Sixth Sunday of Easter

Fifth Sunday of Easter

Fourth Sunday of Easter - Day of Prayer for Vocations

Vocations Sunday
I am a bit a movie buff and watch all sorts of movies (except horror). Since the late 1950s the emphasis in heroes in movies has changed from the reliable virtuous uncompromising character played by a John Wayne, Gary Cooper or Spencer Tracy where the hero could be relied upon to deliver the goods, and where concepts of good and evil were clearly defined, perhaps influenced by the very clear boundaries and principles fought over in World War II.

This all began to change in the late 1950s to the ‘Rebel without a Cause’ type of anti-hero with the tragic, flawed, angst-ridden character in a leading role. Gritty determination, foul language, womanising and the end-justifying-the-means to track down the villain became the characteristic ‘values’ of a new generation of ‘good guy’ actors in the moral free-fall of an America represented by a James Dean, Clint Eastwood or Gene Hackman. The lines of good and evil became blurred.

Since the late 1970s the modern movie industry has discovered that there is a ton of money to be made by putting fantasy action heroes in the big screen. Superman, Spiderman, and Batman have each been on the screen in two different franchises each. Coolness, one-liners and special effects and computer graphics characterise the mostly family-friendly modern action hero movies. Good and evil are back, even if the heroes are now superhuman.

What is it with the world’s enduring fascination with these heroes and superheroes?

Part of the attraction is that these movies of course contain simple stereotypes that have universal appeal. We men want women to swoon and faint at the sight of the hero, we (men) want women to be needy, vulnerable, in distress and we want them to be saved – by us! Women want a muscular, handsome, rugged, scarred and proven, faithful hero. They want to be saved, and they will stand by their man! Women want to be cherished and feel safe and protected.

I was watching recently the making of the film 'Gladiator' and for an action film, I learned that 60% of the viewers who went to see the movie were women. Why? Because they want a hero who fights for his wife and child, who suffers their loss, avenges them and this is the passion that drives the hero.  The hero has a past history, a sensitivity, a meaning, a purpose, a message, a mission and he follows it undaunted no matter what the cost. He remains true to his course and is uncompromising. He is called a different name as his quest matures and comes into clearer focus at each stage of the journey - Spaniard, Gladiator,Maximus and, finally, General.

Men, on the other hand, want to be the ones to impress, win over, and be favoured by, the beautiful damsel. Men want to be valued, looked up to, admired, and singled out, needed and valued for their heroism, integrity, principles, courage, risk-taking, perseverance. In all of the action though men - deep down - need a plan and a quest, an adventure and a meaning and overall plan and purpose in life in which they and their role seem to make sense, that there is a meaning to all of this.  In Gladiator there is a flawed heroine who cares deeply for the hero, and her name is Lucilla. At one vulnerable stage she admits that she has been lonely all her life, except in his company.

Action hero movies, while a mostly innocent form of escapism, have appeal therefore to these basic needs and drives in all of us that there is a higher plan, a marvellous story, and secretly we all want to engage in one. We idealise someone to be that person and we wish we were that person to others.

Do we realise however that we are all the heroes and heroines in our own stories, that God has an over-riding plan for you and me? That he wants us to be saints, possessing heroic virtue with His help. You and I may not be much to look at, but inside we are!

We all have a story, and I think that it is what is most fascinating to me about people and life generally. We all struggle to make sense of it, as we cannot see what lies ahead, and we cannot undo what has led us to this point. We are capable of, if not always open to, change in our path where it is necessary. We may not have as much drama or action, but we have turning points, fateful days and crunch decisions to make that will determine our fate.

The author, John Eldredge has written much on this topic. It is the departure from the quest and the plan of life that God has set out for each of us that is the source of so much unhappiness and cynicism. Why, if there is no game-plan, do we get out of bed in the morning? We are unique, none of us is replaceable, and there will never be anyone quite like you or me! We all have a unique vocation in life, from the day of our Baptism and Confirmation to be God’s witnesses in the world. As Pope Benedict XVI has put it: ‘each of us is loved, each of us is necessary.’

