22 May 2024 - St Rita - Wednesday of the 7th week in Ordinary Time - James 4:13-17

The saint we celebrate today was born in the 14th century, but she remains a very popular saint today. St Rita of Cascia was born to a peasant family, the only child in the family. She longed to be a nun, but instead, she followed her parents wishes for her to marry. She became a wife and mother at the age of 12. After a violent, abusive relationship with her husband, after the murder of her husband through a feud with another family, and the death of her two sons by dysentery, she was accepted into the Augustinian convent as a religious sister. Rita was well known for being obedient. She was canonized a saint in the year 1900. At her canonization, Pope Leo 13th named her Patroness of Impossible Causes, while in many Catholic countries, Rita came to be known to be as the patroness of abused wives and heartbroken women. Let us unite our prayers with with the prayers of St Rita today, even those prayers that may seem impossible to be answered. 

Today’s Letter of James tackles the subject of arrogance in our lives, of how we often ignore the humility God calls us to by thinking we have control of our lives and of the future. It seems like we take our health for grant when we aren’t having any problems, but then a health crisis can strike us suddenly without any warning or notice.   Then we know that we are not in control of what the future brings. We can certainly learn about humility from saints such as St Rita, who followed the will of God in their lives and who faced life with an attitude of humility and love. 

17 May 2024 – Friday of the 7th week of Easter – Acts 25:13b-21

Today we continue to hear about charges brought against Paul in our reading from the Acts of the Apostles. Specifically, we hear the charges being explained to Herod Agrippa, the head of this region of the Roman empire.  It is explained to Herod that Paul is not accused by the chief priests and the elders of the Jewish people of criminal charges related to laws of the Roman empire, but rather of violating Jewish religious laws, specifically related to Jesus, who Paul claims is alive.

How is Jesus alive in our hearts today?  How are we living out our faith.  I read an article that was critical of graduation speakers who were invited to speak at Catholic universities but who did not live out the values of the Catholic faith in their lives. The article spoke about our need to find our inspiration in the Gospel message and the teachings of our Catholic Church, as opposed to the agenda set forth by our secular society. It is so easy to go against the teachings of our Church when it is not currently politically correct or when it is not the popular trend of the day. Paul was willing to stand up to the authorities that spoke out against him.  Are we willing to take a stand and do the same today?

21 May 2024 - Tuesday of the 7th week of Ordinary Time - James 5:9-12

There was a book written a few years back called The Monks of Tibhirine about a group of Trappist monks who were kidnapped and murdered in Algeria in on May 21, 1998. Those monks in Algeria knew that they were in danger, but they felt called to witness to the community there and to make sacrifices for the faith. At first it was reported that they had been killed by Islamic extremists in that country, but there are conflicting reports that claim that they were murdered by the Algerian army. They were beatified in 2018, along with 12 other Algerian martyrs. 

Our reading from the letter of James today comes near the end of the letter in the form of encouraging words and advice for the faithful.  A lot of the advice James gives can be easily translated to our modern world. James talks about patience and tolerance, advising us that we should not judge and grumble against our brothers and sisters. In the sacrament of reconciliation, I often hear people talk about their struggles with patience, how they can very easily get angry at others.  When we look at the road rage and accounts of violence in the news, we see how prevalent this anger is in our modern world.  It is easy to criticize someone, especially when we are looking in from the sidelines and aren’t putting ourselves in the other person’s shoes. 

When we look at a group of monk who were an appreciated presence in their community but who were murdered in the midst of anger and religious intolerance, we how much patience and tolerance are lacking in our world today.   

16 May 2024 - Simon Stock - homily for Thursday of the 7th week of Easter - Acts 22:30 and 23:6-11

Simon Stock was born in England in 1165 to a well-known Christian family. He was very religious even as a child. As a teenager, he became a hermit, and after living for 8 years in a hollowed out tree.  He felt called to join a community after his years as a hermit and joined the Carmelite order. He finished his studies in Oxford and became the vicar general of the Carmelite order. 

He worked tirelessly to spread the Carmelite Order throughout Europe, founding many communities in university towns. He was responsible for the revision of the Rules of the Carmelite order, leading the community from lives as hermits to those of mendicant brothers. He had a deep devotion to the Blessed Mother.  She appeared to him with the brown scapular, which has become a very popular devotion which has extended beyond the Carmelite order. He died in 1265 at the age of 100 after having served as Superior General of the Carmelites for many years. We honor Simon Stock on his feast day today. 

As we continue to hear about the missionary efforts of the Early Church in our readings from Acts, we hear about Paul’s difficulties as he is ordered to stand before the chief priests and the Sanhedrin to give testimony. Rather than trying to help Paul and encourage him, the Jewish authorities are plotting to kill him and destroy him, a reminder of what Jesus went through during his journey to the cross. Paul is cunning and intelligent as he traps the Sadducees and Pharisees, getting them in an argument that he knows that will keep them preoccupied, since these two groups do not agree in the belief in the resurrection. 

15 May 2024 - Wednesday of the 7th week of Easter - St Dymphna - Acts 20:28-38

Who exactly is St Dymphna?  You may have heard the name. When I served at St James church in Tupelo, I had some parishioners who were devoted to St Dymphna, particularly because of her role as patron saint of those suffering from mental and nervous system illnesses. Dymphna lived in 7th century Ireland, born to a devout Christian mother and a pagan father. Her mother died when she was a young teenager. Her dad was suffered mental illness. In his delusion, he desired to marry his daughter. She fled to Europe, to current day Belgium, in the town of Geel, where she founded a hospital to help the poor. Her father found out where she was hiding, killing her in a fit of rage. There is a large church in Geel built in her honor. There have been many healings and miracles attributed to her. Dymphna is a popular saint to this day.  

