manger. "Dayspring" points that we are held down in the darkness of our sin and therefore we now turn East towards Christ who brings light to penetrate into the darkness of our sin. Again much like Saint John the Baptist who entered into the barrenness of a desert to bestow the word of life on all people who would hear the Good News of the one who is to come. Next we come to profess Christ to be our King and then we finally acknowledge the one that we await is not a mere human, but instead is God who took on human flesh and came to dwell among us to offer Himself upon the cross in atonement for our sin.

In these days that lie ahead we join with all of creation that is now longing for the coming of its savior. We stand in the course of salvation history and realize that it is Christ alone who signals peace and joy to a world that has been touched by the opposite. With each day that passes we should long even more to come and encounter Christ for who He truly is; in all of His peace and joy. The world is longing to discover this peace and joy of Christ even if it is not currently aware of it. May we not rush through these last few days of Advent and may we truly allow ourself to not pass by the Season of Christmas as if it were only one day. Instead may we further prepare for the coming of the Lord by making straight our path and thus coming to discover the one for whom we now wait. Here alone will every sin, disappointment, injustice, and fear be calmed because this is the one whom all scripture points towards. May we always long for the peace and joy that is contained here alone.  

3rd Sunday of Advent Year B Homily

Saint John the Baptist came "to testify to the light." We rejoice in the Lord always because of this light that has entered into the darkness of the night through Christ our Lord. The world was plunged into darkness when our Lord died upon the cross, but this darkness could not prevail due to the light of the Resurrection. At the Easter Vigil this reality is pointed towards because the Mass begins in total darkness and from that darkness comes the light of a flame which spreads throughout the Church allowing light to triumph over the darkness. In Bethlehem our savior was born in the darkness of the night which signaled for us this great light that had entered into the world. From the Fall the world was cast into darkness, but from the coming of Christ the world would be restored to its proper light. It therefore is no mistake that Advent is celebrated at this time of the year because our days are short and the darkness comes early in the day, but with the coming of Christ we know that the light will overcome this darkness.

The season of Advent is about having Christian hope that no matter what is taking place in our life or world that it will be overcome by Christ's coming. No matter how difficult the burden that has been placed upon us in this life; it will be Christ who will come to take that yoke upon Himself. For many this time of year reflects a period of darkness possibly brought about from the loss of a loved one. We are reminded of Christmas memories long past and are forced to face the reality that comes with change. This is tough, but again it is Christ who testifies to the light and thus it is He alone who can heal us from the pain that we feel in our heart. We can attempt to fill that which is dark with many things, but that will never bring about true light. We must have a candle or a light in order to reverse the darkness. Christ is that great light that desires to come and set straight our path towards Him.

Therefore this third Sunday of Advent is often referred to as Guadete Sunday which is a Latin word for "rejoice." We are to "rejoice always" because this Sunday serves as a reminder that He is coming soon. As we have now moved throughout this Advent season for these past couple of weeks we are to see that the end is in sight. With this end in sight we are given small glimpses into what is to come with the joy of Christ's coming. The penitential character of the Advent season is relaxed on this day in order that we may rejoice with the reality of the coming of that great light into a world that has been touched by darkness. Through these relaxations we are able to see glimpses into what is to come with Christ's coming. For example flowers are not to be used throughout the Advent season, but today we are able to use a few flowers to decorate which shows how life springs up from that which has been left barren.

May we rejoice always because that which has been left barren will be restored to life by the coming light that is Christ. As we continue to move towards this light our parish will offer the perfect opportunity to enter into Christmas joy. This opportunity is our parish penance service in which nine priests will be present to hear confessions and thus to absolve sin. A lot of darkness and barrenness is found through the sins that we hold onto, but through confession our soul can be brought towards light and can be restored to life. We are not the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, and so I must ask why we allow the devil to so often fool us into believing that we are like the Blessed Mother and thus without sin. Each of us sin and enter into the darkness of it, but we do not have to be mastered by it because God desires to wrap us "with a robe of salvation" through the Sacrament of Confession. If we believe we have the right to receive Christ present in Holy Communion this day we should also realize that Confession is not just a suggestion for self help, but instead it is a must to be restored to the light of Christ.

Therefore I invite each of you to continue to rejoice at the Lord's coming. May we not be caught off guard by it, but instead be found ready by the setting straight of our path. It can seem like our life is too dark to bear at times, but again I invite you to continue to rejoice at the Lord's coming. That which is dark will be conquered by the light of Christ. The greatest place that darkness can be found is through our own sin because our sin is a rejection of God's love. We do not have to be content with this state in our life because the Sacrament of Confession heals the state of our soul; especially that which has been left for dead by the presence of mortal sin. I invite each of you to not run at the sight of the brightness that comes with Christ's coming, but instead to rejoice always in it as we head to Confession to be restored to the splendor of this light and are also given the grace to be protected from these temptations. May we indeed "rejoice always" as we continue to prepare for the coming light which will bring light into the darkness of our life.

Immaculate conception Homily

The preface that will be used at this Mass refers to the Blessed Mother as : "a model of holiness." This is a most important statement for us to understand because so many often claim that devotion to our Blessed Mother is not important. Others might claim that devotions such as the Rosary or even having Holy Days of Obligation set aside for our Blessed Mother takes away from devotion to Christ to whom all of our devotion should flow. It is sad to hear this because our Blessed Mother is most important throughout the plan of salvation history. It is sad to hear this because she never claims all of this devotion and honor for herself, but instead through our devotion to her we are raised into union with her Son, Jesus Christ. It is sad to hear this because after all she is a model for holiness. Devotion to her and to her Immaculate Heart will lead us towards holiness.

What took place in the Garden of Eden was our surrender to sin. From the actions of Adam and Eve each of us have in return been touched by Original Sin. From their actions the gates of Heaven were closed, but thankfully God's plan for salvation did not end here. Instead God took on human flesh in the Incarnation and as we now prepare during this Advent season came to dwell with each of us on Christmas Day. Thanks to the great gift that Christ would offer on our behalf upon the cross; the sin that entered into the world through Adam and Eve could not reign supreme. It was conquered by Christ's gift of Himself which should in return make us realize that any sin that is present in our life cannot reign supreme because Christ has already ushered His mercy and forgiveness into a world that has been touched by sin. This is the story of salvation history and therefore we must realize the important role that the Immaculate Conception plays in all of this.

The Immaculate Conception means that Mary was conceived free from the state of sin, this includes original sin. This is important because if she was stained by the state of sin even original sin; Christ would of entered into the world through an impure vessel and thus He to would of taken on the state of sin. The Immaculate Conception was not brought about due to any merit on the behalf of Mary, but instead this was an action that God made on her behalf. It is through the work of God that Mary was conceived free from the state of sin because she was chosen among all women to be the pure vessel that would bring Christ into this world. Thus she is known as the Godbearer; not because she created God in the first person of the Trinity, but instead because she gave birth to Christ who is God made man. Therefore her "yes" to the angel Gabriel is most important because it resounds down to all generations our salvation and points out towards us a path which leads towards holiness.

We know that our own life and that which we see played out around us is far from being the perfect realization of the Kingdom of God. Sin exists and it is real. The greatest lie that the devil can ever lead us to believe is that he is not real because when we become confused on this fact we become confused on the existence of sin. When we become confused on sin's existence we fall into it to the point where we lose hope that we can ever crawl back out of it. Through the reality of the Fall we encounter so many pressures in our daily life. Nevertheless, may we not lose the hope of God's coming Kingdom which has been won for us through the cross. It is from the cross that Jesus Christ now reigns victorious as the new Adam and it is from Her "yes" that Mary now reigns victorious as the new Eve. Sin and death have been conquered and now we are left to look towards the Kingdom of Heaven which has been opened to us.

