St. Mary School Graduation Homily

I welcome all family, friends, faculty and staff of this school to this graduation Mass where we join together at the Altar of God, with all the angels and saints, to give thanks for this great achievement in the life of these young people. Of course I also welcome the Saint Mary's School Class of 2014 to this Mass where you will be nourished from the Altar of God and will then be sent back into the world to give proper glory and praise to God for such an achievement. Your class brings many different experiences to this great occasion. Some of you began your time at this school in pre-K, others came later, and others have come, gone, and thankfully have returned again. The path that you will take from here will also vary. Some of you are headed towards Knoxville Catholic, some to Oak Ridge High School, some to another school, and even those who will be leaving this state behind. Nevertheless no matter what the future has in store for you may you remember your time at this school and all that you have learned while you were here.

In your reflection of your time spent in this school you will remember many things from time spent with your little buddies, to sports especially a volleyball championship won this past year, to perfecting the craft of the art known as the science fair project, to even a broken water fountain (You know what I am talking about), but most of all I hope that you will realize the true value that is found with an education that has been balanced with the truth of the Gospel. In the world people like to boast about the importance of their academic achievement, but they often forget why our academic achievement must be founded in the truth of the Gospel. Be it through science, through math, through English, or through another subject that you were offered; you experienced all these things as a reflection of God who is the creator of all that is true. As you move away from this school may you not also move away from your relationship with Jesus Christ. We need this relationship if we will ever hope to be made whole because without such a relationship we will always be left incomplete. This school through all of your academic achievement has entwined this principle into your mind, so please do not allow this reality to pass away as you move away from here.

From the alleluia verse we were instructed: "The Holy Spirit will teach you everything and remind you of all I told you." The Holy Spirit is indeed at work within this world and will continue to be at work in each of your life. As we head into the world and as you prepare to enter high school you will encounter many struggles, but in the midst of each of these struggles may you encounter your hope through the living God. It is towards this encounter with the living God that the Holy Spirit will lead us if we remain open to the promptings of the Holy Spirit which continue to tug at our hearts. When we allow our hearts to become closed to this encounter we are no longer desiring in our heart to move into the future where hope will be found in the midst of every sorrow. With our hearts closed to the promptings of the Spirit we desire only to live for this moment alone without moving ourself towards a greater goal in life. May we not run from the future, but instead embrace it through our unending "yes" to the Holy Spirit.

With this "yes" we will be able to hear the voice of the Shepherd in the midst of all the issues that will arise in our life. Christ our Shepherd will indeed take care of each of you if you are willing to allow Him to do so. Because you leave this school behind today, with its Dominican sisters dressed in white with a rosary hanging from their side, with teachers who have spent so much time challenging you in your academic pursuit, with the opportunity to pray at the start and end of the day, with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass structuring your day around Christ and His great gift of the Eucharist, with all the other countless amounts of examples that this school has done for you; does not get you off the hook of continuing to grow in this intimate relationship with Christ each and every single day. What values you have received here are only the beginning, they are only a foundation, because they will continue to grow if you will only allow them to do so without impeding the plan that Christ has for each of you.

This day we give thanks for this academic achievement that has been accomplished by this group of young people. We give thanks for the Class of 2014 and all that they have done for this school as they have spent these past years achieving this academic success while being grounded in Christ our Lord. We now pray for each of them because we know if they will only trust in Christ and the promptings of the Holy Spirit that they will continue to glorify God through their knowledge and within their various achievements. When life begins to get tough may you always remember the firm foundation that you have received here at this school and through this great foundation continue to trust in the Lord who is our Shepherd.

4th Sunday after Easter Homily (Extraordinary Form)

The conclusion of the Easter season is quickly approaching for each of us. Very soon we will arrive at the Ascension where our Lord returned to His Father. We will then celebrate Pentecost Sunday where our Lord gave the apostles the gift of the Holy Spirit. This Sunday our Lord is preparing His apostles and each of us for these events that will soon unfold. To fathom that very soon the apostles will find themselves all alone once more, but Christ wants them to understand that in all reality they will not be left alone. We to often need to be reminded that we have not been left alone to figure things out for ourself because we have the gift of the Holy Spirit. Our world and even those of the Catholic faith need to rediscover this reality, so that they can be guided in areas of religion and morality. Christ does not tell His apostles that they can now do as they wish, or that religion and morality cannot have objective truth, but instead He tells them that He is sending the Holy Spirit and "He will teach you all truth."

