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October 21, 2009
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October 22nd Holy
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October 21, 2009
28th Sunday Ordinary Time
Wisdom 7: 7-11
And so I prayed, and understanding was given me;
I entreated, and the spirit of Wisdom came to me.
I esteemed her more than sceptres and thrones;
compared with her, I held riches as nothing.
I reckoned no precious stone to be her equal,
for compared with her, all gold is a pinch of sand,
and beside her, silver ranks as mud.
I loved her more than health or beauty,
preferred her to the light,
since her radiance never sleeps.
In her company all good things came to me,
and at her hands incalculable wealth.
Hebrews 4: 12-13
The word of God is something alive and active: it cuts more incisively than any two–edged sword: it can seek out the place where soul is divided from spirit, or joints from marrow; it can pass judgement on secret emotions and thoughts. No created thing is hidden from him; everything is uncovered and stretched fully open to the eyes of the one to whom we must give account of ourselves.
Mark 10: 17-30
He was setting out on a journey when a man ran up, knelt before him and put this question to him, ‘Good master, what must I do to inherit eternal life?’ Jesus said to him, ‘Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. You know the commandments: You shall not kill; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not give false witness; You shall not defraud; Honour your father and mother.’ And he said to him, ‘Master, I have kept all these since my earliest days.’ Jesus looked steadily at him and he was filled with love for him, and he said, ‘You need to do one thing more. Go and sell what you own and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.’ But his face fell at these words and he went away sad, for he was a man of great wealth.
Jesus looked round and said to his disciples, ‘How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!’ The disciples were astounded by these words, but Jesus insisted, ‘My children,’ he said to them, ‘how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for someone rich to enter the kingdom of God.’ They were more astonished than ever, saying to one another, ‘In that case, who can be saved?’ Jesus gazed at them and said, ‘By human resources it is impossible, but not for God: because for God everything is possible.’
Peter took this up. ‘Look,’ he said to him, ‘we have left everything and followed you.’ Jesus said, ‘In truth I tell you, there is no one who has left house, brothers, sisters, mother, father, children or land for my sake and for the sake of the gospel who will not receive a hundred times as much, houses, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and land -- and persecutions too -- now in this present time and, in the world to come, eternal life.
October 11, 2009
Our gospel today was about the rich young man, and although this would be a good opportunity to give a money talk, I’m not prepared to give one this week, so you can put your wallets away (for now). I really want to explain to you this picture of St. Boniface, which was a recent gift to us. But before I talk about St. Boniface I have an amusing story to tell you. St. Bernard’s Church in Winton Place caught on fire recently (that’s not the amusing part). It was due to out dated electric and Fr. Shappelle told me there was about $50,000 damage. What is amusing is that Fr. Shappelle credits me with saving the church from burning down entirely. Here’s how it happened. He had a funeral coming up around 6:00 pm and went over to church about 2:00 to get things ready. While there in church, he decided to sit down and read my homily book – and he fell asleep. He woke up a short time later coughing on the smoke coming from the fire that had started while he was sleeping. If it weren’t for my book putting him to sleep, he would have gone back to the rectory and the fire would have been much worse. I’m glad to know my homilies are so helpful.
Now the picture of St. Boniface. I am often asked why we don’t have a picture of St. Boniface here. I always point out our stained glass window of him, and I tell people there is a statue of St. Boniface above the front doors of the church. Recently I spoke with Len Buckley, an artist in Maryland, about a picture and he volunteered to paint one. (I introduced Len and his wife Janet at Mass last Saturday). Janet is a graduate of St. Boniface and a cousin of Fran Klosterman. That is his connection with St. Boniface. His name is not famous but you come in contact with his art work many times during the week. Every time you handle a piece of US currency that has an oval around the president’s picture on the front of the bill, the art work on the front and back of the bill is the work of Len Buckley. (The newer bills do not have the president’s picture in an oval – in case you hadn’t noticed). Len also competed with 100 other artists to design the back of the Colorado quarter and his design won the competition. So much about the artist.
