Homily from Father James Gilhooley
The bishop asked the monsignor, "How was my
homily?" The msgr: "You were brief." The bp: "I try never
to be tiresome. The msgr: "You were tiresome too."
The nineteenth century English poet, Alfred Tennyson, wrote:
"More things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams of." Was
that a cute throwaway line or did Lord Tennyson know something we do not? The
answer to our question is to be found in the prayer life of Jesus.
But the Gospel record shows He continued weekly public
worship after leaving His home town. Today Mark explicitly mentions His
presence in a synagogue. The next time you want to skip weekend Mass, you might
want to dwell on this point. Perhaps a line from Saint Padre Pio might help:
"If we understood the Eucharist, we would risk our life to get to Mass.
With the above as evidence, one must conclude the Teacher
has little patience with many self-deceived men and women. These are the folks
who say that, while they do not go to Sunday Liturgy, they do worship God at
home in their own way. If such worship was not kosher for the Christ, how can
it be acceptable for any of us today?
Some wannabe intellectuals say, "If the homilies were
better, I would go." The only answer for that is the response of the
grizzled old pastor, "If it's laughs you want, catch a TV comic. If
worship, I'm your man."
Can you imagine the number of dull sermons Jesus of Nazareth
must have been subjected to over thirty-three years? How many times must He
have put His knuckle deep into His mouth to stifle laughter at some theological
gaffe from a well-meaning rabbi? Yet, He
faithfully went each Saturday."I don't go to church because there are so many hypocrites there." Do you really think there were no such deadbeats around the Teacher during His public worship days? Incidentally, we always have room for one more hypocrite. And, as Andrew Greeley puts it, "If you can find a perfect church, join it. But realize that as soon as you do, it ceases to be perfect."
An even careless reading of the Gospels reveal that the Teacher invested His time in private prayer as well. It was a given that every Jewish family would have a schedule of daily private prayer. This would be particularly true at meals. This custom Jesus continued to the end as the Last Supper indicates.
His public ministry had to be very busy. Yet, He put aside
quality time for private prayer. Check it out in Luke. He writes: "Crowds
pressed on Him. But He retired to a mountain and prayed." In Mark:
"In the morning, He got up, left the house, and went off to a lonely
place, and prayed there."
If the Master had not spent so much time in public and
private prayer, He could have cured so many more hundreds, if not thousands, of
their physical ailments.One must thereby conclude He considered prayer not a luxury item but a necessity. It is a must-do for us. Matthew and John tell us the servant is not greater than the master and the pupil not greater than the teacher. Given the example of the Nazarene, why then do we assign prayer to the fringes of our lives? Why is it not one of the essentials of our brief existence?
"To pray is," as Ralph Sockman wrote, "to expose the shore of the mind to the incoming tide of God."
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Homily from Father Joseph Pellegrino
http://www.st.ignatius.net/pastor.html
Fourteenth Sunday: A Prophet Among Them
“You can’t handle the truth,” Jack Nicholson’s character,
Colonel Nathan R. Jessep, shouted in court in the 1992 classic movie, A Few
Good Men. “They can’t handle the truth,”
is really what the Spirit is telling Ezekiel in this Sunday’s first reading
from the beginning of this prophetic book. But that didn’t stop the fact that
they would know there is a prophet among
them.
And the people of Nazareth questioned Jesus’ teaching. They didn’t want to handle His Truth, so they
formed an ad hominem argument. An ad
hominem argument is the weakest, argument possible. It is an attack on the person not on the
question presented. For example, you go
into a person’s room and see that person watching porn. You say, “You’ve got to get away from that
stuff. It will destroy you and keep you
from having a relationship with those around you.” The person responds, “Oh
yeah, well who do you think you are?” That is an ad hominem argument. “So,” the people in today’s Gospel asked,
“Why should we listen to Jesus’ teaching.
