Homily for Thursday, 13 February 2014– Ferial

Thursday of the 5th week in Ordinary Time

Readings of the day: 1 Kings 11:4-13; Psalm 106:3-4, 35-36, 37, 40; Mark 7:24-30

What does it mean for us to be a people favored by God? After all, we pray in our Responsorial Psalm: “Remember us, O Lord, as you favor your people.”

Jesus expands for us time and again what it means to be a people of God; a people favored by God. Our Gospel reading today follows disputes between Jesus and the crowds or the Jewish authorities over the interpretation and following of religious teachings: To what extent ought a good Jew to follow the many laws of their faith so that they might remain in God’s favor?

Yet this question misses Jesus’ point: Although a religion’s teachings are important to follow (please do not interpret what I am about to say otherwise), to be in God’s favour is not primarily about following these teachings to the letter, especially without understanding the reason for these teachings: the good of our relationship with God and with one another.

To show this, after the disputes with the crowds and religious authorities, Jesus goes to Tyre; into non-Jewish territory. There he drives the demon from the Syrophoenician woman’s daughter. That Jesus had even gone to be with the people of Tyre, let alone performed a miracle there, would have been scandalous to many Jews who consciously observed their faith. I can imagine the murmurs of many Jews of Jesus’ time: “Why is Jesus going to Tyre? Those people are not God’s chosen people; We are. How dare Jesus associate with them!”

Sadly, this mentality continues to exist even among many Christians today: Those non-Catholics; those non-Christians; those atheists… They are not us. They are not favored by God. They are not God’s people. Is it right to associate with them? Can they be saved?

Not long ago, to the shock of many, Pope Francis said that yes, “even atheists”; certainly non-Christians whose hearts are with God can be saved.

That our hearts be with God is of primary significance. The Syrophoenician woman’s daughter is cleansed of a demon because the woman’s heart is with God, even more than perhaps anyone but God himself knows. In our first reading, Solomon is not reproved primarily for failing to follow religious teachings or for allowing his wives to worship other gods, although he does and this is clearly wrong. No, we hear that Solomon’s “heart was not entirely with the LORD, his God.” This is his greatest fault; his greatest impediment to favor with God.

May our hearts, then, be with our God. Let us pray that the same may be said of those who do not share our Christian faith but who will good and do good. As one people of God, then, may we be remembered, and may those who do not know or believe in God, together with all of us, be commended to God’s mercy. “Remember us, O Lord, as you favor your people.”

Homily for Friday, 7 February 2014– Ferial

Friday of the 4th week in Ordinary Time

Readings of the day: Sirach 47:2-11; Psalm 18:31, 47, 50, 51; Mark 6:14-29

Have you ever admired a public leader, whether in civil society or in the Church? What qualities did you most admire in this person?

Today our readings present us with two kings, David and Herod. For most of our first reading, from Sirach, David’s qualities are glowingly praised. In contrast, Mark’s Gospel says little to nothing good about Herod as he recounts Herod’s beheading of John the Baptist. I have thought occasionally whether or not David was as good a ruler as he is presented in some parts of the Bible, and whether or not Herod was as evil as he is often depicted.

Amid Sirach’s generous praise for David, one verse especially stands out for me. Sirach says of David: “The LORD forgave him his sins.”

Without this verse, the praise for David in the rest of our first reading would seem excessive: David the conqueror of Goliath and all of Israel’s enemies; David the king with “tens of thousands” of admirers; David the nation’s leader in worship; David who could do no wrong.

We know, not least from our daily Mass readings of the last several days, that David was not that good. He sinned… and repented of his sin frequently. David is set apart because of his willingness to recognize his own sometimes significant sins and to ask forgiveness from God for what he has done wrong. In this way, David sets an example for us of sincerity and trust in God’s forgiveness.

