Homily for the week of December 26, 2009

Feast of Holy Family, 2009

1 Samuel 1:30-22; 24-28

1 John 3:1-2, 21-24

Luke 2:41-52

The last weekend of the calendar year is a wonderful time to celebrate the feast of the Holy Family. It’s a time to reflect on the year just ending – on our successes and failures, our times of joy and sadness – and then look ahead with hope and expectation to the possibilities of the coming year.

What’s really great about this feast day is that it’s about something to which we can readily relate. Each of us are members of a family. Families come in many different sizes: traditional family, or a blended family, or a single parent family, or like myself, a member of a parish family. But we are family. So when we celebrate the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph, we also celebrate our own families.

We know very little of Jesus' life between His birth and when he was about 30 years old. We also know little about his family life. Joseph, his foster father, was a carpenter, so it was customary that Jesus would follow his father’s trade as a carpenter. He spent most of His life in Nazareth, a little village of about 300 persons.

In the Jewish homes of Jesus' day, until a child was about 12, the mother was the teacher in religion as well as in learning. When a boy was 12 years old the father took over and began to teach him a trade.

The Bible story about Jesus also took place when he was 12 years old. Luke describes an incident in Jesus' life that shows that even in this most holy of families, there were moments of anguish and misunderstanding. Each year parents and their older children went to Jerusalem for the feast of Passover. Passover was a time when Jews remembered the time when they had been saved from death by God. After the temple and on their way home, Mary and Joseph discover that Jesus is not with the group of people going back to Nazareth. They go back to the temple to look for him. He had disobeyed them, and stayed to listen to the teachers and to ask them some questions. The teachers are surprised at his questions. His mother, like most Mothers, is concerned what he did, and like most Mother Mary says to Jesus: Son, why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been looking for you with great anxiety.And, maybe like a lot 12 year old children who are caught doing the wrong thing, he thinks that his mother is making too much of the situation and says: Why have you been looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father's house?

Jesus' reply is, to them, baffling: It is interesting how Jesus definitely asserts that it is God is his father, rather than Joseph, who is his Father. This story marks the time in Jesus' life when he consciously expressed his awareness that he was different, that he stood in a unique relationship with God.

The Church has placed this Feast of the Holy Family in the Christmas Season as an encouragement for all families to be holy. What does that mean? Being HOLY does not mean that we go around all day with our hands folded and our head bowed. Being HOLY means keeping our mind on what it is that the Lord wants us to be and to do. It means having a place in our family for religion and prayer and trying to live the religion and prayer we talk about.

Being holy means keeping the presence of the God alive in our homes. Children need opportunities to pray in their own way. For most families these opportunities are before meals and at bedtime. Moms and Dads also need the opportunity to pray alone and together.

A holy family is also a family where children are honest with their parents, and parents show respect and honesty to their children. It is easy to be dishonest with one another. When that happens the holiness of the family is destroyed.

Throughout the ages, the family has been the cradle of the Christian religious spirit. The first places where the Christian communities gathered were not churches, but the homes of families who opened their doors to the Christian way of life. These domestic churches nurtured the spread of Christianity for over two hundred years. And since then the family has been the single most important teacher of Christian virtue and Christian faith.

Many families today are what are known as blended families. This can happen in two ways. A couple practicing different religions get married. This is not usually a problem until they have children. Unless the parents were active religious persons while dating, and talked about this seriously, I find that often children may receive little religious formation other than Baptism. But many times these two religious traditions can be a blessing.

Another type of blended family is when a man and a woman who were previously married and both have children, get married a second time. This can be especially challenging when they children who are teenagers if their mother and father did not prepare them for this. A new person enters their life. At times the attachment to the Mom and Dad that is no longer there is closer than the relationship with the step-Mom or step-Dad that has moved in. Unfortunately, the two adults do not see this, or if they do, they do not understand it. It is also normal for a Mom or Dad to "stick up" for their biological children. A fragile relationship between husband and wife can develop, especially when there is a fear on the part of the step-Mom or step-Dad that one of the kids might report child abuse as a means of getting out their anger against the man or woman who is not part of what they think is their home. Fear often leads to marital violence, or ends up in separation, not from each other, but from the situation.

However, there is no problem when a father and mother both have a strong religious faith that has always been part of their life. The family is the first community we experience where we begin to develop relationships. We all learn the meaning of forgiveness from our experience of being forgiven within the family. We all learn the meaning of thankfulness as we experience thankfulness within the family. These are done in the ordinary moments of daily family life: at mealtimes, household chores, washing dishes, cleaning rooms, workdays, vacations, expressions of love and intimacy, caring for a sick child or elderly parent, or the death of a child. and even at times of conflicts over things like how to celebrate holidays, discipline children or spend money. All of these are threads from which families can weave a pattern of holiness. It is within family that we are either called to God or driven away from God.

