July 27, 2008
Posted in Homilies
at 9:00 am
Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A, July 27th, 2008
I have here a lock box (a sort of treasure chest) that I had used 20 years ago for my coin collection. It was in my mother’s basement and I had forgotten about it until recently. I shook it and could feel that there was something inside. But what could it be? I had given away most of my coin collection to my godson years ago. But who cares? Jesus told us to lay up treasures for ourselves in heaven, not on earth (Lk 12:33)!
I looked at the box and also thought of Jesus’ words in today’s Gospel: “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field” (Mt 13:44).
Jesus was always preaching about the kingdom of God/the kingdom of heaven. It was the essence of his message: “repent, for the kingdom of God is at hand.” In his book Jesus of Nazareth, Pope Benedict has written at length on what Jesus meant by the “kingdom of God/kingdom of heaven.” He reviews the different theories: 1) the kingdom of God is an invisible, spiritual, interior reality (the kingdom of God is within you), or 2) the kingdom of God is related to the Church, or 3) the kingdom of God is the coming end of the world, or 4) the kingdom of God is Jesus himself, the Kingdom in person. The Pope concludes that this final theory is the true meaning of the Kingdom: “(Jesus) himself is the treasure; communion with him is the pearl of great price” (p. 61).
But I had found this box and wanted to know what was inside. I tried opening it but it was locked. Then I came home and looked through some drawers and found this key, but what does it matter? Even if there is something in the box, it is only an earthly treasure, so who cares? Money can’t buy you love or happiness or eternal life (Psalm 49:8-10).
This other key is so much more important (show key to tabernacle) because it is the key to the true treasure, Jesus himself, since it is the key to the tabernacle. Which key would you rather have? You can’t have both. It has to be one or the other. The person who bought the field with the treasure in it had to sell everything he had in order to buy the field. The merchant who bought the one pearl of great value had to sell everything that he had in order to buy it.
Jesus himself is the treasure, but to truly possess him, we must be willing to give up everything else. Only a person of holy desire can possess Jesus in his or her soul, and for holy desire to be pure and strong, it must let go of every other desire, like the desire for earthly treasure, money and material things. So which key do you want? The key to this little treasure chest, or the key to the tabernacle where Jesus is hidden? You must choose one or the other.
But if you choose this key (tabernacle), and seek first the kingdom of God, everything else will be given to you (Mt 6:33). Since Solomon asked for an understanding mind to discern between good and evil (1 Kings 3:9) instead of asking for riches or long life or vengeance, God said to him: “in addition, I give you what you have not asked for, such riches and glory that among kings there is not your like” (1 Kings 3:13). Our Pope comments that Solomon literally asks for a “listening heart” (lev shomay); we too, when we pray in the “Our Father” “thy kingdom come,” we too are asking for a listening heart “so that God, not we, may reign. The kingdom of God comes by way of a listening heart” (p. 146).
Back to this earthly treasure chest. After all, I did find this key so I thought I would try it out and – it worked! So I opened the box and found this envelope inside (I’m not making this up – this really happened. And I honestly had no idea what could be inside). As I hold up this envelope, I ask myself if there are some people who have a greater desire to see what’s inside this envelope than they desire to receive the Body and Blood of Christ. And it leads me to ask, “where is your treasure, where is your heart (Mt 6:21), where are your deepest desires?”: in Christ or in the things of this world?
O.K. Do you really want to know what is in this envelope? Well, let’s see . . . a $10 bill from 1954 (do you know how much this is worth today? $10!), and
there’s three old $5 bills (worth $5 dollars each), an old Canadian $2 bill, and an American $2 . . . and also (you’re not going to believe this) a Canadian $3 bill! (I’m just joking about this last one, but the younger generation may have fallen for it!)
Actually, it’s kind of disappointing and dissatisfying. I was hoping there was going to be a $1000 bill in here, but it’s only $29 – big deal, who cares?
But it is like that with all earthly treasure. Who cares? It can never satisfy our souls.
