Church of St. Mary at Clinton Heights

Just a note: with lots of projects occurring now at our parish and with Bishop’s Appeal coming up, I’m taking April off from posting on the blog…will return with vigor in May!

Blessings & Peace, Fr. David

My dear brothers and sisters, Happy Easter! Happy Easter! What a joy it is for me to announce this message: Christ is risen! This is the new and glorious news that eagerly goes out to every house and every family, especially where suffering is greatest, in hospitals, in prisons, to our homebound, and to those who lack faith or hope…

Most of all, this message longs to enter into every heart, for it is there that God wants to sow this Good News: Jesus is risen, there is hope for us, we are no longer in the power of sin, of evil!

Love has triumphed, mercy has been victorious…for the mercy of God always triumphs! We too, like the women who were Jesus’ disciples, who went to the tomb and found it empty, may wonder what this event means. What does it mean that Jesus is risen?

Quite simply, it means that the love of God is stronger than evil and death itself; it means that the love of God can transform our lives and let those desert places in our hearts bloom. The love of God can do this!

This same love for which the Son of God became man and followed the way of humility and self-giving to the very end, even down to hell – to the abyss of separation from God – this same merciful love has flooded with light the dead body of Jesus, has transfigured it, has made it pass into eternal life. Jesus didn’t return to his former life, to earthly life, but he entered into the glorious life of God and he entered there with our humanity, thus opening for us a future full of hope.

This is what Easter is: it is the exodus, the passage of human beings from slavery to sin and evil, to the freedom of love and goodness.

Dear brothers and sisters, Christ died and rose once for all, and for everyone, but the power of the Resurrection, this passover from slavery to evil to the freedom of goodness, must be accomplished in every age, in our concrete existence, in our everyday lives. How many deserts there are, even today, that human beings need to cross! Above all, the desert within, when we have no love for God or neighbor, when we fail to realize that we are guardians of all that the Creator has given us and continues to give us. God’s mercy can make even the driest land become a garden, can restore life to dry bones.

So this is the invitation which I address to everyone: Let us accept the grace of Christ’s Resurrection! Let us be renewed by God’s mercy, let us be loved by Jesus, let us enable the power of his love to transform our lives too; and let us become agents of this mercy, channels through which God can water the earth, and make justice and peace flourish.

So let us ask the risen Jesus, who turns death into life, to change hatred into love, vengeance into forgiveness, envy into admiration… war into peace.

As the Psalmist writes: “Give thanks to the Lord for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever.”

Bear in your families and in your schools and places of work…bear to the townsfolk and the stranger the message of joy, hope and peace which every year, on this day, is powerfully renewed.

May the risen Lord, the conqueror of sin and death, be a support to you all, especially to the weakest and neediest.

Finally thank you for your presence today and for the witness of your faith. To all of you I affectionately say again: may the risen Christ guide all of us and the whole of humanity on the paths of justice, love and peace.

“Christus vincit, Christus resurrexit! Alleluia!”

God never overpowers, never twists arms, never pushes our face into something so as to take away our freedom. God respects our freedom and is never a coercive force.

And nowhere is this more true than in what is revealed in the resurrection of Jesus. The Gospels assure us that, the resurrection was physical, real, not just some alteration inside the minds or imaginations of believers or followers. No, after the resurrection, we are assured, Jesus’ tomb was empty, people could touch him, he ate food with them, he was not a ghost.

But his rising from the dead was not a brute slap in the face to his critics, was not a non-negotiable fact that left skeptics speechless. The resurrection didn’t make a big news splash or headline: After he rose from the dead, Jesus was seen by some, but not by others; understood by some, but not by others. Some got his meaning and it changed their lives, others were indifferent to him, and still others who, while they understood what had happened, they still hardened their hearts against it, and tried to destroy its truth.

We even see this continuing today, so why the difference? What makes some see the resurrection while others do not? What lets some understand the mystery and embrace it, while others are left in indifference or hatred?

Here might be the difference…Hugo of St. Victor used to say: Love is the eye!

When we look at anything through the eyes of love, we see correctly, understand, and properly appropriate its mystery. The reverse is also true. When we look at anything through eyes that are jaded, cynical, jealous, or bitter, we will not see correctly, will not understand, and will not properly appropriate its mystery.

That is why, after the resurrection, some saw Jesus but others did not. Some understood the resurrection while others did not. Those with the eyes of love saw and understood. Those without the eyes of love either didn’t see anything or were perplexed or upset by what they did see.

It’s been exciting for usas Catholicsto witness the words, the actions, the gestures…and even the heart of our new Holy Father, Pope Francis.  I’ve been especially excited to get to know him through news and media outlets.  In his first days, the world was lit up: all was new and fresh and exciting.

