Ash Wednesday 2020 - We implore you to be reconciled to God

“We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.”

St. Paul couldn’t use stronger language to try to convince the people of Corinth to do everything in their to turn back to God.

He uses the word “implore”, I “implore you”, I beg you, I plead with you with tears in my eyes. Paul was deeply concerned that the Christians of Corinth were allowing sin and division to turn them away from God. They were in danger, their souls were in danger, because they were allowing sin to reclaim them. They were allowing the powers of darkness and selfishness to reenslave them. They were acting as if Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross was for nothing.

And so he appeals to them “I implore you on behalf of Christ”, he reminds them exactly of what Jesus did for them. Jesus embraced suffering, he embraced death, he died for them, he freed them and liberated them. Remember who you are, O Christians, remember who died for you, remember who you are supposed to be and how you are to act.

“Be reconciled to God”. That word reconciliation, as I’ve mentioned, is a wonderfully descriptive word. It means to turn your face, your eye lashes in fact, back to God. Where you turned your eyelashes away from God by sinning, by coldness, by division, by focusing on earthly matters and selfish pursuits, turn back to God. Everyone of us here, in some way, has taken our eyes off of God.
Maybe we haven’t been praying as we should. Maybe we’ve been to focused on pleasure. Maybe we’ve allowed our earthly business to take precedence over our faith. Maybe you’ve been angry with God or a family member and you need to let go of that anger, you need to forgive. Maybe you’ve been selfish or arrogant and refused to believe the teachings of the Church.

Today is the day where we admit that we have taken our eyes from God, and we receive ashes on our forehead as a sign, that over these next 40 days, we will do everything we can to be reconciled to God. We will fast from food, as a way of showing that we do not live for the pleasures of the flesh alone. We will fast from activities which get in the way of our faith—activities like television, video games, internet browsing, social media. We will pray, we will make extra time every day for prayer, we will go to our inner room and shut the door, as Jesus tells us in the Gospel, and pray, and listen to God. And we will give alms, we will think less about ourselves and more about others, we will consider the ways we can help them. We will turn away from sin, we will go to confession, the sacrament of reconciliation.

We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God: through prayer, fasting, almsgiving and the confession of sins for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That the Church will experience the graces of profound renewal during this season of Lent.  We pray to the Lord.

That God will rescue all those who live at a distance from him because of self-absorption or sin.  We pray to the Lord.

That all families will recommit themselves to fervent prayer this Lent so as to grow in greater love and holiness.  We pray to the Lord.

That this Lent we will be faithful to fasting and to all the ways that the Lord sanctifies us.  We pray to the Lord.

For those preparing to enter the Church at Easter: that they will be profoundly blessed in their preparation for full initiation into the Body of Christ.  We pray to the Lord.

For the needs of the poor, the hungry, the homeless, those who are sick, unemployed, or suffering from addiction, mental, or physical illness, and those most in need: that the Lord in his goodness will be close to them in their trials.  We pray to the Lord.

For all those who have died, for all the poor souls in purgatory, for those who have fought and died for our country’s freedom, and for [intention below], for whom this Mass is offered.  We pray to the Lord.

Friday - 24th Week in OT 2017 - Truth and Mercy must remain united

Since last Thursday until this Saturday the first readings have been from St. Paul’s first letter to Timothy.  Timothy was a young convert who came to the Faith via Paul’s preaching and teaching.  And he became the bishop of the important city of Ephesus when he was still pretty much a young man.  Paul wrote this letter to him personally for encouragement and advice on how to administer this great responsibility.

About 30 years later, St. John would address part of the Book of Revelation to the Church at Ephesus, and it is really interesting to compare the state of the Church in Timothy’s time and the state of the Church when John wrote to them.

Ephesus was the most prestigious cultural, commercial, and most important political center in Asia minor. It was known for having many temples, including a very prominent temple to Artemis. We know from the book of Acts that even though Christianity was opposed by the merchant class in Ephesus, the new faith spread quite rapidly.

