The Most Holy Trinity by Deacon Len Ratajczyk
Like many of you, I have been reflecting on some wonderful memories from our Pentecost celebration last weekend. I think one of the many great things about our Pentecost celebration is the opportunity to learn more about the people of our Parish. Father Jim highlighted the importance of getting to know our fellow parishioners, by giving each of us, a goal of meeting 5 new people. And like many of you, as I met new people and learned more about them on an individual level. I began to see more clearly, how our Pentecost celebration really helped all of us, to learn more about, just WHO we are as a Parish community. And then you combine this with the universal atmosphere that was generated by the ethnic foods and vibrant music. And, also, knowing that the Global Catholic church is celebrating Pentecost with us, it really helps connect us, as a People of God. Also, I think it is very comforting, both, globally and locally to know that so many brothers and Sisters are following God in cultures around the world that can be very difficult to live out the Catholic faith.
I think here in our culture today, it can feel like the cultural forces are actively facilitating the separation between humanity and God. And a major reason for this is the growing emphasis on the individual determining what is truth, and this focus on the individual, really does cut hard against the Family of God vision for humanity that was on full display at Pentecost last weekend. Most Likely, many of us, have friends or family that have been influenced by our dominant culture that insists, individual freedom to choose is the only path to true happiness. Naturally, we can look for answers to help us respond to a culture that is giving more and more confusing assessments of just WHO Mankind should be. And, I think our Gospel scriptures today, and the celebration of the Holy Trinity can help us greatly, because God reminds us of WHO he is.
In today’s Gospel, we hear, that God so loved the world he gave his only Son to save us. Of course, this very well-known verse recalls images, of Christ on the Cross and his sacrificial love pouring out for humanity. The Venerable Bishop Fulton Sheen once reflected on this powerful verse of John 3-16. And, he commented on the significance of the outstretched arms of Christ on the Cross reaching out to grasp Humanity in Sacrificial Love. But he goes even further, by asking the question…what did Jesus see from the Cross??? 1) Likely, Jesus saw people that were indifferent to him, 2) some that had turned away from him, 3) some who did know him at all 4) some who hated him 5) and a handful who knew him well. From the Cross, Jesus saw all of humanity, our brothers, and Sisters. With this powerful image of Christs outstretched arms grasping for all of Humanity. This Sunday, the Church reminds us that the outstretched arms of Christ continue to reach for his human family as we celebrate the Holy Trinity Today.
Because in the Holy Trinity, we learn even more about WHO God is in the 3 persons of the Father, son and Holy Spirit. To help define the Holy Trinity further, I want to read what the Catechism of the Catholic Church tells us about WHO God is in the Holy trinity. Para CCC 221 states “By sending his only Son and the spirit of love in the fullness of time, God has revealed his innermost secret. God himself is an exchange of Love, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and he has destined us to share in that Exchange” As I reflected in Prayer this week on these readings and the solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity. That phrase from the Catechism “God has revealed his innermost secret” really stood out to me. And I think it’s well worth repeating.
On this Holy Trinity Sunday, I think the message that we are being invited to ponder… is that, Perhaps the 1) the scripture today and 2) our Catechism 3) and the Holy Trinity remind us of our innermost identity of WHO we are destined to be? Since we know that we are made in the image and likeness of God and that God is the 3 persons of the Holy Trinity, then it is FITTING that we strive to image God through multiple people, 1) friends, 2) our families, 3) community, 4) Parish 5) and ultimately a people of God. And to help us further strive toward imaging God through people. Maybe for this week’s Prayer and action, Brothers and Sisters, maybe we make a special effort in Prayer and ask for the Grace to see more opportunities to bring people closer to the Holy Trinity. Maybe we can ask ourselves in Prayer, 1) is there is a broken relationship I could help repair, 2) is there someone I could invite back to Church, 3) is there someone in my neighborhood or at work that I could begin a new friendship with 4) or is there a stranger that I could make a friend. Each time, we strengthen or make a new connection point with our fellow brothers and Sisters, we begin to move closer to the destiny of WHO we are called to be as a People of God, which is sharing with all of humanity, in the Exchange of love that is found in the outstretched arms of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
The Most Holy Trinity by Fr. Jim Deiters
The most important influence that parents have on their children is how and what they teach their children about God. Actually, in a child’s mind during the early years, God and parent are pretty synonymous. This means that, how a parent loves, punishes, forgives, and relates to their child will have a huge impact on what they believe about God as well. Similarly, in Catholic schools and homeschooling, the teachers also have a huge impact on a child’s image of God since religion and prayer are part of the curriculum. For example, some people grew up with an image of God as a fierce, condemning man, who watched every move and kept a list of mistakes. With this image of God, many people lived more out of a fear of hell rather than a desire and love of heaven. The other extreme happens if parents and teachers explain that God’s love is so great that it does not matter if you did wrong or not. This idea can cause us to lose our moral compass of right and wrong, and forget that there ARE God’s Commandments to follow. We need a balanced image of God that blends together the scriptural representations of God who gives Commandments …but who is also Love.
