Wednesday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time
(Genesis 21:5.8-20a; Matthew 8:28-34)
The townspeople of the gospel today seem like ingrates after Jesus relieves them of a public menace. They beg Jesus to leave their territory because he has cast out demons from two men who threatened travelers. But these people, who are pagan, may be just unsure of who Jesus is. Obviously he has supernatural power. Will he now use it against them? They simply do not want to take any chances.
Much of Matthew’s gospel probes the question, who is Jesus? His words calm storms and heal people’s lifelong illnesses. His teaching based on purity of heart possesses an authority that converts prostitutes and swindlers to righteousness. Jews as well as pagans wonder about the nature of this authority. Near the end the aristocracy of Jerusalem condemns him to death as an enemy of the people. But the final verdict is made by an objective observer, the pagan soldier who after seeing Jesus suffer nobly, declares, “Truly, this was the son of God.”
Many today wonder not so much about Jesus's identity but about the legacy he has left. They question whether Christians truly live the righteousness that Jesus taught. Although Christian virtue is bountifully manifest in figures like St. Francis, there is always evidence of coexistent vice. By daily pursuing the good in his name, we give mounting evidence that Jesus is truly the son of God.
Homilette for Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Tuesday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time
(Genesis19:15-29; Matthew 8:23-27)
It may seem like the lesson of Sodom is one of revulsion with homosexual behavior. Remembering the context of the story, we realize that the angels warn Lot to flee the city before God annihilates it out of outrage from the townsmen’s attempt to violate Lot’s guests. But as often happens in Genesis, the wisdom is more profound than what first meets the eye.
When the three strangers visited Abraham in the country, he welcomed them like kings. He gave them water to refresh their skin and a feast to recover inner forces. Now in the city of Sodom, Lot similarly treats two of the same travelers, but his neighbors threaten them. Indeed, the men of Sodom move to rape the travelers as apparently is their custom. Lot in a rather foolish effort to protect his guests offers the men his virgin daughters, but the Sodomites reject the women.
The men of Sodom, like those of Babel earlier in Genesis, demonstrate the corruption of the city. City dwellers conspire to advance their knowledge and technology, but their progress leads them astray. They become arrogant which is to say that city-dwellers see themselves as independent of God’s authority. Not accountable to a higher power, they take advantage of those who are not their own but still represent the Creator’s handiwork. This turning inward on themselves causes the men of Sodom to even despise women. There is no antidote for such barbarity. God must destroy them completely. Although it is a hard lesson, city dwellers must develop a righteous fear of God to accompany their advancement in science.
(Genesis19:15-29; Matthew 8:23-27)
It may seem like the lesson of Sodom is one of revulsion with homosexual behavior. Remembering the context of the story, we realize that the angels warn Lot to flee the city before God annihilates it out of outrage from the townsmen’s attempt to violate Lot’s guests. But as often happens in Genesis, the wisdom is more profound than what first meets the eye.
When the three strangers visited Abraham in the country, he welcomed them like kings. He gave them water to refresh their skin and a feast to recover inner forces. Now in the city of Sodom, Lot similarly treats two of the same travelers, but his neighbors threaten them. Indeed, the men of Sodom move to rape the travelers as apparently is their custom. Lot in a rather foolish effort to protect his guests offers the men his virgin daughters, but the Sodomites reject the women.
The men of Sodom, like those of Babel earlier in Genesis, demonstrate the corruption of the city. City dwellers conspire to advance their knowledge and technology, but their progress leads them astray. They become arrogant which is to say that city-dwellers see themselves as independent of God’s authority. Not accountable to a higher power, they take advantage of those who are not their own but still represent the Creator’s handiwork. This turning inward on themselves causes the men of Sodom to even despise women. There is no antidote for such barbarity. God must destroy them completely. Although it is a hard lesson, city dwellers must develop a righteous fear of God to accompany their advancement in science.
Homilette for Monday, June 29, 2009
The Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles
(Acts 12:1-11; II Timothy 4:6-8.17-18)
One of the most interesting tours available in Rome is a visit to the scavi (that is Italian for diggings) behind St. Peter’s Basilica. Partakers descend not only below the earth but through time learning on the way both Church and Roman history. The climax of the journey is a little vault directly beneath the altar of the basilica where the bones of the chief apostle are believed kept. No one can verify that the remains actually belonged to St. Peter, but an argument can be made for it.
We can be sure that Peter stayed in Rome, but what he did there is uncertain. If he was commissioned to preach the gospel to all nations, would he have spent his time overseeing the affairs of the local church? More likely he used Rome as an itinerant preacher today prefers to live in proximity of an airport facilitating travel in any direction. Paul, we might remember, told the Romans in his letter that his stop there would be a stepping stone to Spain. In time, however, the bishops who assumed direction of the Church of Rome also took on the task of managing apostolic endeavors the world over.
We should not forget just how good the news of the gospel is. Added to the promise of eternal life, hearers of the gospel are invited into a community of equality, freedom of spirit, and genuine care for their well-being. Today we celebrate the two most illustrious preachers of the gospel. Both paid for the privilege with martyrdom. It is an occasion for all Christians to give thanks to God.
(Acts 12:1-11; II Timothy 4:6-8.17-18)
One of the most interesting tours available in Rome is a visit to the scavi (that is Italian for diggings) behind St. Peter’s Basilica. Partakers descend not only below the earth but through time learning on the way both Church and Roman history. The climax of the journey is a little vault directly beneath the altar of the basilica where the bones of the chief apostle are believed kept. No one can verify that the remains actually belonged to St. Peter, but an argument can be made for it.