Reading the lives of the saints - the best stories of all – can be an inspiration to us in our morally confused world and the uncertainty of so many in their misdirected unending quest for lasting notoriety and the cult of celebrity. These ordinary men and women on the other hand stuck by their principles in the face of adversity, and won the (unsought) admiration of all.

Who could not be struck by the drama of the life of Saint John Paul II? His biography is worth reading. Or Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta, St Maria Goretti, St Francis of Assisi, and so many more. What we all yearn for is ultimately love, meaning, and a sense of direction.

All of these are summed up in one word –‘vocation’.

Yes, you and I have one. They are different, but they are complementary – in the married, single, priestly, or religious state of life. Christ calls us and chooses us to this. So it is our relative nearness to Him and willingness to be guided by Him in on-going continuous daily habits of mental prayer that helps us to make sense of every day, of ourselves, of our world, and to expand our horizons to see our role in it.

That, to me, is what Vocations Sunday is all about.

Let us therefore be open to Christ, or in the words of  Pope St John Paul II: – ‘Open wide the doors to Christ’. If we could just let Him in, and then watch what happens....

Third Sunday of Easter

Third Sunday of Easter

 

As I have often stated Jesus asks 200 questions in the Gospel, many of which are rhetorical, so that as one author put it, we can 'live in the question', an like Mary 'ponder these things in our hearts.' Two of these questions are the focus of our meditation this Sunday.

 ‘Why are you agitated? Why are these doubts arising in your hearts?’

 Doubt and hesitation are features of all of our lives. We are fearful of the future, of what will become of our lives, our society, country, and our world. We also have personal problems, fears, doubt and anxiety over any number of things. We lack confidence, we put on masks, we are unsure of ourselves. We get discouraged easily, especially at repeated faults and failings. We think we should have learnt by now to be better people than we are.

‘Why are you agitated? Why are these doubts arising in your hearts? ‘

 These are the first things that the Lord Jesus asks of the disciples.

While there is a particular context to these questions in the Upper Room on Easter Sunday night, these are questions that can be put to us at any time.

Maybe at this moment, this week, this very day, we are undergoing some kind of crisis – of heart, of conscience, or a family dispute, a sickness.

Jesus knows that we have these problems. In fact right throughout the Easter narrative Jesus asks direct questions but with a perennial application. They are rhetorical, such as ‘what are you talking about along the way?’

Jesus wants us to hand over to him what agitates us. He wishes to say to us: ‘I am here – among you’. ‘Doubt no longer, but believe.’ Obviously in God above all, but also in ourselves – with the confidence that comes from Him.

We often can tell if someone is doubtful, hesitant or agitated by their face or body language. If we are enduring it we feel its effects in our own bodies, through indigestion, sleeplessness, anxiety and panic, through not eating properly. It is a common enough experience.

As we turn back to the context of these questions, it is made very clear that the disciples are fearful, but their doubts turn to astonished joy. What adds to the credibility and authenticity of the episode is that the Scripture does not gloss over the very shaky faith of the disciples in the Church at its beginnings. Jesus reassures them so that they might become witnesses to His death and His Resurrection. And later He will send the Spirit of wisdom and courage.

In fact an effective and credible witness is none of these things – doubtful or hesitant; rather they are confident and assured with a confidence that comes from the Lord. This is why the Lord gives them the reassurance of physical evidence – His wounded hands and feet, His ability to eat in their presence. He explains the Scriptures to them, and at last they begin to understand with hindsight what the mission of Jesus is all about, and that His mission from the Father now becomes their mission, and the mission of the Church, from Jesus Himself, to proclaim the Good News of the remission of sins and the duty of repentance, change and reform, to reconcile sinners to God, to restore broken humanity.

Each year this episode - and other appearances of Jesus like it - is repeated to us at the Easter Season, not only to remind us of what we are about as a Church, but so that individually each person can tap into the message and hear it afresh, to acknowledge once more that we are wounded healers and forgivers, that we are sinners who know our need of salvation, that we are all in need of Jesus as our personal Saviour - that our hope comes from Him. And we can only change the world in proportion to our humility – to our heartfelt honest admission that we are in as much need of Christ as anyone else. We cannot give what we do not possess. If we have truly found Christ, then we can share Him with others.