This does not mean, however, that family life is always easy. The family photos you receive with Christmas cards show the perfect family. They don't show debts, infidelity, divorce, people who have left their faith, people who are addicted, kids on academic probation,kids with behavior problems. Yet these are the situations of family life. But in the Bible God never really gave us the picture of the ideal family. In the bible Cain kills Able, David lusts after Bathsheba. Consider even the Holy Family of Nazareth. Joseph considers divorcing Mary when he learns she is pregnant. But in all of these God's love which overcomes all division. On this feast of the Holy Family, take a inventory of your family. Be generous with thanks and praise for what you do well, ask forgiveness for times you have hurt, and praise God for having given you the gift of marriage and family.

Homily for the week of December 20, 2009

Fourth Sunday of Advent, Year C, 2009

Mi 5:1-4a

Heb 10:5-10

Lk 1:39-45

As we near Christmas, children are beginning to drive parents crazy with their anticipation. In some families there is a lot of packing going on as they prepare to travel to spend Christmas with out-of-town family or maybe just go somewhere to celebrate Christmas. A lot of baking and decorating is going on. Business, except retail, will come close to a standstill this week as employees take vacation days, finish their shopping, attend parties, and prepare for the big day.

Not everyone is happy and excited however. For some, this is the loneliest time of year. They might be a long way from family and friends, and others may not have family or friends with whom to celebrate. Some are alone in nursing homes. Some are alone on the streets. Some might be surrounded by people yet feel alone and unimportant.

Many who have lost jobs in the past year struggle to support their families. Some of these workers simply feel discarded and forgotten. While most of us find excitement in our anticipation of Christmas, some find only dread.

We do not want to ruin our enthusiasm and excitement by remembering those who are alone or suffering at this time of year, but we must make the effort to remember those who seem to be left out. It is for these that Christ has come. Just as Mary brought some incredible news and joy to her cousin Elizabeth, we must consider how we might be the bearers of glad tidings ourselves.

Today we might consider Bethlehem, ''too small to be among the clans of Judah.'' Bethlehem was a very small town, more a village really, a short distance from Jerusalem. It was a one-industry town: it produced bread for sale in Jerusalem. The name ''Bethlehem'' actually means ''little house of bread.'' Its only claim to fame was that it was the birthplace of David, thus it is sometimes identified as ''The City of David.'' Beyond this, it was just another overlooked village among many small villages near Jerusalem, ''too small to be among the clans of Judah.'' If Jesus had not been born there, it might even not exist today.

It is an irony that such a small, insignificant place would play such an enormous role in history. It is a reminder to us that those who might seem insignificant -- the poor, the elderly, today's ''widows and orphans'' -- are not insignificant in the eyes of God.

Mary herself was a relatively insignificant person. She was a young girl from another small village. Her responses to the angel Gabriel and even to Elizabeth let us know that even Mary considered herself insignificant. By no means she did suffer from ''poor self-esteem.'' She was just simply humble knowing that she was from a poor family in a poor village.

Mary teaches us a lesson: being from insignificant families in insignificant places does not make us insignificant. We are reminded that idea of significance does not come from places or families. Our significance comes from God. All human life is significant. This was the message of God's choice to become human and enter our world. There were those in Nazareth who tried to put Jesus down by reminding everyone that He was just a carpenter's son, the son of Mary, and everybody knew His family -- meaning no one thought the carpenter's family was anything special. In this context Micah's words take on deep meaning when we ponder how God uses what we might consider insignificant: ''You, Bethlehem-Ephrathah, too small to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel.''

Elizabeth, Mary's cousin, gives a sense of what we can do for those who are alone or feel abandoned or suffer at this time of year. Elizabeth made clear that she recognized that her young cousin from Nowheresville was significant.

Luke's story of Jesus' birth contains in miniature the whole of the Gospel message. Elizabeth's acclamation of faith tells us who Jesus is. The reaction of the not-yet-born John the Baptist becomes another statement of faith in the importance of Jesus. Elizabeth herself stepped aside to point to the significance of Mary and especially the child she carried.

As we count the days until Christmas, we might want to point ourselves and our children to the reality that Christ's coming makes all humanity significant -- born and unborn. We might not be able to change the lot of the poor, but we can acknowledge their existence and their importance. We can teach our children to notice the lonely, for it is to just such as them that Christ has come.

