Homily for Advent 1 - November 29, 2020

 

Homily for First Sunday of Advent

November 29, 2020

The End of the Story

 

            Every good story has a beginning, a middle, and an end. I guess that’s why they make so many trilogies, like Lord of the Rings or Star Wars.

            The story in which we live, however, is grander, more magnificent, and more epic than anything George Lucas or JRR Tolkien could concoct. We live in a story known as Salvation History – the story of the unfolding plan of God through human history. And like all good stories, it has a beginning, a middle, and an end.

            The beginning of this story starts out beautifully: humanity in a state of perfect happiness in the Garden. Only love, joy, and peace was ever known. But very soon, tragedy struck – we fell into sin, strayed from the Lord, and brought innumerable evils upon the human race.

            It is this first part of the story that we hear about in the first reading. There is such a passion and anguish in these words from Isaiah: “Why do you let us wander, O LORD, from your ways, and harden our hearts so that we fear you not? Behold, you are angry, and we are sinful; all of us have become like unclean people, all our good deeds are like polluted rags; we have all withered like leaves, and our guilt carries us away like the wind.” From the ends of the earth, humanity cries out: O God, come and save us! We have all fallen astray. When we consider all the evil throughout the centuries: the Holocausts, the genocides, the violence, the lust, the pride, the greed – it seems overwhelming.

            But then comes the climax of the story: God taking flesh and becoming one of us. When all hope was lost, when mankind had began to question if God was even there, He slipped quietly into the world on a rescue mission behind enemy lines, and took our punishment upon Himself for our reconciliation. Hope began to spring anew from the nails on the Cross. As Pure Life lay dying, He purchased Life for us.

            But the story doesn’t end there. The Cross was only the middle of the story. Although Christ defeated evil on the Cross, evil still exists in the hearts of men. There needs to be a final answer. Jesus needs to come in glory to make His Victory known throughout the world.

            And thus, Jesus speaks in today’s Gospel about His Second Coming. Many people think that Advent is a time to wait for Christ’s birth. But He was already born – how can we wait for an event that already happened in history? No, Advent looks forward in eager anticipation of Christ’s Second Coming.

            What will that coming look like? We know that when He comes again, it won’t be as a humble baby. Rather, He will come as a glorious King, the Judge of Heaven and Earth, and He will destroy sin and death forever. He will create a new heaven and earth (by “heaven” it means the sky, not the afterlife). This new earth will have no more sorrow or pain. No evil person or harmful thing will live in this new paradise where God will dwell with His people.

            When will that coming be? That is a very good question. It could very well be soon. Right now we are historically as far from Jesus as Abraham was to Jesus (Abraham lived approximately 2000 BC). St. Irenaeus of Lyon, an early Church father, said that the seven days of creation were a symbol of seven thousand-year periods, and if you look at the Bible literally, Adam and Eve were created approximately 4,000 BC – which would mean that we were beginning the “seventh day” – the seventh millennium since the creation of the world. This “seventh day” is the Sabbath – the day of rest, peace, and union with God. So Irenaeus believed that Christ’s second coming would be right around now.

            Jesus said to St. Faustina, “You will prepare the world for My Second Coming” – and that was in 1931. We know that there needs to be a great falling-away of Faith before Christ comes again – and we see that in the world today, as it becomes increasingly secularized. We certainly have our share of natural disasters and illnesses, which Our Lord and other saints like St. Vincent Ferrer predicted would precede the Final Coming. The increase of sin, globalization, and a return of Communist ideologies are other factors that indicate the time may be near.

            Lest you think this is some radical, fringe belief, listen to what the Catechism says about this: “Before Christ's second coming the Church must pass through a final trial that will shake the faith of many believers. The persecution that accompanies her pilgrimage on earth will unveil the "mystery of iniquity" in the form of a religious deception offering men an apparent solution to their problems at the price of apostasy from the truth. The supreme religious deception is that of the Antichrist, a pseudo-messiah by which man glorifies himself in place of God.” (CCC 675) Powerful words – ones that look a lot like today’s headlines.

