Homily for Ordinary Time 29 - October 17, 2021

 

Homily for October 17, 2021

Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Ransom

 

            During World War II, there was a fighter pilot named Vivian Rosewarne from the Royal Air Force of England who flew multiple successful missions. He never ceased to be amazed by the grandeur of the sky and the world from his vantage point 20,000 feet above the ground. Despite his success as a fighter pilot, he knew his days were numbered, as more and more of his comrades were shot down on mission. In the last letter he wrote home to his mother, he shared his premonition that he would be shot down soon, but he told his mother not to worry. Instead, he penned these immortal words: “The universe is so vast and ageless that the life of one man can only be justified by the measure of his sacrifice.”

            Yes, in the grand scheme of history, our lives are so, so small. Walk through a graveyard and look at the graves – do you know any of those names? Those people who thought they were so important while alive are not even remembered today. Truly, our lives are only justified by what we sacrifice for.

            But our sacrifices are nothing compared to Christ’s sacrifice. If an innocent person dies, it is a tragedy – but if a guilty criminal dies, people often say, “Well, they deserve it.” But we are the guilty ones – Christ is the Innocent One. Our second reading says that Jesus is the only one among us without sin, but He took on Himself the guilt and shame, the punishment that should have been ours. It was our death He endured; our sufferings that He embraced. This is why He could say in the Gospel that His mission was to “give His life as a ransom for many.”

            Last week my homily was about the mercy of God – but mercy has a cost. The cost of mercy is the Blood of Jesus Christ. The price of our reconciliation to God is the death of His Son. What lavish and outrageous love – to ransom us criminals, God gave away His innocent Son!

            In the light of such an enormous sacrifice, there are two responses we should have. First, gratitude. Our entire lives should be one of gratitude. The Father was not obligated to send His Son; He could have just given up on the human race. The Son did not have to die for us, but His abundant love wanted to give it all. Every day we ought to thank Him for such a reckless love.

            And the best way to thank Him is through the Mass. The word “Eucharist” comes from the Greek word eucharistia, which literally means “thanksgiving”. One day St. Theresa of Avila was so overwhelmed with the goodness of God – she considered the beauty of creation, the goodness of her family and friends, the consolation of her Catholic faith, the promise of everlasting life – and she cried out to the Lord, “Lord, how can I ever thank you for everything You have done?” Jesus spoke to her and said, “If you wish to thank Me, attend one Mass.”

            When we attend Mass, we offer God the perfect thanksgiving – the perfect eucharistia – for such extravagant love He showed us on the Cross.

            But in addition to gratitude, such a sacrifice invites us to imitate His example. St. Paul tells us to “make our bodies living sacrifices” – to imitate His sacrifice by laying down our lives. I think of the beautiful example of St. Maximilian Kolbe, one of the most popular saints of the twentieth centuries. He was a Polish priest during the Nazi occupation, and was arrested because he was an outspoken critic of the Nazis. During his imprisonment in Auschwitz, he continued to exercise his priestly ministry by hearing confessions, praying with the men, and encouraging them.

            One man in his cell block escaped from the camp, and in retaliation, the Nazi guards ordered all the men in his cell to stand at attention as they went down the line and selected 10 men to be starved to death in an underground bunker. When the guards pulled out a certain man, he fell to his knees and cried out, “I have a wife; I have children! Please don’t take me!”

            From out of the line stepped Fr. Maximilian Kolbe. He said, “I will take that man’s place.” The guards were stunned – no one had ever volunteered to enter the starvation bunker before. They accepted the exchange, and Fr. Kolbe and nine men entered the underground cement bunker.

            Every day, the Nazi guards would check on the men, but instead of hearing them crying out for mercy, Fr. Kolbe led them in singing and prayers. Finally, he was the last of the ten men to die, serenely and peacefully. The man whom he gave his life for? He was rescued from Auschwitz and was present in Rome when Pope John Paul II named Maximilian Kolbe a saint.

            A man’s life is measured by his sacrifice. But all of our sacrifices are tiny compared with the ultimate sacrifice of Christ. With a love so profound, how can we do anything less than live a life of gratitude, imitating His example of self-giving love.

Homily for Ordinary Time 28 - October 10, 2021

 

Homily for October 10, 2021

Twenty-Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Bad Archery

 

            After Pope Francis was elected, in his first interview he was asked the question, “Holy Father, who are you? If you had to define who you were, what would you say?” He responded, “I am a sinner whom the Lord has looked upon.”

