Passion Sunday 2022 (EF) - The Eternal High Priest and the gift of Mercy

Today the Church celebrates Passion Sunday, the beginning of the brief liturgical season called in the extraordinary form Passiontide, during which the Church turns all of her attention more explicitly toward the betrayal of the Lord, his sufferings and death. Passiontide helps us to prepare well to enter deeply into the mystery of, and receive more fruitfully than ever before, what the Lord accomplished for us during his passion, death and resurrection. 

Regardless of how the Season of Lent has gone until now — whether it’s been what it should have been, a season of conversion through more intense prayer, fasting, and sacrifice; or whether it’s been a series of missed opportunities — now is the time to focus, to get serious, to reorient priorities to make sure we’re not just bystanders of the sacred mysteries, but active participants, zealous recipients, and passionate sharers of Christ’s saving work.

In the Letter to the Hebrews, we are presented with this image of Our Lord as the Eternal High Priest. The letter contrasts the Lord’s Passion with the sacrifices offered on the Jewish Day of Atonement—Yom Kippur. On Yom Kippur, there were three ritual sacrifices: a bullock that, following the Book of Leviticus (16:15,21-22), the priest offered for his sins; a goat that he offered for the sins of the people; and, following what God dictated in the Book of Numbers (Numbers 19), a red heifer whose blood would be sprinkled in front of the tabernacle area and whose ashes would be placed in a clean place outside the camp. The Jews believed that those sacrifices, whether in the temple or in the desert, were necessary and sufficient for taking away their sins.

And so the Epistle to the Hebrews helps us to appreciate what the Lord accomplished as our high priest: he made forgiveness of sins possible for us by becoming not only our high priest but making himself the victim, the sacrifice, by whose blood achieve eternal redemption.

The Letter also makes clear what our response has to be: the High Priest and Saving Victim has cleansed us from dead works that we might use our freedom to “worship the living God.” And so, as we approach Holy Week, we need to examine whether worship of the living God is really the center of our life or just a part of it.

In the Gospel, the Lord is in contentious dialogue with the scribes, Pharisees, chief priests, and others in the Temple area immediately after saving the life of the woman caught in adultery. In their hardness of hearts they had absolutely refused to acknowledge the mission of the Savior; as a result, they schemed in a thousand ways to oppose His teachings and to belittle Him before the people by declaring Him a liar and one possessed by the devil. Their animosity had increased to the point where they decided to stone Him.

But in the face of such hostility, the Lord exhibits zeal for their souls, meekness, and total abandonment to God; he seeks to enlighten their minds, attempting to drawn them away from error. We are certainly challenged to consider any hostility within us toward the conversion, purification and enlightenment the Lord desires for us, and seek to imitate his composure, his patience, his love, his conviction. We seek his mercy for squandering the time we’ve been given and allowing selfishness to continue to reign in our minds, hearts, and wills.

Nine years ago, Pope Francis preached his first Sunday mass as Pope, in which was read the Gospel of the woman caught in adultery, but his words are relevant to us as well. After explaining how the woman caught in adultery encountered the mercy of God,  the Holy Father stressed “God never tires of forgiving us…it’s we who tire of asking for forgiveness.” Then he prayed, “May we never tire of asking for what God never tires to give!”

Next week, on Palm Sunday, we will hear the Lord’s Passion, how the High Priest goes to the cross that each of us may be forgiven, over and over, if need be. All we have to do is repent, confess our sins, intend to sin no more, put forth some effort in amending our lives.

“May we never tire of asking for what God never tires to give!” for the glory of God and salvation of souls

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 A reading from the Epistle to the Hebrews

Brethren: But when Christ came as high priest of the good things that have come to be, passing through the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made by hands, that is, not belonging to this creation, he entered once for all into the sanctuary, not with the blood of goats and calves but with his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption. For if the blood of goats and bulls and the sprinkling of a heifer’s ashes can sanctify those who are defiled so that their flesh is cleansed, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from dead works to worship the living God. For this reason he is mediator of a new covenant: since a death has taken place for deliverance from transgressions under the first covenant, those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance.

The continuation of the Gospel according to St. John

At that time Jesus said to the multitudes of the Jews:Can any of you charge me with sin? If I am telling the truth, why do you not believe me? Whoever belongs to God hears the words of God; for this reason you do not listen, because you do not belong to God.” The Jews answered and said to him, “Are we not right in saying that you are a Samaritan and are possessed?” Jesus answered, “I am not possessed; I honor my Father, but you dishonor me. I do not seek my own glory; there is one who seeks it and he is the one who judges. Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever keeps my word will never see death.” [So] the Jews said to him, “Now we are sure that you are possessed. Abraham died, as did the prophets, yet you say, ‘Whoever keeps my word will never taste death.’ Are you greater than our father Abraham, who died? Or the prophets, who died? Who do you make yourself out to be?” Jesus answered, “If I glorify myself, my glory is worth nothing; but it is my Father who glorifies me, of whom you say, ‘He is our God.’ You do not know him, but I know him. And if I should say that I do not know him, I would be like you a liar. But I do know him and I keep his word. Abraham your father rejoiced to see my day; he saw it and was glad. So the Jews said to him, “You are not yet fifty years old and you have seen Abraham?” Jesus said to them, “Amen, amen, I say to you, before Abraham came to be, I AM.” So they picked up stones to throw at him; but Jesus hid and went out of the temple area.

