Aspirin for a Heart Attack - Ash Wednesday Homily - March 5, 2025

 

Homily for Ash Wednesday

March 6, 2025

A New Heart

 

            A man went to his doctor with some pain in his chest. The doctor ran some tests, and then told the man, “I have good news and bad news. The bad news is that you need a new heart – open-heart surgery, the whole nine yards. If you keep your current heart, you will certainly die very soon. The good news is that we already have a donor, your insurance will cover the cost, and it will let you live until practically forever.”

            Anyone with a small modicum of common sense would say, “Yes! Let’s do the surgery!” But perhaps there would be some who say, “Wait – I kinda like my current heart, it’s not causing me too much pain, and it seems like a huge hassle to get the surgery and have to recover. Maybe later, not now, I’ve got too much going on.” We would all agree that such an attitude would be foolish!

            And yet, my friends, this should be the reason why we are here today – a new heart. If you’re just here for ashes, that’s like taking aspirin when you need a heart transplant – it might take away the pain for a bit, but it doesn’t address the fact that you’re dying. Ashes might make us feel all “religiousy” for a day, but it doesn’t take away the fact that you’re dying from your sins!

            But the good news is that we have a donor who will give you a new heart – Jesus Christ, Whose Sacred Heart burns away the impurities in ours. The cost is already covered – it was paid by the Precious Blood on the Cross. This new heart will allow us to live forever – an abundant like of grace and purpose here, and everlasting joy in Heaven.

            This means that we have to give up our old heart, our sinful habits, our disordered desires, our unhealthy relationships. It’s hard to do – and it’s the only thing that will save our lives. In Greek the word for “repentance” is metanoia, which literally means “turning-around”. Turning away from sin, turning to face the Lord’s presence.

            The biggest, and most fundamental turning that must occur is to stop living as if God doesn’t exist. Probably all of us would say that we believed in God – but then, practically, we live as if He has no impact on our day-to-day life. We make ourselves – our plans, our “truth”, our pleasures – the idol that we worship.

            Today, turn away from that idol and begin living like God not only exists but has loved you into existence, has a wonderful plan for your holiness, and has destined you for eternal life! Practically this means beginning a serious prayer life of at least 15 minutes daily; worshiping God every Sunday at Mass; coming to Confession at least once during Lent; and conforming your life to His teachings in the Scriptures and the Catholic Church.

            Ashes on your forehead are easy. They cost nothing. They may even make you feel good and pious for a day. But they are like aspirin when we need major heart surgery. The good news is that the new heart awaits you, given to you by Jesus Christ Who purchased it on the Cross. My friends, I beg you – stop living as if God does not exist. He exists and wants to be the central love of your life, the very reason why you live and breathe. Get rid of your dying, sin-laden heart, and allow Him to give you this new heart!

The Tongue of a Christian - Ordinary Time 8 - March 2, 2025

 

Ordinary Time 8

March 2, 2025

The Tongue of a Christian

 

            One of the more amazing miracles in our Catholic Church is the gift of incorruptibility. Several saints’ bodies have not decayed, centuries after their death, as a testament to their holiness. But sometimes, only a part of their bodies remain incorrupt, usually connected to an important element of their mission on earth. One such case is the tongue of St. Anthony of Padua, whose statue we have in the vestibule of the church.

            Anthony was a great preacher of the Catholic Faith – he was a Franciscan from Portugal who desperately desired to be a martyr in Morocco. But as he was sailing across the Mediterranean, a major storm blew them off course, and he landed in Italy, where he would stay for the remainder of his life. He was content to be a humble laborer in a Franciscan friary until one day when a large group of priests had gathered for a special Mass, and everyone thought that someone else was preaching! No one had prepared a homily. So they prevailed upon Anthony to preach, and preach he did! It was so eloquent, rich, profound – that for the rest of his life he would travel all around Italy, preaching and bringing many souls to Christ through his words. Because of that, his tongue alone is incorrupt – it can be seen in the Basilica of St. Anthony in Padua, Italy!

            Every Christian’s tongue should be holy, though, for as it says in the Book of Proverbs, “The power of life and death are in the tongue.” Our words can build up or tear down; they can give life, and take it away. Let’s look at what the tongue of a Christian ought to be like.

            First, the tongue of a Christian ought to be kind. Our words, if they must speak about another person, ought to reflect that person’s great dignity and the everlasting glory that awaits them. One time, a woman confessed the sin of gossip to St. Philip Neri. The saint told her, as a penance, to take a feather pillow up to a high tower and tear it open. She thought it was an odd penance, but she did it anyway. She then returned to the saint and reported that she had fulfilled the strange penance, but St. Philip Neri said, “Wonderful. Now go and collect all the feathers.” But she protested, “That’s impossible! They have flown all over the city by now.” The saint replied, “Exactly. And this is what happens when we spread gossip – we cannot collect up what we have spread about the town.” A Christian’s tongue ought to be kind – if we would not say it to their face, we ought not say it behind their back!

