THIRTIETH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

26 OCTOBER 2014

          Toward the end of his earthly ministry, the opposition to Jesus begins to increase.  The shadows of the coming darkness of his passion and death surround Jesus and his followers.  By the time Jesus enters Jerusalem for his final climactic week, his enemies swirl around him like bullies in a school playground.  It is during this week that Jesus goes to the Temple every day to face his bullies as they gang up on him and fire questions to try to trip him up.  They ask, "Do we pay taxes to Caesar or not."  "By whose authority do you act and teach?"  Whose wife will a woman be at the resurrection if she has had seven husbands?"  Jesus is artful in answering all of these trick questions.  In his answers, he does not allow the bullies to push him around.  In standing his ground, he also teaches his followers valuable lessons.

            This scholar of the law tries to trap Jesus again.  The scholar knows that his fellow Pharisees have taken the Law of Moses and listed 613 laws that must be followed.  They had made observance of the Law so complicated that ordinary believers had to consult their wisdom in following the law, just as we have to consult tax experts to navigate through our complicated tax system or skilled mechanics to fix our cars loaded with so many complicated systems.  The scholar of the law wants to put the final nails into the hands and feet of Jesus.

            Jesus stands up to this bully by quoting Scripture.  He quotes a passage from the Book of Deuteronomy:  "You shall love the Lord your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind."  All faithful Jews pray that passage every morning.  Then Jesus quotes a passage from the Book of Leviticus:  "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."  In quoting these two passages, Jesus is not teaching anything new.  However he links love of God and love of neighbor in such a radical way that they can never be separated.  We cannot love God without loving our neighbor, and we cannot love our neighbor without loving God.

            At one level, these two commandments are very simple.  We do not need to consult experts to understand them.  At another level, they challenge us to love in a way that goes well beyond the feelings we usually associate with the word "love."  At the end of this climactic week, Jesus will give a vivid example of what the love of God and neighbor will look like.  As the Incarnate Word of God, he will give his entire life on the cross for everyone, friend and foe alike.  He will demonstrate in action what he had been teaching in words.  By his sacrificial death, he will broaden the understanding of "neighbor" well beyond the bonds of national or family kinship.  Everyone is a neighbor, and the love of Jesus extends to all.

            Today at the 8:45 and 10:30 Masses, we welcome those who have never been baptized as Catechumens.  We also accept others who have been baptized in another Christian denomination as Candidates for Full Communion.  These people have joined us at Mass for some time.  They have been gathering on Tuesday nights to pray with us, to study the teachings of the Church, and to share with each other their journeys of faith.  As they take this step in faith today, they are committing themselves to continued formation in the faith.  We will do our best to teach them what it means to be Catholic as we prepare them for the Sacraments of Initiation at Easter. 

            Today, the Lord teaches us the foundation of everything we are teaching Catechumens and Candidates.  God has loved us in some incredible ways.  We return that love to others.  We still need specific commandments that guide us in loving God and neighbor, especially those neighbors who are most vulnerable.  That is why the Book of Exodus commands care of aliens, widows, and orphans, the most vulnerable in that society.  All commandments flesh out the ultimate command:  love God with our entire being and our neighbors as we love ourselves. 

TWENTY-NINTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

19 OCTOBER 2014

          First words are very important.  We listen carefully to the first words of a newly elected Pope, or the first words at the inauguration of a new president, or the first homily given by a new pastor.  We pay attention to these first words, because they often set the tone and give some indication of what will follow.

            In today's second reading, we hear first words.  Saint Paul wrote this Letter to the Thessalonians around the year 50, making it the first written piece of the New Testament.  In these first words, he sets the tone for all who have become disciples of Jesus Christ.  He greets us with two significant words:  the Greek word Charis (grace), reminding us that the Lord has extended an invitation that we did not earn; and the Hebrew word Shalom (peace), reminding us of a relationship we enjoy through Jesus Christ to other members of the Body of Christ.  Then he affirms our work to be faithful witnesses.  He mentions the three theological virtues which will appear many times in his later letters.  He says that our work must be rooted in faith.  He reminds us that working to be a disciple is a labor of love.  When things get tough, we need an endurance of hope. Finally, he reminds us that we have been chosen.  Just as God had chosen a pagan king (Cyrus) to deliver his Chosen People from their Exile in Babylon, so God has chosen us through the waters of Baptism to become agents of transformation in a world filled with darkness.