May we look towards our Blessed Mother this day for she is the new Eve. She desires to lead us along a path towards holiness which will ultimately lead us to encounter her Son, Jesus Christ. Devotion to our Blessed Mother is most important because it elevates our ability to love towards God. In all things may God be glorified and may we carry out this task through our Blessed Mother and her Immaculate Heart. May we truly allow her to be "a model for holiness" in all that we carry out in our daily life.   

2nd Sunday of Advent Year B Homily

Deserts are known as being vast and barren places. When one looks out into a desert they usually do not see any vegetation, but instead only the sand that lays below. Deserts are known for being hot and for the fact that they usually do not get any rain which leads to this lack of vegetation that is found there. For these reasons deserts are not usually associated with life. They instead are associated with this barrenness that has overtaken that particular part of the world. In today's Gospel we encounter Saint John the Baptist, who came to the desert to preach a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. In other words he came into the lives of those who were barren to bring the message of new life into their hearts and souls.

Pope Benedict XVI instructs us concerning this passage: “Through the Gospel John the Baptist continues to speak down the centuries to each generation. His hard clear words bring health to us, the men and women of this day in which even the experience and perception of Christmas often, unfortunately, reflects materialist attitudes. The 'voice' of the great prophet asks us to prepare the way for the coming Lord in the deserts of today, internal and external deserts, thirsting for the water of life which is Christ."

This is what is at the heart of the Advent season of which we find ourself currently in the midst of the second week of. Advent is not about arriving at Christmas as if we were left barren and lacking the water of life that flows to us from Christ. Instead Advent is about discovering this water of life and inviting it to further penetrate into our own life. In this manner we will not arrive at Christmas as if we were left barren and dead in our faith, but instead we will arrive there alive and well. If we waste away the days that are left inside of this season, as if they were only mundane days, we can never expect to discover this change in our life. Saint John the Baptist did not come onto the scene telling people to take their time to convert to Christ, but instead he preached to them a message of great urgency. This message that Saint John the Baptist has extended to us today is indeed a very urgent message. May we heed his words in order that new life may indeed come into all the barren places that currently exist in our life.

Therefore today we should ask ourself where it is that our life has become a vast and barren desert that is in need of the water of life that only Christ can usher into our life. Maybe we realize that our practice of faith has grown stale over the years to where in all truth it is currently found dead. Possibly, our life is filled with so many distractions ranging from television, games, or the internet to the point where we never actually, if we are honest with ourself, make TIME for prayer. If we do not make prayer a priority in our life we cannot claim that we are found alive in our practice of faith because in all actually we are dead. As Catholics we must also ask what role the Holy Eucharist plays in our life. So many come forward to receive our Lord present in the Blessed Sacrament of the Altar, but do not take the time to fathom the great fact that they are not receiving a symbol, but instead God Himself found in this most wondrous Sacrament. The Eucharist is the well spring of life and therefore we should center our life around it instead of around the many distractions that exist inside of the world that ultimately leave us barren.

May Advent not become just another day and season for us. Instead may we see our life that has grown vast and barren, and present what is found here to Christ who is the author of all life. Through our merits the vastness of a desert can never be healed, but through the grace that is freely given from God this can and will be conquered. May we never lost hope or allow ourself to grow tired in our practice of faith. Indeed the path that leads us towards Bethlehem is vast and long, but so to was the path that led our Lord towards Calvary. It is important that we endure these paths because they both lead us towards discovering Christ for who He truly is. Both of these paths do not leave us to be found barren and dead, but instead they usher us into the true meaning of life that is free from all the distractions that impede us from our relationship with Christ. Therefore today may we make straight the path for the Lord instead of so often following those paths that ultimately leave us lost, barren, and dead in our practice of faith.

1st Sunday of Advent Year B Homily

With this Sunday we begin our new liturgical year and also the season of Advent. It was last Sunday where we came to profess Christ to be our King and thus now as we look ahead towards that little town of Bethlehem we profess that it is Christ the King of Peace who will come to dwell here in a manger. We thankfully have the opportunity to know where we are headed and therefore we should not waste the days that lay ahead to not allow ourself to be drawn towards the peace that will be ushered into the world through the birth of Christ. With the days that have been set before us in this Advent season we must feel compelled to be transformed to match the peace that Christ brings into the world on Christmas day.

But where is this peace to be found? We can think of countless examples within the world where a lack of peace is found. We know of ISIS and people being beheaded due to their religion or nationality. Even here in our own country we can think of Ferguson, MO where cop cars have been set on fire and a war seems to ensue on a nightly basis between protesters and police. Even on the local basis many people struggle with finding a home or even having food to eat. You only have to head to Saint Joseph's food pantry on a Wednesday morning to see that this is so. There is war against the unborn because children are not given the rite to life. There is war against women because there are those whose human dignity has been diminished to the point where they are not loved, but instead are trapped in the selling of their body as a object. Indeed through these injustices that exist and the many that go unnamed we can ask where is the peace of Christ to be found?

Now for the hard part which is to point the finger inward to ourself and ask in what ways we have led towards this lack of peace that is found within the world. Thus to ask ourself where it is that we are torn apart on the inside through a lack of peace. Maybe we turn the other way at the sight of the poor and judge them with our thoughts. Maybe we have become so delusioned with pride that we always find ourself judging everything and thus treating others as if they are always lesser then us. Maybe we have a poor practice of faith where besides this hour spent at Mass we never find ourself entering into the silence of prayer. Maybe we have become trapped in a fantasy reality through the use of the internet, where through the media that we consume, we fail to serve God who is found within each human person. These are all manifestations that show a lack of peace that is present within our life and thus we are left to ask ourself once more; if these manifestations are present how can we ever claim to know the peace of Christ?

From Saint Paul's Letter to the Corinthians we are extended the peace of Jesus Christ. During this season of Advent this is the peace that we are preparing to receive on Christmas morning. Christ ushers peace into the world because He is God who took on human flesh and was willing to die upon the cross in order to set us free from our enslavement towards sin. For this very reason we must always remain on watch. We do not want to be caught off guard through our lack of preparation because if we are our found lacking peace in our heart we have already come to banish Christ from our midst instead of actually inviting Him in to come and to dwell with us. In the days following Thanksgiving we have a lot we prepared for: Black Friday and Christmas decorations, but instead of placing so much effort into this we must prepare for Christmas and remember that we are in Advent and therefore are not there yet.

The gatekeeper was left on watch because He had to only let the master in and nothing that could be found harmful. We to must remain on watch because we should only allow the peace of Christ to enter in and to never allow in anything that impedes upon this peace. Advent is a time that has been side aside to truly give us the assistance that we need in order to discover the peace that we desire. May we during this season not forget to stay on watch, but instead may we remember Christ the King of Peace who desires to enter into our life. To prepare for His coming one could attend one of the daily Masses through the week, one should go to Confession, one could pray with their family each day before an Advent wreath, one could volunteer to give assistance to Saint Joseph's Food Pantry or the White Elephant, parents could give their children Advent calendars, and of course we need to pray and fast in order that we may be found faithfully on watch for Christ's coming. May we truly allow Christ the King of Peace to come and to bring us comfort!