            Second, the tongue of a Christian ought to be pure. We should shun impure jokes, foul language, or inappropriate talk. One day, the young schoolboy St. Dominic Savio overheard an adult use some rather foul language, but since he was a boy, he couldn’t reproach him directly. Instead, he went up to the man and asked, “Excuse me, sir, could you tell me how to get to such-and-such street?” The man thought for a moment and replied, “No, son, I don’t know where that is, I’m sorry.” St. Dominic said, “Oh, that’s fine, but could you do me one other favor?” The man, now warming up to the precocious boy, said, “Of course, anything for you.” Dominic leaned in and whispered, “Would you not allow such foul language to come forth from your mouth?” The man was surprised, but agreed not to curse.

            In particular, many of us may struggle with the habit of taking God’s Name in vain. If that is the case, there is an easy solution – any time we slip and say, “Oh my God,” immediately say out loud, “Blessed be His Name.” Not only will it give God praise to make up for the wrong use of His Name, it will also be so embarrassing that we will drop the habit quickly!

            Third, the tongue of a Christian ought to be modest. The Book of Proverbs says, “When words are many, sin is inevitable, but he who restrains his lips is wise.” A Christian does not need to voice an opinion on everything, or fill every silence with words. Like most things in life, moderation is the key – one should speak when necessary, and when it’s not necessary, remain silent. It was said of St. Dominic Guzman that “he rarely spoke unless it was to God (in prayer) or about God (to his fellow men and women).” So, discretion in speech is a truly Christian trait!

            Fourth, the tongue of a Christian ought to be truthful, no matter what the cost. Jesus calls Satan is the “Father of Lies”, but by contrast, Christ is the Truth – so if Christ is in our minds and on our lips, then we too should speak the truth. I think of the example of St. Phocas, a martyr from Turkey in the fourth century. During one of the major persecutions of Christians, a band of soldiers was dispatched to find the holy layman Phocas and execute him. The soldiers came upon a house in the middle of the countryside and banged on the door, and Phocas answered it, but the soldiers did not know it was him. They asked him, “Do you know where Phocas is living?” Phocas knew he could lie and save his skin – but lies are unbecoming of a Christian. So Phocas told them, “Yes, I know him. He is not far from here. But it is late and you look tired – come have supper with me, and in the morning I will take you to him.” The soldiers accepted, had dinner with the man they had come to kill, and slept in his spare room. Meanwhile, at night, Phocas went to his garden and dug his own grave, and spent the rest of the night in prayer. When morning arrived, Phocas revealed himself to the soldiers and told them that he was the one whom they were sent to kill. But the soldiers hesitated – moved by his generosity, they said, “We will return to the Emperor and tell him that we did not find you.” But Phocas insisted, “I will not have you lie on my behalf. I am not afraid to die for Christ.” So, reluctantly, they fulfilled their mission – and St. Phocas became a martyr for telling the truth. So every Christian’s words ought to be full of grace and truth.

            Fifth, the tongue of a Christian ought to be self-controlled. St. James writes in Scripture that we put bits into the mouths of horses, so that through the mouth, we can control the whole body of the horse. Likewise, our tongues should be so self-controlled. I’ll be honest, I’m not great at this, and frequently I will walk away from a class or a meeting saying, “Ah, I probably shouldn’t have said that!” But I’ve begun praying a powerful prayer from the Psalms that says, “Set, O Lord, a guard over my mouth, keep watch at the door of my lips” – asking God to grant self-control to that most wild of horses, our tongues!

            Sixth, the tongue of a Christian should be pleasant. Aristotle speaks about a virtue called eutrapelia, which means being joyful, of good humor, pleasant. A Christian’s speech shouldn’t be pessimistic or a downer – after all, it is good news that we believe in! A sad saint is a bad saint – saints should be joyful, and it should reflect in their words. The saints themselves have been known to share pleasant jokes with one another – one time a reporter asked Pope St. John XXIII how many people work in the Vatican, and he replied, “Oh, about half of them.” Another time a woman came to Confession to St. John Vianney, and she was concerned that she cared too much about her appearance, so she asked him, “Is it vain of me to use blush on my cheeks?” The saint replied, “Well, some priests might think that using blush is a bit vain, while others see no problem in it.” But the woman persisted, “Yes, but what do you think?” He responded with a twinkle, “Why not take the middle road and just use blush on only one cheek?” A Christian’s words ought to be pleasing, joyful, uplifting.

            Finally, the tongue of a Christian ought to be filled with God’s praise. What will we be doing for eternity? Praising God! So let us learn to praise Him here, in our speech and conversation. Speak to others about what God is doing in your life. Ask others for prayers, and pray with others. When you’re alone in your car, pray out loud. Thank God publicly for all of His many blessings.

            My friends, a Christian’s tongue ought to be kind, pure, modest, truthful, self-controlled, pleasant, and full of God’s praise. My dear Christians, how is your tongue?

A Tree Beside Flowing Waters - February 16, 2025 - Ordinary Time 6

 

Ordinary Time 6

February 16, 2025

A Tree Planted Beside Running Water

 

            St. Joseph Cottolengo was an Italian priest from Turin who used to run free hospitals for the poor in the mid-1800s. Such a work of charity was not without its challenges, including being perpetually short on money. One day the cook from the hospital came to him with a small purse, containing a few coins. “Fr. Cottolengo, this is all the money we have – I cannot buy enough food for the patients to eat!”

