6th Sun OT Year A Homily

Living the Eucharist. These words should be very familiar to us by now, because we have heard them in the parish announcements for the past month. "Living the Eucharist" is the name that was rightly given to this year's bishop's appeal. This title shows the reality of our devotion, our unity, and our charity that is all centered upon Christ present in the Most Blessed Sacrament of the Altar. Saint Augustine expresses this most beautifully by exclaiming: "O sacrament of devotion! O sign of unity! O bond of charity!"

We are still in the midst of the celebration of our diocese's twenty-fifth anniversary. We began this celebration by showing how the Church is something more then this little parish community here in Oak Ridge. This was shown through the first Eucharistic Congress of our diocese where the unity that is expressed in the Holy Eucharist was shown through conferences, through the liturgy, and through the many people who gathered from around this diocese to become one through the Eucharist. Here today we continue this celebration in a most special way because in our presence are two icons of the patrons of our diocese, the Blessed Mother and Blessed John Paul II. Saint Mary's life continuously shows her true devotion for her Son and Blessed John Paul II was able to live the words of the Second Vatican Council by allowing the Eucharist to become the source and summit of his faith. Attached to these icons is a plenary indulgence which I hope all of you will take advantage of. The obtaining of this indulgence is very simple because all that one has to do to obtain it is pray an "Our Father" and a "Hail Mary" for Pope Francis while in this Church with these icons, one must also receive Holy Communion, and finally one must make use of the Sacrament of Reconciliation. These three things should be a practice that any Catholic has already developed in their life because of the unity that is found through living the Eucharist and the response that it calls us to give in return.

The 2014 bishop's appeal entitled "Living the Eucharist" sums up the wideness of charity that comes when we receive our Lord into our lives. This appeal also reminds us of the reality that we are more then this little parish, but instead are only a small piece that exists inside of the unity that is found within the Church as realized through the Holy Eucharist. Each of the six areas where funds will be allotted will help to build up the Kingdom of God not only here in Oak Ridge, but throughout the Knoxville diocese. Funds will be given for clergy and seminarian education which as we all know will at some point in time effect this Church community. It is through the hands of our priests that we receive Christ present in the Holy Eucharist into our lives. Without priests we would not have the Eucharist. Secondly, funds will go to support Catholic Charities which serves those in need through many services that are offered; even some who might belong to this parish community. To receive Christ into our lives demands as Pope Francis has reminded us time and time again to take care of the less fortunate in this world. These funds also help to give aid to programs such as RCIA, Catholic schools (which all of us should know the importance of), and religious education. May we especially remember to pray for those in RCIA because the season of Easter is coming quickly and thus they will receive Jesus Christ present in the Most Holy Eucharist into their lives for the first time. Youth, young adult, and campus ministry will also be aided through this appeal which will make sure that the Eucharist is able to remain central in the lives of our many young people especially those who are in college. Health services ministry is a new category added this year which will again show our need to respond with spiritual care and healing to those who are in need. Finally, this appeal will aid efforts of justice and peace which ensures that we continue to bring the voice of the Eucharist into the world to become the voice of the many moral issues that plague society.

As we speak about "Living the Eucharist" I hope that we can see that the Eucharist is something that demands a response of love from us. This was shown in the devotion of our first Eucharistic Congress, it is shown through the charity that is displayed in the bishop's appeal, and is shown in the lives of the saints especially our patrons who lived out the unity of the Eucharist by their daily turning away from sin. If the Eucharist is to be lived it therefore must be alive. If then our relationship to the Eucharist has been killed we will be unable to live the Eucharist in our lives. The Church still teaches this as mortal sin which truly effects our relationship with the Eucharist. To receive Christ present in the Eucharist while in the state of mortal sin would be equal to attempting to feed a dead body food. Food can never help a dead body to live and the person who receives the Eucharist in the state of mortal sin can receive nothing in return except for another mortal sin.