5th Week of Lent 2021 - Preservative and Liberative Redemption

 In our readings who heard of two women: one who was being framed by evil men, and one who was genuinely guilty of the sin of adultery.  Both were tempted to sin, pressured; but one was resisted sin, the other gave in. And in both stories, God is shown as the great deliverer.

In the first story, God delivers the innocent, by coming to their aid. In the second, God delivers the sinner, the guilty, through mercy. The sinner is delivered through Jesus’ offer of mercy and conversion.

We are called to be innocent like Susanna. When we are being pressured to sin, coerced, threatened by the wicked, we are to turn to God to deliver us from evil. And we are called to be like the woman caught in adultery: when we’re guilty of sin, we are to turn to God to deliver us from evil, our own evil, the evil we have caused, and we have committed. Whether we are unjustly condemned or justly condemned, we are certainly called to place are trust in the Lord.

Blessed Duns Scotus, Franciscan philosopher and theologian, taught that there are two types of redemption: preservative redemption and liberative redemption. God preserves us when we turn to him in temptation, and he liberates us when we’ve fallen. We certainly see those two types of redemption on display today.

The key is that we turn to God whatever our state, whatever our trial. We certainly pray for those who neither turn to God for preservation or liberation, those without faith. And we seek for ourselves, a deeper faith this Lent, that we can come to trust less in ourselves, and more in Christ. 

For each of these women, God's action in their life meant a new beginning for them.  Susanna would no doubt spend the rest of her life as a witness to God’s intervention in her life. The woman caught in adultery, was commanded by Christ, “to go and sin no more” hopefully she persevered in that new way of living.

Similarly with us, we are called to give testimony to others of the great things God has done for us by living righteously and faithfully to Jesus.

As we celebrate in just two weeks the ultimate source of our deliverance and redemption, the Cross and Resurrection, may the Lord deliver us from all sin, all temptation, all evil and all fear of witnessing to his love for the glory of God and salvation of souls. 

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For an increase in faith for the catechumens and candidates who approach the sacraments of initiation in the coming Paschal Solemnity. And That the Church might be delivered and protected from all spirits of error, heresy, schism, and unbelief. Let us pray to the Lord.

That during this Year of St. Joseph, the Church may discover a deeper devotion to our Universal Patron. That through St. Joseph’s intercession families may be strengthened, priestly and religious vocations may increase, demons may be scattered, and the sick and dying may know the peace of Jesus. Let us pray to the Lord.

For those experiencing any kind of hardship or sorrow, isolation, addiction, or illness: may they experience the healing graces of Christ. Let us 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.  Let us pray to the Lord. Let us pray to the Lord.

Mercifully hear, O Lord, the prayers of your Church and turn with compassion to the hearts that bow before you, that those you make sharers in your divine mystery may always benefit from your assistance.

19th Week of OT 2018 - Monday - Jesus reveals his identity and mission

The four Gospel treat the notion of Jesus’ identity in different ways. In the Gospel of Mark, Jesus appears very guarded about his identity as the Messiah and the Son of God. For example, when he asks the disciples that famous question, “who do you say that I am?” and Peter replies, “You are the Messiah”, Jesus warns the disciples not to tell anyone about him. Again, after healing the leper, Jesus tells the leper, “tell no one who I am, but go and show yourself to the priest.”

The Gospel of John takes Jesus’ identity to the other extreme. In John, he is very clear about his identity, saying things like, “I and the Father are One.” "…he who has seen me has seen the Father…". Jesus says, “I AM the Good Shepherd, I AM the Bread of Life, I AM the resurrection and the Life, I AM the way, the truth, and the life.”

Matthew takes a different approach from Mark and John. In Matthew, Jesus doesn’t try to hide his identity, nor does he boldly explain it. Rather, he gives subtle hints. He teaches people how he is the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies, and he also subtly reveals his identity through the many miracles Matthew records. In Matthew, Jesus feeds the multitudes by performing a miracle, he walks on water, he heals multitudes of sick people, he casts out demons. In Matthew, Jesus performs works that no human could possibly do.