But as the days have progressed into weeks, that fullness of our joy about Francis has been battered a bit by criticisms and cynicism.  From some who have written ghastly comments about a man they do not even know to others who have posited a deep-seated wickedness within this man they haven’t even met or a Church they don’t even understand, much less appreciate and embrace…warts and all.  Some have been so cruel as to attempt to tear down the Church and even “faith in any God” by slandering this simple, humble laborer who is alongside us in the vineyard.

And yet, even in the midst of this, there have been those blessed some who are willing to open their hearts of hope and faith, ready to see the works of Christ Jesus again done in our midst through Francis.  There are some whose hearts have grown weary and afraid, but who are finding now in “Nostro Papa Francesco” a simple, humble response to God’s invitation to be holy, to follow the master, to allow God to hold us again…and encourage us to return His sweet embrace.

So, maybe it is true that love is the eye, that our availability is the key to receiving the news “Christ is Risen”, and believe it!  Maybe our disposition to “be open” to the great gift of faith is what is first needed to enter into faith.

But…of course it’s true!  We have four witnesses who come before us this night to profess this truth, to be captured by it!  Tonight, Rickour Electfinds the answer to his seeking and searching, and he discovers & is embraced by the One who has always sought after him!  Tonight, Brian comes forward to accept a faith that has been ever close to him, encouraging, inviting, gently holding him and allowing him to find a freedom in acceptance of the One who invites him into His unity.  Tonight, Shakir and Jessica join these men as they freely embrace a new kind of discipleship: that flowing from the anointing with the Holy Spirit, they are sent with us to proclaim by word and deedin season and out of seasonthat “Christ is Lord and He reigns forever!”

Sure, there are lots of ways to be closed to faith. But there are also ways for us to be open to the gift of faith, the gift of God, the gift of Christ, His resurrection and His gospel.  Remember: the miraculous doesn’t force itself on us. It’s there, there to be seen, but whether we see or not, and what precisely we do see, depends mainly upon what’s going on inside our own hearts.

May the message of the Gospel permeate each of us in profound ways, in various ways, in unique waysparticular to each oneso that we might be renewed in God’s life and profess faith, to the glory of God the Father.

“Christus vincit; Christus resurrexit!  Alleluia!”

You might be tempted to think that tonight’s homily is merely a repetition of Palm Sunday since, “we heard the Passion homily just a few days ago.”  Well, true, we did hear a homily on the Passion according to Luke, but the Passion shared every Good Friday (for about the past 1600 years) is the Passion according to St. John…and it’s a very distinct passion narrative (one filled with fruitful reflections on theology), very different than any of the other gospel writers’.  In order to keep you invested in Good Friday liturgies far into the futureso that you’ll keep coming back year after yearI’ll only focus our attention on a few of the unique images given to us this night.

Of course, I am so very aware that the attraction of this night is not the homily at all, but rather the movements of the Triduum in their entirety: from the Lord’s washing of feet and the Passover meal, to his trial and the judgment of his death; from his crucifixion and our veneration of the wood of the cross, to the sacred fire burning brightly in the night to dispel the darkness around us; from fresh water of new birth to the celebration of a new covenant.  These are the reasons for our entry into the Sacred Triduum, and tonight we are brought first, to a betrayal.

St. John gives us a more complete view of this encounter in the Garden of Gethsemane than the other Gospel writers.  He skips over the agony and moves straight to the arrest.  Let’s examine three details of this encounter more closely:

First, Judas and the soldiers arrive to arrest Jesus carrying “lanterns and torches”.  John intends a strong irony here: Jesus is the light of the world and so the irony should not be missed in the fact that those opposing him come to him by the guidance of artificial, unnatural and flimsy light.  This suggests, among other things, that they prefer darkness to light…that they know what they are doing and they know it can only be done at nightunder the cover of darknessfor shameful deeds would be exposed in the full light of day!

Second, John uses a particular Greek word (speira) to describe the cohort that came to arrest Jesus and it can mean three possibilities: either a normal Roman dispatch of 600 men, or it can refer to a troop of non-Roman troops which would number 1,200 men…or it can sometimes refer to a smaller, tighter body consisting of 200 soldiers.  Any way we take it, the picture this word paints is of the lone Jesus flanked by his frightened eleven apostles courageously facing a small army.  We can imagine that the tough soldiers and Temple guards are now more confident by their great numbers, though perhaps irritated that they had been sent out on a cold, dark night for just this One.  With confidence they state their intention and the name of the one to be arrested.  But when Jesus responds, “I am he”, their confidence, their strength, their singular purpose all disappears as they are immediately taken aback and fall prostrate to the ground.  Jesus’ conviction stands before them as Truth…awesome to behold.

Third, as Simon Peter witnesses the soldiers’ withdrawal, he unwittingly finds the strength to battle them, wounding Malchus.  Clearly trying to maintain the upper hand and take advantage of the soldiers’ apparent retreat, immediately, Jesus excoriates the one who was simply trying to help, to defend.  But Peter, in his haste, has lost sight of Jesus’ mission in its entirety: to do the Father’s will, and that alone.