When St. John wrote to the Ephesians in the book of Revelation, he praises the them for remaining in the truth. Particularly, for opposing the false teachings of the Nikolatians. The deacon Nicolaus, from the book of Acts, apparently hadn’t turned out to be such a good choice. Nicolaus had been falsely teaching that it was okay for Christians to try to blend in with the culture, taking part in pagan temple worship and the…temple prostitution.

So when we hear in the reading today, Paul urging Timothy to protect his flock from false teachers, it seems like Timothy had heeded, at least the first part of Paul’s instruction.

However, St. John reveals that the Ephesians were failing to live up to a very important Gospel tenet. He says that they had “abandoned their first love” and had given up on the good works, the works of mercy, which are so fundamental to the Christian life.

So the Ephesians were outstanding in holding to the truth, they knew their catechism, but they were neglecting the works of mercy. Perhaps, they had allowed that love of money, which St. Paul warned them against, to keep them from the charity we are called to be Christ.

As Catholics, we don’t choose between Catechism and Charity. We must be both wholly committed to right doctrine AND wholly committed to the works of mercy. "Gracious love must meet truth; righteousness and peace must kiss" Psalm 25 says. Pope Francis, is keenly aware of this, as is evidenced in his prayer intention for the month of September. Truth and Love are united in Christ, the Saints always hold fast to both, and so must we, if we wish to be effective in the building up of the kingdom, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That all Christians may hold fast to right Christian teaching and engage in right Christian action.

For those who have fallen into error, for Catholics who have grown lukewarm in their faith, for those who have left the Church, for their conversion and the conversion of all hearts.

For Pope Francis’ prayer intention for the month of September: “That our parishes, animated by a missionary spirit, may be places where faith is communicated and charity is seen.”

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, and all the poor souls in purgatory, for deceased priests and religious, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom.

O God, you 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.

Homily: Jan 26 2017 - Sts. Timothy and Titus - "The work left undone"

Following the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul yesterday, today we commemorate two of Paul’s close co-workers in the vineyard of the Lord: Timothy and Titus.  St. Paul wrote to his coworkers in what are called the New Testament Pastoral letters. They are called “Pastoral” because Paul addresses the letters to Timothy and Titus who were pastors, who had pastoral oversight of their respective churches.

After accompanying Paul on a missionary journey, Paul named Timothy the first bishop of Ephesus. And Titus, who had been with Paul at the Council of Jerusalem, was given care of the Island church of Crete.

So Paul writes to Timothy and Titus to discuss their great task of pastoral oversight of their churches: their structural organization, their tasks of teaching governing and sanctifying, ensuring the teaching of authentic Christian doctrine, and exercising pastoral leadership with true love for their flock.

We read from Paul’s letter to Titus this morning, and how in Crete, Titus was to continue to go from town to town appointing presbyters, priests for the local churches. This was one of the tasks of the bishop going back to the 1st century, naming priests for particular parishes. As the letter progresses, Paul teaches Titus to be wary that teachers of false doctrine are not allowed in his diocese, and to admonish those who had fallen away; as bishop, he must encourage families to be faithful, and to teach young people to practice self-control; he was to instruct the people in what we would call today “faithful citizenship” that the faith guide their civic responsibilities, and to encourage the people in good works, what we would call today the corporal and spiritual works of mercy.

It's fascinating to think how the work of bishops and the work of priests are essentially the same as they were nearly 2000 years ago, and that we in diocese of Cleveland, pray now for the Pope to send us a bishop who will have the same characteristics and perform the same tasks as Paul outlined for Timothy.