            The priest dumped the coins into his outstretched palm. “Yes, this is indeed far too little.” With that, he threw the coins out the open window. To the shocked cook he replied, “Ah, have no fear. The money has been multiplied by our trust in God – it will bear fruit in a few hours!” Sure enough, before the end of the day, a woman came to see the saint and donated more than enough money to meet their needs.

            It’s amazing how unconcerned the saints were with material things, when we so often spend our days in frantic worry. The economy is rough; I just got a bad diagnosis; my child won’t talk to me; my dreams are down the tubes. How do we face these things with the courage and trust of the saints?

            Well, let me ask you a fundamental question: do you believe that God is in control of your life, or that you are? “Cursed be the man who trusts in human beings,” our first reading tells us. I am particularly moved by the image in that Jeremiah passage – imagine in your mind’s eye that tree, planted right next to the stream, with its roots drinking deeply from the living water. Imagine, now, that a dry dust storm starts rolling through the field – does the tree fear this dust storm? Of course not – it has its roots sunk deeply in the water. Does the tree fear the scorching sun, or a wildfire? Nope, it is deeply rooted in the life-saving water, so it has nothing to fear.

            We worry about things because we are not yet deeply rooted in Jesus Christ. Most of us are trying to do this “life” thing on our own efforts, by our own strength. It’s the American way, right? Just pull yourself up by your bootstraps, work hard, make something of yourself. But then why does life sometimes seem so doggone hard?

            You may have heard the saying that “God never gives you more than you can handle.” That is an absolute lie – God often give us more than we can handle, but He never gives us more than He can handle. The problem is that we’re trying to handle it all on our own!

            I was preparing for Mass one day in a former parish when the father of one of our youth group members came up to me, greatly distress. Through broken English he tried to tell me that his son Andrew was in the hospital. I was shocked – Andrew, a healthy high-school junior? I promised him I would visit. So later that day I went, and found that Andrew was in the psychiatric ward of Stamford hospital. I went into his room and said, “Andrew, what in the world happened to you?” And he told me this crazy story:

            He had been sitting around at the lunch table in his public high school, when he happened to (thoughtlessly) make a joke about a bomb. A teacher overheard and called the police, who arrested Andrew. Since his parents were illegal immigrants, they didn’t come to pick him up at the police station, so after determining he wasn’t a threat, the police sent him to the psych ward of Stamford hospital.

            Needless to say, he was freaking out about this. Here he was, totally normal, surrounded by other teens with severe mental illness – he said that the boy one room over screamed all day and night, and on the other side was a boy who was suicidal. He was terrified to be there, and even more terrified about the future – would he be able to get into college? Would this go on his permanent record? Would his girlfriend break up with him? Would his parents get deported because of what he said?

            Andrew said that as he was lying there, completely anxious about the future, the thought occurred to him: “God’s got this.” And he said that an unearthly peace settled over him from the top of his head to the bottom of his feet. God’s got this. I thought that was the best definition of trust I had ever heard: God’s got this. And he was able to get out of the hospital a week later and his life has not been negatively affected.

            Really, if God’s got this, then who cares what happens to us? This is a lens through which we can read Jesus’ words in the Gospels: blessed are the poor? Hungry? Weeping? Hated? Well, if God’s got this, if He really is in control of our life and destiny, then who cares if we are poor, hungry, weeping, or hated – so long as we love God and are loved by Him? St. Ignatius of Loyola speaks about a “holy indifference” – we should be so rooted in God that all of those other things – wealth or poverty, abundance or hunger, sorrow or joy, praise or criticism – are unimportant. As Mother Teresa said, “If you are humble nothing will touch you, neither praise nor disgrace, because you know what you are.” In other words, if you are deeply rooted in God – you find your identity in Him, you have surrendered your life to Him, you trust that He is truly in control of your life – then nothing will ever bother you. Poverty becomes a way to detach yourself from earthly goods and focus on heavenly ones. Suffering becomes a forge to fashion the deepest virtues in you. Sorrow will make us long for our true home. Being rejected helps us to remember that only God’s love is secure.

            Many of you know Fr. Walter Cizek, the American priest who spent 23 years in Russian prison camps. Five of those years were spent in solitary confinement in the infamous Lubyanka prison, confined to four white walls for years on end, only broken by periodic interrogations. It was enough to drive a man insane. But in that dark place, he began to become more deeply rooted in God. He began to pray the Mass from memory, recite as much of the Bible as he could remember, interceded for the world and for Russia, and spend his days in intimate union with God. At first, he desperately wished he could be somewhere else – “Oh, I could do so much more for God if I was a priest in active ministry!” – but over time he began to realize that he was exactly where he was meant to be – he could please God right there, in solitary confinement. He was fulfilling God’s will – and that brought him peace.

