Sacred Relationship

Homily for the Fifth Sunday of Easter

4.28.24

This week, I had a very nice experience here in our parish. Someone who has been a member for more than 60 years is retiring and came to say goodbye and thank you to me and to all that St Teresa’s has been in his life for him and his family. It’s heartwarming to have those encounters!

It may seem strange to hear, but I tell you that over the course of some years, in the normal cycle of a parish, a good number of people leave, but very few ever come to say goodbye. Now, of course, as a pastor, I feel a sense of loss whenever someone chooses to go to another church, particularly when it has nothing to do with a job relocation or a geographic move, as is sometimes the case. And more so when someone leaves the parish because of me due to something I said or something I did. It's troublesome. In reality, though, it’s the natural ebb and flow of a parish in today’s world.

Many people have changing life circumstances – they go and never come to say goodbye. Maybe for some, it may feel awkward, but as pastors, you really become a part of our lives and we of yours because, for the most part, we are present at the most important days in your journey: baptisms of children, witnessing of marriages, or more significantly, presiding at a funeral for a loved one. It’s a sacred relationship, one that I treasure, and I know my brother priests do, too!

When members of the parish disappear one day, and that is that, it hurts. But even at its most painful moments, that is nothing compared to how Jesus feels when he “loses a branch.”

The Gospel today from John 15 reveals all kinds of interesting things. One of the most startling perhaps is how much Jesus wants to be close to his people. Verse 2 notes that the branches that the Father cuts off are described as having been “in me.” This soon-to-be dead wood once had every bit as intimate a relationship with Jesus the Vine as every other branch has. It is not as though these branches had once floated freely above the vine or had, at best, only a small connection to the larger vine stem.

A branch is a branch, and it is organically united with the vine. To lose such a branch is to lose part of your very self. The act of cutting that branch is a wounding, scar-making affair. It is a small wonder Jesus expresses such fervency in John 15 that disciples do not let this happen! Jesus is desperate to keep everyone, desperate that they remain in his love even as Jesus himself and his words remain in the hearts of all branches. Jesus is the vine. We are the branches.

Some might say that many people in the world are accustomed to living in very voluntaristic societies. We view our membership and involvement in almost every institution as something that is wholly up to us—we can initiate membership, and we can terminate membership at will. Hence, we tend to view the status of our membership, of our belonging to this or that group, sort of at arm’s length. Being a volunteer member carries with it a vague sense of detachment. I come and go as I please, thank you very much.

And so, for some, that’s true even in terms of church membership. Being a voluntary member of some group means joining or resigning are rather easy things. Being a body part carries with it quite other connotations! We believe that being members of the Church is an extension of being a member of the body of Christ – and that means that, on the one side, the church needs to treasure and respect that relationship, and the members need to support that relationship on the other.

A passage as rich as John 15 offers many interesting insights. But perhaps, in this Easter Season, it is most important to remind ourselves of what it means to dwell “in Christ” as a member of his community, a member of his Church.

American Express has that great slogan – membership has its privileges! So, too, for us, in the Church. As a “member,” you have rights. In fact, the Code of Canon Law has an entire section on the rights of the Christian faithful. One of the most basic canons says:

Christ's faithful have the right to be assisted by their Pastors from the spiritual riches of the Church, especially by the Word of God and the Sacraments.

It means that you have the right to these things and that I have the duty to provide them. I hope that you see here at St Teresa’s that we work hard to do so and to do so well. And, of course, if we can do better, I am all ears!

But the other side of the equation is that you also have responsibilities, and the Code of Canon Law has another whole section that addresses those, too. Listen for a moment:

(Can. 225 §1) Lay persons are designated by God for the apostolate through baptism and confirmation, and they are bound to work so that the divine message of salvation is made known and accepted by all persons everywhere in the world.

You have a duty to spread the word because, by your baptism, you put on Christ. Further...

According to each one’s own condition, they are also bound by a particular duty to imbue and perfect the order of temporal affairs with the spirit of the Gospel and thus to give witness to Christ, especially in carrying out these same affairs and in exercising secular functions.

You have a duty to support the Church and help with your life’s vocation to advance the work of the Church along with me and the other sacred pastors. Both sides of the altar have different but collaborative rights and responsibilities.

And of those who are married and have children, the canon says...