We live in a world that cannot trust in these words. We would rather take religion and in return form it into our own image as if we are God. We want a religion that makes us feel good and therefore anything that makes us feel bad must be rejected. This of course cannot be the Catholic faith because it is guided by the Holy Spirit who leads the Church into all truth. The Church does not ordain women, not because she hates them, but instead because she is obedient to the truth that was revealed to us by Christ and is continued to be preserved by the Holy Spirit. The Church does not speak out against contraception because she hates human sexuality, but instead because through the truth of the Holy Spirit she understands what sexuality was meant to be. The Church does not define marriage as being between a man and a woman because she hates a certain group of people, but instead through the light of the Holy Spirit she understands what marriage was actually meant to be and therefore has no authority to pervert it.

Jesus Christ was indeed a very nice guy, but because He was nice does not mean that He was accepting of falsehood. If He wanted to institute a Church that was without moral authority He never would of sent the Holy Spirit to guide the Church in truth. To have truth means that something must be correct and therefore something must also be false. Jesus promised that the Holy Spirit would shed light upon sin, justice, and judgement. None of this would be possible if these areas were simply relativistic and therefore without absolute truth. We know that the members of the Church, even the clergy, can fall into error and sin, but because this happens does not mean that the Church has been led into error. The Church is guided by the gift of the Holy Spirit and will therefore always reflect the light of truth through her teachings. As light is shed upon sin, justice, and judgement may we prevail our hearts to this great gift and allow ourselves to become united in our faith instead of divided within it.

As we prepare for the Ascension of Christ and then for Pentecost Sunday may we join with the apostles in preparing ourself for such a great event. May we make room in our hearts to where we will allow the Holy Spirit to guide us away from falsehood and thus towards the truth. Where the Holy Spirit may be guiding us may seem to be a most difficult path, but allowing ourself to trust in such a path will indeed truly liberate us from our vileness. To run away from the promptings of the Holy Spirit comes easily, but in the end will only leave us enslaved. As we prepare for the days that lie ahead may we make time for devotion to the Holy Spirit. May we meditate upon the third glorious mystery of the Rosary, the Descent of the Holy Spirit. It was in this event that the Holy Spirit came down upon the Church and guided it in the truth that it continues to defend and preserve to this day. May we seek out other devotions to the Holy Spirit and truly allow them to guide us in our journey away from falsehood and towards God.

May we truly allow ourself to respond to the promptings of the Holy Spirit and thus allow ourself to be able to proclaim with our whole heart "Send forth your Spirit and you shall renew the face of the earth" as we prevail ourself to the pursuit of truth and the abandonment of falsehood. Only in this manner can we truly be open to the gift of the Holy Spirit who opens our hearts to sin, justice, and judgement and leads us towards true conversion of heart.

4th Sunday of Easter Year A Homily

Today we celebrate the 4th Sunday of Easter which is also known as Good Shepherd Sunday. This Sunday has also been set aside to be Vocations Sunday. It is the goal of the shepherd to guide his sheep towards safety. Anytime that sheep are wondering about the elements of the world there is the potentiality for danger. It is up to the shepherd to be attentive to everything that is around him, so that his sheep may be accounted for and may in return be kept safe. A sheepfold is a name that is given for a pen in which sheep go in order to be kept safe from the many dangers of the world. A sheep is not going to jump over the wall to get in, a sheep is not going to walk through a wall to get in, but instead only has one possibility to enter which is through the gate. The sheep will never find this gate on their own, but instead they must be guided by the loving care of their shepherd. As the shepherd leads them into the safety of the sheepfold he is showing his love and care for each of them.

We must each remember that Christ is our Good Shepherd. If we keep reading within Saint John's Gospel we will hear Christ proclaim: "I am the Good Shepherd." To say this means that He desires to lead us into safety and to give us purpose in this life. Christ desires to guide us through the many difficulties of this world into the safety of the sheepfold. When we enter through the gate we will indeed be kept safe from the many dangers of the world. In order for us to be preserved from these dangers Christ has left us with the gift of the Church which for those who enter through this gate will be protected and will be given everlasting life. We cannot obtain such safety if we attempt to take short cuts along the way and thus do not respond to the Church's call for holiness. To masquerade as faithful to the teaching of Christ to certain people of course cannot fool God. Therefore instead of entering the sheepfold through the gate you enter it equal to the thief and robber who climbs over the wall and attempts to pervert the life of the faithful.

Young and old we must ask ourselves what it will take for us to be invited into the safety of the sheepfold that comes through everlasting life. This safety can and will be encountered if we respond to our vocation in life with complete faith and trust in God's call. Each and every single person inside of this Church has a vocation to which they have been invited to partake within. Some have answered and embraced this vocation, others have ran away from this vocation, and some are still praying concerning what God may be calling them towards. For those who have entered into the vocation of marriage may you embrace this holy vocation and allow it to lead you into the comfort of the sheepfold. Your relationship must be built upon God and therefore prayer and the sacraments are most important in sustaining such a holy vocation. It is most important that you live a life of faith in order that you may in return lead your own children into Heaven instead of away from it. This vocation is not always easy because at times it requires sacrifice and unending trust in God.