All of today's readings point towards our need to turn away from our own sinfulness and to always trust in the great mercy of God. Our Gospel especially tackles some serious issues which in our modern world has been overlooked because we want to reason away sin and it's grasp inside of our life. We can look to polls of Catholics who time and time again are confused concerning Church doctrine, the reality of sin, and the fact that Christ is truly present inside of the Eucharist. Cohabitation prior to marriage has become the norm for society which has reasoned away the need for the Sacrament of Marriage. Many marriages have been attempted outside of the Church and thus people have excluded themselves from the life of the Eucharist. Contraception has become accepted by many which again causes many to kill their relationship with Christ present in the Holy Eucharist. If we truly believe that Christ is alive in the Eucharist we will cast away these sins and all those present in our life, so that we to may be alive through our living out of the Eucharist.

When we receive Christ this day may we not do so under the serious effects of mortal sin, but through our trust in the mercy of God that we have received through the Sacrament of Confession. In this manner we will truly be able to live the Eucharist. We will then be able to exclaim with Saint Augustine: "O sacrament of devotion! O sign of unity! O bond of charity!"

Presentation of the Lord Homily

Today we celebrate the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord which was known in the old liturgical calendar as the Feast of the Purification of Mary. Our Gospel taken today from Luke encompasses both of these events which reveal the reality that Christ came not to abolish the law, but to fulfill it. It is easy for us as Christians here in the year 2014 to forget that the Old Testament was not abolished, but instead it was fulfilled through Christ's birth, death, and resurrection. Therefore when we read the Law that was handed down to the Jewish people we should not do so as if this has been abolished and therefore of no use for us here today. Instead we should realize in our reflection of these passages of scripture that they were leading up to one event in the life of the world, and that event was the coming of the Messiah. Through the reality of the coming of the Messiah to come and dwell with us here on this earth these passages are finally receiving the true meaning of which they were always leading towards.

Following the birth of Christ, Mary had to follow the law which stated in Leviticus that she had to be purified in water in order to be made clean. The purpose for this purification was brought about due to the fact that the woman was no longer a virgin and therefore was in need of this purification prior to entering the temple. With Christ we are able to see how this came to be fulfilled through Mary's obedience to the Law. She was still a virgin, but through her obedience to the Law would go to the temple to be purified. Her child is the very one who was born to go out into the world and truly begin to purify it from its relationship to sin. Mary surrenders herself to this purification which signals for us our own need to be purified each day from our relationship with sin. If Mary would of ran away from the temple & thus not submitted herself to this purification we would all be free to run away from our purification from sin. Instead the example given by our Blessed Mother was not to run, but to embrace our daily need for purification.

Following the Purification, the Law required that the first born son would be presented inside of the temple by his family. This requirement was due to Exodus which expected that every first born son be taken to the temple forty days following his birth to be presented to the Lord. Through this presentation it was being shown that this child now belonged to the Lord. Again we should see the contradiction of this action because Christ was the Son of God and therefore was already well known by His Heavenly Father. Despite the holy family's knowledge of this reality they remained obedient to the Law and brought their Son to the temple which signals to us once more that it was Christ who has come not to abolish the law, but to fulfill it. In His presentation inside of the temple we are each shown our own need to prepare ourselves each day to truly be able to belong to the Lord. If we desire to belong entirely to the Lord we will allow ourselves to be separated from each sin which hurts our relationship with Christ and His Church.

Finally, these two episodes bring us to encounter Simeon who shares his profound understanding of what is taking place by stating in what has become known as the Canticle of Simeon: "Lord, now you let your servant go in peace; your word has been fulfilled: my own eyes have seen the salvation which you have prepared in the sight of every people: a light to reveal you to the nations and the glory of your people Israel." In this statement Simeon is professing his profound understanding that Christ is truly the Messiah who has come to bring about a fulfillment to all that has been promised throughout sacred scripture. As people were bound through darkness prior to Christ they will now forever encounter the light that has been revealed to the nations. Due to this profound revelation this day is also often known as Candlemas because from the darkness of sin the light of Christ always shines forth similar to the light that is brought about from a candle.

This day may each of us here come to this same understanding that Simeon felt when he came to present Christ to the Lord inside of the temple. May we realize that all scripture has led up to this moment where we too can proclaim Christ as our Messiah. May we also realize that through this reality we can no longer make the excuse that the darkness of sin is acceptable inside of our lives. Instead of excepting sin and the lies that are brought about by Satan we must move ourselves each day to the light of Christ that shines rays of mercy upon us. 

