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".

January 26, 2012. Homily, Saturday, January 28, 2012

St. Thomas Aquinas Memorial

Mark 4:35-41

On that day, as evening drew on, Jesus said to his disciples: "Let us cross to the other side." Leaving the crowd, they took Jesus with them in the boat just as he was. And other boats were with him. A violent squall came up and waves were breaking over the boat, so that it was already filling up. Jesus was in the stern, asleep on a cushion. They woke him and said to him, "Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?" He woke up, rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, "Quiet! Be still!" The wind ceased and there was great calm. Then he asked them, "Why are you terrified? Do you not yet have faith?" They were filled with great awe and said to one another, "Who is this whom even the wind and sea obey?"

The Gospel of the Lord.

Memorial: St. Thomas Aquinas, reflected the Dominican ideal. He was a true contemplative who shared the fruits of contemplation with others.

From 15 quotations of Thomas Aquinas:

12. The things that we love tell us what we are.

13. Three things are necessary for the salvation of man: to know what he ought to believe; to know what he ought to desire; and to know what he ought to do.

14. To one who has faith, no explanation is necessary. To one without faith, no explanation is possible.

15. Wonder is the desire for knowledge.

"Friendship is the source of the greatest pleasures, and without friends even the most agreeable pursuits become tedious. "

Wikipedia: one of the great philosophers of the 13th century. His writings are still at the core of Roman Catholic seminary education.

Better to illuminate than merely to shine - to deliver to others contemplated truths than merely to contemplate.

January 15, 2012. Homily, Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Mark 2:23-28

As Jesus was passing through a field of grain on the sabbath, his disciples began to make a path while picking the heads of grain. At this the Pharisees said to him, "Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the sabbath?" He said to them, "Have you ever read what David did when he was in need and he and his comp;anions were hungry? How he went into the house of God when Abiathar was high priest and ate the bread of offering which only the priests could lawfully eat, and shared it with his companions?" THen he said to them, "The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath. That is why the Son of Man is Lord even of the sabbath."

Luke 6:1-5

Mark 2:23-38

Matthew 12:1

His disciples were picking the heads of grain [reaping/harvesting], rubbing them in their hands [threshing; removing the chaff from the grain {winnowing}], and eating them [preparing food]. reaping [harvesting], gleaning [to collect the leavings from a field], winnowing [to blow away the chaff], threshing [rubbing the grain in one's hands, to crush the wheat head thus separating the grain from the chaff/husks]

Under the Old Testament, one could go through one's neighbor's fields and take grain by hand but could not use a sickle, but this was the sabbath where no work was permitted.

The Pharisees were spying on Jesus and the disciples and made this charge. Jesus did not deny it; instead he defended it; in the end by saying that He, Son of Man, was Lord of the sabbath. And 1 Samuel 21, David received showbread from the high priest of the Temple, Ahimelech the priest of Nob.

Jesus also restored to the people the true meaning of the Sabbath. Look at verse 27. “Then he said to them, ‘The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.’” In the clutter of detailed rules derived by the Pharisees, the original purpose and meaning of the Sabbath had been lost. With this one word, Jesus restored to them God’s purpose for the Sabbath (Gen 2:3; Ex 20:8-11). God did not give the Sabbath to burden man. God gave the Sabbath to bless man. The Sabbath is a gift from God, a day of rest to restore man's body, mind and spirit after a week of hard work. It was not given to oppress man, but to edify and heal and encourage man. The Sabbath was made for man.

January 11, 2012. Homily, Saturday, January 14, 2012

The Call of Levi (Mark 2:13-17)

Jesus Calls Levi and Eats With Sinners

13 Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to him, and he began to teach them. 14 As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed him.

15 While Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and sinners were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. 16 When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the sinners and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?”

