March 8, 2012. Homily, Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Matthew 18:21-35

Peter approached Jesus and asked him, "Lord, if my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive him? As many as seven times?" Jesus answered, "I say to you, not seven times, but seventy-seven [or seventy times seven] times. That is why the Kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king who decided to settle accounts with his servants. When he began the accounting, a debtor was brought before him who owed him a huge amount [10,000 talents]. Since he had no way of paying it back, his master ordered him to be sold, along with his wife, his children and all of his property, in payment of the debt. At that the servant fell down, did him homage, and said, 'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back in full.' Moved with compassion the master of that servant let him go and forgave the loan. When that servant had left. he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a much smaller amount [a few denarii]. He seized him and started to choke him, demanding, 'Pay back what you owe.' Falling to his knees, his fellow servant begged him, 'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.' But he refused. Instead, he had him put in prison until he paid back the debt. Now when his fellow servants saw what had happened, they were greatly disturbed, and went to their master and reported the whole affair. His master summoned him and said to him, 'You wicked servant! I forgave you your entire debt because you begged me to. Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant as I have had pity on you?' Then in anger his master handed him over to the torturers until he should pay back the whole debt. So will my heavenly Father do to you, unless each of you forgives your brother from your heart."

The Gospel of the Lord.

seven times: when Cain killed Abel, the very ground cried out. God put the mark of Cain on Cain so that anyone who harmed Cain would be punished sevenfold. Six generations later, Lamech, Cain's descendant, killed a man who had injured him and and a boy who had struck him, Lamech boasted anyone harming him [Lamech] would be punished seven times seventy times.

We must forgive others even those we love who have hurt us. Something in the human heart likes to nurse a grudge. But only when we let go of what is consuming us, only when we forgive and wipe the slate clean, that peace can return, and we can get on with our lives. Let it go.

a talent was the largest denomination of a bill in ancient Palestine [say 10,000 dollars; our largest denomination is $100].

a talent = 6000 denarii.

a denarius was the equivalent of one day's wage.

The GDP of Palestine at that time was 600 talents.

The point of the parable is that Jesus is comparing Peter to the unjust servant, because Peter wants to put a limit on forgiveness.

March 7, 2012. Homily, Saturday, March 10, 2012

Luke 15: 1-3, 11-32.

Tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus, but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying, "This man welcomes sinners and eats with them." So to them Jesus addressed this parable. "A man had two sons, and the younger one said to his father, 'Father, give me the share of your estate that should come to me.' So the father divided the property between them. After a few days, the younger son collected all his belongings and set off to a distant country where he squandered his inheritance on a life of dissipation. When he had freely spent everything, a severe famine struck that country, and he found himself in dire need. So he hired himself out to one of the local citizens who sent him to his farm to tend the swine, And he longed to eat his fill of the pods on which the swine fed, but nobody gave him any. Coming to his senses he thought , 'How many of my father's hired workers have more than enough food to eat, but here am I , dying from

hunger. I shall get up and go to my father and I shall say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I no longer deserve to be called your son; treat me as one of your hired workers." So he got up and went back to his father. While he was still a long way off, his father caught sight of him, and was filled with compassion. He ran to his son, embraced him and kissed him. His son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you; I no longer deserve to be called your son.' But his father ordered his servants, 'Quickly, bring the finest robe and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Take the fatted calf and slaughter it. Then let us celebrate with a feast, because this son of mine was dead, and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.' Then the celebration began. Now the older son had been out in the field and, on his way back, as he neared the house, he heard the sound of music and dancing. He called one of the servants and asked what this might mean. The servant said to him, 'Your brother has returned and your father has slaughtered the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound. He became angry, and when he refused to enter the house, his father came out and pleaded with him. He said to his father in reply, 'Look, all these years I served you and not once did I disobey your orders; yet you never gave me even a young goat to feed on with my friends. But when your son returns who swallowed up your property with prostitutes, for him you slaughtered the fatted calf.' He said to him, 'My son, you are here with me always; everything I have is yours. But now we must celebrate and rejoice, because your brother was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found."

The Gospel of the Lord.

The parable of the prodigal son appear in only the Gospel of Luke. And it is the longest parable in all the Gospels. I tell you this as a reward for sitting though its reading. Some call it one of history's best short stories.