When we receive our Lord this day present in the Holy Eucharist may we realize that in our reception of such a great gift that we join ourselves to the honor that Simeon received inside of the temple. This is the same honor that Anna the Prophetess came to adore inside of the temple which we also come adore in Eucharistic adoration. In Holy Communion we see the fulfillment of scripture because from the rising of the sun to its setting a pure sacrifice has been offered From the honor of receiving Christ, this pure sacrifice, present in the Holy Eucharist we are forever challenged to turn ourselves away from the darkness of sin and embrace the light that shines forth from Christ's abundant mercy.

3rd Sun of OT Year A Homily

This past Wednesday was the 41st anniversary of the Supreme Court decision of Roe vs. Wade where abortion was legalized inside of this country. Due to this Supreme Court decision many people flock each year to Washington DC to march for the sanctity of human life. Of course January 22nd is not the most promising of times due to weather, any of the pilgrims who attended the March for Life this year would especially agree to this if you asked them. Despite snow and cold this is such an important matter that each of them knows that they must preach the Gospel to the world and must also join themselves together in this cause through their prayers and sacrifices. These many people who attend this march each year are a reminder for us that the Gospel and its teachings are not something that should be locked up inside of a church, but instead are something that must be brought out into the world and lived; no matter the response that may await us on the outside.

I am told time and time again by people that "I am pro life, but don't think it is right to tell others what to believe." This response of relativism can be attributed to any other moral teaching of the Church which we might accept, but don't want to teach, don't want to pray for, don't want to sacrifice for, and thus don't allow ourselves to become a true example of. Maybe this same relativism has seeped into our own lives to the point where we can only accept the Church and thus the teachings of Christ through a sense of partiality instead of through its totality. Whenever we come forward to receive our Lord present in the Body and Blood of Christ we do so accepting Christ in His totality through our response of "amen" which means "I believe." Communion is not about entering into partiality, but instead it is what binds us together in the totality of the Church and her teachings as was handed down to us by Christ our Lord. From the abundance that we receive in Holy Communion we are forever prepared to be disciples not of relativism, but of the truth.

Our Gospel from Matthew serves as a reminder of the importance of becoming both a preacher and one who lives out the truth no matter what the response we receive may be. From Isaiah we are told that He went to the Galilee of the Gentiles and thus these people who have been in darkness have finally received the great light that they had been longing for. To put this into context, starting in the time of King Solomon, Galilee was split into two kingdoms, one made up of Jewish people and the other was made up of people mixed of many different faiths especially an influx of Gentiles was found here. Naturally, the Galilee of the Gentiles would be looked down upon due to the reality of the darkness that comes through not being made up of God's chosen people. Nevertheless, Christ gives a great example of evangelization to us when He goes to this place to preach and lead people towards the light of faith because He is showing that the message of the Gospel is for all people. We to must come to this conclusion as we enter into the world to bring the light of faith to all those whom we encounter.

Matthew's Gospel again gives us a great reminder of the hardship that this evangelization can bring into our lives by saying: "he went to live in Capernaum by the sea." For anyone who has ever been to a beach we know how brutal that waves can be to the shore. A beach is not a calm place because of the waves and thus the fact Christ went to live by a sea shows the brutality that can arise as we attempt to live out our faith inside of the world. We are beaten upon through temptations that want us to cave in to these lies. We are beaten upon by the despair of hardship that attempts to force us to lose hope. We are beaten upon through the tide of relativism which separates us from Christ and His Church. We are beaten upon by fear which causes us to run instead of proclaiming our faith by our lives. We are beaten upon by laziness which causes us to never feel compelled to pray or to offer sacrifice in our lives. Despite all this that beats upon us each day, Christ came to live by the sea, to preach and to give hope that we can abandon all this for love of Him & thus usher in the light of faith amidst the darkness that is found within our life.

