Jan 27, 2008

Homily for the 3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A. January 27, 2008 - Given at Cronulla.

View the readings: Is 8: 23- 9:3; 1 Cor 1: 10-13, 17; Matt 4: 12-23

 

Three men were pacing nervously outside the delivery room at a hospital when the head nurse came out beaming. 

To the first she said, "Congratulations, sir, you are the father of twins." "Terrific!" said the man, "I just signed a contract to become the distribute for U2 and this'll be great press."

To the second man the nurse said, "Congratulations.  You are the father of healthy triplets!" “Fantastic!" he said.  "I'm the vice-president of the 3-Mobile Network. This'll be great P.R.!"

At that point the third man turned around and ran for the door. "What's wrong, sir?  Where are you going?" called the nurse. As he jumped into his car, the man shouted, "I'm dashing to my office to resign.  I'm the CEO of Channel 7!”

Today’s gospel in the fourth chapter of Matthew prepares us to hear a surprising and shocking announcement by Jesus: “Repent; for the kingdom of heaven is close at hand.”

The news that the kingdom of heaven is near is shocking news, even for us today. So often people are not prepared for it, are not interested in it, or too busy with something else.

My friends, the Gospel is telling us to get ready: the Kingdom may come at any time. Every time we pray the Lord’s Prayer we say “Thy Kingdom Come” but do we mean what we say? Do we want the Kingdom to come today?

Matthew tells us that the people to whom Jesus brings his ministry have been sitting in darkness, but Jesus' coming has brought them a great light. 

Jesus uses exactly the same words as John the Baptist used:  'Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near. “To repent” means that we take a complete change of direction in our lives.  Repentance properly understood is an "I can't" experience rather than an "I can" experience.  If repentance is promising God, "I can do better," then we are trying to keep ourselves in control of our lives.  When we come before God confessing, "I can't do better," then we are dying to self and allowing God to live.  We are giving up control of our lives.  We are throwing our sinful lives at the mercy of God. We are inviting God to do what we can't do ourselves -- namely to raise the dead -- to change and recreate us. 

"Repent" is a verb in the present tense. We are called to "Keep on repenting!"  "Continually be repentant!" Christ understands that we always tempted to take control of our lives. So we are constantly called to die to our selfish desires and to allow God to become our focus. Repentance is the ongoing lifestyle of the people in the kingdom.  “Repentance is letting go, and letting God take control.”

The invitation to come and follow Jesus is an important part of the Christian message. In today’s Gospel, Jesus calls Peter, Andrew, James and John to come and follow him and to become fishers of men.

Last week John the Baptist told us to “Look (and see) the Lamb of God.” Today’s Gospel has Christ inviting the first apostles to follow him.

The role of being a witness is not limited only to Christ, but as members of Christ’s family, we have the mission to tell the world that the kingdom of heaven is close at hand.

We tell others about good restaurants, movies, shops, hairdressers, etc. Why isn't there the same enthusiasm over inviting and encouraging people to come and participate in our Church activities, our Sunday worship, our bible studies, our Lenten programs, our courses and our ministries?

Invitations are important, and the role of inviting people to the Church is not only my responsibility and it is not only Father’s responsibility. The role of talking about the faith, talking about Christ, and bringing Christ to people belongs to each and every one of us. I don’t have the access to talk with your friends, to talk with your colleagues at work, or your associates at the bowls club or the golf club. I represent Christ and his Church, but each and everyone of you also represent Christ and his Church. Each and every one of you is called to be another Christ: calling people to follow in the ways of Christ.

Often we may hesitate to talk about faith or to invite people because we feel that talking about religion is a bad thing in our culture.

Often people think that religion is a private matter and it shouldn't be shared with others.

Other people are scared because they feel they don’t have much of a personal faith to share, or that their knowledge of the faith is not good or that our worship services would not be appealing to non-Catholics because we find it boring ourselves at times.

My friends, our faith should make us want others, our friends and our families, to follow and to see Jesus.

