We are at our final Sunday of hearing readings from the 6th Chapter of John's Gospel; we've been following this chapter 5 Sundays in a row. This chapter teaches us a great deal about our Catholic faith, which is why our Church devotes so much time to it in our lectionary cycle.
In the Bread of Life Discourse in John’s Gospel, Jesus tells his followers that he is the bread of life, that his flesh and blood are true food and true drink that bring us everlasting life, that he will remain in us and we will remain in him if we partake of his body & blood. In today's Gospel, we hear two very different responses to Jesus' words. While some of his followers turn away after hearing these difficult words, others pledge their devotion to him, convinced that he is “the Holy One of God.” Today's Gospel tells us several things about our own faith as followers of Christ. First, we're faced with real choices to make as believers in our faith. Second, we need to consider the perspective we use in approaching our faith and Jesus' teachings. Third, we need to be aware of how God's grace is constantly at work in our lives.
I try to stay ahead of writing my homilies - trying to write them at least a couple of weeks in advance. Unfortunately, due to some events in our Church and in the world, we are faced with some difficult times again, a reality I hadn’t anticipated when I first wrote my homily. Our reality can change so quickly. I mentioned the themes of choices, different perspectives, and God’s grace working in our lives. Those themes speak to us today as we in the Church confront a very hard reality. When I was at the mission appeal last weekend in Our Lady of Hope in Rosemont, Illinois in the Archdiocese of Chicago, the pastor of the parish, a young Polish priest, started by saying that there are no words that can express the anger, frustration, confusion, and shock that we’re feeling in the Church right now. We’re all trying to come to terms with the recent Pennsylvania report of abuse in our Church and news from our own Diocese as well. In this past week, I have had friends and parishioners reach contacting me, asking what we can do.
As the pastor of your parish, I am committed to providing a safe environment to all, to put the safety and wholeness each one of us of prime importance. Since the first abuse scandals surfaced in our Church more than 15 years ago, our Church and its leaders have made a commitment to a safety and protection program. We need to examine now the ways that program has failed. Many of the accusations being made public now are decades old. Most of the priests accused are either deceased or not in active ministry. But the pain they caused is real. The sins they committed are real.
We must be committed to atone for and learn from the sins of the past. We must be committed to dialogue, to honesty, to transparent communication, and to transforming our culture here in the Church. We must be committed to prayer. We must be willing to listen to some very difficult realities and be willing to reach out to those who need healing. This will be a difficult and challenging process. Our Diocese is going to be communicating with and listening to us pastors in the upcoming weeks about this reality and our response. We will need the prayers and cooperation of all.
These are difficult times, for sure. But I think about the calling I received as a priest. That calling came out of the missionary work I did in Canada and South America and in Texas, along with the four years of teaching I did in the Mississippi Delta. That work was not always easy. There were crises that I had to face. But I felt the call to serve: to serve God, to serve the Church, to serve you, the people. There were days when I was not sure I could go on. But I trusted God and trusted the calling I had, and I endured in my ministry. This process of change, transformation, and renewal will be a long journey for us in the Church. But it is a commitment we are called to as disciples of Christ.
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