LIBRARY OF HOMILIES
FROM
FATHER CHRIS
MARCH 2001
March 4th - 1st Sunday of Lent (English)
March 11th - 2nd Sunday of Lent (English)
March 18th - 3rd Sunday of Lent (English)
March 25th - 4th Sunday of Lent (English)
A very overweight man decided that it was time to shed a few pounds.
He went on a new diet and took it seriously. He even changed his usual
driving route on the way to the office precisely in order to avoid passing
his favorite bakery. One morning, however, he arrived at the office carrying
a large, sugarcoated, calorie-loaded coffeecake. For this he was
roundly chided by his colleagues, but he only smiled, shrugged his shoulders,
and said, "What could I do? This is a very special cake. What happened
is that, by force of habit, I accidentally drove by the bakery this morning,
and there in the window were trays full of the most scrumptious goodies.”
"Well, I felt this was no accident that I happened to pass by this
way, so I prayed, ‘Lord, if you really want me to have one of those delicious
coffee cakes, let me find a parking space right in front of the bakery.'
And sure enough, on the ninth time around the block, there it was!"
Often our temptations are like that. They are simple
things, not evil in themselves, but compromises of our ultimate values.
That was what Jesus’ temptation in the desert was about. After forty
days of fasting and prayer Jesus was hungry and probably tired. He
was vulnerable. The devil thought he had the perfect opportunity.
He tempts Jesus in three ways.
The first temptation is for bread. There is nothing
wrong with bread. It is the basic staple of life. Satan tempts
the Lord to use his power to get bread to ease his hunger. This doesn’t
seem bad. But it’s a temptation to use the power of God to acquire
physical possessions. This temptation is one that happens to
us all of the time. How many of us have desired more money, a better
car, a fancy vacation staying in the best hotels, or any other possession.
These aren’t bad things. But the desire for them can cloud us to
using what God has placed in front of us to do His will, including caring
for the poor, sick, and dying. This temptation hardens us little
by little to the needs of others. We begin to think that if others
weren’t so lazy or selfish they would have what we have. Jesus wasn’t
going to cave into that temptation.
The second temptation was of power. This is the Original
Sin. Adam and Eve sinned because they wanted to have the knowledge
of God. They believed Satan who told them that if they ate the forbidden
fruit they would have all knowledge and be as powerful as God. We
still suffer from this Original Sin. We have been given knowledge
and insight into controlling the world. This insight can lead us
into a disregard for the earth. It can lead us into thinking that
anything we can do we should do. That is just not so. Just
because we have the technology to alter human life or make a nuclear weapon
doesn’t mean that we should use that technology. The temptation to
be God is always with us.
The third temptation might be titled fame. Jesus had
the power of God in His fingertips. He could heal the sick and raise
the dead. He could become the king of the world if only people knew
of this power that he had. The one sure way they would know is if
he used his power to do something really fantastic, like jumping off the
temple and having the angels guide him safely to earth. That would
be really fantastic! Jesus didn’t succumb to that temptation.
You and I do all of the time. It’s called peer pressure. How
many times have we done something only to impress someone else, not because
it was right or good? How many times have we used the power that
we had to belittle or humiliate someone, simply because we could.
I spoke to someone the other day that realized they had been using their
authority to treat their employees poorly. They realized that if
they were to be a true Catholic they couldn’t do that anymore. How
true that is! If we want to be faithful to the Gospel there may be
many things that we will have to change. Satan always looks for opportunities
to use our vulnerabilities. Our fragile egos, our desire for possessions,
and our inability to be creatures and allow God to be God always seems
to haunt us.
Lent has begun. The Lord desires that we be saved, if
only we would turn to Him with our whole hearts and be converted.
Now is the acceptable time. Amen.
Jesus takes Peter, James, and John and goes up Mt. Tabor.
On this mountain, although not very large, one could see quite a distance.
You could imagine seeing all the towns and villages of Galilee from the
top. There, Jesus is transfigured. His garments turn brilliant
white. The apostles have a vision of Elijah and Moses standing next
to Jesus. They see a huge cloud descend upon all of them, just like
the cloud of God that descended on Moses when he was on Mt. Sinai.
There is a voice from heaven that speaks telling the apostles to listen
to Jesus. All of this is too much to handle.
Peter remarks that this vision must be a sign that the reign
of God is to begin. He remembered the promises made long ago through
the Prophet Zechariah that when the Messiah comes it would be during the
feast of Booths. It is during that festival that the people make
booths or tents to live in to be reminded of the journey their ancestors
made in the desert from Egypt to freedom in the Promised Land. So,
Peter figures that the prophecy is being fulfilled. Likewise the
presence of Moses and Elijah, two figures who had not died in the ordinary
sense, were to appear at the beginning of the reign of the Messiah.