Just as there are two keys in this world – one leading to earthly treasure and the other to Jesus himself as our treasure, so too there are two kinds of people in this world: those who settle for earthly treasure and are self-satisfied, and those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, who are dissatisfied with the things of this world and desire something more. In the Gospels, Jesus warns one group: “woe to you have are filled now, who are self-satisfied – woe to you!” (Lk 6:25) But “blessed are you who are dissatisfied, who hunger and thirst for something more, for you shall be filled” (Mt 5:6).
To all those who are dissatisfied with something in your life right now, with your work situation, with a close relationship in marriage or family, or dissatisfied with yourself and where you are at in life right now – blessed are you! At least you are alive, there’s hope for you, you can change! But woe to you who are complacent and half-dead, who are self-satisfied with your earthly treasure . . . truly you have received your reward (Mt 6:2, 5, 16) and we are so impressed with all your money and savings (clap . . . clap . . . clap) and we are so envious of the great joy it evidently gives you (clap . . . clap . . . clap).
In today’s second reading, St. Paul writes that God first calls those he justifies and glorifies (Rom 8:30). How does God call? In part, through a listening heart, through dissatisfaction and desire. Do not be afraid to listen to your own heart, to confess (at least to yourself) the areas of dissatisfaction in your life. It doesn’t mean you’ve failed; it means God is calling you! Yes, through your dissatisfaction and desire for something more, God is calling you higher.
We are about to celebrate the liturgy of the Eucharist and receive Holy Communion. When Jesus foreshadowed the Eucharist by performing the miracle of multiplying the loaves and the fishes, we read that “all ate and were satisfied” (Mt 14:20, 15:37) because all were hungry. I’m not sure if everyone is aware of the Church’s law requiring fasting for one hour before Mass. That means all of us should be done our morning cup of coffee by 8:00 a.m.(9:00 a.m. Mass) /breakfast by 9:45 a.m. (10:45 a.m. Mass). It used to be 12 hours, now it’s only 1 hour, but we must observe it. Fasting helps us to hunger for God and be satisfied by Him when we receive the Body and Blood of Christ in Holy Communion.
To those who are complacent and self-satisfied with the things of this world, it would seem that God only gives them a piece of bread at Mass, and they know they can find much tastier and ample bread at home, so Mass is boring. But to those who hunger and thirst for the kingdom of God, who desire treasure in heaven, God gives them himself, the true bread from heaven that satisfies every desire.
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July 20, 2008
Posted in Homilies
at 9:00 am
Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
July 20, 2008
God loves you! We may have heard that so many times, in scripture, in homilies, or from other sources, that it has become something we take for granted. Or, it may have become something we say that we believe, but it just isn’t what we feel in our hearts. Is it really true that God loves us, all of us, each of us?
I often encourage you to go to your bible at some time during the week and read the longer sections of the passages from the Sunday readings. If you want to gain a perspective on how today’s first reading indicates God’s great love – and patience – and how it relates to the Gospel, please read the entire twelfth chapter of the Book of Wisdom. It probably won’t take you more than two or three minutes. (If you really get ambitious, you might even try reading chapters 11 & 13.) It tells of God’s mercy to the Canaanites, a people whose actions were loathsome to Him. They dabbled in sorcery, and fortune telling. They were a people who, like some unfortunate souls in our day, perpetrated a merciless slaughter of their own children, among other things. Yet, God had great patience with them, and gave them many opportunities to repent.
God had, and still has, patience with everyone. The first reading says “There is no god besides you, Lord, whose care is for all people”. Take note: only one God, and He cares for everyone. God is not vengeful or cruel. He is just, but merciful. His love allows us time and abundant opportunities to find our way to Him. It is a love which challenges us to go beyond what makes us feel happy, and to nurture what leads us to the true happiness of life with Him. As C.S. Lewis said “Love may forgive all infirmities, and love still in spite of them: but Love cannot cease to will their removal.” God loves us, in spite of our sins, but he wants us NOT to sin. We cannot say “What difference does it make what I do, as long as I’m basically a good person and I’m not hurting anyone?” or, “what does it matter what others are doing, as long as they’re happy and not hurting anyone?”. No one can truly be happy acting contrary to God’s will. True, lasting joy comes from living in accord with His will.