In this, David contrasts with Herod, who is too insecure to trust God to uphold his leadership and to forgive him his sins. Herod is not totally evil, since Mark’s Gospel says that he was, to a point, receptive to John the Baptist’s message. But his insecurity gives way to fear of the repentance that John asks of him; fear in place of trust in God. This fear drives Herod to kill John, and even then he comes to fear that Jesus will challenge his kingship.

Our readings today invite us first to trust in God’s forgiveness for the times in which we have sinned and second, to ask ourselves the question: Whom we admire in a public leader and why?

No leader; none of us is perfect. But just as we are invited to trust in God’s forgiveness, I ask: Are there any leaders you know in our households; our families; our Church; our society who have perhaps done wrong, even significantly, and yet been sincere, open to and trusting in God’s forgiveness and strength to guide their leadership?

Perhaps we are or will be called one day to forgiveness of our leaders who ask us for pardon with a sincere heart. Perhaps some of us are or will one day be called to be a leader after David: repentant, sincere, trusting in God’s forgiveness and strength to guide our leadership.

Homily for Thursday, 6 February 2014– Memorial of St. Paul Miki and Companions

Thursday of the 4th week in Ordinary Time

Readings of the day: 1 Kings 2:1-4, 10-12; 1 Chronicles 29:10, 11ab, 11d-12a, 12bcd; Mark 6:7-13 

Have you ever had conversations with the people you love most about your hopes and dreams for their future?

Often we do not like to think of death, and what will happen to our loved ones after we are called home by the Lord. In our first reading from the First Book of Kings, though, David does just that. David gives his last will and testament, if you will, his final “instructions to… Solomon,” his son and the future king of Israel.

Solomon would come to be known especially for two reasons: he had the first temple of Jerusalem built, and he was recognized for his wisdom. But at this point, as David’s long reign was about to end, Solomon’s future and the future of Israel’s kingship was unclear.

David finishes his last conversation with a promise to Solomon: “You shall always have someone of your line on the throne of Israel.” But there are conditions to this promise: David’s line of kings will only continue if Solomon and his sons “remain faithful to [God] with their whole heart and with their whole soul.”

We know from the rest of the story of Israel’s kings that unfortunately Solomon was not perfectly faithful to God, and then some of the kings after him were much less faithful, and ultimately the kingdom of Israel would collapse. Today, though, we hear David’s last hope that his son will carry on his line. 

When I was a small boy, I had a favorite fire safety cartoon from the National Film Board of Canada that was also a parody of the Biblical creation stories, called “Hot Stuff.”[1] As he is about to pass away, the old caveman in the cartoon, who had invented excellent uses of fire, for example the flaming “wheel,” passes his invention to his son with the halting words: “C- c- carry on and use it wisely!” David’s advice to Solomon is similar: “Carry on and” rule faithfully and “wisely.”

To those of us who have children: Have you ever had great hopes for them: That they might be interested in the same things that interest you; that they might use their gifts and talents wisely; that they might carry on the family business if you have had one; that they might be happily married; that they might be happy in whatever vocation to which God calls them; or perhaps that they might continue to practice or return to their faith?

It can be heartbreaking for those of us who have seen those dreams for our loved ones not quite realized. I invite those who have experienced this first to continue to pray for your loved ones, and second not to give up on them. God does not give up on us, even though we have all, at one time or another, fallen short of what God wills and dreams for us. For those times, God is always ready to forgive us.

Most importantly, let us be assured that the Church, I as a minister of the Church, and all of us as one community of faith hold you and your hopes and dreams for our loved ones in our prayer.  

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[1] Zlatko Grgic, National Film Board of Canada, “Hot Stuff.” http://www.nfb.ca/film/hot_stuff. Accessed 5 February 2014.

Homily for Sunday, 2 February 2014– Feast of the Presentation of the Lord

Readings of the day: Malachi 3:1-4; Psalm 24:7, 8, 9, 10; Hebrews 2:14-18; Luke 2:22-40

Who among us has ever been to an important meeting? Such a meeting could have been through work, or with family, or some other social encounter.