As the letter said, Paul left Titus to continue the work in Crete which had been “left undone.” The work of the Lord is “left undone” in this place isn’t it. It continues in this place for all of us. Praying for and inspired by great leaders in the faith, may we be faithful to the work to which Christ has called each of us, setting good example and spreading the Gospel for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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For our Holy Father, Pope Francis, as he selects the next shepherd of our diocese;  for our Apostolic Administrator, Bishop Daniel Thomas, as he serves the pastoral needs of our diocese while we are in transition;  for Bishop Richard Lennon, as he adjusts to a new stage in his life and ministry; that the Holy Spirit will enlighten and empower all the leaders of our church with faith in the promises of Christ, hope for the years to come, and charity that knows no boundaries.  We pray.

Homily: 2nd Sunday in OT 2017 - "Renamed and Called"

The Christmas season has ended, and we’ve returned to the observance of Ordinary Time. Each of the seasons of the Church year certainly has their own spirituality and themes.

During Advent, we reflect on the coming of Christ: our lives are meant to take a quieter mood, a reflective mood, meditating, anticipating Christ’s coming, like Mary anticipating the birth of her son. During Christmas of course we celebrate his birth with hymns of praise, we consider how our lives are called to be filled with the light and beauty and splendor of his presence.

Lent, which we will begins on Ash Wednesday, March 1st, this year, is a season of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, concrete acts of penance; we unite ourselves to Jesus in the desert, Jesus in his Passion and suffering on the cross, we meditate on his great love for us in what he suffered.
Then during Easter, we of course celebrate the Resurrection; we focus on being free from all that keeps us from proclaiming and living Christ’s victory over sin and death.

But during Ordinary Time, we focus on the ordinary life of the Christian, which is really an extraordinary thing, when you think about it. For the Christian is certainly called to live an extraordinary life. The life of sin is what’s ordinary; following the whims of the culture, giving in to every passing fancy, every disordered desire. The life of the Christian, however, is out-of-the-ordinary: the Christian lives conscious of the presence of God in our lives, conscious of God’s moral law, the commandments, the virtues, the examples of the saints, the power of the sacraments. The Christian life is an extraordinary calling to the life of grace and holiness and charity
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Though we are in Ordinary Time, Mass began today with an extra-ordinary ritual. In the rite of Acceptance and Welcoming. Geoff, Michael, Amanda, Megan, and Jennifer, stood before you today, publicly declaring their desire to enter into full communion with the Catholic Church. Though they were baptized into different protestant denominations, they seek the extraordinary. They publicly declared, “what you Catholics believe, I want to believe”, “what you Catholics do, I want to do”, “the Sacraments that you Catholics receive, I want to receive”, how extraordinary!  We also had three others, Tawny, Karie, and Jodie, Catholics who declared their desire to complete their Sacraments of initiation. If you are a Catholic who hasn’t received the Sacrament of Confirmation, please contact the office, so that you can undergo preparation to receive this powerful sacrament which completes baptismal grace.

I’d like to turn our attention to the second reading today, simply to the opening line, the beginning of Saint Paul’s letter to the Corinthians. There is something in Paul’s address that sums up, in a very simple way, what the ordinary life of the Christian is all about. Paul begins his letter in an ordinary way, a way that was typical to letters of the 1st century.

He introduces himself as Paul. We know that Paul he was born with a different name, with the name of Saul. And that the name of Paul is a new name, a new name he received when he began the new life of a Christian, a believer in Christ-crucified-and-risen. This change of name is consistent with the ancient biblical phenomenon of receiving a new name from God, when God calls you to something new.

For example, Abram, when called by God to become the Father of a New Nation, is given the new name, Abraham. Jacob’s name was changed, after wrestling with God, to identify him as a patriarch of the people of Israel, who would so often wrestle with remaining faithful to God and understanding the ways of God.

Jesus renamed Simon son of John as Peter, prince of the apostles, the rock upon whom Jesus would build his Church. And here in our second reading, Paul introduces himself by this new name, acknowledging that he has begun a new way of life, an extraordinary way of life, under the discipleship of Jesus Christ in union with his Holy Church.