            He later wrote these lines about his time in prison: “What [God] wanted was for me to accept these situations as from his hands, to let go of the reins and place myself entirely at his disposal. He was asking of me an act of total trust, allowing for no interference or restless striving on my part, no reservations, no exceptions, no areas where I could set conditions or seem to hesitate. He was asking a complete gift of self, nothing held back.”

            Blessed is he who trusts in God with his entire life.

Fear of the Lord - February 9, 2025 (Ordinary Time 5)

Homily for Ordinary Time 5

February 9, 2025

Fear of the Lord

 

            St. Benedict and St. Scholastica were a brother-and-sister saintly duo. Scholastica was a cloistered nun (which is a nun who never leaves her convent), while St. Benedict had founded a monastery of monks. Once a year, these holy siblings would visit each other for supper and conversation. One time, the conversation was so enjoyable and stretched so late that Benedict, realizing he had to get back to his monastery, began to gather his belongings. But Scholastica begged her brother to stay, for the conversation was about holy things. Benedict refused, saying, “But dear sister, I simply cannot spend the night outside of the monastery. My monks need me.” So Scholastica folded her hands and bowed her head, clearly praying. Instantly, a thunderstorm struck up so severely that Benedict couldn’t venture past the door. He turned to his sister and demanded, “What have you done?” Scholastica answered, “I asked you and you would not listen, but I asked God and He did listen. Now, travel home – if you can!” Of course, he couldn’t, so they spent the rest of the night in uplifting prayer and conversation.

            Nature, such as that thunderstorm, has a way of humbling us. How many times have our plans been upended by inclement weather (like this weekend’s snowstorm)? Or maybe we had wanted to get together with friends but a microscopic virus laid us low. Truth is, we are not in control of our lives, God is – that both a freeing and a frightening reality.

            This realization that God is in control is a gift of the Holy Spirit known as “fear of the Lord.” Fear of the Lord is not about being afraid of God as if He were a tyrant; rather, it is respect and awe for who He is and His power, much like we respect our earthly parents. A good definition of “fear of the Lord” is the pithy quote, “There is a God – and I’m not Him!”

            Both Isaiah and Peter learned fear of the Lord in these readings today – Isaiah’s vision of God’s tremendous power made him realize that he was so far from holiness. Peter, too, when faced with this supernatural miracle, realized he was in the presence of a power far greater than his own limited fishing knowledge.

            It is absolutely critical that we foster fear of the Lord, because many cultural philosophies put the human person at the center of the universe, not God. One such philosophy is secular humanism, the belief that human beings can master the universe by their own efforts, talents, science, and technology – needing no room for God. I recently re-watched the fantastic movie “Interstellar”, which is set in a dystopian future where the earth is dying. Scientists have to desperately find a new planet for our species to live on. It’s an entertaining movie, but it left me with the uneasy message that we humans are on our own. We have to figure it all out ourselves – God is unconcerned with our fate, and has left us to our own devices. Secular humanism at its finest – we will come up with all the solutions necessary to save ourselves and the planet!

            But God has a way of upending such pride. For example, before the launch of the Titanic, the captain Edward Smith was asked about the new design and safety features of this giant cruise ship. Famously, he quipped, “Not even God could sink this ship.” And…we know the rest of the story. Fear of the Lord prevents such overconfidence in our own efforts.

            The other cultural philosophy that is so dangerous is relativism, the belief that we are the final arbiters of truth. The ancient Greek philosopher Protagoras famously said, “Man is the measure of all things,” while the less-ancient NBA player Dwayne Wade famously said, “Live your truth.” But of course, we cannot practically live that way. I would not want to drive across a bridge that was built by someone who believed that math and engineering are only an opinion! Gravity works, whether we like it or not, because it was a law written into the very fabric of creation by a Divine Lawgiver. Putting my hand on a hot stove will hurt and do damage, even if I don’t want it to. Just like there are unchanging natural laws independent of our own opinions, so there are unchanging moral and spiritual truths that exist whether we like them or not. Right and wrong were built into creation by our good God – and it’s up to us to humble ourselves and conform our lives to Him.

            If we do not humble ourselves before the Lord, then He will often do it for us, and that tends to be more difficult. One of our parishioners was telling me a remarkable story. He had been a total lukewarm Christian for most of his college and young-adult days, until one day when he was driving home on Route 84 and fell asleep at the wheel. He crashed, totaled the car…and escaped with only one tiny cut on his finger. He realized this accident, in which he should have died, was God saying, “You’ve got to choose – Me, or the world. You can no longer straddle the issue.” So Dan chose the Lord, and is one of the most on-fire Catholics I’ve met. But it took an intervention of God to break through to him.

            Fear of the Lord is not in competition with love of the Lord, though! In contrast, both fear and love are held in a creative tension. In theology, we talk about God’s transcendence and His immanence – this means that while God is far greater than anything we could ever conceive – the all-holy, eternal, infinite Creator – He is also intimately united to our lives and desires a close friendship with us. It is both-and – God must be worshipped, and also wants to be our friend.