We can be sure that Peter stayed in Rome, but what he did there is uncertain. If he was commissioned to preach the gospel to all nations, would he have spent his time overseeing the affairs of the local church? More likely he used Rome as an itinerant preacher today prefers to live in proximity of an airport facilitating travel in any direction. Paul, we might remember, told the Romans in his letter that his stop there would be a stepping stone to Spain. In time, however, the bishops who assumed direction of the Church of Rome also took on the task of managing apostolic endeavors the world over.
We should not forget just how good the news of the gospel is. Added to the promise of eternal life, hearers of the gospel are invited into a community of equality, freedom of spirit, and genuine care for their well-being. Today we celebrate the two most illustrious preachers of the gospel. Both paid for the privilege with martyrdom. It is an occasion for all Christians to give thanks to God.
Homilette for Friday, June 26, 2009
Friday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time
(Genesis 17:1.9-10.15-22; Matthew 8:1-4)
As a newly ordained priest the biblical scholar Raymond E. Brown told his pastor on January 1 that he intended to preach on the circumcision. “Ah, you’re not going to do that, are you?” the pastor replied as if even the circumcision of Jesus was a sordid subject. “I most certainly am,” Fr. Brown asserted. All of us, I imagine, would be interested in what he would say about today’s first reading.
Circumcision is a custom older than Abraham. Pagan societies circumcised young men as a sign of sexual potency and the coming of age. But when Abraham and his descendants circumcise their infants, a very different meaning is conveyed. The principal characters are the father and mother of the circumcised, not the boy himself. They demonstrate how carrying out a rite mandated by God does not flaunt sexual prowess but restricts it. The act indicates their intention of raising the child in every way that the Lord commands. Indeed, circumcision implies that the parents do not own their son but that he is a gift from God entrusted to their care.
It may not seem right that this sacred rite is reserved for males. However, we need to take note that the Bible is not concerned about equality in the same way as western humanity. The sad fact is that men need this reminder of duty and chastity much more than woman since nature allows them to distance themselves from the actual birthing of children. Perhaps it is significant that Baptism, which functions in ways similar to circumcision, is obligatory for female as well as male Christians. We recognize the tendency to sin in everyone and the way out of sin’s morass is not through reminding a person of his or her duty but through movement with the Spirit who comes by means of the water.
(Genesis 17:1.9-10.15-22; Matthew 8:1-4)
As a newly ordained priest the biblical scholar Raymond E. Brown told his pastor on January 1 that he intended to preach on the circumcision. “Ah, you’re not going to do that, are you?” the pastor replied as if even the circumcision of Jesus was a sordid subject. “I most certainly am,” Fr. Brown asserted. All of us, I imagine, would be interested in what he would say about today’s first reading.
Circumcision is a custom older than Abraham. Pagan societies circumcised young men as a sign of sexual potency and the coming of age. But when Abraham and his descendants circumcise their infants, a very different meaning is conveyed. The principal characters are the father and mother of the circumcised, not the boy himself. They demonstrate how carrying out a rite mandated by God does not flaunt sexual prowess but restricts it. The act indicates their intention of raising the child in every way that the Lord commands. Indeed, circumcision implies that the parents do not own their son but that he is a gift from God entrusted to their care.
It may not seem right that this sacred rite is reserved for males. However, we need to take note that the Bible is not concerned about equality in the same way as western humanity. The sad fact is that men need this reminder of duty and chastity much more than woman since nature allows them to distance themselves from the actual birthing of children. Perhaps it is significant that Baptism, which functions in ways similar to circumcision, is obligatory for female as well as male Christians. We recognize the tendency to sin in everyone and the way out of sin’s morass is not through reminding a person of his or her duty but through movement with the Spirit who comes by means of the water.
Homilette for Thursday, June 25, 2009
Thursday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time
(Genesis 16:1-12.15-16; Matthew 7:21-29)
Children like to fantasize about deathbed conversion. They ask their religion teachers about the possibility of living a life of leisure, then confessing their sins just before they check out, and finally experiencing even greater comforts in heaven. In this way they would defy their mothers’ chastisement, “You can’t have your cake and eat it too.” But today’s gospel shows mother’s wisdom to be on target after all.
When Jesus says that not everyone praying, “Lord, Lord,” will enter heaven, he has in mind those who think that they might reach salvation by only calling upon God. Rather, he adds, the sincere attempt to put into practice what he has just taught in the Sermon on the Mount is also required. We should emphasize that he is not denying the necessity of prayer as if we might meet the challenges of the Sermon by the force of our will. No, sooner or later, we realize that the tenets of Jesus’ Sermon are beyond even the best of us. We need God’s gracious hand in order to fulfill them, and we need his merciful arm to reach down for us when we fail to do so.
(Genesis 16:1-12.15-16; Matthew 7:21-29)
Children like to fantasize about deathbed conversion. They ask their religion teachers about the possibility of living a life of leisure, then confessing their sins just before they check out, and finally experiencing even greater comforts in heaven. In this way they would defy their mothers’ chastisement, “You can’t have your cake and eat it too.” But today’s gospel shows mother’s wisdom to be on target after all.
When Jesus says that not everyone praying, “Lord, Lord,” will enter heaven, he has in mind those who think that they might reach salvation by only calling upon God. Rather, he adds, the sincere attempt to put into practice what he has just taught in the Sermon on the Mount is also required. We should emphasize that he is not denying the necessity of prayer as if we might meet the challenges of the Sermon by the force of our will. No, sooner or later, we realize that the tenets of Jesus’ Sermon are beyond even the best of us. We need God’s gracious hand in order to fulfill them, and we need his merciful arm to reach down for us when we fail to do so.
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