At the Sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation, we Catholics choose new names, to identify ourselves as new creations through the grace of the Sacraments. In many religious orders, a new name is given, when the person enters the order, and of course the Popes continue this practice as well; Jorge Bergolio took the new name of Francis, when he became successor of St. Peter, Bishop of Rome, Pope of the Holy Catholic Church.

This renaming is to help us realize that once we have encountered the Lord, that changes us. Once we receive a calling from God, that changes the direction of our life. Becoming a Catholic requires change. Going to confession, requires the repentance of sin and also the desire and intention to change. The Ordinary Life of the Catholic involves openness to change. We dispose ourselves to the grace of the Sacraments so that we can grow in holiness, we can love our neighbor, we can love our enemy a little more. Hopefully, each of us has changed for the better since this time last year. If not, we need to do some serious soul-searching and make more frequent use of the Sacrament of Confession.

This new name, this new identify, is a discovery of our truest self. The great theologian Hans Urs Van Balthasar said, “you do not know who you are, until you find yourself in Christ.” Before that, you have some identify, but it’s not your truest identity. The attachment to worldly ways and worldly philosophies and worldly errors, that’s not who we are meant to be. We are meant to be people of light, people of goodness, people of truth, and to be Christian is to acknowledge that only as a disciple of Him can I discover what it means to be truly good and truly happy; only in Christ can I become my truest self.

So much of our unhappiness in life is caused by not knowing who we are meant to be, not knowing the point of our suffering. We do well from time to time to reorient ourselves with what it really means to be a Christian. Am I truly allowing my Christianity to permeate every dimension of my life?

Now listen to how Paul introduces himself, “Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God”. He identifies himself in the passive voice, “called to be an apostle” by someone else. How does modern man explain himself? “I’m my own man, It’s my life, my decision, my projects, get out of my way.” Paul has tapped into a different way; he’s discovered that happiness and fulfillment aren’t obtained simply by being a self-determined person.

The Christian receives his identity, he receives his faith, he receives his moral compass, from a higher authority than ourselves. As Christians we don’t determine right and wrong for ourselves. We don’t determine the ways our rituals are celebrated, we don’t determine what is true and what is false. This disposition of receptivity is fundamental, for without it how can we receive the gift of life which we lost through sin?

Paul writes to the Church who he says is “called to be holy”. May we strive to be worthy of that calling, faithful to that calling. May the Holy Spirit help us identify those parts in our lives we have yet to conform to the grace and truth of God, and may that grace continue to renew, reshape, and reform us, to become the people God made us to be, for the Glory of God and salvation of souls.

Homily: Tuesday - 32nd Week in OT - Lives consistent with sound doctrine

Following the feast of the Conversion of St. Paul every year is the feast of his two closest collaborators, Saints Timothy and Titus. Yesterday and today, we’ve read through most of Paul’s letter to Titus, we’d finish it tomorrow, but the normal readings are superseded by those for the feast of the dedication of St. John Lateran tomorrow.

Titus was a gentile convert who came to the faith through the preaching of St. Paul. Titus accompanied Paul to the Council of Jerusalem and Paul sent Titus on the nearly impossible task of bring the division-ridden community of the Corinthians to obedience to the faith. Titus was also to take up a special collection for the poor Christians of Jerusalem.

In the Pastoral Letter to Titus, Paul tasks Titus in making sure that the fledgling community in Crete has strong, mature Christian leaders. In this wonderful letter, we get a glimpse at Paul’s vision for the organization of a Christian community including strong leadership and great vigilance over false teachers and moral error.

Today we heard how the Christian leader is to offer sound moral guidance to the different groups of his community. The Old men, the widows and older women, the young people each are to practice self-control, sobriety. The old are given the special task of being good role models for the young in their speech and behavior.

This weekend, as many of you know, I shared a little bit of the Church’s wisdom, apply sound doctrine to the great moral choice of voting. And I got a little flack over it, which was to be expected, sadly. But the Church has the duty to guide the Christian faithful according to the moral and religious truths of the Gospel. We are to be trained, as the reading said, “to reject godless ways and worldly desires and to live temperately, justly, and devoutly in this age.”