(Can. 226 §1) those who live in the marital state are bound by a special duty to work through marriage and the family to build up the people of God.

(§2) and parents have a most grave obligation and possess the right to educate them. Therefore, it is for Christian parents particularly to take care of the Christian education of their children according to the doctrine handed on by the Church.

Parents have a special and high duty to teach their children about Jesus and the Gospel. And there’s so much more.

So today, on this fifth Sunday of Easter, the Gospel reminds us that faith is about remaining, abiding, staying still and calm and in one place, rooted to Jesus. At the same time, we are called to produce fruit, to be active, vibrant, and verdant in living, celebrating, and exercising our rights and responsibilities in the Church.

And I know that with this message, I am preaching to the choir. You are here. You attend, and you support, and for that, we are very grateful.

But what about the rest? How can you help us invite, encourage, and challenge the rest to do their part? If we get lazy about this, someday, there will be nothing left but warm memories and fumes of the past!

Blessings!

RSM

The Lord Bless and Keep You!

The LORD bless you and keep you!

The LORD let his face shine upon

you, and be gracious to you!

The LORD look upon you kindly and

give you peace!

The blessing we heard proclaimed today is from the Book of Numbers, which is the fourth book of the Hebrew Bible and the fourth of five books of the Jewish Torah. The book has a long and complex history. The name of the book comes from the two censuses taken of the Israelites.

Numbers begins at Mount Sinai, where the Israelites have received their laws and covenant from God. God has taken up residence among them in the sanctuary. The task now before them is to take possession of the Promised Land.

The people are counted, and preparations are made for resuming their march. The Israelites begin the journey, but they "grumble" at the hardships along the way and about the authority of Moses and Aaron. They arrive at the borders of Canaan and send twelve spies into the land. Upon hearing the spies' fearful report concerning the conditions in Canaan, the Israelites refuse to take possession of it. They did not fulfill their part of the promise, leaving it for

another generation to do.

God blesses people in countless ways—spiritual, mental, emotional, and material. But the focus here is on blessing people with words. Our good words become the moment of God’s grace in the lives of people.

The words we use in our lives have the power either to bless or curse, to build up others or to tear them down, to help or to hurt those around us we know and love, and even those we do not know at all. Our choice of words often has more power than we realize. The blessings in Numbers declare that God will “keep” you, be “gracious” to you and give you “peace.”



• In life, our words can “keep” another person—that is, reassure, protect, and support them.

• Our words can be full of grace, making the situation better than it otherwise would be.

• Our words can bring peace by restoring relationships that have been broken or opening the way to new ones.

Of course, there are times we have to object, critique, correct, and perhaps even disagree with others, but in those circumstances, the way we choose to do so also counts … and counts very much. Conversely, when others do positive things that inspire or help, we can choose to praise instead of keeping silent too.

There’s been a lot of talk these days in our Church and in news circles about “blessings.” And regardless of where you are on the issue it may be important to put the whole matter in context, and to re-visit our scriptural roots.

I think that regardless of one’s faith, almost all people know the term, “original sin”. Although original sin is not used in our everyday vocabulary, it looms in our unconscious minds. The notion of original sin can affect our understanding of ourselves, our fellow human beings, and even of God. Somehow our belief in the power of original sin is such that we can become the victim of original sin and live under its spell. Our biggest problem can be that most of us are not even aware of it because it happens in the unconscious dimension of our life.

People in our world, perhaps even in our congregation, suffer from a strong sense of guilt and unworthiness. As a result, they see themselves as terrible sinners, with a very distorted vision of God. Christians can also suffer from the heavy burden of a punishing notion of original sin. The longer I am ordained, the more I become aware of this position of suffering, guilt, and scrupulosity that some suffer from.

Surprisingly, there is no such a term as “original sin” in the Bible. It came into Western Christianity only after the fourth century by Augustine of Hippo, who believed that Adam’s sin is transmitted and continued through human lust. Indeed, when it comes to human nature and sin, somehow Western Christianity seems to have been more influenced by Augustine than by the Bible.

But let’s go back to the beginning before Augustine … to the book of Genesis, the first book in the Bible. It is God’s “original blessing” that is clearly found in the creation stories in Genesis. The scripture says, God saw that what he created was good.

