2018

When it comes to receiving gifts, perhaps you have heard the saying, “It’s the thought that counts.” Yet do you ever find yourself judging a gift by some different criteria such as its size or cost? Instead of being grateful for the giver’s thoughtfulness, we become resentful because the gift we received wasn’t what we wanted or expected.

Judging by such human standards, the widow’s meager gift of two small coins wasn’t much yet according to Jesus, hers was the greatest gift given in the temple that day. What makes her gift so noteworthy wasn’t its value, but the sacrifice involved. Unlike the rich people who put in large sums, which they could easily afford, this widow gave all that she had and that impressed Jesus.

We are missing a valuable lesson here if we see this only as a pep talk on charity. Granted, Jesus is moved by the total generosity of the widow who, despite her poverty, gave all that she had. However, the thought that comes to mind isn’t how generous we are or ought to be in our giving. Rather, how grateful are we for the gifts we have received, especially gifts that Jesus has given us? And what might those gifts be, you wonder? For starters, there is the gift of himself that comes to us in the Eucharist, but lets not overlook the gift of his teachings for building up the kingdom in our midst that we find in the gospels and the Catechism of the Church.

By giving what little she had, the widow placed herself in God’s hands for her well-being. By believing and fully accepting the Good News of God’s love, she could abandon herself into God’s hands. That total surrender expressed well her appreciation of what God has given her.

We have heard the Good News and we have the opportunity to receive the real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist because Jesus totally gave himself to us. Consciously or unconsciously we share with others our reaction to Jesus and his Good News. When God is important to us, we convey that importance to others by our words, actions and values, and we choose to live in response to what Jesus has taught us rather than what our peers might value instead.

If we expect others to believe in us and in what we believe, than our lives must be an example of God’s call to holiness. Jesus censors the scribes for putting of airs, walking around with their prayer shawls, pretending to be holy, when in fact, their service to God was a farce for they were really seeking a profit for themselves. How we respond to Jesus’ gift of the Good News impacts our ultimate destiny. As the letter to the Hebrews notes, Christ will appear a second time to bring salvation to those who eagerly await him.

How readily do we appreciate what Jesus is endeavoring to give us through his many teachings? He repeatedly urges us to live the truly Christian life, wherein we abandon our selfishness and fears by totally accepting what he is offering, just as the widow did. Whenever we selectively discard some of his gifts, that is, some of his teachings, we can no longer appreciate the full beauty of what he is giving us.

I am reminded of a conversation that took place between two friends as they toured a famous art museum. After looking around for a while and becoming bored, one friend expressed his dismay by telling his companion, “I don’t think much of these old paintings!” His companion quietly replied, “I would remind you that these paintings are no longer on trial but those who look at them are.” By our reactions to the many gifts Christ has given us, especially the gift of his wisdom, we ultimately pass judgment on ourselves.

Recently, one couple admonished me not to talk politics from the pulpit. Perhaps you agree with them. I don’t see myself talking politics. I never talk about candidates and rarely about initiatives unless the bishops ask me to. I see a distinction between politics and being political. To me politics refers to actual governance while being political is the means for speaking up for the well being of peoples and challenging those who govern when needed. Jesus was political and many Church leaders have followed his example including Pope John Paul II, Pope Paul VI, and Archbishop Oscar Romero; all have been canonized, which suggest to me that being political for the right reasons leads people to holiness and closer to God.

Jesus never condemns the rich but he cautions that they will find it difficult to enter the kingdom. What matters is not how much money we store in bank accounts or keep in stocks and bonds, but rather for what that money is destined. Will the money be used to assist others, to make the world a better place? Will it be used to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, provide for the homeless and the poor? Will it be used to promote a culture of life? Do our lives revolve around money or are we dependent on God who truly makes us rich, as did the widow? Would independence or dependence characterize your life and values?

Pope Francis asserts, “An authentic faith involves a deep desire to change the world, to transmit values, to leave this earth somehow better than we found it. We love this magnificent planet on which God has put us; and we love the human family, which dwells here, with all its tragedies and struggles, its hopes and aspirations, its strengths and weaknesses. If indeed the just ordering of society and of the state is a central responsibility of politics, the Church cannot and must not remain on the sidelines in the fight for justice.”

Rose Mallinger, Jerry Rabinowitz, Joyce Fienberg, Cecil and David Rosenthal, Melvin Wax, Richard Gottfried, Bernice and Sylvan Simon, Daniel Stein, and Irving Younger. A week ago, their day was probably not much different than the one you had, but two days later, all that changed for them when they were gunned down in the midst of a prayer service in the deadliest attack ever on Jewish people in our country. They were not Christians but I venture to say that they are amongst the newest saints in heaven.