            It is within the context of these words from Saint Paul that we can apply to our lives what Jesus says in the Gospel.  When the Pharisees join ranks with the Herodians, they are eager to trap Jesus in a dangerous question about taxation.  The Pharisees strongly object to the yoke of Roman rule and object to the image of Caesar on the coins they must use.  They know that there is only one God, and that is not Caesar.  The Herodians work with the occupying forces and use those coins to increase their wealth.  If Jesus would have answered that it is not lawful to pay the census tax, the Herodians would have arrested him for sedition.  If Jesus would have answered that it is lawful, the Pharisees would have accused him of making Caesar a false god.  Instead, Jesus makes his famous statement:  "Then repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God."

            That principle has guided Christians in discerning our relationship between church and state for centuries.  Christians have always understood that governments are necessary to bring order to society and to provide services for people to live in harmony with one another.  But we have also understood that everything belongs to God, even Caesar who was made in God’s image.  That is why many Christians in the earliest centuries gave up their lives.  They refused to burn incense to an emperor who claimed that he is god, knowing that there is only one God.  That is why Christians today are being martyred in the Islamic takeover in Syria and Iraq.

            In many ways, we are fortunate to live in a country built on the principle of separation of church and state.  In many ways, we can practice our faith in freedom.  But we also know the current threats to our religious freedom.  We do not ask ourselves, "What would Jesus do"?  Instead, we rely on the wisdom of the teaching authority of the Church to guide us as we sort out these challenges.  We can consult the Church’s teaching by reading Today’s Catholic, by going to the website of the United States Catholic Bishops, and other sources of authentic Church teaching.  In the end, that teaching finds its foundation in Saint Paul's first words.  The Lord has invited us into a relationship that offers profound grace and peace.  The difficult work we undertake must be rooted in faith, love, and hope.  We have been chosen by Christ, not to put ourselves above the culture, but to be instruments of transforming love in our culture.

TWENTY-EIGHTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

12 OCTOBER 2014

          Saint Paul was in prison awaiting execution when he wrote to his favorite Church:  the Christian community at Philippi.  The Philippians had sent money to support him, and he thanks them for it.  But, looking back over his life and ministry, he responds that he has lived in all kinds of circumstances.  There had been times when he had enjoyed an abundance of food, drink, and material goods.  There had been other times when he had nothing.  He had learned how to achieve tranquility, even in the worst of situations.  While the pagan philosophers taught that this satisfaction and self sufficiency could be achieved through a willful training to eliminate all desire, Saint Paul knew otherwise.  He knew that his satisfaction and self sufficiency was a result of his intimate relationship with Jesus Christ.

            Saint Paul had entered into that relationship when he accepted the Lord's invitation to be part of the rich wedding banquet of God's Kingdom.  Once he had recovered from that dramatic invitation to be part of Christ's Body on the road to Damascus, he came to understand that Christ the bridegroom had given his life for his bride, the Church.  Paul knew that being incorporated into Christ's Body through baptism was just the first step.  He had been given a white baptismal garment signifying his identity in Christ.  In order to fit into the wedding banquet of the Lamb, he needed to continue to wear that garment, that outward sign of his willingness to change his life and conform himself to Christ.

            That is exactly the point of Jesus' parable.  By the time Matthew had recorded this parable, Jerusalem had been destroyed by the Romans.  Matthew looks at that historical event and interprets the parable to identify those who had refused the invitation to the banquet as the residents of Judea and Jerusalem.  As a result of their refusal, the invitation has been extended through Saint Paul's ministry to the Gentiles.  But this living Word of God does not give us an excuse to make judgments on the refusal of others to accept his invitation to be part of the banquet.  Rather, the parable tells us that simply being at the table is not enough.  The man who is not wearing his wedding garment is reduced to silence, because he knows that his actions are not in conformity with the values of the King and his banquet. 

