12 May 2026 - homily for Tuesday of the 6th week of Easter - Acts 16:22-34

St Dominic de la Calzada was born into a peasant family in the province of Burgos in north central Spain in 1019, which is more than 1,000 years ago.  As a young man, he applied to be a Benedictine monk two different times, but was turned down. He instead lived as a young man as a hermit in a cave. He collaborated with the newly arrived bishop in the area to combat a plague of locusts. The bishop was very impressed with young Dominic and he was ordained a Diocesan priest. He spent a lot of time in his priesthood improving the pilgrimage route, building bridges, clearing land, and even building an alternative causeway route on the pilgrimage trail of St James that is now part of the modern Camino pilgrimage route in northern Spain. The town that he founded on the Camino is named after him and remains one of the highlights of the pilgrimage trail: Santo Domingo de la Calzada. Unfortunately, that town was one of the hardest hit places in Spain during the pandemic, with many of its residents dying.  There are coops of roosters in the cathedral named after him where he is interred in the crypt. The roosters represent a story that is told about him. If the rooster crows while you are in mass there, reportedly you will have good luck on the rest of the Camino.  What I love about Santo Domingo de la Calzada is that he shows how after doors close in our lives, we can still serve the Lord in creative and resourceful ways. 

Just as St Dominic de la Calzada adapted to his reality and the challenges he faced in his ministry, we have heard in our readings from ACTS at our daily masses about the challenges Paul and his companions faced in preaching the Gospel message. Today, we hear how Paul and Silas are stripped, beaten with rods, and thrown into prison.  Rather than bemoan their situation, they lift it up to the Lord, they sing hymns of praise and they pray to the Lord.  and praying for the other prisoners to hear. God answers their prayers with an earthquake that provides them a means of escape. Yet, they use this opportunity instead to convert souls and to preach the Gospel. Yes, God always meets us in our reality. We can us that reality and the opportunities God gives us to preach the Gospel.