Christ the King Year A Homily

On this Solemnity of Christ the King we must take a moment to ask which Kingdom it is that we serve. In our parable of the separation of the sheep from the goats we are shown the urgency that is presented with this question. This question is urgent because it makes us realize that the only thing that we are entitled to receive in this life is death; not a nice house, car, and lots of money. The Church displays this urgency for us through the use of the liturgical calendar because today is the final Sunday of the liturgical year. This reality proclaims to us that death is near and thus we must be concerned with the four last things: death, judgement, Heaven, and Hell. No matter how young or old that we are, no matter how healthy or not we are; we must be reminded of the words of sacred scripture that inform us that "you do not know the time nor the hour."

Through the answer that we give to this question we will profess if we follow after the Kingdom of Light or after the Kingdom of Darkness. It is through this Kingdom of Light that we allow ourself to give proper adoration, glory, and praise to this King who is Christ our Lord.  Within the Kingdom of Darkness many have done the opposite and in return have closed themselves off from receiving the mercy and forgiveness that Christ bestows upon the world. Keeping the sheep with the goats throughout the night would of been a terrible idea; the crowd hearing this parable would of knew that. This is so because goats by their nature are aggressive and territorial and thus they would of gotten angry at the sheep and thus would do then harm. They had to be separated due to the consequences that were brought about from their actions. By their actions they were judged.

Thus to it will be by our actions that we will be judged. The actions of our life hold consequences for us. For example if we were to trip and fall bracing ourself when we do by reaching out our hand; it will probably break. Thankfully this bone can be healed, but in order to get there it takes a lot of work and time. Without this necessary work and time invested in our arm we will always be left with nothing more then a broken arm. Therefore our sin, our failure to love our neighbor, and thus too our failure to love God holds consequences for us that are real. By our actions we will be judged, but thankfully Christ the King is also merciful. He desires to heal us from the brokenness of our life. He desires to shed the grace of His mercy upon us in order that we too may be healed and thus be found worthy of His wondrous Kingdom. May we not stand in the way through our own territorialness and aggressiveness that cuts us off from allowing Christ to purify our heart and mind and thus to allow our life to change to follow after Him.

We profess on this day that it is Christ who is our King. We profess that anyone or anything in the world is not greater then Christ our King. What He establishes for each of us is a Kingdom that will never pass away unlike the many unjust kingdoms who follow not after Him. In time those kingdoms will come to pass away and Christ our King, as we were reminded in Corinthians, will use His enemies as His footstool. This solemnity was placed onto our liturgical calendar to serve as a reminder that we may come to realize our world is truly in need of this King and thus we should invite Him to enter into our life each day in order that we may submit not to the way of sin, but instead to the way of our Savior. From Pope Pius XI who established this feast: "the people of that time - had thrust Jesus Christ and his holy law out of their lives."

As this liturgical year comes to an end, and as we prepare ourself for the coming of Christ the King during the Advent season, may we truly ask ourself which Kingdom it is that we serve. Our actions, indeed, hold consequences, but nevertheless, our Lord is merciful. He desires to shower us with the grace of His mercy especially within the Sacrament of Confession. It is here that sinners come to do the work that is required of them to be healed. With the reality that death is always set before our eyes may we not run towards the Kingdom of Darkness, but instead the Kingdom of Light. It is towards the Kingdom of Light that we should draw close because here alone will we encounter a true Kingdom which will never pass away. In this manner may we come to shout over all of our sin, loss, and disappointments, as well as every injustice that we see within this world: "Viva Cristo Rey!" "Long live Christ the King!"

23rd Sunday After Pentecost Homily (Extraordinary Form)

In our Gospel we encounter two who come with great faith to behold the Messiah, firstly the ruler and secondly the woman. The ruler was used to having people kneel before him, but now through faith he knelt before our Lord in adoration. This woman was condemned by the weight of the Law due to her discharge of blood, but through faith she grabbed ahold of our Lord expressing the fact that it was He who had come to bring true healing into the world. Both of these individuals expressed their great faith in Jesus Christ and thus the fact that it was He would truly bring healing into a world that had been touched by sin.

These people of great faith were not the only individuals who we encountered inside of this Gospel. We also encounter a multitude of people who were eventually cast our from the midst of Christ. Firstly, we encounter them through the tumult that these individuals were making. Through this noise and banter they were expressing their lack of faith. Secondly, we encounter them through the fact that they find it best to laugh in the face of our Lord. Eventually due to their lack of faith this multitude had to be sent away from Christ's midst.

Each of us must question our own practice of faith. We must question if we have come to Christ with great faith, as the ruler or the woman, or if we have come to Christ as a member of this multitude who was unable to trust with great faith. If we find it best to be formed by our culture and thus our world we will discover that the answer to this question is equal to being a member of this multitude. If we are able to express that it is the Church, the Sacraments, prayer, holy scripture, and thus Jesus Christ who is the one who forms us we will stand with the ruler and the woman in our development or faith. The problem is that we cannot stand on both sides; if we think this we will ultimately find ourself standing with the multitude who was cast off from Christ's midst.

The next time that we will gather here in Johnson City for the Extraordinary Form of the Mass we will find ourself in the midst of the Advent season. Thus the liturgical year of the Church is quickly coming to its conclusion. This serves as a reminder for all of us that we only have so much time that has been given to us to get our life in order and to thus join the faith of the ruler or the woman who were found in our Gospel. We must remember that Advent is not the start of the Christmas season, but instead it is the beginning of our preparation for the great joy that will enter into the world on Christmas morning when God comes to dwell among us in human flesh. Advent is not about getting caught up in the noise and banter of the multitude because this tumult will only lead us away from the manger of our Lord.

If we can take a moment to reflect upon the noise of our own life we will see what it is which is getting in our way of reaching out with great faith and thus also kneeling before our Lord. Possibly pride through believing that we are at the center of the world, possibly anger that rises up in ourself that leads us towards lashing out at another, possibly laziness that leads us towards failing to grow in our life of faith, possibly lust where we realize that we can never have enough to meet our needs, possibly gluttony to the point of over indulging, possibly greed which manifests itself when we are unable to give of our time talent or treasures, and possibly envy to the point where we are unhappy because our life is never as perfect as it should be. These are all manifestation of the noise and banter that was found with the multitude. They were unable to reach out and trust our Lord with their life and thus they were also unable to come and to kneel before Him.

If we desire to have the faith of the ruler or the woman we will realize the need of being able to kneel and to reach out with great faith now. As we begin this new liturgical year may we not forget this reality, but embrace it. As we head into the season of Advent may we not get caught up in the banter of the multitude, but instead embrace the season. My brothers and sisters in Christ may we truly silence the banter of sin in our life, and trust in the solace of reaching out with great faith to behold our Lord for who He truly is.

Feast of the Dedication of St. John Lateran Homily

If you were to stop and reflect for a moment concerning Rome and then go onto envision in your mind a Church that is found there your mind would most likely be picturing Saint Peters. After all Saint Peter's Basilica is the largest Church that has ever been built and when we hear of the pope doing something in Rome it normally takes place here. To the surprise of many Saint Peter's is not the cathedral of Rome nor is it the pope's Church. That honor actually goes to the Archbasilica of Saint John Lateran whose dedication we have the opportunity to celebrate in today's liturgy.

