The Baptism of the Lord (Gospel: Matt 3:13-17)

 

The baptism of Jesus (by Eoin Madigan)

Peter said to the people, ‘In truth I see that God shows no partiality. Rather in every nation, whoever fears him and does what is right, is acceptable to him.’ (Acts 10:34-35).

 

Cultural differences are interesting. What is acceptable to us, can be totally unacceptable in other cultures. When I was living in Rome, I learnt that in Italy the people will be very conscious of how much you drink as a priest. In a restaurant they will count every drink you have. In Ireland people don’t think about it and in fact will be quite tolerant, even if the priest has a drink problem. Complete opposites.

 

My friend bishop Michael Gokum in Nigeria, told me that in Nigeria, giving Holy Communion with the left hand would be considered very offensive. They would also consider it very inappropriate for a priest to be in a restaurant. Neither of those things would cost us a thought.

 

In the second reading today St. Peter says he realised how anyone can be acceptable to God if they do what is right. That might seem obvious enough to us, but it wasn’t obvious to them at that time. The Jewish people believed that they were specially chosen by God, which they were and that meant anyone else who was not Jewish was not so important to God. But then the Lord began to teach the Apostles that He was there for everyone, of every nationality and creed. It took them a while to come around to this way of thinking. In fact the first few times some Gentiles (non-Jews) received the gift of the Spirit, the Apostles were quite surprised. They hadn’t expected this. They didn’t think that Gentiles would be given the gift of the Spirit. God was helping them to gradually broaden their horizons. Everyone, of every nationality and creed was being called into God’s family. The Lord was helping the Apostles to see a bigger picture, but as with most of us, this happens gradually.

 

Everyone is called to be part of God’s people and all are welcome, however, that doesn’t mean that anything goes. There is a thinking today that everyone should be welcome in the Church and should be able to continue their life-style, whether it is in accordance with God’s teaching or not. That is not what Jesus taught. The Apostles preached faith in Jesus Christ and repentance for sin. Jesus’ first words in his preaching were, “Repent, for the Kingdom of God is at hand” (Matt 4:17). Turn away from sin. Christ died for our sins and we are called to be in relationship with him, but we are also called to repent of sinful ways of living, ways which are not in accord with God’s teaching. Our culture is demanding that we accept everyone’s lifestyle, regardless of whether it is sinful or not. That is not what Christ preached. Immoral sexual behaviour is not acceptable to God and the Apostles were very strong in their preaching about this. Listen to what St. Paul wrote:

‘Of this you can be sure: no immoral, impure or greedy person (that is an idolater) has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God’ (Eph 5:5).

 

‘The acts of the flesh are obvious, sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and sorcery, hatred and discord, envy, drunkenness, orgies and the like. I warn you as I did before, no one who practices such things will enter the kingdom of God’ (Gal 5:19-21).

 

That means that sexual sins are serious and we must repent of them ourselves and encourage others to do the same: homosexual sin, heterosexual sin, sexual sin outside of marriage (fornication), pornography and every other kind of impurity. All of these are offensive to God. ‘Oh, but we might offend people if we say anything.’ Is it better to warn people of the possibility of losing eternal life with God because of sin, or to be quiet in case we offend someone? because that is what it comes down to. Jesus’ own words: ‘It is not those who say to me, “Lord, Lord”, who will enter the kingdom of heaven, but those who do the will of my Father in heaven’ (Matt &:21). You often hear people say, “I love God and I’m a good person.” That’s nice, but am I doing the will of the Father in heaven? because that’s what matters.

 

It is interesting that one of the things that attracted people to Christianity at the beginning, was their way of life, which didn’t allow every kind of immoral behaviour and sexual deviance, because the Christians understood that we have a higher calling from God, that shows us that our bodies are not meant for any kind of behaviour, but a life of purity, which recognizes the dignity that God has given us. The Roman Empire was morally bankrupt, very similar to our society today and as a result it imploded and destroyed itself. People were drawn to Christianity because they didn’t want to accept this way of life. Instinctively people knew this wasn’t right, because the Spirit teaches us what is right.

 

In 1917 Our Lady told the three children in Fatima that the current war, which was WWI, would soon end, but that if there wasn’t repentance a worse war would follow. It seems there wasn’t repentance and the Second World War followed. In WWI it is estimated that about 20 million people died. In WWII it is estimated that about 70 to 80 million people died, because there wasn’t repentance for sin. That is how serious sin is. People are inclined to say that God would never punish us, but that’s not what is in the Scriptures. Many times the world, or different places, became so sinful in their behaviour, that God wiped them out. It is God’s world, not ours. We are God’s creation, not our own and we are accountable for what we do.

 

Everyone struggles with sin. That is normal and God assures us of his forgiveness and mercy if we repent, so we should never be afraid of our own weaknesses and struggles. But there is a big difference between falling into sin and living a double life. To persist in a lifestyle that is contrary to God’s teaching and then expect God’s love and mercy is naïve and it is not what the word of God says. Everyone is welcome in the Church, but not everything goes. Our culture is demanding that we accept everyone’s lifestyle, even if it is immoral. That is not what the word of God teaches and we have to resist it and we will be despised for it and called bigots and small-minded, but it won’t be the first time.