How could he have anything significant to say to us? We know him, his family, his home.” Politicians do this all the time. They don’t like their opponents stance but
can’t prove it wrong, so they attack their opponents background, character, etc. We do this all the time. We hear our parents, or our children, or our
neighbors say something that we really don’t want to hear because we know it is
right, so we discredit the argument by attacking the person making it. So a Teen comes back from a deep spiritual
experience, and is committed to following and proclaiming Christ. He or she says to his or her Mom or Dad, “I
love you. And because I love you I have
to tell you that you need to be joining us in Church every week and receive
communion.” And the parent responds, “Who are you to tell me what to do? You’re only 16.” How does a Teen being 16 change the facts?
Ad hominem arguments are pathetic.C. S. Lewis wrote that we live in a society that has replaced “I believe,” with “I feel.” We live in a society where personal values has replaced objective morality. When a prophet comes, a prophet being someone who proclaims the truth, society looks to discredit the prophet. We should realize that if Jesus Christ were walking the earth right now, once more teaching in the synagogues as well as in His own churches, He would be crucified again, most likely through slander, but possibly even with nails. Let’s face it, the leaders of the Temple had Jesus crucified because it kept them from running around with their hands to their ears and screaming, “La la la la la,” so they did not have to hear what He was saying.
Many people in our society would rather that Christ stayed in the tomb then have to listen to His confronting them with the Truth.
All this leaves us with two questions: First, do I have the humility to handle the truth? And second: do I have the courage to proclaim the truth?
First question, do I have the humility to handle the truth? Objective morality tells us that we are not the creators and arbiters of Truth. Truth is not what we say it is. Two plus two is going to be four, no matter what we feel it could be. It takes humility for us to agree that some matters are right or wrong regardless of our feelings. For example, some people feel they have a right to steal from work because they put in extra hours. The humble person would say, “God’s law, the moral law is quite clear. It is a sin to steal. Theft is theft. End of story.” Many people say that it is OK to have sex outside of marriage, be it infidelity or any form of pre-marital sex, because it feels right. The humble person would say, “Right is right and wrong is wrong, no matter how I feel.” It takes humility to realize that there is a Higher Authority that keeps us from justifying anything, rationalizing our way to agreeing to anything. It takes humility to be a person of faith, a person who lives his or her faith. It takes humility for a person to say, “As much as everything within me wants to do this, it is as wrong for me as it is for anyone else.” It takes humilty to handle the truth.
Second question: do I have the courage to proclaim the truth? The proclamation of the truth demands tremendous courage. Proclaiming the truth means being crucified, figuratively and literally. So you say to others something like, “It is wrong to get drunk, whether you are driving or not. It is just worst to be drunk and driving.” That will get you insults from your so-called friends. That will result in your being left off the list of those who are invited to a party. And that will have you pigeon-holed as a religious fanatic. It takes tremendous courage to accept the cross.
Back to Ezekiel. The
prophet is told, “You shall say to them,
‘thus says the Lord God.’ And whether
they heed or resist, for they are a rebellious people, they shall know that a
prophet has been among them.” People may
attack the proclamation of the truth. Certainly many will. People may attack the one proclaiming the
truth. That is the behavior of those
with an infantile view of life. But
nothing can diminish the force of the truth.
And in time, perhaps over centuries, people will realize that there was
a prophet among them.
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Homily from Father Phil Bloom
http://stmaryvalleybloom.org/
Mary Opens a Window
(July 8, 2012)
Bottom line: When we face offenses and unkind words, it's
easy to start brooding. The devil tells us to throw in the towel. But Jesus
shows a different way. And when a door closes, sometimes Mary opens a window.
"Don't blame me," St. Peter says, "Every time
I close a door, your Mother opens a window!" (smile)
I don't know about you, but if it comes down to that, I
won't be too proud to climb through a window. And I would be grateful to the
Virgin Mary for opening it.
Today's Gospel refers to Mary. The people of Nazareth knew
Jesus as the "Son of Mary." But the Gospel also raises a question. It
refers to Jesus' "brothers and sisters." Are they physical children
of Mary or is someone else their mother? The Gospel doesn't give a clear
answer. A good place to start is this book I am holding: The Catechism of the
Catholic Church. Here is what the Catechism says:
"Against this doctrine (of Mary ever Virgin) the
objection is sometimes raised that the Bible mentions brothers and sisters of
Jesus." The Catechism admits that a debate exists, but it goes on to say,
"The Church has always understood these passages as not referring to other
children of the Virgin Mary."