They lived a life of holiness. They placed God first in their lives. They bore the trials and troubles of life patiently.
They loved their neighbors. They proved that love with deeds of charity and mercy. They forgave those who persecuted them. They lived in peace with God and their neighbor. They promoted peace by their words and actions.
They pondered the questions as to why this world has so much injustice and found that the answers weren’t blowing in the wind after all. Rather, they could be found in the hearts of those yearning to see the face of God.

Today we celebrate the feast of All Saints. The name includes the word “All” for good reason for we are celebrating not just the official saints of our Church who have feast days on the liturgical calendar, saints like Francis of Assisi, John the Baptist, Thomas More, Frances Cabrini, or saints recently canonized like Mother Teresa, John XXIII, Paul VI, John Paul II and Oscar Romero but also the ordinary saints who are also there; saints who have no feast days and were never canonized but who lived their faith in anticipation of spending eternity with God.

Our first reading from Revelation gives us a message of hope. The great multitude is from every nation, race, people, and language. They are dressed in white robes, signifying that they once lived as Christ taught. The number of 144,000 is figurative to suggest an extremely large number, one too great to be counted. An assembly that someday will include us if that is our endeavor.

The second reading from John reminds us of how much God loves us, so great that he calls us children and so we are. Then we heard the Beatitudes in the gospel, given to us not as commandments but as a way to live. They are the values and virtues that form the character of saints and hopefully they are evident in our daily lives as well. They help us to live as God’s children.

All Saints’ day commemorates the saints we have known and who have lived among us, the “blessed” of the gospel through whom God touches us and our world, ordinary down to earth folks who endeavored to live holy lives. Today is the festival when we honor the holy men and women who have walked among us and who have touched our lives by their humility and selflessness, their generosity and compassion, just as many of the victims at the Tree of Life synagogue had touched the lives of their friends and colleagues. Let this day be a day to remember the people on our lists of loved ones who have died; those whom we remember with gratitude for the blessings they have been to us; may the lives of our own litany of saints inspire us to follow the example of other grace-filled lives so that, one day, we may join their company in the dwelling place of God forever.

Today’s feast is a festive reminder that each of us is invited by God to be a saint. So happy feast day for with the help of Christ, someday this will also be our feast day.

A theology professor asked her class to take part in a little experiment. She directed them to look around the classroom and focus on one particular color; for example, everything that was red. After a few moments, she then asked them to close their eyes and quietly recall all the red items they saw. Then came the unexpected: with their eyes still closed, the professor asked them to name all the blue things they had seen. Most of them, because they were so focused on the color red, missed anything that was blue or any other color.

The professor explained that this is similar to what we focus on in everyday life. “We focuson the negative and tend to notice all that is going wrong in our world, and we miss God’s grace and presence before us. What we focuson is what we give power to! In focusing on the negative we miss God’s grace.”

In today’s gospel, Jesus restores sight to Bartimaeus, the blind beggar who called out, “Jesus, son of David, have pity on me!” On the surface, we focusonly on the miracle of his recovered sight, but Jesus did much more than that. He also gave Bartimaeus the insight to perceive God’s presence in his life, to see and embrace the many signs of God’s grace in the world around him.

Our own vision can use a similar refocus. We can be so attuned to one color, say the color of disappointment, the color of self-centeredness, the color of cynicism, that we are blind to the colors of God surrounding us: compassion, love, mercy, forgiveness, peace to name but a few.

Bartimaeus receives his sight, but Jesus also affirms the vision he already possesses: the ability to see God’s love in his midst, to see the possibilities of God transforming hope and recreating love to heal brokenness in his life, to see his own ability to be means for God’s justice and reconciliation. To see our lives and our world with the eyes of faith is to recognize the many colors of God’s grace radiant in every person, in every place, in every moment.

Bartimaeus gained physical eyesight in this miracle but he also gained the insightsnecessary for being a disciple. His faith is said to have saved him, not only healed him physically but brought him salvation.

It has been noted that Jesus had many admirers but not many followers. No longer blind, no longer compelled to beg for his survival, Bartimaeus chooses to follow Jesus. We are called to do the same but how readily are we doing that? Are our eyes opened to seeing the many ways Jesus is reaching out to us or are we too focusedon our own wants instead?

Discipleship with Jesus means an upside down world where the first will be last and the last will be first, where one forgives one’s enemies seventy times seven times, where the one who loses his life will save it, where one gives his coat when asked to give a shirt, where enemies are to be prayed for and one who wishes to rule over all must be the servant of all. That is a tough mission statement, isn’t it? No wonder the apostles had trouble seeing Jesus and his message at first. Have we gained the insight to appreciate what Jesus is demanding of us as his disciples?

Have we the insightto appreciate the beauty of God’s creation? Or might your eyes be closed to seeing the wisdom behind taking care of our planet? Have we the insight to be compassionate to those who are less fortunate than we are, whether they are refugees escaping violence in their homeland or victims of recent hurricanes, tsunamis and typhoons that have wiped out their homes?
Or might your eyes be closed to seeing the wisdom behind respecting the dignity of every person, regardless of their race or gender, thus choosing instead to not respect, welcome or help those struggling to survive?