 

After Jesus was Baptised in the Jordan there was a vision of the Spirit coming down on him in the form of a dove. The Father in heaven was empowering him with the gift of the Spirit, to enable him to live the mission that the Father had given him, to teach the people about God and to offer himself for the sins of the world. The Spirit gave him the strength and wisdom He needed for this difficult mission. It says that after his baptism, Jesus was led to the desert for 40 days, for a time of testing.

 

When we are baptised we receive God’s grace and the gift of the Spirit to enable us to live the Christian life. The path to God is not a way of life that we can easily live, by our own strength. It is difficult, but that is why God gives us the gift of his Spirit to help us.

 

When we are baptised, we state what it is we believe and we commit ourselves to this way of faith. Baptism is choice for God. That’s why every Sunday we say the Creed: ‘I believe in God the Father…’ We are stating what we believe and what we have chosen. If you were baptised as a child, someone else will have spoken on your behalf, but they do this on condition that they will pass on the faith as we grow up, otherwise it would be hypocrisy. If someone comes for baptism as an adult, they must go through a time of learning about our faith, which we call the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults (OCIA). We have several people in this parish doing it this year and they will be fully accepted into the Church at Easter. They go through about six months of instruction and only when they understand the faith properly will they be baptised.

 

In the Church, everyone is welcome, but not everything goes and I think that this passage from the Old Testament speaks to us today about this very calling:

 

‘If my people who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and I will forgive their sin and bless their land.’s (2 Chron 7:14)

 

‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.’

 

 

The Epiphany (Matthew 2:1-12) All peoples of all religions will recognise Jesus Christ as Lord

 

The great 20^th century theologian Karl Rahner (1904-84), wrote, ‘The Christian of the future will either be a mystic, or will not exist at all.’ We are called to be mystics, that is, to continually seek and be open to what is spiritual and mystical. Sometimes I think we can be too inclined to ‘explain away’ everything in our faith, when in fact it is very mysterious and should be.

 

St. Thomas Aquinas, who died in 1274, was another extraordinary theologian and wrote a vast amount on theology, still used today. Towards the end of his life he had a vision of heaven and after it, referring to his work, he said, ‘All is straw.’ He was so overwhelmed by what he saw, that all his writings seemed meaningless.

 

The truth is that God continues to speak to us in unexpected and mystical ways. And God will continue to draw us closer to himself, as long as we remain open to that journey. St. Teresa of Avila (1515-1582), a 16^th century mystic, said that the Lord will bring us to the greatest union with him in this life, as long as we remain open to it. She said the only thing that prevents us from reaching the deepest union with God, is our own fear and unwillingness to go any farther. God wants us to be as united with him as is possible in this life. Why doesn’t that happen to more people? Because we become afraid and want to put the brakes on. It is easier to settle for a basic understanding and practice of our faith and not go any farther.

 

The feast of the Epiphany is the feast of Christ being revealed to the world. The three wise men, or astrologers, were led to where Christ was. They are supposed to have come from different countries, pagan countries, who did not know the true God. They were astrologers (those who study horoscopes!), which is expressly forbidden in the Scriptures.

Let no one be found among you who sacrifices their son or daughter in the

fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in

witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord. (Deut 18:10-14)

 

The Magi (possibly ZoroAstrian priests) represent all the peoples of the world since they were not Jewish, but came from pagan nations who did not know the true God. It is a way of saying that Jesus’ coming is for all peoples of all religions and race. All people will recognise that Jesus is the Son of God. God guided them through what they were involved in, astrology, which was how they were searching for God. It is a reminder to us that God can and does use all and every means to speak to us and draw people closer to himself.

 

The three gifts are symbolic. Gold is the symbol of a king. Jesus is a king, the King of kings and the master of the whole universe. The use of frankincense is a sign of recognising a divinity, or God. Jesus is Son of God, the second person of the Godhead. And myrrh is a perfume that represents the suffering He will go through to win eternal life for the human race. 

 

If you think of most of the figures in the Bible who had anything to do with Christmas, they all had mystical experiences which led them closer to God. The angel Gabriel appeared to Mary; he also appeared to Joseph. Angels appeared to the shepherds and a star guided the three kings or Magi.

 

Different events and experiences often open people’s hearts to God. Sometimes it is through a crisis, such as sickness, or the death of a loved one, that gets us thinking differently. Many times I have seen people deciding to come back to Church after the death of someone close to them, because it has got them thinking about the more important things and that is always good. The Spirit keeps calling us to search for God. What is important is that we keep searching and remain open. It is good that we ask questions about what we believe in. I believe and accept that the Scriptures and the teachings of our Church are from God and I submit to them, but I will continue to ask questions. The more searching I do, the more my faith grows.

 

Each week when we come to the mass, we come to an encounter with God which Jesus revealed to us, which is why we never change it. That’s also why the time before mass is not just the time for a social gathering, but the time for us to prepare for this wonderful encounter with God through the Scriptures and the Eucharist. God wants us to come to him and hear him and this is one of the most wonderful ways that He helps us to do that.

 

It might seem a bit arrogant of us to say that all people will recognise that Jesus Christ is Lord, the Son of God. That seems to imply that we are right and that everyone else is wrong, but that is not the case. People of different religions have very different understandings of God and God speaks to all people through different religions. Even for those who never come to know Jesus in this lifetime, they still have eternal life won for them by the death and resurrection of Christ and eternal life is still offered to them through Jesus, just as it is to us. When they die they will see this at once. They will know immediately who Jesus is and what He has done for us.

