Tuesday, January 19, 2021

 Tuesday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time

(Hebrews 6:10-20; Mark 2:23-28)

A young man was criticizing the Church’s emphasis on eternal life.  He thought that it would not bring many of his generation to practice their faith.  Better, he said, to stress community and social action.  These latter pursuits form parts of the Catholic agenda.  But the Church can hardly prioritize them over eternal life.  The latter rises from the depths of our souls and gives meaning to God’s love for us.  Today’s reading from Hebrews keeps eternal life first and foremost on the Christian agenda.

The author begins by exhorting the addressees to cherish the promise of eternal life.  He then argues biblically that God will bestow eternal life on those who believe until the end.  He also calls the hope of eternal life an “anchor” or mainstay to keep believers on track.  Finally, he sees Jesus as both a model and an instrument of the Christian’s gaining eternal life.

Eternal life sounds to many like “pie in the sky.”  They see other purposes for religion like identity and social solidarity.  These latter pursuits deserve attention since they form part of the reality that is the Church.  However, eternal life is the deepest truth of faith that biblical religion has taught.  Hope of it has resulted in unparalleled accomplishments for the Church.  First, the Church has existed – despite persecution and corruption – for almost two thousand years.  Second, the Church has created an understanding of reality that is as profound as it is comprehensive. And, most of all, the Church has nurtured countless men and women to live wonderfully good lives. 

Thursday, April 2, 2020

Thursday of the Fifth Week of Lent

(Genesis 17:3-9; John 8:51-59)

A friend once expressed the wonder of seeing young people smoke and in other ways defy death.  He was telling the story of a person who was “twenty-one, drunk, and never going to die.”  Would that we could stave off death indefinitely!  But we cannot, and for this reason many are curtailing livelihood, companionship, and recreation in face of the Corona-19 virus.  Yet sooner or later we all die.  And then what is there?   In today’s gospel Jesus provides a way to overcome not death itself, but its permanence.

Jesus tells the people that if they keep his word, they “’will never see death.’”   He means that death will not wash away their existence forever.  He is promising them eternal life with the resurrection of the dead.   He offers as witness to the truth of his statement the patriarch Abraham.  Abraham is alive for the faith he held.  It is the same faith that Jesus preaches (his word).

Keeping the word of Jesus, we love one another as he loved us.  In the supper he shared with his friends the night before he died, Jesus gives more specific instructions.  We are to wash one another’s feet.  No, not literally, but figuratively.  We are to always help one another, even inconveniencing ourselves doing so. 

Thursday, March 21, 2013

Thursday of the Fifth Week in Lent

(Genesis 17:3-9; John 8:51-59)

It’s ten o’clock on Saturday morning, and your eldest son Bobby is bouncing down the stairs for breakfast.  He has slept through the promise he made his younger brother to take him to soccer practice.  You ask coolly, “Have you had enough sleep, Robert?”   Of course, you are not really concerned about his health.  Your ironic question intends to make your son aware that he has failed to do as he said.  The Gospel of John frequently uses irony in such a way.

It is ironic that the Jews in the gospel today say, “Abraham died as did the prophets, yet you say, ‘Whoever keeps my word will never taste death.’”  They lack understanding that Jesus is speaking of eternal life whose fullness comes with the resurrection at the end of time.

We need not be particularly hard on the Jews in the gospel for not appreciating eternal life.  Its significance escapes most of us.  It is not merely life without end.  Nor is it spiritual life as some envisage a colony of ghosts in heaven.  Eternal life is new, extraordinary, almost unimaginable.  At the same time, recalling glimpses of the resurrected Jesus, we can say that it is conscious, corporal, and joyous.  We might compare it to hearing Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with a chorus 100,000 strong, but it is really beyond our comprehension.  We can only wait in hope to experience it.