Bartimaeus was blind in the physical sense, but he, unlike the apostles, was better able to see what really mattered than those around him who had good vision but lacked insight into all that Jesus had been saying. His humility entitled him to a cure.

Recall, that Jesus asked him, “What do you want me to do for you?” He asked that same question of James and John; they wanted power and they failed to see. Bartimaeus wanted Jesus and he did see.

In this day and age, slick advertising, routine violence, and examples of greed and exploitation blindside us. In due time, we become like the apostles, slow to understand the message of Jesus Christ, slow to see what he sees, what saints, like Mother Theresa, Archbishop Oscar Romero and Pope Paul VI have seen. When we have misunderstood Jesus and his message, that results in spiritual blind spots.

Imagine Jesus asking you the same question. “What do you want me to do for you?” Undoubtedly we can think of a million things but lets focus on what really matters. A more reflective response would be that of Bartimaeus: “Lord, I want to see.”

This gospel is a fitting one for us to ponder on Mission Sunday. The closing line sums up its message well, “The Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.” That sentence is one of the most remarkable sentences in all scripture. Let’s listen to it again: “For the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Dying on the cross, he did ransom us.

I imagine that is one sentence James and John did not expect to hear from Jesus even though he had often demonstrated service throughout his public ministry. They and the other apostles had heard Jesus foretell of his pending passion three times with its gruesome outcome, yet the dire reality of his forecast had not yet hit home. Instead, these ambitious brothers, being close friends of Jesus along with Peter, had the nerve to ask for positions of honor when he came to power. Their self-centeredness shows that they had not yet grasped the full meaning of Jesus’ prediction.

Like dogs wagging their tales in anticipation of a reward, they were quick to say, “We can,” when Jesus asked if they could drink of the cup that he would drink or be baptized with the baptism with which he would be baptized. Drinking the cup was an expression used then to show acceptance of the destiny assigned by God. Still, they were betting on Jesus to come into glory and liberate their homeland from oppression.

Jesus assured them, “The cup that I drink, you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized.” He isn’t speaking of the sacraments we often celebrate. He is speaking of sharing his experience. What Jesus offered James and John, he is offering us as well; a share in what he does as savior; and what he does as savior is giving of himself selflessly for the good of others.
Some people leave the Church when their faith journeys get challenging or discomforting. They get angry with God, the pope, the archbishop, their pastor, or other believers whom they have an issue with. Many others get angry too but they stay, knowing that running away would not be a solution for them. Through prayer and spiritual growth, they come to realize that being a disciple of Jesus is no easy undertaking.

To paraphrase Jesus, imagine him saying to this motley group of disciples, “Gentlemen, if what is motivating you to follow me is the dream of earthly power, then think again. Let me warn you that being one of my disciples will not be easy because no close relationship is easy. If greatness is what you are seeking, then anyone among you who aspires to being great must serve the rest.”

Too bad his words continue to fall on deaf ears. The latest scandal in the Church is the abuse of clericalism by bishops who covered up the wrong doing of their priests instead of striving to serve the faithful by upholding the dignity of those who were victimized. The image of leaders lording over others to make their authority felt will always stand in stark contrast to the leadership style of Jesus.

Last Sunday Pope Francis canonized Archbishop Oscar Romero of San Salvador. Years ago, when I first viewed the movie, Romero, I was stunned to learn of his many selfless acts, fighting to uphold the dignity of the poor in his country, often speaking out against the repression they endured at the hands of the country’s military regime. At one point, he risked his life to retrieve the Blessed Sacrament from a tabernacle while under gunfire from a soldier whose battalion had taken over a village church. He didn’t hesitate to drink of the cup that Jesus spoke of. The archbishop was later assassinated while celebrating Mass in the spring of 1980.
This weekend aswe honor missionaries for what they do, selflessly serving peoples in third world countries, we should ask ourselves how willing are we to defend the faith and share the good news, much less give our lives? Would we be willing, as were James and John and Archbishop Romero to drink the cup of suffering that Jesus offers us?

I suspect most of us would say, “No way.” That is a far cry from the mindset of missionaries, past and present. Many sacrificed the usual amenities we take for granted leaving their families behind to serve in distant lands so that others can encounter Jesus and our Catholic faith.

While none of us are likely to be martyrs or missionaries, we can still rise to the challenge Jesus presents here. We can at least strive to diminish our self-centeredness just as James and John did and find our greatness by serving the needs of others. The distinguishing mark of discipleship is an attitude of humble, joyful service to others. It is an attitude that flies in the face of the “what’s in it for me” approach we often take in our dealings with others, an attitude that Jesus says of his followers, “it shall not be so among you.”

