16th Sunday After Pentecost Homily

We are called to pursue the virtue of humility in our daily life. It can be easy to desire to pursue the place of honor at the expense of others. Rather, we should remember that we are a disciple of the Lord and thus everything that we do should flow from our relationship with Him. When things are about us and not about Him we have caused disorder in our life.

When we come to participate in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass our disposition should not be about us and our own preferences, but about the Lord. Everyone has so many preferences to how we are to worship Him, but at the Mass we join with Him at Calvary where time continues to stands still and we are united as one. In the liturgy we are to direct our sight entirely to Him.

The liturgy is primarily the “work of God” because Christ, as High Priest, continues His redemptive work through the Church. Nevertheless, we are called upon to cooperate with such work through our full and active participation as God’s people known as the Church. Through a lack of humility we would rather the liturgy be about us instead of Christ.

Beyond the Church’s liturgy every aspect of our life should be informed by our relationship with Christ. We are so quick to exalt ourselves, but so slow to humble ourself in the Lord’s presence. When we interact with others, especially those who we do not agree with, we must treat them with charity and realize that we are nothing more then a disciple of the Lord.

As a disciple of the Lord everything that we do must flow from our relationship with Him. We can only make way for such a reality to be made manifest if we are found willing to enter into relationship with Him. The world is busy and filled with so much noise and thus we must choose to make prayer a priority. Through prayer we make way for the Lord to be in our midst.

The sacrament of confession assists us in making way for the Lord’s coming. Through sin we turn away from Him, but through the forgiveness of sins these wounds come to be healed. A confession of one’s sins is impossible if one is not first found willing to let go of their pride and be humbled by Christ’s mercy.

In a matter of moments we will invite the Lord to enter under our roof. This is a humble proclamation that is made due to the fact that Christ’s love for us is so great that He willing to prevail Himself to us under the appearances of bread and wine. Through the reception of this sacrament we must encounter Him with humility by letting go of our pride.

No matter what lies in wait for us from here let us remain united to the truth of faith. In the midst of all hardship and difficulty we must remember that all that we do is about Christ. Through humility we continue to make way for His coming among us and treat one another as an outpouring of such humility that He shows to us from the wood of the cross.

15th Sunday After Pentecost Homily

Many prophets have come and gone. There are four major prophets of the Old Testament Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel. There are all of the minor prophets and the other prophets. The final prophet of the Old Covenant was Saint John the Baptist who prepared the way for the coming of the Messiah.

Prophets are sent to speak God’s will and designs to the people of the Old Covenant, forming them in the hope of salvation. Their role is to speak God’s truth and to remind those who would hear of their covenant with God and to call them back to that covenant through repentance. Though existing prior to the coming of Christ each of them pointed the way towards the one who would come.

Through the miracle that was worked in our Gospel "they glorified God, saying: A great prophet is risen up among us, and God has visited His people.” This profession gets to the heart of what we believe for Christ is the Son of God and is the Second Person of the Most Holy Trinity and is thus God Himself.

Jesus does not simply relay a message to us from God for He is the ultimate revelation of God for He is the Word who took on our human flesh and made His dwelling place here among us. He serves as the fulfillment of all prophecy for all of it pointed the way towards the one who would come, the Messiah.

From the Catechism we are told of our share in this prophetic office of Christ, “The holy People of God shares also in Christ's prophetic office," above all in the supernatural sense of faith that belongs to the whole People, lay and clergy, when it "unfailingly adheres to this faith . . . once for all delivered to the saints,” and when it deepens its understanding and becomes Christ's witness in the midst of this world.”

In other words as people of faith we must continue to bear witness to God’s truth daily. In order to accomplish this task we must live according to God’s design, we must show Jesus to others in the way in which we live and order our life, and we must help at building up the Kingdom of God here on earth through our actions.

So many act as passive spectators when it pertains to such a prophetic role. There is nothing which is passive about our faith because it is the proclamation of all that is true. Through it we are professing our salvation which should be of top importance to each of us. Let us boldly set out to profess Christ Jesus in our thoughts, words, and deeds.

“A great prophet is risen up among us, and God has visited His people.” This proclamation is of utter importance and thus we must continue to spread the Good News of this message.

25th Sunday of OT Year C Homily

From Saint Paul we were told, “For there is one God. There is also one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.”

There are some of other faith traditions who improperly apply this verse against Catholicism. They claim that we place Mary and the saints over the power of Christ. They claim that priests, bishops, and even the pope take the place of Christ. They act as if we are able to go to Christ with our needs. They rightly claim that Christ is the one mediator between God and men (that is what scripture says after all), but improperly understand this verse in light of the Church.

From the 2nd Vatican Council document Lumen Gentium, “The one mediator, Christ, established and ever sustains here on earth his holy Church, the community of faith, hope, and charity, as a visible organization through which he communicates truth and grace to all men.”