To the youth of this parish and those who are still attempting to find God's call please do not lose hope. We live inside of a loud world and therefore we need to take time to enter into the silence of prayer in order that we may build up a relationship with God. Remember that none you are without purpose because God indeed has a purpose for each of you. It is to our youth that we look because you will indeed be our future priests, our future sisters, and our future married couples. You can attempt to walk about life without God, but that will never lead you towards true happiness. Instead you will be walking about the dangers of this world without the protection of the shepherd. To listen and respond to God's call indeed will lead you into the sheepfold where Christ the Good Shepherd will lovingly usher you into the gate. Therefore all the youth of this parish community please do not run away from God's call, but come to answer it through your prayer and the response that you will give in return to God the Father.

I hope that all of us here see the importance of the sheepfold and desire to place ourselves here where Christ the Good Shepherd will usher us in. May our families be willing to embrace a path that will not allow them to be destroyed by the many dangers of the world, but instead a path that leads them into Heaven. May our parents give a true example of the married life to their children and also promote vocations to the priesthood and religious life within their homes. May our youth look into the brokenness of this world that has rejected God's call and counteract this trend through entering into a vocation as a response to God's great call for holiness. For those of you who are now single may you also pray for an increase of vocations within the Church and continue to renew your own relationship with Christ each day. For all of us may we come to realize that the Lord is our shepherd who desires to lead us into everlasting life. May we desire to follow after Him who is the shepherd and guardian of our souls by faithfully embracing the vocation that God has called us to.

2nd Sunday after Easter Homily (Extraordinary Form)

Happy Easter to all of you. Today we celebrate the second Sunday of Easter which is also known as Good Shepherd Sunday. This title comes from today's Gospel where Christ proclaims to the Pharisees: "I am the good shepherd." He then goes onto give a description of what traits actually define a good shepherd. In our world each of us are in search of finding belonging, love, and safety. We go down many different roads to discover these traits, but we often discover that the path that we have taken has led us to enslavement instead of towards true liberation. If the path that we embrace is the one that Christ, our Good Shepherd, has pointed out for us we will discover true liberation and belonging. Our Lord will indeed protect us from the enslavement of sin and will transform our sorrow into the gift of joy through the hope that always exists through everlasting life. Paths of sin, despair, and pleasure will never give us this hope and joy no matter how much we make ourselves believe that they may be our good shepherd.

In these days that have followed Easter Sunday the Church has been chronicling the events of Christ's Resurrection. In these events that have taken place we spend time with the apostles and realize that their life is a testament to Christ as our Good Shepherd. They walked with him, they talked with him, they lived with him, and they even came to receive him in the Blessed Sacrament and yet they did not fully understand who He was. In the Ordinary Form of the Mass today's Gospel would of told us about how they did not even notice Him following the Resurrection until the moment when He gathered them together for the breaking of bread. It was with this moment of the breaking of bread that they realized that this was Christ, the Good Shepherd, who was present with them. The apostles give each of us a testament to Christ being the Good Shepherd because despite their sin and fear Christ always called them to something greater. Without Him they could catch nothing, but with Him they could catch abundantly.

We to are lost without Christ in our lives. When we turn away from Christ we attempt to cast our nets into the sea, but in the end only realize that we are unable to catch anything without Him. Instead when we allow Christ the Good Shepherd to enter into our life we will cast our net into the sea and realize that we can truly catch abundantly. Therefore my brothers and sisters in Christ we must ask ourselves who lies at the center of our life. We must ask ourselves where we are currently being led, and if our answer is not to Heaven we must be willing to realize that this must be entirely cut away from our life. Christ will only lead us to one place and that is to Heaven. The many worries, pleasures, and events that we engage within cannot lead us here if we discover that they are contrary to the message of the Gospel. All of these things only lead us to enslavement not to belonging, not to love, and not to safety; but thankfully Christ has conquered over the cross and rose again upon the third day in fulfillment of the scriptures giving us the great hope and the great joy of everlasting life.

 

In our world we often want to discover quick fixes instead of allowing ourselves to persevere and to even endure the pains of conversion. Perseverance means that we continue to pray, to attend Mass, and to live a life of virtue even when we don't feel like it, even when we would rather see results take form quicker, and when we would rather take a break from these hardships. To embrace the pains of conversion means that cutting sin away from our life does not come easily nor does it come pleasantly. Sometimes this means that we must make the hard choice which would alter our life forever due to our love of the Gospel message. If we see that something is not leading us to Heaven; we must cut it away while embracing both perseverance and the hardship of conversion. With Christ our Good Shepherd as our guide this is indeed possible and we can indeed achieve the hope and joys of the Heavenly Kingdom.

