Today we celebrate the feast of Saint Boniface, who is known
as the apostle to the Germans. Boniface was born in what is now England in the
7th century, at a time when Western Europe was still rebuilding itself after
the fall of Roman Empire.
By the time he was about forty years old, Boniface was known
as a gifted scholar and preacher, and was abbot of a Benedictine monastery. At
the request of the Pope, Boniface traveled from England to mainland Europe to
spread the Gospel in places unevangelized or only partially converted, in what
are now the Netherlands, Austria, and Germany. His initial efforts were
unsuccessful.
One of the obstacles Boniface faced was the people’s
attachment to their false gods like Odin and Thor. There’s a famous story that
Boniface learned of a giant oak tree where the germans gathered to offer false
worship to the God Thor. So Boniface,
took an axe, and he begins chopping down this Thor’s Tree.
The pagans cursed Boniface and waited for him to be struck
dead by their gods for his sacrilege. But when Boniface had chopped just a
small notch into the tree, God finished the job: the tree was blast apart from
above. And the germans who had before
cursed Boniface now began to believe in the One True God. This is why you’ll often see stained glass
windows and statues with St. Boniface in his bishops attire, holding an axe,
standing on a tree trunk.
In his 80th year, Boniface was preparing
candidates for confirmation when they were attacked by barbarians and
massacred, martyred for the faith.
In a letter written to a Benedictine abbess, Saint Boniface
wrote: “Let us stand fast in what is right and prepare our souls for trial…let
us be neither dogs that do not bark, nor silent onlookers, nor paid servants
who run away before the wolf” referencing the Gospel used for today’s feast.
Like Boniface, each of us are called to do what we can for
the spread of the Gospel, and to do so with faith and courage.
Working for the spread of the Gospel in our modern world seems
like daunting work, but remember that Boniface only needed to take those first
courageous swings with the axe before God did the rest of the work. Boniface
saw through the errors of the pagan culture, how those errors were keeping souls
from Faith in Christ. And he took a stand.
He left his homeland, he went to a people who spoke differently,
had different customs, had confused beliefs, and met them where they were with
the Truth of the Gospel. He could have stayed in the comfort of the monastery,
but was filled with missionary zeal.
What would your life look like if you allowed yourself to be
filled with missionary zeal? Consider how the faith might spread, if each of
us, in our own way, was little more courageous in witnessing to Christ, just in
this neighborhood.
A parish church is much more than a place where the faithful gather for
worship, it is our barracks, for training in the outward mission of the Gospel.
May St. Boniface help us and intercede for us in our share in the Gospel
mission for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.
That our bishops and clergy may be zealous in preaching and
teaching the truth of the Gospel, and for an increase in Courage for all
Christians in the task of evangelization.
That St. Boniface, patron saint of Germany, may enliven the
faith of the German people and those of Germanic descent who have made their
home in this land.
For our young people beginning summer vacation, that they
may be kept close to the truth and heart of Jesus.
That the love of Christ, the divine physician, may bring
healing to the sick and comfort to all the suffering.
For the deceased members of our families, friends, and
parish, for the deceased priests and religious of the diocese of Cleveland and
all those who labored for the faith we now profess, for the poor souls in
purgatory, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom.
O God, who know that our life in this present age is subject
to suffering and need, hear the prayers of those who cry to you and receive the
prayers of those who believe in you. Through Christ our Lord.
Reading 1ACTS 26:19-23
Paul said:
"King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly
vision.
On the contrary, first to those in Damascus and in
Jerusalem
and throughout the whole country of Judea,
and then to the Gentiles,
I preached the need to repent and turn to God,
and to do works giving evidence of repentance.
That is why the Jews seized me when I was in the temple
and tried to kill me.
But I have enjoyed God's help to this very day,
and so I stand here testifying to small and great alike,
saying nothing different from what the prophets and Moses
foretold,
that the Messiah must suffer and that,
as the first to rise from the dead,
he would proclaim light both to our people and to the
Gentiles."
Responsorial PsalmPS 117:1BC, 2
L (Mark 16:15) Go out to all the world and tell the Good News..
Praise the LORD, all you nations;
glorify him, all you peoples!
R. Go out to all the world and tell the Good News.
For steadfast is his kindness toward
us,
and the fidelity of the LORD endures
forever.
R. Go out to all the world and tell the Good News.
AlleluiaJN 10:14
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I am the good shepherd, says the
Lord,
I know my sheep, and mine know me.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
GospelJN 10:11-16
Jesus said:
"I am the good shepherd.
A good shepherd lays down his life
for the sheep.
A hired man, who is not a shepherd
and whose sheep are not his own,
sees a wolf coming and leaves the
sheep and runs away,
and the wolf catches and scatters
them.
This is because he works for pay and
has no concern for the sheep.
I am the good shepherd,
and I know mine and mine know me,
just as the Father knows me and I
know the Father;
and I will lay down my life for the
sheep.
I have other sheep that do not belong
to this fold.
These also I must lead, and they will
hear my voice,
and there will be one flock, one
shepherd."
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