            What a beautiful description! It is both a humble recognition of our weakness, but unbounded trust in His mercy. “I am a sinner whom the Lord has looked upon.”

            But many modern people don’t see themselves as sinners. Sometimes we think we are good people. But listen to Jesus’ challenging words in the Gospel: “No one is good but God alone!” St. Paul teaches us in the book of Romans that “All have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God.”

            The Greek word for sin is “hamartia”, which is an archery term meaning “falling short”. It’s when we aim for the target but miss. What is the target we are aiming at? Jesus. When we look to Him, we realize that all of us fall short of being like Jesus. Instead we often compare ourselves with others: “Oh, at least I’m not as bad as that guy…I’m not as hateful as my mother-in-law…I’m such a mess compared with her, she’s got it all together.” But that’s not helpful, because the comparison isn’t with this person or that person – it is the comparison to Christ – which helps remind us that we all fall short – we are all sinners in the need of God’s mercy.

            But, we may say with the young man in the Gospel, “But I keep all the commandments!” Sure, we may not have killed – but have we harbored anger in our hearts? We may not have committed adultery, but have we always been pure with our thoughts? We may not have stolen, but have we been as generous as we ought? Sometimes our sins aren’t things that we’ve done (which we call sins of commission) but rather things that we haven’t done (sins of omission). Neglect of prayer, holding back a kind word, trying to get out of an unpleasant chore, not being aware of the poor and needy…these too prevent us from becoming like Jesus Christ.

            All of this reflection on our sinfulness should not cause us to despair, though. The Apostles felt like despairing when Jesus said that this young man, who had done everything right, still wasn’t perfect – the Apostles exclaimed, in despair, “Who can be saved?!” But Jesus responds, “With man it is impossible, but with God, all things are possible!” He is making the point that we cannot save ourselves through our own efforts – it is only by fully entrusting ourselves to God’s mercy that we will be saved.

            And His mercy is most lavishly granted in the Sacrament of Confession. How long has it been since you’ve gone? A year, five years, fifty years? Some of us have been carrying burdens of guilt and shame and hurt that could easily be healed if we bring it to Confession. Confession is not to make us feel horrible about ourselves as “lousy sinners” – no, as Fr. Mike Schmitz says, “Confession is a place of victory!” It is a place where the healing medicine of the Cross is applied to our wounds, where we get to partake in a share of Christ’s victory over sin.

             Personally, I go to Confession every 3 weeks. I always leave feeling lighter, freer, cleansed, renewed. I receive the grace to help me overcome temptation and to become more Christ-like. No one would go a year without showering, so if we clean our bodies every day (and our bodies will someday be buried in the ground), we should clean our souls regularly too, since they will live for eternity!

            I want to urge you this weekend to take advantage of the Sacrament of Confession. It will be offered after Mass today, in the cry room/day chapel. If you don’t know what to confess (or how to confess!) we have booklets on the table with an Examination of Conscience and how to go to Confession. Even if it’s been years, do not be afraid. It is completely anonymous, and the Church has always taught that there is an unbreakable “Seal of Confession” – where the priest can never, ever tell anything that has been said in Confession. So have no fear – Confession is where our misery meets God’s mercy.

            We are all indeed sinners who, through the Sacrament of Confession, the Lord has looked upon with mercy.

Homily for Ordinary Time 27 - October 3, 2021

 

Homily for October 3, 2021

Twenty-Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time

Marriage: A Match Made In Heaven

 

            Many years ago when I was teaching a group of middle schoolers about the Sacrament of Matrimony, I invited a couple who had been married for more than fifty years to give a presentation about how to have a successful marriage. At the end of the presentation we opened it up for questions, and one precocious seventh-grade boy raised his hand and asked, “Did you ever think about splitting up?”

            There was a great awkwardness as they looked at each other, unsure of how to respond. Finally, reluctantly, the wife said, “Well, yes, there have been days.” To which the man, shocked, replied, “Really? You too?”

            Marriage is very difficult, because it puts two imperfect people together for life. But marriage is also a Sacrament, which means that a husband and wife now receive all the grace necessary to live it well. But what does it mean to live marriage well? Let’s go back to the beginning, to God Who created marriage.