It was in the year 313 that the Edict of Milan secured freedom on the behalf of all Christians. No longer would they have to fear being put to death for their practice of faith and finally they were given the freedom to worship publicly. It was at this time that land was given by Constantine to the Church to build what would become the Cathedral for the Diocese of Rome and thus a symbol of the unity that is expressed in our Catholic faith under the authority of the pope. If one were to look straight up at this Church what they would discover at the top is Christ being flanked by the saints and doctors of the Church as He triumphantly displays the Cross of Redemption to the world. It was Jesus the Saviour that this Church was originally dedicated to because this confirms to the world Christ's superiority over all the pagan gods which were ever worshiped in the city of Rome. The inscription found upon the facade of this Church reads: "Most Holy Lateran Church of All the Churches in the city and the world, the Mother and the Head."

Throughout the course of history this great cathedral has been destroyed on many occasions, but in the end it was always rebuilt to its original splendor. It was ransacked on two occasions, an earthquake nearly destroyed it, two fires nearly brought it down, and when the papacy returned to this location from time spent in France it was found in disrepair. Nevertheless earthquake, fire, vandal, nor time could bring this great Cathedral down. Yes, these many elements brought about setbacks, but these setbacks were always overcome with great faith. In the end no matter the setback that arose in the life of this great Church it was ultimately overcome with the knowledge that Jesus the Saviour triumphs over everything. Our own life is very similar to the life of this Church because no matter the setback, twist, or turn that our life takes we must always remember that it is Jesus the Saviour who triumphs and thus our life in return can always be rebuilt because hope is never lost.

As we take this day to consider the Dedication of Saint John Lateran we are given the opportunity to see how the church building is a symbol representing both the Church and our bodies. Our reading from Ezekiel as well as today's Responsorial Psalm do a good job summing up the role that the temple played for the Jewish people which is equal to the role that the Church plays within our life. In John's Gospel Christ went onto signal the end of having to offer animal sacrifice in atonement for our sins because instead He as God made man had come to triumph upon the cross as the perfect sacrifice. As Saint Paul stated in 1st Corinthians: "Do you not know that you are the temple of God, and that the Spirit dwells in you?" Through this statement we are each being invited to no longer allow our life to be destroyed through the weight of sin, but instead are being invited to allow our life to be reconstructed through the worship that we give to God within this place of worship which directs our hearts and souls to Him.

 

What takes place in Saint John Lateran is equal to what takes place in the walls of this church here in Oak Ridge. Christians who were once persecuted flocked to Saint John Lateran to join together in prayer; Christians now persecuted by the weight of sin flock here to join in prayer. Christians flocked to Saint John Lateran to offer sacrifice, and we here and now flock to this church to attend the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass that joins us to Calvary. Christians flocked to Saint John Lateran to participate within the life of the seven sacraments, and we to see this here within the walls of this Church. Here: Man and woman join together in love in Holy Matrimony, new life is celebrated through the Sacrament of Baptism, we who are hungry are fed by the Most Holy Eucharist, the weight and death of sin is absolved through Confession, those in danger of death are anointed with oil to bring spiritual healing to their life, vocations are nourished which lead many souls to desire to answer God's call to become a priest, and people are sealed with the gift of the Holy Spirit in the Sacrament known as Confirmation. It is here to this church that we flock broken and torn apart, but it is from this church and what we discover within these holy walls that form our life to follow after God and to therefore allow ourself to go on to be a reflection of the Spirit that dwells within us. May we allow Christ the Saviour to come to truly triumph in our life and to therefore allow ourself to become a reflection of what takes place within the walls of this Church and thus to allow ourself to further resemble the temple of God which we have been called to resemble.

All Soul's Day Homily

At most funerals that we attend we are assured by the preacher that our loved one is now in Heaven and thus they are now numbered as one of the saints. This leaves the impression upon us that if all people go to Heaven when they die that we no longer have a need to pray for the dead. After all funerals in our modern age are commonly seen as being a celebration of a person's life instead of us realizing our need to act with charity by actually praying for their soul. Even among Catholics this mindset has seemed to seep into our thought because many are okay with not having a funeral Mass offered for them. It is said that my family is not Catholic and therefore there is no merit in having a Mass offered because after all the funeral is all about them and it is not about me. If you were to analyze the text of the Funeral Mass you would realize that the words being used are not celebrating a person's life on this earth, but instead are actually offering petition on their behalf. Yes the Funeral Mass should bring comfort and healing to people who struggle with loss because with death we encounter the hope and the joy of Christ's Resurrection, but we also come to the Funeral Mass to offer our prayers for the dead.

All Souls Day is not about veneration to the dead. That is what All Saint's Day is for because on that day we acknowledge each and every single saint that has now been joined with God in Heaven. All Souls Day is similar because those who we pray for today have already been judged as being worthy for Heaven which means that they will one day be venerated on All Saints Day, but they must first pass through the state of Purgatory. For the past fifty years there are a few options that have been given for the liturgical color of this day (white, violet, and black), but the only option prior to these fifty years was black. Black vestments symbolize for our minds the reality that we do indeed mourn with death, but they also symbolize the fact that we are sinful and thus at times miss the mark of faithfully living out our life of faith. Black vestments are not without hope because upon them we will notice grey or gold which symbolizes the great fact that in Purgatory our soul is made clean and thus one is slowly being ushered into the joys of the Heavenly Kingdom.

From the Book of Wisdom we heard: "As gold in the furnace, he proved them." This line from the Book of Wisdom is expressing the Church's teaching of Purgatory to us. Gold is placed into a furnace because this is the only way that one is able to get the impurities out of the gold. Whenever gold is placed into fire these impurities rise to the top and are next wiped away from the gold which only leaves the gold behind. This is exactly what is taking place within Purgatory concerning the souls who find themselves in this state. They have died with impurities maybe from the effects of past sin, continued attraction towards sin, or scandal that they have caused. Souls who have been tainted in this manner cannot enter directly into Heaven without first being purged of these many impurities as gold is tested in fire. As is stated to us in the Book of Revelation: "Nothing unclean will enter into Heaven." Indeed it would be painful if the opposite were true because we will still have a longing for something other then union with God when we get to Heaven. Purgatory is not to be feared because eventually all of the souls who find themselves here will be welcomed into the Heavenly Kingdom. May we assist these souls on their journey by offering our prayers and our sacrifice on their behalf. This is what scripture is telling us to do in 2nd Maccabees by saying: "He made atonement for the dead that they may be freed from sin." 

I hope that this All Soul's Day will help us to see the need to pray for the dead and to also begin to orient our own life towards God now because eventually we will face the reality of our own mortality. It is death which is the only thing that we claim that we are entitled to receive in this life therefore may we prepare ourself for it. May we also take it upon ourself to pray for the souls of our family, friends, and all souls in general. At most Catholic funerals that we attend we receive a holy card with the individual's name written on the back. When we come across these cards in books or laying on a table they serve as a reminder for our need to offer a pray on their behalf. If it is possible, today would be the perfect day to visit the cemetery where a loved one is buried and to stop and offer a prayer on their behalf. We at this parish are blessed to have the columbarium right outside of the Church making it easy for us to do so following the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. Speaking of the Mass this is the perfect gift that we can give to the souls of the faithful departed. All that one has to do is go to the parish office and request a Mass to be offered for the repose of the soul of a loved one. May we always make the effort to orient our life towards Heaven while we still have the opportunity, and may we also take the time to pray for all the souls of the faithful departed which through the mercy of God may they rest in peace.