And thus our feast of the Most Holy Trinity gives us an opportunity to review what we think about God and whether our image of God has matured since our childhood days? Again, we need a balance between being in AWE and REVERENCE of God as our Creator and Judge...and Jesus’ teaching about God as an ever-loving, forgiving parent.
The Gospel for our feast today makes one image of God very clear when John writes, “God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.” From this classic scripture passage, we learn that God’s primary desire and goal is to SAVE us...not condemn us! God - Father, Son, and Spirit - is at all times trying to draw us up into God’s own relationship of perfect LOVE...to be saved from any relationships that pull us into hate, prejudice, or divisiveness. In other words, is what or who I am listening to or watching leading me to God’s LOVE…or being judgmental and divisive?
Thus our scriptures for the feast do not give us some theological or philosophical ‘explanation’ of God as a Trinity, but instead reveal to us what God DOES. When Jesus says that he came into the world to “SAVE us,” he reveals to us how active God is in our life at trying to set us free from all that binds us! Yes, God is aware of our sins, but is always trying to break into our life to SAVE us by getting us to change our ways and get back on the path of love and holiness.
Our God goes out of his way time and again to get us back on track so that we reconnect with the path to heaven - which is a path of selfless giving…sacrificial love…as Jesus modeled with his own life.
This powerful passage from John’s Gospel invites us to be set free from any images of God that are not rooted in love. Once we truly believe that “God so loved the world that he sent his Son…so that we may have eternal life,” it helps us think of our relationship with the Trinity in a more intimate way…and not just a doctrine far away in the category of “mystery.”
This is the power behind signing our self with the Cross and holy water each time we enter and leave the church. It reminds us that we share in God’s Triune life of love...as we cross our self… to remember to whom we belong. I am not sure what prayers you use to start your day… but think about beginning each morning with reverently making the sign of the Cross across our whole body…and saying to yourself, “I will live today…in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.”
Pentecost
WATCH THIS HOMILY
Fr. Jim Deiters
One of my favorite books by Matthew Kelly is called “Four Signs of a Dynamic Catholic.” He challenges us in the book to work on these four areas: Prayer, Study, Evangelize, and be Generous. While all four are essential, these Pentecost scripture kept bringing my thoughts back this week particularly to the virtue of generosity. It starts with God’s generosity toward us…and the generous ways the Holy Spirit pours out gifts and graces upon the human race. Interestingly, generosity is a track that runs parallel to gratitude, meaning… the more aware and grateful I am for God’s blessings in my life, the more generous I will be.
As a priest and pastor, I am privileged on a daily basis to see this virtue of generosity lived out in a wide variety of ways in you, our parishioners. From the parent who spends extra hours at home for quality time with their children to teach and model for them the Catholic faith; to the young adult who gives up weekend free time to volunteer for those in need; to the married couple or single person who chooses to live simply to be able to donate more to the Church and other charities. I could go on and on about so many others right here in our midst who practice the virtue of generosity, volunteering quietly behind the scenes.
