5th Sunday of Lent 2024 - We want to see Jesus

 Some Greeks arrived in Jerusalem for the Passover to render worship to God. They approached Philip and asked him, “Sir, we would like to see Jesus.”

The opening lines of the Gospel this week raise some questions: Why were Greeks, who were raised to pay homage to the pantheon of Greek gods--gods like Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Athena, and Aphrodite, why were these non-Jews going to Jerusalem for Passover? Well, these Greeks were known as proselytes, non-Jews who had come to believe in the God of Israel, but who had not yet undergone circumcision. Well, that answers who they were, but why were they there? Why…how…had these Greeks, these gentiles, these pagans, come to believe in the One True God of Israel?

Well, why does anyone convert? 

I came across an internet video a few weeks ago. A young woman who is described as “A Major Protestant YouTube Star” announced in this internet video that she was converting to Catholicism.” She explains, “I did not want to be Catholic. Not only did I think Catholicism was wrong, I just didn’t like the vibe of Catholicism. I wanted to be anything but Catholic… I fought so hard to get out of this intellectually.”

So why is she converting? Well, she had been planning on going to Thailand as a Protestant Missionary, when she came across internet videos that challenged some of her preconceptions about the Catholic Church. One video she said was titled “10 Lies Protestants Believe about Catholicism.” So, to verify Catholic teaching for herself,  she started reading the Early Church Fathers, and discovered, these guys were Catholic. She discovered how the Catholic Church’s teaching about the real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist is clearly biblical. And through reading and study even became convinced of the truth of the papacy. 

She, like countless souls before her, had searched for the Truth with an open mind and open heart, and found it, here, in the Catholic Church.

In today’s Gospel, the Greeks had come to Jerusalem searching for the Truth, and that search for the truth led them to declare to the Apostle Philip: “Sir, we would like to see Jesus.” 

Their simple request reflects a universal sentiment in the heart of every human being. We want to see Jesus. We want to know God. We want to be in His presence.

Throughout my years as a priest, I have worked in the RCIA at several different parishes. We’ve had Jews, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Southern Baptists, Lutherans, Methodists, and folks raised without any religion whatsoever, even some souls who were once very vocal critics of Catholicism, who urged people to leave the Catholic Church. But their search for the Truth, their search for the face of God, had led them here, had led them home.

“Sir, we would like to see Jesus” is the reason each one of us is here today. We are here because we want to see Jesus in eternity, and in order to do that, we must be His faithful followers, now.  

The desire to see Jesus, has impelled us throughout Lent to undergo Lenten penances like abstaining from meat on Fridays, fasting from non-essentials, engaging in extra prayer-time throughout the week, and offering our meager earthly treasures to help the poor. Praying, fasting, and almsgiving help us to see Jesus.

This desire to see Jesus is fulfilled when we come to Mass. We enter the church, genuflecting to the tabernacle, believing that Jesus is really here. I can go to any Catholic church or chapel in the world and see Jesus and visit Jesus in any tabernacle in the world. And at Mass, we can “see Jesus” become present under the appearance of bread and wine. 

And we come to Mass every week, we follow the Lord’s teachings, we engage in penances and acts of mercy, not only because WE want to “see Jesus” but because Jesus wants others to see Him in US. The way we act, the words we utter, how we use our time, are to help others “see Jesus”.

How had the Greeks in the Gospels come to believe? How have the billions of Catholic converts throughout the millennia come to believe? News of Jesus Christ was shared with them. They had seen Jesus speaking and acting in the lives of ordinary Catholics like us.

There have certainly been some extraordinary saints who have made it their life’s work to help others see Jesus. I think particularly of the Saint we honor this weekend: the great patron of Ireland, St. Patrick. 

Many of you know some of the stories of St. Patrick: Patrick was born in Roman Britain. And when he was fourteen or so, he was captured by Irish pirates during a raiding party and taken to Ireland as a slave. At the time, Ireland was a land of Druids and pagans, but Patrick, the son of a Deacon, kept his Catholic faith.