All Saints Day Homily

To those of you who go to Mass day in and day out you realize very quickly that we have many saints who we come to venerate throughout the course of the liturgical year. Of course the number of saints is not limited to those who we venerate throughout the course of the year within this parish. Different orders such as the Dominicans or Franciscans for example follow a their own liturgical calendar which may add or subtract saints venerated liturgically. One thing that a student in Confirmation class is asked to do is to pick a patron saint. Therefore they might skim through a huge book chronicling the life of the saints in order to pick the perfect saint that represents their interests or struggles. Yet again no matter how big this book is it cannot possibly contain the names of all the saints who are found in Heaven. The Solemnity of All saints is concerned with each saint that the Church has come to acknowledge by name, but this day is also about coming to venerate each and every unknown saint who has been called into communion with God in the Heavenly Kingdom. As we celebrate this day we ask for their intercession that we to at the end of our life on this earth may be numbered as one of the saints.

We should find the life of the saints to be most fascinating because each saint tells us a unique story concerning their love for God. Through their lives we are told that some loved God dearly in their youth while others came to this same understanding at a much later time in their life. We are also told how some were brought up in a life that was filled with riches and possessions while others were brought up being poor, but nevertheless both died rich because they possessed a true relationship founded upon God. The saints speak to each and every single state of our life because some were popes, some were bishops, some were priests, some were deacons, some were monks, some were sisters, some were married, and some were single. I hope in our study of the life of the saints that we to can come to see that hope is never lost for us, no matter how young or old that we be, no matter how deeply intrenched into sin we may seem to be, no matter what our state in life may be; the fact remains that we can still become saints.

This is the testimony that the life of the saints give to us. That each and every single one of us can become saints. May we truly allow all the saints of Heaven to intercede on our behalf in order that our hope may one day become a reality. The saints were never willing to simply remain in their sin, but instead they embraced the tough path of daily conversion that lead them towards further being able to participate in God's love. The saints also handed themselves over to the sacraments that Christ has given to His Church, they trusted in the strength that is found in the Holy Eucharist and they prevailed themselves to the infinite mercy of God that is found in the sacrament of Confession. May we truly allow ourself to follow after their example because in this manner they will lead us to encounter the same love that they discovered and that they shared with God. They were not made saints in the course of a day, but instead each day they had to recommit themselves to their love for Christ. Through the veneration of these many holy men and women may our heart and our soul be drawn towards this same love for God that we experience through their life. Indeed all of us are called to become a saint in Heaven; therefore may we fear not in beginning to model our life after such a purpose.

30th Sunday of OT Year A

This past Sunday was a most joyous celebration in the life of the Church because Pope Paul VI was brought one step closer to sainthood. It was Blessed Paul VI who would bring about the conclusion of the Second Vatican Council which was begun by his predecessor Saint John XXIII. At his beatification ceremony Pope Francis stated: "(Through his) humility the grandeur of Blessed Paul VI shines forth: before the advent of a secularized and hostile society, he could hold fast, with farsightedness and wisdom – and at times alone – to the helm of the barque of Peter, while never losing his joy and his trust in the Lord." We can see traces of where his joy and trust originate through the two mottos that he chose to sum up his ministry as the Successor to Saint Peter. "Cum Ipso in monte", "With Him on the mountain of the Lord", and secondly "In nomine Domini", "In the name of the Lord." These are statements which sum of the fact that if we desire to know and to spread love we must first join with God in prayer and we must in return allow our life to be an expression of that love that we encounter here with all those whom we meet.

The idea of "love" is a very misunderstood term in our modern day society. Our Gospel tells us that we must first love God and next love our neighbor, but what does this actually mean?  Is this love that is to be shown to our neighbor mean that we must accept sinful actions as being healthy? No! Does this love mean that truth is not important because it might offend somebody? No! Pope Benedict XVI in his first encyclical letter, "Deus Caritas Est" "God is Love," says that whenever we fail to love our neighbor we also fail to love God and whenever we fail to love God we also fail to love our neighbor. Allowing a person to live in sin without being moved towards conversion could never be true love. Love is more then a lust for another person, love is more then living with a person outside of the commitment of marriage, love is more then using another person as an object to meet one's sexual gratification. Despite what we are told LOVE can be and is sacrificial; just look to the cross and you will see this love proclaimed to you.

I am sure that you have seen many reports concerning the Synod on the Family that recently took place in Rome. I myself have seen many articles which proclaim that this synod will usher in great change for the Church. They claim that this change will usher in new theology which changes the way that the Church understands marriage, the family, and even love. Yes this synod will bring about great change to the Church, not change to doctrine because that has been given to us by God and therefore it cannot be changed, but instead change that will lead souls to come and to encounter the love of Christ. This change will indeed be counter cultural because it will proclaim to a world that has a problem understanding love that love is something that is real and that it is an expression of God who is true love. The meaning of love cannot be truly expressed in a culture that so easily professes that marriage is not forever. Throwing away the Church's teaching concerning contraception would not bring a couple closer to Christ, but would instead separate them from a love that is mutual and self giving because this action, no matter what we think, is intrinsically evil. To pervert love would not lead souls to encounter God, but instead would lead them towards enslavement to sinful actions instead of challenging one to embrace the pains of conversion where we come to feel and encounter the great love of Christ's mercy.

One of Blessed Paul VI's great works was his encyclical letter "Humanae Vitae" "Of Human Life." Much like this Synod on the Family it was said that Humanae Vitae would finally change outdated Church doctrine, but instead what was revealed was a document the enforced the teachings of the Church, but more importantly then that it proclaimed the value of love to a world that has lost its grasp on what love really is. Love can never be seen as being abusive of another person. Love can never get in the way of our relationship with God. If what we believe to be "love" leads us away from our neighbor and away from God it cannot therefore be truly known as love. Humanae Vitae is a document that challenges the world to put away it selfishness and instead to return itself towards the true meaning of love.

And so this day may we allow Blessed Paul VI to intercede for us and for our families that we may truly be able to love in a way that is both mutual and self giving. To encounter this love may we be willing to take his two mottos upon ourself and thus go to the mountain of the Lord because it will be here alone where we will allow ourself to enter into silence and to truly begin to allow ourself to pray. From this relationship built up around God all of the actions that we do in this life will be carried out in the name of the Lord. When we sin we cannot claim that we are acting in the name of the Lord and we cannot claim that we have gone to the mountain of the Lord to be strengthened in our love for God and for our neighbor. Blessed Paul VI was filled with joy and trust because he was able to not only love God, but also his neighbor. May the love that we have for God truly become our strength that will assist us in encountering this same joy and trust that Blessed Paul VI expressed by his life.

28th Sunday of OT Year A Homily

Our Gospel tells us that we have each received an invitation to a wedding feast. In fact, we can say that each of us who have been baptized are already present in the banquet hall of this great celebration. We are present because through our baptism we were conformed to Christ. Through our baptism we were washed clean from the original sin that we inherit from Adam and Eve and are thus forever oriented towards Christ. Through our baptism in the Church we have been forever marked as one who is currently on a path that leads towards the Kingdom of Heaven. I therefore must say that baptism remains most important because it is a necessary sacrament for us to receive because it places us in the banquet hall of this great celebration, it extends to us the further possibility of being nourished at the altar of God by Christ's Body and Blood, and it leads us towards being sealed with the gifts of the Holy Spirit in Confirmation.