Homily for the week of December 13, 2009

3rd Sunday of Advent, C 2009

Zephaniah 3:14-18

Phil 4:4-7

Luke 3:10-18

There are moments in our lives when we make discoveries that both delight us and propel us into a new phase of living. I remember as a young boy I discovered the five-times tables. I could multiply! And probably got me started in becoming a mathematics teacher and my joy in data analysis. A nurse told me how she thought she was going to wash out of her nursing program because she could not take blood pressure. She distinctly remembers the day she suddenly caught on, and she hasn't had a hard time since.

I once met a young boy with a crippled leg. The boy's father took his son to a church, and there promised him that if they prayed deeply, the son would be healed. They prayed for quite a while, then the father announced to his young son that he was now indeed healed. The boy looked at his leg and saw that there was no change. What was his father thinking? Leaving the church the boy stopped on the steps. He felt funny . . . he felt . . . happy. He felt a great warmth inside and had never been so happy. Suddenly he understood, and he told his father, ''You were right Dad, I have been healed!'' The boy realized that though a brace remained on his leg, God had taken the brace off of his mind.

Life is very much about how we see, and how we see it relates to us personally. Many of those who went into the desert to see and hear John the Baptist had their eyes opened. Both Jews and Gentiles were quite taken with the message of John. They were so taken up with the message of the coming of the Messiah they instinctively knew that somehow they should be living differently than they had been living. It was a moment for them when the light went on.

John helped people to see that those who attach themselves to God are people of true charity. They allow themselves to see and care for the poor. People attached to God strive to live honorable lives, to treat everyone fairly and with respect. These changes in behavior were signs that something new was happening. God was coming. According to Luke, they were filled with anticipation.

Today is Caudate Sunday. The season of Advent originated centuries ago as a time of 40 days in preparation for Christmas. On this Sunday, while reminding ourselves that we still wait, we also remind ourselves that Christ has already come and we allow ourselves a vision of the world as it will be. In a past time, no one did penance on this day.

Zephaniah lived in a time when the Kingdom of Judah enjoyed political independence during the reign of Josiah (640-609 B.C.). However, the time was also a time of spiritual decline when old idolatries reappeared and people worshipped the sun, moon, and stars. Rites other than those worshipping Yahweh flourished in Jerusalem. Because of this religious corruption, Zephaniah announced impending judgement. Fortunately, Josiah was a reformer king. Because of this, Zephaniah announces that the Lord, in His mercy, will spare a holy remnant what will finally enjoy peace.

John the Baptist also offers people a vision, a vision of the world as God intended it to be lived. People who are blessed with extra things will happily share their abundance with those who have nothing. Tax collectors will become just. Soldiers will do their duty to protect people and not harass and abuse them.

How we see the world affects our attitude toward it. If our world is filled with Christ, we can look at crippled legs and not see them. We can be negative and be nay-sayers. We can see faith communities as nothing more than hypocrites. We can be sullen all of our lives. Or we can embrace the vision of the world as it was and as it will be and find ourselves healed.

John the Baptist prepares the crowd for Christ's coming through baptism and a change of heart and behavior. It is only through God's presence that we will find true life and peace. As Christmas approaches we trust in God's loving presence rather than in self-help.

Take a look this week of the progress of your Advent preparations, especially your spiritual preparations. What would John the Baptist say to us today if we asked him what we ought to do? He probably would answer like this:

Homily for the week of December 6, 2009

2nd Sunday of Advent, 2009

Psalm 126:1-2, 2-3, 4-5, 6

Philippians 1:4-6, 8-11

Luke 3:1-6

Today we celebrate the Second Sunday of Advent. But we are also on the weekend of December 5-6. Most of you may know, but some of you may no know that the Catholic Church has the important tradition of honoring women and men whose holy life is an inspiration to others. These are teh offical sints of the Catholic Church, and tehre are hundreds of them. These sains represent the wide variety of people who became offical saints of the Catholic Church. Most of them are famous names, and many of us are named after these saints. Whenever we read about their story they can help us to become better persons and by trying to imitate some of the spiritual activities that helped them to be come holy. The witness of the faith in God and in Jesus can strengthen us and give us a model of being a better person.

The Catholic Church gives each one of them a special day in the calendar. It is called the Feast Day of that saint. For example we think of St. Patrick on March 17th, we think of St. Joseph on March 19th. December 6th happens to be the Feast of St. Nicholas. Other than the people in the Gospel stories about Jesus' birth, no other saint is so identified with Christmas as is St. Nicholas.