Patrick's captivity lasted until he was twenty years old, when he escaped slavery after having a dream from God in which he was told he could find his freedom by fleeing to the sea coast. There he found some sailors who took him back to Britain where he was reunited with his family.

Patrick wasn’t home long, when he sensed a call from God to return to Ireland to preach the Gospel. He was trained as a priest and was ordained by the bishop St. Germanus, who sent Patrick back to Ireland as a missionary bishop.

The legend of Patrick driving the snakes out of Ireland is symbolic of driving paganism from the Emerald Isle, and leading its inhabitants to Christ. And Patrick was successful because he was filled with the life and love of Christ. 

The famous breastplate of St. Patrick speaks of the saint’s immense trust in the strength of Christ, but that other may encounter Christ through him: "Christ be within me, Christ behind me, Christ before me, Christ beside me, Christ to win me, Christ to comfort and restore me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ in quiet, Christ in danger, Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me, Christ in the mouth of every man who speaks to me, Christ in the eye of every man that sees me, Christ in the ear of every man that hears me."

There are people in our lives who long to see Jesus, and we like the apostles, like so many saints, are called to help them to see the Lord, by patiently and clearly and zealously sharing Jesus with them.

After the Greeks share their desire to see Jesus, Jesus gives a teaching that his followers must become like grains of wheat, that die to themselves in order to truly live. The life of God cannot dwell in us if we are unwilling to die to ourselves. Christ cannot be seen in us, unless we decrease. So we must willingly pursue dying to our selfish desires, dying to the errors of the world.

In two weeks, we will celebrate again the great Paschal Solemnity of Easter the feast of new life--the new life God wants for us, but in those two weeks, we still have much dying to do. Pray more deeply, fast more assiduously, seek Jesus in the poor who need your assistance, and help others see Him, in your kindness. If you have any family members or neighbors who have fallen away from the Church, invite them to attend sacramental confession or invite them to attend our Good Friday veneration of the cross. Invite them to see Jesus. Through the dying and rising with Christ may we come to see Jesus face to face in the glorious resurrection, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

March 17 2023 (school mass) - St. Patrick's Breastplate - Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me

 “Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ on my right, Christ on my left, Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down, Christ when I arise, Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me, Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me, Christ in every eye that sees me, Christ in every ear that hears me.”

This beautiful prayer was written by St. Patrick himself, over 1,500 years ago. The prayer is often called the “Breastplate of St. Patrick”. A breastplate is a piece of armor worn by soldiers to protect them in battle from the swords and arrows of their enemies. St. Patrick's breastplate is a prayer that invokes the divine protection of Jesus Christ like a suit of armor. 

St. Paul tells Christians to put on the armor of Christ—armor by which God wants to protect us from evil. There are many forces in this world that are evil, that seek to lead us away from God. Evil wants to take root in our life so that we never think of God or what God wants for us. Evil that wants us to be selfish, self-absorbed, jealous, envious, hateful, rude, disobedient, lustful, violent, irreverent and profane. Evil does not want you to follow God, pray to God, love God, have faith in God, or hope in God. Evil does not want you to love Jesus, imitate Jesus, or even think of Jesus.

And because there is so much evil in the world that opposes God and hates us and seeks to ruin our lives, St. Paul told Christians to put on the armor of Christ. And St. Patrick, that great apostle to the land of Ireland, gave us that beautiful prayer. 

“Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ on my right, Christ on my left, Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down, Christ when I arise”

No athlete, social media influencer, Tiktocker, Hollywood actor, video game hero, social activist or politician has the power to armor you from evil. These people will not be there when you are in trouble or facing the challenges of your life and in the dark times of life. Only Christ. Only Jesus Christ can be with you always to armor your and defend you, to lift you up when you have fallen.