In commenting on the parable, one may focus on the prodigal son with the theme that no matter the extent of his sins he was welcomed back, or one may focus of the forgiving father, who is like God the Father in that His mercy is without limit, or one can focus on the older son who is like the Pharisees and scribes in his complaining, "This man welcomes sinners and eats with them." But I liken this parable to a graduation in that the elder son concentrates on the husbandry of the father's property, but is unable to celebrate and further, although the younger son asks for his share, the older son waits for his father to give him a goat without understanding that he should ask for it.

March 3, 2012. Homily. Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Matthew 23:1-12

Jesus spoke to the crowds and to his disciples, saying, The scribes and the Pharisees have taken their seat on the chair of Moses. Therefore, do and observe all things whatsoever they tell you, but do not follow their example. For they preach but do not practice. They tie up heavy burdens hard to carry and lay them on people's shoulders, but will not lift a finger to move them. All their works are performed to be seen. They widen their phylacteries and lengthen their tassels. They love places of honor at banquets, seats of honor in synagogues, greetings in marketplaces, and the salutation 'Rabbi.' As for you, do not be called 'Rabbi.' You have but one teacher, and you are all brothers. Call no one on earth your father; you have but one Father in heaven. Do not be called 'master'; you have but one master, the Christ. The greatest among you must be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled; but whoever humbles himself will be exalted."

phylacteries: Scripture prayers [dedicate your first son to God; the Shema - Love the Lord your God with your whole heart, mind and strength; the 1st Commandment - I am the Lord your God, you shall not have false gods before you] written on parchment and worn on one's forehead and around one's left arm.

tassels: fringe on the ends of a prayer shawl [originally used to hang up a cloak by tying it to a hook]

reb: the Hebrew word for "great". "Rabbi" means "great one".

March 1, 2012. Homily, March 3, 2012

Saint Katherine Drexel.

Matthew 5: 43-48.

Jesus said to His disciples: "You have heard that it was said, You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your heavenly Father, for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what recompense will you have? Do not the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet your brothers only, what is unusual about that? Do not the pagans do the same? So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect."

The Gospel of the Lord.

How hard this Gospel is. But then do we not want God to be perfect, and do we not want His standard to be one we may strive for. Remember Sister Mary Ann? She used to be the chaplain of the sixth floor. One day I was visiting the patients on the sixth floor. I went into one patient in the back right of the north wing. The patient ended up yelling at me and kicking me out of his room. I footnote here that that is very unusual in my time here at Calvary and in fact this is the only time that happened to me. Nevertheless, I retreated out to the hall. And Sister Mary Ann was waiting there. "That was hard, wasn't it?", she said. Then she added, "This is God's work. And that is a good thing, for it is God who is doing it." I interpret that to mean, that it is God doing our work here at the hospital through us.

Have you ever been to a resort and noticed that everyone you pass seems to be smiling and that each one takes a moment to give you a quick wave or a hello? Doesn't that make you feel great? Isn't that an up? So Jesus says, "Do you greet your brothers only" or "If you greet your brothers only, what is unusual about that?" But when we greet all, as Nurse Vivian on the third floor reminds me to do, we greet all, brothers and non-brothers. But when we greet all, then all become our brothers.

When I started as a lawyer at a big firm, the firm had different departments representing different fields of law, and I was placed in the Litigation Department, because, they explained, it better fit my personality. I thought, "Great. I would be able to tell my opponents what-for." But I started by being nice, and I found that I did so well being nice that I never gave my opponent what-for. But what about when the case was over? Well, when I won, I did not have to be mean because I had won. And when I lost, I could not be mean, because I had lost. An abiding truth about the Gospels of Jesus, is that when we try to follow them, they work.

Homily, Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Mt. 6:7-15

Jesus said to his disciples:

"In praying, do not babble like the pagans, who think that they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them. Your father knows what you need before you ask him.

"This is how you are to pray: Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

"If you forgive men their transgressions, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you do not forgive men, neither will your Father forgive your transgressions."

A week ago, Ash Wednesday, the gospel was from Matthew's version of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. Today's gospel too is from the Sermon on the Mount. Ash Wednesday's gospel has Jesus teaching us how to give alms [incognito, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing], and how to do penance [do not do penance in order to draw attention to yourself]. But Ash Wednesday's gospel skipped a part of the Sermon on the Mount. The part skipped was today's gospel, Mt. 6:7-15, where Jesus teaches us how to pray. Jesus teaches us the Our Father, what we call The Lord's Prayer. In effect, Jesus teaches us how to give alms, how to do penance and how to pray. And with today's Gospel we can proceed into Lent with the instructions of the Lord on all three.