Despite the fear that came into the lives of each of the apostles Christ called them to true serenity. They abandoned all that they had to follow after Him who had come to bring light into their lives. Despite abandoning all to Him they continued to find themselves placed by the brutality of the sea, but with Christ they were given hope. Christ has called each of us here to follow after Him and thus to face the brutality of the sea not by giving in to it, but through overcoming it with His help. For each pilgrim that was found in Washington this past Wednesday  this was the origin of their hope that this unjust law will be overturned and that all hearts may be opened to the value of human life. For this hope each hardship that they had to endure was well worth bringing the Gospel message into the world. May we to desire to bring the Gospel into the world, so that we can bring all hearts to the light of Christ and to His Church. May there be no divisions found among us as we confront the sea of temptation, relativism, despair, laziness, and fear to bring the Gospel, not in its partiality, but in its totality to the world.

2nd Sun after Epiphany Homily (Extraordinary Form)

"They have no wine." These are four of the most embarrassing words that could ever be uttered at a wedding celebration for this time period. The reality of these words show a couple's lack of ability to be hospitable to their guests. A celebration of this magnitude after all was far different then what we understand a wedding celebration to be this day. This is so because the celebration does not last for one day as we may understand it to be, but instead lasted for up to seven days. It is no wonder then that it was exclaimed following this miracle: "Every man at first sets forth good wine, and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse, but you have kept the good wine until now." In this exclamation that was made we join with our own wonder and awe because we realize that this was indeed a long celebration and yet this was the best wine that was offered for this wondrous occasion. In this first miracle that was was worked by our Lord we are shown the true fruit of our prayers and labors. What is lacking will indeed be given great meaning through Christ!

Surely we can think of the many ways where our world is trying to find this meaning. It is constantly being shouted out in some way: "They have no wine." Every time when we are afraid of what the future has in store for us; this is what we are shouting out. Every time when we feel the grasp of sin upon us in this life; this is what we are shouting out. Every time when we see an injustice inside of the world; this is what we are shouting out. "They have no wine" are four words that are always able to sympathize with us and with the world that we live within. Indeed like the wedding feast, the time that is set before us can be long and grueling, but when we are in need or fall astray our Lord remains to work His miracles in our life and thus to give us the proper meaning amidst our prayers and labors. Only here will we be able to truly be given the wine of grace when this wine has run dry inside of our life.

Since January 22, 1973 our own country is able to say that "the wine has run dry." On this day forty-one years ago a decision was made by the Supreme Court of this nation that allowed abortion to made legal. We to this day continue to feel the effects of this ruling because every day close to to 4,000 babies are brutally murdered inside of this country. With the great travesty of these statistics it is easy to lose hope because sometimes it seems like we are getting nowhere. Nevertheless, we must remember that at the wedding feast of Cana a great miracle was worked. Therefore from the despair that was found when it was revealed that the wine had ran dry; hope was given through the miracle that was worked by Christ. For this same reason we must continue to pray and to offer sacrifice not only for the injustice of abortion, but for any injustice in our world or also those that we have created in our own lives through sin. On this Wednesday may we remember in a special way to pray, fast, and offer sacrifice that Roe vs. Wade may indeed be overturned and thus that human life will be allowed to flourish in our nation.

Beyond the grasp of our nation and world we must also look internally upon ourselves and ask ourselves in what ways have we allowed the wine to run dry in our own life. The plague of dryness comes about anytime when we avoid prayer in our daily lives. It comes about at those moments when we make an excuse to why we are to busy to attend the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. It comes about when we consent to our temptation and thus fall into sin. It comes about in our sorrow when will fall into despair over the situation that we find ourselves within. No matter the struggle that we find ourselves within we must remember the great miracle that was worked at this wedding feast because through it we know that Christ always sees our needs and gives us in return an abundance of grace. We cannot stand around idly, but instead must submit ourselves to the work that is set before us which will allow the water to be transformed into wine.

With the mystery of this wedding feast we can also not forget that "they have no wine" was the plea of our Blessed Mother. We must remember that she always hears and sees our needs and is willing to bring them to the attention of her Son. In the midst of the many moments where our world or ourselves are able to proclaim that we have no wine; devotion to Mary will always help the much needed water to be turned into wine inside of our lives. For this very reason she is forever heralded under titles such as protectress of unborn children, model of motherhood, Mother most pure, help of Christians, refuge of sinners, throne of wisdom, vessel of selfless devotion, or any other title that may be found inside of the Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In our weakness she will bring our needs to her Son and He will allow the water of our brokenness to be transformed into the wine of our joy. Let us not continuously live out the embarrassment of the words "they have no wine," but instead may we truly come to trust in Christ and the reality that through our relationship with Him we will be transformed.