            God created marriage for two purposes: the mutual sanctification of spouses (in other words, to get your spouse to Heaven), and the procreation and education of children (in other words, to get your kids to Heaven). Marriage is not about this world only – we live it in this world, but God gave it to us to direct us to Heaven. Although I hope your marriage is happy here, ultimately its goal is to lead us to the happiness of Heaven. Let’s dive deeper into these two purposes to find out how to live it well.

            The first purpose of marriage is the mutual sanctification of spouses – to make each other saints. If you put two sharp rocks in a tumbler and shook them around for a few weeks, they would come out very smooth, because the rough edges of each rock would wear off the rough edges of the other rock. In the same way, two people in a marriage – both of whom are imperfect, flawed, and have lots of rough edges – end up smoothing each other out. We grow so much in patience, sacrifice, and love because in marriage we are forced to be patience, to sacrifice, and to love. There’s no other option, because we made the vows for life.

            So if you are in a marriage, you can help your spouse get to Heaven in many ways. First, by praying for them – and by praying WITH them. An interesting statistic – currently, about 33% of marriages sadly end in divorce. But if a couple attends church together weekly, the divorce rate is 10%. If a couple attends church together weekly and prays together daily, the divorce rate is only 2%. This is because we need God to be the “glue” that holds a marriage together. By our own strength, we would struggle…by God’s grace, we have strength to overcome our natural human weaknesses with supernatural strength. Besides, a spouse cannot be our primary relationship – our primary relationship must be with God. We all desire total, unconditional love – which can only come from God, not from a spouse. But when a person receives that love from God, then they can approach their marriage, not as a way to desperately receive the love that they’re thirsting for, but to give the love that they have already received from God.

            Second, we can help our spouses get to Heaven by witnessing to them and encouraging them in virtue. There are times when a husband or wife might struggle in faith or in holiness – or perhaps not even be a believer. But that’s when prayer, patience, and sacrifice can win over their spouse. I am reminded of Elizabeth Leseur, a French woman whose cause for canonization (being made a saint) has begun. She was a devout Catholic but married an atheist, who constantly ridiculed and belittled her faith. She suffered a great deal because of her husband Felix’s barbs, and would offer every small sacrifice for his conversion. Tragically, she died young, but when Felix was going through his wife’s belongings, he happened to come upon her journal. He was amazed to read the depths of her faith – and the depth of her prayers and sacrifices for her. He was converted and became a priest, due to her witness and sacrifices.

            The second purpose of marriage is to be fruitful and multiply. In fact, in Genesis, that is God’s first commandment – have children! Again, this is directed to Heaven – we don’t have children just to pass on the family name or leave a legacy, but to help form new souls for Heaven. This gift of children should amaze us to no end – only God can create, but He invites us to be co-creators of new human life! And that new human life has an eternal destiny.

            So how do we get our children to Heaven? By making God the center of our family life. We all like to think that is the case, but do we really prioritize our children’s spiritual lives above all else? Are we willing to miss soccer practice for spiritual events like Mass or religious education? Do we take time out of our busy day to pray together as a family? Have we taught our kids that making money and “being successful” aren’t as important as becoming a saint? Jesus in today’s Gospel embraces these children and tells the Apostles, “Let the little children come to Me” – are we more concerned about our children’s souls than about their success on the sports field or in the classroom?

            When I die, I will have to stand before God and give Him an account of how well I have led you, my parishioners, to Heaven. When a father or mother dies, they will have to give an account of how well they have led their spouse and children to Heaven. Blessed will that person be who has cared more about their holiness than about their worldly happiness!

            A brief word to those in different situations: I know that some here have gone through the pain of divorce, or have lost their spouse, or are unable to marry for whatever reason. These can be difficult crosses to bear. Please know that the Lord loves you in the midst of whatever pain and loneliness you may be enduring – and your life can have great fruitfulness in many ways, even without the Sacrament of Matrimony.

            I want to close with a great story of a couple who saw their marriage as a preparation for Heaven: Saints Timothy and Maura. They lived during the persecutions of the Roman emperor Diocletian in the early 300s. Both were devout Catholics, and after their marriage, they began to secretly help the Church by storing the scrolls of the Scriptures that would be read at Mass. It was against the law to build a church, so the vessels and vestments and books had to be stored in people’s private homes. But this was a crime punishable by death. Sadly, after only 20 days of marriage, Timothy was arrested for being a Christian and was told to surrender the holy books, which were hidden. He refused, and his captors said, “Don’t you see the instruments we have for torturing you?” To which Timothy responded, “Don’t you see the angels strengthening me?”