Particularly in our second reading today, we are reminded by St. Paul that our life is not our own, but rather each life is meant for a purpose that glorifies God. In his letter to the Corinthians, we heard this powerful statement, “To each individual the manifestation of the Spirit is given… for some benefit.” The part that strike me the most are the words “for some benefit.” That means that the Holy Spirit has given particular charisms and gifts to you and me...to benefit the lives of others and for the Kingdom of God. And when we activate and generously share our gifts, it gives meaning and purpose to our life.
In a culture of selfishness, it becomes more and more difficult for us to live a truly virtuous life. By virtuous life I am referring to the core practices of: Prudence, Self-control, Courage, Justice, Humility, and Generosity. A person must develop and grow all of these virtues to be truly great in God’s eyes. But in our world, ‘greatness’ is often defined by who has the highest salary in sports, the loudest mouth in politics, or has the most ‘views’ on social media. We are lured into a false ‘greatness’ and forget the call to live a virtuous life that is for the “benefit of God’s Kingdom and the lives of others.”
For Pentecost today, I focus on this virtue of generosity as a way for us to celebrate in our parish all of the magnanimous people of our past and present who give generously beyond measure of their time, talent, and treasure. Pentecost is a feast of God’s generosity in the way God lavishly pours out the Spirit’s gifts differently in each person’s life. Which of course, challenges us to rethink how we sometimes judge others who think or act differently than we do...and try to see each person as St. Paul calls each of us… a unique “manifestation” of the Spirit’s gifts. Have you ever thought of yourself as a “manifestation of the Holy Spirit?”
For this Pentecost of 2023, I invite each of us to think about specific ways the Holy Spirit wants to use our lives to practice being liberally generous like God is. Here are some examples: generously using words of encouragement toward others; being generous by listening more and talking less in conversations; generously volunteering to help someone or a parish ministry without having to be asked; generously donating more to my parish and other charity; doing chores around the house generously with joy and not complaining; generously forgiving a spouse, workmate, or friend every day for aggravations; generously seeing goodness in others rather than their shortcomings; and young men and women… consider generously giving your life to God as a priest or sister. There are numerous ways that the Holy Spirit wants to use our lives every day…for “some benefit” of blessing the lives of others and giving God glory with how we live generously.
You and I ARE a “manifestation of the Spirit” created by God ‘for some benefit’ in God’s Kingdom. To think of yourself as too small to be a benefit to God’s world is a false humility that underestimates the creativity of the Holy Spirit. Let us approach this Holy Eucharist first of all with a heart of gratitude for the gifts of the Spirit that are so evident in our life, our parish, and our world. And as the Holy Spirit enters us through the Body and Blood of Jesus, may we allow God’s Spirit to expand our hearts with the virtue of being more generous in what we say and do.
Come Holy Spirit…enflame our hearts with the fire of Your Generous Love!
The Ascension of the Lord
WATCH THIS HOMILY
Fr. Jim Deiters
The Catholic Mass has gone through many adaptions over our 2000 year history. From the First Century Eucharist being held in people’s homes before churches were built, to how we pray the Mass today, the central purpose has remained the same…of worshipping God and receiving God in Word and Sacrament. As the Catholic Church spread throughout the world, the Mass has been influenced by many cultures. The Church allows this variety, while also keeping true to a unified structure and essential elements of assigned scriptures, prayers, and the Eucharist. One of the key components of the Mass that attracted me to the priesthood is the experience of “transcendence,” that is, being taken into another dimension of spirituality that happens during the Eucharist. I often hear people say that when they are ‘searching’ for a new parish, they look for a community that prays well together and where the Mass has an element of “transcendence” or a kind of reverence where you experience participating in something beyond this world.
This was one of the complaints that some people had when the Mass changed after the Second Vatican Council in the 1960’s and some felt that the Mass got too ‘casual.’ Having the Mass in English and the priest facing the people was meant to add more participation by the People of God. But in the 1960-80’s, in what some call the ‘experimental years,’ there was a struggle to keep the “transcendence” and “mystery” while making the Mass more accessible for people.
Here at St. Clare and many parishes, we strive for that balance between the people’s participation… and keeping the important element of transcendence and reverence that help us remember that God is at the center of what we are doing here. For today’s feast, I am proposing that there is a beautiful connection between the transcendental element of the Mass… and the deeper meaning of Jesus’ Ascension into heaven. The word ‘transcendence’ can be thought of as a “crossing over” into a spiritual dimension; and the word “ascension” usually means ‘upward’ movement. But I suggest using them interchangeably for this feast.