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Tuesday of the Thirty-second Week in Ordinary Time

(Wisdom 2:23-3:9; Luke 17:7-10)

The Book of Wisdom was probably composed in the century before Christ in Alexandria, Egypt. In some ways the Jews in that context were dealing with the same challenges Christians face today. Individualism was on the rise along with skepticism and general dissatisfaction concerning traditional beliefs. Formerly religious people were turning to paganism and secular philosophy in order to thwart the threat of persecution. The author of Wisdom searched ancient texts for remedies to these challenges. He maintained by living righteously according to the Law, Jews could be assured of eternal life.

This sounds like Christianity's message, but there is a critical difference. Jesus promises much more than the eternal existence of the soul flying around like a spark in a fire. His resurrection from the dead offers followers the prospect of glorified bodies. They are to enjoy the wonders of physical creation without the maladies that corporality in its current mode inevitably bears.

Wisdom's message is especially timely in this month of November when we remember our beloved dead. It shores up our hope for eventual reunion as it points to the moment in eternity when we will all huddle together in familiarity and joy.

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Thursday of the Fifth Week in Lent

(Genesis 17:3-9; John 8:51-59)

It’s ten o’clock Saturday morning, and your eldest son Bobby is bouncing down the stairs for breakfast. He has slept through the promise he made his younger brother to take him to soccer practice. You ask coolly, “Have you had enough sleep, Robert?” Of course, you are not really concerned about his health. Your question ironically intends to make your son aware that he has failed to keep his promise. The Gospel of John frequently uses such irony.

It is ironic for the Jews in the gospel today to say, “Abraham died as did the prophets, yet you say, ‘Whoever keeps my word will never taste death.’” They lack understanding that Jesus is speaking of eternal life whose fullness comes with the resurrection at the end of time.

We need not be hard on the Jews in the gospel for not appreciating eternal life. Its significance escapes many of us as well. It is not merely life without end. Nor is it spiritual life as some envisage a colony of ghosts in heaven. Eternal life is new, extraordinary, challenging to the imagination. At the same time recalling glimpses of the resurrected Jesus, we can say that it is conscious, corporal, and joyous. We might compare it to witnessing Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with a finale of fireworks, but it is really beyond ourselves to comprehend. We can only wait in hope to experience it.

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Memorial of St. Bonaventure, bishop and Doctor of the Church

(Isaiah 26:7-9.12.16-19; Matthew 11:28-30)

Is the resurrection from the dead a Christian idea or does it have origins in pre-Christian times? This question gives many people pause as they are afraid that eternal life is too great a prize to be hoped for. There may be little evidence in the Torah, the primordial Hebrew Scriptures, on eternal life, but in the reading from Isaiah today we do find testimony to its standing in Israel.

In an encomium to righteousness, Isaiah tells us that those who have lived close to the Lord will not lie in the dust forever. Rather, he says, their corpses will rise from the dead like the dew flushes the earth with life. Then they will live forever in the light of God. The writings of St. Bonaventure express how this happens. “We cannot rise above ourselves,” he states, “unless a higher power lifts us up.” Who but God, the Lord of creation, is this “higher power”?

Homilette for Tuesday, May 6, 2008

Tuesday of the Seventh Week of Easter

(John 17:1-11)

A celebrated painting by the Renaissance master Ghirlandaio shows a boy embracing his grandfather. The old man has a bulbous, deformed nose that might elicit repulsion. But the lad gazes at him with affection. The grandfather also looks on his descendent with love. The title of this painting is simply “An Old Man and His Grandson.” But we might also call it, “A Picture of Eternal Life.”

In his encyclical on hope Pope Benedict mentions that we do not have an adequate idea of eternal life. As a matter of fact, the pope indicates, the term may confuse people who think of eternal as interminable and life as trouble. He suggests that we think of eternal life as “...the supreme moment of satisfaction in which totality embraces us and we embrace totality.” That’s more than a mouthful, but Ghirlandaio manages to capture this moment in his scene of the boy and the old man embracing.