What else could all of this mean but that Jesus was going to march into
Jerusalem and let everyone know that the time of fulfillment had come?
Doesn’t this vision and all the things attached to it sound
very much like the temptations that Jesus endured during his forty days
in the desert? There Satan showed him all the kingdoms of the world
and told Jesus that they could be his if only he would bow before him.
Likewise, Satan suggested that the power of God could be harnessed to impress
the people by landing safely from a jump off of the temple or by turning
stones into bread. Peter is quite impressed by all he sees and would
have easily fallen for the temptations Satan gave Jesus. But that
is not how this vision is to end.
Jesus knows that shortly he will have to go into Jerusalem
not to claim the throne from Pilate or Herod. His throne would be
a cross on another mountain called Calvary. Moses and Elijah are
speaking to Jesus about this journey giving him strength and insight into
fulfilling the plan of the Father. Peter doesn’t want to settle for
that vision. He wants to see further glory. I imagine that
you and I would want the same.
We don’t want to experience the cross of Calvary. We
don’t want to be humbled or humiliated by suffering or persecution.
We certainly don’t want to endure sickness and death. We would like
to stay on the mountaintop just like Peter. We want to make a tent
there and stay forever. It’s much nicer.
Jesus is strengthened by the Father and by the company of
the great heroes of the Old Testament. He in turn gives hope to the
apostles. They have seen a taste of His glory on this hill.
They will see even greater things in the future. They will see God’s
will established in the resurrection. They will be part of that fulfillment.
But there is much to be done first. This fulfillment will not happen
today. They must first go into Jerusalem and be transformed by the
cross.
The experience of God always changes us. We know that
there is a dimension to life that is more than what we see. When
we live in the light of this new dimension we become people of hope.
When God told Abram that he would be the father of many nations, receive
descendents as numerous as the stars, and be a blessing he had no idea
how this could be accomplished. When he experienced God sealing the
covenant with him in the sacrifice we heard today, he knew that God was
not bluffing or that this was only wishful thinking. He knew that
God would be true to His promises. From that moment on Abram would
live in the light of those promises. He would be a person of hope.
Paul experienced the risen Christ on the road to Damascus.
He was blinded with a brilliant light and struck blind. He was led
by hand into the city and cured at the hands of an old but faithful believer.
From that moment on he knew that God was doing something fantastic and
that the resurrection of Christ was true. He would dedicate the rest
of his life to helping others see that same reality. He expressed
it as knowledge of being part of the citizenship of heaven. He was
so confident that he could say this citizenship is guaranteed already.
Live in the fulfillment even if you can’t see it yet.
You and I are called to live in the joy of Easter even in
the midst of Lent. In our suffering and pain we know that joy is
possible. In the average, everyday kind of existence that we lead
we are to love without counting the cost. We are to be people of
hope for a world that is short on hope. Why, because we too have
been transformed by the resurrection of Jesus. Even though we haven’t
seen it fulfilled we know it’s guaranteed. Live in the promise of
Christ today! Amen.
When the West was settled over a hundred years ago many people
decided to make the trek. Many figured that land and the possibility
of wealth lay over the mountains in California and the Pacific Northwest.
The Oregon Trail and the Santa Fe Trail were not much more than ruts in
the ground worn there by wagons and horses that had come before.
Yet, that was the way. People loaded up their wagons with all their
earthly possessions and their families. They took their horses and
oxen along too. They took their pots and pans made of iron.
Stoves and furniture were put in the wagons, if they would fit. Often
those wagons were so full it would take several horses or oxen to move
it. It was not uncommon for those settlers to discover that it was
so heavy that the wagons couldn’t handle it without breaking. The
earliest settlers weren’t sure how long it would take them. So they
tried to plan by bringing enough dried food to last. Often it wasn’t
nearly enough. Likewise those journeys went through areas that didn’t
have a lot of natural water. There often weren’t lakes and streams.
So, thirst became a real problem, especially for the animals that had to
pull all of the possessions. After a few weeks it was natural to
see wagons along the trail abandoned because the animals died. It
was common to see stoves and furniture just lying along the trail because
they made the wagons too heavy. Those settlers found out that their
own resources weren’t enough.