Most Americans know that somehow our Christmas figure Santa Claus is based on ''Good St. Nick.'' The name ''Santa Claus'' is an anglicized version of Sinkerclass which is the Dutch name for St. Nicholaus. St. Nicholas was a very real person. He was a fourth century bishop, the bishop of Myra, now in modern day Turkey. It was a time of persecution by Roman emperors. Many legends grew up around him, all based on his practice of charity and care for the poor.

One legend tells of a poor man who had three daughters that he could not marry off because he was too poor to provide a dowry. A dowry was property or money that a bride brought to her husband on the day they were marreid. The legend says that in secret St. Nicholas saw to it that the father received three bags of gold for dowries so each of the daughters could get married. It is said that Nicholas, on different nights, threw the bags of gold in the window of the man's house and they landed in the shoes of the children. Even now in Catholic countries, gifts of candy and nuts are placed in children's shoes and stockings on December 6th.

There is growing interest in reclaiming the original saint in the United States to help restore the spiritual dimension of this season. St. Nicholas, a lover of the poor and the patron of children, is a model of how Christians are meant to live. Nicholas's imitating Jesus Christ was the center of his entire existence. Perhaps better than Santa Claus ever can, St. Nicholas can help us reclaim the true center of Christmas-- the birth of Jesus. Such a focus helps restore balance to materialistic and stress-filled Advent and Christmas seasons.

There are many traditions that surround Christmas, but too much historical distance between the origins of our practices and how they are now experienced has robbed many of our traditions of their depth of meaning.

Legends develop to tell and teach an important truth. The truthfulness of the details of legends is not important, but the truths the legends pass on are vital. Whether there is factual truth in the legend of Nicholas seeing to it that a poor man had money for a dowry for his daughters does not matter; it is a legend that began in a truth about a love for the poor and about generosity.

We do not want to destroy our Advent and Christmas traditions, but Advent should help us peel away the non-religious aspects of our traditions and help us reclaim what they were originally meant to do, that is, teach us about Christ coming into the world.

A tradition developed that candy, nuts, and other things were put into the shoes and stockings of children during the eve of the feast of St. Nicholas. It was a tradition that began with the poor. There were no presents the way we think of presents. Candy and nuts were luxuries for the rich. On this eve the children of the poor were reminded that they were not forgotten. They didn't believe that a ''Santa'' figure brought these things, they believed that a saint of God brought these things. There was no question of the connection between filled shoes and the love of God.

An important Advent person was mentioned in the Gospel which I just read. That person is John the Baptist. The people listening to John the Baptist were from all walks of life, but they held one thing in common: they were looking for meaning in their lives. Somehow the faith they had inherited had grown stale and rigid. Rome, a foreign government, occupied the land. There was no middle class; just rich and poor. John the Baptist brought a message of hope to these people. At last the Lord was coming. John's preaching brought excitement to a defeated people. His promise of the coming of the Lord gave people motivation to change and to rediscover their ancestral faith.

John the Baptist might well be considered the worlds first hippie. He live in a desert where there was nothing. He was clothed in a camel hair wrapping with a leather belt to hold it up. He may have sandals, or possibly not. His favorite food consisted of grasshoppers and wild honey. But John the Baptist is in stain glass windows, and churches have been named after him -- like St. John’s Church in Plattsburgh.

This Advent, using our traditions of decorating homes and trees, setting out manger scenes, and even hanging ''stockings by the chimney with care,'' we must reclaim the fervor that John the Baptist brought. Christ is coming. We must make ready. Baruch, the secretary of the prophet Jeremiah, was filled with hope that God would rescue His people in exile. The first reading captures this joy.

We have a lot of tools at our disposal to do the same. Christ has come once, in preparing for Christmas we are really preparing for Him to come again. As the psalm says, let us be '' filled with joy.'' The message of John the Baptist is very simple: PREPARE THE WAY OF THE LORD. Jesus cannot come unless there is a road, and there will be no road unless we prepare one.

Homily for the week of November 29, 2009

First Sunday of Advent (C) 2009

Jeremiah 33:14-16

1 Thes 3:12-4:2

Luke 21: 25-28, 34-36

Much of our life is filled with waiting. Most of us have spent more time waiting than in doing. Think of all the experiences of waiting which you've had. Waiting for the water to boil; for a friend to phone; for the traffic light to turn green; for the car ahead of you to decide where to turn; for the end of the day; for a friend to stop by; for a rose to open; for a hurt to heal, for a report from the doctor, for a class to end, for the sun to shine, for someone who cares, for a fish to bite, for a child to be born; for a thought to jell, for a decision to be made, for a sign of forgiveness, for a sign of love. Persons who are very time-conscious and impatient find even short waits almost intolerable and they get angry. What keeps us waiting is the hope that something positive may yet happen, that our waiting will prove to have been worthwhile, and that we can move forward with our lives

These are examples of CREATIVE waiting, not PASSIVE waiting where nothing will happen. In all of these we expect something to happen. But not all the waiting is expectation.