Being a servant doesn’t mean allowing others to walk all over us. To serve others means to let God work through our efforts to love, to forgive, to secure justice, to support and to help. A disciple’s faith enables one to experience joy, not in the acclaim we receive for what we do nor in the success we can measure, but in the joy we bring into the lives of others one small act at a time. Like missionaries, we bring the reign of Christ to life in our own small, simple, ordinary acts of kindness, generosity and peace that bring a measure of hope, dignity and healing to others.

This is a great parish because many live this lesson well.

I have done a fair number of weddings; I don’t recall many, but one came to mind as I reflected on the mindset of the Pharisees in this gospel passage. In my first parish, after their rehearsal, the groom asked, “Father, aren’t you going to ask, ‘Who gives this bride away?’” They were disappointed when I said, “No, that question isn’t asked in a Catholic ceremony because the bride is not property being given away but is an equal in the sight of God alongside you.”

Alas, the Pharisees did not accord such dignity to their spouses. In Jewish law, a woman was regarded as a thing. Jesus rebukes them for allowing divorce because of thehardness of their hearts. They defended their practice, claiming that Moses permitted husbands to divorce their wives and dismiss them, which sometimes they did, for rather trivial reasons. They viewed their wives as being disposable if they did not live up to their expectations.

In Jesus’ society, women rarely, if ever, owned property, and few had any means of livelihood unless they were married or supported by their children. For their sake and the sake of their children, marriages had to be stable. As one who cared deeply about the weak and defenseless, Jesus in effect was saying to the Pharisees, “Don’t even think of divorcing your wives!” He was speaking words of compassion, telling his critics not to cast their wives and children off into poverty.

Is his message still relevant today? Then and now, divorce was pervasive and permissive. We still have many divorces and it’s a touchy subject. We live in a world where people make and break promises, where they find it hard to keep commitments and where for any number of reasons they find it necessary to end their marriage and get a divorce. Despite its stigma, they viewed divorce as their only option.

Yet, even they know that Jesus is fundamentally right in proclaiming the sanctity of marriage. Blessed are the couple who endeavor daily to minister this sacrament to each other in good times and bad, in sickness and in health, for richer and poorer until death do they part. Jesus speaks of marriage as the joining of two hearts into one by God, a single heart that loves, that lifts up, that mends other broken hearts, including each other’s when necessary. That is the mystery and wonder of the marriage covenant.

Still, the ideal falters for some couples. Statistics reveal that nearly half of all first marriages end in divorce due to causes ranging from poor preparation and/or poor communication to selfishness and as Jesus said, hardness of heart. We live in a highly pornographic and secular society, which mocks the sacredness of marriage, encourages infidelity and views sex more as a means of recreation than as a sign of one’s total commitment to his or her spouse.

True marriages falter if the mindset of one or both spouses is “What’s in it for me?” The consequence of that often is verbal, physical, and/or emotional abuse. None of which God has in mind when a couple initially exchange their vows. Rather, God’s hope and mine is that every couple enters into marriage, knowing that they are not in this bond for themselves alone, but rather they have bonded with each other to combine their growing love into the service of others: children, the poor, the future, God, and the betterment of society. A dedicated commitment to something or someone greater than themselves is often the glue that keeps couples together and makes them holy in the process.

Contrary to what some people think, anyone who divorces is still a good Catholic in good standing. Divorce in itself is not a sin. Many marriages fail because couples lacked what was needed to make their marriage a sacramental one and for some divorce may be their better option. Until proven otherwise by an annulment, however, they are still in the eyes of God married to one another. If they remarry without getting an annulment, they would be considered living in sin and should not receive Holy Communion.

The Church still holds fast to the ideal of a lifelong faithful marriage as being good for both children and society. To assist couples in making their good marriages even better, they could take a marriage encounter weekend, which provides them with tools for making their marriage even better. If however their marriage is tearing them apart, there is an alternative weekend program known as Retrouvaille, which could prove to be a lifesaving event for them.

We cannot soften Jesus’ words. Divorce is a failure but keep in mind we all fail at times to live up to the ideal of Christian life as found in the Beatitudes. How many of us live by them day after day? How many of us live by the ideal of non-violence and always turn the other cheek? How many of us will give away a coat when someone asks for our shirt? How many of us have never looked at another person with lust or called someone a name in anger? The fact is we all fail one way or another, yet we all believe in God’s mercy and forgiveness and we continue to live as members in good standing in the Christian community, endeavoring to respect all life from conception thru death. Why then should the issue of divorce and remarriage be treated any differently?

What matters is that we uphold the dignity of all peoples, regardless of their gender, ethnicity, race, faith or age. Many have been wounded because we have failed to do so. Today’s psalm tells us, “Blessed are you who fear the Lord, who walk in his ways!” For when you do, no one is wounded.