            So what does that mean for us? Should we sell everything we have and head for the hills, awaiting the Second Coming? No, I do not think we should. Rather, we should do as Jesus says: “Watch!” We should be ready, at every moment, to welcome Christ as our triumphant King. If He came later this afternoon, would you run to meet Him with eager expectation, joy, and arms wide open? Or would you run in the opposite direction, away from Him, ashamed of your sins, trying to hide from Him?

            Regardless of when He returns in glory, we all must be prepared for when we personally meet Him as King at the hour of our death. A few saints had the great grace of knowing exactly when they would die, such as St. Benedict or Bl. Carlo Acutis. But for most of us, that day remains a mystery – hence, the need to be prepared. Run to Confession, begin praying as if this day was your last. Because some day it will be your last, and on that day we must meet Christ. For those prepared, He will be a merciful Savior. For those unprepared, He comes as judge.

            My friends, we need not fear that day – if we are prepared. This Advent, what do you need to do to be prepared to meet Christ when He comes again in glory?

Homily for Ordinary Time 33 - November 15, 2020

 

Homily for Thirty-Third Sunday of Ordinary Time

November 15, 2020

Growing The Treasure

 

            What is the greatest treasure you have been given? Your health, your life, your gifts and talents, your family, your possessions? No – our greatest gift, our greatest treasure is our Catholic Faith. Without our Faith – without the knowledge of God’s love and hope of everlasting life – what would be the purpose of everything else? It would be utterly empty if not for the Faith that animates our life.

            But Jesus makes it clear that the treasure we have received is not static – it must grow. It cannot be buried in the ground – in other words, we cannot say, “I come to Sunday Mass and believe in Jesus, therefore I’ve done all I need to do.” No, faith is a living reality, and all living things are either growing or dying. Things grow when you feed them; they die when you starve them.

            So what are you doing to feed your faith, that it may grow? Here are a few suggestions.

            First, spiritual reading. Do you read the Bible or other spiritual books? Great saints were made through the reading of spiritual books! In the 1300s, an Italian merchant named John Colombino was rich, short-tempered, and unhappily married. One day he came home from his warehouse late, very hungry, and when he arrived he was angered to see that his wife hadn’t finished cooking dinner yet. He began to rage at her, but she responded by saying, “Your dinner will be ready in a moment! While you wait, here, read this book!” And she handed him the Lives of the Saints.

            John threw the book on the floor, saying, “All this is just fairy tales!” and went to sulk in the corner. But as dinner was delayed even longer, out of boredom he picked up the book and began to read the life of a saint. He was immediately drawn in, and in a couple minutes when dinner was ready, his wife called him but he responded, “No, no, let me finish reading.”

            He read long into the night, and was so moved by the stories of the saints that his life changed dramatically. He eventually began giving alms, serving the poor and sick, and, with the permission of his wife, began a religious order of brothers who served the least fortunate. He is now St. John Colombino, whose life was changed because of a book lying around the house!

            Read solid Catholic books – and, as we live in the 21^st Century, you can also listen to good Catholic podcasts (such as “Restless”, which is produced by the young adults here at our parish) or watch good Catholic youtube videos. This is a great way to nourish your faith that it may grow.

            Another suggestion is to go on a retreat or a pilgrimage. Even despite our post-Covid world, there are still retreats available – the Sisters of Life in north Stamford offer retreats, or you could make a private retreat at the Bridgettine Convent in Darien. There are lots of great places to take pilgrimages around here: from the Lourdes Shrine in Litchfield County, to the Divine Mercy Shrine in Stockbridge, MA, and many others. Unplugging from the frantic pace of daily life and instead opening yourself up to the peace and joy of Christ will powerfully grow your faith.