Learn from the example of St. Patrick. He's not just a saint for irish people, his example is important for the whole Church. Make Jesus Christ first in your life. Seek to become like him, preach the Word of God like him, treat others like Him, heal like Him, reconcile people to God like Him. Invite him into your life more deeply so that he is with you when you wake, when you eat, when you go to school and work, when you relax, when you speak. Invoke Christ to be your armor and your shield today and all days, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

March 17 2021 - St. Patrick - Let us be Christians like those of Rome (Ut Christiani Ita Et Romani Estis)

 A few years ago, I was able to travel to Scotland with a priest friend. We visited a number of Scotland’s holy sites: like the tomb of St. Margaret of Scotland, the 15th century Rosslyn chapel, and St. Andrew’s Golf Course…and a couple whiskey distilleries…

One memorable site was the Church of St. Patrick in the old part of Edinburgh. Across the façade of the Church, was a latin saying from St. Patrick himself, that I had never heard of before: Ut Christiani Ita et Romani Estis. Let us be Christians like those of Rome. 

This saying was written in latin, Patrick’s native language: for remember Patrick was not a native Irishman, but the son of a roman Briton, born in what is the modern day village of Norton in the English county of Northamptonshire. And he didn’t speak even an early form of English, for he lived in Brittania prior to the Anglo-Saxons bringing their language to the British Isles. So he spoke the language of Rome. And not only the language, but Patrick is saying here, Ut Christiani Ita et Romani Estis, let us practice the form of Christianity as practiced in Rome. The Creed of the Roman Catholics, the liturgy of the Roman Catholics, the deference to the Roman Pope, and the courage of the Roman Catholics—the courage of the Roman martyrs.

When Patrick, as a missionary bishop, brings Christianity to pagan Ireland, with the polytheistic celtic pagan religion, he was bringing Roman Catholicism being practiced in Rome to the Emerald Isle. And I make this point today, because there is a modern tendency, as there has been in many points in history, to reshape Christianity to fit our modern ideals, to make Christianity conform more with, let’s say, the modern American secular culture. But that’s not the Christianity of Patrick, that’s not the Christianity we have inherited from our ancestors, that’s not the Christianity that was practiced when this parish was founded. 

In the Gospel today, we hear our Lord speaking about His obedience to the Father: “I do not seek my own will but the will of the one who sent me.” Even the Lord, the second person of the Trinity made flesh, bows his human will to the will of his heavenly Father. Being a Christian always means bowing the will to something bigger than us. And St. Patrick and all the saints are always wonderful models of that surrender and obedience and celebration of that higher will, not something reshaped in our own image, but something that seeks to shape us in His.

May our Lenten observances help to humble our earthly pride, and help us to be Christians like those of Eternal Rome, on the Rock of Peter, that we, like the great missionary bishop St. Patrick, may bring the true faith into every corner of the world, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

 

For Holy Father Pope Francis and all the bishops, that they may preach with conviction the fullness of the Roman Catholic faith. 

For an increase in faith for the catechumens and candidates who approach the sacraments of initiation in the coming Paschal Solemnity.

That the Church might be delivered and protected from all spirits of error, heresy, schism, and unbelief.

For strength to resist temptation, and the humility to sincerely repent of sin.

That through fasting and self-denial, we may be ever more conformed to Christ.

That those in need may find assistance in the charity of faithful Christians and that peace and security may be firmly established in all places.

For all who have died, and for all the poor souls in purgatory, and for X. for whom this Mass is offered.

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.

5th Sunday of Lent 2018 - "We Want to See Jesus"

Some Greeks arrived in Jerusalem for the Passover to render worship to God. They approached Philip and asked him, “Sir, we would like to see Jesus.”

The opening lines of the Gospel this week raise some questions. Why were Greeks, who were raised to pay homage to the pantheon of Greek gods--gods like Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Athena, and Aphrodite, why were these non-Jews going to Jerusalem for Passover? Well, these Greeks were known as proselytes, non-Jews who had come to believe in God of Israel, but who had not yet undergone circumcision. Well, that answers who they were, but why were they there? Why…how…had these Greeks, these gentiles, these pagans, come to believe in the One True God of Israel?
Well, why does anyone convert?