So why does the Church believe that these passage do not
refer to physical children of Mary? Well, there are other Scripture passages we
need to take into account. Again I quote the Catechism, "In fact James and
Joseph, 'brothers of Jesus,' are the sons of another Mary, a disciple of
Christ, whom St. Matthew significantly calls 'the other Mary.' (Mt 13:55 &
17:56)"There's a lot a person could say based on the Bible, but here's the bottom line: "They (the 'brothers and sisters') are close relations of Jesus according to an Old Testament expression."
If someone tells you that Mary was not "ever
Virgin," I encourage you start from the Catechism. Paragraph 500 - it's
easy to remember! It will give you a number of Biblical verses including
Matthew's reference to "the other Mary" who is mother of James and
Joseph. The Catechism also cites early Christian writers: When they speak about
Mary, they take for granted her perpetual virginity - just a simple, plain
fact. It is for me - and I hope it is for you.
More important than the debate about Mary's perpetual
virginity is what the Catechism says in the following paragraph: "Jesus is
Mary's only son, but her spiritual mother extends to all men." (#501) St.
John represents all Christians when he hears the words, "Behold, your
mother!"
We get a tiny glimpse of Mary's spiritual motherhood in
today's Gospel. It happens in the context of a controversy not about her, but about
Jesus. I am now going to speak about that controversy and then we can ask how
Mary fits into it.
The Gospel says, "They took offense at him." And
they did what people do when they "take offense." They tried to put
Jesus down.
I don't know about you, but I have had people "take
offense" at me. In my case, I have to assume at least some blame on my
part. I am not innocent like Jesus, but like him I sometimes I experience a
"put down." I imagine you also have had heard unkind words. They may
have been said sweetly, but they contained a barb. What should we do? How
should we respond? Jesus shows us the way:
The first thing that Jesus does is acknowledge it. Jesus is
so deep in Scripture that he is able to put the attack into a biblical context.
Okay, these people are taking offense at me. They are making some cutting
remarks. But look what the prophets suffered. Why should I expect anything
different?
For sure, this pained Jesus, but he also thought about how
it affected others. It cut them off from grace and healing. So Jesus reached
out to the people he could, but then sought others that needed him.
In my years as a priest, I have seen many people give up the
apostolate because they suffered some humiliation. Somebody says a word that
hurts them; they start brooding and the devil is right there telling them to
throw in the towel. That is not Jesus' way. He keeps going.
To sum up: When we face offenses and unkind words, it's easy
to start brooding. The devil tells us to throw in the towel. But Jesus shows a
different way: Acknowledge the hurt, but turn to the Bible and to prayer. Think
about the other person - and that many people may need you. As Jesus had a
mission, so do you. And when someone closes a door, know that you have a
heavenly advocate: Mary opens a window. Amen.
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Homily from Father Andrew M. Greeley
http://www.agreeley.com/homilies.html
14 Ordinary Time
Mark 6:1-6
"Jesus marveled because of their unbelief"
Background:
The passage today is advice to the early Christian followers
of Jesus to travel light, to keep a distance between themselves and their
material possessions. It is undoubtedly based on advice Jesus gave his
followers during his public life when he sent them forth to prepare the way in
the towns and cities he was planning to visit. It was not meant to be taken
literally, but it was not meant to be dismissed as rhetoric either.
Jesus and his band had a treasury, we know, because Judas
the treasurer was a thief and stole from
it. The apostles appointed deacons to
handle administration.
The church today has enormous goods at its disposal, which
generally are used well. Yet there is a terrible danger that financial
administration will be confused with religious leadership – from the parish
society on up to the Vatican.