            In the year 2000, a worldly young Irish teenager named Clare Crockett was invited to go with some friends on a retreat for Holy Week in Spain. Clare went along just for the fun of it, as she was not religious at all. At the time, her life consisted of parties and boys and acting (she had gotten a contract to star in a show on Nickelodeon). During the retreat, she spent most of the time sunbathing, smoking cigarettes, and flirting with boys. But on Good Friday, the retreat master forced all the teens into the chapel for the Good Friday service where they venerated the crucifix by kissing our Crucified Lord. This struck Clare deeply – she sat in the back of the church weeping for hours afterward, realizing that Jesus Christ loved her enough to die for her. When the retreat ended, she was a changed young woman. When she returned to her acting gig, she realized how empty it was, and began to pursue the Lord seriously. After a while, she became a nun and served the poor in Spain, Florida, and Ecuador. While in Ecuador serving at a Catholic school, a terrible earthquake hit her town in 2016 and she tragically perished in the disaster…but her cause for canonization is now open, as she is being considered for sainthood – all because of a retreat. The same deep encounter with God’s love will happen to you, as well!

            Finally, if you have not done so, seek out fellowship with other Catholics which can grow your faith tremendously. One of my co-hosts on the Restless show, Lauren, used to be a lukewarm Catholic who only went to Mass on Sundays, but never took her faith seriously otherwise. But one day my predecessor, Fr. Andy Vill, invited her to come to Faith On Tap. For the first time she met other young adult Catholics who were passionate about their Faith. From there, he invited her to join his RCIA class, which helped her understand her Faith deeper, and then she went to Spain for a retreat with Fr. Andy’s community…and now she is on-fire with love for Christ, hosting a Catholic radio show, coming frequently to daily Mass…all because of a simple invitation to come and hang out with other Catholics! We have our Holy Name Society here for men, our youth group for young people, and a Bible Study and study of Humanae Vitae for women…so the opportunities are out there!

            Of course, in addition to these three suggestions, the main Catholic practices of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving are powerful ways to grow your faith. Pray in a new way or a new location; practice some self-denial which will conform you closer to Christ; give of your time or money to others – and you will be amazed at how your relationship with the Lord has grown!

            This gift of our relationship to the Lord Jesus through our Catholic Faith is the greatest treasure we could ever receive, for it is the hope of everlasting life. But this gift of our faith is not meant to be “buried” in the ground, as if we could merely come to Mass and say our evening prayers and that’s enough. Rather, this treasure must grow and grow until we can return to the Lord a life consumed by love for Him – and hope to hear those beautiful words, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

Christ the King Homily - November 22, 2020

 

Homily for Christ the King Sunday

November 22, 2020

God’s Got This

 

            One day a few years ago, I had just finished Mass when a parent of one of our youth group kids came up to me. With urgency in his voice, he asked me to go visit his son Andrew in the hospital. I agreed, and later that day went to Stamford Hospital and was surprised to see that Andrew was in the psychiatric ward. He was one of the most normal, down-to-earth kids, so this was quite a surprise.

            I asked him what happened. He told me that he was just joking around with his friends in high school one day when he made a joke about bombs. A teacher overheard him and had him arrested. He was taken into custody but because his parents were illegal immigrants and didn’t speak much English, they couldn’t explain to the cops that he was just kidding. So they sent him to the psych ward for an evaluation.

            I was shocked by this turn of events in Andrew’s life. I asked him, “Wow, that’s crazy! How are you doing? How are you holding up?”

            He said that the first night in the psych ward was crazy. He was realizing that he may have ruined his future. How could he apply to colleges? What would happen if people knew he was in jail then the psych ward? He was surrounded by people in the psychiatric ward who were screaming their heads off, or talking to themselves, or believing that they were Jesus Christ or George Washington. Laying there in his bed, he couldn’t sleep – fear and anxiety totally overwhelmed him.

            But then he said the thought occurred to him: “God’s got this.” God’s got this – this whole mess is in His hands. A supernatural peace began to descend on him, and he was able to sleep deeply. When I saw him the next day, he was remarkably calm considering the crazy situation he found himself in!

            “God’s got this” – the best definition of faith I’ve ever heard. In the midst of the chaos, Christ is King. He wins in the end. Do we really believe that?