Since many Renaissance paintings depict Jesus’ Ascension as him floating away up into the sky, many think of today’s feast simply as a ‘spatial’ event, as if Jesus simply moved from the earth into the clouds. But the Mystery of his Ascension is so much richer than that…since it is the culmination of God’s great Act of merging heaven and earth through Jesus Christ. Jesus Risen Body ‘ascending’ to God takes things of earth into heaven, including our own humanity since we are part of his Body. To think of Jesus “sitting at God’s right hand” actually represents him inviting all of us to join him around the Blessed Vision of God’s Light and Love.
In this sense, this feast takes us back to Christmas…when God first got the idea that he wanted to mix divinity and humanity together by God coming ‘down’ in the Christ Child. The Ascension of Jesus now completes this vision by taking humanity ‘up’ into the spiritual realm of God. In your prayer, when you think about Jesus in heaven or meditate on the second Glorious Mystery of the Rosary, picture yourself and all of humanity up there with him…since we ARE part of Christ’s Risen Body.
If I haven’t lost you yet, this is the beautiful connection to what we are participating in at the Mass. We arrive here with the fullness of our human condition – our selfishness, sins of pride, lust, and envy, and our goodness…then through hymns, prayers, scripture, and ritual…our minds, heart, and soul are meant to be ‘taken up’ – transcended beyond – into the unifying dimension or ‘spiritual plane’ of God’s unifying love. This is part of the reason that you notice our hymns have such poetic language, the prayers use unusual words sometimes, and include other languages like Greek and Latin at times…to try and capture the transcendent mystery we are partaking in at every Eucharist.
Have you felt and noticed that mystery and transcendence sort of ‘swooping’ you into another level beyond this world? It takes extra effort to ‘turn off ‘the distractions and busy thoughts of this world and enter the Mass with a conscious desire to be taken up and ‘ascended’ with Jesus…and ‘transcended’ into the deeper dimension of God’s pure love.
While we are meant to love the things of this world and immerse ourselves into God’s beauty all around us, we also NEED holy moments in prayer and at the Eucharist…to let the Holy Spirit transcend us and ‘ascend’ us more intimately into God’s spiritual dimension of peace and love all around us. Try and pay attention in the Mass as to how the Holy Spirit wants to ‘take you’ to that ‘place’ …into Christ.
FIFTH SUNDAY OF EASTER
WATCH THIS HOMILY
FR. JIM DEITERS
Now, it may sound too obvious that one of my favorite Apps I have on my phone’s home screen is to the Vatican News. I like it not just as a priest, but as a Christian, as it gives me such hope and pride to read each day of the amazing things that our Holy Father, Pope Francis is doing for the Mission of Jesus’ Gospel. If more people would read from the actual source and pay less attention to what other media outlets ‘think’ of the pope by their own interpretations, there would be greater unity in the Church, loving what it means to be Catholic for the many great things the Church is doing for God. Pope Francis’ recent pilgrimage to Hungary is a great example of how serious he takes his role of proclaiming God’s love for the poor, and challenging world leaders to work together for peace, especially as Hungary is right in the middle of so many conflicting countries.
One of the many jobs that the pope has is to work for Jesus’ vision for a unified human race. We know that one of Jesus’ final prayers to his Father was that we would “all be one…as he and the Father are one.” While much of the world laughs at Jesus’ prayer for unity as a ‘pipe dream,’ the Church will never give up on working toward unity among every race and creed…since Jesus himself made it a priority.
St. Peter must have been there that day when Jesus prayed for this kind of unity since Peter himself spoke about it so much, especially in this passage we have today in which he describes us Christians as ‘stones’ that God uses to build his Church. The passage presents God as an architect who is building us into a temple, as Peter tells us that we are “living stones” when we LET God ‘build us’ into what he dreams for us. I especially love the ‘humble tense’ of that phrase, “let yourself be built,” as we must submit our life to God for his building project…and never think that God is finished with us. We are a work in progress…as our Sculptor-God is reshaping us over and over… individually AND as a community…as the Spirit forms us into a “spiritual house” Peter says.