In our reading from Acts today, we hear about Paul’s ministry in Ephesus, about how he is instructing the priests and Church leaders before he moves on in his missionary travels. Paul tells them to take care of their flock, and to beware of the wolves that will come and try to rip them down. 

It is not easy being in a Christian community, is it?  We are all human, and we all have our strengths and our flaws as well. In community, we have a lot of different personalities, and it is easy to get on one another’s nerves. Paul certainly had has own strengths and weaknesses, and from time to time we hear about the arguments, disputes, and disagreements that he has with the other disciples and with those to whom he ministers. Yet, Paul tries to leave the people of Ephesus a spirit of brotherhood and sisterhood and love. He tries to encourage them as he leaves them. 

May we feel encouragement in the stories we hear about the early Church.  May the intercession of the saints lead us and guide us on our journey of faith. 

14 May 2024 - Tuesday of the 7th week of Easter - feast day of St Matthias - Acts 1:15-17, 20-26

Through our reading today from the Acts of the Apostles, we learn that Matthias was chosen to replace Judas as one of the apostles.  He was chosen before the descent of the Holy Spirit, but this choice was not made by the risen Christ, but by the other 11 apostles.  Tradition has it that the apostles were sent to different parts of the world to spread the Good News. For example, James the Greater went to Spain, Thomas went to India, and Matthias was sent to spread the Gospel in Ethiopia where he died as a martyr there. Just as pilgrims believe that James' remains are laid to rest in the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Spain, it is believed that the remains of Matthias are located at the Abbey of St Matthias in Trier, Germany, having been brought there by Helena, the mother of the Emperor Constantine. Just as the remains of St James were rediscovered by a hermit in the 9th century in Spain, the remains of St Matthias were rediscovered there in the 13th century, at which time the abbey became a popular place of pilgrimage.  

St Matthias faced many unknowns and many challenges as he preached the Gospel throughout the world. We also are faced with challenges as we bring the Gospel to others. May we be inspired to live in the spirit of the Early Church and to energetically witness to our world.

12 May 2024 - The Ascension of the Lord – Acts of the Apostles 1:1-11, Ephesians 1:17-23

It seems so long ago that back on March 31 we celebrated Easter Sunday and the beginning of the Easter season. In our Catholic faith, the Easter season lasts 50 days, all the way to Pentecost, which will be next weekend. With Pentecost Sunday, the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, and the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ being celebrated on the next four Sundays, perhaps our celebration of the Ascension of the Lord today gets lost in the shuffle. 

Our reading from the very beginning of the Acts of the Apostles today shows the disciples gazing up into the heavens, shocked and amazed as they see Jesus ascending. When two messengers appear on the scene, they ask the disciples: “Men of Galilee, why are you standing there looking at the sky?” So what is the Ascension about?  We can start be stating what it isn’t about: The Ascension isn’t defined in a literal sense of Jesus floating up into space on his way up to “heaven”.

Perhaps we could say that the Ascension can be best understood in the way that it is a part of the Paschal Mystery, which is comprised of: (1) Jesus’ suffering and death, (2) his resurrection, 3) his ascension, (4) and his sending of the Holy Spirit. Those parts of the Paschal Mystery comprise one reality. In the resurrection, we understand that Jesus still lives as our Savior and our Redeemer.  In the Ascension, we better understand Christ’s relationship with the Father: that the living Christ has entered into glory, and that he shares that glory with the Father. 

In our 2nd reading, Paul sees the Ascension in terms of God the Father raising Christ from the dead, of seating him at his right hand in the heavens, above every other principality, authority, power, and dominion, above every name that is named, in this age and in all ages to come. Pope Francis sees the Ascension creating a new reality of Christ with us where Christ is with God the Father, where he always intercedes for us. He is no longer in a definite place in the world as he was before the Ascension. He is now in the lordship of God, present in all space and time. I am always impressed by the words and images that Pope Francis uses. 

I was once in the heart of the rain forest in Ecuador as a missionary, driving along on the passenger side in a truck to pick up some wood for the carpentry school that I managed. We came across a big pile of bamboo and small logs in the middle of the road, so the driver and I got out to move them out of the way. When I got back into the cab of the truck, I noticed something out of the corner of my eye on my bare arm, and out of my exhaustion from the hot tropical climate, I hastily brushed it off my arm without really paying attention. The driver looked at the floorboard of the truck cab, and in great haste, frantically, smashed what I had just brushed off my arm – a huge scorpion. I was both terrified and relieved. I said a prayer of thanks to the Holy Spirit, to all the saints in the heavens, to the Blessed Virgin Mary – to whomever was watching over me and protecting me that day. However, we should not be aware of God’s presence in just those times when we need him most. God is there with us always through the presence of the Holy Spirit. That is the message we hear in the prayer of St Patrick, with which I will close my homily with today:

THE PRAYER OF ST PATRICK - 

Christ be beside me, Christ be before me, Christ be behind me, King of my heart.

Christ be within me, Christ be below me, Christ be above me, never to part.

Christ on my right hand, Christ on my left hand, Christ all around me, shield in the strife.

Christ in my sleeping, Christ in my sitting, Christ in my rising, light of my life.

Christ be in all hearts thinking about me; Christ be on all tongues telling of me; Christ be the vision in eyes that see me; in ears that hear me, Christ ever be. AMEN.