Today, the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, we have been invited to attend a very important meeting. Every time we come to Mass, we come to meet the Lord in the context of the celebration of the Eucharist. And who here can think of many times outside of the Mass when we have met the Lord, perhaps in prayer or through being with someone we know who stands out to us as holy and Christ-like?

On this Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, we remember and give thanks for the times we meet the Lord in the Eucharist and also in one another; especially the times when our meetings with the Lord have been through unexpected people or events. Let us remember also the meetings that have been upsetting, challenging, or even contentious. Many of us have been through these kinds of meetings!

We remember and give thanks for the Presentation of the Lord Jesus in the Temple of Jerusalem; a meeting with the Lord that, although it happened almost two thousand years ago, may not be as distant as we think from our own experience.

In Eastern Catholic and Orthodox traditions, the Presentation of Jesus of which we hear in today’s Gospel reading from Luke is often simply called “the meeting.” Who are the main invitees to this meeting that occurred forty days after Jesus’ birth?

We hear of Mary and Joseph, of Simeon and Anna, and of the infant Jesus at “the meeting” in the Temple. Since the earliest centuries of the Christian Church, some of you may know, Mary has been called “God bearer” for having carried God’s Son in her womb. Even fewer of us may know, and I learned within this past week, that Simeon is called “God receiver” in many of these same Eastern Christian traditions because Jesus was presented to and blessed by him in the Temple.

When we think of bearers, or carriers, and receivers (especially those who are football fans) we might think of another significant meeting; the great celebration of sport happening this weekend: the Super Bowl. You have my blessing and my prayers for a safe, fun celebration tomorrow/tonight should you be about to partake in… this much less important celebration than the Mass, of course… Go Broncos!

More significantly, though, let us return to the first meeting between “God bearer,” Mary, and “God receiver,” Simeon. Mary, along with Joseph, arrives for the meeting to present Jesus in the Temple. Mary and Joseph also present “two turtledoves or… young pigeons.” Although, as Luke says, this would have been an acceptable offering under the Law of Moses for a poor family upon presenting their newborn child, it would have been an unexpectedly simple offering for a couple presenting, say the Son of God. Wealthier families would usually offer a lamb at the presentation of a child.

Imagine this as though someone wealthy were to arrive at a formal business meeting unkempt and in shabby clothes. This might be expected attire for a poor person. And yet this is how Mary and Joseph have, to this point, shown up for important meetings of which we hear in our Gospels: First in a stable in Bethlehem, when they met the Magi at the Epiphany, and now at the Temple of Jerusalem with Simeon and Anna. Many people, not realizing that they were in the presence of God in the flesh, would probably have dismissed Mary, Joseph, and Jesus as just another poor family.

Fortunately, Mary the “God bearer,” Joseph, and Jesus meet Simeon the “God receiver,” an old man disarming in his simplicity, and Anna. How many would have recognized Simeon, a man whom Luke says was “righteous and devout”; a man in whom “the Holy Spirit” dwelt, as any more than a poor, elderly man? How many would recognize Anna as a “prophetess”; as more than an elderly woman who spent her time in the Temple? How many Simeons and Annas; Marys and Josephs do we recognize among us today?

How are we also called to be “God bearers” and “God receivers”; devout and yet humble; recognizing holy events and people who bring the presence of God into our midst?

The “God bearer” meets the “God receiver,” and then something even more remarkable happens: Simeon recognizes that this child Jesus is God in human flesh. He has the once-in-a lifetime chance to meet his God; our God; to cradle the Savior of the world in his arms!

To be sure, the beauty of this moment does not overcome the unsettling turn that this meeting in the Temple then takes. This child is to bring contradiction. Jesus will bring “the fall and rise of many in Israel,” Simeon prophesies. His greatest disciple, Mary, will suffer most deeply as her Son is rejected; mocked; humiliated; put to death on a cross!