 

Although we lost the possibility of eternal life with God through what we call Original Sin, God regained the possibility of eternal life for us through the death and resurrection of Jesus. We can accept or reject this gift individually and we do this through our faith. All people are offered this possibility regardless of whether they come to know of God in this life or not, but it is not as if there is a neutral ground for those who do not believe. We accept life with God when we die, which will be our total fulfilment, or we lose it forever if we reject God and that is the choice we must make.  

 

This is also where our conscience is so important, because even if we never hear of God during our life, God speaks to us through our conscience, giving us a basic understanding of what is right and wrong. Our faith and the teachings of Jesus through the Church, give us a better understanding of what is right and wrong. All of the decisions that we make throughout our life are bringing us closer to, or driving us farther away, from God.

 

As Christians, we are the people who recognise that Jesus is the Son of God and has done all these things for us. We consider ourselves blessed that God has made himself known to us in this way, but it doesn’t mean that we have a better chance of going to heaven than anyone else. That depends completely on how we live our life. When we die we will realise that all this is really true. And when other people of different religions die, they will also recognise that Jesus Christ is Lord. What is important for them is to live their faith as well as they can, just as it is for us.

 

In the Acts of the Apostles, Peter had a vision while he was praying. This was in the early days of the Church, when they were still trying to figure out whether only the Jews were saved, or the Gentiles as well. Peter said he saw what looked like a large sheet being let down from heaven, filled with all kinds of birds, reptiles and animals. Then he heard a voice say, ‘Get up Peter, kill and eat,’ but he replied, ‘Certainly not Lord, I have never eaten anything impure, or unclean. Then he heard the voice say, ‘Do not call anything impure that God has made clean’ (Acts 10:13-16). This was repeated three times. Later he explained this vision and said, ‘So I have come to realize that God has no partiality, but that anyone who fears God and does what is right is acceptable to him.’

 

Sometimes people are critical of missionary work, where missionaries go to poorer countries and preach the Gospel to people who may not have heard it. People will argue that they shouldn’t be talking about faith, but only helping them with material needs, but this is not true.

 

The Lord sent the Apostles out and said, ‘Go teach all nations and baptize them…’ (Matt 28:19). No one has to accept the faith, we are all free to do what we want, but everyone should know what God has done for us. God wants all people to know what He has done for us and He has entrusted us with the mission of passing on that message and it is a really important mission. St. Paul writes, ‘Woe to me if I do not preach the Gospel.’ (1 Cor 9:16). Woe to me as a priest, if I do not pass on this message. That is a very important part of what I am called to and God will hold me accountable.

 

The best way for any of us to proclaim the Gospel, is by living it as well as we can ourselves. Personal witness is the best preaching. You don’t have to say anything. St. Peter also writes: ‘Always be ready to give a reason for the hope that you have. But always do it with curtesy and respect.’ (1 Pet 3:15)

 

Meanwhile we pray that all peoples will come to recognise that Jesus Christ is Lord, because this is the truth which God has revealed to us. Either way we try to respect people who believe differently to us and remember that they are also children of God.

 

 

Every knee shall bow

in heaven, on earth and under the earth

and every tongue confess

that Jesus Christ is Lord,

to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:10-11)

 

 

Feast of the Holy Family (Gospel: Matt 2:13-15, 19-23) Our imperfect families

 

My family lived in Dublin until I was six years old. One time when I was about five I was brought to a party of a school friend, but for some reason I decided that I didn’t like the party and that I wanted to go home. I figured that the best way to do this was secretly. So I told my friend that I would hide out in the yard and that he should come and try to find me after a few minutes. When I got outside I climbed over the wall, made my escape and headed home. The only problem was that I had no idea how to get home. So I headed off and asked a mail-man how to get to York Road, in Dun Laoghaire, where we lived. He looked at me suspiciously, but told me where to go. When I finally arrived home I found a big police motorbike in the front drive. The police officer looked out the door and said, ‘It’s ok. We have found him.’ Maybe that’s where my love of motorcycles began! Everyone was out looking for me. My poor parents were not the better for this experience.  Family life is not easy.

 

This is a feast day which I think can often make us feel disappointed with our own families, although we don’t admit it, because it seems to tell us that our families are not what they should be. Things go wrong and we drive each other crazy. Someone gets into trouble and lets the family down. Marriages don’t always work out. We are afraid what others will think of us.

 

Then we are presented with the holy family, who we imagine were living in bliss all the time. That is not reality. They were poor. When Jesus was born they were homeless. Then with a new baby they had to flee to Egypt to escape an attempt on the child’s life and became refugees. When Jesus was brought to the temple, Simeon told them he was destined to be a sign that would be rejected. He would not be a success. Who wants to hear that their child will be rejected by people? Later they lost him for three days. Can you imagine the stress of losing one of your children for three days?

 

So why are they presented to us as a model? because they had their priorities right. God was at the center of this family. It was the right environment for the person of Jesus to grow and mature in. Jesus had to grow up as a person just as all of us do. He had to learn to be responsible, to read and write and learn the Jewish traditions and that takes a long time. It involves a lot of learning for each of us, and a lot of patience and sacrifice on the part of our parents, but how we are formed is vital. There is an African proverb which says, ‘It takes a village to raise a child.’ We all have a part to play, even if that is just encouraging those who are struggling. If there are young families around you who are struggling financially, especially one parent families, look out for them. There is a couple I know who were telling me recently that at one stage, because one of their children was sick, they lost their home in order to pay hospital bills. The husband told me that for several months they lived on next to nothing. We never know how people are struggling and we must look out for each other.

