It All Belongs to God (25th Sunday, Year B)

To listen to this homily, click here.

Throughout the Archdiocese, we are encouraged to reflect on the theme of stewardship for this weekend. To lead us in that direction, consider the story about a family coming out of Mass on Sunday. The man said to his wife, “father’s homily wasn’t very good.” The wife added, “Yeah, and the choir sang off key.” Their son was listening to his parents and he chimed in. “It seemed OK to me, especially since it only cost us a dollar!”

That is a caricature of one approach to weekly worship here at Mass and to religion which can be summed up in the question, “What am I getting out of it?” or “what is it doing for me?” This mentality seems to be popular with many Catholics, especially today when there are countless commitments and forms of entertainment competing for our time and attention. But there is a deeper, more rewarding approach to weekly worship and service called Stewardship. It is based on the fundamental truth that we all have the same heavenly Father. The implications of this truth are enormous. If God is our Father, then he is the source of all we have and are. It also means we are brothers and sisters and we have a responsibility for each other and to God as a sort of spiritual family.

It is hard to keep that perspective today. In many ways our society is coming apart. One can easily respond by saying that I will take care of myself. Let others worry about themselves. Live and let live. Of course, I will be tolerant of others - as long as they don’t get in my way. But if we all have one father, if we are brothers and sisters in Christ, that approach won’t work. Because of Jesus, we have to care for each other as family.

The way we express this reality is by Stewardship, that is, dedicating the first portion of our time, talent and treasure back to God in grateful recognition that he is the source of all we have. Traditionally and biblically, this is expressed by the tithe; give 10% back to God and use the remaining 90% for our needs. In the Scriptures, this 10% was not given last from the leftovers but was given out of the best, the first fruits. 

There was a boy in the nineteenth century who lived by this rule. He came from a modest family. In his first job he earned $1.50 a week. He brought the money home to his mother who placed it in her lap. She said, “John, I would be very happy if you gave ten percent back to God.” That Sunday, young John placed fifteen cents in the collection. From that time, he gave God ten percent of everything he earned. He went on to become one of the richest men in America – John David Rockefeller.

Now, you could certainly find things about Rockefeller to criticize. Still, he knew the first part belongs to God. I am not here to preach the gospel of prosperity or to say that tithing will make you a millionaire, but I promise it will bring peace, purpose, blessings and you will always have what you need! 

For many people Stewardship is frightening. They would like to do it, but don’t know how to start. They feel they have too many debts or obligations. I remember feeling this way when I began giving as a seminarian. I was timid and started out at 4 or 5%. But you have to begin somewhere —— and the hardest part is committing to giving God his share first, whatever that amount is. Rockefeller said if he had not tithed his first dollar, he never would have tithed his first million dollars.

On a personal note, it took me seven years to reach the goal of tithing, which for me is 5% to the parish and 5% to other charities. Interestingly, and sometimes inexplicably, in the years since I made this commitment, I have been increasingly blessed and have been able to give even more than the 10% I originally planned. God has taken what I have given to him, blessed it and returned it to me many times over. I have always had more than I needed.

Stewardship does requires planning and prayer. If my giving to God consists of whatever is left in my wallet each weekend or happens simply when I remember or feel like it, it will be nearly impossible to be a good steward. It will be an afterthought at best.

Stewardship is not just asking us to prayerfully consider the charitable giving of our financial resources. Sometimes giving money is the easy part. Even more importantly, we need to give God a portion of the best of ourselves which is our time and talent. We are all are busy, but try to look at it in a different way. Each of us has the same number of hours in a week: 168.  45, 55 or even 60 go for sleep. Another 40 or more are spent on one’s work or studies. That still leaves about 70 hours. We give one hour to God at Sunday Mass. Could we give an additional hour or two – say in Eucharistic Adoration, in a faith formation program, serving on a parish or school committee, or some other ministry at Incarnate Word? Could we also prayerfully look at the amount of time we spend on entertainment, especially on the internet or in front of the TV? Did you know that the average American spends 5hrs and 4 minutes a day watching tv and another 24hrs a week on the internet? Think how our lives, our families, and our parish would be transformed if we gave 10% of that screen time to God in personal prayer? Can you imagine how much more peaceful our hearts would be?

Giving part of our best time, talent, and treasure is important. As I mentioned – and I believe many people sense – our society is becoming unraveled. There is a temptation to pull back and circle the wagons. I sometimes experience it myself. I have even felt a sense of discouragement come over me while at Mass as I think of the many needs of our church and how difficult it is to get people to help. I am somewhat ashamed to say it, but it’s true. However, what gives me new hope and purpose is when I visit the kids in their classrooms at the school and PSR or interact with our teens in the youth group who want to know more about our faith and how they can be a part of it. You and I want to make a better society and a better parish for their sake.