            In fact, to love and serve him properly requires fear of the Lord. This is why Isaiah and Peter are able to embrace their new missions, with the proper and healthy respect for the majesty of God. Without fear of the Lord, God becomes nothing more than a permissive uncle, who winks at our indiscretions, rather than Lord of all creation to whom we must conform our lives.

            It says in Scripture that “Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” How true! Our relationship with the Lord must include awe and wonder – it makes me tremble when I consider that a few short minutes from now I will be holding the God of the universe in my hands. I beg for the Lord’s mercy on the day I will have to give an account of how I have shepherded souls to Heaven. Every human being ought to be in awe and trembling at the gift of life, this magnificent world, at grace, at the promise of Heaven.

            My friends, let us cultivate this awe and wonder towards the Lord. Consider how small we are, and the vastness of creation…consider the price paid for your salvation…consider the awesome dignity to which we are called, of being Temples of the Holy Spirit and children of the King of Kings. Truly, great is the Lord!

The Reward of Perseverance - Feast of the Presentation (Feb 2, 2025)

 

Homily for the Feast of Presentation

February 2, 2025

The Reward of Perseverance

 

            There are many virtues needed for a life of holiness, and one could debate which one is the most important: humility? Charity? Patience? All of these are critical, but I would add one more, an often-forgotten virtue: perseverance. Every saint had this virtue, often in heroic ways.

            Take, for example, one of the more recent Canadian saints with an interesting connection to Connecticut: St. Andre Bessette. He was born in the mid 1800s to a simple blue-collar family. As a young man, Andre was devout but a little lost – he wasn’t good at school, had poor health, and couldn’t find a trade that he excelled in. He ended up moving from Montreal to upstate Connecticut for a time, where he worked in a textile mill. But finding no success there, either, he returned home and asked to enter a religious community called the Congregation of the Holy Cross (which is the order that runs Notre Dame University).

            Initially, they turned him down due to poor health and lack of education. But his pastor intervened, sending him back with a letter that said, “Please accept him – I am sending you a saint!” So they allowed him in, but only to be the porter – the one who answered the door and handled the mail.

            But pretty soon, remarkable miracles started to happen. People would come, asking for prayers, and Br. Andre would pray with them – and miraculous healings would occur. This led to his fame starting to spread, as people believed he had the gift of healing – so he needed to deflect the attention! He began to credit all the healings to the intercession of St. Joseph, telling people “Ite Ad Joseph” – Go to St. Joseph for your miracle!

            His devotion to St. Joseph grew, until the Holy Spirit inspired him to want to build a giant church dedicated to this great saint. But this poor, uneducated man had no way to make it happen. So he started to beg for nickels and dimes for the project – and over the course of several decades, he raised millions of dollars through only nickels and dimes! The Church was finally built – called the Oratory of St. Joseph in Montreal – and it is still the largest church in the world dedicated to St. Joseph. But what perseverance! First to try to enter the religious order, then to build this tremendous church. Every saint needs to persevere, because holiness does not come quickly or easily.

            Neither does the Messiah. The two unique characters from today’s feast, Simeon and Anna, are perfect examples of perseverance. Every single day these two holy people, advanced in years, came to the Temple in the expectation that God would send the Savior. For centuries men and women had hoped for the same thing…and it seemed like God was not listening, like He was distant, like He had forgotten His promises. Many people, perhaps, lost hope – but not Simeon and Anna. They would persevere, day in and day out, and their perseverance was rewarded as they were blessed to hold the infant Savior in their arms.

            There are four ways in which these two saints persevered – they persevered in prayer, in sacrifice, in vigilance, and in their vocation. Let’s examine each one and apply it to our lives.

            First, they persevered in prayer. The Gospel describes Simeon as “righteous and devout, and the Holy Spirit was upon him.” Certainly he lived in intense union with God – even if his desired Messiah seemed distant? Yet he prayed, not to force God to do his will, but to conform his will to God’s. If God would give him the gift of seeing the Savior, then praise Him for that gift. But if not, praise God for His mysterious will.

            This is so important for us. Jesus gives us several parables instructing us to persevere in prayer – He says, “seek and you will find, ask and you shall receive.” But a lot of people give up on prayer because God hasn’t given them what they wanted. God, are You even listening?

            But we must persevere. First of all, we must remember that God’s ways are not our ways. If we pray for healing but someone dies, then we must see it from the vantage point of eternity and realize that a soul is now, hopefully, rejoicing forever with Him. If we pray to get into a certain college but get rejected, that means that God has beautiful things in store for us at our second-choice college. But also, we must remember that the point of prayer isn’t to get stuff from God, but to draw closer to His Heart. When I was a kid, my religious education teacher asked us all a question: does God listen to the prayer of Mother Teresa more than a criminal? She said no, God listens to all of our prayers equally. But for some reason that answer didn’t sit well with me. Much later I realized why: because Mother Teresa is more intimately united to God than a criminal, she knows what to ask for! Mother Teresa asks God for grace to be holy, while many ordinary folks ask only for money and healing and physical goods. God will grant those, but only if they are helps for the ultimate goal of holiness.