Patience is a word or a quality that most of us would like to have more of, especially as we prepare for Christmas. In 25 days many of you will be gathered here in church for Christmas Mass. When the Bible mentions patience, it usually means active waiting and hoping. As we begin a new church year, as we will soon bless the Advent wreath and light one of its candle, I want to focus on the Advent virtues of patience, hope, joy and fidelity as expressed through our Bible readings for today.

Today is New Years Day for the Catholic Church and for most Christian churches. It is the liturgical season of waiting. It is Advent, a time of waiting for the birth of the one promised to bring good news to the poor, deliverance to prisoners. It is a time of 25 days during which we are invited to make ourselves ready for the coming of Jesus much as any mother and father prepares for the birth of their first child. Advent means more than getting out the Christmas crib or the poinsettias or the Christmas tree.

The Bible readings for this first Sunday of Advent concern the situations of waiting and hoping. The prophet Jeremiah was waiting and hoping for an ideal descendant of King David who might bring security and justice to God’s people. Jeremiah was active in the early 6th century B.C. He saw clearly that his people would be defeated by the Babylonians, and that the temple city of Jerusalem would be captured and destroyed. Nevertheless, in the midst of this political chaos Jeremiah remained a person of hope. He was waiting for the Messiah of Israel and was convinced that his waiting would be rewarded. We Catholics believe that Jeremiah’s waiting and hoping were fulfilled in Jesus.

You might think that our Gospel reading for this weekend would look forward to the birth of Jesus. But it doesn't. It looks forward to what is called the second coming of Jesus which our faith tells us will be at the end of the world, at the end of time. The Gospel gives us all kinds of signs when that will happen: in the stars, the sky, the sun, the moon, and the oceans. It also urges us to be patient at all times. But for those who wait patiently and are faithful they can be certain that all will turn out well. The second coming of Christ is not to be feared but rather to be eagerly awaited. There is hope that it will bring perfect happiness for the faithful people of God. It is worth waiting for.

Our second reading is Paul’s First Letter to the Thessalonians, It was written in A.D. 51. It is the earliest complete document in the New Testament. It is amazing to get a glimpse at the young Catholic church when it was just about 25 years old. Paul tells the young Catholics and also us how we are to behave in preparing for the coming of Jesus with all his holy ones. Paul is clearly speaking about the second coming of Christ. He too looks forward in hope to that event and exhorts the Thessalonians to behave in such a way that they may be found blameless and holy before God when it happens.

Why is there so much focus on the second coming of Christ on the first Sunday of Advent? We need to look at the word “advent.” Advent means coming, arriving, becoming present. In Advent we tend to think primarily about the first coming of Christ at his birth. But Jesus comes to us in other human and spiritual ways, such as in the sacraments, especially Holy Communion, in our everyday lives and at the moment of death.

Advent is a time of waiting and hoping, of renewing our trust in God’s merciful love and care and of reflecting on the several comings of Christ in our lives. The key New Testament word for Advent is “watching"— of keeping careful watch of ourselves and conducting our lives in such a way that we may be found blameless and holy before God.

Advent is also a time for proclaiming an end to the actions of our life that prevent us from giving birth. And because death is so difficult and so much to be avoided, then Advent, in a spiritual sense, can be considered as a time of suffering and self-denial. Advent comes at the shortest days of the year, the darkest of days almost as a reminder that we must take an honest look at how our lives can easily be filled with darkness. Advent is a time for us to admit that the coldness within us can hurt as much as the coldness our bodies sense from the outside.

But the hope of Advent is not that Jesus will come at the end of time -- it is not that Jesus will come some time in the future --not even as far away as tomorrow - but right now. Advent is taking place right now. But we must stay awake or we will miss His coming.

It seems that the Bible readings for this first week of Advent make patience and waiting a virtue or a good habit. Our concern is also making patience a good habit of our daily life. Lack of patience or joyful waiting usually makes us angry persons. And anger controls us physically, emotionally and spiritually. We can't get rid of, or avoid, the things or the people that make us angry, nor can we change them, but we can learn to be patient with them. Let us learn how to wait.

This Advent, as we wait for Christmas, let each of us try to accept delay, trouble, or suffering without getting angry or upset.

