What Would You Wish For? (17th Sunday, Year A)

To listen to this homily, click here.

One of the movies that fascinated me as a youngster was Disney’s “Aladdin.” It was funny, the flying carpet was great, and best of all, the intrigue of a genie granting three wishes! One problem I had whenever I daydreamed about my three wishes was that three was never enough. Once you wished for one thing, it would lead to another, then another, and then there would be problems as you ran out of wishes! But that is how the human heart can be; impossible to satisfy, always wanting more, always looking for the next thing to find happiness. We see this insatiable desire wreaking havoc throughout our culture as millions of unsatisfied hearts keep searching for the next thing or person to fulfill them but never quite find it.

In our first reading, God gives Solomon the opportunity of a lifetime; the chance to request anything. And because he is a king, I would have expected Solomon to ask for power and victory for him and his armies. I would have expected him to ask God for money and riches, so that his kingdom and legacy would be built into something legendary. If nothing else, I would have expected Solomon to ask for the pleasure of enjoying himself during his time as king. Why wouldn’t he ask for plenty of food, drink, or whatever else his heart desired? But look at what Solomon actually requests of God. It is not power, pleasure, or money. When God tells Solomon: “ask something of me and I will give it to you”, he asks for knowledge and the gift of an understanding heart. 

This answer pleases God, in fact, it seems like he was almost caught off-guard by Solomon’s request. The Lord promises to give him wisdom and understanding in such abundance that never again will there be someone known to posses such qualities. 

Solomon’s humble request makes me wonder what I would say if God offered me anything I wanted. I suppose my answer to that question would have changed depending on my age and what was going on in my life. At different moments, I would have asked God for a bulldozer, the answers to my spelling test, and if he would would have appeared to me recently, the ability to discover and market the cure for COVID-19 or at least a toilet paper factory! It is humbling to admit but if I were in Solomon’s shoes, our first reading would probably have been much less inspiring; I would have settled for much less.

What about you? If God spoke to you and said, “ask something of me and I will give it to you” What would be on the top of your list? Would you request the wisdom to be a better spouse, a better parent to your children, a better friend to your peers? Would you ask for an understanding heart to better live your Catholic faith? If God granted you one wish, would you ask for Godly wisdom and understanding? Or might you squander God’s generosity on something as transitory as power, pleasure, or money?

Real power, authentic riches, and lasting happiness all come to us if we acquire the Godly wisdom that Solomon asked for. It’s not a luxury only for biblical characters; Christ offers this same knowledge if we are willing to humble ourselves and learn from him, who is meek and humble of heart. And far from being an extravagance, an understanding heart is absolutely essential for us if we hope to enjoy the kingdom of heaven when we die. So how do we “get” this gift? Is it even something ordinary people like us can hope for? 

This heavenly wisdom is the pearl of great price Jesus alludes to in our gospel. We will receive this gift slowly, day by day, through a consistent and quiet process of daily prayer. Probably not overnight like Solomon! Oftentimes, when we think of prayer, we imagine a list of wants and needs that we send up to God. Then, if He is in a good mood and we have behaved ourselves, perhaps some or most of those requests will come back granted the way we hoped. For many Christians, this is majority of their prayer. But in reality, there is so much more. Prayer is first and foremost, a relationship, a friendship with God. When we pray, we should be talking (AND LISTENING!) to Almighty God as we do with our best friend. We should be asking for things to be sure, but we should also be sharing our joys and sorrows, our hopes and fears, saying thank you for everything we have, apologizing for the times we have hurt Him, and also praising Him for his greatness. 

Prayer is a relationship that transforms us over time if we stick with it. The point of prayer is not to change God’s mind and heart but ours. As we grow in our friendship with God, we begin to trust Him more and more. We ask Him for the things we think we need and trust whatever He gives us is exactly what we need. This confidence in God’s care for us is the foundation of a wise and understanding heart, which orders every other part of our life. This God-given gift is what gives us the clarity to find the Lord in the toughest of circumstances and always choose the best for ourselves and others from the perspective of eternity. The wisdom of prayer enables us to look beyond the instant gratifications and flashiness of this world and set our heart on the treasure of eternal union with God.