            So, we must persevere in prayer no matter how difficult or dry. St. John of the Cross used to record what inspirations he received in prayer – and for years, he recorded only one word each day: “Nada” – “Nothing”. But he still showed up and prayed, and eventually experienced deep union with God. As Woody Allen said, “80% of life is just showing up” – and most of prayer is just showing up, too. Simeon showed up, day-in and day-out, and eventually had the incredible joy of holding the Savior in his arms.

            Secondly, we must persevere in daily sacrifice. The Gospel speaks of Anna “worshipping night and day with fasting and prayer.” Here was an 84-year-old woman who made sacrifice a part of her daily routine. It’s easy enough to sacrifice for 40 days in Lent, but every Christian must make it a part of every day. How will any of us achieve holiness or spiritual strength if we give in to every single desire that comes across our path?

            Greatness is only accomplished through sacrifice. In the 1940s, there was a young woman from the Czeck Republic named Sara Salkahazi, who was quite the intriguing woman – a semi-atheist, engaged to be married, a liberal chain-smoking journalist. She was very interested in helping the poor, so on a lark she attended a meeting held by a religious community called the Sisters of Social Service who spent their lives ministering to the poor. As the nuns were explaining their mission, Sara felt a burning desire to join them – but they initially rejected her, because she was an atheist chain-smoker! They said, “Start practicing the faith and give up smoking for a year, and you can join.” Both were immensely difficult for her, especially the smoking – she was totally addicted and struggled every day to overcome the habit. But through self-sacrifice, she was able to do so. After a year she joined the congregation and began working to save Jews who were threatened by the Nazi occupation. She ended up saving over 100 Jews before she was caught and killed as a martyr. She is now Bl. Sara Salkahazi, who was only able to achieve greatness through sacrifice. We must persevere in saying “no” to ourselves daily if we wish, like Anna, to be able to see God.

            We also persevere in vigilance. It is said that Simeon was “awaiting the consolation of Israel” – he wanted to find the Christ, and did anything to find Him. We, however, have the gift of grace – we already possess Christ in our soul if we are in the state of grace. So we persevere in vigilance in a different way. We do not have to find Christ – He is present in the Eucharist, in the Catholic Church, in the Word of God. But we have to make sure we never lose Him, through sin or faithlessness.

            One of the greatest spiritual truths is that we can trust God immensely – but we must never, ever trust ourselves. We never reach a place in our spiritual life where we won’t be tempted. The great desert father, St. Anthony the Abbot, had given up everything to serve Christ as a hermit in the desert. One day he was walking with a companion when they chanced upon a bag of gold. The companion said, “Look! A bag of gold. We could give this to the poor.” But Anthony felt a glimmer of greed arise in his heart, so he made the sign of the Cross over the bag, and it disappeared in a puff of smoke – it had been a temptation of the Evil One. We, too, must be vigilant about what we read and watch, with whom we converse and where we go, that we too may do everything to possess Him alone.

            Finally, we must persevere in our vocations. Many married couples speak about the “seven-year itch” – that after seven years, we get bored with our spouses and struggle to persevere. We get bored with our jobs, restless and burnt-out. But sometimes we’re just called to persevere. The grass can seem greener on the other side, but this job or vocation is the labor to which we are called. Simeon and Anna showed up, day in and day out, faithful to their calling. So – persevere in that difficult task God has appointed for you. Perhaps you’re a caregiver for someone who’s ill. Perhaps you work at a job you dislike, but you need it for your family’s sake. Perhaps you have a challenging marriage. This is your sanctification – so persevere.

            What a beautiful message from the two saints of today’s feast – St. Simeon and Anna. What perfect examples of perseverance! Persevere in prayer, in sacrifice, in vigilance, in your vocation. And may we, too, be found worthy to embrace Christ at the end of our lives, as did these saints.

Ordinary Time 2 - Wedding Feast

 

Homily for Ordinary Time 2

The Wedding Feast of Cana

January 12, 2025

 

            This is such an amazing Gospel to unpack, so open up your missalettes and let’s discover the riches in this short story from John’s Gospel!

            The scene is a wedding feast – which should ring some bells for those who know the Old Testament! In Isaiah, the coming of the Kingdom of God is inaugurated at a Wedding Feast; in Hosea and other prophets, the relationship between God and His People is described as a sacred wedding. It was not random chance that Jesus picked this particular setting for His first miracle – yes, a bride and groom were getting married, but moreso, Christ the Bridegroom has come for His Bride, the Church.

            Wedding feasts in ancient times lasted seven days, with specific times for drinking and toasting. It would be a complete embarrassment to run out of wine, so there is a practical problem that needed attending to. Mary notices and seeks a solution – a beautiful symbol of Our Lady’s intercession in our life – She notices even the small problems of our life and brings them to Our Lord’s attention.