I think too often we think about our relationship with God only in a private way...as if the Church is made up of billions of individual temples praising God by him or herself. This Easter scripture clearly invites us to see how each of us is meant to be connected with every other baptized person in order to be built into the Church community, the Body of Christ on earth. This is the value of belonging to a parish…in which we cooperate with one another and God for the common good.
Saint Peter’s letter goes on to affirm our dignity as baptized members of Christ by telling us, “You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood...” I am not sure many people truly understand what it means that they share in Jesus’ Priesthood. The Catechism of the Church describe how every baptized person has a ‘priestly’ role in God’s Church by using the phrase, “the common priesthood of the baptized.” By ‘priestly’ it means that each person is chosen by God to add holiness to the world and participate together in worship of God.
I love this quote from the Second Vatican Council which says, “By the sacrament of baptism, the faithful receive the duty and power to act like Christ...and work IN the world for its salvation.” Imagine the power we would have if all 2 billion baptized people alive today worked together for peace, for the poor, the unborn, and the millions of refugees crying out for help.
Of course, there is the additional ‘type’ of priesthood for the ordained - as deacons, priests, and bishops share in Christ’s life in a particular way, specifically representing Christ by ministering to people’s spiritual and sacramental needs. Another beautiful quote from the Second Vatican Council says, “the baptized and the ordained form an organically structured priestly community.”
In your prayer this week, reflect on how God is building you into a “spiritual house.” But also pray about how God needs your life as a “living stone” to connect with God’s other ‘stones’ in the Church…as we humbly submit our life to God for some greater purpose. As I often tell our young people, it is difficult to turn over to God what “I” want to do with my life…and ask God, “what do YOU want to do with my life?”
As we are about to take the Body of Christ into our heart, mind, and soul, try and ‘let go’….and let God ‘build you’ into someone holier, more generous, more compassionate, and more unifying…like Jesus.
FOURTH SUNDAY OF EASTER
WATCH THIS HOMILY
FR. JIM DEITERS
Next to the bible, the most beautiful writings we have as Catholics are manuscripts written by the early Christians in those first centuries. The Church has a vast collection of homilies and teachings by people who immediately followed the Apostles and began to formulate what we Christians believe about Jesus, even before our established doctrines about Jesus, the Trinity, and the Eucharist. Officially, we call these writers the “Early Church Fathers,” and their testimonies of faith are essential to read for anyone who wants to go deeper into the roots of our rich Catholic beliefs. For example, already in the Second Century, the way that leaders such as Tertullian, Irenaeus, and Cyprian describe the Early Christian’s belief in the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist is very powerful and beautiful. Hundreds of Protestant pastors have converted to the Catholic Faith once they have read these early Christian teachings on the Eucharist.
Another common ‘theme’ in these early writings is based on this Gospel where Jesus describes himself as the “Shepherd” and “gate” for his sheep to come through. As a matter of fact, the earliest paintings and statuary we have of Jesus portrays him as a shepherd holding a sheep on his shoulders. Part of what made this Gospel one of the most revered by the Early Christians is that it gave them comfort, since they were living during times when it was very dangerous to be a Christian, as many were being persecuted and killed for their beliefs. The early disciples had to gather in secret for Mass in their homes… and hoped they would not get caught and hauled off to jail to be beaten. You can imagine them clinging to this story of Jesus promising safety for his sheep as Jesus calls himself a “gate” for his sheep to come through.
Which leads me to the key word that stands out for me, which is the preposition “through.” Several times Jesus says that a person has to come “THROUGH” him to be saved. Now, you usually go ‘through’ something to get somewhere else. Which is exactly what Jesus offers us – something beyond the superficialities of this world – to what Jesus calls “a more abundant life” in God!