17 On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

The account of the conversion of Levi is found in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke. His other name was Matthew (Matt. 9:9). It was common at that time for a person in Palestine to have two names, with one indicating a Jewish origin and the other for use in areas of life outside Jewish demands. It is likely that his original name was Levi, that it would have been given to him by his parents, and since the giving of names was important in Jewish culture it could indicated they were pious people who wanted their son to be devoted to God (as the Levites were).

His occupation was a tax-collector, employed by the Roman authorities to collect taxes of the Jews in Capernaum, and because of this he was hated by his fellow-Jews. His bench would have been located on the great commercial road that went from Acre on the Mediterranean coast to Damascus. Capernaum, located in the region ruled by Herod Antipas, was also situated on the border of the territory ruled by Philip, which would be another reason for a toll booth.

The story is part of a section in Mark in which Jesus displays his power in a variety of ways, whether it be his power to heal from disease or his authority over demonic opposition. At the same time, these accounts reveal that opposition to Jesus was beginning to appear, particularly from the religious leaders; in the incident involving the paralysed man (Mark 2:1-12), Jesus was accused of blasphemy, and in the calling of Levi he is accused of compromise. Not only was he regarded as a compromiser, but his contact with tax-collectors and other undesirable characters made him ritually unclean in the eyes of the Pharisees. Neither are we to forget that Jesus is training Andrew, Peter, James and John for their future role as fishers of men, and here they can watch Jesus catch a fish (Levi) who would join them in the band of apostles.

1. Encounter between Jesus and Levi (v. 14)

(a) The seeking Saviour. The verse presents Jesus as searching for those who need his help. Sometimes the details of an incident are presented as if others took the initiative (as with the four men who carried their paralysed friend to Jesus or even with the leper who approached Jesus for healing); at other times, the details indicate that the person who was blessed by Jesus did not anticipate any such help, and that seems to be the case with Levi. The same is true today: some actively seek for Jesus and their conversion can be likened to a process, whereas others suddenly are found by Jesus. This means that there are three types of persons in the congregation today: those who sought Jesus, those who were converted suddenly by Jesus, and those who are still strangers to Jesus.

(b) The seeing Saviour. Jesus saw Levi from a distance. As he looked, there was joy in his heart because he was looking at one he had determined to save. He observed Levi involved in his daily work and was aware that he was a despised and lonely figure. Not only was joy there in the Saviour’s heart, there was also love and compassion. In a similar way Jesus sees us where we are. Not only does he see where we are physically, he also sees where we are internally. He sees the longing of our hearts; he is aware of the secret emptiness that is there.

(c) The speaking Saviour. Jesus said to Levi, ‘Follow me.’ The response of Levi indicates that there was power in the words of Jesus. The term ‘follow’ is a graphic illustration of what faith in Jesus means. The expression itself was in common use among the rabbis to describe the attitude of their disciples who were to imitate their lifestyle by practising their teaching. There is no doubt that Jesus wants his followers to be like him, and the more like Jesus they are the more beautiful they are. But there are other dimensions to the illustration of following.

First, there is a call to companionship with Jesus, to be his friend; Levi, who had no friends, was promised the friendship of Jesus. Second, there is a promise of guidance, because the call implies that Jesus will be leading Levi through life, and therefore shows that Jesus will function as the Good Shepherd and take care of his sheep. Third, the illustration of following is a reminder that Jesus and Levi will be heading towards a specific destination, which is heaven. So when Jesus issued this invitation to Levi, he was promising the tax-collector a great deal. And the same benefits are offered to us.

2. Evidence of the change in Levi’s life (vv. 15-16)

First, Levi gave up his lucrative business. Levi made a bigger sacrifice that Andrew and Peter because they at least could go back to their fishing. So when Levi gave up his lifestyle he made a real sacrifice. Yet giving up all that he had been doing made him a very happy and generous man. We are not called to abandon our secular work, but in order to follow Jesus we have to give up what will hinder us. Obviously we have to give up sinful practices, but in addition we may have to give up some activities that can be regarded as neutral. It is an important lesson to learn that what may be suitable for other Christians may not be helpful to us.

