22nd Sunday in OT Year B Homily

"This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me." 

These words should come across strongly not only for the scribes and Pharisees who heard them, but also for all of us. 

We must always remember the greatest of commandments: to love God and to love our neighbor. If we carry out these two laws faithfully; not only will we come to honor Christ with our lips, but we will also allow our hearts to remain with Him.

Christ came not to deny people of His mercy, but He came in order to extend His mercy unto them. We see this portrayed to us upon the cross. The Law existed not to cut people off from God, but it existed in order to draw them into proper relationship with God.

The scribes and the Pharisees had forgotten about this reality. They had implemented the Law in a manner that cut people off from being assured of God's love. They forgot about the need to purify not only hands and feet, but ultimately to purify their hearts to love and serve the Lord.

As we know the Church is filled with many rules, but at the same time we cannot dismiss them as man made laws. Verse 8 of our Gospel states: "You leave the commandment of God, and hold fast the tradition of men."

The Church has always pointed towards the balance that must exist between scripture and tradition. Scripture does not contradict tradition nor can tradition contradict scripture. The two work in conjunction in order to balance each other out.

If we follow the tradition that has been handed down to us by the Church we in return are following Christ. Saint Paul firmly taught that Christians must hold fast to the Tradition given not only by Christ, but also by the apostles through their teaching authority.

Nevertheless, following the Tradition of the Church does not cut people off from the mercy of God. Holding fast to the Tradition of the Church does not mean that we are to cease to love God or our neighbor. Sometimes true charity requires us to do something that is difficult, but in return that does not mean that an individual has been cut off from Christ's mercy. True charity requires us to cut away that which is found to be harmful in order to be sent forth to love and serve the Lord.

Our reading from Saint James clearly stated that God is the Father of Lights. This is a reflection of creation and is thus a reflection of our own need to follow God and thus allow Him to be the constant light whom we are always in search of. Shadows change their position with the changing of the sun, but God always holds firm and true no matter the situation that we might find ourself in the midst of.

We cannot live a life where duplicity is found. Duplicity where our outward actions are tailored to meet the situation that we find ourself in. If we are at Church we act holy or if we are found among friends we act in an opposite manner. This duplicity of life is a great impossibility if we are to follow the Father of Lights who has called us to follow after Him.

Therefore let us not get caught up like the scribes and Pharisees who were solely concerned with what was being presented on the outside. Let us look inwardly upon ourself and strive to achieve a proper purity of heart.

 The sixth beatitude calls us to achieve this reality: "Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God."

To be found pure of heart means that we have cut away all that we have put in the way of serving Christ. Our intellect and our will must be attuned to God who desires holiness from us.

Therefore, let us each reflect upon the many ways that we need to purify our heart to better serve the Lord. Let us also reflect on how much we are willing to sacrifice in order to achieve this reality. Christ desired and has extended His infinite mercy unto us, but in return are we willing to accept this infinite mercy by the way that we order our life to give service to Him?

May we desire to be found pure of heart. Therefore we will not only praise God with our lips, but we will also do so through the very disposition of our heart which has been entirely elevated towards service of Him and His Most Holy Name.

21st Sunday in OT Year B Homily

St. Ambrose stated: "As Eve was formed from the sleeping Adam’s side, so the Church was born from the pierced heart of Christ hanging dead on the cross." Therefore from the cross we can conclude that Christ entered into His own death and thus from the piercing of His side with the lance both water and blood poured forth signifying the very creation of His spouse, the Church. This water which pours forth from the side of Christ signifies to us the waters of baptism and the blood which poured forth from His pierced side signifies the Holy Eucharist. Removed from baptism we cannot be members of the Church. Baptism is necessary to achieve this reality in order that we may be found "without spot or wrinkle." When we come forth to receive the Most Holy Eucharist we come forth to receive Christ who makes Himself present for us under the appearances of bread and wine. In the Eucharist we can say that two come together and in return they become one.

  

St. Paul's Letter to the Ephesians sums up two great realities for us. This letter sums up Christ's abundant love for His Church and thus too it proclaims the love that must be present when two enter into the Sacrament of Matrimony in order to become one flesh. Christ surrendered Himself totally upon the cross for our sake in order that we though found imperfect may be sanctified. This is what the husband and wife do for each other when they enter into the life giving sacrament of matrimony. Two join together in this sacrament in order to participate in the life giving reality that is made apparent through the cross. Marriage is thus for the good of the spouse because it must become a goal of the couple to get each other to Heaven.