From God’s perspective, the light, land and ocean, all kinds of vegetation, and all living creatures were “good.” Finally, God created humans in His image and saw that all His creation was “very good!” God saw goodness in each and every bit of creation including and especially in you and me … and all of our brothers and sisters in this life. And while any of us can, and probably has done some bad things, God’s love abounds. Because of those things, some of us still feel guilty, and sinful, and ashamed, and worse have become so harshly judgmental not only of ourselves, but also of one another, even of people we do not know.

Listen again to the words of the Psalm: May God bless us in his mercy. May God bless us in his mercy.

God's intention and desire to bless humanity is a central focus of his covenant relationships. For this reason, the concept of blessing pervades the biblical record. A blessing in the Old Testament was a public declaration of a favored status with God. Second, the blessing endowed power for prosperity and success. In all cases, the blessing served as a guide and motivation to pursue a course of life within the blessing … a guide and a motivation … to live a good life. The Old Testament uses terms for blessing over 600 times, so we know that this is a big concept for God.

The institutions of society — the family, government, and religion were the means by which ceremonial blessings were received. Within the family the father blessed his wife and children. In the government context, the ruler blessed his subjects. Those who possessed a priestly role were bestowed with the privilege of blessing. The tribe of Levi was set apart to pronounce

blessings in the Lord's name.

The New Testament parallels between the Old and New Testament usages of blessing are striking. To be blessed is to be granted special favor by God with resulting joy and prosperity. In the New Testament, however, the emphasis is more on spiritual rather than on material blessings.

God's promise to Abraham serves as a foundation for blessings. The pledge that all peoples on earth shall be blessed is fulfilled in the person and work of Jesus Christ. He has borne the consequences of the curse for believers and blessed them with the forgiveness of sins. Believers are blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ and now inherit the blessings promised through the patriarchs. As a result of receiving God's blessings in Christ, believers are

called to be a source of blessing to the world.

In our time, when so many feel judged, unwelcome, and marginalized, the Church challenges us as the Christian community and those of us who are pastors to welcome with respect and sensitivity all persons. We are challenged to find the most appropriate ways, consistent with Church teaching, to proclaim the Gospel in its fullness. At the same time, by our words, attitudes and actions, all people should recognize the genuine nearness of the Church – which prays for them, accompanies them, and shares their journey of Christian faith.

At the same time, as members of the Church we recall that God Himself never ceases to bless each of His pilgrim children in this world, because for Him we are more important to God than all of the sins that we could ever commit. God takes us as we are, but never leaves us as we are ... our encounters with God change us.

As we begin this new year, I pray again:

The LORD bless us and keep us!

The LORD let his face shine upon

us, and be gracious to us!

The LORD look upon us kindly and

give us peace!

And may the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God, pray for us now and always, that every day we may become more and more like her Son Jesus.

Amen.

RSM

Christ, the Servant Leader

This weekend we celebrate the Feast of Christ the King, observed on the last

Sunday of each liturgical year. Pope Pius XI instituted this feast in 1925 with his

encyclical Quas primas (“In the first”) to respond to growing secularism and

atheism of his day. He recognized that attempting to “thrust Jesus Christ and his

holy law” out of public life would result in continuing discord among people and

nations. This solemnity reminds us that while governments come and go, Christ

reigns as King forever.

It seems to me that it also reminds us that while we seem to progress as human

people, there is always more to do to bring others along. The very familiar Gospel

today, Matthew 25 gives us some concrete examples how.

I’m not sure about you but whenever I read or hear that Gospel, I hear in my head

the words of that song, Whatsoever you do … to the least of my people, that you

do unto me. It’s hard to get that song out of your head when you hear it … and

perhaps that’s the point. The catchy melody reminds us that in every day we can

respond to those around us, and by doing so we respond to Christ. In those

moments we have the simultaneous opportunity to be both leader and follower …

in other words, a servant leader.

All professing Christians agree that a Christian leader should be a servant leader.

Jesus couldn’t be clearer:

The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those in authority

over them are called benefactors. But not so with you. Rather, let the

greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who

serves. (Luke 22:25–26)

We know that there’s not always agreement on how servant leadership should

look in each situation. Sometimes servant leaders wash others’ feet, so to speak,

but other times they rebuke, and even discipline. Sometimes they serve at their

own expense, but other times they issue strong imperatives, but all in the spirit of

following Christ.