 

We know almost nothing about the first thirty years of Jesus’ life, but no doubt it was very important for his growing and maturing as a person, and to help him be ready for the mission that He lived out for the last three years of his life, teaching people about God and sacrificing himself for us.

 

The main role of our families is to provide a safe, loving environment for us to grow up in, so that we will blossom as people and learn how to deal with the world. None of us come from a perfect family, but that doesn’t matter. It is easy to become discouraged, thinking about how things might have been, or should be, but the bottom line is that we are the way we are. We come from the kind of imperfect families that we come from. The path through our lives often takes unexpected turns and things can work out a lot worse than we had intended. Does it matter? Not in the eyes of the Lord. The Lord is not the one to say, ‘You should be different.’ That is what people will say, but that is not what the Lord says. He is always the one who encourages us, reassures us and gives us new strength to keep going.

 

Think of all the people that Jesus came across in the Gospels. He took them exactly as they were, including many people who were causing public scandal. It didn’t matter what faith or cultural background they came from. He always showed great sensitivity to their dignity. Satan discourages, but God always encourages. Jesus called Satan ‘the Accuser.’ He continually accuses us and tries to shame us and make us give up. But Jesus does the opposite. He is always the one to encourage us and reassure us of his presence. What is important is not how we should be, but that we remain open to God. If we are listening and open, then the Lord can lead us forward. All God needs is our openness. Everything that we go through plays a part in forming us as people. The only thing that is important is that we are willing to get up again, to begin again and turn to the Lord for help, as often as is necessary. 

 

If God is not at the center of your family, maybe it’s time to bring him into your family. Is there a crucifix in your home? If not, why not? Are you ashamed or embarrassed to say who you belong to, who is Lord of your life? Apart from God, our life is meaningless. Do you ever read the word of God with your family? If you think this seems over religious, think about how much time you spend watching TV, filling your mind with worldly and often sinful things. Why not read a chapter from one of the Gospels at the end of your main meal together? Pray grace together.

 

There is a wedding tradition which I came across many years ago, from Croatia, if I’m not mistaken. When a couple get married, they have a crucifix blessed at the wedding ceremony and then they bring it to their home. They place it in a prominent place to remind them that God is with them in their marriage. When they are struggling they are to come before the crucifix to ask God for his help. This is the balance that God invites us to have. God must be at the center. Only in God will we find the strength we need to keep going and the very meaning for our existence. Without God our life is meaningless.

 

God understands that family life is not easy, but that is also why He invites us to keep turning to him and asking for his help. That is why the sacrament of marriage is so important, because it is inviting God to be part of that marriage, not just to bless the couple on their wedding day, but to be with the couple throughout their whole life. God wants to help us, but we must allow him to help us too. Our families may be far from perfect, but God can still work through them to help us come closer to him.

I want to finish with this story about a couple I came to know here in Florida. Maria and John (not their real names) got to know each other in high-school and got into a lustful relationship. She became pregnant and graduated six months pregnant. They decided to get married for the sake of the child, but he said they had no love for each other and the first ten years of their marriage was miserable. They endured each other and spent as much time apart as they could. But after 10 years they both started to take an interest in their faith. They decided they would try to live their marriage exactly as it says in the Scriptures, following what God has laid out for marriage, the role of the father and the role of the mother. He said within a short time things started to change and they actually fell in love for the first time. That was over twenty years ago and he said they have had a wonderful marriage ever since.

 

God knows exactly what will work and He tells us what will work. There is an order to God’s creation and if we listen to what He tells us, it works and will help us more than anything else. God wants things to work out for us, but we must listen.

 

Remember what Jesus said,

“Whoever hears these words of mine and puts them into practice, is like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain came down, the streams rose and the wind blew, and beat against that house, yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.

But everyone who hears these words and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose and the wind blue and beat against that house and it fell with a great crash.” (Matt 7:24-27).

 

'When they had fulfilled all the prescriptions of the law of the Lord, they returned to their own town of Nazareth. The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom and the favor of God was upon him. '(Luke 2:39-40)

 

4th Sunday Advent Yr A (Gospel: Matt 1:18-24) Blessed is she who believed

 

 

When I was working as a chaplain in a hospital I was talking to some of the nurses one day about Christmas and the topic of the Annunciation came up: that is, when the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary and she conceived Jesus in her womb. One of them said, “It’s a nice idea. But it’s impossible!” I couldn’t help thinking, what does ‘impossible’ mean, when it comes to matters of faith. And in fact that is one of the things that the angel Gabriel said to Mary to help her to believe. ‘Your cousin Elizabeth in her old age, has herself conceived a son and she who was called barren is now in her sixth month, for nothing will be impossible for God.’ (Lk 1:36-37)

 

In the Bible there are several people who were called ‘blessed’ because of their faith.  Abraham was told that he would have a child and he believed, but he was 100 years old when it happened and his wife was in her nineties. By our way of thinking it couldn’t have happened, but he had faith and it did happen.

