Christ the King Homily (Extraordinary Form)

Today we observe the Feast of Christ the King.

This past Sunday we were instructed in our Gospel, “Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” This proclamation exclaims that our faith is not something that can be divided up into various categories and thus not be integrated into who we are as a human person.

The Feast of Christ the King was established in order to proclaim that Christ still holds a place in our modern day society. He cannot be divorced from our interaction with the world as some would like to believe and do. He is the King who reigns victorious from the cross and thus He is the King to whom our world longs for we can find our fulfillment nowhere else.

As Pope Pius XI exclaimed in Quas Primas (In the First), “He must reign in our minds, which should assent with perfect submission and firm belief to revealed truths and to the doctrines of Christ. He must reign in our wills, which should obey the laws and precepts of God. He must reign in our hearts, which should spurn natural desires and love God above all things, and cleave to him alone. He must reign in our bodies and in our members, which should serve as instruments for the interior sanctification of our souls.”

As the Lord exclaimed in our Gospel, “Every one who is of the truth hears my voice.” It should be no secret that our modern day society has put so much in the way of hearing this voice. We cannot allow the noise of this world in all of its busyness to silence this voice that is being made manifest for us for this is the voice of truth.

Very soon our nation will enter into another election cycle. Some allow themself to take on a political party over the full teaching of the Church. In our discernment for this upcoming election we must do so under a spirit prayer that is done in unison with the entirety of the Church’s teachings kept in mind. Again we cannot live a faith that is not integrated entirely into who we are as a human person.

May this Feast of Christ the King further assist us in coming to realize the importance of Christ in our life and society. Christ is not just one of many ways to truth, but is truth itself. Our heart must remain open to this truth for He is the sovereign power over our bodies, our thoughts, our heart, and our will. In choosing Him we come to exalt Him as King over all of our life.

Long live Christ the King!

30th Sunday of OT Year B Homily

In our Gospel the blind man exclaimed on two occasions, “Son of David, have pity on me.” This exclamation along with a few others from scripture are associated with the Jesus Prayer. It is this prayer that is popular in the Orthodox Church where one simply recites, “Lord, Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner.”

In 1st Thessalonians Saint Paul states, “pray without ceasing.” Such a command can seem to be impossible especially in the midst of a world which is as busy as ours. The Church is an important place for prayer to take place, but prayer must also be taken outside of these walls and integrated into who we are as a human person.

This means that our prayer is to be taken into the world and be lived. It is to take place while we are at work, at school, driving down the road, shopping at the store, when with family, when we are alone. Prayer must be an important part of our walk of faith. Without prayer we have no relationship with the Lord.

This blind man called out to the Lord on many occasions. He understood that He was the one for whom his heart longed. No matter the difficulty and set back of life he continued to cry out only the louder. We too must take his example upon us as we continue to cry out to the Lord in the midst of our own need.

The beauty of the Jesus Prayer is its simplicity. Despite its simplicity it is filled with so much meaning. It is to proclaim an understanding that Christ is God, that we are a sinner who is in need of His mercy, and lead us further into entering into communion with Him. We must be stirred out of our slumber and be placed into action that embraces a life of faith at all times.

Some can grow confused and think that they have nothing to grow in. God is an infinite reality and so is His love. Therefore, there is always something more that we are able to grow in. If we were to reach such a level of perfection then we would be God Himself and that would be a great impossibility for we are not God.

From the book The Way of the Pilgrim we are told: “Again, I started off on my wanderings. But now I did not walk along as before, filled with care. The invocation of the Name of Jesus gladdened my way. Everybody was kind to me. If anyone harms me I have only to think, ‘How sweet is the Prayer of Jesus!’ and the injury and the anger alike pass away and I forget it all.”

This is the prayer of the blind man, “Jesus, son of David, have pity on me.” Likewise, this becomes our prayer, “Lord, Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner.” Through these words ever placed upon our lips may we grow in love for God and our desire to serve His Gospel as the blind man came and “followed him on the way.”