We cannot make the mistake of not always remaining on guard just because we are present in this banquet hall through our baptism. We cannot make the mistake to say that I was baptized, I have received the Holy Eucharist, & I have even made the decision to be confirmed,  so therefore when I die the Kingdom of Heaven will be owed to me simply through these merits. In the words of our Gospel: "Many are invited, but few are chosen." The man who was cast out of this banquet hall was not found properly dressed for such an occasion. He decided that he would attend this wedding feast without first taking the time to be properly dressed in a wedding garment. He received the invitation to attend this wedding feast and yet he did not go onto make the prudent decision to come to this celebration properly dressed. Again, we find ourself gathered in this banquet hall through our baptism when we to were clothed with a white garment. St. Gregory of Nyssa said: "Thou hast driven us out of paradise and called us back; Thou hast taken away the fig leaves, that garment of our misery, & clothed us once more with the robe of glory."

Indeed, we have each been clothed with this "robe of glory" through our baptism. The problem is that we often forget about what took place for us on this day and have instead wondered throughout our life allowing ourself to be separated from Christ. Surely we cannot say that a life that has been separated from Christ can truly be rewarding because our Gospel testifies that people will be turned away from the Wedding Feast which they had not only received an invitation to, but actually showed up and were present in the banquet hall. We to already find ourself in this banquet hall because we have entered into baptism, but we don't always act as if we are worthy to have such a great gift bestowed upon us. The gift that we await is already felt here on this earth because at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass Heaven comes to meet earth. 

At the Mass we come to behold the bridegroom who is Jesus Christ who has entered into marriage with the Church and thus we are each invited to grow into a deeper relationship with Him. Through the words of consecration that we hear at the Mass we join with Christ whose love is so great for each of us that it is consummated in the handing over of His body for the many who share in His eternal covenant. In this action Heaven truly comes to meet earth and we are each given a glimpse into the reward that we will one day be able to further participate within. In Heaven there will be no more sickness nor death, but instead what we will discover is the peace of being in the presence of God who is the creator of all things. May we not allow ourself to become sidetracked from participating in this reality, but instead may we always be found properly dressed in our wedding garment as we await this joyous occasion. This wedding garment was given to each of us as a great "robe of glory" through our baptism, but we can and do reject such a gift through the ways that we live our life to the point where God will be forced to say: "My friend, how is it that you came here without a wedding garment?"

With this statement we are not being called upon to do the impossible, but we are each asked to take up the struggle of our cross daily which will lead us to triumph over our sin instead of simply growing comfortable to it. May we continue to allow ourself to bear the weight of the cross and to also trust in the great gift that is the Church which through the sacraments continue to strengthen us to be found properly dressed in the wedding garment that is necessary for such a wondrous celebration as the Kingdom of Heaven. If we can trust and allow ourself to struggle with the cross and living out the life of the sacraments we will indeed be found worthy on the day of judgement to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven where we will truly discover true beauty and peace. May we allow nothing to impede this relationship in order that we may be found properly dressed on the day of judgement to enter into the house of the Lord.

27th Sunday of OT Year A Homily

The United States Council of Catholic Bishops have set aside the month of October to be known as Respect Life Month and thus this first Sunday of the month is known as Respect Life Sunday. With this move it is their desire that we will pray in a special way for the sanctity of human life and find ways where we can give assistance and aid that leads towards the well being of human life. Here in the state of Tennessee this should be very important for each of us because of the upcoming election and thus Tennessee Amendment One. We therefore have probably seen pink signs scattered throughout Oak Ridge or this Church campus which say "Yes on One." This "yes" represents the great reality that we must always be concerned with the sanctity of human life and thus we cannot ever allow ourself to simply look the other way. To look the other way and to be passive whenever human life is not being respected would be a great sin because all life must be held as being sacred from conception to a natural death. Dracano Sapien stated: "He who has the ability to act on an injustice, but who stands idly by, is just as guilty as he who holds the knife."

So often we have allowed a relativistic way of looking at the world to seep into our practice of faith. Concerning moral questions we may say that we believe that life should be held as sacred, but do not want to define that as a truth that everyone must accept. Others, even Catholics, say that abortion does not really kill life because after all life does not begin until birth. If this were to be the truth what took place at the Annunciation when Mary said "yes" to the angel Gabriel was nothing special. If this were so when the baby leaped in the womb of Elizabeth when the baby Christ came into his midst would only be pure coincidence because neither would actually be human life. Yes, we have the obligation to be concerned with human life and thus cannot allow ourself to take a relativistic approach concerning this matter. We also cannot fall into the trap of seeing this as a one issue matter because the sanctity of human life issue concerns all life.

Our Gospel frames together this message because through it we see that Christ is the one who would come to die upon the cross to lead others towards salvation. His death was not done in order to save a few whose life He believed should be held as sacred, but instead was offered that all of us may realize our importance in His eyes because we were created in the image and the likeness of God and thus in return are cherished by Him. If His love was so great upon the cross, so should our love be great for all of human life that we encounter. We should realize the importance of human life and be willing to defend it always especially through our trust in the words of Saint Paul's Letter to the Philippians which stated: " by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known by God." Indeed may we be willing to pray always that life may be held as being sacred and may we also be willing to produce fruit in the Vinyard of the Lord which shows our concern for the issue of human life instead of so easily turning away.

The theme given to us for this Respect Life Sunday was taken from a homily given by Pope Francis in which he stated: "each of us is a masterpiece of God's creation." Indeed we are each a masterpiece of God's creation. May we allow the fruit of our life to reflect such a reality because in doing so we are not living as animals, but as those who are created in the image and likeness of God. When we see those who are not being treated with such respect may we be willing to stand up for truth, no matter how hard it may be, and shows these individuals the respect that is owed to them because they are a masterpiece created by God. When we come across the poor, the young, the elderly, the worker, the imprisoned, or the dying may we not begin to remove people's dignity, but instead to always give it proper due. In this manner we will indeed be showing and living out the great fact that all of human life is sacred from conception to a natural death.

I conclude this homily with a letter written from our bishop, Richard Stika, concerning the upcoming election and Amendment One. As we listen to these words may all of us be willing to stand up to the sanctity of human life by our prayer or fasting, by educating ourself and others on the importance of this amendment, and actually going out to vote.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, 

One of the great privileges of living in a democracy is the right of its citizens to vote.  Although the Catholic Church will never identify itself with any political community or system, we can and must speak up in support of moral issues.  One such issue that we as Catholics will have an opportunity to vote on November 4th is Amendment One.  This amendment is neither a Republican nor Democrat issue, but a moral and life issue of greatest magnitude.  A yes vote on Amendment One, a prolife amendment, would neutralize the extreme interpretation taken by the Tennessee State Supreme Court in 2000 in which they declared that our State Constitution guarantees the right to an abortion. Passage of this Amendment would restore back to the voter the “life” decisions that were taken from them by the state court decision. For this reason, I and my brother Bishops in Nashville and Memphis wholeheartedly ask for your support for “life” by voting for “Yes on One” this November 4th.  