 

The angel Gabriel came to Zachariah, when he was performing his priestly duties and told him that his wife Elizabeth would conceive a son, even though she had been barren all her life and was now also an old woman. When the angel Gabriel told him this, he found it hard to believe and he questioned the angel. The angel Gabriel wasn’t impressed and said, ‘I am Gabriel who stand before God… Since you have not believed me, here is a sign for you. You will be struck dumb until the time comes for this to happen.’ (Lk 1:19-20). So even though he doubted, it still happened.

 

The angel Gabriel appeared to Mary and told her that she would have a child, but not by human means. She believed, even though she didn’t understand, and it happened. The angel reminded her that ‘nothing is impossible to God.’ All of these people and many others, were told to believe even though it didn’t make any sense to them and they did believe, without understanding. Elizabeth said to Mary, ‘Blessed is she who believed that the promises made her by the Lord would be fulfilled.’ I wonder would many of these things have happened if the people involved had refused to believe until they were sure, until they were able to know these things were true? They believed because God asked them to believe.

 

Today we are still asked to believe many things which we don’t understand. The temptation is to dismiss many of these things as being childish stories, just because they are not logical to us. But not understanding them is no reason to dismiss them. Why do many people dedicate themselves to a life of prayer locked up in a convent, or monastery, to a God that we cannot see? I don’t know, but they do.

 

How can we know that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is really present in the Eucharist and that it’s not just a symbolic ritual? I could probably give you an impressive theological explanation for it, but it wouldn’t convince you. In fact it wouldn’t convince me either, because we can not understand many of these things, but we do believe them. That is the difference between faith and reason. 

 

The truth is we can’t know these things, but we certainly do believe them. We believe them because God taught us these things through Jesus. And God continues to teach us many things through his Spirit, speaking to us through his Church, speaking to us through the Scriptures, speaking to us through modern day prophets.

 

There is a book and movie called The Case for Christ, by Lee Strobel. He was an investigative reporter for the Chicago Tribune. He and his wife Leslie were both staunch atheists. One evening when they were out for dinner, their daughter Alison starts choking on a piece of candy and she is in serious trouble. A nurse, called Alfie, comes to the rescue and saves Alison’s life. As Leslie is thanking her, Alfie says that it was God’s providence that she was there as she was not meant to be there that night. This catches Leslie’s interest and she begins to take an interest in Christianity. Long story short, she becomes a Christian. Her husband Lee is furious and he decides to set out on a campaign to prove that the case for Christ is a fraud.

 

He begins going to different experts in different areas to get proof. He talks to a psychologist asking him if it were possible that the Apostles were hypnotised into believing the resurrection. The psychologist says that would have been impossible. Then he goes to a physician to show that Jesus could have survived the crucifixion, but he also says that would have been impossible and hands him a copy of one of the major medical journals which has a whole article about it. The more research Lee does to disprove it, the more proof he gets of the reality. Finally one of his fellow journalists points out to him that he has more than enough proof to believe it was real, but that he is just being stubborn. Lee recognizes it and is also converted.

 

One of the more unpleasant tasks I have had as a priest was to stand up in front of the whole church after some of the horrific reports on child sexual abuse came out. I had my homily prepared, but I felt the Lord saying to me, ‘Just tell them why you are a priest.’ So I did just that and I said, ‘I have every reason to not be a priest when these scandals come out, but the reason I continue is because I believe. I believe that God is real, that heaven and hell are real, that the Eucharist is real, that the Scriptures are the word of God…’

 

Most of the events in the bible that we read about are real, although some are analogies. But these things really happened. They are not just stories.

 

As we come to celebrate the mystery of Christmas, and it certainly is a mystery, perhaps the best thing we could do is to say, ‘This is a very mysterious thing, which I don’t understand.  But I believe it, because the Lord has made it known to us.’

 

‘Blessed is she who believed that the promises made her by the Lord would be fulfilled.’ 

 

 

2nd Sunday of Advent Year A (Gospel: Matthew 3:1-12) Will God really forgive me?

 

Many people I come across live with the fear that maybe God won’t forgive them, or hasn’t forgiven them, for past sins. If God has forgiven me, why do the memories of past sins keep coming to the surface? I think a helpful analogy is this: if you can picture your soul. When we sin, it’s as if we wound our soul. When we are forgiven the wound is healed, but a scar remains. Those scars come back to us as memories. We remember the sin and wonder if God has really forgiven. There is a prayer that I often pray after Communion. People always ask for it.

 

In the comfort of your love, I pour out to you my Savior,

The memories that haunt me, the anxieties that perplex me,

The fears that stifle me…

 

Another concern that goes with that question is whether I am now less acceptable to God. I have often heard people say, “I am a disappointment to God.” We are never a disappointment to God for something we have done. God knows what we are going to do before we do it. What matters most is that we come back and ask for forgiveness. The only way we can be a disappointment to God is if we reject him forever. That is not what God wants for any of us.

 

There is a great story in the Old Testament about King David. David was considered one of the greatest kings of ancient Israel. He conquered all around him and gave the appropriate honour to God, but that is not just why he was considered great. One day, when he was at the height of his power, David was taking a walk on the roof of his palace when he noticed a beautiful woman taking a bath in a nearby garden. He enquired who she was and his officials told him “She is Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah the Hittite.” David already had many wives, but he decided that even though she was the wife of another, he wanted her. So he ordered her to be brought to him and he slept with her.