I came across an internet video a few weeks ago. A young woman who is described as “A Major Protestant YouTube Star” announced in this internet video that she was Converting to Catholicism.” She explains, “I fought so hard to get out of this intellectually. I did not want to be Catholic. Not only did I think Catholicism was wrong, I just didn’t like the vibe of Catholicism. I wanted to be anything but Catholic.”

She had been planning on going to Thailand as a Missionary with the Protestant denomination to which she belonged, when she came across videos the started to challenge some of her preconceptions about the Catholic Church. One video she said was titled “10 Lies Protestants Believe about Catholicism.” So she started reading the Early Church Fathers, and discovered, these guys were Catholic. She discovered how the Catholic Church’s teaching about the real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist is clearly biblical. And through reading and study even became convinced of the truth of the papacy.

She, like countless souls before her, had searched for the Truth with an open mind and open heart, and found it, here, in the Catholic Church.

In today’s Gospel, the Greeks had come to Jerusalem searching for the Truth, and that search for the truth led them to declare to the Apostle Philip: “Sir, we would like to see Jesus.”

Their simple request reflects a universal sentiment in the heart of every human being. We want to see Jesus. We want to know God. We want to be in His presence.

Throughout my years as a priest, I have worked in the RCIA at several different parishes. We’ve had Jews, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Southern Baptists, Lutherans, Methodists, and folks raised without any religion whatsoever, even some folks who were once very vocal critics of Catholicism, who urged people to leave the Catholic Church. But their search for the Truth, their search for the face of God, had led them here, had led them home.

“Sir, we would like to see Jesus” is the reason each one of us is here today. We are here because we want to see Jesus in eternity, and in order to do that, we must be His faithful followers and active members in His Church.

The desire to see Jesus, has impelled us throughout Lent to undergo Lenten penances like abstaining from meat on Fridays, fasting from non-essentials, engaging in extra prayer-time throughout the week, and offering our meager earthly treasures to help the poor. We believe our Lenten penances will help us “see Jesus”.

This desire to see Jesus is fulfilled when we come to Mass. We enter the church, genuflecting to the tabernacle, believing that Jesus is really here, I can go to any Catholic church or chapel in the world and see Jesus and visit Jesus in any tabernacle in the world. And at Mass, we can “see Jesus” become present under the appearance of bread and wine.

We come to Mass every week, we follow the Lord’s teachings, we engage in penances and acts of mercy, not only because we want to “see Jesus” but because Jesus wants others to see Him in us, too. The way we act, the words we utter, are to help others “See Jesus”.

How had the Greeks in the Gospels come to believe? Others had shared the truth with them. How have the billions of Catholic converts throughout the millennia come to believe? The saving faith had been shared with them. They had seen Jesus speaking and acting in the lives of ordinary Catholics like us.

There have certainly been some extraordinary saints who have made it their life’s work to help others see Jesus. I think particularly of the Saint we honor this weekends: the great patron of Ireland, St. Patrick.

Many of you know some of the stories of St. Patrick: Patrick was born in Roman Britain. And when he was fourteen or so, he was captured by Irish pirates during a raiding party and taken to Ireland as a slave. At the time, Ireland was a land of Druids and pagans, but Patrick, the son of a Deacon, kept his Catholic faith.

Patrick's captivity lasted until he was twenty, when he escaped slavery after having a dream from God in which he was told he could find his freedom by fleeing to the sea coast. There he found some sailors who took him back to Britain where he was reunited with his family.

Patrick wasn’t home long, when he sensed a call from God to return to Ireland to preach the Gospel. He was trained as a priest and was ordained by the bishop St. Germanus, who sent Patrick back to Ireland as a missionary bishop.

The legend of Patrick driving the snakes out of Ireland is symbolic of driving paganism from the Emerald Isle, and leading its inhabitants to Christ. And Patrick was successful because he was filled with the life and love of Christ.