The Gospel is quite clear in telling us that the wheat, from the good seeds, are the children of the kingdom, and the weeds, from the bad seeds, are children of the evil one. The weed referred to is darnel, or tares, a middle eastern weed that closely resembles wheat. In it’s early stages it is almost identical to wheat, and once it’s established and is recognizable, it is virtually impossible to remove it without also uprooting much of the wheat with it.
So it is with us. We live in a culture which is a mixture of wheat and weeds, good people and evil people. Good people and evil people are all still people. But unlike wheat and weeds, people have the ability to change. That being the case, most of us are probably not completely one or the other. Even if there are weedy areas of our life, we can work to eliminate those weeds, and allow God to more fully transform us into wheat. We are in varying stages of transition, hopefully on the path to becoming more completely children of the kingdom.
It may appear that the weeds are thriving in our culture, but we must have hope, and pray that they will repent and become wheat before the harvest. As we all grow together we should be an influence that helps others in their transformation. We are called to condemn evil, but we are also called to help people.
On reading the Gospel, we might think that the parables about the mustard seed and the yeast don’t quite fit with the rest of this passage. Like the mustard seed, however small our faith may start out, if we nurture it, it will grow large, large enough that it may provide shelter and comfort to others. And then, like the yeast, we may end up leavening a much greater part of our culture than we think. So in these ways, we can see the relationship of these words to the parable of the wheat and the weeds.
We cooperate with God’s love when we witness to the truth which God has revealed to us. God loves us. Whether we be saint or sinner, He wants us to be happy with Him in heaven for eternity. He wants us to shine like the sun in His kingdom. For that to happen, we need to decide – do we want to be wheat, or weeds?
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July 16, 2008
Posted in Homilies
at 6:08 pm
Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A, July 13, 2008
In the autobiographies of the saints, such as this one – Divine Mercy in my Soul, the diary of St. Faustina or this one – the autobiography of Blessed Dina Belanger, there are parts of the text indented or written in bold, because these are very important words – the words of Jesus. The word of God found very good soil in the hearts of such saints who heard the word and understood it and who bore abundant fruit (Mt 13:23) in holiness of life and loving service to others.
Blessed Dina Belanger noted that Jesus only spoke to her heart in perfect silence and stillness, (perhaps during a time of adoration) when her heart was free of the clamour of worldly desires that can choke God’s word (Mt 13:22). And Jesus once told St. Faustina, “If souls would only want to listen to My voice when I am speaking in the depths of their hearts, they would reach the peak of holiness in a short time” (#584).
What about in your life story? There must be some lines in bold where you have received the Word of God and Jesus has spoken to your heart, because God speaks to everyone. Unless you are a robot or a chimpanzee. If you are a human being, then that means God created you and he loves you and he speaks to you. He sows his word into every human heart. But does every heart listen and receive him?
This book is your life story. See? It is titled “My Life: The Complete Autobiography.” I’m curious to see if there is any text in bold where Jesus has spoken to you. I’m looking at the beginning about your childhood . . . no text in bold, but that’s OK. Even in the lives of the saints, there is not much bold text in the beginning, but as the person matures in the spiritual life, Jesus begins to speak more and more frequently, until by the end of the story, a lot of the text appears in bold!
So I am going to skip ahead to your late teens and early twenties – the period of a deeper conversion for many people as they really begin to seek the face of God and listen intently for his voice, asking for his guidance in life as they try to discern a vocation, decide upon studies, a career, and so on; I’m positive Jesus must have spoken to your heart at this time . . . just a few more pages . . . OK, no words from Jesus yet.
I understand: you’re a late bloomer, spiritually speaking. I remember St. Theresa of Avila confessing in her autobiography that she did not have her second conversion and begin a more intense life of prayer until she was 40! So I’m going to skip ahead to that part of your life to find some text in bold where you have written down the words that Jesus the sower planted in your heart. Hmm. Busy, busy . . . Marriage . . . family . . work . . . There’s a lot in here about the “cares of the world” and the “lure of wealth” but nothing about the Word of God . . .
