HOMILY for November 2, 2019: Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed, Cycle C

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Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed, Cycle C 

Retreat and Conference Center at Bon Secours

Wisdom 3:1-9 / Romans 6:3-9 / John 6:37-40

November 2, 2019

The Journey Home

(Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato 

 

 

Imagine – Around 1875

Take yourself back to the year 1875.

It is rural America, out in the farm country of the Midwest.  There are no cars, only horses and horse-drawn wagons.

In that setting, there lives a little boy named Tom – and this is a true story!  Both of Tom’s parents die and he is left an orphan.

His Aunt Katherine takes him in and raises him.  Then, years later, Tom receives a letter from his dear Aunt Katherine.

She has a terminal illness and, from the tone of the letter, Tom knows that she is afraid of death.  So he writes a letter in response.

Letter from Tom 

Dear Aunt Katherine, thirty-five years ago, when I was six-years-old, I was left alone in the world. You sent me word that you would give me a home and be a mother to me.

“I’ve never forgotten the day when I made the long journey of ten miles to your house.  I can still recall my disappointment when, instead of coming to me yourself, you sent your hired-hand Joseph to fetch me.

“I remember my tears and anxiety as, perched high on the horse and clinging tight to Joseph, I rode off to my new home.  Night fell before we finished the journey and, as it grew dark, I became even more afraid. 

“‘Do you think she’ll go to bed before I get there?’ I asked Joseph.  ‘Oh, no,’ Joseph answered, ‘she’s sure to stay up.  When we get out of these woods, you’ll see her light shining in the window.’

“We did ride out into the clearing and there was your light.  I remember that you were waiting at the door; that you put your arms tight around me; that you lifted me – a tired, frightened, little boy – down from the horse.

“You had a fire burning on the hearth, a hot supper waiting on the stove.  After supper you took me to my new room.

“You heard me say my prayers.  Then you sat with me until I fell asleep.

“You very probably realize why I am now trying to recall this to your memory.  Very soon, God is going to send for you, and take you to a new home.

“I’m trying to tell you that you needn’t be afraid of the summons or of the strange journey.  God can be trusted.

“God can be trusted to do as much for you as you did for me so many years ago.  At the end of the road you’ll find love and a welcome waiting for you.

“And you’ll be safe in God’s care.  I’m going to watch and pray for you until you’re out of sight.  

“And I shall wait for the day when I make the same journey myself and find you waiting at the end of the road to greet me.”  

Our Faith 

Tom’s letter to his Aunt Katherine is very touching.

It shows a simple, but clear, strong, and trusting faith. It reflects so beautifully Jesus’ words in today’s gospel.

Jesus says: “Everything that the Father gives me will come to me, and I will not reject anyone who comes to me.  This is the will of the one who sent me, that I should not lose anything of what he gave me.”

Jesus is so clear in his promise and in the hope he gives us. He is affirming what one writer calls the circle of God’s love.

God’s love creates us.  God’s love is with us in Jesus.

God’s love sustains us on this earth.  And God’s love re-creates us when we pass on from this earth and go to our heavenly home.

This is the circle of God’s love.  This circle includes all of us and that is why we believe that we remain and will remain in relationship with our loved ones and with all of God’s sons and daughters.

This is how we understand Jesus’ words in today’s Gospel.  

And this is why we celebrate All Souls Day, a day to remember afnd pray for all the faithful departed who’ve made the journey we too will one day make.   