In today’s gospel Jesus confirms this understanding of eternal life. He says that it is to know the one true God and Jesus Christ whom he has sent. By “knowing God,” he does not mean intellectual knowledge of God but intimate union with Him. Jesus adds that he has revealed the name of the Father to his disciples. He means that he has shown them the great “I Am.” This name expresses totality -- what Pope Benedict tells us to look for in eternal life. We anticipate then as our journey through this world ends a loving embrace with Him who encompasses all that is.

Homilette for April 9, 2008

Wednesday of the Third Week of Easter

(John 6:35-40)

People do not want to die. They seek the best medical care available to extend their lives as long as possible. For this reason every year American health care costs grow by almost 10 percent. Of course, this rate of increase cannot be sustained forever. People still have to buy groceries, pay the mortgage, and purchase gasoline. As a matter of fact, our society seems to be approaching the limit of what it can afford for medical treatment. Then what? Jesus offers us an alternative in the gospel today.

Jesus promises eternal life to those who believe in him. He does not say here that believers will not die but that he will raise them up on the last day. As we would inquire about a medical insurance policy, we have to ask what we must do to believe in him. The simple answer to this question is that we must follow his ways implicitly. We must love others as he has loved us. We must sacrifice our comforts and even our well-being if he calls us to do so.

Some people would undergo grueling and expensive treatment to squeeze a few more months out of their lives. This choice is not as wrong as it may be unwise. Christians believe that they are much better off to pay less attention to physical treatment and more to how they might follow Christ more closely. His promise, after all, is not just a short period of intense struggle as death closes in. No, he assures us that we will relive forever the best time of our life.

Homilette for April 3, 2008

Thursday of the Second Week of Easter

(John 3:31-36)

We should take note of who is speaking in this gospel. It sounds somewhat like Jesus himself. We may remember the gospel passage yesterday where Jesus tells Nicodemus that “’God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.” Today’s passage is remarkably similar. The speaker proclaims, “’Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever disobeys the Son will not see life...’” The speaker, however, is John, whom we call “the Baptist.”

The reading does not give us the context of John’s testimony, but we can easily find it by referring to the whole gospel. Jesus has left Jerusalem and gone into the country of Judea where John is baptizing. The text shows Jesus baptizing many people and John’s disciples worried that Jesus is encroaching on John’s turf. However, John -- the true prophet that he is -- offers no protest. On the contrary, he utters his famous submission, “He (Jesus) must increase; I must decrease.”

Today’s gospel lays out a challenge for us. What is the “eternal life” it speaks of in comparison to the many ways we have to gratify ourselves? Is it better than high definition television, central air and heating, vacation cruises? Perhaps more to the point, can we be assured of “eternal life” as much as modern luxuries are affordable to us? Our celebration of Easter buoys us up so that we might answer these questions with sense and conviction. “Eternal life” is companionship with the risen one. It far exceeds anything the world has to offer because it provides a joy not limited to time and space. Just as surely as Jesus rose from the dead, we will experience “eternal life” when we, like John, submit to him.

Homilette for Tuesday, May 22, 2007

Tuesday, VII Easter

(John 17)

Early this month the Queen of England, Elizabeth II, visited the United States. She came as a successor to the monarch who originally sent colonists to Virginia 400 years ago. But Elizabeth II is recognized as an accomplished leader in her own right. Much more than occupying the throne for over fifty years, she has shown herself to be a model of wisdom and justice. People will say that she lives in glory.

In Queen Elizabeth we see a glimpse of the glory that Jesus seeks in today’s gospel passage. The hour has come for his death, resurrection, and ascension into heaven. When this takes place, he will enjoy the glory of God the Father. All the words he preached will be fulfilled. All the suffering he will have endured will be vindicated. Evidence of his glory will be the eternal life that his disciples will receive. They will know God the Father and the Son by keeping their commands and enjoying their protection.

We likewise are beneficiaries of eternal life. We no longer need to have any anxieties about life or death. Remaining close to him by constant prayer, we will find no more appeal in the world’s seductions – Internet porn, talk of easy money, flattery of the people – than raincoats in the sun. Neither will we find death threatening. It will not mean leaving behind old associates but being introduced into the company of even dearer friends.