            We need to pay close attention to our baptismal garments, seeing them as visible images which reflect the ways we must change our lives to fit into the great banquet.  If we don't begin to cooperate with God's grace, then we are not fitting in.  If we do not work at loving others and forgiving others as God has loves and forgives us, we do not fit in.  If we are not working on controlling our temper or other habits that can tear apart the fabric of our lives of faith, we do not fit in.  As Saint Paul had reminded the Colossians in another of his letters, we need to "clothe (ourselves) with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience."  These are the garments which help us fit into the Kingdom of God, and cooperating with the grace of our Baptism enables us to wear those garments with humility.

            As baptized members of the Body of Christ, we have accepted the Lord's invitation to join him at this Eucharist.  There can be as many lame excuses for coming to Mass as those who had refused to come to the wedding feast in the parable gave.  Our presence here indicates that we have a place at the table.  At this Mass, we receive a foretaste of the eternal Banquet of the Lamb.  Receiving the Lord's Body and Blood has the power to transform us more perfectly into the Body of Christ.  As we prepare ourselves for this Banquet of the Lamb, we can renew our efforts to wear those wedding garments given to us on the day we were baptized, making sure that they help us fit into the Kingdom of God.

TWENTY-SEVENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

5 OCTOBER 2014

          The prophet Isaiah took a look at what was going on in his society, he did not like what he saw.  He saw widespread disregard for the Covenant between God and his people.  He saw many people returning to the worship of false gods when they thought that God was not listening to their needs.  He saw the wealthy disregarding the needs of the poor and cheating them in the marketplace.  He saw married couples being unfaithful to their vows, people lying to and cheating one another.  Instead of seeing the Law of Moses as guides for living the covenant, people were simply ignoring them and doing what they wanted.

            So, Isaiah used a familiar image.  Everyone knew what a vineyard looked like and how much work it took to maintain a healthy vineyard to produce good fruit.  He reminded his people that God was the tenant, and they were the people who made up his vineyard.  God had transplanted them from slavery in Egypt to freedom in the Kingdom of Israel.  God had cleared the land for them, provided them with the best opportunities, and removed their stony hearts.  God had done all the hard work, and they had ignored him and thought only of themselves.  As a result, they were producing bad fruit and would pay the consequences.

            Jesus uses that same image as he approaches Jerusalem and his imminent death.  In his parable, he reminds us that God had sent numerous prophets like Isaiah to remind his people that the vineyard was his, and that they were responsible for producing good fruit by their actions.  After they were ignored and some of them killed, Jesus himself is the Son who will be murdered outside the city walls.  He would become the stone rejected by the builders which would become the cornerstone.  Once the old structure had collapsed, God would give his vineyard to others.

            We are the ones who now form the vineyard of the Lord.  We are here today to celebrate the Lord's victory over sin and death on the cross.  Jesus is not telling us to look back in history to condemn those who did not produce fruit.  Instead, he  invites us to take a look at our vineyard to see what kind of fruit we are producing.

            For forty years, the Bishops of our country have asked us to set aside the month of October as "respect life" month.  If we are honest, we can see many ways in which our society does not foster a culture of life.  Our society focuses on consuming stuff.  As a result, we are tempted to hoard our stuff and ignore the needs of the poor or the community of believers.  Our society puts great emphasis on those things that serve our needs.  As a result, people are tempted to ignore the human life in the womb or the elderly in the nursing homes, because paying attention to them might be inconvenient.  Our society tells us to use violence in response to damage done to us.  As a result, we too easily give up on negotiations and ways of reconciling differences. Our society keeps talking about the good life and being happy.  As a result, we are tempted to see no value in human suffering and take any steps to get rid of suffering.

            When we give into these and many more temptations, we ignore the reality that our vineyard belongs to God, and that God wants us to produce good fruit.  Barb Williams has put up a wonderful display in the back of church.  Please take some time to look at that display and see so many ways in which our Respect Life Ministries are working to help us develop a culture of life in the midst of a popular culture that not only produces bad fruit, but which also brings death in so many ways.  Look at the opportunities which are available to all of us during this month.  They provide occasions for both prayer and action.

            Saint Paul tells us to have no anxiety at all.  He is not saying, "stick your heads in the sand and ignore the evils of our day."  Nor is he saying, "don't worry, be happy.  Instead of worrying and wringing our hands, we can trust God working through us to be better tenants of his vineyard and produce good fruit.