TV Mass Homily

Today’s Gospel is good news but it is also a wakeup call. “Will only a few people be saved,” Jesus was asked. Some scripture scholars tell us that the questioner was likely expecting Jesus to affirm the belief that Gentiles, foreigners could not be saved. So he must have been surprised with the response. The gate is narrow, Jesus answered, but open to all. In the first reading from Isaiah, the Lord said, “I come to gather nations of every language . . . they shall bring their brothers and sisters from all the nations.” Jesus said in the Gospel reading, “people will come from the east and the west and from the north and the south and we will recline at table in the kingdom of God.” The universal…

In the Gospel, Jesus said, “do you think I have come to establish peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. “Those are startling words from the man we call the Prince of Peace. We can almost see listeners turn toward one another with puzzled looks on their faces. What did he say? Did he say he came to disrupt family life by turning father against son, mother against daughter? I thought he was about love, unity, forgiveness, reconciliation. He is of course. Jesus is the Prince of Peace, but real peace, not a peace that sugar coats reality, not peace at any price. Jesus knew that faith in him would bring division not because he wanted it but because he calls for conversion, changes in attitude and…

In the Gospel reading Jesus challenges us to reflect on the tension or the balance that is needed to be prepared for judgment whenever it comes and to accept our responsibilities to live each day faithfully in the present. Among the beautiful benefits of the gift of faith is that it allows us to live fulfilling lives today and at the same time look to the future with hope. In the 2nd reading, from Hebrews, the writer raises up for us the model of Abraham, our Father in faith, and his wife Sarah who trusted in God’s ways as unfathomable as they might have seemed. The first reading from the Book of Wisdom invites us to recall the faith of the Israelites as Moses under the guidance of the Lord…

I am not much of a shopper. The daily garb of priests is basic black of which there is little variety. I have however on occasion purchased items over the internet. Ever since I constantly receive e-mails inviting me to buy more with the enticing line that those who have purchased what I did also purchased these other items. Temptation. I am not faulting this business approach. I am faulting me for giving into this temptation for things. It causes me to wonder and perhaps you might as well: if God forbid I was to die tomorrow, how comfortable would I be for others who attend to my affairs rummaging through my closets, my drawers, my current residence. What estate would they uncover? When a very rich person died the…

Once again our readings raise up the importance of prayer by which we connect our lives to God. Saint Augustine said, “Man is a beggar before God.” A beggar is one in need; surely with all the turmoil in the world and the churning in our personal lives, we are in need. Our needs include reassurance, strength, courage, perspective, forgiveness, love and hope. These readings reassure us that when we “beg” for what is right and just, our loving Father responds. In the first reading Abraham begs God to not destroy Sodom a city consumed by sin if there are saints in its midst. God responds to Abraham’s persistent prayer. The psalm response also reassures, “Lord, on the day I called for help you answered me.” St. Paul in the…

The sad events of these last few weeks at home and abroad can dispirit the most optimistic of us. The lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer as an old song once put it has been hijacked by violence, terrorism and loss of life. How to process and cope with it all? Our readings offer us an answer. Jesus entered a village where sisters Martha and Mary welcomed him. Can you imagine welcoming Jesus into your home? Having guests in our homes can be nerve wracking. When I was a pastor and the bishop was coming, many in the parish would be stirred up. Now I stir others up. Of course all of us want such visits to go well, to be hospitable and to be fitting. And so we prepare…

St. Paul in the Letter to the Galatians declares “You were made for freedom, brothers and sisters, but do not use this freedom as an opportunity for the flesh but rather serve one another through love.” That is an important reminder as we Catholics in the United States once again experience a Fortnight for Freedom which began last Tuesday on the Memorials of St. Thomas More and Bishop Saint John Fischer both of whom were martyred for their courage and conscience to stand true to the faith despite the abusive power of the then government. It ends on the Fourth of July when our forefathers with courage and conscience declared that “we are endowed by our creator with certain unalienable rights that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit…

“Who do you say that I am,” Jesus asked the disciples. It is a question we must ponder as well. Who we say Jesus is for us will shape our lives. Simon Peter answered, “The Christ of God.” It was an insight received from having walked with Jesus and absorbed his teachings. The disciples had just experienced the miracle of the multiplication of loaves to feed the thousands. They themselves having been sent were able to cast out demons and heal the sick on the authority of Jesus. No wonder Simon Peter would make such a declaration. But it was an incomplete answer. Most were expecting the Messiah to be religious liberator settling all the political and personal scores. Never in their thoughts would suffering servant, noted in our first…

Our readings today are a summary of what the Jubilee Year of Mercy is all about. God’s mercy and forgiveness of us is without limit. However we must be honest with ourselves about our sins and own up to them as did King David. Then we like the woman in the Gospel with humility ought to be thankful for God’s mercy. “Her many sins have been forgiven because she has shown great love,” Jesus told the Pharisee. St. Ambrose wrote: “It was not the ointment that the Lord loved, but the affection; it was the woman’s faith that pleased him, her humility. And you also, if you desire grace, increase your love; pour over the body of Jesus Christ your faith in the Resurrection, the perfume of the holy Church…