I think this is a huge misunderstanding for many people today… of WHO Jesus IS. Many people, when they hear the name Jesus, think that he came just to give a bunch of rules, make sure we stay out of trouble, and go to church. Rather, what does Jesus say about himself? Come “through me for a more abundant life!” Jesus came to enrich our life! I don’t think we have done a good job as parents, grandparents, and other teachers in the Church of helping people realize that the main purpose of faith in Jesus is for a more ABUNDANT LIFE. Do our young people see in us that Christ gives us a more abundant life than what the world offers? When YOU have felt a more abundant life in Jesus, have you told others about the experience? I am inspired by many of our ministry leaders, youth leaders, and those who have participated in our retreats for women and men who HAVE given witness to what their faith means to them.
This is a big part of what drew me to the priesthood – a vocation in which your main ‘job’ is to help others know there is a more abundant life in Jesus, especially in the Sacraments he gives us.
But let’s go back to that word “through.” Jesus invites us to go THROUGH Him…as in going “into” or “within” him…as a new way to see our purpose, value, and identity. While many today think of the word “identity” in terms of their job, their family, or their gender, going THROUGH Jesus, we can better understand our ‘identity’ as belonging to God…and having an “abundant life.” Thinking of our life as going “through” Jesus…can be very freeing…since my ‘success’ no longer depends on what I do for a living or how much I make. “Through” Jesus…I can live in another ‘dimension’ of abundant peace and joy.
Whatever challenges you might be going ‘through’ in life right now – health issues, marriage difficulties, grieving, schooling, or discerning your future, we can experience an inner peace…when we view our life “through” Jesus. It is no small detail that the climax of the Eucharistic Prayer we will pray in a few minutes ends with that beautiful phrase, “through him, with him, and in him…” Let us sit for a minute and try and picture your life going “through” Jesus…and INTO God’s Love for you.
Third Sunday of Easter
WATCH THIS HOMILY
Fr. Jim Deiters
Not that I have time to sit around watching birds make nests, BUT, I am blessed to have just outside my kitchen window two cardinal birds preparing for new babies. Knowing that cardinal birds are monogamous, it has been marvelous to occasionally see the male partner delivering items for the female, working together to build the nest; and now that she is roosting, he sometimes brings food to her during the difficult pregnancy weeks. The beauty of God’s creation working together is a marvel indeed…if only we humans would be more cooperative with God’s mystery and majesty being woven together all around us. Too often, we are off building our own ‘nest’ and fail to see the Presence of God in and around us.
Today’s beautiful gospel story, one of the most revered of all Christian scriptures is a treasure chest of divine truths. The Risen Christ appears along the road…and turns confused and distracted hearts into people impassioned with faith…as the disciples finally recognize the Presence of Jesus walking with them on life’s journey…and truly present in the Eucharist he celebrates with them in Emmaus.
Truth be told, the two disciples had ‘given up’… and were leaving Jerusalem in desolation, saying, “We thought that he was going to be the one.” They had lost their confidence in the Lord Jesus…and had a hard time believing the stories that Jesus was risen from the dead. Still today, many people are disappointed in Jesus who doesn’t meet their expectations of what God should do.
The two disciples were so distracted with life’s disappointment and unmet expectations…that they couldn’t recognize that Jesus was accompanying them in their difficulties. We also get very distracted by our own emotions, disappointments, sorrows, and anxieties that we often miss seeing the mighty works of God happening right in front of us.
A proactive spiritual journey requires a life-long process…of ‘seeing’ life through eyes of faith. Part of what is beautiful in the story is that, even in their confused, doubting frame of mind, Jesus searched them out on their life’s journey, and desired to walk with them in their feeling of defeat. Here is the Good News of this story: God is always initiating a plan to seek us out when we are experiencing confusion or doubts about our future. But do we NOTICE the Presence of God in and around us on our sacred path of life? Have I seen the eyes of Jesus in someone God placed on my path? Have I felt the presence of Christ inside of me when receiving the Holy Eucharist…or around me in the magnificence of creation?
We know well that various things cause cataracts over our eyes of faith – things like grief over a lost loved one, struggles with an aging parent, the challenge of our children going their own way, or the way we complicate our lives with too many things. All of these can be so disorienting… and mistakenly get us thinking that maybe God has walked away; when in reality, we are the ones who have started down an “Emmaus path” of skepticism or cynicism, rather than trusting and recognizing that God is closer to us than we realize…right now.