Today, we do well to pray for our leaders, leaders of the Church, leaders of government, and that all hearts may be opened to the sound doctrine of the faith. “Love is patient, Love is kind, and love rejoices in the truth.”

The truth of the Gospel is to shape our lives, every dimension of our lives. Jesus gave himself up, as we heard today, “to deliver us from lawlessness”, the lawlessness of moral error, passing fancies, sentimental judgmentalism. May each of us be conformed in our own state of life to the truth of the faith and the heart of Christ for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

Homily: Monday - 31st Week in OT - Humbly regard others as more important

Having concluded our weekday reading of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, we’ll read this week, Paul’s short four chapter letter to the Philippians.

Philippi, in northeastern Greece, was a city of some importance.  It was a city in the Roman province of Macedonia. It’s population of about 15,000 people was comprised of five groups: a small group of wealthy Roman elite, the farmers, the merchant class, the poor, and slaves. Most of these people were pagans, and the Christians numbered around 2 or 3 hundred, there was also a small group of Jews.
Reading through this letter, one can tell that Paul has a special place in his heart for the Philippians.  And this makes sense, because according to the book of Acts, Paul established the Church at Philippi.

This letter is neither a treatise on systematic theology, like Romans, nor is it a practical, moral letter answering many specific questions and local problems, like I Corinthians.  It is a pastoral, personal letter in which Paul expresses his love for the Philippians, his confidence in their progress in holiness, and his joy that the Gospel is spreading throughout the world.  And he writes all this, while in prison in Rome where he was awaiting death.

Because of the Holy Day and feasts this week, we won’t get to hear the most famous passage of Philippi, the great Christological hymn in chapter 2, so we’d do well, to read it on our own.

In today’s passage Paul exhorts the Christians, “complete my joy by being of the same mind, with the same love, united in heart, thinking one thing.”  Do not just look after your own interests, but also for others.

Ironically, in Protestant circles, today, October 31 is known as Reformation Day. A day to which we can trace the many divisions which now afflict the Christian Church. These divisions would no doubt break Paul’s heart, who labored so intensely for church unity. Throughout his letters to the Romans, Galatians, and Ephesians, Paul stresses doctrinal unity as essential, but here, to the Philippians he stresses not just a unity of ideas, but a unity of spirit—a brotherhood among Christians, a deep fraternal love, in which we “do nothing out of selfishness”.

“Humbly regard others as more important than yourselves” he says. Our homes and hearts are to be open to the needs of others.

In this great year of Mercy, Pope Francis has challenged us to do the same; to look to the needs of others, to not be so wrapped up in our own problems, our own pursuits, our own habits, but to break out of that comfort zone, in order to truly see those in need all around us.

Through mercy, through service we come to experience the depths of love in the heart of Christ. The life of a vibrant church is to be embodied in concrete acts of charity, friendship, forgiveness, reconciliation, visiting the sick, offering hospitality, lending a hand to disabled neighbors, doing the work no one else wants to do.

May we be dedicated to this form of unity. For Jesus came not to be served, but to serve. And so must we...for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

Homily: Friday - 29th Week in OT 2016 - Humility, Gentleness, and Self-restraint

From prison, Paul pleaded with his Christian brothers and sisters to "live a life worthy" of their calling. 

Paul then describes the type of conduct he is urging: humility, gentleness, patience.

Jesus himself exalts humility in the Gospel.  Paul now urges the same humility that Jesus taught and showed us on the cross.  Humility was an attitude that the pagan world despised, yet it is first among virtues for Christians. The Greek word used by both Paul and Jesus uses for humility, 

tapeinophrosyne , literally means, thinking myself insignificant and lowly, to regard others as more important than ourselves.  To imitate Jesus’ humility, early Christians would wash each other’s feet, as Jesus did at the last supper…have you washed anyone’s feet recently? Have you stooped low to serve?