OK! I’m going to skip right to the end, to the “golden years,” the years of retirement when we all have an opportunity to withdraw from the cares of the world, and to draw closer to God, our first beginning and our last end. Yes, I’m sure that when you finally began to slow down at the end of your life, then you really started to listen, to hear the words of Jesus in your heart, and to write them down in your autobiography in large, bold letters! . . . Just a few more pages . . . that’s it! It’s over? What? A whole life lived without a single word from God? A whole lifetime without time for God? It’s up to you – in every stage of life: childhood, adolescence, maturity, middle age, retirement – to listen or not to listen, to turn to Jesus and be healed (Mt 13:15), or to turn away and die.
I mentioned that God speaks to everyone. You may wonder, “how exactly does God speak?” It is possible, but rare, that we would hear audible words from the Lord. But it does happen – just last week a parishioner was telling me about hearing an audible word from God. It’s never happened to me. But all of us, as Christians, if we learn to listen even a little bit, will receive what are called “successive locutions” from God. Ralph Martin, drawing on St. John of the Cross, explains it in this way: “an idea or a particular word or phrase seems to be “given,” and then, as the mind and spirit pays attention, more of the communication is filled in with the obvious involvement of our own mind” (The Fulfillment of All Desire, p. 312).
For example, while sitting in quiet prayer, a word might pop into your head like “trust.” As you meditate on this word, you feel the Lord is saying to you something like, “My son, my daughter, trust in me. Do not worry about anything.” And that would be a “successive locution” which is “the weakest of the interior locutions, and the most subject to distortion by our own involvement” (312), but still a genuine communication from God.
For years, when I would hear this parable of the sower, I assumed that it applied only to our initial reception of the Word of God, when we first came to believe in Jesus, as if God the sower only comes to us once to sow his Word, and we choose to accept it or not. Later, however, I realized that this parable applies to us every day, since every day God wants to speak to us, and every day, there is something that tries to choke God’s word in us. If we combine the different versions of this parable in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke, we find Jesus warning us of 4 things that can choke God’s word in our hearts: the worries of this world/the cares of this life (Mt 13:22), the lure and deceit of riches (Mt 13:22), the pleasures of life (Lk 8:14), and the desire for other things (Mk 4:19).
What are you thinking about right now? Where is your treasure, where is your heart? Are you distracted because of your worries, or the sensual pleasures of life as you think about dinner/coffee/lunch? Or are you distracted by your desire for other things, whatever they might be? Then God’s word that he sows in your heart will be choked, and you will not truly hear it or receive it. All of us as Christians can and must learn to let go of all these things, and in a time of quiet prayer or adoration, to listen to God speaking to our hearts.
As I mentioned in the bulletin, following the bishop’s recommendation, we are trying to promote more Eucharistic adoration at times that are good for as many people as possible. We have tried First Friday Holy Hours over the years, with not much success, and we recently had the Church open Thursday evenings from 9-10, but people said it was too late. Someone suggested Tuesday before Mass, which I think is a very good idea; so starting this Tuesday, we will have adoration from 6-7 p.m. as well as every Friday before Mass from 8-9 p.m. At least when adoration is linked to Mass, people can choose to come 15 minutes or a half-hour early for some time of quiet prayer.
In the opening prayer for our Holy Hours, in use in this parish for many years, we have been praying: “I ask for grace to spend this time of prayer in reparation, for those who have asked my prayers, for an increase in vocations to priesthood and religious life, for my own special needs, spiritual and temporal, but most of all for your greater honour and glory.” I ask those who attend to really keep the intention for vocations in your heart.
After Communion today, one of our seminarians, Matt Choyna, will be giving a brief testimony on his reception of the Word of God and his call to priesthood. Most young people here today are called to marriage, but some of you are called to priesthood or religious life. Are you listening? All of us need to learn to listen to and receive the Word of God in a good and generous heart, and to bear fruit abundantly, so that our life story will not end up like this (show newspaper) – the empty words of yesterday’s news, only to be thrown into the garbage and burned. Instead, let us pray that God’s words will appear in our life-story, that the story will be about God and not us (“Divine Mercy in my Soul”), that God himself will be the author of our lives, inserting our names into the book of life (Rev 3:5), writing our names in heaven (Lk 10:20).