Suddenly, there is a beautiful turn in the plot: As the disciples continue their conversation with the ‘stranger’ Jesus, they want more of him. Remarkably, the Lord who sought them out and taught them…was now being sought by them. Time with Jesus in prayer always causes a stir in one’s heart; and when that happens, those converted disciples teach us to say to Jesus, “Stay with us.” Just when we might feel like God is distant, or the path we are on is not what we had planned for, we can cling to this Gospel mantra, “Jesus, stay with me. Stay with me.”
What ultimately gave those first disciples the faith and strength they needed was the Eucharist. Once Jesus broke the bread and they recognized it was him, what they ATE that day…gave them a whole new purpose and perspective. Disappointed disciples became faithful followers; and weary walkers became believers…with a new Mission to proclaim to others that Jesus was truly raised from the dead…and how he impacted their lives.
The power of the Eucharist is that even though each of us is on our unique ‘Emmaus path,’ the Lord Jesus comes into our midst at every Mass, breaks the bread into his Body for us to consume, and assures us that we are not on this road alone. If those first disciples came into this room here today, I imagine they would challenge us to look up from our ‘nest building’ and thoughts of discouragement to SEE and HEAR all the signs of Jesus…walking by your side…and Present right here in the Eucharist.
Divine Mercy Sunday
WATCH THIS HOMILY
Fr. Jim Deiters
When I was preparing for my own First Communion (a hundred years ago!), I remember Sister Roselia talking about her own deep faith in the Eucharist that began my formation in the Real Presence of Jesus in Holy Communion. I remember her describing the connection between going to Confession and receiving Jesus in the Eucharist. She said, “Boys and girls, both sacraments set you free!” My second-grade mind was mesmerized when she told us, “Jesus wants to set your heart free from selfishness, anger, jealousy, and any other thing that keeps you from being as loving as Jesus.” Growing up in the middle of eight children, I knew my heart needed set free…and I felt a powerful connection to Jesus that day of my First Communion.
This phrase of ‘being set free’ was one that St. Faustina used when she described the joy of the sacraments when she was journaling about her devotion to God’s Divine Mercy in the 1930’s. To be ‘set free and given a new start’ by God is what we need every day…as too often we carry around burdens that keeps us from living as people of the Resurrection. The scriptures for today’s feast of Divine Mercy invites us to look at Jesus’ Resurrection from the perspective of God setting us free from our past and living a new life in God.
The apostles certainly experienced this freedom and new life when Jesus arrives in their midst on that first Easter Sunday night we just heard about in the Gospel story. And the first words he says to them are “Peace be with you.” Just two days earlier, most of them ran away in fear. The way Jesus offers them ‘Peace,’ is almost shocking, given that they had recently denied their faith in him. But this is the CRUX of our Christian faith – that God’s Mercy is offered to us at the very time we feel ‘distant’ from God or think we are unforgivable! I want to delve more deeply into this gift of PEACE that Jesus refers to quite often.
There has been a sad trend in the last few decades of an increasing number of people saying they don’t need a “religion” but rather have a "spiritual" life on their own. But the point of Jesus offering us “peace” is not simply for a personal, private experience of feeling at peace, but includes a social dimension of Jesus wanting us to be at PEACE with each other as well. Is it really possible to have ‘inner’ peace without outer, social peace with others? It seems that our selfish craving for individualism is the drive behind people leaving religion behind…since belonging to a religion involves a commitment to work together with others for unity and peace among ALL God’s children.
In the way Jesus offers peace in this story, he models how to break down the cycle of revenge and division. Just when it seems he should have turned his back on his friends for abandoning him, instead he displays exactly what God’s Mercy is all about – forgiveness and peace! Instead of the world’s prescription of vengeance for a wrong done to us, Jesus teaches us to offer PEACE! This is one of the values and benefits of belonging to our Catholic ‘religion’ since it teaches us to BE instruments of Jesus’ vision for peace.