Baptism of the Lord Year A Homily

For one last time: Merry Christmas to all of you. With today's celebration of the Baptism of the Lord we come to the conclusion of the Christmas season. This feast is the perfect hinge to move away from this season because with Christ's baptism in the Jordan He was sent forth into His public ministry which would culminate with His eventual death and Resurrection. With our own knowledge of the Sacrament of Baptism this feast should seem rather odd to us. We know that this sacrament washes away any sin that is present upon the soul especially that of original sin. The confusion, therefore, should come about because Christ never fell into sin nor did He inherit original sin upon his soul. Therefore, today we should stand in shock with Saint John the Baptist who exclaimed in our Gospel: "I need to be baptized by you, and yet you are coming to me?" Despite this shock Saint John the Baptist allowed Him to be baptized in order "to fulfill all righteousness."

Thorough Christ's baptism in the Jordan we are being led towards the wood of the cross. In the waters of baptism Christ did not take on sin so that it could be washed away, but instead shows His solidarity with the sinful. He joined us to the point where He would eventually become the sacrificial lamb who would be offered upon the wood of the cross in atonement for our sins. Through His baptism we are being shown that we must also be baptized and that once we enter into this wonderful exchange we must continue to embrace the cross to purge ourselves of sin and to truly begin to long for the Kingdom of Heaven. With the cross removed from our lives we will always be led into the slavery of self instead of the true freedom that springs forth when we allow ourselves to truly begin to love as is modeled to us by Christ. Christ prevails Himself to the mercy of Saint the John the Baptist that He be admitted to the waters of baptism. We to should prevail ourselves to the mercy of Christ with a spirit of conversion that we may return to the innocence of that wonderful day when we entered into these life giving waters.

In the words of Saint Augustine: "There are three ways in which sins are forgiven: in baptism, in prayer, and in the greater humility of penance; yet God does not forgive sins except to the baptized." With these words we can see that baptism is important to our life of faith. If we are the parents or guardians of a child we must take care that they are baptized as quickly as possible. This Sacrament is not some mere family ritual, but instead is a life changing reality for all those who have entered into its waters. It is the parents of a child who accepts the weight of the obligation to raise them inside of the faith. It is the godparents, usually chosen due to family or ties of friendship, who also agree to raise the child in the faith by the example of their life. This does not mean, therefore, that a parent or godparent can easily enter into this obligation because they have pledged themselves to almighty God to raise their child in the faith which is the Catholic faith as was handed down to us by the apostles as expressed in its fullness.

Through the humility that we encounter at Christ's baptism we receive the message that we to must always humble ourselves to Christ's infinite mercy by putting our sin to death. Going back to Saint Augustine we must trust in prayer and penance if we are to truly have this desire to humble ourselves to the mercy of Christ and thus to put our sin to death. Without an authentic relationship with God through prayer we will always remain lost as we wonder about the world. Through prayer we will develop an authentic relationship with God which will strengthen us against our temptation towards sin and will also allow us to be made open to Christ's mercy to the point where our venial sins are forgiven. For those moments where we fail to prevail ourselves to the love of God and submit to the weight of mortal sin we as Catholics must remember the need to humble ourselves to God through the Sacrament of Confession. These two realities are not something that is optional, but are necessary for all of us to return to the innocence of the moment of our baptisms.

Christ humbled himself inside of these life giving waters as he would humble Himself upon the cross. We to should return to this baptism of repentance to find our own need to humble ourselves to God's infinite mercy. As we conclude this Christmas season and move into Ordinary Time Christ leaves the manger behind, is revealed to us as God at His baptism, and sets off into His public ministry. We to should leave the comforts of our life behind, especially that of sin, and respond to our baptism by our life. This is played out each day in our relationships with our brothers and sisters in Christ and our ability to see Christ who dwells within them and to in return respond to this reality with our lives. As we celebrate the Baptism of our Lord on this day may we continue to strive to live up to what was begun in us through our baptism.