For their sake, I am asking you to make a commitment of Time, Talent and Treasure. And there is no minimum age for stewardship. All of us have something to offer God because he has blessed us so much. We have one Father. We are all brothers and sisters – with a responsibility for each other. God owns it all……we are called to share and give some of it back so others may be blessed and our happiness may be multiplied.

Take My Kidney, Pope!! (24th Sunday, Year B)

To listen to this homily, click here.

One of the great theologians of our time is a man named Scott Hahn, who converted to Catholicism after serving as a Presbyterian pastor and professor. Most of you probably know his name and I think the parish has given some of his books as our Christmas and Easter gift. Anyway, in one of his talks he tells the anecdote of Pope John Paul II needing a kidney transplant. There was much concern throughout the Roman Catholic world, knowing that without a donor the Pope would soon die. People spontaneously gathered outside the Pope’s apartment in St. Peter’s Square screaming and waving their hands. The Pope heard all the noise and poked his head out the window. The crowd went nuts and started chanting, ”Take my kidney, Pope, take my kidney!" Well, the Pope didn't know what to do, so an idea popped into his head. He asked everyone to quiet down and he told them he was going to throw down a feather.  Whoever the feather landed on, that would be a sign from the Holy Spirit, that they were meant to be the donor. The Pope then dropped the feather off his balcony and you know what he heard? "Take my kidney, Pope," (trying to blow it away), Take my kidney (trying to blow it away)."

The past two Sundays we have reflected on the wonderful and practical letter of St. James. His words are just as relevant now as they were then as he urges us to care for the afflicted and show no favorites. In other words, don't treat someone differently because they can do something for you. This leads into James’ message for today: if our faith is only words and doesn't have actions to back it up, it is empty and dead. Put another way: we demonstrate our true beliefs and character by how we act. It’s easy to say, “Take my kidney, Pope!” but it is a whole other thing to go through with it. 

Along the same lines, there is a story about Charles Blondin, who was a famous acrobat from France in the 1800’s. He was like the early version of the Flying Wallendas or Evel Knievel with his sensational tricks. Once Blondin gathered a crowd at Niagara Falls. He asked them if they thought he could walk a tightrope stretched across the Falls. The crowd cheered their approval. Then he asked if they believed he could do it blindfolded. Once again a booming cheer. Finally he asked if they believed he could do it pushing a wheelbarrow. The crowd went wild with excitement. Blondin then approached a man cheering loudest. "Do you really believe I can do it?" "Of course," the man said. "Then," said Blondin, "Will you get in the wheelbarrow?”

Take these stories and consider them in relation to your friendship with Jesus Christ and His Bride, the Catholic Church. I think most of us would profess loudly and confidently that we believe Jesus is God. In fact we will do exactly that after the homily as we say the Creed together. We believe he can do anything. Still, aren’t we a little, or even a lot, reluctant to get into that wheelbarrow. It's one thing to believe, to profess with our words; it's a whole other thing to put it all on the line, whether that be our body, soul, future, finances, reputation, or whatever else. The wheelbarrow represents the Church. I admit that wheelbarrow looks pretty rusty and beat up right now after some of the shameful scandals and poor leadership exposed by the Grand Jury report in Pennsylvania. With all that, I am grateful we have people brave enough to get into the wheelbarrow and let Jesus lead them. Those who keep coming to Mass, who keep praying to God in their hearts, who keep ministering to others in his Name, even when the world calls for us let go of our faith and our Church. It’s in these dark and painful moments of crisis where we learn what it means to live our faith beyond words. Is it more than mere talk? For some priests and bishops, it was not. As we see in James, true faith involves care of the afflicted and avoiding sexual sins, greed, deceit, envy and arrogance. 

True faith also means we trust Jesus and don't go after illusions. In today's Gospel Jesus places the cross at the center of what it means to follow him. Peter takes Jesus aside and arrogantly tries to correct him. Peter wants a messiah, a savior, but not a suffering servant like the one Isaiah describes in today's first reading. He wants a powerful, conquering king with worldly power and glory. Jesus minces no words. "Get behind me, Satan." Jesus knows how Satan works. He can orchestrate huge evils like the Nazi concentration camps, ethnic cleansing, abortion, and yes, the clergy abuse scandal. The devil can also work through basically good people - like St. Peter. He does it by getting us to turn away from the cross. It’s natural to want to run away from any suffering or pain. But we should never forget that through our baptism, we are given grace and strength to think and act not only naturally but also supernaturally. We don’t have to go looking for suffering, but when it inevitably finds us, we must remember that Jesus and his cross give it meaning and purpose.   

We are fortunate enough to have the words of St. James words for two more Sundays. I think of them like a challenging treat, like a delicious ice cream that punches you in the face. For today we see that true faith requires not just words but also actions. Living our faith means taking a risk - getting into the wheelbarrow. Or to put it in Jesus’ words, taking up our cross and following him. True faith means accepting the irony that "Whoever loses his life for my sake and the sake of the gospel will save it." 

