4th Sunday of Advent Year C Homily

Advent is a journey. As Pope Francis puts it: “Advent is a journey towards Bethlehem. May we ourselves be drawn by the light of God made man.” For us this journey is about to come to its conclusion. Very soon we will arrive at Christmas morning and there we will come to encounter this shining light which is God made man. This is the shining light which penetrates from the darkness of night, but are we truly prepared to encounter such a light or would we rather remain in the darkness?

We have seen Nativity plays and by now we should know the classical account of the Nativity by heart. In our mind should swirl stories of angels, shepherds, and kings who came to encounter this shining light. Angels who joyously sung, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom he is pleased.” Shepherds who “went with haste, and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger.” Kings who when they went “into the house saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him.” 

To think that what takes place is so important that angels worship and adore this shining light which is God made man. To think that shepherds were called out of the ordinary events of their daily life to encounter the extraordinary event of this shining light which is God made man. To think that kings came from their pagan roots and were converted to this shining light which is God made man which had called out to them.

Our Gospel accounts for us the Visitation where “Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the child leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.” This child who leaps in the womb of Elizabeth is John the Baptist. He who would be “the voice of one crying out in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight” came into his first encounter with the Savior of the World. Some hold that John the Baptist was freed from the stain of original sin through this first encounter with Christ. Indeed to come into an encounter with the shining light that is God made man is to be transformed.

As Mary went on her journey to visit Elizabeth, so too should we continue to undergo our own journey to encounter her Son. Our life does not have to be thrust into darkness because her Son desires to become our shining light. Christmas can be a difficult time for one has lost a loved one, but despite the darkness of loss we encounter the light of love which is encompasses us all. Who in their right mind would desire not to undergo this journey? Who in their right mind would desire to stay within the darkness?

The path of conversion is a difficult path for us to undergo, but it is a path that Advent calls us to undertake. We cannot kneel at the crib which holds our Blessed Lord and remain unchanged. To encounter that baby is to encounter the one who comes to us under the appearance of bread and wine. Bread and wine which has been transformed into the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Christ our Lord. Yet despite such a wondrous gift, such a shining light that is God made man, so many do not contemplate what they receive. They rush into Mass without preparation and they rush out the door without making an act of thanksgiving. They allow noise to penetrate into the Church as they lose sight of the one who dwells here with us. They fail to acknowledge that they are sinners who are in need of the mercy of God and thus need to be purified by His infinite mercy which endures forever in the Sacrament of Confession. This is the same Shining Light which angels, shepherds, and kings came to adore.

Let us not lose sight of the Eucharist, but instead conform our life to it. Let it become a way of life for the Eucharist is to rebuke the darkness and to instead invite the Shining Light which is God made man into our life.

2nd Sunday of Advent Year C Homily

“Look to the east.” This command made by the Prophet Baruch sets our attention upon the Lord’s coming. It is in the season of Advent that we dare to look east as we prepare our heart for the Lord’s coming. This mindset of looking east is not something which is new, but has always been important in the life of the Church. From the very beginning of Christian worship people would dare to look east. They would dare to join together with the priest in orienting their sight towards the coming of the Lord.

One ancient custom was for the bishop or priest to conclude his homily with the words: “Conversi ad Dominum!” which means in English: “Turn towards the Lord.” As Pope Benedict XVI would put into further context: “we must always turn away from false paths, onto which we stray so often in our thoughts and action. We must turn ever anew toward him who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. We must be converted ever anew, turning with our whole life toward the Lord.”

This explanation rings true with what we were told within the Gospel of Luke from the lips of Saint John the Baptist who was quoting from the words of the Prophet Isaiah. “Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths. The winding roads shall be made straight.” This proclamation of the coming of the Messiah is an invitation for us to undergo conversion.

To turn towards the Lord means that we must be willing to let go of everything that holds us back from this path of conversion. We like to be placed at life’s center. We like everything to revolve around us. From the Prophet Jeremiah we are told: “For they have turned their back to me.” What ways have we turned our back to the Lord in order to place the focus upon ourself?