Daily HOMILY for October 31, 2019: Thursday 30th Week of Ordinary Time, Cycle C

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Thursday 30^th Week OT

St. Luke Institute

Retreat and Conference Center at Bon Secours

October 31, 2019

THE GOSPEL +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

+ Today Jesus is warned by some Pharisees to leave the area where he is teaching
+ The reason they give is that Herod is after him. This is Herod Antipas, a son of Herod the Great
+ Region of Perea was part of his territory as tetrarch
+The warning could, of course, have been just a ploy on the part of the Pharisees to get rid of Jesus by frightening him in this way
JESUS’ MODELING ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+ However, Jesus is not moved. Why not?
+ He knows that his life is part of a larger plan
+ He will do his work, including the healing of people and their liberation from evil forces
+ When the time is ripe, he’ll face his passion & death
+ He will attain his ‘end’, where ‘end’ has the double meaning of (1) end of his life on earth & (2) his being brought to perfection thru his suffering & death
+ In any case, it has been decided that he will face his death in Jerusalem and nowhere else. Herod is not going to change any of that
APPLICATION ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+ And then Jesus goes on to pray for the city that will be the scene of his death
+ It is a city that has many times in the past mistreated and killed those sent by God to bring his message
+ What I find striking is how Jesus speaks tenderly of Jerusalem like his being a mother bird who protectively gathers her chickens under her wings
+ But they reject him, as they rejected many prophets before
CONCLUSION ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+ Our lives too are in God’s hands and nothing will happen to us which is in conflict with God’s wishes and God’s plans
+ Everything is – ultimately – for our well-being
+ But let us be on the alert to recognize the Lord coming into our lives often in very unexpected ways and through very unexpected people
+ Some of those we reject may be bringing – even unknown to themselves – a message from God that we need to hear and follow
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

HOMILY for October 27, 2019: 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C

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30^th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C

Sacred Heart Church, Island Park

October 27, 2019

Merton and Humility

By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato 

There was an American priest named Thomas Merton.

Merton died in 1968 at the age of fifty-three. Many of you may know that he was a contemplative monk – a member of the Trappist monastery in Kentucky. 

Merton wrote a number of books on spirituality and the spiritual life. These have had a significant impact on Catholics, other Christians and persons of all faith traditions.

Merton often reflects on the importance of the virtue of humility, on our being humble persons. In one place, he says this – just two sentences! 

“Humility is absolutely necessary, if one is going to avoid acting like a baby all one’s life.  To grow up, in fact, means to become humble, to throw away the illusion that I am the center of everything.”

 

Jesus and Humility

Jesus also talks about humility in today’s Gospel.

He tells a parable about two people in the temple.  The contrast between their attitudes and words and body postures is absolutely dramatic.

And then Jesus draws his teaching from this image by saying: “Those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”   

These words at first sound nice, pious, but also unrealistic. After all we do live in a culture where we have to promote or “exalt” ourselves, to use Jesus’ word, if we are going to get ahead or even just stay afloat.

And yet, the words remain – that we need to “humble ourselves,” to embrace humility, if we are to become the kind of persons Jesus calls us to flourish or grow in age and grace. We need to do this, if we are going to “grow up,” as Thomas Merton says, and become mature persons. 

Today I don’t want to give a definition of humility, but I do want to try to describe it from our own experience of it. As I see it, here are some of the things that this virtue can mean for us.

We Are Humble When… 

We are humble:

Ø  When we are like the tax collector in Jesus’ story and can admit our weaknesses and mistakes, things that we did that were wrong, harsh, or rash, 

OR:

Ø  When we can laugh at ourselves, at our own idiosyncrasies and foibles.

We are humble:

Ø  When we are not like the Pharisee in Jesus’ story and do not look down on others and see ourselves as better than they,

OR:

Ø  When we look at those who are different from us – in race or religion or culture or nationality or whatever – and see them as persons, as human beings with needs and feelings and hopes like our own.

We are humble:

Ø  When we are willing to look at our part in the breakdown of a relationship – and there is almost always an “our” part – and we do whatever we can on our side to work things out,

OR:

Ø  When I, as a priest or we as a Church, do not judge those who no longer come here and instead look at ourselves and ask how we could do ministry better to bring God more effectively to the twenty-first century.

And finally, we are humble:

Ø  When we listen to others while they are speaking and try to take in their ideas and feelings, 

OR: 

Ø  When we pause to think before we speak and not have to be first or the loudest in saying something.