The famous breastplate of St. Patrick speaks of the saint’s immense trust in the strength of Christ, which we do well to emulate: "Christ be within me, Christ behind me, Christ before me, Christ beside me, Christ to win me, Christ to comfort and restore me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ in quiet, Christ in danger, Christ in hearts of all that love me, Christ in mouth of friend and stranger."

There are people in our lives who long to see Jesus, and we like the apostles, like so many saints, are called to help them to see the Lord, by patiently and clearly and zealously sharing Jesus with them.
After the Greeks share their desire to see Jesus, Jesus gives a teaching that his followers must become like grains of wheat, that die to themselves in order to grow. No one can come to Jesus without dying to himself, dying to his selfish desires, dying to the errors of the world.

In two weeks, we will celebrate again the great Paschal Solemnity of Easter, but in those two weeks, we still have much dying to do. Pray more deeply, fast more assiduously, seek Jesus in the poor who need your assistance, and help others see Him, in your kindness. If you have any family members or neighbors who have fallen away from the Church, invite them to attend our communal penance service this Thursday or invite them to attend our Good Friday veneration of the cross, that we like the saints may come to see Jesus face to face in the glorious resurrection, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

Homily: March 17 2017 - St. Patrick - "Put out into the deep"

A millennium and a half after his life and death, St. Patrick continues to be a saint with many devotees.

He was born in Roman Britain and when he was fourteen or so, he was captured by Irish pirates during a raiding party and taken to Ireland as a slave to herd and tend sheep. At the time, Ireland was a land of Druids and pagans but Patrick turned to God and wrote his memoir, The Confession.

Patrick's captivity lasted until he was twenty, when he escaped after having a dream from God in which he was told to leave Ireland by going to the coast. There he found some sailors who took him back to Britain and was reunited with his family.

Not long after reuniting with his family, Patrick sensed a growing calling to return to Ireland to preach the Gospel. He was trained as a priest and was ordained by St. Germanus, who sent Patrick back to Ireland as a missionary bishop, like St. Paul.

Like the Lord instructed in the Gospel, Patrick “put out into the deep water” of Pagan Ireland. He preached for 40 years and converted the Emerald Isle to Christ.

The famous breastplate of St. Patrick speaks of the saints immense trust in the strength of Christ, which we do well to emulate: "Christ be within me, Christ behind me, Christ before me, Christ beside me, Christ to win me, Christ to comfort and restore me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ inquired, Christ in danger, Christ in hearts of all that love me, Christ in mouth of friend and stranger."

Such trust in Christ, union with Christ through prayer, imitation of Christ’s suffering is necessary as we are called to spread the Gospel amidst the growing Paganism of modern culture.
The Lord’s words “put out into deep waters” is a call to every Christian, no matter their state in life, to take up the missionary mandate of the Church: to reach out to those who do not have faith, to reach out to the poor and suffering, and to not be afraid to witness to the truth of the Gospel in the public sphere and the political realm.

Where are the deep waters in your own life? Who are the fish that seem just out of reach? A fallen away family member? An angry neighbor? Who needs to be invited back to Mass…to the Confessional…to speak with the priest about an annulment…who needs to be gently confronted about an addiction or unchaste behavior?

Today, May Christ be within us, before us and beside us, and help us to be faithful to the work he calls us to, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

- - - - - - - -For those gathering in celebration of St. Patrick today, for their safety and sobriety, and that their festivity may be spared of debasement, and be for the greater glory of God.

For the spread of the Gospel and reevangelization of the Irish people and for all those who have fallen away from the Church.

That St. Patrick may be for the entire Church an example of missionary zeal and trust in the Lord.

That civil leaders will use their authority to protect the dignity of human life and the well-being of the poor, the marginalized, the oppressed, those who suffer from discrimination, and the unborn.  We pray to the Lord.

For those experiencing any kind of hardship or sorrow, isolation or illness: that the tenderness of the Father’s mercy will comfort them.  We pray to the Lord.