            So his captors pulled the ultimate weapon – they captured his wife Maura and threatened to torture her if Timothy did not relent. But heroically, Maura replied, “Timothy, I will never speak to you again if you deny Christ.” They tortured her, but she refused to budge. Finally, the captors crucified both of them on crosses facing each other – and as they hung there, they sang hymns together, encouraged one another, and prayed together. They finally died, but their death was so holy that their captor eventually converted to Christianity and was martyred himself.

            May all of our marriages be so focused around Christ that they inspire the whole world to desire Heaven!

           

 

Homily for Ordinary Time 25 - September 19, 2021

 

Homily for September 19, 2021

Twenty-Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time

Pride & Humility

 

            Do you know how the devil became the devil? God did not create him evil. Rather, according to Scripture, the devil was created as one of the most beautiful angels. His name was Lucifer, which means the “light-bearer”, testifying to his glory and majesty. Before the angels were admitted to the Heavenly Realm, however, they were given a test. God revealed His plan to them – He showed them that He would take on flesh and be born a human being, to suffer and die for mankind. To Lucifer, this humility of God was too much. How could he, one of the most luminous angels, bow down and worship a God who became man? A God who would be hungry and thirsty, who would have to go to the bathroom, who would get killed?

            So Lucifer rebelled. His ancient battle cry was “Non Serviam” – I will not serve! He took a third of the angels with him in the rebellion, and after being cast out of Heaven, seeks to take his revenge on the ones God loves the most – you and I. Because we are in the image and likeness of God, Lucifer (now called Satan, which means “The Accuser”), hates us and seeks our eternal destruction.

            In a word, it was pride that caused the angels to fall. They thought it was beneath their dignity to worship a God Who became man!

            But pride is not only an angelic problem – it is a problem for us humans, as we see clearly displayed in today’s Gospel. And, in a sense, it is natural to want to be the best at what we do. We want to excel in school, at work, on the sports field, even in the spiritual life. It is natural to “take pride” in our accomplishments. But pride becomes a vice when we begin thinking that our accomplishments are all about us – boosts for the ego. How easily we can think we are better than others, or even better than God!

            The antidote to this vice of pride is humility. Today I want to speak of humility in our relationship with God, and humility in our relationships with others.

            First, with God. When the Titanic was being launched, an employee of the ocean liner was questioned about safety precautions on-board, and he famously replied, “Even God Himself couldn’t sink this ship.” Of course, we know the rest of the story. But this pride in thinking that we are above God runs very deep in the human heart. Last year during the pandemic, when the cases began to decline, a Governor (who shall remain nameless) famously declared on national TV, “God did not do this. We did this; science did this.” Pride says that humanity can forge their own path through life; that science and technology will solve all of life’s problems; that we are “master of our own fate, captains of our own soul” (as the famous poem says). But this pride towards God is deadly, because it isn’t based in reality.

The Catholic summer camp I help at, Camp Veritas, has a motto: “There is a God, and I am not Him!” Humility recognizes that we are not in charge…of literally anything. Our next breath is a gift from God. We cannot even control our own heartbeat – if He decides our time is up, we are powerless to resist. Everything we have and everything we are is only a gift from Him – and so humility requires us to live our life in complete and total dependence upon God. This looks like two things.

            First, we must pray like our life depended on it…because it does! Many times we act like we only need God when something goes wrong: “Oh, I pray when Grandma gets sick…I pray when I need help in my marriage or on a test…but otherwise I don’t really think of Him.” But we desperately need His grace at every moment. It’s all a gift from Him, so a humble prayer thanks Him for everything, from the roof over our heads to the breath in our lungs…to even the crosses and sufferings we must carry in our daily life.

            Second, we must humbly conform our lives to His. Every now and then I get a request at a funeral to play Frank Sinatra’s “My Way” – “I did it MY way” – but in reality we should be doing things HIS way! We follow His Commandments and His teachings through the Church, because humility recognizes that His ways are better than ours.

            This humility before God should lead to humility with others. In 1979 in Oslo, Norway, Mother Teresa was being honored with the Nobel Peace Prize. The problem was…no one could find the diminutive nun…she had gone missing a half-hour before the ceremony! They searched all over the entire convention hall, and finally with only a few minutes to spare, someone found her in a small closet, repeating over and over again the words, “Humility…humility…humility.” She did not want this award to tempt her to think she was greater than others!