So let us ask God daily for an understanding heart. The tragedy of Solomon is that even though Solomon received the gift of wisdom, he failed to deepen and develop it. Over time he lost that divine gift and used it simply for worldly pleasures. The same risk exists for us; we can never be content to sit on our laurels and celebrate the spiritual gifts we once received. We have to seek them and ask for them over and over and over again and work to refine them constantly otherwise they will be lost. 

May you and I look for the priceless treasure of the kingdom of God each and every day of our lives. And let us not be afraid to let go of whatever we have, whether it is material, spiritual, or psychological, that might prevent us from obtaining priceless spiritual treasure. With an understanding heart we will obtain real power, authentic riches, and lasting happiness forever in the kingdom of heaven!

Does Fear Drive You Away From God? (16th Sunday, Year A)

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It makes me feel old, but almost 10 years ago I saw a wonderful film that’s still fresh in my mind. The movie is titled “Buck” and revolves around the life of Buck Branneman, one of the real-life inspirations for Robert Redford’s classic, “The Horse Whisperer.” Buck is a world-renowned horse trainer who concentrates on reassuring the animals and gaining their trust instead of the traditional approach of breaking their will and dominating them. This might not sound too exciting or noteworthy except for one detail. Buck’s approach with horses was born out of his terrifying situation growing up. As a child of an abusive, alcoholic father, Mr. Branneman lived in fear and trembling for much of his childhood. He and his brother were often violently beaten for imagined offenses and failings. It wasn’t until a high school coach saw the scars of his father’s beatings that he and his brother were removed from their dysfunctional home and placed in the care of nurturing foster parents. It was here that Buck began to learn how to care for horses. It was here that he experienced the healthy fusion of love and discipline which would heal his troubled past and prepare him to address the dysfunction of both humans and horses.

  It is this relationship of fear, hurt, and healing that runs throughout the movie. Buck is a man devoted to training horses and their owners without fear and building a relationship of trust between man and beast. He believes it is only within this context of gentle firmness and empathy that an animal can be relieved of fear and brought to its full potential.

What was striking about the movie was the power of fear. How terror could make an animal completely unapproachable and dangerous. How the fear of the unknown could cause a horse to hurt itself and others. How it could paralyze a powerful creature and cripple its potential. Just as amazing to watch was the power of kindness and patience, which slowly melted away those fears in both humans and horses and allowed both creatures to share the best of themselves with each other. 

Now I am not an emotional person nor am I necessarily an animal guy who gets all choked up when “Ole Yeller” or “Marley and Me” comes on TV. But I have to admit I was moved and my eyes sweated a little at several points in the movie as this cowboy tamed the power of fear and opened up new possibilities in animals that were previously thought to be hopeless or beyond training. 

This movie also resonates with me in terms of my priestly ministry. One of the greatest joys in my life is getting to know so many of you in meaningful ways. Time and time again, I have been humbled and moved by the goodness of the people in this parish, your generosity, your desire for holiness, your openness to the truth, and your great love for your priests. But as I watched this movie, it also reminded me of the great fear that I have seen in many of you when it comes to going deeper in your relationship with God, especially in the sacrament of reconciliation. And even those who frequent the sacrament of confession, how often we relate to God in fear, afraid of what he might ask of us, afraid of how he might take away something we think is essential to our freedom or happiness. 

In our first today, from the Book of Wisdom, the author marvels at the gentleness of Almighty God when he writes:

But though you are master of might, you judge with clemency, and with much lenience you govern us; for power, whenever you will, attends you. And you taught your people, by these deeds, that those who are just must be kind; and you gave your children good ground for hope that you would permit repentance for their sins.

Our responsorial psalm continues this theme with its refrain “Lord you are good and forgiving” and its praises of the merciful attributes of our saving God. Even St. Paul gets in on the action when he writes: “Brothers and sisters: “The Spirit comes to the aid of our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes with inexpressible groanings.”