St. Paul further instructs us in this same letter that marriage is a "great mystery." This word "mystery" reflects the very origin of the word "sacrament." It is Christ upon the cross who offers Himself without reservation to the bride who is the Church. In this same manner He takes marriage and elevates it to the status that it held from the very beginning when God called the world into creation and found it to be good. We must remember the words of Christ as given to the Pharisees in Matthew's Gospel: "For your hardness of heart Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so." And so what are we told concerning this beginning? We are instructed from Genesis: "Then the Lord God said, "It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him." And also verse 24 of Genesis: "Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and clings to his wife, and they become one flesh."

In this becoming of one flesh the couple enters into what is known as the marital embrace and in return springs forth the generation of new life. From this creation brought about by this total surrendering of self unto the other we receive a child who in return will raised and nourished within the faith by their parents. We too are called to enter into communion with Christ who pours Himself out for us through the Eucharist. Whenever we receive the Eucharist we receive Christ who is the bridegroom into our life. Through our reception of the Eucharist we allow ourself to join with Christ in both mind and heart. Through our reception of Communion we surrender who we are, unto Christ, in order that we may be sent forth from here to serve Him by our life. In John 6 when they received the bread of life which came down from Heaven they were called to grow in their love and faith for the one whom they served.

May each of us continue to keep all married couples in our prayers that through their total giving of self they may grow closer to the love of Christ. May we pray also for our youth that they too may be inspired by Christ's total outpouring of self upon the cross, which in return, elevated marriage to the status of a sacrament and thus returned it to its proper understanding which was understood from the beginning. In a matter of minutes we will move onto the intimate encounter of receiving Jesus present in the Eucharist, thus becoming one with Him. John Paul II stated: "The Eucharist is the sacrament of our redemption. It is the sacrament of the Bridegroom and of the Bride."

Solemnity of the Assumption

Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary into Heaven. This celebration marks for us the reality of Mary's glorious triumph over the death of sin and thus too her welcoming into the Kingdom of Heaven. The Assumption is the reality that Mary was taken into Heaven both body and soul and thus we now look to her with the desire that we too may join her in Heaven and thus at the end of time we will be given a glorified body as we give proper honor, adoration, and homage to God for all time. The Assumption proclaims to us that sin cannot win and thus that the glory of God will always triumph in its midst.

Genesis instructs us concerning Mary: "I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed." Mary is thus joined for all time to her Son who redeemed us. She steps upon the head of the serpent because she triumphs over Satan who desires that we remain enslaved to our sin. From Revelation we are instructed concerning our Blessed Mother: "Then the dragon stood before the woman about to give birth, to devour her child when she gave birth." As we know the dragon had no power over her because her Son was brought into this world and triumphed upon the cross. The dragon could not come to devour her because she had been prepared for all time to be the handmaid of the Lord.

As she has been gloriously taken into Heaven so too are each of our prayers and petitions. She takes them upon herself and she offers them unto to her Son on our behalf. Mary, in her glorious splendor, shows us that triumph can be ours and thus she always encourages us forward towards a better way of life. May we allow her to guide us towards Heaven that we too may come to encounter her Son in all of His truth. When it seems that the path that has been set before us may be too long and tedious may we turn towards our Blessed Mother who always encourages us forward. When the grasp of temptation and weakness grabs ahold of us may we continue to shower her with our "Aves" as she continues to step upon the head of that wicked serpent. As the preface of this Mass reminds us concerning the reality of the Assumption: "(it is) a sign of sure hope and comfort to your pilgrim people."

As the pilgrim people of this earth, we each are in search of our Heavenly promised land. Therefore may we come to trust in her who was found to be blessed among all women and she who came to exclaim in a spirit of great humility to be our guide. As the Collect of this Mass petitions: "that, always attentive to the things that are above, we may merit to be sharers of her glory." Mary elevates our minds and hearts be taken to her Son. Mary leads us forward toward the freedom found within the Heavenly Kingdom. This a freedom that world cannot bestow upon us. May she intercede for us that we may come to set our sight upon this Heavenly promised land and thus in return survive this great "Vale of tears." Holy Mary Mother of God, pray for us, that we may be taken to the mysteries of Christ.