26th Sunday of OT Year A Homily

We each have a list of things that we would like to accomplish in this life. Some things that appear on our to do list will be accomplished no matter what attempts to get in our way. Other items on our to do list exist with the sole hope that we will be able to one day get around to them. Nevertheless, we should all realize that we only have so much time to accomplish the things that appear on this list. For example: if we desire to go to a sporting event and fail to get a ticket early we could easily find ourself realizing that the event has been sold out and thus find ourself being out of luck. We should also realize that our to do list never really gets finished because before we know it something else of importance arises in our life that we must do. Again these items can fluctuate from something impulsive like an item that we see in a store and desire to have to something more important like taking care of a family member who is sick. When we think about it we can never really be made whole because there is so much that we desire to do.

So without a proper relationship to God we most definitely would never be made whole. With Christ we are given everything that we will ever need and thus do not need to be filled by items which attempt to grab our attention. With a relationship to God the suffering that we may experience with a family member or even ourself takes on authentic meaning. Instead of having a to do list that only fuels our love for self and our need to accomplish a vast array of possessions; our relationship with Christ shows the complete opposite where we finally experience a love that is not restrictive, but is giving. In Saint Paul's letter to the Philippians we hear this reflected because we are told about God who is filled with love. This love was so great that He did not desire to remain at a distance, but instead took on human flesh in the incarnation. This love did not stop here, but instead it lead to Christ accepting His own death upon the wood of the cross in order that we may each be forgiven from our many transgressions against God the Father.

I hope that through our own experience with Christ that we will see the authentic love that is found here. From this love may our life finally take on meaning instead of leaving us wondering around in need of discovering something more. Through Christ we will and have received everything that we will ever need if only we can allow ourself to trust in Him and finally allow our life to not be disordered in sin, but instead to be ordered through our love for Him. If we develop this love and this trust in Christ we indeed will no longer bend our knee to sin and confess sin to be our Lord, but instead we will live out the words of Philippians and allow our knee to bend at Christ alone and to truly confess with our words that Jesus Christ is Lord. This can never be accomplished if we so easily shrug off our Catholic faith and ignore what we believe and profess to be the truth. If we continue to place more stock in the events of the world at the cost of our own faith and relationship with Christ we will always be like the man who did not go out into the vinyard to work.

We must each be willing to go out into the vinyard of to work. We cannot be content at saying that I will get around to it one day because as we know time does eventually run out and we will be held accountable for the actions of our life. We will be held accountable that we have professed Christ to be our Lord through our baptism and yet were never willing to lead other souls to Christ or even to allow our own knee to bend as we confess Christ to be our Lord. What we find in the Catholic Church is the fullness of faith that will lead our soul and other souls to Heaven, but so often we fail to surrender ourself to the fullness of faith that is found here. We think that we know better then Christ and His Church. Christ has given the Sacraments as a gift to the Church that each of us may continue to be drawn into a deeper relationship with Him. We cannot live out our life of faith as if all of the Sacraments are not of great priority to us. 

And so, the Eucharist that we will receive today is a great gift from God where Christ is truly present in both His Body and Blood that we may be able to order our life after Him. Confession is a necessary Sacrament, as the precepts of the Church say: A Catholic must confess their sins at least once a year. Confession is not an option for us, but instead it is most necessary for us to be prepared to work faithfully in the vinyard of our Lord. May we each begin to place more attention upon the necessity of the Sacraments, upon the necessity of prayer especially before the Holy Eucharist and our fidelity to the rosary of Our Lady, and also upon our own necessity to be moved into relationship with God who is love and in return to share this authentic love with others. It is not enough for us to hold onto mere words, but we must also put these words into action by the way that we live out our life. May responding to this call to enter into the Vinyard of the Lord truly be a top priority on our to do list; which we will never allow to be overshadowed by the many other items that are found upon this list that distract us from our relationship with God.

25th of OT Year A Homily

If we are workers our Gospel should be very upsetting to us. It would be unfair to say that we could work a full day's work and receive a wage equal to somebody who worked less then us. This scenario is very much so unfair, but thankfully our salvation does not work in the same manner. If our salvation dealt with staying faithful from the point of our baptism to the point of our death all of us would be in a lot of trouble. There is none of us here who can claim that they have worked a full day's wage concerning their worthiness for salvation. From our Holy Father, Francis, "We are all sinners." At some point we have gotten off the path, but hopefully when this happens we quickly reorient ourself to the mercy of God. The lives of the Saints attest to this because when we study the saints we will see many different people with many different stories. Some have radiated God by their life from their childhood, others as adults, and even others before the point of death. Some were grave sinners while others did not sin to such a degree. 

Nevertheless, what they all hold in common will hopefully be equal to what we will obtain one day which is the grace of final perseverance. Final perseverance is the grace that is necessary for us to obtain salvation. It means that we will die while in the state of grace. It means that if we have committed a mortal sin that we would of confessed it, turned away from it, and never went back again. One cannot claim that they have achieved the grace of final perseverance if they have died in the state of mortal sin. From the Catechism of the Catholic Church paragraph 1035: "Immediately after death the souls of those who die in a state of mortal sin descend into hell, where they suffer the punishments of hell, "eternal fire." The Council of Trent holds that the grace of final perseverance has one origin which is from God Himself. The same council held that it is an error to believe that one can achieve this grace without the help of God. God is most necessary because we cannot obtain final perseverance due to our own merit.

If we truly desire to achieve the grace of final perseverance may we prevail ourself to God who is the only one who can grant such a grace. May we realize that there is never a point when we are unable to surrender ourself to the mercy of God and thus to be moved towards authentic conversion. Saint Alphonsus gives us the example that we need to fervently pray for such a grace to be materialized inside of our life. At the conclusion of every prayer that Saint Alphonsus offered he would include a petition where he would ask God for this grace to be achieved within his life. Saint Alponsus found this grace to be so important concerning our salvation that he would remark: "All those who are in heaven are there for this one reason: They prayed, they asked for perseverance. All those who are in hell are there for this one reason: They did not pray and they did not ask the Lord for the grace of final perseverance." May we to desire the just wage of salvation by praying that we may achieve such an important grace and also be willing to amend our life to match such a desire.

Thankfully our Gospel message sounds unfair to our ears. Thankfully all of us can pray for the grace of final perseverance and thus when we die we to can be found worthy to enter into the Heavenly Kingdom. Some of us here have worked fervently in the Harvest of the Lord since their childhood, others have worked fervently since having a conversion experience, others began to work fervently due to their desire to get their children to Heaven, others begin to work fervently in this harvest at the moment before they take their last breath on this earth, and still others have yet to find such a wondrous path that leads towards salvation. May we not continue to run from the just wage of salvation, but instead move ourself towards it. May we not become so prideful that we believe that we are owed such a wondrous wage without the help of God. May we truly pray that we can achieve final perseverance at the moment before our life ends.

In conclusion may we listen to this prayer offered by Saint Alphonsus for the grace of final perseverance and thus allow his words to penetrate into our heart that we may truly desire to achieve this wondrous grace.

Eternal Father, I Humbly Adore and Thank You, for having Created me, and for having Redeemed me. I Thank You for having made me a Christian, by giving me the True Faith, and for Adopting me as Your Child in Baptism. I Thank You for having given me Time-to Repent, after my many Sins, and for having Pardoned all my Offenses. I Renew my Sorrow for them, because I have Displeased You. I Thank You also for having Preserved me from Falling-again, as I would have done, if You had not Held me up, and Saved me. But my Enemies, do not cease Fighting-against me, nor will they, until I Die. If You do not Help me Continually, I will Lose Your Grace again. I, therefore, Pray-for Perseverance till Death. Your Son Jesus, has Promised that You will give us whatever we Ask-for in His Name. By the Merits-of Jesus Christ, I beg You, for myself and for all those who are in Your Grace, the Grace-of Never-more being Separated-from Your Love. May we always Love You in this Life, and in the Next.