The Danger of Hypocrisy (22nd Sunday, Year B)

To listen to this homily, click here.

There is a story told of a priest who was called out to the hospital located in a not-so-great part of town in the early morning hours to anoint someone. After performing his priestly duties, he was walking back to his car when he was confronted by a mugger who exclaimed, “give me your money or I’ll shoot!" As the priest fumbled with his wallet, the thief saw the collar, and changed his mind. The relieved priest lit a cigarette and offered one to his would-be robber. The latter proudly said, "No thanks, Father. I've given up smoking for Lent." Like the would-be thief, many of us Christians can lose sight of the forest because of the trees. The danger of sin is that it opens up a disconnect between what we believe and how we actually behave in everyday situations. We can end up being very observant of certain traditions while blindly missing the essentials of what it means to follow Jesus. There is a danger, St. John Newman warned, of thinking God takes our sins lightly because we take them lightly.

One of the warnings running throughout the readings this week at daily Mass and today for the 22nd week in ordinary time is this: Don’t be a hypocrite! In other words, make sure what you believe and how you act line up. Don’t say one thing and do another. There is something universally reviling about hypocrites. We can't stand it when we learn that models of morality have been leading secret, immoral lives. We are upset when those whom we respect are revealed to be indecent frauds. Sadly we have seen this principle in action with the clergy scandals that have afflicted the Church in recent times. 

We agree with the Lord in his attack on the hypocrites. But then Jesus turns the focus of his teaching towards us. He says the things that are evil are what comes out of us. He doesn’t just lead us in a round of mob justice to condemn all those bad people in the world; rather Jesus forces each of us to ask, "Am I a hypocrite? What thoughts, words, and actions are coming out of me? What is my heart producing?" We need to be concerned with fighting against any evil that might be lurking inside us. We can easily see the wrong in others, but if we are to avoid being hypocrites ourselves, we need to control our thoughts. We need to protect ourselves against those things which will turn black and white into gray. We need to be wholesome. We need to be pure of heart. We need to be gentle, strong, and merciful. 

Because the human reaction to hypocrisy is so visceral, there is a danger that when we see it in ourselves, when we are the hypocrites, we give in to self-hatred. But God doesn’t want us hating ourselves. We must replace self-hatred with love, His Divine Love. We belong to God. He is among us and, through the grace of our baptism, He is within us. His gift of grace will help us win the battle for our souls. And this is the great irony: the thing God can’t stand the most (hypocrisy) seems at first glance, very similar to the thing He loves above all else! God loves sinners so much he didn’t even spare His Son to save them. So what is the difference between a hypocrite and a sinner? One key thing. The sinner avoids becoming a hypocrite by honest reflection on his or her life. The difference is that the sinner says, “God, I am sorry. I have done wrong. I need your help. I don’t want to hurt you or anyone else anymore. I want to do good things but I am weak. I understand the sins of others because I have my own weaknesses and failures.” 

One last observation. Just because the hypocritical Pharisees misused the commandments to harden their hearts doesn’t mean God decided to throw away the Law! Jesus does not dismiss the commandments or the notion of sin but he condemns using it to afflict, judge, or hurt others. Jesus exposes the Pharisees for honoring God with lip-service while their hearts are far from him. But the problem is with them, not the moral code. The commandments and teachings of right and wrong come from God and cannot change or be dismissed even when its teachers lead horrible lives. Perhaps the saddest result of hypocrisy in some of our moral leaders today is that it makes it easier for us to dismiss the saving truths they were supposed to be representing. That is the ultimate scandal of hypocrisy: the splendor of Divine truth, found in God’s laws and commandments is obscured by human pride and weakness. 

Today it would be a good idea for each of us to pray for the grace to be able to humbly and honestly reflect on our own life and actions. How do they or don’t they line up with the teachings we have received from Christ through Scripture and Tradition? Is what comes out of us in the form of thoughts, words, and actions consistent with what we profess and believe as followers of Christ? Is there anything we are doing or not doing that could lead someone to doubt the truth of who we represent, namely Jesus Christ? Are we willing to look first at our own sins and weaknesses rather than brushing over them to point out the faults of others? Do we think, consciously or not, that we are better than others, which is a sure sign we need God’s help to root out hypocrisy in ourselves. 

The Good News is that God’s love is steadfast! He will never stop loving sinners who confess their need for Him! So let’s be set free from any pride or self-righteousness that might afflict us. Let’s openly admit to God that we are weak and sinful and in need of His care. Make use of the sacrament of confession which he gave us as a way of returning to him and receiving his gifts of healing and strength. Pray not only for yourself, but for all who wander in darkness and for anyone who may have been hurt by our sins and hypocrisy. In time, with God’s grace, we can become the person described by the psalmist, ‘who does justice and who will live in the presence of the Lord’!