Homily for the week of November 22, 2009

Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time, 2009

First Reading: Daniel 12:1-3

Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 16:5, 8, 9-10, 11

Second Reading: Hebrews 10:11-14, 18

Gospel: Mark 13:24-32

Human beings have always tried to answer the question: When will the world end? And there have been about as many different answers as there have been those asking the question. A blockbuster movie named 2012 has been or will soon be released in movie theatres. The movie tells us that the world is coming to an end on December 21, 2012 as predicted by the Mayans. That date is not based on a specific prophecy, but the end of their calendar. The Mayans viewed time and the concept of time different than we do. We’re linear in our time and we think of time as a timeline with a beginning point and an end point. Time for the Mayans was very much a cyclic pattern based on the sun.

In recent decades, our understanding of the origins of the universe has grown immensely. We have learned how our universe flashed forth 15 billion years ago in a great explosion of light and that it is ever-expanding, bursting with life from the center outward in creative, chaotic, unique patterns. But what happens at the end?

Bible writers have also tried to tell us when and what will happened at the end of the world. In today;s first reading and the Gospel, two different biblical writers reflect on the end times. Both are writing for a people under a lot of pressure, a people who may feel that the trials and tribulations they are undergoing are the signs of the end time. Will there be something beyond this earthly life?

The ancient Israelites thought not. Some believed they would merely live on in the memories of their descendants. Some spoke of Sheol, the shadowy underworld in which a shade of the former self survived. It was only in the second century B.C. that the belief in resurrection and an eternal reward for the righteous began to emerge. Daniel also mentions “everlasting horror and disgrace” for the wicked, but he focuses his attention on what happens to those who have lived wisely and who have led others to seek and do justice. He envisions these people as shining brightly. He says they will be “like the splendor of the firmament...[they] shall be like the stars forever.”

In today’s Gospel Jesus speaks to his disciples about the things that will happen at the end of time. The light of the sun and moon will be extinguished with the stars falling from the sky. Against the backdrop Jesus interjects the assurance that he will come again in power and glory, gathering his elect from “the end of the earth to the end of the sky.”

He then offers the image of a tender green shoot at springtime, one that bursts forth from the fig tree. Stripped of its leaves and giving every appearance of having died, its life tenaciously sprouts forth anew, much like the yellow dandelions blossom overnight after being dormant all winter. And so Jesus assures use that no matter what horrendous suffering we endure, life will rise again in us through his power. In the Gospel there is no reference to punishment of those who are not faithful, only of gathering in all his scattered “elect.”

The question of when all this will take place hangs unanswered. There is a tension in the Gospel. Jesus first says that it will happen in the lifetime of “this generation,” but then he asserts that no one knows the day or the hour—not even he—but only God the Father.

Being followers of Jesus does not exempt us from ordinary problems of human life. Yes, there will be sickness, there will be auto accidents, our homes may be hit by lightening, marriages may break up. Jesus never told his followers how to avoid trouble. Instead, he tells them how to prepare for it.

If Daniel's words do not persuade us that rescue and redemption are ours, the reading from Hebrews should. The author points out that Christ's sacrifice for us was not only perfect and true, but once and for all. It is important for us to realize that the great challenges of our life are not a punishment for our sins or an indication that God has forgotten us. After we have tried out every solution we come to the conclusion that nothing helps but our faith in a loving God.

When will the world end? Most of us like to know when important things are going to happen. If we are concerned about what might happen to us this afternoon or tomorrow, or when we get older, then it is normal for us to speculate about the end of the world as we know it. Some persons have predicted for a long time that, if certain events took place, then it would be the end of the world. This was especially more of concern as we approached the year 2000. Nostradamus predicted that the world would end when Easter falls on April 25th. And that has happened already 4 times since he predicted it.

Jesus tries to convince us that the answer to those questions are mysteries. There are no answers. But how do we prepare for those times? Jesus' answers are simple. Jesus does not tell us to store up food and water, or to find a bomb proof shelter, or an electric generator. Instead, he tells us to have a strong faith. A strong faith can take years to develop, but once you have a strong faith you can weather any storm.

In the meantime, let us be persons of deep spiritual faith. Let us appreciate the joys that God sends us: weddings, the birth of children, family reunions, visits from friends, music and dance, e-mails from friends.

Let this faith in God hold us up under difficulties and tragedies such as disappointments in relationships, misunderstandings, loss of family through death or separation, physical and emotional sickness, times when we feel we are failures. The message of God is clear: TRUST IN GOD, TRUST IN THE WORDS OF JESUS, BE RENEWED THROUGH HOLY COMMUNION.