The Peace that Jesus gives from his heart of Divine Mercy is a kind of peace that reconciles us with God… and with one another. In this sense, God’s peace and mercy flow vertically and horizontally. Divine Mercy never stops when it reaches my own heart(!)…but impels us to then extend the same kind of ‘peace-filled’ mercy to others.
Jesus appears in that ‘locked upper room’ and says “peace” …so that we, Jesus’ disciples, know that God wants to ‘set us free’ from our past mistakes by his Mercy. The powerful effects of the Resurrection are evident in the world yet today…every time we act as agents of forgiveness and peace toward others!
The beautiful Easter News for us is that our Risen Savior Jesus comes into our midst, here in our own “upper room” through his Holy Word and in the Eucharist…and says to us, "Peace be with you." Our response can simply be what St. Faustina taught us, “Jesus, I trust in You…Jesus, I trust in You…”
Easter Sunday
Fr. Jim Deiters
At a recent gathering of our youth, I overheard a few of them having a debate about “artificial intelligence,” AI for short. Their discussion was about whether a beach scene they saw in a movie was real or created artificially by AI. To play the antagonist, I asked them if they could prove that anything they saw was really real. It’s a philosophical question that humans have long asked, but AI has now muddied the waters even further as it makes fake things seem very real.
Jesus rising from the dead is our most unbelievable BELIEF we have as Christians. The Risen Jesus is absolutely REAL for us Christians; and those first disciples so wanted us to know how real is was…that they wrote down many details about how they REALLY saw him and ate with him after they discovered the tomb empty. But in today’s world, and for the minds of so many people who spend time in virtual reality, we Christians must CLING to these Gospel stories of Jesus’ Risen from the dead, telling them over and over to our young people as REAL events with real people. We can no longer assume people will believe the shocking miracle God performed on that first Easter morning.
Our REAL God…entered our REAL world…lived as a REAL person…and had a REAL death. Now, “Reality” would assume that was the end of the story. But our awesome God wanted to shock and expand our human version of reality…and reveal another world, another dimension of existence…where death is not the end…and a Resurrected Life exists beyond the grave. THIS is what makes Jesus Christ the Savior, Lord, and Redeemer of the entire cosmos! Jesus’ Resurrection Event altered the reality of matter.
I always tell our young people, “If you can throw caution to the wind, put aside all need of proof, and totally believe in the miracle of Jesus rising from the dead….then any other parts of Catholicism that are difficult to accept will come easier.” There simply is no way to ‘explain’ how God took Jesus’ body that was completely dead…and brought back to life. Jesus’ Resurrection was God’s ‘great surprise’ for the world!
Through Jesus’ Resurrection we are now reunited to God’s world that doesn’t have an end! God wants us to enjoy this blessed life here on earth, but Jesus’ Resurrection ‘proves’ that God has a bigger dream for us beyond the temporary joys of this life here on earth. THIS is the Good News of Easter – that we no longer have to be afraid about how and when we will die!
Every Easter…and every Sunday Eucharist challenges us to ask ourself if Jesus’ Resurrection really makes any difference in my life? Will I let it influence how I live and why I live? I especially want to welcome and reach out to anyone who has been feeling disengaged from their faith, or a teenager or young adult who question their place in the Catholic Church…or anyone asking what is real and not real.
These next 50 days of the Easter Season is a time to root our lives more deeply into this core belief of who we are as Christians. We cannot remain indifferent. Since every Sunday is a celebration of Jesus’ Resurrection, Sunday’s are the first day of the week to make a decision about my faith: to either let our Christian life fade away into the secular world around us (too busy or tired for church or following Jesus’ example)…OR I go ‘all in’ and fully embrace my faith in Jesus…with a weekly renewed commitment in following Christ and his commandment of Love.
One of my favorite lines in Matthew’s version of the Resurrection is when the Risen Jesus said to the women at the empty tomb, “Go to Galilee and you will see me there.” Sisters and brothers, for us Christians 2000 years later, the Mass is OUR Galilee…where the REAL Jesus wants to “meet us here” in the Scriptures and Eucharist.
In a world where ‘reality’ is questioned, we are here today to proclaim with our whole heart, mind and soul…that Jesus is TRULY Risen from the dead! Alleluia Alleluia!