And so this day may we truly allow Christ to be our Good Shepherd. Where fear is found in our life may we allow Him to lead us towards hope. Where sorrow is found inside of our life may we allow Him to lead us towards joy. Where we have grown tired in our faith may we allow Him to give us the gift of perseverance. Where we find the stain of sin may we allow Him to assist us in embracing the pains of conversion. Christ is truly our Good Shepherd and desires to give us this assistance and to point us towards the path that will lead us to everlasting life. May we embrace this relationship of love and truly allow Christ to proclaim to us as He did in our Gospel to the Pharisees: "I am the good shepherd."

3rd Sunday of Easter Year A Homily

On the first day of the week Christ resurrected came to dwell again with His apostles. The only problem is that they did not yet realize who this man was. They walked with him, talked with him, and saw him and yet they did not come to the realization that He was the Messiah who has conquered over death. They finally came to this great realization when they were gathered together at table and He broke bread with them. It was in the breaking of bread that they came to understand who this man truly was and that He had indeed conquered over death on the third day and therefore was truly the Messiah. The apostles would continue to gather on the first day of the week, being Sunday, and partake in this breaking of bread even after Christ's Ascension into Heaven. The early Church would also gather in this manner, even if it brought about the penalty of death for those gathered. We to this day continue to find our Lord as the Church has always done through the breaking of the break that is only found here in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

In the Roman Canon of the Mass we hear the words he "broke the bread." This is the same intimate encounter that the apostles received following Christ's Resurrection that we continue to receive each and every time that we join within the Mass. We do not come here alone, but instead we are joined with the whole community of faith past, present, and future who join together at Calvary where time continues to stand still. At the Mass we should not be bored, but instead should be enamored with the sacrifice that we have the opportunity to partake within. In the words of Saint Josemaria Escriva "The Mass is long you say and I reply, because your love is short." Indeed within the Mass we have the opportunity to partake within the greatest love story that was ever told, which was told upon the cross. It was here that God who took on human flesh in the incarnation submitted to the suffering of the cross in order that we may be saved from sin. This was a great action of love which we partake within at every single Mass that we attend.

In this fast paced world we have a desire to find belonging. We want to be loved and in return we want to love. The problem is this desire is often distorted through our never ending litany of events which will hopefully give us this belonging that we are in search of. New age religion, sports, and other frivolous pursuits will never give us this belonging, but instead they will always leave us empty. If we truly want to discover belonging, we must invest ourselves in the love for the Mass. It is here that we will join with the apostles who found their belonging at the table when Christ broke the bread. It is here that we will join with the saints of the early Church at table when they encountered Christ through the breaking of bread. When Christ comes and breaks the bread with us we will indeed discover our belonging. There is no greater truth in this world then that of a God who loves us so much that He allows us to come into communion with Him in the form of bread and wine. If we truly want to discover belonging and to be a people of authentic faith we will desire to grow in our love for the Holy Eucharist.

At times we have a confusion where feeling is attributed to what makes up our faith. If we feel good, that of course is great, but at the moment that we stop feeling good does not mean that we are excused from having faith. We believe because we have faith and then from that faith flows our feelings be they good, bad, or maybe even nothing at all. Therefore we cannot say we will follow after the religion that makes us feel the best because they believe as I do, they have good music, or they have good preaching. None of this matters because our faith is not to be conformed to a mere feeling. Instead our faith is built upon the wisdom that Christ has left to the Church. The teachings of the Church are not unchanging because she is out of touch with modern society. Instead they are unchanging because this is what Christ has left for us and therefore the Church must continue to call the world out of the rut of sin, into the pain of conversion, and the eventual culmination of holiness. This is what the Eucharist calls us to embrace.

This day may we indeed continue to desire to become holy by casting away our sin. May we desire to fill our life with an outpouring of love for God. May we realize that our faith is not built upon a forever changing feeling, but instead is built upon that rock that is Christ our Lord. In the breaking of bread the elements of bread and wine are forever changed into the Body and Blood of Christ. This is an action of great love which each of us has the invitation to be part of. May we embrace this invitation of love through the banishment of mortal sin and through the pain that comes with conversion. When we embrace these elements we will be able to join Christ at table with His apostles and to truly begin to see Him as He is within the breaking of bread. Our sin and our lack of desire causes us to walk beside Him and to not realize who we are with. When we cast all of this away we are allowing ourselves to place Christ in our midst and thus we to begin to allow Him to become manifest within our lives. This day may we truly allow ourselves to behold the love of Christ through the breaking of bread.