And yet how many of us have ever avoided confrontation? How many of us have resisted doing or saying what is most true or most just, for fear of being “a sign of contradiction” as our Lord was; for fear of standing up for our faith; for fear of ridicule? I am not saying that we should be counter-cultural and divisive for the sake of being counter-cultural and divisive. There is much to celebrate in our culture, for example Americans’ industriousness and generosity that is admired here and abroad, which partisan squabbling too often prevents from shining forth.

Mary, importantly, does not avoid the confrontation and contradiction that her Son will cause, nor does she go looking for it. She does not storm out of this meeting upset, as I wonder if she were tempted to do, but she remains and ponders Simeon’s words. Years later, she will be there at the foot of the cross, “God bearer” to the end: “And you yourself a sword shall pierce.”

For now, Mary, Joseph, and Jesus will go back to everyday life in Nazareth as the child grows. Simeon sends the Holy Family and himself on their way with a prayer that I would recommend for any meeting. Indeed, since the ordained and religious and many laypeople pray Simeon’s prayer at night before going to sleep, I would recommend this for all Christians as a prayer to end our day.

Last week, my father asked me if I knew of a suitable prayer for an upcoming meeting in the parish where I grew up near Edmonton, Canada. Dad is a captain of ushers in our parish and prayer leader for his next meeting. I did not immediately think of this when Dad asked me for a prayer for his meeting. But imagine this prayer at a parish meeting; and even more if it were prayed every day, as we recognize that every day and at all times we are “God bearers” after Mary and “God receivers” after Simeon.

And so let us make Simeon’s last prayer our own, as we recognize that every day for us is a meeting; an invitation to encounter our God:

Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you prepared in the sight of all the peoples: a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and glory for your people Israel.

Homily for Friday, 31 January 2013– Memorial of St. John Bosco

Friday of the 3rd week in Ordinary Time

Readings of the day: 2 Samuel 11:1-4a, 5-10a, 13-17; Psalm 51:3-4, 5-6a, 6bcd-7, 10-11; Mark 4:26-34

When you hear a story like that of David having Uriah slain and then taking Bathsheba as his wife, do you ever think, “What a horrible thing to do?” Does this natural indignant feeling even progress toward hoping that God will exact retribution on people like David?

Let us think about this, since from time to time our society and individuals in it react similarly toward some of its worst and most violent criminals, and even some of its more minor sinners: “How could such a sin be forgiven?” or “This person must be punished,” or even “This criminal deserves to die.”

I ask, especially if anyone here has ever been a victim of crime or knows someone who has, that you not understand me to mean that I am against correction of evil or especially of criminal behavior. Even David does not escape from the consequences of his actions. The child he and Bathsheba conceive dies, if you will pardon me for giving away a central event in tomorrow’s first reading! And yet David is given the chance to repent, and he does. Then, as we know from the rest of the story, the key point is that God builds the kingdom of Israel upon David the repentant sinner.  

God gives us the chance to repent; to echo the Psalmist: “Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned”; to say at the very beginning of our Mass, “Lord have mercy. Christ have mercy. Lord have mercy.” Then God builds God’s kingdom upon us.

This building of God’s kingdom upon repentant sinners is only possible if God is not primarily a God of retribution but a God of patience; a God of forgiveness; a God who allows the mustard seed of goodness and faith of which Jesus speaks in our Gospel parable today to grow into a strong plant in which others can take shelter under our own branches of patience and forgiveness.

God’s patience and forgiveness was the example of St. John Bosco, whose feast day we celebrate today. St. John Bosco, a patron of the Basilians and founder of the Salesians, is known for his work among the poor youth, the street children, including convicted criminals of nineteenth century Turin.

Don Bosco’s motto was one of patience and forgiveness: “Not with blows, but with charity and gentleness must you draw these friends to the path of virtue.” For rejecting retribution and punishment in favor of patience and forgiveness; “charity and gentleness,” St. John Bosco was thought insane by many. Some tried unsuccessfully to block his canonization for this reason.

“Not with blows,” not with retribution, “but with charity and gentleness”; patience and forgiveness: On this foundation God is building God’s kingdom upon us, repentant sinners every one.