 

Some time later she sent him a note to say that she was expecting. Now David realised that he would be found out. So he had her husband Uriah sent for. Uriah was away fighting for David at the time. When Uriah returned, David asked him how the battle was going, etc. Then he had Uriah dine with him and told him to go home and rest that night and that he would send him back to the battle the next day. But it says that Uriah did not go to his wife, but slept at the door of the palace. Maybe he smelt a rat.

 

The next day, realising that Uriah had not spent the night with his wife, David invited him to have dinner with him in the evening and made sure that he had plenty to drink. Again he told him to go and spent the night in his house and that he could return to battle the next day. But it says that even though he had plenty to drink, he did not spend the night with his wife.

 

The following day, having realised that he did not go home, King David wrote a letter to Uriah’s commanding officer and asked Uriah to take it with him, back to the battle. In the letter King David told his commanding officer to place Uriah at the worst of the fighting and then to pull back, so that Uriah would be killed. So Uriah took the letter—his own death warrant—and returned to the battle and was killed. King David then took Bathsheba as his own wife.

 

So now you have lust, jealousy, adultery, deceit and murder, by the so-called great King David. So why is he called a great king? Because God loves David He is not going to let David get away with this, so he sends the prophet Nathan to David who tells him a story. Nathan says, “There was once a very rich man in a town who had all the sheep, cattle and wealth he could want. There was also a poor man who had just one little lamb, and he loved the lamb as one of his own family. One day a visitor came to the rich man, but rather than taking one of his own animals, he took the poor man’s lamb and killed it for a meal.” Then it says that when King David heard this he sprang to his feet and said, whoever has done this deserves to die for such a crime. And then the prophet Nathan says, “You are the man.”

 

Now here is the thing. What makes David such a great king is what happened next. When Nathan points the finger at David and says, ‘You are the man,’ instead of having Nathan killed for accusing him as many other kings might have done, David says, ‘I have sinned against the Lord,’ and he repents. That is why David was considered a great king. He was big enough to repent and acknowledge that he had done wrong.

 

What God did to David after this is also interesting. We might imagine that God would have David struck down, or removed as King, but no. David is punished, and the child that Bathsheba conceives dies. Then David takes Bathsheba as his wife, but then Bathsheba has another child by David and that turns out to be Solomon, the king who brings a reign of peace to Israel and also builds the temple.

 

So, God is saying a lot to us through this story. First, the importance of acknowledging our own wrongdoing. Secondly, that even when we have done wrong God can and will still work through us, bringing good even out of the worst mistakes we make. The important thing is that we do acknowledge our sins.

God confronts us when we sin because He loves us. He knows that sin hurts us and so God asks us to confess, so that we may be healed.

 

Moses was called to lead the people of Israel out of slavery. But when Moses was a young man, he saw one of his own people fighting with an Egyptian and he killed the Egyptian. The next day he realized he had been seen and so he fled the country. About 60 or so years later, God called Moses to lead the people of Israel from Egypt. Moses sin was not an obstacle to God.

 

Jesus freed Mary Magdalene from seven spirits and she had a bad reputation to begin with. And yet Jesus granted her the grace of being the first person to see Jesus after the resurrection. What a privilege! She is called the Apostle to the Apostles, because she then went to the Apostles to tell them what she had seen, although they did not believe her.

 

St. Peter denied Jesus three times and yet after he repented, God made him the first pope and leader of the Church.

 

What do these things tell us? Not only does God forgive us when we repent of sins, but God can still use us in amazing ways. Our sins are not an obstacle to God. The important thing is that we do repent of them.

 

 

 

1st Sunday Advent Yr A (Gospel: Matt 24: 37-44) Stay Awake

 

I always like the fact that we celebrate Christmas in the middle of winter when the evenings are short and it is usually cold (unless you live in Florida!). Then we begin to light candles and put up coloured lights and decorations to remind us of the coming of our King. It is a time of great hope and hopefully also a time that will bring joy. ‘Advent’—which simply means ‘coming’—is meant to be a time of preparing for two things: we are preparing for the coming of Jesus at Christmas, and we are also remembering that Christ will come again at the end of time. Each Sunday in the Creed we say that, ‘He will come again to judge the living and the dead.’ We don’t know when that will be, but we believe that it will happen. The Lord asks us to ‘stay awake’ and not to forget him, because none of us know when we will die, but the important thing is that we do not forget the Lord, who loves us and who created us. And so each Christmas we remember that Jesus came among us, for us, to help us, to teach us about God, about the world to come and above all to die for us, so that we can join in the happiness of God when we die ourselves.

The best way that we can prepare ourselves is in the heart, by trying to give time to God and being open to what He wants to say to us. The Lord is constantly speaking to us but often we are not listening because we are too busy or distracted. People sometimes ask me if God speaks to me. Yes, God speaks to me all the time, but not through visions or voices. It's usually through other people or through the Scriptures. It took me quite a while to learn how to listen so that I might hear what God is saying to me. Advent is a good time to try and listen again and hear what the Lord has to say to us. That is why the readings are about getting ready for the one who is coming, and not being so distracted by the world around us that we forget him.

One thing that is characteristic of the Gospels is that they are full of hope. The message of God to us—the Good News—is always one of hope and it is certainly something we need in a world where we are constantly hearing of so many terrible things happening around us. 