Story:
Once upon a time a mommy and a daddy were preparing to take
their two children for two weeks vacation in the country. They had, as do most
mommies and daddies these days, a sports utility vehicle (SUV). They figured
that they would travel light. For two weeks you don’t have to bring the whole
house, do you?
Since the SUV was big, it was easy to pile things into it.
First of all, they packed clothes. Because you can never tell what you might
have to do or where you might have to go at the Lake or what the weather will
be like, they didn’t really pack any more things then they would need for, let
us say, a trip to Paris. Moreover they wanted their kids to look their best. So
they packed comprehensive wardrobes for them too. You can never tell what might
happen on a vacation, can you? Then there was the matter of toys and similar
stuff. The weather might be bad so they had to pack enough toys to keep the
kids happy if they were imprisoned in a cottage for two weeks. But the weather
might be good, so they had to pack enough toys that the kids wouldn’t be bored
on the beach. Then each of the kids had
their favorite toys without which they could not survive. Did I forget the
family dog?
Eventually the SUV was fully loaded and there was room for
everyone except the mommy and the daddy. So they rearranged things. There
hardly was room to breathe in SUV. When they got to the lake, they had to
unpack all their stuff. When their vacation was over (as alas vacations tend to
be) they repacked everything to drive home. Then when they arrived home they
had to unpack everything. No one was talking to one another for three days.
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Homily from Father Cusick
http://www.christusrex.org/www1/mcitl/lowhome.html Meeting
Christ in the Liturgy
14 Ordinary Time
"And on the sabbath [Jesus] began to teach in the
synagogue; and many who heard him were astonished, saying, "Where did this
man get all this? What is the wisdom given to him? What mighty works are
wrought by his hands! And they took offence at him. And he could do no mighty
work there... And he marvelled because of their unbelief." (Mark 6: 2.3.5)
Jesus is saddened by the "lack of faith" of his
own neighbors and the little faith of his own disciples (Cf. Mark 6:6; Matthew
8:26) (CCC 2610)
Just as all faith comes through the graces of the Church, so
also the Church, through which comes the faith by which we are saved, is
necessary for salvation. The Catechism discusses the oft-quoted and
much-misunderstood teaching: "outside the Church there is no
salvation."
How are we to understand this affirmation, often repeated by
the Church Fathers? (Cf. Cyprian, Ep. 73.21: PL 3, 1169; De unit.: PL 4,
509-536.) Re-formulated positively, it means that all salvation comes from
Christ the Head through the Church which is his Body:
Basing itself on Scripture and Tradition, the Council
teaches that the Church, a pilgrim now on earth, is necessary for salvation:
the one Christ is the mediator and the way of salvation; he is present to us in
his body which is the Church. He himself explicitly asserted the necessity of
faith and Baptism, and thereby affirmed at the same time the necessity of the
Church which men enter through Baptism as through a door. Hence they could not
be saved who, knowing that the Catholic Church was founded as necessary by God
through Christ, would refuse either to enter it or to remain in it. (LG 14; cf.
Mark 16:16; John 3:5) (CCC 846)
Some mistakenly take this for a blanket condemnation of
anyone who is not a "card-carrying" Catholic. Nothing could be
further from the truth. No one is condemned for sincerely following his
conscience, for this itself is a grace from God.
This affirmation is not aimed at those who, through no fault
of their own, do not know Christ and his Church:
Those who, through no fault of their own, do not know the
Gospel of Christ or his Church, but who nevertheless seek God with a sincere
heart, and, moved by grace, try in their actions to do his will as they know it
through the dictates of their conscience-those too may achieve eternal
salvation. (Lumen Gentium 16; cf. DS 3866-3872) (CCC 847)
We would do well to remember the words of St. Thomas More
when, implored by his friend the Duke of Norfolk to consent with him to the
headship of the Church by, and the divorce and remarriage of, King Henry VIII
"for fellowship's sake" he responded, "When you go to heaven for
following your conscience and I go to hell for not following mine, will you
come along with me for fellowship's sake?"I look forward to meeting you here again next week as, together, we "meet Christ in the liturgy", Father Cusick
(Publish with permission.)