We also know that there are other factors that muddy the waters for us in aspiring

to be better servant leaders. To begin with, all of us are sinners, which means

even at the height of our maturity, we will still be defective servants. I can still

vividly see the first moments of Pope Francis’ pontificate when he was asked who

is Jorge Mario Bergoglio? And he responds, I am a sinner. This is the most accurate

definition. It is not a figure of speech, a literary genre. I am a sinner the Pope said.

Add to this the fact that most of us have not yet reached the height of our

spiritual maturity.

Add to this the fact that different temperaments, experiences, gifts, and callings

influence both how we tend to serve, and how we tend to perceive that

leadership.

So, determining whether or we are acting from a heart of Christlike service

requires charitable, patient, humble discernment. It’s not simple and it’s a lifetime

process. There’s no one-size-fits-all servant leader description. The needs and

contexts in our community and in the wider church are vast and varied and

require many kinds of leaders and gifts. It is natural that each of us is drawn to

certain kinds of leaders but remember that our preferences can be unreliable and

even uncharitable standards at times.

The readings in the days of November have focused our thoughts on the end

times … that is, getting ready to meet the Lord. And the Gospel today is poignant:

What you did not do for one of these least ones, you did not do for me.' And

these will go off to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.

So, in the days, weeks, months, or years that we have left on this earth, in this life,

let’s recommit on this last day of our liturgical year, to work harder at being better

servant leaders. And while there are many ways, here are a few to consider:

1. A servant leader seeks the glory of the Master.

And our Master is not our reputation or our ministry constituency; it is God. A

Christlike leader is a follower of Christ and demonstrates over time that Christ —

not public approval, position, or financial security — has our primary loyalty. How

can we better seek the glory of God in our life?

2. A servant leader sacrificially seeks the highest joy of those s/he serves.

Whatever our temperament, gift mix, capacities, or sphere of influence, the

servant leader will make necessary sacrifices to pursue people’s “progress and joy

in the faith,” which results in the greater glory of God. What sacrifices can we

make to help others seek the highest joy in their life?

3. A servant leader will forgo his/her rights rather than obscure the Gospel.

Saint Paul said it this way in Corinthians: I have made myself a servant to all, that I

might win more of them. What did this mean for him? It meant sometimes he

abstained from certain foods and drinks, or refused financial support from those

he served, or worked with his own hands to provide for himself, or went hungry,

or dressed poorly, or was beaten, or was homeless, or endured disrespect inside

and outside the church. And he decided not to marry. This was all before he was

martyred. Paul’s servant bar may have been set extraordinarily high, but servant

leaders will yield their rights if they believe more will be won to Christ as a result.

What are we willing to forego for the sake of Christ and the Gospel?

4. A servant leader is not preoccupied with personal visibility and recognition.

Like John the Baptist, a servant leader sees himself as a “friend of the

Bridegroom”, and is not preoccupied with the visibility of his/her own role. The

servant leader doesn’t view those with less visible roles as less significant, nor

does s/he covet more visible roles as more significant. The servant leader seeks to

steward the role s/he’s received as best as possible, and gladly leaves the role

assignments to God. Are we preoccupied with personal visibility and

recognition?

5. A servant leader anticipates and graciously accepts the time for his/her

decrease.

All leaders serve only for a season. Some seasons are long, some short; some are

abundant, some lean; some are recorded and recalled, most are not. But all

seasons end. When John the Baptist recognized the ending of his season, he said,

therefore my joy is now complete. He must increase, but I must decrease.

Sometimes a leader is the first to recognize his/her season’s end, sometimes

others recognize it first, and sometimes God lets a season end unjustly for

purposes a leader can’t understand at the time. But a servant leader graciously

yields the role for the good of Christ’s cause, because his/her identity and trust

are not in his/her calling, but in Christ.

Honestly, no earthly Christian leader is the perfect incarnation of these five

fundamental marks of servanthood. Jesus alone bears that distinction. Most of us

are imperfect servants trying to the best of our ability to be faithful.

Perhaps that’s our promise today – to God and to one another – to take some

time to reflect on our own servant leadership – and to use all that we have each

day being better at it!

RSM