Christ has a mission for each of us. Through prayer and reflection, through discussion with Christ’s community and through an acknowledgement of our God-given talents, we are able to discern the ways in which God is calling us to serve in building his kingdom.

The Kingdom of heaven should be the theme of our preaching and witness. The kingdom of heaven is the place where God rules. 

What should be our response to the coming of heaven's rule?  Surprisingly, it is not worship or praise, but it is repentance.  Perhaps this is the big problem with the coming of Jesus at Christmas or Palm Sunday -- we are tempted and we want to only celebrate and praise, rather than repent and allow Jesus to take control.  In telling us that the kingdom has come near, Jesus is telling us that we can dwell in this kingdom provided we turn away from self centeredness and let God reign in our lives. 

 

Jan 20, 2008

Homily for the 2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A - Jan 20, 2008 - Cronulla

View the readings: Readings: Is 49:3.5-6, 1 Cor: 1-1-3, Jn 1:29-34

Today, the Church returns to wearing green vestments and we are reminded once again about the normality and the routines of life. Even within the day to day grind of life, we are called to look and to see Jesus.

7 weeks ago we started the journey towards Christmas with Advent. In Advent we were called by John the Baptist to “Prepare a way for the Lord” and to “Make straight his path.”

But how much closer are we to preparing the way for Lord? Has anything changed? We have celebrated Christmas, we have celebrated New Years, and shortly school will start again, the holidays will be over, and life will go on as normal.

Have we changed? Have we made any resolutions? Are we more committed to Christ and the journey towards eternal life than we were before Advent began?

 

In Today’s Gospel, John the Baptist points us towards Jesus. He tells us “Look” and says “there is the lamb of God.”

Have we looked for Jesus? Have we seen Jesus in our midst, in our lives and in our families?

There is a famous nursery rhyme that most of us would remember from our childhood days.

It begins: Mary had a little lamb, little lamb, little lamb,

Mary had a little lamb, its fleece was white as snow.

My friends, this nursery rhyme originated in England during the 16 to 1700s as a tool to explain the faith to children.

It recognises Mary, the mother of Jesus, as having a lamb. It recognises the purity and the whiteness of Jesus the lamb.

          The “Lamb of God” is a title familiar to each us. During every Mass, we proclaim what John the Baptist said through the song: “Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world, have mercy on us/grant us peace.”

The Lamb of God prayer gives expression to the identity and purpose of Jesus Christ. But what does Lamb of God mean? We say it every Mass? It must be significant, but I know with myself I can sometimes become routine with the prayers at Mass, especially those we say over and over again.

The “Lamb of God” is perhaps the most meaningful title given to Jesus in the Scriptures. It is used 29 times in the Book of Revelation alone. “Lamb of God” sums up the love, sacrifice and the triumph of Christ. It tells us about who Jesus is and his mission and purpose. It refers to sacrificial love, it refers to our salvation and redemption and it refers to Christ’s victory over death.  

 

For the Jewish people (and for us as attentive listens to the Words of the Old Testament): the Lamb of God calls 5 pictures to mind:

1. The Lamb of Atonement (Lev. 16:20-22). This lamb was blessed and the sins of the people were transferred to the lamb by the laying on of hands of the High Priest. Then the lamb was sent into the wild to devoured by wild animals.

2. The Lamb of Daily Atonement (Ex. 29:38-42; Num. 28:1-8) was a lamb which was sacrificed to God every morning and evening to atone, to make up for the sins of the Jews.

3. The Paschal Lamb (Ex.12:11) was the lamb whose blood was placed over the doors of the Jewish families in Egypt to save the people from the ‘Angel of destruction’. This Paschal Lamb also reminds of the Passover. It also reminds of Easter, of Christ’s victory over death through the shedding of his blood.    

4. The Lamb portrayed by the Prophets as the innocent to the slaughter.

5. The Lamb of the Conquerors. On the ancient Jewish flag, at the time of Maccabean liberation war, there was a picture of a horned lamb, used as a sign of a conquering majesty and power. Samuel, David and Solomon were described by the ancient Jewish historians as “horned lambs.” 