 And in the Mass once we have approached in the Penitential Rite and emptied ourselves of self, then we can be filled with His Word, and them with His Flesh in the Eucharist. Our emptiness becomes something to be filled. Our desires turn to desire for Him alone, and then we become witnesses to this as we are dismissed ‘to proclaim the Gospel’, ‘to glorify the Lord with our lives.’ Our Sunday – and daily - Mass becomes the ‘food for the journey’ that lies ahead.

 

Divine Mercy Sunday

It’s about Divine Mercy today - and mercy with one another – it’s about forgiving one another as we are called to live with one another in love - as a faith community, and as a church community.

As Jesus said: ‘Peace be with you’ - and among you – peace is not about the absence of conflict, it’s the forgiveness - it’s about being able to forgive the small things in a relationship that annoy – that can make or break a relationship – and to not mention them again – the things that drive you or me nuts – the minor grievances that we allow to accumulate, we are tempted to hold on to them – withholding forgiveness and bearing grudges.

In a family or marriage we constantly need to go beyond the little things: - the love you have and are shown, the reason for the relationship - be it a marriage, a vocation, family, a friendship, the 'why' of why we are together must be invoked again and reflected upon to pick up the pieces and see the bigger picture and start over.

The all-encompassing mercy of God is what we are celebrating today, and the extent to which we 'get it' ie understand it, is the extent to which we allow it to spill over into our relationships with one another.

We must choose to accept forgiveness from God and the people we are in a relationship with. Forgiveness is a CHOICE - a decision to seek and to accept and be prepared to let go.

St Thomas had doubts about faith. We too have doubts and uncertainty - but in the area of forgiveness - that God can actually forgive me this hidden sin, this terrible thing I said or did. Jesus’ wounds revealed today remind us the price He paid but also of His willing forgiveness and mercy

Peace or shalom - the Jewish understanding was more than a simple greeting like a 'hello' or 'good day' -it was the desire that the person receiving the blessing might be whole in body, mind and spirit. Jesus then follows His peace greeting with the theme of forgiveness.

Peace is crucial. Being at peace with one another and being at peace with God are pre-requisites to living a full and free Christian life - only then will you have peace with yourself – it is hard work and a deliberate choice.

THERE IS NO PEACE WITHOUT THE EXPERIENCE OF THE JOY OF FORGIVENESS.

We all experience the feeling that we are not really deserving of forgiveness. This is worth bearing in mind in our hesitation to forgive others in turn. Power in a relationship does not lie with the person who has control (there is no real love where there is control anyway)but with The person who grants forgiveness. There are no relationships without conflict or misunderstanding.

'Peace I leave with you' are the words we hear before the Sign of Peace and these are linked with Jesus' words: 'a peace the world cannot give, that is my gift to you. Peace is also mentioned at the end of Mass : 'the Mass is ended, go in peace'

Jesus wishes PEACE at all levels of our being, and the power He confers on His Apostles today after breathing the Spirit on them is the authority to forgive in His Name.

Let us flee then to the ocean of Divine Mercy and experience once more the joy of being forgiven everything from our past. Then we will experience a peace the world cannot give.

Let us share that peace joy and forgiveness with the whole world.

Easter Sunday

Easter vigil homily 4/4/15

Have you ever wondered what a child makes of Holy Week and Easter?

Children challenge us by their questions, they are not easily fobbed doff, hey are curious, inquisitive and think deeply about the ultimate questions of life

 In recent weeks, a teacher in a school in the parish asked Junior Infants what they thought Easter was all about. Some mentioned chocolate Easter eggs and the Easter bunny, but then one lad put his hand up and said ‘the bad soldiers killed Jesus’. They put him in a box’. And they came to the box on Sunday to check upon him and he was gone. What happened? He came back to life!

This description led to some comment among the others in the class. One asked: does that mean that all the other people who are dead, that they came back to life too? ‘Yes’ the teacher answered, and so the boy got excited. Got out of his seat and danced around the room, ‘they’re alive, they’re alive!”

PALM SUNDAY

5th Sunday of Lent

4th Sunday of Lent

3rd Sunday of Lent

2nd Sunday of Lent

1st Sunday of Lent Year B