Paul next urges gentleness or meekness.  Meekness doesn’t mean shy or merely introverted.  Meekness doesn’t mean being a pushover, nor does it mean being overly pushy and overbearing. Scripture describes the truly wise as also truly meek. The meek consider things from God’s perspective before acting and speaking. How can we grow in meekness? By growing in wisdom, studying faithfully the Word of God.

Thirdly, Paul says, be patient. We aren’t to have short-fuses. The scriptural word here literally means, to be “long-tempered” as opposed to short-tempered. The Psalms even describe God as “slow to anger”. We should patiently put up with the faults and idiosyncrasies of others, and practice self-restraint—keeping our impulses and reactions at bay. Likely, the person that you have the hardest time remaining patient with, is the person God is calling you to pray for and to love all the more.

Paul explains the reason for these virtues: humility, gentleness, and patience help us to strive after the unity which should be a hallmark of our relationships and of our Church. 

Think of how many relationship are broken because humility, gentleness, and patience are not practiced among Christians. Since a profound unity exists between Christians through our baptism, we need to live a life worthy of our calling.  We have been invited to witness to the world through our love for one another.  May we live humbly, gently, and with self-restraint today in imitation of our Lord for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

Homily: Friday - 28th Week in OT 2016 - Sealed with the Spirit

Yesterday, we began St. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, which we’ll be reading from for the rest of the month.  Just as we begin every prayer evoking the Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Paul begins his letter praising the three Divine persons

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We heard yesterday his praises of the Father. He praises the Father for His plan of salvation—choosing us from the foundation of the world to be adopted sons and daughters.

He then praised Christ, the Son—how Christ fulfills the Father’s plan through his blood.

Today we heard the next section of Paul’s Trinitarian opening to his letter in which Paul recalls three truths about the Holy Spirit.

First he says, we have been sealed with the Holy Spirit.

Secondly, Paul says we’ve receive the Spirit according to God’s promise.

Thirdly, he calls the Spirit “the first installment of our inheritance.”

In the ancient world, a letter or legal document was marked in wax with the seal of its author; the seal gave evidence of its authenticity. A seal was also used to indicate ownership: sheep and cattle were branded with their owner’s seal. When soldiers enlisted in the Roman army, they were often sealed by tattooing the name of their commanding general on their hand or forearm.

Several place in Scripture speak of God placing seals on people to indicate that they belong to him and are under his protection. In baptism and confirmation, Christians are sealed with the Holy Spirit—we are marked as belonging to God, being under his protection, and is proof that we are his sons and daughters, and members of God’s army.

It’s kind of ironic that a seal, which is something visible, is used to describe the mark the holy Spirit leaves on us—for the Spirit is invisible. So the proof that we are sealed needs to be seen in the way we live—in the way the sacramental grace is appropriated into our lives by our constant turning away from sin, through prayer, and charity, and manifesting the charisms and fruits of the Spirit.

That St. Paul calls our experience of the Holy Spirit “the first installment of our inheritance” means that the joy and the peace the Spirit gives us is but a foretaste of what the faithful shall enjoy in heaven.

But in order to come to that eternal reward, we must continue to cooperate with the Spirit, to be faithful to God by making use of the gifts he gives us, by working always for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

Homily: Thursday - 28th Week in OT 2016 - Chosen by God

For the rest of the month, we’ll be making our way through the St. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians. Ephesians is the most eloquent of the letters attributed to St. Paul and contains rich theological passages. In a way, Ephesians is to the epistles what John is to the Gospels: the most mystical, profound, and universal of them all.

Paul probably wrote Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon from prison in Rome around 60 or 62 AD. Ephesians seems to be addressed, not simply to the Christians in the city of Ephesus, but to all the Christians in that region. It’s a sort of encyclical, a letter meant to be circulated to the churches in the region of Asia minor.