 

My friends, Christ is the Lamb of God. The Hebrew Scriptures (the Old Testament) bears witness to Christ as the Lamb of God. The New Testament, over and over again tells us that Christ is the Lamb of God. Our Christian Tradition and liturgy tells us to pray to Christ under the title of Lamb of God on a daily basis.

Do we, like John the Baptist, see the Lamb of God?

Do we, like John the Baptist, direct others towards the Lamb of God?

Our witness is to proclaim aloud what we have seen and believe. Our witness is to invite others to “Look,” to "come and see."

For John the Baptist, faith begins by responding to the invitation to "come and see."

My friends, we tell others about good restaurants, movies, shops, hairdressers, etc. Why isn't there the same fervour over inviting and encouraging people to come and participate in our Church activities, our Sunday worship, our bible studies, our Lenten programs, our courses and our ministries?

Invitations are important, and the role of inviting people to the Church is not only my responsibility and it is not Father’s responsibility. The role of talking about the faith, talking about Christ belongs to each and every one of you. I don’t have the access to talk with your friends, to talk with your colleagues at work, or your associates at the bowls club or the golf club. I represent Christ and his Church, but each and everyone of you also represent Christ and his Church. Each and every one of you is called to be like John the Baptist: to point the way to Christ.

I wouldn’t be surprised to hear that some of us have never invited a friend (Catholic or non-Catholic) to a regular Sunday Mass, or to any program in the parish.

That’s ok. It’s never too late to begin. Perhaps inviting someone to the Church is something we could do this year.

Often we may hesitate to talk about faith or to invite people because we feel that talking about religion is a bad thing in our culture.

Often people think that religion is a private matter and it shouldn't be shared with others.

Other people are scared because they feel they don’t have much of a personal faith to share, or that their knowledge of the faith is not good or that our worship services would not be appealing to non-Catholics because we find it boring ourselves at times.

My friends, our faith should make us want others, our friends and our families, to see Jesus. Do not be afraid to share the message with those we know.

The Lamb of God, the innocent victim sacrificed for us, the Lamb who destroys death and opens eternal life to each of us. Jesus is the Lamb of God who heals our relationships and gives us peace.

My friends, Jesus is what we are looking at. This is what John the Baptist pointed us towards and this is what we should be showing to other people. The world wants healing and peace. Let us offer them the greatest healing possible: Jesus himself.

Mary had a little lamb, and every where that Mary went, the lamb was sure to go.”

Are we willing to take the Lamb of God with us every where we go? Are we willing to be identified as friends of Jesus every moment of our life?

John the Baptist said: “Look, there is the lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world.”

How will we respond?

 

Jan 6, 2008

Homily for the FEAST OF EPIPHANY - January 6, 2008. Cronulla

Readings: Is. 60:1-6; Eph.3: 2-6; Mt. 2: 1-12

My dear friends today we have left our homes and we have come together to visit Christ in Bethlehem a second time. On Christmas day we visited Mary, Joseph and the child Jesus with the shepherds. But today, a few days after Christ’s birth, we make a second visit to the new-born Jesus, this time with the Magi, the Wise Men.

Just over a week ago we celebrated Christmas, and we celebrated the coming of Christ to the Jewish people, symbolised in the coming of the shepherds. Today, we celebrate the coming of Christ to all the people of the world symbolised through the Wise Men.

The word “Epiphany”, which means appearance or manifestation, marks Jesus’ first appearance to the Gentiles. “Epiphany” refers to God’s self-revelation as well as the revelation of Jesus as God’s Son. The Feast predates the celebration of Christmas, having originated in the East in the late 2nd century. The feast commemorates the coming of the Magi as the first manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles in the Western Church.

The 6th century Italian tradition says that there were three magi - Caspar, Beltassar, and Melchior, is based on the fact that three gifts are mentioned in Matthew’s gospel: gold, frankincense and myrrh. The Orthodox Church holds that the Magi consisted of twelve kings, corresponding in number to the twelve tribes of Israel.