Conclusion

I am sure there are more things we could say to describe humility in terms of our own experience of it.

Admittedly, this is not a popular or easy virtue. But I believe it is a personal trait we need to work at embracing, if we are to be disciples of Jesus and even, for that matter, if we are to become mature persons. 

Let’s just remember: Whether they be the words of Merton,“To grow up means to become humble and throw away the illusion that I am the center of everything” or the words of Jesus,“Those who humble themselves will be exalted, 

… both are sound pieces of advice!

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HOMILY for October 20, 2019: 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C

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29^th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C

Marriottsville Mass for Bon Secours Associates

October 20, 2019

The Ingredients of Faith 

By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato 

“Will he find faith…?” 

“When the Son of Man comes, will he find any faith on earth?”  

This is the very last sentence in today’s Gospel. At first, it may seem out of place.

Jesus has just told a story about a widowed woman who keeps asking a judge to render a fair decision in her dispute with someone. Here it is important to recall that women in Jesus’ day had no rights at all.

For example, they couldn’t own any property – including money. So, if a woman became widowed, the money and property – which her husband owned – did not belong to her, as it usually does in our culture.

Instead, it would go their son – if they had a son – or to some other male relative. The woman was left with nothing – impoverished, completely vulnerable.

So, in this parable, Jesus is talking about a widow. And we are told that she is persistent or persevering in seeking a just decision, and that is the point here – her perseverance.   

That is the context for Jesus’ statement: “When the Son of Man comes, will he find any faith on earth?” Jesus sees perseverance as central to faith, that is, the woman’s faith was the source of her perseverance. 

3 Ingredients of Faith 

This passage led me to recall a presentation that I recently heard about faith.

The presenter is a man named Don Bisson. He has been a religious Brother in our Church for fifty years.

Don Bisson has degrees in theology, spirituality, and psychology. He gives retreats and does spiritual direction.

Well, in his presentation, Brother Don says that there are three ingredients in becoming a person of real faith. These ingredients can be remembered by the letters I-P-A.

For those of us who enjoy beer, here I-P-A does not mean India Pale Ale. Instead, those letters stand for: 1) Insight, 2) Perseverance, and 3) Action.

1.   Insight

First, we need Insight.

We need an understanding of ourselves as being created and loved by God. We need a vision that someday we will return to God and come to the fullness of life.

And we need an idea of how to live on this earthly journey by loving God and loving others as we love ourselves. So, we need this Insight. 

But, Brother Don insists, this Insight is not enough. In fact, psychology can give us Insight, but we need more than that to become full persons of faith.

Left alone, by itself, Insight leaves us incomplete. It is not enough for the long run of life. 

2.   Perseverance

We also need Perseverance.

This isn’t always easy for us. We live in a culture that likes quick-fixes to things. 

We want our chipped tooth fixed and a crown put on it right away, and on it goes. So, Perseverance can be difficult for us.

But we need this, for example, when we are working through problems in a marriage or friendship. Those problems usually take time to sort out and resolve.

Because of that, we need to draw upon the power and grace of God to help us. This is the Perseverance that we will need all throughout our lives.

It is an essential ingredient of faith and it helps us to become the kind of person God wants to be. The woman in today’s gospel is a great example of this.

3.   Action

And that leads to final ingredient: Action.

The idea is that faith is not just a God-and-me thing. We are to share it by our words and definitely by our deeds.

So, we are to do what we can to assist those in need in our families and our community – like our parish community. And we are also to care for those who are on “the margins of life,” to use Pope Francis’ expression. 

This would include people fleeing where they have lived and seeking life or simply survival in another country. If nothing else, we act by at least praying for them. 

Action like this helps to make our faith complete. 

Conclusion

So, I-P-A – not India Pale Ale, but 

(1) Insight

(2) Perseverance 

(3) Action

that is our I-P-A today. 

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