Homily for the week of November 15, 2009

Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time, 2009

First Reading: Daniel 12:1-3

Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 16:5, 8, 9-10, 11

Second Reading: Hebrews 10:11-14, 18

Gospel: Mark 13:24-32

Human beings have always tried to answer the question: When will the world end? And there have been about as many different answers as there have been those asking the question. A blockbuster movie named 2012 has been or will soon be released in movie theatres. The movie tells us that the world is coming to an end on December 21, 2012 as predicted by the Mayans. That date is not based on a specific prophecy, but the end of their calendar. The Mayans viewed time and the concept of time different than we do. We’re linear in our time and we think of time as a timeline with a beginning point and an end point. Time for the Mayans was very much a cyclic pattern based on the sun.

In recent decades, our understanding of the origins of the universe has grown immensely. We have learned how our universe flashed forth 15 billion years ago in a great explosion of light and that it is ever-expanding, bursting with life from the center outward in creative, chaotic, unique patterns. But what happens at the end?

Bible writers have also tried to tell us when and what will happened at the end of the world. In today;s first reading and the Gospel, two different biblical writers reflect on the end times. Both are writing for a people under a lot of pressure, a people who may feel that the trials and tribulations they are undergoing are the signs of the end time. Will there be something beyond this earthly life?

The ancient Israelites thought not. Some believed they would merely live on in the memories of their descendants. Some spoke of Sheol, the shadowy underworld in which a shade of the former self survived. It was only in the second century B.C. that the belief in resurrection and an eternal reward for the righteous began to emerge. Daniel also mentions “everlasting horror and disgrace” for the wicked, but he focuses his attention on what happens to those who have lived wisely and who have led others to seek and do justice. He envisions these people as shining brightly. He says they will be “like the splendor of the firmament...[they] shall be like the stars forever.”

In today’s Gospel Jesus speaks to his disciples about the things that will happen at the end of time. The light of the sun and moon will be extinguished with the stars falling from the sky. Against the backdrop Jesus interjects the assurance that he will come again in power and glory, gathering his elect from “the end of the earth to the end of the sky.”

He then offers the image of a tender green shoot at springtime, one that bursts forth from the fig tree. Stripped of its leaves and giving every appearance of having died, its life tenaciously sprouts forth anew, much like the yellow dandelions blossom overnight after being dormant all winter. And so Jesus assures use that no matter what horrendous suffering we endure, life will rise again in us through his power. In the Gospel there is no reference to punishment of those who are not faithful, only of gathering in all his scattered “elect.”

The question of when all this will take place hangs unanswered. There is a tension in the Gospel. Jesus first says that it will happen in the lifetime of “this generation,” but then he asserts that no one knows the day or the hour—not even he—but only God the Father.

Being followers of Jesus does not exempt us from ordinary problems of human life. Yes, there will be sickness, there will be auto accidents, our homes may be hit by lightening, marriages may break up. Jesus never told his followers how to avoid trouble. Instead, he tells them how to prepare for it.

If Daniel's words do not persuade us that rescue and redemption are ours, the reading from Hebrews should. The author points out that Christ's sacrifice for us was not only perfect and true, but once and for all. It is important for us to realize that the great challenges of our life are not a punishment for our sins or an indication that God has forgotten us. After we have tried out every solution we come to the conclusion that nothing helps but our faith in a loving God.

When will the world end? Most of us like to know when important things are going to happen. If we are concerned about what might happen to us this afternoon or tomorrow, or when we get older, then it is normal for us to speculate about the end of the world as we know it. Some persons have predicted for a long time that, if certain events took place, then it would be the end of the world. This was especially more of concern as we approached the year 2000. Nostradamus predicted that the world would end when Easter falls on April 25th. And that has happened already 4 times since he predicted it.

Jesus tries to convince us that the answer to those questions are mysteries. There are no answers. But how do we prepare for those times? Jesus' answers are simple. Jesus does not tell us to store up food and water, or to find a bomb proof shelter, or an electric generator. Instead, he tells us to have a strong faith. A strong faith can take years to develop, but once you have a strong faith you can weather any storm.

In the meantime, let us be persons of deep spiritual faith. Let us appreciate the joys that God sends us: weddings, the birth of children, family reunions, visits from friends, music and dance, e-mails from friends.

Let this faith in God hold us up under difficulties and tragedies such as disappointments in relationships, misunderstandings, loss of family through death or separation, physical and emotional sickness, times when we feel we are failures. The message of God is clear: TRUST IN GOD, TRUST IN THE WORDS OF JESUS, BE RENEWED THROUGH HOLY COMMUNION.