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July 6, 2008
Posted in Homilies
at 9:00 am
14th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A, July 6th, 2008
It’s now official. The founders of Canada would never have imagined it. Samuel Champlain and others who helped found Quebec (and Canada) 400 years ago (on July 3rd, 2008), Bishop Francois de Laval and other saints who established the Church in this new land, St. Jean de Breboeuf and the Canadian martyrs who gave their lives for the Catholic faith in Canada – none of them could ever have imagined that a land that once received the light of Christ could revert back into darkness, for it is now official in Canada that good is evil and evil is good. Even though God has warned us through the prophets: “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil!” (Is 5:20). Yet that is exactly what our country has done in making it official that the murder of innocent children is a Canadian value by calling Dr. Henry Morgentaler the abortionist a Canadian hero by naming him a recipient of the Order of Canada.
Michaelle Jean, our Governor General, made the appointment based on the recommendations of a 10 person advisory committee that is chaired by Chief Justice Beverly McLachlin, who is well-known for her radical, anti-Christian stance in her court decisions. Stephen Harper stated that the Morgantaler selection was made independently of the government. So who makes the important decisions that affect the life of our country – the people and their elected representatives or an unelected judge and her friends who represent the extreme minority position? An online poll conducted by the Globe and Mail found that 92% were opposed to Dr. Morgentaler receiving the Order of Canada. So who is making these decisions? Why are they given this authority? Why are Canadians doing nothing? (By the way you can protest this decision by contacting the Governor-General, Beverly McLachlin and the Order of Canada Chancellery – the contact info is on sheets at either entrance)
In the middle of this somber moment in Canadian history, I want to pause and remind you of the Good News: the Church will triumph over the world. This thought filled my heart with joy the first day of the Eucharistic Congress in Quebec, when I witnessed 200 bishops process in for Mass with 12 000 people. Yes, the Church will triumph over the hostility and persecutions of an unbelieving world; the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus will triumph. The pure, meek and humble heart of Jesus will triumph, and until that Day, we believers will find strength for battle and rest for our souls in that same Heart.
It’s summer time, and we Canadians are so looking forward to some holidays and some rest for our souls. We work so hard all year and now we just want to take a break and relax, go camping, lie on the beach, have a barbecue and a beer – ignore politics, ignore abortion, ignore same-sex marriage, ignore where our country is headed. But ignoring the sins of our nation would be like ignoring e-coli bacteria in our drinking water – we can’t ignore it because it can kill us!
Do you know what this is? Imagine it’s a glass of water from Ottawa – the same water that flows from the taps of the Supreme Court, Parliament Hill and Rideau Hall. This is the water that our “wise and intelligent” (Mt 11:25) leaders are drinking. (Taste some). Hmm. This is the water for which the people of Russell have been begging for years and it’s coming soon on the pipeline! We thought that we could hide in our little enclave, safe from the corrupting influence of the city, and find rest for our souls in the country. (Take another sip) Cheers! We can’t ignore sin or contaminated water because both can kill us! What does St. Paul say in the second reading? “If you live according to the flesh (and sin) you will die” (Rom 8:13).
Every sin we commit as individuals or as a nation removes us one more step away from the protection of God and outside the circle of his love. It’s almost as if each sin is a pollutant in the air that strips away the earth’s atmosphere that protects us from the harmful radiation of the sun. Each sin makes us more vulnerable to the attacks and deceits of the devil; each sin makes us more susceptible to mental illness and rare physical diseases that seem to be on the increase in Canada as we drift farther and farther away from communion with Christ, from the protection of the Church and the Father’s embrace. One thing we cannot do is ignore our personal and collective sins.