Paul spent about three years in Ephesus, longer than anywhere else after beginning his missionary work. The investment of time in Ephesus was strategic: it was the fourth largest city in the Roman Empire, numbering about two hundred thousand people, it was a center of commerce, the capital of Asia minor, and was famous for its large and beautiful temple to the Goddess Artemis, which was considered one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. Besides worshiping Artemis, the Ephesians had temples to Caesar and an assortment to other deities.

In this letter, Paul is going to argue that Christ is bigger than all these false gods. Christ is the main focus of the letter: who Christ is, what he has done for humanity, how he calls his followers to unity, how Christ’s followers become beloved children of God, and therefore must live holy and righteous lives, how the members of the Church form the body of Christ, the Church, of which Christ is the head.

Again, Ephesians is a beautiful, rich letter, that you would do well to read in one setting sometime in the next few days, in order to get a sense of the whole letter, and what Paul was trying to accomplish in writing it.

We heard today the opening of the letter, Paul greets the Ephesians in a greeting which we continue to use 2000 years later in our celebration of mass: grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul then offers fervent praise to God for his generosity toward those redeemed by the blood of Christ.

He reminds the church, you have been chosen by God. You and I brothers and sisters have been chosen, destined, by God himself, to live a holy life. A people who do not give in to the profane ways of acting and thinking from the surrounding culture. The way we act, the way we speak, the way we treat other people is to be different. Although, each of us have our own shortcomings, we have been chosen to make Christ known by the way we live: in our joyous singing, in our lifting up our hands in praise of God, by our charity towards others, through our sharing with others the good news of God’s kindness and love, in our quiet meditation, and humble prayer on bended-knee.

Reflect deeply on what it means to be chosen by God, and cooperate with God’s grace to become worthy of that great destiny, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

Homily: Tuesday - 23rd Week of OT 2016 - Called to be saints together

Thanks to St. Paul’s extensive correspondence with the Corinthians, we are better informed about the church at Corinth than probably any other first-century church. In 1 Corinthians in particular, Paul treats a wide range of issues affecting the community of believers, including disunity, food offered to idols, sexual sin, and class divisions at the communal celebration of the Eucharist.

Paul reminds the Corinthians that they have been “sanctified in Christ Jesus” called to “be saints together”. They are called to live differently from the pagan, criminal, morally corrupt, yet they so often seemed to be filled more with the Spirit of the world instead of the Spirit of Christ.

This morning we heard how not only were the Christians quarreling among themselves, they were turning to the secular courts to resolve their problems. The Corinthian court system had a widespread reputation of corrupt judges given to bribery. And the Christians coming to court were availing themselves to this system of corruption.

So Saint Paul urges the Corinthians to deal with their problems internally by taking their problems to the holy ones of the community, those gifted with wisdom.

Christians, we are not expected to be totally free from disputes and disagreements; life is complicated, after all—men of good will can disagree about reasonable things. BUT. Christians, our ability to settle issues, to work together, to pardon each other’s offenses, is to be an example to the rest of the world.  The world should be able to point to the Church and say, “See how they love one another, look how they forgive each other, look how they are patient with one another. Look at the joy of their marriages, look at the faith of their children. Look at the sacrifices they make for the good of others.”  Unity, our ability to “be saints together” as Paul says, is to be a visible mark of the Church.

Jesus came to unite a humanity divided by sin—he came to reconcile us to God and to one another and heal the wounds of sin and division.  The new family of God’s children, the Church, is to live in unity and peace. It’s no coincidence that our Gospel this morning is the calling of the twelve apostles. The apostolic teaching, the authority of the bishops, is to be a source of unity for us. Unholy disunity and division occurs when we stray from the Apostolic Faith. 

But when we assent to that faith, and live that faith, when we are mutually forgiving, patient with each other, we become a beacon of eternal salvation.

With the help of God’s grace, may we work for unity today, healing the wounds of sin and division among us, pointing out to all who dwell in the darkness of sin and unbelief to the light of Christ, our salvation, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.