There is no need for us to live in cringing fear of Almighty God. Both Scripture and history are full of examples of his mercy, love, and forgiveness. The greatest expression of this can be found in the fact that God sent His perfect Son to suffer and die on the cross for our sins. As if this wasn’t enough, he instituted the sacrament of confession as the way to experience his forgiveness and to relieve us of our shame and weakness. We are able to to take advantage of his gift as often as we like, we can never exhaust this fountain of Divine Mercy.

And yet so many of us are afraid to grow closer to God and go near this saving sacrament. Why do we shy away from the One who seeks to love us and heal us of our wounds? I know for some of us it has been years, even decades, since our last confession. Perhaps it was because of a bad experience, a crabby or unkind priest. Maybe we are embarrassed by our past sins, ashamed of our present struggles, or unable to remember even how to go to confession and what to say. And if we were simply dealing with another human person, I might say that these were pretty good reasons, solid excuses. But we are dealing with something even greater. In confession, we are coming face to face with the love of God, the gift of his mercy, conveyed sometimes very imperfectly, through the priest, but conveyed nonetheless whenever we hear those beautiful words: “I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” 

The fear that limited the potential of the horses in “Buck”, the fear that caused them to hurt themselves and others, which paralyzed some of the most majestic and powerful creatures on earth, well, that fear threatens to dominate our lives as well. And many of you know exactly what I am talking about as we carry around the weight and shame of our past sins. We know, deep down, the longing for freedom, for renewed trust and love with others and God, but we also know how hard it is to take that first step. So I want to encourage all of us today to embrace God’s mercy. He made us, He knows us, He loves us, and he wants to set us free! There is not a single one of us here, not one, who is beyond his healing and forgiveness.

I say all of this, not from a place of judgment, but as one who has and continues to experience the mercy of the sacrament of reconciliation. I too know what it is like to be afraid and to be set free from that fear! At the end of the movie, Buck says something powerful, in regards to his insight about building trust. He says, “If you got a taste of what I’m talking about, you couldn't get enough of it. You’d rather do that than eat. You may spend your whole life chasing it, but it’s a good thing to chase." How much more true is this about God’s mercy! “If you got a taste of what I’m talking about, you couldn't get enough of it. You’d rather receive that than anything else. You might spend your whole life chasing it, but you don’t have to. It is right in front of you, ready to be yours, as often and whenever you ask for it. Let’s not wait another day!

Can You Handle the Truth? (15th Sunday, Year A)

To listen to this homily, click here.

Today’s gospel has often puzzled me, especially the part where the disciples ask Jesus why he is talking to the crowds in parables. On the surface, it feels like Jesus is ok with the gospel going over people’s heads; like he is deliberately being vague and confusing with how he preaches. But of course that doesn’t square with who we believe the Lord to be; he didn’t come to start some exclusive club where only a few people get in and others are out of luck. Jesus wants all to hear the gospel and be saved. So what is going in this passage?

Many times, the first thing we think of when in terms of Jesus’ preaching is his amazing parables. Parables are a clever way of teaching something difficult and complicated through an easy-to-understand story or example from everyday life. It is brilliant because it catches people off-guard and they agree with the story or example that is presented before they realize the truth behind it. But it only works if people can make the connection between the parable story and truth that follows. Otherwise they appear as confusing, ambiguous, albeit entertaining, lessons.

Jesus did not begin his teaching with parables! He spoke plainly and clearly about what he was here to do and who he was…at first. But once people started saying he was here to build an earthly kingdom and that he was performing miracles and exorcisms in the name of satan, then he had to be more indirect and subtle with his preaching. Otherwise he would be arrested by either the Jewish authorities or Roman officials and put to death. His time had not come yet so the parables allowed him to keep teaching and healing until the time was right and all things could be fulfilled according to the Will of God. 