We don't hear of all the wonderful things that are constantly happening around us: the many acts of kindness that people continually do for each other, looking out for each other especially when we are struggling. This is the Spirit at work in us and this is what makes the world bearable, in spite of the awful things that happen. I have no doubt the amount of good that is done every day far outweighs the amount of evil, but we don't hear about it.

In Nov 2016, several serious fires were started in different parts of Israel, just to cause suffering. Then, to everyone’s amazement one group that came to help out were firefighters from Palestine. As you know there is a lot of tension and hatred between these two countries at the best of times, but there is more goodness in people than evil. We just don’t usually hear about it.

Not long after the war between Israel and Hamas started, when one of the hostages, an 85 year old woman by the name of Yocheved Lifshitz, was being released by Hamas, she turned to one of the Hamas militants, extended her hand and said, ‘Shalom.’ He didn’t seem to know what to do except to accept her hand. Good continually overcomes evil.

Yocheved Lifshitz wishes 'Shalom' to Hamas militant

I often hear of situations where someone is in real trouble, financially. Then when they think there is no hope, someone unexpected comes along and offers them the help they need. God sends someone to them.

After the last hurricane Milton, one of our parishioners lost the roof of her house, which had just recently been replaced, but it was not done properly. She had no way of paying for it. Then two of our parishioners heard about it, stepped up and offered to pay for a new roof. You never hear about things like that on the news. God is at work all the time.

Jesus reminds us that while we get on with the ordinary things of everyday life—eating, drinking, marrying, working—we must not forget the eternal things. It is a warning to us never to become so immersed in time and the things of the world, that we forget eternity. Even though the worldly affairs are important, we must not let them distract us from the reality of God; the reality that we will die, that life and death are in his hands, and that whenever He does come for us, He must find us ready.

In one sense we can never be ready enough for God. How do you prepare to meet God? And yet this is what God has created us for and we believe it will be wonderful beyond our wildest dreams, if we have made any effort to be ready.

Jesus says that when the Son of Man comes, of two people doing the same thing, one will be taken the other left. What does this mean? It means that although both people were doing the same ordinary things that we all have to do, one of them had not forgotten about God, but the other had; the one who had forgotten was left behind.

 

If we get totally immersed in the world, or in our families, or in our work, then we have missed what it is about, because there is much more to our life than this. 

As you well know, it is often when someone becomes seriously ill, or dies, that we suddenly start realizing how much we have become immersed in the world. We do have to get on with the day to day things of working and living, but we are being told to make sure that we also make time for God. 

I think a good way to prepare for a happy Christmas, is to keep it simple and spend some time remembering what it is about. Even go to mass once a week, or spend a few minutes in a church every few days. That way we will remember what we are celebrating.

The Angel said to the shepherds: do not be afraid. 

I bring you news of great joy.

Today in the town of David

a Savior has been born for you;

He is Christ the Lord.

34th Sunday, Feast of Christ the King (Gospel: Jn 18:33b-37) Jesus Christ is Lord

 

 

You could sum up what I am about to say with four words: Jesus Christ is Lord. That is really all that matters. Jesus Christ is Lord.

 

Some time ago I was asked to visit a man in hospital. He was probably in his 70s. When he saw me he must have felt uncomfortable, as he began to tell me in so many words, how he didn’t really need me there, as he had a close relationship with God. He seemed to want to prove how tough he was. He then went on to talk about how he was on a first name basis with the Holy Trinity, describing how he related to the Father, Son and Spirit and the Virgin Mary, as if they were buddies at the bar. I can’t remember the exact words he used, but I remember finding myself being disgusted at the way he spoke, as it was so disrespectful. I don’t think he meant to be disrespectful, but it was.

 

The only way we should come before God, is on our knees with our face to the ground, in awe and reverence for who and what God is. Yes, Jesus is our brother, having taken on human flesh, but He is also the creator of the world, the one who will come to judge the living and dead, the one before whom everyone will bow down and tremble. It is so important that we don’t forget that. That is also why we begin every mass by acknowledging that we are sinners and asking for God’s mercy.

 

In the Prophet Isaiah, Isaiah is given a vision of heaven, where he sees God on his throne. His reaction? He is terrified. Immediately he recognizes his sinfulness before God’s holiness and he is afraid it will kill him.

‘Woe is me, for I am lost. For I am a man of unclean lips, who dwell among a people of unclean lips, for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of Hosts.’ (Is 6:5)

 

Then it says that an angel came down and touched him on the lips with a hot coal, to purify him and reassure him he would not die.

 

The Prophet Ezekiel is also shown a vision of heaven:

‘I then saw what looked like a throne made of sapphire. And sitting on the throne was a figure in the shape of a human. From the waist up it was glowing like metal in a hot furnace and from the waist down it looked like the flames of a fire. I realized I was seeing the brightness of God’s glory, so I bowed my face to the ground.’ (Ezek 1:26-28)

 

In Revelations, St. John the Apostle saw a similar vision of Jesus in his glory, except that Jesus comes towards him. He says he was so frightened that he fainted, even though he had lived with Jesus for three years.

 

It is very easy to become casual about our faith, but it is so important that we don’t, that we remember who and what God is, who Jesus is. It is a wonderful thing that Jesus invites us to have a personal relationship with him and he speaks to us as a friend, but we still have to be careful of how we approach God. He is the Lord and master of all things, the King of Kings, the judge of the living and the dead.