            Ever since the election, I’ve had many conversations with good Catholics who are very concerned about the state of our country and the direction we’re heading. And for good reason – there are many indications of a deep spiritual disease in our country, from the average person to the heights of power. A disease of corruption and fraud, of lies and power, a disease of division and hedonism. And people of good will are legitimately concerned, because more and more we are becoming a nation that is not led by God’s laws, and not led by Godly leaders.

            But I ask you – is Christ the King, or not? Has God “got this”, or not? As a Christian, this is our hope – that despite the chaos in society, corruption in leadership, atheism and abortion and racism and lust and revolution and all of the evils that we see on a daily basis, God really is going to win in the end. This makes us look at the chaos without fear, because we know that evil won’t have the final word.

            We must remember that Jesus Christ is a King who reigns from the Cross. At the Cross, evil celebrated because it appeared that it won. God was dead, as Nietzsche would later say. The so-called Savior appeared defeated, the triumph of evil seemed to be assured. But we know the rest of the story – three days later, that Crucified King destroyed sin and death by His Resurrection. God’s got this, and He wins in the end.

            Hence, it should not surprise us when it seems like evil is triumphing. This has been the state of the world since the Garden. As Christians, we live in a world that has been under the dominion of Satan – but our faith tells us that Satan’s power was destroyed by the Cross, and Christ will win the ultimate triumph.

            What must we do, then? We must make sure that Christ has conquered the victory in us. How can we expect the world to be free of evil if evil still has a stronghold in our own soul? We let Him conquer us by surrendering our lives to His will, repenting of our sins in the Sacrament of Confession, and uniting our souls to His in the Eucharist and daily prayer. Christ must first be King of our souls.

            Once Christ is King in us, then we must fight to let His Kingdom come in the world. As Christians we win the victory in and through Him. We are called to resist evil, stand up for the truth, and fight for all that is good – not by our own strength, but because we are in Christ Who has won the ultimate victory. We fight with hope, knowing that God’s got this!

            Back in 1241, the German prince Frederick II wanted to increase his territory and began a vicious war against Italy, with the help of Arab mercenaries who joined his army. He marched south through Italy, seeking to take Rome. After destroying several cities, he came to the town of Assisi and the convent of Poor Clare nuns on the outskirts.

            Upon hearing the frightening sound of an army marching in battle, the nuns were justifiably afraid – the soldiers had a reputation of raping and pillaging everything in its path. In terror, they ran to St. Clare, who was sick in bed. These nuns were in a total panic – should they flee? Should they hide?

            But Clare was tranquil. She asked them, “Do you trust that God is with you?” She then got up, despite her sickness, and went to the tabernacle where she removed the ciborium full of Consecrated Hosts. She climbed up to the second story of the convent and stood at a window, holding aloft the Eucharist.

            When the soldiers saw the fearless nun holding God Himself in her hands, it was the army’s turn to be thrown into a panic! They quickly turned around and fled, leaving Assisi untouched. St. Clare turned and said to her sisters, “I guarantee you, my daughters, that you will not suffer any evil. Only have faith in Christ.”

            My friends, Christ is King. He wins in the end. God’s got this. So we go forward without fear or worry, allowing Christ to be King of our lives and fighting for His Kingdom in this world. Even if it seems like the world has won, we know the truth: Christ is King. God’s got this.

Homily for Ordinary Time 32 - November 8, 2020

 

Homily for November 8, 2020

Thirty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time

Good to the Last Drop

 

            It’s funny how your life can change in an instant with something that seems so small, so insignificant. In 1906, a 12-year-old Polish boy named Raymond was goofing off at home, playing pranks and just generally being a nuisance. His mother, exasperated, finally exclaimed, “Raymond! What is going to become of you?”

            For some reason, those words struck him to the heart. That night as he said his nightly prayers, he asked Our Lady, “Mary, what is going to become of me?” A moment later, he had a vision of Mary holding out two crowns: one white, the other red. She asked if he would accept one – white would mean that he preserved his purity for his entire life, and red meant that he would die a martyr. Boldly, young Raymond responded, “I will accept them both.”