Second, Levi introduced his friends to Jesus and his disciples. Some of the guests were rather shady characters, but Levi knew that the Jesus who had helped him was able to help them as well. Levi invited the guests, but Jesus was the central figure at the feast. The tax-collector gave the feast because of the joy he had in Jesus and wanted others to share that joy as well. No doubt, Levi had held many a party in his house, and he may have chosen it because it was a suitable place to tell his former companions that he had changed his allegiance and was now following a new Master and was beginning a new way of life. The place that he had once used for sinning now became a place he used for serving Jesus.

Third, Levi was criticised by religious formalists. The Pharisees would have nothing to do with Levi when he was a tax-collector and they would have nothing to do with him now that he was a follower of Jesus. What would have pleased them would be for him to have adopted their religious taboos. They focussed on outward behaviour and did not understand the enthusiasm of a lover of Jesus.

3. Explanation by Jesus of his mission

In response to the Pharisees’ criticism of Levi, Jesus explained his mission. He likened himself to a doctor who wanted to heal sick people. A doctor who does not help the sick is not living up to his calling.

(a) Jesus dismisses the objection of the Pharisees. It is evident that the Pharisees had not realised the point of Christ’s mission, that he desired to be the Rescuer of sinners. Calvin comments that ‘hypocrites never think over the purpose of Christ’s mission to earth’. It is important to note that Jesus here does not try to help those who refuse to ask him for help.

(b) Jesus’ description of people is that they are sick. Unlike the Pharisees who were unconcerned about the needs of people, Jesus discerned their exact state. What kind of illness do people suffer from? It is the hereditary illness of being in a state of sin, a condition that is pervasive (affects every part of a person), progressive (each sinner is getting worse), and punishable (they will be judged for it by God.

(c) Jesus demands repentance of people before he will save them from the illness of sin. Repentance is like going to the doctor and admitting that something is wrong and asking him for help. What is repentance? It is an outlook that affects every aspect of our inner being. It affects our minds because we realise that our previous attitudes and behaviour were wrong; it affects our hearts because we realise that we loved the wrong things, but in repenting we now hate them; it affects our wills because repentance means we now choose to go in the right direction. The issue is not the degree of our repentance; rather it concerns the direction of our repentance, whether or not it is towards God.

4. Lessons from the life of Levi

(a) The wonder of being a follower of Jesus Christ. From Day 1 Levi was close to Jesus. He listened to the teaching of Jesus and watched his actions. His companionship grew into admiration and his admiration became delight. We can imagine his joy at various stages in his journey with Jesus while he was on earth. What joy Levi must have had on the first Lord’s Day when the risen Jesus met with his disciples! And what delight Levi must have known on the Day of Pentecost when his Jesus, now exalted, sent on him and his fellow disciples the Holy Spirit to equip them for faithful service. Levi disappears from the pages of the Bible, but tradition tells us that he served the Lord in Ethiopia where he was martyred for his faith. He has been in heaven for almost 2,000 years, still rejoicing as he follows his Lord. Levi lost a career, but found a purpose in life; he lost earthly prospects but was given an eternal adventure.

(b) Jesus can take our talents and use them in his service. Levi was used to writing and taking records, therefore he was very suitable to become a writer of one of the Gospels. In a similar way, Jesus can take our talents, even if we have used them in the service of sin, and employ them in developing our spiritual characters and extending his kingdom.

(c) The importance of humility in serving Jesus. This beautiful aspect of Levi’s character comes out in his own list of the twelve apostles. Both Mark and Luke only mention his name in their lists, but in his record he adds ‘the tax-collector’ to his name. Levi never forgot where he was when Jesus found him.

(d) The benefit of immediately stating that we have become disciples of Jesus. Levi wasted no time in letting his friends and acquaintances know what had happened to him, and he did it in such a way that made it easy for them to meet Jesus for themselves.