29th Sunday of OT Year B Homily

Next weekend our parish will hold it’s Stewardship Commitment Weekend.

For some the word “stewardship” has become a taboo subject that simply concerns itself with the giving of money. Rather, stewardship is the grateful response of a Christian disciple who recognizes and receives God’s gifts and shares these gifts in love of God and neighbor. Through the giving of our time, talent, and treasure we provide for the needs of our parish community.

Our parish is blessed with many great volunteers who already give of their time and talent. We can see this through the multitude of ministries which set out as a response to the Gospel. Most recently I have been reminded of this through the countless amount of people who have come together to provide for the needs of those affected by Hurricane Helene.

Our Gospel makes reference to the necessity of service. “Whoever wishes to be great among you will be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you will be the slave to all.” We must look for ways in which we can be servants to others. When we attempt to exalt ourself we forget about the needs of others whom we are called to love.

Through our commitment of stewardship we are setting out to be a servant of the many gifts that have been provided to us by God. If we have received something we are not called to squander it, but to put it into use in order that others may come to be served. The Lord gave “his life as a ransom for many” for His love for all was found to be perfect and without end as He laid down His life in order that we may be saved.

This week every registered household will receive a stewardship commitment form in the mail. I ask that each household takes this seriously and returns it to Mass next Sunday filled out. For our prayer we must ask what gifts God has entrusted to us and how we are called upon to share these gifts with others. How can you be a good steward to this community through the giving of your time, talent, and treasure?

Let each us not squander that which has been entrusted to our care, but see stewardship as a way of life where we are sent forth to share these gifts in love of God and neighbor.

28th Sunday of OT Year B Homily

October 13, 1917 was the Miracle of the Sun. On this day the sun danced about the sky bringing to conclusion the apparitions in Fatima. It was here that our Blessed Mother appeared to three shepherd children (Lucia, Francisco, and Jacinta). These apparitions began on May 13, 1917 and continued on the 13th of every month through October.

The children reported seeing a woman who was “brighter than the sun, shedding rays of light clearer and stronger than a crystal goblet filled with the most sparkling water and pierced by the burning rays of the sun.” She asked that they pray “the rosary every day, to bring peace to the world and an end to the war.” This past Monday we observed the Memorial of the Most Holy Rosary where we were reminded of the importance of taking up this prayer. 

The rosary becomes an answer to the spiritual combat that takes place in the midst of our daily life. We are to go unto the Lord with the desire to inherit eternal life. This is not simply a question of how we are to obtain it, but how we are to embrace the answer that the Lord gives in its entirety. This spiritual battle can be won if we stay on guard and remain open to the gift of God’s grace.

The Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary marks the battle that was won in Lepanto where victory was won over the invading Turks. This victory was attributed to the faithful taking up the rosary. Think of the battles that can be won, personally and culturally, if we faithfully take up the rosary that was asked by our Blessed Mother at Fatima to be prayed. As is promised to those who pray the rosary, “The rosary shall be a powerful armor against hell, it will destroy vice, decrease sin, and defeat heresies.”

There are so many who allow themself to go through this life living as if in a slumber. They invest practically nothing to their life of faith and simply, if at all, just go through the motions of what is obligated. We must be stirred out of this slumber and be put into action. As the sun danced about the sky those many years ago many came to be stirred into action when it pertained to living out a life of faith.

In being stirred out of this slumber we must be moved to repentance and the infinite mercy of God. A camel passing through eye of a needle is to say that one’s baggage needs to be removed if one is to pass through. Therefore, we must let go of all that keeps us from entering into union with God through a spirit of repentance.

Through the apparitions that took place in Fatima we can see that God desires to have mercy of the whole world. Let us turn toward this mercy and be lifted out of our slumber and placed into action by taking up the rosary and remaining faithful to the message of the gospels.

Our Lady of Fatima, pray for us.