            A few years later, Raymond joined the Franciscans and changed his name to Maximilian – and is now known as St. Maximilian Kolbe, one of the greatest saints of the twentieth century who died as a martyr for the Faith in Auschwitz.

            It was that small comment from his mother, likely said in frustration and anger, which ended up being a turning point in his life. His mother probably thought it was a throwaway line – but God used it to change the entire direction of the boy’s eternity.

            Small things can have tremendous impact. Those virgins who forgot their oil probably thought, “Oh, it’s no big deal. I’m not going to need much oil anyway.” A small detail. Insignificant, really. But because of that small decision, they ran out of oil, and consequently missed the entire celebration.

            The oil can be seen as a symbol of grace and virtue – when we have developed a personal friendship with Christ and are living for Him and in union with Him, we shine His light as an oil lamp, filled with oil, shines out. We must make sure our “lamps” (our lives) are filled with the anointed oil of His grace and our virtue! But that lamp is filled up drop-by-drop with more oil – every drop matters.

            In the same way, in the spiritual life, there is nothing that is small or insignificant. Every choice we make is either a choice to draw closer to God or a choice to flee from Him. There aren’t too many truly neutral choices we make in our daily life. Rather, most choices move us in a direction – to become more holy or less holy, to become more like Christ or less like Him. This is obvious for things like sin, which takes us away from God, or acts of charity which make us closer to Him. But what about seemingly small daily choices? They matter too!

            Let’s take two everyday examples. First, let’s say you walk past the break room at work, and there’s a box of donuts just sitting out there. You are torn – you want to keep walking by because there’s really no reason for you to eat one. You’re not hungry – but they look tempting. This choice is actually deeper than a donut. It’s a choice about what will have mastery over you – will you be overcome by your desire for physical pleasure? Or will you make the difficult but freeing choice to say, “Oh, I can go without it” and walk past. Now, I’m not saying that it’s a sin to have a break-room donut – but does it make you a better, stronger, more free, more virtuous individual if you just give in and indulge? No, of course not – it reinforces our lower nature and we miss out on a chance to practice the virtue of temperance.

            Here’s another example. We are ready to relax after dinner and want to watch some TV but we also know we should spend at least fifteen minutes a day in prayer. We are faced with the choice: do we put it off and pray later, knowing that we might be too tired by the end of the day to really give our love and attention to God? Or do we make the difficult but rewarding choice to give God the prime-time hour and pray before we relax with TV or Youtube? One choice puts God first and fills us to overflowing with His divine friendship; the other choice says, “God, I’ll just give You the leftovers of my day” and we remain pretty empty.

            Our Catholic Faith makes a distinction between a sin and an imperfection. We all know we need to avoid sins. But to have a real spiritual life, we must also seek to avoid imperfections. It’s not a sin to eat a donut in the break room; it’s not a sin to be too tired to pray. But these are imperfections because they are choosing the less perfect option. These are the small, seemingly-insignificant choices that are the difference between a saint and an ordinary Christian. The saint seeks to always choose that which is most perfect, because they know that God desires that we become fully alive in Him!

            One may say, “Oh, but those things aren’t a big deal!” But they are! To fill up an oil lamp, you have to pour the oil slowly, carefully, bit by bit. To become a saint, it happens slowly, with small choices, bit by bit – always seeking to choose the most loving, most sacrificial, most virtuous option, and always seeking every last drop of God’s grace.

            A reporter once asked Mother Teresa, “How do you do it? How can you pick up tens of thousands of filthy, dying people from the streets?” She replied, “If I had never picked up the first one, I would never have picked up the ten thousandth.” In other words, Mother Teresa became who she was with the small, daily choices to follow Christ. The choices didn’t look particularly significant or heroic at the time. But gradually, day by day, she advanced in His grace until she was ready to meet Christ with her oil lamp overflowing with grace and virtue.

            How’s your lamp? Is it filled, or empty? Have you neglected it, thinking that it’s okay just to avoid “big sins” while overlooking small imperfections? It’s not too late to fill it up – drop by drop, choice by choice, until we become ready to meet Christ when He comes for us.