To turn East or to turn towards the Lord places our attention upon the proper path. In the liturgy the focus is not upon you or me, but is upon the Lord. The Mass is not about personal preference or a passing feeling, but it is about the Lord. If the Lord is not at the heart of our worship then we have lost our path. Notice upon the altar a cross which was placed here for a purpose. It is a reminder that we turn our attention not towards the priest or people, but towards the Lord. As the then Cardinal Ratzinger would remark concerning this cross: “Where a direct common turning toward the east is not possible, the cross can serve as the interior ‘east’ of faith. It should stand in the middle of the altar and be the common point of focus for both priest and praying community.”

During this season of Advent I invite you to be truthful with yourself. I invite you to pray upon the ways in which you have placed yourself and your wants before that of the Lord. As Saint John the Baptist states: “He must increase, but I must decrease.” Yes, we must decrease if the Lord is to increase within us. We must let go of any hatred, division, pride, or whatever sin may be stirred up within us which keeps us from orienting our sight towards the Lord. Before you know it the Lord’s coming will be here: in the crib on Christmas morning, in judgement at the second coming, and with us today in the Eucharist when the Lord comes into our midst. May we set straight the paths of our life as we further prepare for the Lord’s coming.

Conversi ad Dominum!

Turn towards the Lord!

Immaculate Conception Homily

If we watch or read enough news it is easy to fall into a state of depression. The picture which is often painted is that the world is a corrupt place. It would be easy to believe that there is no hope and that we are powerless against all of these negatives. 

Yes, we are a culture who does not value the sanctity of human life. Yes, we lack understanding concerning marriage being between a male and a female and its permanence. Yes, there is a lot of corrupt things which are coming from Church hierarchy. And yes, this list goes on and on.

Despite all of this we come to celebrate today the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception. Hopefully this great celebration can lift our spirits which might be plunged into the very depths of despair. If we go back to the book of Genesis we would encounter Adam and Eve and their fall from grace. It would seem here that all hope would be lost and yet we are told “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”

As we see reveled in Revelation 12: “The dragon was angry with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and bear testimony to Jesus.” From Revelation 12 we come to see that Mary is the new Eve. It was Eve who ushered in sin and death into the world’s existence, but it was Mary who lifted us out of this sin and death.

We thus often see her depicted as crushing the serpent with her heel. She crushes this serpent for she was conceived without the stain sin upon her soul, she crushes the serpent for she never gave into the grasp of sin, she crushes the serpent through her “yes” given to the angel Gabriel which ushered in God made Flesh who died upon the cross in order that we may be redeemed and the gates of Heaven may be opened once again.

There is a lot within this world which can lead us into a spirit of depression, but our celebration of the Immaculate Conception should lift us out of these feelings. This celebration is a shining light in the midst of darkness which shows us that there is hope for each and everyone of us. May we foster true devotion to our Blessed Mother and be willing to follow after her in order to be drawn into a deeper relationship with her Son.

St. Mary, pray for us.

1st Sunday of Advent Year C Homily

It was a few days prior to Halloween that I was eating supper at a local restaurant. Already playing upon the radio was Christmas music. Only a few days later I would be at a coffee shop to overhear people talking about officially being in the Christmas season and yet it was still October. Now that we have celebrated Thanksgiving many go on to celebrate Christmas which after the 25th day of December will be taken down, boxed up, and long forgotten.

But today the Church reminds us that we are in a period of preparation. That we are not yet at Christmas and before we get there that we must prepare. This is the season of Advent which comes from the Latin word “Adventus” which means “to come.” This Latin word comes from the Greek word, parousia. It is this word which is used a total 17 times in scripture in reference to the Second Coming Christ. 

Saint Bernard of Claivaux remarked that there are a total of three comings of Christ: (1) In the flesh at the Nativity, (2) in glory at the end of time, and (3) daily within our heart. This is precisely why the season of Advent is so important for us to observe. If we fail to observe this season we fail to make room with Christ at Bethlehem, we fail to prepare for our encounter with Him at the end of time, and we fail to realize our daily need to allow Him to enter into our heart.