Today’s readings remind us only too well that often we think
we have the resources that we need and, in fact, do not. Moses took
the people out of slavery. They rejoiced when they saw the Lord do
marvelous deeds. They were amazed to see the Egyptians washed away
in the Red Sea when they crossed. Then, travelling by day with a
pillar of cloud and by night with a pillar of fire reminded them that God
was still with them. Yet, now they were in the desert. There
was no food and there was no water. They assumed they were going
to die in the desert. The people think to themselves, “Why did we
ever listen to Moses?” They are ready to return to slavery in Egypt
rather than to trust God! How amazing! Since they don’t have
the resources themselves to make it through it’s better to be enslaved
again, they think.
The Gospel too is a story of how a woman who was the talk
of the town figured it was better to just put up a wall rather than to
allow the Lord to touch her. She figured she had all the answers.
She knew she was a Samaritan and a woman who should have nothing to do
with Jesus, a Jew and a man. Yet, here they were talking. This
was not supposed to be. Then, she figures he must be a prophet, so
she will test his understanding of God and the scriptures about where one
should worship. This should get him talking in circles. Yet,
Jesus continues. He doesn’t play the game. He wants the woman
to let go of her defenses and trust. He wants her to realize that
God has come into her life and that it could be better if she only would
let God in. But it required letting go of what she thought she knew.
Was she ready?
Today you and I are asked to let go of our defenses and let
God in. What do we place our trust in? Is it our knowledge
or our understanding of the faith? Maybe we figure we have it all
worked out. We know what God is like. We know what He wants
from us. Is it that we are Americans and we know what is best?
We don’t want to let in people who speak a different language or who are
of another race or religion. Perhaps it’s in our own circles that
we have the most defenses. We decide who is in and who is out.
We don’t let in people who are different—the poor, the homeless, and the
mentally challenged. The Lord wants each of us today to realize that
our own defenses and skills are not enough. Unless we trust in the
Lord we will fail. We must turn away from sin and division.
Now is the time to leave our bucket by the side of the road and be filled
with living water given only by the Lord. Now is the acceptable time
to let God fill us up and be saved. Are we ready?
When I was in high school, it was a boarding school, and we
had movies shown in the auditorium each Saturday night. We really
looked forward to those nights. I remember one night when something
happened in the movie and people started reacting from their chairs.
People were shouting at the screen. Soon others joined in.
It was the most incredible thing to watch. I don’t even recall anymore
what the movie was or what the comments were. But what I remember
is how easily a group of people reacted to a stimulus and became something
of a mob. No violence was done. There was no harm, but all
it took was for a few people to shout out and soon most of the audience
did the same. No one wanted to be left out.
Peer pressure is a curious thing don’t you think? What
makes us want to do what others do, especially if that isn’t what we would
normally do? I suppose we all crave love and acceptance. We
want people to think that we belong. Even though we have a desire
to be free and independent, in fact, we really like to be with the group.
Mostly that’s a good thing. It only becomes something harmful when
associating with the group entails doing something dangerous or hurtful
to another person. Riots and looting of stores is often like that.
You see people carting off things that they don't really need, but in the
context of the riot it seems like an acceptable thing to do.
In today’s Gospel the man born blind has a place in society.
He is blind and he is probably had to beg for his food and other necessities.
It wasn’t a great life, but people would have felt pity for the man and
thrown him a few coins every so often. It helped him survive and
made the person giving charity feel good about himself. Now Jesus
comes into the man’s life. He cures him of his blindness. This
would seem to be the best of all possible news. Yet, there is a problem.
The man is cured on a Sabbath. He becomes a pawn between Jesus and
the Pharisees. Even the blind man’s parents get scared. They
don’t want to be thrown out of the synagogue. They don’t want the
neighbors to think badly of them. They want to have their place in
society. So, it’s easier to turn their back on their son who had
been blind than to accept God’s working in their lives.
Even the Pharisees are in the midst of this peer pressure
game. I am sure that not all of them thought that what Jesus did
was evil. Probably many praised God that they were able to witness
a great miracle. Yet, here they are and they have to stick together.
If Jesus continues to do miracles, especially on the Sabbath their understanding
of the Law will no longer hold sway with the people. They will lose
their standing and respect in society. So, it’s easier to discredit
Jesus and throw the man born blind out of the synagogue just to keep their
status. Yes, peer pressure is a curious thing.
You and I would like to believe that we are immune to such
thinking. We hope that we are better than that. Yet, sometimes
we have found ourselves in a conversation at work tearing down someone
who was different, especially if that person were a minority. Maybe
we have found ourselves succumbing to the little ways of cheating or lying.
We figure everyone does it. It’s no big deal. It could be that
we have bought into the lies of television about sex or violence.
We figure that if it’s on TV that it must be the norm. And so it
goes.
We pray for freedom from our blindness. We so badly
need to be accepted that we will do just about anything. Now is the
time of our visitation. Christ has come to set us free. Praise
God for His goodness. Amen.