Commentary on the Torah by Jewish rabbis suggested that a star appeared in the sky at the birth of Abraham, Isaac and Moses. Likewise, in the Book of Numbers, the prophet Balaam speaks of “a star that shall come out of Jacob.” Stars were believed to be signs from God, announcing important events. Thus, the brightness of the light to which kings were drawn became the star in Matthew.

The wise men were guided and directed by the light of the stars. Just over 2000 years ago a group of magi, astronomers, but also perhaps they were kings, merchants, politicians, farmers, intellectuals and the list goes on, but these people noticed an unusual occurrence in God’s creation.

What we do know is that they noticed that a catastrophic event was about to occur and that creation was bearing witness to it.

They left their home lands, presumably with their advisors, their friends, their families, their livestock, their wealth and most likely anyone who was interested in taking the journey of their life.

The wise men would not have only been 3 men, but perhaps thousands of people, men, women, children, animals, a huge caravan full of colour and life. The magi do not only represent three men who brought gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. They represent all people, who give the greatest gift possible to God, the gift of themselves.

Gold, frankincense and myrrh may be thought of as prophesying Jesus’ future, but also telling us about who Jesus actually is. Gold was a gift for kings; frankincense (an ancient air purifier and perfume) was offered to God in temple worship; and myrrh was used by the High Priest as an anointing oil and to prepare bodies for burial. These gifts were not only expensive but were portable.

The Epiphany can be looked on as a symbol for our pilgrimage through life to Christ. The feast invites us to see ourselves as images of the Magi, a people on a journey to Christ. The Magi are a prefigurement of the Church and of the journey towards eternal life. The Gift of Themselves is the greatest gift possible. The gift of ourselves is the greatest gift we are able to give to Christ.

Today’s Gospel tells us the story of the magi's encounter with the evil King Herod. This encounter symbolizes three reactions to Jesus’ birth: hatred, indifference, and adoration. King Herod considered Jesus as a threat to his kingship. The Scribes, Pharisees and the Jewish priests knew that there were nearly 500 prophecies in the Hebrew Scriptures concerning the promised Messiah, but they were more interested in their own selfish gains than in discovering and accepting the Messiah.

Then there were those who adored Jesus and offered Him gifts: This group was composed of the shepherds and the Magi. The shepherds offered the only gifts they had: love, tears of joy, and probably woollen clothes and milk from their sheep. The Magi offered gold, in recognition of Jesus as the king; frankincense, in acknowledgment that he was God, and myrrh as a symbol of his human nature.

Let us make sure that we belong with the shepherds and the Magi. Let us worship Jesus every day with the gold of our love, the myrrh of our humility and the frankincense of our adoration. Let us offer our very selves, promising God that we will use His blessings by doing good to our fellow men.

Let us choose a better path for our lives. Just as the Magi chose another route to return to their home, let us choose a better way of life, abstaining from proud and impure thoughts, evil habits and selfish behaviour.

Let us become the Star, leading others to Jesus, as the star led the Magi to Him. We can remove the darkness of evil around us by being at least like candles, radiating Jesus’ love by selfless service, unconditional forgiveness and compassionate care.

Like the Magi, let us offer Jesus our gifts on this feast of Epiphany.

The first gift might be friendship with God. After all, the whole point of Christmas is that God’s son became one of us, to redeem us and call us friends. God wants our friendship in the form of wholehearted love and devotion.

A second gift might be friendship with others. This kind of friendship can be costly. The price it exacts is vulnerability and openness to others. The good news, however, is that in offering friendship to others; we will receive back many blessings.

A third gift might be the gift of reconciliation. This is the gift of repairing damaged relationships. It requires honesty, humility, understanding, forgiveness and patience.

The fourth gift of this season is the gift of peace: seeking God’s peace in our own lives through prayer, sacramental life and daily meditation on the Word of God.

What can I give him, poor as I am?

If I were a shepherd, I could give a Lamb.

If I were a wise man, I could do my part.

What can I give Him? I can give Him my heart.