Homily for the week of November 8, 2009

THIRTY-SECOND SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME, CYCLE B: 2009

1 Kings 17:10-16; Ps 146; Heb. 9:24-28; Mark 12:38-44

When was the last time that you looked into your cupboards or your closets or your storage places or shelves or your garage or workplace? What do you find there? When will you wear the clothes or the shoes you bought 2 or 3 or 4 years ago, 10 years ago? In one way or other all of us are pack rats storing the unused or unneeded for future times, and even future generations. Regardless of our income we still live in abundance compared to many others.

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In the first reading today, there is a story of a widow who is down to her last handful of flour and a tiny bit of oil. She is just about to try to eke out something for her son and herself to eat, certain it will be their last meal. While gathering sticks at the entrance of the city, the widow encounters Elijah, who asks her first for a cup of water and then for a bit of bread. She explains her situation, and Elijah’s response seems initially to be incredibly insensitive. He asks her to bring him a little cake, even before she prepares something for herself and her son. What the biblical author does not recount is the kind of conflict such a request must have produced for the widow. Should she trust Elijah’s God, whom the prophet insists will ensure that her jar of flour will not go empty nor the jug of oil run dry? Or should she follow her motherly instincts to feed her child first? The obligations of hospitality win out; she gives all she had to live on. Miraculously, the prophet’s promise of a never-ending supply of flour and oil comes true.

Or lets imagine that you were a widow and the only money you had were a few pennies. Someone comes to you who has no money, and you give that person the little that you have. However, you noticed that living in the same village were a few with lots of money, much of which was obtained by asking large payments for the services they provided to you and to others. With their vast amount of money they were able to lobby politicians and to obtain positions of honor within the village. They were then able to impress and to make decisions which controlled others. You noticed that the poor got poorer and those with much got even more.

This is the story of our Bible readings today. The widow of Zarephath gave away the little that she had. Jesus tells us about another widow who came into the Jerusalem temple one day. At the entrance were several trumpet shaped metal containers into which people tossed coins. Those who had lots of money tossed in many coins and this made lots of noise. But a widow comes in, tosses in 2 small coins, the only money that she had. These two widows gave away what they had. These two widows did not give of their left overs, but what they needed to live.

Our first and third readings of today demand of us that we turn around society. We are called to open up pathways and doors of opportunity. Jesus demands of us that. "WE GIVE FROM OUR WANT, EVEN FROM WHAT WE HAVE TO LIVE ON." He cautions us that we not be like the money makers of the society who often invite us to invest with them or to buy their goods often persuading those who can least afford it. These scribes were good at telling others what to do. For the widow, giving was not to impress others, but an expression of the love of God and love of others. Our American culture invites us to make sure we receive more than we give. When was the last time that you saw an ad in a newspapers and TV, or an Internet site that tells us we should not buy this and that. The Sunday edition of the Plattsburgh paper contains over 100 pages of inserts of advertisement.

Too often we identify poverty with lack of money. But the first beatitude of Jesus says: Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of heaven. The glass that is full can receive no more. It is only the empty glass or cup that can be filled. If we find ourselves filled with everything that is not of God, then it is difficult for God to empty our lives. We become completely attached to material things.

In reality we are all poor. All that we value most comes from God and is maintained by God. Our life, our health, our human abilities, our intelligence is all God’s gift to us. All we have is a gift from God. We are told today to shift our attention from the things that come and go, and to focus on those that are everlasting. There is nothing bad in having possessions and money. But poverty of spirit allows us to detach ourselves from always wanting more and newer and newer, or having what someone else has.

If all that we have came from God, then shouldn't we do the best to take care of it responsibly? For most of us, the gifts that God has given us is not only money, but it is our brains, our ability to reason, our conscience that tells us right from wrong, our health, our sexuality, our religion. All of these make up who we are. All of these are on loan to us. Have we used them with dignity or have we abused them.?

Jesus point out a great contrast between the well dressed officials who came into the temple and the poor widow. We must be slow to judge holiness or goodness by appearances only. We must look beyond externals. And we will find holy persons. These persons are loving and generous. They are not full of themselves and what they have done. They recognize their dependence on God. And as with anything borrowed, we must try to give back to God what he has given us, and even more. We are really the caretakers of what he has given us. We must use these gifts wisely and share them generously.

After the final blessing of the Mass, the priest says to you: GO IN PEACE TO LOVE AND SERVE THE LORD. To which you respond: THANKS BE TO GOD!