1/12/2012 – Homily for Thursday of first week of ordinary time – Mark 1:40-45

         We hear of the healing of the leper in today’s Gospel.  I just read the book In the Sanctuary of the Outcasts by Neil White, a man who currently lives in Oxford who spent some time in Carville, Louisiana at the leper colony there.  He felt as much as an outcast as the lepers did during his time there, since he was spending his time there incarcerated as a federal prisoner after living a very lavish lifestyle as a businessman and after having robbed a lot of people of the money they invested with him.  He came to that federal prison very arrogant and very full of himself, yet he learned a lot about life, about himself, and about God through his interaction with the lepers who lived there.

         When we hear the word “leper” in our modern world, we immediately think of an outcast, of someone who is feared and condemned by the rest of society.  The name “leper” certainly has a stigma connected to it.  Yet, Jesus allows the leper to approach him, and he makes the leper clean due to the great faith and confidence he has in Jesus.

         We may want healing and miracles in our own lives, but perhaps God is enacting that healing and those miracles in ways that are different from our expectations.  We may come to God arrogantly and full of ourselves just as Neil White did when he entered that leper colony in Louisiana.  However, may we approach the Lord with the humility and confidence of the leper that we hear about today.  May we always have faith in our Lord.  

1/14/2012 – Homily for Saturday of the first week of ordinary time - 1 Samuel 9:1-4, 17-19; 10:1

         The elders and the people of Israel had approached Samuel, the judge of Israel chosen by God, demanding a king like all the nations around them.  Both Samuel and God knew that the people were demanding this not out of their faith & obedience to God, but rather in rejecting God and turning once again to the worship of idols, this time an idol in the form of a king.  God instructed Samuel to warn the people of the high cost of a king, but the people were oblivious to his warnings & to the seriousness of their sin.  The people were ecstatic in anticipation of this new king for their nation.  Since even the people knew that the king must be of God's choosing, it fell upon Samuel as God's judge to choose a king.  The events that we hear in today's first reading bring Saul into contact with Samuel in a way that makes the prophet certain that Saul is God’s choice for Israel’s king.

         Recently, we have made a concerted effort in our parishes and in our diocese to promote vocation awareness in our Church. We have had families praying for vocations and we have been handing out a chalice and a book of prayers at our masses in our to raise awareness and to pray for vocations.  As we hear in today's first reading, God chooses specific individuals for certain ministries & leadership roles.  It is up to us to discern God's will and to follow his calling. 

         As we hear how God chose a king for his people, may we be aware of the different ways God is calling us in our lives, how we all have vocations as followers of Christ.  May we thank God for the vocations that we have, and pray for the courage and fortitude to follow his will for us in our lives.

1/13/2012 – Friday of first week of ordinary time - 1 Samuel 8:4-7, 10-22a

       For many generations, the people of ancient Israel had been led by a confederation of tribes, but God brought forth leaders, priests, and prophets throughout Israel's history to lead his people. The tribes were supposed to help and protect each other, but often times they were too weak or too disorganized to be very effective. Many of the books of the Old Testament show the failures that happened to the people of Israel because of their lack of true unity.

         In our first reading today, the people approach Samuel, wanting a king for their nation after seeing the other nations around them prosper and gain military victories through the leadership of kings.  However, Samuel responds to the people that they already have a king, that they simply need to be more faithful to the king that they already have. But, to the people, having God as their king is not good enough; they want more, they want what their neighbors have. 

         Isn't that so much a part of our human nature today as well? Often, what we have isn't good enough for us.  So many in our society and in our world today envy the prosperity, success, and material goods of their neighbors.  Samuel tells the people of Israel what it will cost them when they make things other than God their king.  The same is true for us today.  The people of Israel refuse to listen to Samuel.  And what about us?  Are we listening?

         The psalmist tells us that we are blessed if we walk in the light of the Lord, if we rejoice in God's name & exalt in his justice.  May we truly follow in our hearts this road of faith that the Lord has put before us.  

1/10/12 – Homily for Tuesday of first week in ordinary time – 1 Samuel 1:9-20 -

       We begin ordinary time today right after our Christmas season by hearing the wonderful story of the prophet Samuel in our first reading.  There is so much we can take away from the story of Hanna & the birth of Samuel.  Hanna shows a great deal of self-reflection & self-knowledge.  She is unafraid to share her true feelings with God, praying & weeping in her bitterness.  Hanna tells the priest Eli very frankly: “I am an unhappy woman.”  Hanna feels that she will live a more complete & fulfilled life with the gift of a son whom she can raise to be a religious leader & prophet for Israel. Hanna tells Eli: “Do not think your handmaid is a ne’er-do-well; my prayer has been prompted by my deep sorrow and misery.”  Are we willing to be as honest & frank as Hanna is with God, to trust Him with our true feelings & emotions, to let him know when we are angry or jealous?  God listens to Hanna's prayers & she conceives a son, Samuel, whom she nurtures and guides in order to serve God & the community. 

         I remember that when I was serving as St Richard as the associate pastor, a group of us were talking about getting a young religious sister who works in northeast Mississippi to come to speak to our youth & to our adult Sunday school group on a Sunday morning.  When I mentioned her to this Sunday school group, some of our parishioners were astounded that there are still young religious sisters around today.  Just a generation or two ago, any Catholic family would have seen a son or daughter dedicating themselves to the priesthood or to the religious life as one of the greatest blessings from God, similar to the way Hanna willingly offers her son to the service of God & his people.  What has happened to our society when such vocations are considered rare & cutting edge, rather than something each Catholic family tries to foster in its children?

            Thank you God for Hanna, for all the parents who nurture their children for their true vocations in life, whatever those vocations may be.  May we continue to foster vocations in our families & in our community of faith.