And from the Council of Trent well before that, “If anyone asserts that this sin of Adam, which in its origin is one, and by propagation, not by imitation, transfused into all, which is in each one as something that is his own, is taken away either by the forces of human nature or by a remedy other than the merit of the one mediator, our Lord Jesus Christ . . . let him be anathema.”

As Catholics we understand the importance of the intercession of the saints. They are able to pray for us as we are able to pray for one another. They unlike us, have already been found worthy of Heaven and have thus been incorporated into the beatific vision. In no way do they take the place of Christ for even Saint Paul understood that “supplications, prayers, petitions, and thanksgivings be offered for everyone”.

The title Mary Mediatrix of All Graces does not go against what was spoken of by Saint Paul concerning Christ. Mary’s role is not independent, but instead receives its power and authority from Christ. It was she who brought God into this world through her womb and thus she is able to connect humanity to God through her Son. She is solely a conduit through which God’s grace flows to us.

Priests have a unique role assigned to them. They pray for the faithful, they offer the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, and they minister at the sacraments. Despite this unique role they are not mediators between man and God, that is Christ alone. At the heart of the Mass is Christ who lays down His life for us out of love upon the cross.

As Catholics we should pray directly to Jesus for He is the one mediator. At the same time let us continue to pray for one another and to ask the intercession of the angels and saints that we may come to live good and holy lives. And so let us ask the “blessed Mary ever-Virgin, all the Angels and Saints, and you, my brothers and sisters, to pray for me to the Lord our God. Amen.”

Exaltation of the Holy Cross Homily

Today we celebrate the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross where the cross is held high for all the world to see. This cross is, after all, the instrument from which our salvation has been won for us.

From the Book of Numbers we were told of Moses who lifted high the seraph which was mounted upon the pole. Those who looked at it, even if bitten, would live. So too we as Christians are able to look upon the cross and we thou touched by the reality of sin are able to live.

The crucifix is an image of Christ’s redemptive act. Whenever we look at such an image our mind should be taken to the total outpouring of love that Christ has for us. He was willing to lay down His life in order that we may be redeemed. Saint Pail spoke of this in our Epistle for “he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave.”

Saint Rose of Lima stated, “Apart from the cross there is no other ladder by which we may get to heaven.” This past Sunday we were invited from the Gospel of Saint Luke to take up this cross, “whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.” 

Therefore, despite all the Lord has done for us we are given the option to rebuke this cross. In rebuking the cross we rebuke the Lord and the love that He has shown for us. By entering into our own interests at the cost of the cross we cannot find ourself in Heaven. For words of the Gospel of Saint Matthew, “Whoever does not take up his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me.”

As we further celebrate the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross let us come to grow in our love for the cross. It is not just a simple pendant that is worn around one’s neck, but is a way of life. The more that we are found willing to enter into the mystery of the cross the more that we are able to grow in love.

The cross is truly something which is irksome, but through it we are given life. Let us hold high the cross and looking upon it dare to live as a Christian, instead of so easily compromising the life of faith to pursue the ways of this world. With every cross that we must endure we are able to look outward towards the hope of the Resurrection. This is the joy which we must pursue and it can only be made manifest if we are willing to embrace the cross which has been held high for us.

We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you, because by your Cross you have redeemed the world.

13th Sunday After Pentecost Homily

We must be grateful for all that God has given to us especially the gift of His grace.

The lepers were helpless for their situation placed them as outcasts of the community. They were unable to do anything for themself that would bring forth healing except to beg their situation to God. They thus cried out, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.” Of the ten who came to be healed only one returned into order to show gratitude for such a wondrous gift.

Like the lepers we are unable to be saved by our own merit. We needed Christ’s sacrifice upon the cross as well as the continued assistance of God’s grace in order to complete such a task. By accepting such a gift we must remember to be filled with such gratitude for what we have received.

There are some who unknowingly go about this life as if they are able to save themselves. They act as if no matter how they choose to order their life that they will be saved. Rather, we must realize our dependence upon God and the need for His mercy. In such a state we are able to cry out “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.”

Through such an act of faith these words lead us towards true repentance. With a contrite heart we come before God confessing our sins and receiving the grace of the sacrament of confession as we are absolved from these sins. We should be thankful for such a gift for without it we would be unable to be healed from those serious sins that have cut us off from the gift of God’s grace.

The ultimate proclamation of such thanksgiving is the Eucharist itself. The word “Eucharist” means “thanksgiving.” Thus through the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass we are not passive recipients, but active in our role of giving back to Him who has given all things unto us. Through the Mass we are able to enter into His sacrifice and give thanks to God for this gift through our worship.

In coming to commune with the Lord in Holy Communion we invite Him to enter in under our roof. Through such a reception we are strengthened to enter into the world not living as an enemy of Christ, but as one who has been sent forth to bring Christ out into the world. In such manner the leper was commanded, “Stand up and go; your faith has saved you.”

This command did not send him back into the world unchanged, but as one that had been changed by God’s healing power. Let us continue to call out to the infinite mercy of God and intrust ourselves to the gift of His grace. In doing so we must always remember to give thanks for all that God has done for us.

“Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.”