Now the picture. St. Boniface has a red cloak, not only because he was a bishop, but also because he was a martyr. His miter also indicates he was a bishop. Like the man in today’s gospel Boniface, gave up everything to follow Christ. He was not any more German than St. Patrick was Irish. St. Boniface was an English Benedictine monk who could have had a very comfortable life as the abbot of a monastery in England, but he felt called to travel to Germany to work for the conversion of Germanic tribes and to reform the German Church. He had his work cut out for him. When he arrived in Germany in 719 (at the age of 47), paganism was a way of life. Whatever Christianity he found had lapsed into paganism or was mixed with error. The clergy he found were uneducated and lax and ignored the pope and their bishops. Boniface was very successful in his work. Four years after arriving in Germany, he challenged the pagan priests by cutting down an oak tree that was considered sacred to the pagan god, Thor. That is the subject of our stained glass window. The people standing around holding their hands above their heads would have been pagans waiting for Thor to strike him dead, but nothing happened. This led to a lot of conversions. St. Boniface built a chapel from the wood of the tree. In our painting, at the lower right hand corner is the stump of a tree representing the tree he cut down. Next to it is the beginning of an evergreen tree representing the new growth of the Church in Germany. Behind his head we see the dark clouds of paganism begin to blow away as Boniface raises his right hand to bless us and his left hand points to the Scriptures, the Word of God. A dagger is set in the stump to represent the instrument of St. Boniface’s martyrdom. In 754, at approximately 82 years of age, St. Boniface and 53 companions were massacred as they traveled into Friesland in northern Holland to confer Confirmation. One version of his martyrdom was that the pagans who killed him thought the boxes he carried with him contained gold, but they found only the archbishop’s books and relics. I haven’t decided yet where I am going to hang this picture, but I have it here today so I can talk about it. The artist dedicated his painting to Fr. Robert Brungs, a Jesuit who said his first solemn Mass here at St. Boniface in June, 1964.
I can’t finish my talk about St. Boniface without a special mention of two other saints: St. Damien of Molokai who cared for the lepers in Hawaii until he died of leprosy at age 49 and St. Jeanne Jugan who started the Little Sisters of the Poor. The Sisters do a wonderful job – I know because my stepmother was there until she died. Ted and Roselyn are in the care of the Little Sisters at their home on Riddle Road. I mention Damien and Jeanne Jugan because they have been canonized today by Pope Benedict. I thought you should know this.A lot of us here would probably never have heard of Christ, had it not been for courageous and dedicated missionaries like St. Boniface or St. Patrick. We could celebrate the faith that came to us through St. Boniface by going out to a beer garden on his feast, June 5, like the Irish do on March 17. Or we can show our gratitude and support for our faith by helping support missionaries in the world today. We will have the opportunity to do that through our Mission Sunday Collection next week. Another way we give thanks to God for our faith (and for all God’s blessings) is through our weekly celebration of the Eucharist, as we do now, for as we all know the word “Eucharist” means “Thanksgiving”.
Today's Readings
Romans 6: 12-18
That is why you must not allow sin to reign over your mortal bodies and make you obey their desires; or give any parts of your bodies over to sin to be used as instruments of evil. Instead, give yourselves to God, as people brought to life from the dead, and give every part of your bodies to God to be instruments of uprightness; and then sin will no longer have any power over you—you are living not under law, but under grace.
What is the implication? That we are free to sin, now that we are not under law but under grace? Out of the question! You know well that if you undertake to be somebody’s slave and obey him, you are the slave of him you obey: you can be the slave either of sin which leads to death, or of obedience which leads to saving justice. Once you were slaves of sin, but thank God you have given whole–hearted obedience to the pattern of teaching to which you were introduced; and so, being freed from serving sin, you took uprightness as your master.
Luke 12: 39-48
You may be quite sure of this, that if the householder had known at what time the burglar would come, he would not have let anyone break through the wall of his house. You too must stand ready, because the Son of man is coming at an hour you do not expect.’
Peter said, ‘Lord, do you mean this parable for us, or for everyone?’ The Lord replied, ‘Who, then, is the wise and trustworthy steward whom the master will place over his household to give them at the proper time their allowance of food? Blessed that servant if his master’s arrival finds him doing exactly that. I tell you truly, he will put him in charge of everything that he owns. But if the servant says to himself, "My master is taking his time coming," and sets about beating the menservants and the servant–girls, and eating and drinking and getting drunk, his master will come on a day he does not expect and at an hour he does not know. The master will cut him off and send him to the same fate as the unfaithful.
‘The servant who knows what his master wants, but has got nothing ready and done nothing in accord with those wishes, will be given a great many strokes of the lash. The one who did not know, but has acted in such a way that he deserves a beating, will be given fewer strokes. When someone is given a great deal, a great deal will be demanded of that person; when someone is entrusted with a great deal, of that person even more will be expected.
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July 31, 1994
Words of Jesus to Members of
Shepherds of Christ Associates:"My beloved priest-companion, I intend to use the priestly newsletter, Shepherds of Christ, and the movement, Shepherds of Christ Associates, in a powerful way for the renewal of My Church and the world.
"I will use the newsletter and the chapters of Shepherds of Christ Associates as a powerful instrument for spreading devotion to My Heart and My Mother's Heart.
"I am calling many to become members of Shepherds of Christ Associates. To all of them I will give great blessings. I will use them as instruments to help bring about the triumph of the Immaculate Heart and the reign of My Sacred Heart. I will give great graces to the members of Shepherds of Christ Associates. I will call them to be deeply united to My Heart and to Mary's Heart as I lead them ever closer to My Father in the Holy Spirit."
- Message from Jesus to Father Edward J. Carter, S.J., Founder, as given on July 31, 1994,
feast of Saint Ignatius Loyola, Founder of the Society of Jesus (The Jesuits)
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