3rd Week of Easter 2025 - Monday - Do not work for food that perishes

“Do not work for food that perishes but for the food that endures for eternal life.”  The word used for “work” in this passage is the Greek word, ergon, a word that denotes hard labor and physical exertion.  Here Jesus is saying that the way of righteousness is no easy matter; Christian discipleship requires more than merely emotional or intellectual assent.  Daily we are called to the ergon—the hard work—of the Gospel—of turning away from our sins and embracing Jesus' commands.  Daily, we are called to the hard work of bringing our hearts, which so love independence and self-reliance, before the throne of God to submit to his will.

This command to work for food that endures is a reversal of how we normally think and act. The unconverted soul exerts tremendous effort—the entirety of his effort—pursuing his own aims—worshipping his false gods. 

The Bishop who ordained me a deacon and priest, Bishop Lennon once wrote that when our lives are focused on false Gods of prosperity, prestige, or the pursuit of what our secular world calls the good life, we will likely reap a harvest of unhappiness and exhaustion.  Yet, when God is at the center of our lives, when we fulfill all of our responsibilities as ways of serving Him, when He is included in our meals, chores, conversations, parenting, work, vacations, civic responsibilities, decisions, problems, crises, accomplishments, and losses—then the whole of our lives become charged and changed with God's presence.  

Food that perishes ultimately leave us unsatisfied, but the food of eternal life—the food of eternal life—the nourishment of mind and heart and soul that comes from God—will not only sustain us in this life, changes us, transforms us, converts us, and opens us to eternity.

Working with all of our hearts to serve God does not bring exhaustion and unhappiness, rather it brings new life and joy.

The Easter season is certainly the time of the Church year when we consider how we are being called to serve God, to witness to the Gospel in our words and deeds. Our Easter mission entails hard work, and we should not shy away from that hard work because it ultimately sustains and fulfills us. But that hard work is a personal responsibility—it requires each of us to assess our gifts, to prayerfully consider how those gifts can be utilized for the work of the kingdom, and to put those gifts into action.

“Do not work for food that perishes but for the food that endures for eternal life” for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.  

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Trusting in God's strength as we strive to labor for food that endures to eternal life, we bring our prayers and petitions before our Heavenly Father.

That the Church around the world may be a visible sign of the light of the Risen Lord calling all people to new life and communion with Him, and for the Holy Spirit’s guidance for the college of Cardinals as they prepare for the conclave and the papal election.

For world leaders and those in authority, that their efforts and decisions may reflect a commitment to truth, justice, and service to the common good for a society that values the pursuit of holiness and eternal life.

For families, communities, and workplaces, that they may be transformed and sanctified by placing God at the center of daily responsibilities and interactions.

For those who experience spiritual dryness, fatigue, or discouragement, that the Eucharist—the food of eternal life—may refresh their souls and renew their commitment to Christ, we pray to the Lord.

For our beloved deceased, especially Pope Francis, that their faithful labors on earth may lead them to everlasting rest and joy in God's eternal kingdom, and for N.

Father of all goodness, hear these prayers and strengthen us in our daily labors to serve you wholeheartedly, seeking always the nourishment that endures forever. We ask this through Christ our Lord. 

 

19th Sunday in Ordinary Time 2024 - Eucharistic Missionaries

 Back in 2022, the Church in the United States began a multi-year initiative of Eucharistic Revival. In the first phase of the Revival, each diocese had gatherings of the faithful. So back in June of 2022, members of the faithful, clergy and religious from the various parishes and institutions gathered with the bishop for a eucharistic procession and mass at the cathedral. We had four members from our parish attend that event launching the Eucharistic Revival.

I’ve continued to meet with those parishioners regularly. Our Light for Love program, in which we opened up the church for the evening, and invited passersby into church to pray with us in front of the blessed Sacrament was just one event that was born out of that diocesan eucharistic synod.

Following the launch of the Revival, each diocese around the country then began to prepare to send representatives to the National Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis, which was held last month. It was the first National Congress in 80 years! 

And what a week it was! There were about four to five hundred Catholics just from our diocese, including 8 from our parish, who joined the 50 to 55 thousand Catholics from around the country for the Congress. It was truly incredible to join so many of the faithful for prayer and worship and faith formation. And even though some of the music was…not quite my style…to join so many souls in prayer for an outpouring of grace—for the Holy Spirit to deepen our love and appreciation for the Eucharist—was truly a awe-inspiring. God is at work to invigorate Catholics in our nation that we may be a light shining in the darkness.  I do hope that our Eucharistic Missionaries will be able to share with you their experience in the coming months.

The Eucharistic Congress began the final phase of the Eucharistic Revival—what the Bishops are calling the Year of Mission which will last until July of 2025. The Year of Mission. Mission, of course, comes from the latin word – missa, which means to be sent. And it is the Bishops’ desire that for the next year we seek to deepen our sense of mission—that especially through the Eucharist God missions us, he sends us into the world. God strengthens us through the eucharist for a purpose, for a reason.

We gather for Mass every week, not simply out of obligation, but because through the Mass God does something—in us, with us, through us. At Mass, we encounter Jesus Christ—we receive him— as food for the journey, the journey out of the doors of the church, into the world, in order to witness, to draw souls to Christ.

