Homily for the week of September 13, 2009

24TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME, 2009 Year B

Is 50: 5-9 Ps116: 19 James 2:14-18 Mark 8: 27-35

By mid September most schools have welcomed students to the beginning of a new school year. So there is an obvious connection between the opening of a school year and today’s gospel that has Jesus giving his friends a quiz. One day Jesus took Peter aside and tried to persuade him to tone down his speech a little. Jesus ask two basic questions: Who do people say that I am? andWho do you say that I am?

Peter responds first by proclaiming what he sense deep in his heart. He says that Jesus is the long, hoped for savior of the world. Peter names Jesus the Messiah. He is the one that John the Baptist talked about. Other persons think that he is one of the famous persons in the Old Testament like Elijah. What Jesus’ friends were really saying is that most persons did not know who Jesus was.

And then Jesus asks another question: But who do you say that I am? In other words, Jesus was making it personal. It is easy for us to say we believe in Jesus, but there is more to it than that. WHAT GOOD IS IT TO PROFESS FAITH WITHOUT PRACTICING IT? To say that we believe or that we are Catholics or Christians means that in some way we must show off our faith by how we live and what we do. Our truest identity as Catholics is being connected to Jesus. We truly cannot consider ourselves to be the friends of Jesus without walking in his footsteps.

It is clear that it is not enough to NAME Jesus as our Lord, If we profess to be Christians, we must walk the talk. We must be prepared to live our faith. St. James in today's second reading unites FAITH with WORKS. He says WHAT GOOD IS IT IF SOMEONE SAYS HE HAS FAITH BUT DOES NOT HAVE WORKS? Other wise we could be accuse of being religious hypocrites. That is why St. James says rather forceful that FAITH WITHOUT WORKS IS DEAD.

We must live what we believe, we must make decisions on what we believe; our spiritual life must be lived as Jesus lived. Otherwise, faith that does not affect how we live and how we act is quickly lost, and it cannot save us. Just as with Peter, Jesus takes us aside as asks us: WHO DO YOU SAY THAT I AM?

Our society says INDULGE. When was the last time you saw a commercial that told you that you do not need the product being advertised. But Jesus comes and says: deny yourself. Be willing to be rejected; refuse to follow the crowd; let your Catholic moral life affect the decisions you make each day. Our society so often tells us that anything goes; fit in; do not be different.

Even Peter had been taken in by his society. For him to say Jesus is my Lord was enough. But the response to Peter was strong: IF YOU WISH TO COME AFTER ME YOU MUST FOLLOW IN MY FOOTSTEPS. There is no short cut, no other way.

As I give you these thoughts I am well aware that we are here you are here today because we do wish to follow Jesus. I am also aware that each of us are here because we wish to be better. To live out in our live more of what we believe.

What kind of Jesus do we want? How do we describe and define Jesus? Is he a teacher who makes no challenges, who demands no hard work, who prefers to entertain us rather than to energize us, who prefers pious platitudes instead of words that wench us out of our apathy? Is he a leader who is willing to let us plot our own course, or is he the one who says: Follow me? Does he offer us a soft cushion or a hard cross?

Our faith is built on the shoulders of others. Most likely these are our parents, our teachers, our close friends or spouse. Specifically, in the case of St. James Parish, these shoulders are the very poor, homeless Irish immigrants who were invited to come to Cadyville by Oblate priests 155 years ago. Their faith has provided for us a building to worship God; a place where we can come to pray, or to be married, or have a child baptized, or be forgiven, and at the end of life, a place to be buried. This building is the GOOD WORK spoken of my Jesus today.

This good work is also carried out by our commitment to give to the Bishop's Fund appeal this year. Most of the money is to be used for educational purposes: education of those in the seminaries; of those in religious education classes; education of those young boys and girls who use the Guggenheim center for summer camp.

For Catholics charity is not a kind of welfare activity which could be left to others, but it is a part of our identity as Catholics. It is a description of who we are. Charity along with prayer and fasting are not options. It is simply a part of who we are. When you or I answer the question: WHO DO YOU SAY THAT I AM? Does our answer include charity, prayer and fasting?