The Prophet Jeremiah places our sight about God’s first coming to dwell among us: For “In those days, in that time, I will raise up for David a just shoot; he shall do what is right and just in the land.” This promise which is made is connecting the dots between King David and the coming of the Messiah. This is to say that the coming of Christ is what all of scripture is pointing towards. That Christ is the fulfillment of the many covenants which are found throughout scripture.

Verse 27 of our Gospel states: “And then they will see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.” It here that we are being given a glimpse into the establishment of the New Covenant as well as being informed that Christ will come again in great glory. It is for this reason that we need to be found watchful and awake. If we are not found watchful and awake it is possible that we will miss out completely.

The Church does not give us directives on when we are to decorate for Christmas, but the Church does give us this beautiful season of preparation. We now prepare for Christ’s coming. We are not yet in the season of Christmas. I hope that you will not get caught up in the busyness of these next four weeks without taking a break to truly ponder what it is that you are preparing for. The heart of Christmas is not gifts or decorations, but is Christ. There is so much that we do which we carefully plan out to the minute of details. To think back to Black Friday and what makes a successful purchase. You must know the deal at hand, you must know where it is located, and you better get there super early. If we take so much time for trivial stuff like this why don’t we take time to build a relationship with Christ by preparing our heart for His coming?

For His coming in the manger at the Nativity, for His second coming at the end of time, and for His daily coming to reign within our heart. Let our hearts not become drowsy, but instead remain watchful and awake. Let us keep watch for the Lord is coming soon. May we be found prepared for His arrival.

Christ the King Year B Homily

Today we celebrate the Solemnity of Christ the King which brings about the conclusion of our liturgical year.

A king has a kingdom entrusted to his care. For Christ our King this is also true, but it does not come in the worldly sense which was expected. To put this into perspective, the words “Kingdom of God” appear a total of 122 times throughout the course of the New Testament, 99 of these times they are found within the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke), and 80 out of these 99 times are the words of Jesus Himself. From this we can gather that the “Kingdom of God” is at the front and center of Christ’s message.

If the “Kingdom of God” was so important to Christ’s message we must reason that the Kingdom of God continues to be important for us in this day and age. Despite this importance it easy to get confused on the true meaning of the Kingdom of God or the statement that Christ is our King. Our Gospel presents us with Pilate who much like others was confused on these statements. Pilate who questions Jesus concerning His Kingship. Pilate who was confused on what it meant for Christ to be a King or to have a kingdom. Pilate who was convinced that Christ was a threat to his rule.

Much like Pilate our world seems to be engulfed in a similar attitude. We have become so busy as a culture that we have fooled ourself into believing that we are no longer in need of God. We believe that we are at the height of the enlightenment and thus we reject the reality of there being a finite truth. We have become desensitized to immorality to the point that we no longer feel compelled to chase after virtue. We place the pursuit of money and belongings at the center of our life. We have cut ourself off from the community and attempt to do everything alone. Yes, much like Pilate we fear anything that might infringe upon our way of life.

Nevertheless, it is Christ whom our heart truly longs for. It is Christ and His Kingdom that will set us free from all that holds us hostage. Pilate came into an encounter with the Kingdom of God because he came into an encounter with Christ. Despite this encounter he missed the very thing that His heart longed for. Origen held that the Kingdom of God is made manifest through the presence of Christ. Therefore this statement is not about a location, but is about the Person of Christ Himself and our relation to this Person. In the words of Benedict XVI: “The Kingdom of God is not to be found on any map. It is not a kingdom after the fashion of worldly kingdoms; it is located in man’s inner being. It grows and radiates outward from that inner space.”

Therefore as we celebrate this Solemnity of Christ the King may we allow His Kingdom to grow within our heart. As is petitioned within the Our Father: “thy Kingdom Come.” If we allow His Kingdom to grow within us we and our world will be transformed. We will allow His Kingdom to come and reign in our midst. If this Kingdom is to come and Christ is to be our King we need to place Him at life’s center. We need to be willing to let go of all that keeps us from Him which includes the lure of worldliness and sin. We cannot be like Pilate who had Christ in his midst and yet could not conform his life to the truth which was before him. Instead let us “seek first the kingdom and his righteousness” for Christ will come again and His Kingdom will never pass away.