            There has been a growing devotion in our Church to one of Mary’s more unique titles – Our Lady, Undoer of Knots. Back in 1700, there was a wealthy young man from Germany who was very devoted to Our Lady. However, his family was in trouble – the grandfather had planned to divorce his grandmother, causing a huge rift in the family. The young man went to a priest for advice about how to help his grandparents, and the priest and the young man together went in front of an image of Our Lady and prayed, “Mary, untie the knots in this family situation and smooth it out!” Within a short time and completely unexpectedly, the grandparents had reconciled, and in gratitude the young man commissioned a painting of Our Lady the Undoer of Knots, which has since spread to the entire Church. A beautiful testimony, on display in today’s Gospel!

            But Jesus’ words seem to be a rebuke. First, He calls her “woman”. Is this disrespectful? Of course not – it’s theological! Who else is called “woman” in the Bible? Back in the beginning, Eve was called woman – so Jesus is saying that Mary is the New Eve, whose obedience undoes Eve’s disobedience. But there is another “woman” – in the Book of Revelation, John has a vision of a woman clothed with the sun, the moon under her feet, and a crown of twelve stars. She has no name, but is known only by “woman”. So Jesus is saying, “Not only are you the New Eve, you are also the one who will be crowned as queen of Heaven and Earth!”

            Then Jesus says, “What concern of that is it to Me? My hour has not yet come.” In John’s Gospel, “Jesus’ hour” always refers to His Passion. So in essence, Jesus is saying, “Don’t worry about it, Mary. I can do all things, since it is not yet time for my Passion.” It’s not a rebuke – Jesus is sharing with Mary His willingness to do this miracle!

            Which engenders Mary’s response – “Do whatever He tells you.” Notice that it is only after the miracle that the disciples believe in Jesus, but it is before the miracle that Mary believes in Jesus. Do you believe in Jesus before He works in your life, or do you have to see to believe?

            These are actually the last recorded words of Mary in history: “Do whatever He tells you.” Like any “famous last words”, they carry immense weight – Mary is not just telling the waiters to follow His instructions, She is also telling us, the disciples from every time and place, to do anything the Lord asks. This is Her final parting wisdom – and it sums up the entirety of the Christian life!

            The Gospel writer then goes on to note that there were six stone water jars for ceremonial washings. This is so dense to unpack! These jars were huge – we’re talking a total of 150 gallons of wine – showing the superabundance of God’s blessings upon humanity. But it was kind of gross for Jesus to use those water jars. They had been used for a ritual hand-washing, so they were dirty – why can’t Jesus just use the empty wine jars to make the new wine?

            Because He’s making a huge point about what He has come to accomplish. These jars had been used to fulfill the old Jewish law, which was very specific about many aspects of daily life, such as washing. But Jesus came to fulfill and supersede the Old Law. The jars had an important purpose, but in Christ, it is no longer necessary to follow the Old Law with its specific commands about diet and clothing and sanitation. We no longer follow the Jewish Law, but the Lawgiver.

            This is also symbolized in the number of jars. In Scripture, the number seven is the number of perfection, completion, and covenant. So it is significant that there were six jars – symbolizing that the Old Covenant is imperfect, incomplete.

            Even the headmaster recognizes Jesus’ superiority over the Old Testament. While most people serve good wine first, now the best wine is saved for last. Likewise, God gave the Jewish Faith a glimpse of His truth and love, but now in Jesus we have the fullness of that truth and love.

            John ends by saying that this was the first of the “signs” – notice he does not call them miracles but “signs”. A sign points to a deeper, often invisible reality. So these miracles are not ends in themselves – Jesus didn’t just do it because He likes a good party. Rather, Jesus wanted to reveal a bit more about Who He Is – the incarnate God Who can change literal matter with merely a word.

            Finally, there is a whole Eucharistic undertone for this scene. Jesus is giving us food and drink, but a food and drink that started as one thing, and then with just a word transformed into something else. If Jesus can turn water into wine, can He not turn wine into His Blood?

            My friends, this rich story reveals a great deal about who Jesus is and who Mary is. Jesus is the great Bridegroom preparing to initiate the Kingdom with this Wedding Feast, and Mary is the perfect Christian Who brings her needs before Him, waits and trusts in faith, and sees His glory. May we all be like Her and entrust our lives to Him!

Baptism of Our Lord - Live Your Vocation (Jan 12, 2025)

 

Homily for January 12, 2025

Baptism of Our Lord

Call to Holiness by Living Our Vocation

 

            Many saint stories feature miracles and marvels, but there are some saints whose lives are just plain ordinary. St. Isidore the Farmer is one such saint. A twelfth-century man from Madrid, Spain, he was an ordinary farmhand who worked for a wealthy landowner. Despite his poverty, he was always generous and would share what little he had with the poor. He was married, and by all accounts, was an exemplary husband and father. He made sure that Christ was the center of his day – he began with daily Mass, and would frequently interrupt his farm chores for prayer. One time, a fellow worker, who was jealous of how well Isidore was respected, told the landowner that Isidore only went to Mass because he was lazy and wanted to shirk his duties. The next day, out of curiosity, the landowner went out to the field during the time of the Mass, and found that angels were plowing his field until Isidore returned from his prayer. Okay, well, I guess even an ordinary saint had at least a few miracles…

            But I start with the story of an ordinary saint, because that is precisely what we are all called to be – ordinary saints. As Mother Teresa said, “Holiness is not the luxury of a few, but the simple duty of you and me.” We reflect on baptism this weekend – not only Jesus’ baptism, but ours too. And baptism laid upon us a duty – the duty to strive for holiness.