But we must never be discouraged: St. Paul also writes that “if by the Spirit you put to death the (sinful) deeds of the body, you will live” (Rom 8:13). As Christians, we must avoid that oh too common Canadian temptation to complain, complain, complain that our country is headed toward hell in a handbasket. It’s normal to be upset, but we must not give in to pessimism. Remember, the Church and the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus will triumph! And wherever we live, in the city or in the country, we can find strength for battle and rest for our souls in the pure, meek and humble heart of Jesus Christ.
We find this rest in part by purifying our hearts and with Jesus contemplating the Father. Jesus explains to us in today’s Gospel that “no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him” (Mt 11: ). In the scriptures, to “know” someone does not refer to scientific understanding, but personal communion. It is captured well in the French language in 2 different words for knowing: savoir and connaitre – the latter being reserved for knowledge of persons, including God. Jesus is encouraging us to find rest for our souls in our personal knowledge of and communion with the Father, to adore the Father with him in spirit and in truth, purify our hearts so that we can see God (Mt 5:8).
One very good response to the moral crisis in our country (in addition to writing letters) is to purify our own hearts of sin. Today, July 6th, is the feast day of St. Maria Goretti, a martyr of purity. I had been planning a whole homily about this dear 12 year old saint on the importance of modesty and purity. But Maria has been bumped by Morgentaler. Still, a few comments are in order, for without impurity, Morgentaler’s abortuaries would be out of business. One cause of abortion is impurity and the abuse of sexuality. Most abortions are procured by unmarried couples who do not want a child, by people engaged in what the Church used to call – and still calls — the sins of fornication and adultery, sins springing from impurity and often fed on pornography.
The person who murdered St. Maria Goretti, Alessandro Serenelli, was addicted to pornography (yes, even back in 1902 indecent photos were available). Graphic images fed impure thoughts and fantasies, which finally led to violence and murder. When Maria resisted Alessandro’s advances, he flew into a rage and stabbed her and killed her. In our city of Ottawa, we have our own martyr of purity in Ardeth Wood, murdered in similar circumstances five years ago this August 6th.
Pornography de-personalizes the exposed person, turning him or her from a subject into an object for another’s use and abuse. (See The Catholic Information Service booklet, Blessed Are the Pure of Heart, p. 15). Sins of impurity cloud the conscience, turning evil into good, good into evil, and the person in the womb into a thing to be disposed of.
So one very good way to heal our country is to purify our hearts. To people who struggle with pornography and impurity, people who are sincerely trying to purify their hearts through personal prayer, confession, Holy Communion, talking with a friend, changing their lifestyle, etc. . . to all these people, I say “persevere! Be patient. Trust in God. He will help you and set you free, but you must persevere.” To those who have the same problem, but are complacent, who barely pray and never go to confession and never talk to someone else about their problem, I say: “Are you insane? Not only are you ruining your soul, and damaging your family and community, but you are also taking the first step toward murder. Stop!”
Purify your heart, not only to avoid sin, but also to see God – in the Eucharist and in other people, and to find rest for your soul in the pure, meek and humble Heart of Jesus, to contemplate with Jesus the goodness, truth and beauty of the Father. The Catholic philosopher Josef Pieper wrote a whole book on Happiness and Contemplation. He gives this example of contemplation: “Who among us has not suddenly looked into his child’s face, in the midst of the toils and troubles of everyday life, and at that moment “seen” (“contemplated”) that everything which is good, is loved and lovable, loved by God! . . . that in spite of all appearances, underlying all things is – peace, salvation, gloria; that nothing and no one is lost; that ‘God holds in his hand the beginning, middle and end of all that is” (84-85). This is the contemplative vision of life. Blessed are the pure of heart, blessed are those who take upon themselves the yoke and discipline of Christ, who struggle to purify their hearts, for they shall see God in the Eucharist and in the beauty of the human person.
Purify your hearts and you will become a source of clear, clean, living water to others. You will spread purity, truth, holiness and goodness in your family, our community and our country. Your heart will radiate the pure, meek and humble heart of Jesus, on fire with love for the Father and for all souls. Purify your heart and you will help save Canada and redeem the world.
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Homilies