The very word Mass, comes from the same latin word, missa, mission. Jesus gathers us in order to sent us out.

In the first reading, the prophet Elijah is being sent by God on a very long mission—a forty day journey to the mountain of God, Mt Horeb—and what does God say to Elijah--"Get up and eat, else the journey will be too long for you!" 

Similarly, in our journey to the mountain of God, heaven, Jesus gives us his flesh to be our food for the journey—because our human strength is insufficient. The Eucharist is the strength we need—it is the spiritual food for the spiritual journey—the journey of being a disciple of Jesus Christ every day—carrying our cross, forgiving our enemies, bearing wrongs patiently, and being attentive to the needs of others, sharing the truth.

The Eucharist strengthens us for the journey, but there are also a lot of things that weaken us on our missionary journey—which can even cause us to fail to finish the race. St. Paul lists some of them in our second reading: “All bitterness, fury, anger, shouting, and reviling must be removed from you, along with all malice.” Why MUST they be removed? Because they weaken us, they cause us to stumble in the journey. These attitudes, these choices, must be set aside, or else we will not progress in the spiritual life; they diminish the life of God in us.

The Church teaches that Mass is the most important thing we are to do every week. And likely, many of us are not getting as much out of Mass each week, because we are unwilling to let go of those habits and attitudes that the word of God urges us to let go of. 

One reason to make a good holy hour each week, or to make a regular confession, is to humble ourselves before the Lord in order to let go of things that you need to let go of. So often, we are confused about God’s plans for us, or we don’t see the improvement of our relationships with family and friends as we’d like, or we’re bored or unfulfilled. It’s because of those things we are unwilling to let go of. 

But when we trust the Lord to lead us out of those toxic, sinful habits and attitudes, we come to enjoy a freedom, a reconfiguration and realignment, and a discovery of the mission for which God made us—which is the source of joy that nothing in the world can provide.

Speaking of mission and missionaries, today we welcome a true missionary, a sister of the missionaries of the holy rosary, and we will have the opportunity to support the missionary religious orders like hers in our second collection. I now invite sister to the ambo.

2nd Week of Easter 2021 - Friday - Abundance of Spiritual Food

 Having read through the entirety of Jesus' discourse with Nicodemus from chapter 3 of St. John's Gospel over the past four days, we now begin a week long reading of John Chapter 6.  St. John's sixth chapter is comprised of two miracle stories and a teaching: the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and Jesus walking on the water and the great Bread of Life discourse.  I encourage you to read and reflect on the entire chapter to get a sense of what's coming over the next 8 days.

For the past few days we've heard Jesus talk about the importance of believing in Him that we may have eternal life.  This miracle story seems to answer the question, “what kind of life does Jesus offer?”.  “What kind of life does Jesus offer?” Abundant life.  In the miracle of the multitude he takes the little that is possessed by the few and transforms it into a feast for the multitude.  What is brought to him, is multiplied into an abundance. 5 loaves are not only enough to feed five thousand, but there are twelve wicker baskets left over.

Similarly in the miracle at the wedding at Cana. The Lord doesn’t just transform a mug of water into wine. He transforms 120—150 gallons—of water into wine, more than they would need for the remainder of the wedding celebration.

Finding enough food for sustenance is not easy for a lot of people on this planet. And the Lord provides not only enough for sustenance, but abundance. This is particularly true in the spiritual life. 

Many souls wander around this planet trying to find something to sustain them—to give them courage, to give them inner strength, to give them what they need to make it through this vale of tears. They turn to the new age, they turn to popular psychology, modern philosophy, or the pharmaceutical industry. These may satisfy for a time, but in the end they always leave us exhausted and unhappy. 

But in Christ, we are finally able be fed spiritually in a deep and last manner; and not just with enough nourishment to satisfy us, but with more than we will ever need. The Christian life is an infinite mine in which the more one digs and explores the more one finds. This is evidenced in the life of the saints: abundant means for sanctification are available for those who seek it out. And the reason we are not holier than we are isn’t due to a lack of spiritual food, but because of our refusal to eat it.

“If you remain in me you will bear much fruit. (Jn 15:5)” “I have told you these things that my joy might be in you and your joy might be complete (Jn 15:11)” “The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it in abundance (John 10:10).”

Through prayer and good works may we dispose ourselves—open ourselves—to be fed by the Lord, sanctified by the Lord, who desires to perfect us and complete us by his abundant grace for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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Filled with Paschal joy, let us turn earnestly to God, to graciously hear our prayers and supplications.

For the shepherds of our souls, that they may have the strength to govern wisely the flock entrusted to them by the Good Shepherd.

For the whole world, that it may truly know the peace of the Risen Christ, especially we pray for the conversion of those who refuse belief in God and Jesus the Christ, His Son.

For our parish, and for the newly initiated, that we may bear witness with great confidence to the Resurrection of Christ.

For our brothers and sisters who suffer, that their sorrow may be turned to gladness through the Christian faith.

That all of our beloved dead and all the souls in purgatory may come to the glory of the Resurrection.

O God, you know that our life in this present age is subject to suffering and need, hear the desires of those who cry to you and receive the prayers of those who believe in you. Through Christ our lord.