The Our Father is The Lord's Prayer. But the greatest and most perfect prayer is The Mass where we commemorate the Life of the Lord in two parts: the Ministry of the Word and the Ministry of the Eucharist.

Homily, Saturday, February 25, 2012

Luke 5: 27-32

Jesus saw a tax collector named Levi sitting at the customs post. He said to him, "Follow me." And leaving everything behind, he got up and followed him. Then Levi gave a great banquet for him in his house and a large crowd of tax collectors and others were at table with them. The Pharisees and their scribes complained to his disciples, saying, "Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?" Jesus said to them in reply, "Those who are healthy do not need a physician, but the sick do. I have not come to call the righteous to repentance but sinners."

Church tradition has it that Levi, the tax collector and son of Alphaeus, was the evangelist and disciple Matthew. As the disciple Simon had his name changed to Peter as part of his conversion and Saul became Paul as part of his conversion so Levi became Matthew as part of his conversion. The Irish name "Mathuin" means "bear"; the Hebrew name "Matthew" means "gift of God".

And Levi was a wealthy man, leaving everything behind, he got up and followed Jesus. Today's reading from Isaiah says, "If you bestow your bread on the hungry and satisfy the afflicted; then light shall rise for you in the darkness and the gloom shall become for you like midday; then the Lord shall guide you always and give you plenty even on the parched land. He will renew your strength and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring whose water never fails. The ancient ruins shall be rebuilt for your sake, and the foundations from ages past you shall rise up, "Repairer of the breach," they shall call you, "Restorer of ruined households." Isaiah's words describe Levi the Jewish tax collector and under the name Matthew the brilliant evangelist, for Matthew wrote his gospel to prove to the Jewish people that Jesus was the Messiah foretold throughout the Old Testament. And Matthew wrote to that end and effectively so. And Matthew as Levi the wealthy tax collector gave a great banquet for Jesus and a large crowd of tax collectors and others were at table with Levi and with Jesus.

And the Pharisees and scribes were jealous and complained to the disciples and Jesus answered with one of those sayings familiar to all of us, "Those who are healthy do not need a physician, but the sick do. I have not come to call the righteous to repentance but sinners."

And I add that Peter too was a successful man under the name Simon, the leading fisherman in the Sea of Galilee. If you visit the Sea of Galilee you can see Simon-Peter's house and it is a substantial house even by the standards of today.

February 20, 2012. Homily, Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Saint Peter Damian

Mark 9:30-37

Jesus and his disciples left from there and began a journey through Galilee, but he did not wish anyone to know about it. He was teaching his disciples and telling them, "The Son of Man is to be handed over to men and they will kill him, and three days after his death, the Son of Man will rise." But they did not understand the saying, and they were afraid to question him.

They came to Capernaum and once inside the house, he began to ask them, "What were you arguing about on the way?" But they remained silent. For they had been discussing among themselves on the way who was the greatest. Then he sat down, called the Twelve, and said to them, "If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all and the servant of all." Taking a child, he placed it in their midst, and putting his arms around it, he said to them, "Whoever receives one child such as this in my name receives me, and whoever receives me, receives not me but the One who sent me."

Our true being looks out at the world with words, and it looks up at God with wordless trust.

All Popes, looking back to Peter and through John Paul II and Benedict XVI, signed and sign their missives with the phrase, "The Servant of the servants of God."

His words also say volumes on those couples and individuals who open their hearts and homes to children in adoption and thus freely commit themselves to a lifetime of love and service of God's most helpless angels. Dowling, Have you Heard the Good News?, Reflections on Cycle B, at p. 162.

Jesus was talking about His death to his disciples. Afterwards, His disciples argued about which disciple was the greatest. The disciples thought that Jesus was the Messiah, the Anointed One, who would be King of The Jews as descendant of David. They interpreted that to mean that Jesus would establish an earthly Kingdom, so that the disciples would each be mighty figures in that earthly kingdom. But Jesus said, "My kingdom is not of this world." Jesus then brought His disciples together to instruct them. In His kingdom, "If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last and the servant of all." Now for our perspective we see what Jesus meant. David's kingdom in the north lasted 250 years until it was conquered by the Assyrians and the ten tribes to the north were scattered and became known as "the ten lost tribes of Israel." Similarly, the two tribes to the south around Jerusalem lasted 400 years until they were conquered by the Babylonians.

But the Catholic Church the kingdom of Jesus not of this world has lasted over 2000 years, and each head of the Church from Peter to our Benedict XVI signs each letter "the Servant of the servants of God".