 

For Rick, our Elect, and for Shakir and Brian, our Candidates, each of these three details are significant for you in a very new way.  As you come to celebrate our Catholic life, you realize how essential it is for believers to continually grow in faith; to see themselves as apart from the True light yet summoned to that same lightJesus Christ.  Apart from True light when we carry torches and lanterns amid the darkness of our own sin, within our stubborn confusion…even our willful deception; apart from True light yet summoned to the Light of Christ through the gifts of the sacraments, the offering God makes to share His grace with us, and the life of the Church as the Body of Christ in our midst.

For you, as well, you now know that the Truth of your convictionsof your faithcan be your greatest strength when faced with fear or trembling.  Declaring simply, yet boldly, “Christ is my life” will be your sure defense, and the way to share Life forever.  And to be about doing the Father’s will is a clear sign that you are on a path trod already by the Master, the One who has been raised from the dead…and is forever victorious.

May each of us witnessalongside of you threethe deep and awesome and powerful rewards of our lives lived in and with Christ Jesus our Lord.

Ask any Jew during these very days and they will tell you of the solemnity and reverence of their recollection of the Passover.  Indeed, even now, Jews gather with a significant purpose and intense meaning as they join to offer the Passover meal.  This has been their tradition for millenniaa tradition we’re recalling this evening in our own Catholic liturgy of the Lord’s Supper…His Passover meal with his disciples.  Rich with symbolism and steeped in time-honored tradition, the sacred meal is stopped abruptly.  What could possibly be more important than completing the offering of the four wines?  What cannot wait until the consummation of the offering; what on earth or in heaven could prevent it’s fulfillment that night in the Upper Room?  In essence, what and why is Jesus doing?

Let us recall all that we have seen and heard from the Lord Jesus prior to the Passover meal: how he ate with sinners, how he touched the unclean, how he associated with the outcast, the widow and the orphan.  All of this while serving their most basic of needs: closeness and restoration with him and the love of the Father.  Now let’s return to the Upper Room: he stands up from the table, removes his vestments and washes the feet of his followers.

In ancient Palestine, washing feet was a job reserved for slaves…and no wonder: it was one of the most unpleasant and humiliating tasks imaginable.  People wore sandals or went barefoot, and the roads and paths they walked were the same ones used by herdsmen to drive their animals to market, as well as travelers and traders who moved their goods by ox and camel.  The dirt, then, of these unpaved byways was blended with dung.  Even a short jaunt would cake one’s sandal-exposed feet to with the pungent mix.  And it was this earthly combination of elements, this unattractive mire that Jesus washed from the feet of his disciples.  JesusGod made manthe King of kings and Lord of the universe, lowered himself to the status of a slave and freely, willingly, and gladly “showed how perfect his love was” by this utterly self-forgetful act of service.

He didn’t have to do it.  He certainly felt no natural pleasure doing it.  But still he did it, at the most solemn moment of his ministry, when common sense would dictate that he be more focused on his coming passion.  Why?

Because the mark of the Christian is self-forgetful love!  Sin once divided the human family…and still does.  But Christ, the conqueror of sin, reunites all people.  You see, he has taken the first step toward us: He has come to save us by reaching out to us in loving service.  He reaches out to us by serving us.  The washing of his disciples’ feet is an icon of Jesus’ entire mission, and a revelation, a miniature portrait of the heart of God.  Even when we are caked in dung, God sends His Son to wash us clean, to create in us a new heart of love, to restore us to purity and innocence.  Sin is dirty, and so he washes sin away.  And not only does he wash us, but he invites us to enter into this same service of self-forgetful love.  In a sense, Jesus is saying, “if you wish to regain your place in the family of God, you are to enter into to this same dimension of self-forgetful love.”  There is no other way: he says, “You should wash each other’s feet….”

For our fallen nature, such a lesson is extremely hard.  For that very reason, Jesus taught it so insistently and so graphically.  The cross of self-sacrifice is so offensive that it repels us, so Jesus climbed onto it before us to make sure that we make no mistake about what he means.

In these last couple of weeks, we’ve begun to hear the gentle words of our Holy Father, Pope Francis.  But more than this, we’ve witnessed his actions, his behavior, his example.  He’s lowered himself time and again in order to show us how gospel words can and ought to become gospel actions.  This very night, escaping pageantry and rich rites, Pope Francis has gone to a youth prison to wash the feet of incarcerated children.  For one of them, a teenage boy, he was hopeful to meet a man who claimed, finally, to be his father!  How profound an opportunity; how rich an encounter.  And such can be ours as well: if we wash the feet of others in the same self-forgetful love of Christ, our encounter with the face of God may be just around the corner: in the forgotten, the unwanted and the unloved.

If we respond in such a way, true happiness will be ours.