Today’s Gospel takes place a few verses after the transfiguration of Jesus on the mountain top, where Matthew clearly records the voice of heaven proclaiming, “This is my beloved Son, listen to Him.”
Through all of these signs and actions, Jesus’ disciples came to believe that he was the Messiah, the Son of God, who came to save us from our sins.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus performs another one of these miracles that no one could possibly do, as a way of proving his divine identity. Who could possibly predict that the next fish pulled out of the sea would have money in its mouth, and not only that, but he would predict the exact amount, and not only that, the amount would be the exact amount of money for the temple tax.

Jesus not only proves his divinity here, but also his mission, he comes to pay the price for our sins, that we may have eternal life. His very name, too, Jesus, which in Hebrew means, “God saves” reveals his identity and mission.

We offer this Holy Mass as a way of giving Eucharistic thanks for our redemption, deepening our faith in Him, and proclaiming to the world that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the World, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.
 
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That all Christians may be deeply committed to the spread of Christ’s Gospel.

For the Holy Father’s prayer intention for the month of August that any far-reaching decisions of economists and politicians may protect the family as one of the treasures of humanity.

For all the needs of the sick and the suffering, the homebound, those in nursing homes and hospitals, the underemployed and unemployed, victims of natural disaster, war, and terrorism, for all those who grieve the loss of a loved one, and those who will die today, for their comfort, and the consolation of their families.

For the repose of the souls of our beloved dead, for all of the poor souls in purgatory, for the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for the deceased priests, deacons and religious of the diocese of Cleveland, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom.

Incline your merciful ear to our prayers, we ask, O Lord, and listen in kindness to the supplications of those who call on you. Through Christ our Lord.

15th Sunday in OT 2018 - Redeemed by His Blood

One of the most important dimensions of the seminary formation of priests is learning how to minister in a bunch of different settings.  We learn how to minister in hospitals and nursing homes in jails and at schools, and the people who hope to help in each of these settings each have their own set of challenges. 

One particularly challenging area is ministry to those who struggle with addiction. My eighth year of seminary, I was able to minister at an addiction treatment center primarily for adolescents with addiction, but I would also meet some parents who also had addiction problems. 

And I can remember an adult woman I met in recovery who had been, what she called “a hopeless alcoholic.”  She had been through a number of programs, and had attained sobriety for a while, but she would always end up getting drunk again. She told me how she reached where she really hit rock bottom. She had fallen-off-the-wagon and had gone on a drinking binge lasting several months in Chicago; she woke up one morning in an alley next to a dumpster, not remembering how she got there. And in utter desperation she had decided to take her life—she planned to jump in front of a train.

And on her way to take her own life, she passed by St. Peter’s Church, and for a reason she couldn’t quite explain she went into the Church and into the Confessional.  And she told the Confessor Priest that she was in such desperation that she was going to kill herself.  “Why do you want to end your life?” the priest asked her.  She said, “because I am a hopeless drunk, I am a bum, I am an addict. I am good for nothing.”  And she said that that priest answered with great vigor and said, “No you are not.  You are a child of God and made in God’s image and likeness, bought back from evil, from darkness and death at the cost of His only begotten Son, Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  That’s who you are.  You also happen to have a severe drinking problem.  But maybe, if we begin to work on who you are as a Christian, the bad things that you do will begin to take care of themselves.” This woman, who I met, here in Cleveland, said that was the turning point in her life. 

What that priest told her, was a restatement of what we just heard in our second reading. It is in Christ, through His blood, that we have been redeemed, and our sins forgiven. You have been chosen, destined by adoption, to be holy and blameless.”

This is a message that we must all take to heart: You and I, Christians, are sacred, because you and I have been purchased by the blood of the Son of God, bought back from evil, from darkness and death.

What does it mean that you are sacred? I can think of a story to illustrate: In Virginia a few years back, there was a squabble over a parcel of land. A group of developers had purchased a parcel of land and wanted to build on it a shopping center. But there was a problem, this piece of land was venerated as a Civil War Battlefield upon which was fought the great Battle of Manassas. Well, when these developers announced their plans to build a shopping mall, and a cry went up from the people who said, “your can’t do that. This ground, this earth is sacred, because the blood of brave soldiers had been spilled here.” That which is held sacred, we make every effort to protect from profanation.

Why do Catholics work to defend innocent life in the womb with such vigor? Because innocent life, too is sacred. Why do we work to protect and defend the institution of marriage, because marriage is sacred.

What St. Paul is saying, dear Christians is that you have become sacred ground: your minds, your wills, your bodies, your souls have been sanctified by the blood of Christ through baptism, and when you really believe that, you make effort to protect it from profanation.