Today’s teaching and Jesus’ use of parables to convey it reminds me of that famous scene in the movie, “A Few Good Men”. In the courtroom, Lt. Caffee is questioning Col Jessep about an order that led to the hazing death of Private Santiago. During the questioning, tempers rise and Lt. Caffee exclaims he simply wants the truth. Jack Nicholson’s character, Col. Jessup exclaims, “you can’t handle the truth!” 

Most of the people following Jesus during his life were expecting him to be a worldly savior, a messiah that would offer them prosperity, power, and prestige on the world stage. They couldn’t handle the truth that he had to suffer a most humiliating and powerless death in order to bring true life, freedom, and power to humanity. Knowledge can hurt rather than help if the recipient isn’t ready to receive it. Good counselors are skilled in knowing the times when their clients are able to bear some knowledge or insight into their situation and themselves. Until their clients are ready, good counselors hesitate to impart such insight for fear of making their clients more stressed or more troubled, rather than more healed and grounded. To force knowledge on a person not ready for it is foolish or cruel or both. It isn’t loving.

Jesus’ use of parables was not a punishment to the crowds with these expectations; Among those who come to him, there are some people who want to hear him but are not willing to be counted among his disciples, at least not yet. Christ’s parables offers those people what they can receive, given that they are not yet ready to receive him fully. They can learn something from the parables even if they aren’t ready for everything.

But to those who come to Christ ready to receive him and willing to be counted as his disciples, he can give the gift of knowledge completely without parables. In receiving him, those people are also ready to receive the knowledge Christ can give. They seek him as their teacher and want to learn from him. That is why they come to ask him to explain the parables he was telling as well as all the others. The people who want more understanding are the people who count as his disciples. As Christ says, to them who have more, more will be given because they want more.

When we consider the parables from this point of view, it is amazing to see the wisdom of God at work! I had never thought of Jesus using the parables in this way. But it makes perfect sense. Once Jesus speaks plainly again, near the time of Passover, it will only be a few days and he will go from miracle wonder-worker who raises Lazarus from the dead to abandoned criminal on the cross, scorned by both Jews and Roman alike.

One last thought, specifically on the parable Jesus offers us today. It is very easy to look at the different types of ground where the seed is sown as various types of people. It might be tempting to think that since we are here in church and trying to live our faith, we are the good ground which is bringing forth a rich harvest. But that would be an incomplete understanding of Jesus’ message. Each person has every type of ground within their soul. Some parts of our life are open to the gospel message; it lands there and grows strong, bearing wonderful spiritual fruit. But other areas of our life are like the hard, packed ground where the gospel cannot take root. Perhaps this is where our habitual sins, addictions, or grudges reign over us. Also, there are the parts of us that hear Jesus’s word with enthusiasm…at first. Maybe after a retreat or a stirring homily we are inspired and full of good intentions. But that is as far as we get. Once things get hard or a few days or weeks go by, we are back to our old ways, unchanged. Lastly, we all have the parts of our heart that are in love with worldly comforts, riches, power, possessions, and prestige. We love God too, but these earthly things take over that place which is meant for God alone. Over time, they become the weeds that choke out the Word of God and keep Jesus from receiving the harvest he deserves as Lord and Savior. 

This interpretation of the parable is sobering (at least for me). There is much work to be done in our souls before the gospel message can reach its fullest potential. The good news is that Jesus wants to do the hard work; we just have to give him permission to access all areas of our heart and soul. Isaiah reminds us that God’s word shall not return to him void, but shall do his will, achieving the end for which he sent it. May the Word of God transform us and empower us to yield a fruitful harvest!

 

The Right Tool Makes a Difficult Job Easy! (14th Sunday, Year A)

To listen to this homily, click here.

A couple weeks ago my dad was talking to me and mentioned that his brakes needed to be looked at. Fixing brakes isn’t too difficult; what is a hassle is getting the car off the ground so you can remove the wheels and get to work. Certainly I can’t lift the car with my own muscles. Even that flimsy little scissor jack that comes with every vehicle is a pain to use and a lot of work to get the car off the ground. Fortunately, I have a floor jack which allows me to lift the entire front or back half of the vehicle with about 10 pumps of the handle. In a few seconds, with one hand, the proper tool enables me to do something almost superhuman: lift thousands of pounds without breaking a sweat.