Mary, Mother of God, Pray to Jesus for me. So I Hope. So may it be.

Amen.

Exaltation of the Holy Cross Homily

The cross is not glamorous. We can try as much as we want to take away the blood and wounds that were present on that day, but in reality the event of the crucifixion was not glamorous. There is nothing that we can do to make the cross glamorous, but this is rightly so. We cannot allow ourself to begin to glamorize the cross because in the process we will lose the true meaning of salvation that was won for us upon the wood of the cross. In likewise manner our own life is not glamorous. There are plenty of things within this world or in our own life that we would like to take away. No matter how much makeup or surgery that we undergo we will never actually be glamorous because the many wounds that are present within our life will remain, and rightly so. Despite this reality the cross is most beautiful because it presents to us the true meaning of love. It presents to us that despite the brokenness that is found within our world or within our own life that we have been redeemed through this instrument of our salvation.

 

Today we will have a second collection which draws attention to the pains that can come when one accepts the cross. Our second collection today will be for those many Christians in the Middle East who are being persecuted and even put to death for their faith. We cannot allow ourself to look the other way concerning this matter nor can we begin to speak as if this issue is not of great concern. May we be willing to give any aid that we are able in this matter especially through the prayers and sacrifice that we make in our life. It is hard to fathom that within the world people are still persecuted and put to death for their beliefs. We must join in prayer and offer our sacrifice on their behalf that this persecution and other ones that continue to take place will one day be put to an end. These people have great faith because they have realized that the cross is not glamorous. What they are going through is far from glamorous and yet through the cross we are able to see that all the suffering that they endure is connected to God's mercy which will always prevail in the end.

What we face inside of our own life is far different then what the people in the Middle East are going through, but we are joined to them through the cross. As we heard only a few weeks ago in our gospel: "Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me." We join with them because the cross is not glamorous and thus all the nasty stuff taking place within our own life and within our word has been given meaning and hope through the cross. It is easy for us the live and profess our faith when everything around us seems to be perfect, but this is much harder to do once it loses it's glamour. It is hard for us to bear the weight of the cross because when we do we do not find quick comfort. Through the Stations of the Cross we will remember that Christ carried His cross and from its weight He fell on three occasions. We to must behold and bear the many crosses that appear in our life and not run away at those moments when we continue to fall. When we fall or lose hope we must immediately run back to the mercy of Christ that is found through what was offered on the cross.

 

There is a a stained glass window located at Saint Meinrad, where I attended seminary, that sums up this loving mercy contained within the sacrifice offered upon the cross. In this window we see the tree on which the apple hung where sin entered into the world. Interestingly enough if you look up from this tree we will see that it turns into the wood of the cross on which Christ hung to show triumph over the death that came with this sin that entered into the world. This image sums up the fact that no matter what hardship that we are forced to endure inside of this life that our pains are not made in vain. It shows that the mercy of God is able to triumph over sin if we so desire it to do so in our life. This feast that is celebrated today was added to the liturgical calendar due to Saint Helen finding the true cross in Jerusalem. Legend holds that when this cross was discovered the bishop desired for it to be tested with two other crosses. For the test a woman who was near death touched each cross, but the false ones gave no results while the true cross restored the woman's health.

We celebrate today the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. As this woman's health was restored through her faith in the cross, so are we brought back to health through the mercy that Christ extended to us upon the cross. As sin entered into the world through the tree that Adam and Eve would feast upon we must remember that it was the cross of Christ that would triumph over this tree of sin. When we look around us, what we see is a world that is far from being glamorous, but the cross reminds us that despite this reality that we have been redeemed and are thus oriented towards something greater then the here and now. Through the Holy Cross Christ is lifted up in order that each of us may truly live as those who glanced upon the saraph mounted to a pole that was held my Moses were able to do. The cross is truly not glamorous, but through it we are able to proclaim with great trust: "We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you because by your Holy Cross you have redeemed the world."

13th Sunday After Pentecost Homily (Extraordinary Form)

Nine of the lepers in our Gospel display the ingratitude that we at times have within our own heart. We are truly given so much by God, and yet we never take time for prayer and to be thankful except for those moments when we find that we are in great need. When we are in great need we often live out our faith as if it were a mere snack machine. We can pass by the machine many times during the course of the day and never pay it any attention. When hunger strikes us we all of a sudden realize its presence and are able to make a choice concerning what we will receive. We also in this scenario receive what we desire in a moments notice and are never forced to wait. Despite the ingratitude of the nine lepers I am sure that if something else of unfortunate nature befell them they would return to Christ in order to be healed. Despite this reality they failed to be filled with gratitude and they banished Him from their midst at those moments when they were not in need.

Out of the ten lepers only one was willing to show his gratitude. Only one was truly changed to the point where the actions of Christ remained firmly on his mind. This one leper is an example for all of us of the gratitude that we should have for all that God has given us. We indeed should be thankful and desire to be held in communion with God, even at those moments when we are not facing a great tragedy in our life. God's presence is not restricted to moments of tragedy, but instead God is always present with the desire to enter more intimately into our life. Only one leper out of the ten was able to realize this and thus his life was forever transformed. May we allow this same leper to lead the way for us to encounter his great sense of gratitude and in return to truly allow our faith to be transformed.

 

You may be asking yourself what you have to be grateful for. Maybe despite all your prayers you have seen nothing besides children fallen away from the faith, the death of a loved one, a lost job, a broken marriage, or something else. Indeed each of these examples are tough to deal with, but we must keep in mind that from the cross springs forth the new life of the Resurrection. Our prayers are indeed heard, even if we do not get the quick results that we desire. Saint Monica was distraught at the lack of faith of her son, Augustine, and yet she persevered in prayer, and eventually Augustine was converted, and was even moved towards sainthood. May Saint Monica be a reminder for us of the need to have gratitude, to have trust, and to have perseverance when we return to Christ as that one leper inside of our Gospel was able to do. This unending trust can indeed be most difficult, but it is also something that can be accomplished.

So how are able to join with the grateful leper and therefore not find ourself counted as one of the other nine? We must realize that God does not work as a genie who grants wishes on demand, but instead is the loving creator of all things. This loving creator shows us His love unceasingly and we should desire to share within this love that is shown to us and to spread it to all those whom we encounter. If we desire to be truly grateful for this gift we will take time out of our busy lives to make room for prayer. We will realize that the world is a very loud place and therefore find ways to enter into silence where we will come to encounter God. We must find ways to cultivate the virtue of humility in our life because through our pride we never allow God to enter in to give us aid. We should persevere in our desire to be holy instead of so often being led astray from this most wondrous path to pursue a life of sin. We should desire to cultivate our mind with a understanding of God and our faith through study and the reading of spiritual books. A final way we show our gratitude is through the faithful reception of the Sacraments.

May we not find ourselves among those nine lepers who thanked Christ with ingratitude. The one leper who was faithful in this matter gives each of us the example of gratitude. May we indeed not only need God in moment's of tragedy, but instead may we turn to Him in great gratitude for the love that God has always' has shown us. In gratitude may we continue to find ways to faithfully live out our faith and to be drawn into union with God. In this way we will model the leper who was faithful Christ instead of the other nine who lacked faithfulness.