            Every human being is loved by God with the exact same love. We may have different bank accounts, different homes, different jobs, but Jesus died for you just like He died for Jeff Bezos and the homeless guy in Bridgeport. From the divine perspective, every human being has equal dignity and worth – in fact, some of the people we look down upon may have a much greater crown of glory in Heaven!

            We should never look to others to see if we’re better or worse than them. Rather, humility only considers who we are before God, and nothing more. We are profoundly loved, sinners redeemed by grace, sons and daughters of the Lord.

            To grow in humility with others, we should follow the example of CS Lewis who said, “Humility isn’t thinking less of yourself – it is thinking of yourself less.” Speak less about your accomplishments (and your problems!). Do menial tasks like taking out the garbage and cleaning your own bathroom. Thank others who have helped you along the way. Recognize that any accomplishment, gift, or talent you have is only because the Lord is generous and merciful to you.

            Humility is the core virtue of the spiritual life, because it makes us most like God, Who humbled Himself to be born into poverty so that He could die, rejected on a Cross. As St. Padre Pio said, “Humility and purity are the wings which carry us to God and make us almost divine.”

Homily for Ordinary Time 24 - September 12, 2021

 

Homily for September 12, 2021

Twenty-Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time

No Shortcuts to Heaven

 

            We all like shortcuts to achieving our goals. You may see ads or headlines that read, “Three easy steps to becoming a millionaire!” or “Eat this one food and lose twenty pounds!” or “Here’s the secret to looking young forever!” We all want that one shortcut that is going to keep us healthy, or help us earn lots of money, or keep our brains active in our senior years.

            But the truth is, there is no shortcut to real fulfillment. Having good health doesn’t require “three easy steps” – it requires us to eat right and work out, both of which are not always easy. Making money isn’t easy – it requires working hard, saving, and using our money wisely. There are no “quick tips” to a happy marriage – it requires the daily sacrifice, love, and faithfulness from two persons. The world wants to make things easy, convenient, pleasant – but true fulfillment comes from sacrifice, discipline, self-denial.

            Hence Jesus’ admonition to Peter: “You are thinking, not as God does, but as human beings do!” Peter wanted salvation without the Cross – he wanted Jesus to find an easy, convenient, three-step shortcut to saving the world. But Jesus says no – He would have to take the long, difficult, painful road to the Cross – and in doing so, He shows us where our salvation lies.

            Pope Benedict XVI once said, “The world offers you comfort, but you were not made for comfort, you were made for greatness!” Not just greatness in the worldly sense, but to be truly free, joyful, authentic, virtuous, intimately united to the Lord – and all of this demands nothing less than the Cross.

            This is the paradox: truly living for Christ means the Cross, but it is also the way to authentic fulfillment and happiness. Consider: which is easier, to watch TV or to pray? But which one leads to greater joy? Is it easier to sleep in, or go to Mass? And yet don’t we always walk out of Mass and think, “Yeah, that was good, I’m glad I went!”? It’s easier to get a dog than to be generous with God and have another child, but which one leads to more fulfillment? It’s easier to hold a grudge than to forgive, but which one sets us free? It’s easier to sleep with your boyfriend or girlfriend rather than waiting for marriage, but which one leads to more joy on the wedding night? It’s more pleasant to go on a costly vacation than to give to the poor, but which one brings us the joy of a clean conscience?

            I truly believe that the main reason why people, especially young people, stop attending Mass and following the Lord isn’t because they have an intellectual objection to the Faith. Rather, they leave because being a disciple is difficult, challenging, costly. It’s just plain easier and more pleasant to sleep in on Sunday, live selfishly, indulge every desire for alcohol and fun and sex. And I will not lie to you – following Christ demands nothing less than the Cross. As GK Chesterton said, “It isn’t that the Christian ideal has been tried and found wanting. Rather, it has been found difficult, and left untried.”

            But the Christian ideal is also the only thing that truly fulfills us. Just last weekend I spoke with a young man who said that since he had returned to the Lord, he was happier than he had been since his childhood – even though he had to give up a lot of sins and addictions. He who loses his life for Christ, will find it.