 

Think about when you receive the Eucharist. We are receiving the Body of Christ, not a thing, not holy bread, not a symbol, but Jesus, the Son of God. How do you dress? How do you hold it when it is put in your hand? Do you flick it back into your mouth, or walk away with it? When was the last time you confessed your sins, as the Lord asks us to, so that we are not receiving his Body and Blood unworthily? St. Paul writes:

‘Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, will be guilty of sinning against the Body and Blood of the Lord. Each one must examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup. Anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body, eats and drinks judgement on himself. That is why many among you are weak and sick and some have fallen asleep’ (1 Cor 11: 27-30).

 

Recently a deacon friend of mine was talking to a Muslim friend. He was explaining the mass to him and how the bread and wine really and truly become the body and blood of Jesus? It is really God? And my friend said yes. His friend thought for a minute and then said, ‘And this is how they dress?!’ It says it all.

 

If you were given a chance to have a personal meeting with the pope, how would you dress? We receive the Son of God in each mass, but how do we dress.

 

Does that mean we should be afraid? No. It is Jesus himself who wants us to receive him in the Eucharist. Pope Francis put it beautifully. He says, ‘The Eucharist is food for sinners, not a reward for saints,’ but we must be careful how we go about it. We can never be casual, or we may bring condemnation on ourselves and that applies just as much to me. In fact, it is more serious for me, because the Lord comes into my hands as a priest in every mass. It is a great responsibility and one which often scares me, because I too will be accountable as his priest.

 

Often you hear people talking about God and religion as if it were something optional. You can take it or leave it, it’s up to you. God is not the optional extra. We are the optional extra. God exists, but we need not be here except that God created us and keeps us in existence. God also entrusted his world to our care, not to do what we like with it, but to look after it. Our world and our gifts and talents have been entrusted to us to use for his glory. When we die we will have to show God what we did with those gifts.

 

On the last three Sundays of the year, including today, we read Gospels that refer to God’s judgement of us. The parable of the ten virgins, five of whom were left outside, because they hadn’t bothered to prepare. They were casual about their role and they were left behind. There is also the parable of the talents, where the king gives different amounts of money to three servants according to their ability. Two of them invested it and he commends them and rewards them. But he condemns the one who did nothing with what he was given. He wasn’t condemned because he did something, but because he didn’t do anything. He was indifferent. Jesus mentioned so many times how there is no room for indifference. God has entrusted us with various gifts and talents and He expects us to use them.

 

There is also the Gospel where at the judgement the sheep are separated from the goats.

‘When the Son of man comes in his glory and all the angels with him… and all the nations will be assembled before him. And He will separate them one from another as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.’ (See Matt 25:31-45)

 

One group was condemned. Why? because they didn’t do anything. They didn’t specifically carry out wrong actions, but they didn’t do anything. They had been entrusted with the world and the people around them and they ignored everything and did only what they wanted, ignoring God and ignoring God’s creation. And when they say, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and not feed you, or naked and not clothe you…’ And God says, ‘Whatever you neglected to do to one of these little ones, you neglected to do it to me.’ (Matt 25:45).

 

The Lord is reminding us that it is his world, his creation and we have been entrusted with his creation to take care of it. It’s not just about us. It is about God. That is also why it is so sad when we get to the stage where we feel we can go completely against God’s Commandments and say that it is none of his business. We can do what we want. The Lord gave us specific Commandments to follow and we will be accountable.

If you think of something like the border situation, where there are so many people coming across illegally. Understandably it is upsetting and every country has a right to control its borders, but the very first thing, is to take care of the human being in front of you. If here is a person in front of you and they are starving, or suffering, we have an obligation to help them. The second thing is to deal with the political side of things. If you find yourself saying, ‘Why should we help them? They are illegal,’ remember this Gospel passage. To ignore the basic needs of any human being is to ignore the Lord. He didn’t say, ‘I was illegal and so it was ok not to help me.’ He said, ‘I was in need, but you failed to help me.’ It is easy to get caught up in the political, or legal side of it, forgetting the needs of each person.

 

As you probably recall a man by the name of Rami Qumsieh has been here a few times, selling religious artifacts to support the Christians in the Holy Land. Afterwards someone emailed me to say that we shouldn’t have to support them as the Church has lots of money. Think of this Gospel.

 

For us to be faithful means we must make conscious decisions to follow God’s law, continually looking to see if we are living it. That’s why we keep reading the Scriptures. Often God’s laws make us uncomfortable, because they challenge us when we are going off track. The irony is that it is God’s very laws that will lead us to the greatest freedom and happiness, but we must choose. We will be different and it will cost us, because we will meet resistance, just as Jesus said we would. But what could be greater than following the very path that God points out to us, the only one that leads to happiness.

 

Much of our world has rejected the ways of God and we must decide who we follow. But we cannot be casual about it. In Revelations the angel says to one of the communities, ‘I know your deeds, how you are neither hot nor cold, but only lukewarm. I wish you were one or the other. But since you are lukewarm, neither hot nor cold, I am going to spit you out of my mouth.’ (Rev 3:15-17). There is no room for indifference. We must choose whom we belong to.

 

‘…At the name of Jesus, every knee shall bow and every tongue confess, in heaven on earth and under the earth, that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the father’ (Phil 2:10-11).