            This calling is universal – for everyone, in every state of life. A priest one time had been inviting a certain parishioner to a bible study, but the man kept pushing him off: “No, no, I’m too busy, I can’t make it,” and all sorts of excuses. Finally, frustrated that the priest was persistent, the man exclaimed, “Look, Father, I’m just not that into this whole faith thing.” Perhaps that’s where some of you are – just “not all into” this whole following Jesus thing.

            But I am here to tell you that the days of lukewarm Catholicism are over. No longer is it enough to just go to church and say a few prayers – we must strive for holiness. In fact, it was the Second Vatican Council who articulated most clearly the “universal call to holiness”. Listen to this quote from one of its documents: “All the faithful of Christ of whatever rank or status, are called to the fullness of the Christian life and to the perfection of charity.” (LG 5) And again: “The forms and tasks of life are many but [the call to] holiness is one—that sanctity which is cultivated by all who act under God's Spirit and… follow Christ, poor, humble and cross-bearing, that they may deserve to be partakers of his glory.” (LG 41) If you’ve been baptized, you are supposed to become a saint!

            Holiness is simply the perfection of charity: loving God above all things, and loving our neighbor as Christ loves them. It is Christ who makes holiness abide within us – we love God because He loved us first and adopted us to be His sons and daughters; we love our neighbors because Christ, living in us, gives us the grace to do so.

            We find this holiness by living out our vocations. We heard about John the Baptist today, but do you remember back in Advent another Gospel regarding him? On the Third Sunday of Advent, we heard about tax collectors and soldiers coming to John the Baptist. They ask him, “What should we do?” Does John the Baptist tell them to run away to the desert and become hermits? Does he tell them to pray all day? No. He tells them to fulfill their vocation perfectly. To the tax collectors he said, “Don’t take more than what is required.” To the soldiers he said, “Do not extort anyone, and be satisfied with your wages.” In other words, be who you are, but be it for God – and you will become holy.

            Your vocation gives a direction to love. If you are married, you must first love your spouse and kids above all else. I am called to love the people of St. Jude’s above all else (and forgive me for the times I have fallen short!). If you are single, your vocation is to use your time to serve – the poor, your community, your family. It is not holiness to have misdirected love. About ten years ago I made a long walking pilgrimage across northern Spain called El Camino di Santiago de Compostela. It was thirty-three days of traipsing across the Pyrenees and deserts of Spain to reach the bones of St. James the Apostle at Santiago di Compostela. One of the best parts was meeting people from across the world and hearing their stories. For the final ten days of the trek, we walked with a man from Italy named Michele (Michael) who had an amazing story. His three-year-old son was sick with a deadly disease of the liver, and he needed a transplant. He prayed and prayed, and things weren’t looking good, but right at the last minute a donor came through and his son was saved. In thanksgiving to God for this miracle, he decided to undertake this pilgrimage – but he walked all the way from Italy, just out his front door and over the Alps! He had been on the trail for almost six months! It was tremendously inspiring to see his devotion to God and his love for his son.

            However, when we reached Santiago di Compostela, after resting for a couple days, we were about to catch a flight home – and Michele told us that he was going to walk back to Italy! Another six months on the path. But we sat him down and had an honest conversation with him – “Michele, you now have to go home and be a father to your son. Do not walk back – take a train or a plane. Your son needs you. You are called to be his father – do not shirk this duty!” Reluctantly he agreed, and he returned to his son. As good as it is to make a pilgrimage for God, his first responsibility was to be there for his son, and that’s how he will find holiness.

            Holiness looks different for everyone. St. Cyril of Jerusalem uses the example of water and agriculture – water is the same everywhere, but it produces different fruit: grapes on the vine, apples on the tree, tomatoes on the plant. Likewise, the grace of Christ dwelling in the soul is holiness, but it looks different for everyone.

            For example, if you are a lawyer, truly care for your clients and do not be motivated by greed but by justice. If you are a teacher, love your students and do not speak badly of administration. If you are in business, care for your fellow employees and seek to serve customers, living honestly and uprightly. If you are parent, encourage holiness in your kids, sacrificing for them and speaking to them about Christ. If you are a young person still in school, study well for the glory of God, obey your parents and teachers, and treat your classmates as Christ would. Do all this with a deep prayer life, living in intimate union with God.

            It may not seem dramatic, it may seem ordinary – but that’s precisely how holiness becomes real. Most of us have seen the Christmas movie, “It’s a Wonderful Life”. One of my all-time favorites, in part because it gives a message completely opposite of most modern-day movies. Modern-day movies often say, “Follow your dreams! Live your best life! Find yourself!” The classic “It’s a Wonderful Life” preaches, “Do your duty, serve others, and in this you will find a truly wonderful life.” Don’t pursue your dreams – pursue your vocation, which is God’s dreams for you, and you will find happiness… and holiness.