            A beautiful example of this is Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati. He was born into a wealthy, influential family in Turin, Italy in 1901. His father was the editor of the largest newspaper in Italy – and he was an atheist. His mother only went to church twice per year. But from his youngest days, Pier was drawn to God, and would often stop into churches to pray and walk himself to Mass. His relationship with the Lord Jesus had practical, difficult consequences. Often he would be walking outside on a cold winter’s day and find a poor man who was freezing, and young Pier would give his coat to him. Upon returning home, his mother would be furious that he had lost his coat, and Pier would never tell her where it went. As a teen, he began to skip out on family vacations to instead serve the poor of Turin, using his own generous allowance to buy them medicine and food. His family began to think that he was crazy for not living the lavish lifestyle they were accustomed to, but Pier received greater joy from simplicity and generosity than they had from posh living. Due to his work with the sick and poor, Pier caught polio when he was only 24 years old – but faced this cross with joy, trying to hide his physical weakness from his family so that they wouldn’t worry about him. His family, for their part, still thought he was just plain crazy for being so super-religious. It was only after his death from polio that they glimpsed his holiness – at his funeral, over 2,000 people attended, mostly the poor who had been helped by Pier’s generosity. Although he could have lived a wealthy, relaxing life, he knew that discipleship demanded so much more – and he gave away the wealth, the vacations, and even lost his family’s respect because of Christ. And yet he is now numbered among the saints!

            There are no shortcuts to Heaven. There is no easy way to become a saint. Rather, we must daily take up our Cross, conform our lives to Him, and in doing so, we will find a richer, more fulfilling life both here and in the life to come, better than any of the empty pleasures that the world can offer.

Homily for Ordinary Time 23 - September 5, 2021

 

Homily for Ordinary Time 23

September 5, 2021

The Value of Silence

 

            There is a fellow named Bernie Kraus who records nature sounds for films and television. When he began recording nature sounds in 1968, in order to get one hour of uninterrupted nature sounds (no cars, planes, or other outside human noise), he would have to record for about 15 hours. He said that today, to get the same one hour of uninterrupted nature sound, it takes him over 2,000 hours of recording time – he is constantly being interrupted by the noise of the world around him.

            And we do live in a noisy world. I walk into a store, and am bombarded with piped-in music. I drive up Route 8, trying to enjoy the mountains surrounding the Naugatuck River, and am constantly distracted with mile after mile of billboards. Even on trains and subways we have our ear pods in, our eyes glued to our phones, constantly distracted from the real world around us.

            In today’s Gospel, the man couldn’t hear the voice of Jesus because he was physically deaf. In today’s world, we cannot hear the voice of Jesus because it is drowned out by too much noise. We wonder where God is – but He speaks in silence!

            Silence is such a beautiful and underappreciated gift in the world. A person who can be silent is a person at peace with themselves. When New York Post columnist Rod Dreher was going through a time of intense personal turmoil, he went to see his parish priest, and the priest prescribed one hour of silence per day. At first, he thought, “That’s crazy! I’m a busy journalist; I have to keep my ear to the ground and be constantly connected. I can never do that.” But as his personal struggle turned into depression and anxiety, he gave it a shot – and he found that God was present in the silence. The peace he had long lacked returned.

            CS Lewis once said: “In Heaven, there is music, and there is silence. In Hell there is only noise.” I would add that in America there is mostly noise. But if we want our ears to be opened to hear the still, small voice of God, we need to choose silence.

            And that can be frightening and difficult! I was teaching a Confirmation class one day when I challenged the kids to be silent for ten minutes per day. One girl looked at me as if I asked her to cut off a limb. I said, “Why don’t you think you could do that?” She responded, “I’m afraid of what I might hear.”

            Isn’t that often the case – we are afraid to be silent because we don’t want to face ourselves and we don’t want to face God? So we wake up to the radio, we make sure we’re scrolling through Instagram in every spare moment, we listen to podcasts in the car, we watch TV when we work out, and basically make sure that our brain is distracted at every waking moment.

            But what if we unplug? Disconnect? Encounter God – and ourselves – in silence? It would change our lives – and maybe for the first time, we would be able to hear the voice of God.

            One might say, “Well, but how does God speak in silence?” It is not in an audible voice. Usually God speaks in silence in one of three ways. First, through thoughts – perhaps a thought will come to our minds that wasn’t part of our usual “train of thought”. We wonder where the thought came from – because it came from the Lord. Second, through memories. Frequently God will call someone to mind because I need to pray for them, or forgive them, or reach out to them. Finally, through our emotions. In silence I will sometimes feel peace, or joy, or sorrow for my sins. If I feel fear or sadness, I lift them up to the Lord in prayer and ask Him to enlighten me as to why these emotions are arising. It can be unnerving to be in silence before the Lord, because we are very vulnerable – and that is how we should be: totally open to Him, surrendered to Him.