The importance of having and using the right equipment for heavy loads is highlighted in our gospel today. Jesus tells us: “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.”

What is this talk about yokes and burdens? Jesus is using an image that would have been immediately familiar to the people of his time and anyone who worked with beasts of burden. Throughout human history, even in poorer countries today, much of the power and muscle needed for farming and logging came from oxen. These animals are capable of hauling huge loads and they can budge heavy objects that seem unmovable. The secret to the power of these magnificent animals is in the way they are harnessed to the load. For oxen, they are most often tied to their load by something called a yoke. A yoke is a curved object carved from hardwood that fits over the neck and head of the animals. It allows the weight of the load to be distributed evenly over the shoulders of one or two animals so it can be pulled safely and quickly. 

But yokes are not one-size-fits-all. As a matter of fact, each yoke would address the needs and unique qualities of the animal that was going to use it. The carpenter would come and take general measurements. Then he would carve a yoke that was roughly the right size and shape. After this, the ox would be brought in and the yoke set on its shoulders. From here, the carpenter would fine-tune the yoke until it fit the animal perfectly. Because of this, oxen could carry incredible loads over many years with the yoke that was made just for them. 

Christ sees the heavy loads people carry and he has compassion on them. He knows the weight of human suffering and he offers relief and rest. Christ lightens the load of the heavy burdens this world imposes and he gives us hope in the midst of our suffering. The heaviness of the world weighs us down; its yoke never fits us correctly. But how often we allow this weight to be hung around our own necks!!! Often we give in to sin, we do our own will instead of God’s and we become weary and heavily burdened. Worldly concern, suffering, and the effects of sin can discourage and overwhelm us; they seem like a load too heavy to budge. 

In today’s gospel, Jesus promises us relief when he says, “Come unto me - all you who are tired - all you who are feeling drained -all you who are feeling empty - all you who are burdened by a sense of disappointment - all you who are exhausted by the struggles of life and weighed down by your sense of duty, of what is right and wrong- and I will give you rest.  I will cleanse you - I will fill you with new joy - and establish you in a relationship with God that will give you new life - now and in the world to come.

That is the first part of what Jesus had to say. The second part is this: "take my yoke upon you and learn from me." This seems like a contradiction! We might be thinking, “How can I rest with a yoke on my shoulders?”  After all a burden is still a burden - a yoke is still a yoke. However, Jesus is telling us that there is no such thing as a burden-free life; life on earth always has its difficulties; the question is what KIND of burden will we choose to carry.

Jesus has no interest in unburdening us completely from the cares and concern of life; that is simply impossible. Rather, he is interested in lifting the burdens off our backs that suck the life out of us, so he can replace them with something better fitting. He is interested in removing the harness that we forge for ourselves and that the world forges for us, so he can place around our necks his own yoke which ironically brings new life, new energy, and new joy.

His yoke fits perfectly; it enables us to carry loads that we thought were impossible to move and gives us superhuman strength. Christ promises rest from the constant worrying and struggle this world imposes. If we seek his forgiveness in the sacrament of reconciliation, if we are wiling to come and place our trust in him, our burdens of mind and spirit are healed and we are given rest from our anger, guilt, and shame.  

So what are we waiting for??? If you feel weary and burdened with the concerns of this world, with the strain of pandemic worries, civil unrest, partisan bickering, clashes over racial issues, or economic uncertainty (to name a few). If you feel heavy in mind and in spirit, if the challenges of life seem more than you can bear, then run to Christ who promises to make them lighter. Don’t run to Hollywood celebrities, political platforms, cultural movements, or talking heads  in the media for answers and hope! Don’t take on their yoke which so often breaks our spirit and weighs us down with anger, despair, and division! Instead, give Jesus permission to remove those worldly yokes and let him replace it with his own. He assures us that it is light, easy, and we know that it is fashioned out of love and compassion.