19th Sunday in OT Year B Homily

Christ is revealing His origin as well as His ultimate destination to us in our Gospel. As Christians we reflect upon these realties each year through our celebration of Christmas and Easter. Christ instructs us that He is the bread that came down from Heaven which reveals that His origin is divine in nature and thus too He is the Son of God. This is the mystery that we celebrate during the season of Christmas. At the conclusion of this Gospel Christ states: "the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world." Here we notice the use of the future tense thus pointing towards His eventual offering of self upon the cross for the forgiveness of our sins. In our celebration of Holy Week and throughout the season of Easter we celebrate this great Christian mystery where Christ who is God made man comes to liberate us from our enslavement to sin and thus leads us toward our ultimate destination of the Heavenly Kingdom.

In our first reading we encountered Elijah who was on his journey towards his ultimate destination which is very similar to the journey that we must be willing to undertake towards Heaven. He remained in the desert for forty days and forty nights as he journeyed towards the mountain of Horeb. He was only a day into this journey when he laid below the tree famished with the knowledge of the vast journey which now laid before him. It was here that an angel came and gave him food to eat which would sustain him throughout the journey of his life towards this promised land. Without the food which he received he never would of made it throughout life's journey, but instead would of remained famished and thus too would of fell short of his ultimate destination.

Elijah sums up for us our own journey that we must be willing to make within this life. We are directed towards the mountain of Horeb which for us is the promised land of the Kingdom of Heaven. We must undergo each day a period of preparation such as Elijah who prepared himself for forty days. Along the way of this vast journey we fall, doubt, or despair, but despite all of this we come to trust in the bread which comes down from Heaven to feed us. This bread is the Son of God who eventually offers Himself to us that we may be able to carry out this vast journey that has now been set before us. In the Eucharist we come to partake of Christ who is food for the journey which leads us towards our ultimate destination of the Kingdom of Heaven.

As Saint Paul revealed to the Ephesians we too must come to trust that we have been sealed for the day of redemption. Through baptism and the sealing of the Holy Spirit we have been prepared for this journey of faith which has now been set before us. In baptism we were washed clean of the stain of sin, we were incorporated into the life of the Church, and thus conformed to Christ the prophet, king, and priest. Through Confirmation we were given the gifts of the Holy Spirit, which lead us into the world to proclaim the Gospel and thus remain faithful to it. We are also fed with the Eucharist which sustains us on this journey towards Heaven.

May we come to trust that Christ is indeed the bread that has come down from Heaven who gives us His flesh for the life of the world. Let us not be found caught up in the world, but instead be caught up in a life which reflects Christ who is present within the Eucharist. God did not take on our human flesh nor offer Himself upon the cross in order for us to remain enslaved to sin; rather we were given the sacraments in order that we may overcome all that plagues us in this life and thus totally surrender ourself to God by living a life that is worthy of what should be our ultimate destination, the Kingdom of Heaven.

10th Sunday After Pentecost Homily

Our Gospel is about the contrast that exists between "pride" and "humility."The Pharisee displays the vice of pride to us, while the Publican displays the virtue of humility. The Pharisee was so caught up in his sinfulness that he failed to see the need to lower himself to the mercy of God. The Pharisee was caught up in his good works and thus failed to see his own sinfulness. The Publican kept things simple and thus he exclaimed his sinfulness and beat his breast in acknowledgment of this sin. The Publican was able to lower himself in a true spirit of humility that we should emulate.

Pride is acknowledged as being the root of all sin. Saint Gregory the Great exclaimed: "Pride, is the sovereign of vices, when it has captured and vanquished the heart, which delivers it into the hands of its lieutenants, the seven capital vices, that they may despoil it and produce vices of all kinds." Pride is a form of rebellion which keeps an individual from submitting themselves to God and thus coming to accept the truth that He extends unto us.

It is pride when we look upon the events of the day and fail to give thanks to God. It is pride when we begin to twist the teachings of faith to mean anything which we might desire. It is pride that has plunged our world into the acceptance of many harmful actions which collide against natural law (removing children from the marital embrace, the acceptance of abortion, or the desire of redefining marriage). It is pride which causes us to slander our neighbor. It is pride which causes us to fail to make time to give God adoration and glory. It is pride which causes us to fail to see the need to return to the Sacrament of Confession and prevail ourself to the mercy of God.