What had made the blood of the Manassas battlefield sacred was the blood of the soldiers who died there. But, the Christian, has been covered, has been washed, with the Blood of the Innocent Lamb, the Incarnate God.The Lord Jesus shed his precious blood and gave his life to redeem us, to save us from hell, and has made us adopted sons and daughters of God. “It through His blood that we have been redeemed and our sins forgiven.”

Pope Leo the Great encouraged the Church to remember this often. He said, “Christian, remember your dignity, and now that you share in God's own nature, do not return by sin to your former base condition. Bear in mind who is your head and of whose body you are a member. Do not forget that you have been rescued from the power of darkness and brought into the light of God's kingdom.” Whenever you are tempted, whenever you begin to believe that you are a hopeless case, call to mind that you have been washed and sanctified by the blood of Christ.

There is an old southern Baptist hymn that goes “would you be free from your burden of sin?  There’s power in the blood, would you over evil a victory win?  There’s wonderful power in the blood.  Would you be free from your passion and pride? There’s power in the blood.  Come for a cleansing to Calvary’s tide.  There’s power in the blood.”

The Month of July is traditionally dedicated to the Precious Blood of the Lord, and we do well to meditate frequently and thank God for the Precious Blood shed for us, the blood which has the power to redeem the gravest of sinners.

One such meditation is that beautiful litany, the Litany of the Precious Blood: listen:

Blood of Christ, poured out on the Cross, save us
Blood of Christ, price of our salvation, save us
Blood of Christ, without which there is no forgiveness, save us
Blood of Christ, Eucharistic drink and refreshment of souls, save us
Blood of Christ, stream of mercy, save us
Blood of Christ, victor over demons, save us

The blood of Christ has the power to break the most powerful addiction…if you let it. It has the power to impel the most timid soul to be a prophet in the world, like Amaziah in our first reading…if you let it. The blood of Christ has the power to transform ordinary fishermen, like the Apostles, into Princes and Heralds of the Gospel…if you let it.. The blood of Christ has the power to make you and me into great instruments of God, even in this increasingly secular age, and holy and without blemish…if we let it.

As we continue this Eucharistic Sacrifice, offering again the sacrifice of the Son’s Blood to The Father, let us be renewed and nourished, strengthened, sanctified and saved by that same Precious Blood for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

Homily: Monday - 5th Week of Lent 2017 - Deliverance from Evil

In our readings who heard of two women: one who was being framed by evil men, and one who was genuinely guilty of the sin of adultery.  Both were tempted to sin, pressured; but one was resisted sin, the other gave in. And in both stories, God is shown as the great deliverer.

Did you notice where Susanna temptation occurred? She was approached by wicked men, in a garden. This reminds us of course, of the temptation of Eve in the garden. But Susanna shows herself to be more like the New Eve, than the old, in her faithfulness to God, her desire for purity. She cries out to God who comes to her aid and delivers her from the wicked through the instrumentality of Daniel, who is a type of Christ.

The woman in the Gospel was truly guilty of adultery. And in this case, our Lord shows us the face of God’s mercy. Though she was guilty of sin, God did not abandon her, but invited her to repent, and to begin a new way of living: “go and sin no more” Jesus says.

In the first story, God delivers the innocent, by coming to their aid. In the second, God delivers the sinner, the guilty, through mercy—calling the sinner to repentance and offering mercy.

We are called to be innocent like Susanna. When we are being pressured to sin, coerced, threatened by the wicked, we are to turn to God to deliver us from evil. And we are called to be like the woman caught in adultery, guilty of sin, we turn to God to deliver us from evil, our own evil, the evil we have caused, and we have committed.

Blessed Duns Scotus taught that there are two types of redemption: preservative redemption and liberative redemption. God preserves us when we turn to him in temptation, and he liberates us when we’ve fallen.

The key is that we turn to God whatever our state, whatever our trial. We certainly pray for those who neither turn to God for preservation or liberation, those without faith. And we seek for ourselves, a deeper faith this Lent, that we can come to trust less in ourselves, and more in Christ.

For we celebrate in just two weeks, the source of our deliverance and redemption, the Cross and Resurrection of Christ. May the Lord deliver us from all sin, all temptation, all evil for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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For greater devotion in our Lenten prayer, greater self-restraint in our Lenten fasting, and greater selflessness in our Lenten almsgiving.
That civil leaders will use their authority to protect the dignity of human life and the well-being of the poor, especially the unborn.  We pray to the Lord.
For deliverance from all evil and all temptation: for those under the influence of drug abuse, addiction, insanity, occultism, atheism, sexual perversion, and any spiritual evils which degrade the human person.
For those preparing to enter the Church at Easter, that these weeks of Lent may bring them purification and enlightenment in the ways of Christ.  We pray to the Lord.
For those experiencing any kind of hardship or sorrow, isolation or illness: that the tenderness of the Father’s love will comfort them.  We pray to the Lord.