            So, do you want peace in your life? Do you want to hear the voice of the Lord? I challenge all of you to spend fifteen minutes a day in silence. Go for a walk in nature, turn off the radio in the car, or maybe just read the Bible for a bit and then sit with it in your living room. Silence gives God the space to speak – and allows us to hear His voice.

Homily for Ordinary Time 22 - August 29, 2021

 

Ordinary Time 22

August 29, 2021

Virtue

 

            A few years ago, when I was running a youth group in Stamford, one kid named Tommaso arrived early, so we started tossing a football in the parking lot. It was around Lent, so I asked him what he planned to give up for Lent. He mentioned a few things like giving up desserts and video games, but then he said, “You know, for Lent, I’m just going to try to be more like Jesus.”

            And that is the entire point of the moral life! To become more like Jesus. Every Commandment, every moral teaching is to make us more like Jesus. But in what way?

            Jesus had the perfection of every virtue – He was perfectly kind, humble, courageous, loving, self-sacrificing, honest, pure. So to become like Him, we must seek to become virtuous.

            Many Catholics think that it’s enough to avoid sin. And yes, we should avoid sin – but there is a positive flip-side to that, which is growth in virtue. When I used to be chaplain of a Catholic high school, often the teens would come into my office and ask, “Hey Fr. Joseph, is it a sin to listen to…(insert filthy rap artist here)? Is it a sin to watch this bad movie?” I would always respond, “Does it make you more like Jesus?” They would have to admit, “No…” So I would reply, “Then why are you doing it?” Our goal can’t just be to avoid sin. Then we fall into the trap of minimalism – thinking, “What’s the least I can do to get to Heaven? How close can I get to sin without actually falling into it?” That’s a terrible mindset! Rather, we should be asking, “How can I excel in virtue?”

            But what is a virtue? St. Thomas Aquinas says that a virtue is a “morally good habit.” So it is a habit – part of our character – something that we do without even thinking about it. It is a generous action to give money to the poor, but it doesn’t make you a generous person until you do it regularly, easily. Sometimes we struggle and wrestle to be kind to a challenging person, but we don’t develop the virtue of kindness until we do it automatically and it isn’t a struggle to be kind.

            All of us have virtues that come easily to us, and virtues that are more difficult. Perhaps you’re naturally a peaceful person, but you struggle to practice moderation in eating. Perhaps you are very truthful and honest, but maybe you struggle to practice chastity. But we must seek to acquire every virtue, even though we may struggle with some until the end of our lives. It’s the effort that counts!

            So how do we grow in virtue? Two ways. Prayer and practice. First, we pray for a virtue. This is a prayer God loves to hear, because it is a prayer to become more like His Son Jesus! Ask God for the virtues that you lack, because His grace can give us strength to overcome our natural human weaknesses and vices.

            But once we pray for it, we must practice it. Every time I pray for patience, I get a traffic jam. I say to the Lord, “Why this traffic jam?” And He says, “Well, you wanted patience, so here’s an opportunity to practice it!” Like any habit, the more we do it, the more ingrained it becomes. When we are learning a sport or an instrument, we have to do it over and over again. At first it’s clumsy, ugly, and weak – but after years of practice, we become proficient. Same with virtues. The first time we try to forgive someone, it takes struggle. But God eventually forms the virtue in us if we patiently persevere in practicing it, and it will become easy in no time!

            Every moment of every day is an opportunity to practice virtue. That obnoxious person behind you in the checkout line is an opportunity to grow in patience. That boss who criticized your work is a chance to grow in humility. The coworkers who are poking fun at your faith is an opportunity to grow in courage as you defend it. Coming home from a long day of work and your kids want your help with homework is an opportunity to grow in self-sacrificing love. God gives us a thousand chances every day to practice the virtues we need to become more like Him!

            This is why Moses could praise God’s laws in the first reading, and why St. James tells us in the second reading that we should be doers of His commands, not merely hearers. His commands are good – they are freeing – because they make us like Him.

            So my challenge for you is this. Consider which virtue you need to grow in. Ask the Lord to develop this virtue. And then seek out ways to practice it this week. If we work on one virtue each month, we will be saints in no time…because a virtuous life is a life lived like Jesus.