Humility is our answer. Saint Augustine exclaims: "Humility is the foundation of all the other virtues hence, in the soul in which this virtue does not exist, there cannot be any other virtue except in mere appearance." Humility is the realization that we need dependence upon God, that we must submit ourself unto Him, and thus God alone is the remedy for all which ails us. Without an understanding of the virtue of humility our life and that of our culture will continue to fall away, but with humility as our guide our life and culture can be strengthened in our dependence upon God from whom all our blessings flow.

To cultivate this virtue we must: (1) Pray for the virtue of humility. (2) We must realize that many humiliations will come our way and do that which is most difficult which is to accept them whenever they befall us, (3) We must learn to obey our superiors. It is tough to submit and follow the authority of another, (4) We must realize our lowliness when we mediate upon God who has created all things, (5) We must consider others to be better then ourself rather then exclaiming like the Pharisee: "I give thanks, O God, that I am not as the rest of men." 

May we therefore stand with the Publican in lowering ourself to the mercy of God. Through humility we will conquer our sin and inspire the world to do the same. Humility is the answer that we are in search, but may we be brave enough to lower ourself to such an extreme. 

18th Sunday of OT Year B Homily

We chase after so much, which at the end of the day, will only pass away and thus will not be able to sustain us. We often grumble when we don't get what we want especially if we have to undergo a little bit of hardship along the way. No matter how we swing things hardship happens and thus we must learn to embrace it. No matter how important the passing desires of this world may seem to be we must remember that all should point towards one ultimate culmination. The Israelites passed from the slavery experienced in Egypt through the waters of the Red Sea and thus they entered into freedom. Despite all that God has given them they began to grumble that they were hungry and thus they were given food to sustain their physical hunger.

Last week we heard how Jesus saw the hunger of the multitude and gave them food to sustain them. This is a foreshadowing of the spiritual nourishment that we must receive in the Most Holy Eucharist. This week we are told that the bread that comes down from Heaven is a bread which is so great that it will never pass away. This bread is referring not to a physical hunger that we might have, but is going much deeper. This is a food which will feed us spiritually and will nourish our soul for all time to be held in relationship with God. In times of hardship and in times of need may we realize and trust that Christ continues to pour Himself out entirely for us in the Eucharist.

 

The hardships of this life are very real, but may we not act like the Israelites who were ungrateful to God for all that He had bestowed upon them. They were not led out into the desert to be lost and forgotten, and so we have not been brought into this world to remain lost and forgotten. Heaven can be lived out on this earth because the Eucharist points to the fact that Christ continues to dwell with us here. Let us not live out our life as if there is a great disconnect, but instead may we trust in the reality that God's love is so great that it continues to sustain us no matter what need that may be present within our heart. May we not grumble against God, but prevail ourself to the grace which is poured out to us in the Eucharist.

We must take the Sacrament of the Eucharist more seriously each day. All the actions of our life should be pointing their way towards Christ who is present in the Eucharist. So often our actions are not made from the reflection of how this will take me to God or how will this take others towards God, but instead our actions are often done on the spur of the moment; even if they carry life long ramifications with them. We must desire to be a better witness to the Christian life because it will only be in this manner that we can follow after the words of Saint Paul who instructed us: "you should put away the old self of your former way of life, corrupted through deceitful desires, and be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and put on the new self, created in God's way in righteousness and holiness of truth."

Christ shows us that to be His follower does not mean that we must now be like everyone else. We must cut ourself off from this wordily reality that detracts us from Christ. Christ continues to prevail Himself to us in the Eucharist that we may sent forth from here with the knowledge that we are now held together in communion with God through our reception of such a wondrous Sacrament. Hopefully we will not allow our reception of such a gift to leave us unchanged, but instead to transform us into reflecting Christ more and more to this world. It is not the grumbling of the Israelites that drew souls towards God, but it was the food that sustained them within the desert. May we not grumble, but instead partake of this Heavenly Food and thus reform our life to follow after such a great gift for: "whoever comes to Christ will never hunger, and whoever believes in Christ will never thirst."