Pentecost [June 5) Sunday (8-minute homily in one page) LP-22

Pentecost literally means 50th. It is a feast celebrated on the 50th day after the Passover feast by the Jews and a feast celebrated on the 50th day after the feast of the Resurrection of Jesus by Christians. The Jewish Pentecost was originally a post-harvest thanksgiving feast.  Later, the Jews included in it the remembrance of God’s Covenants with Noah after the Deluge and with Moses at Mt. Sinai

The event: On the day of Pentecost: 1) The Holy Spirit descended upon the apostles and the Blessed Virgin Mary as tongues of fire. 2) The frightened apostles were transformed into fiery preachers and evangelizers and were given the gift of tongues by a special anointing of the Holy Spirit. 3) The listeners experienced a fresh anointing of the Holy Spirit through the apostles’ gift of tongues: they heard Peter speaking in their native languages. 4) The early Christians became powerful witnesses and brave martyrs for their Faith in Jesus.

The role of the Holy Spirit in Christian life: 1) As an indwelling God, the Holy Spirit makes us His Living Temples (I Cor 3:16). 2) As a strengthening God, He strengthens us in our fight against temptations and in our mission of bearing witness to Christ by our transparent Christian lives. 3) As a sanctifying God, He makes us holy through the Sacraments: a) Through Baptism He makes us children of God and heirs of Heaven. b) Through Confirmation, He makes us temples of God, warriors, and defenders of the Faith. c) Through the Sacrament of Reconciliation, He enables us to be reconciled with God by pardoning our sins. d) Through the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, He gives us spiritual nourishment by changing bread and wine into Jesus’ Body, Blood Soul, and Divinity, through Epiclesis. e) Through the Sacraments of the priesthood (Ordination) and matrimony (Marriage), He makes the Church community holy. 4) As a teaching and guiding God, He clarifies and constantly reminds us of Christ’s teachings and guides the Magisterium of the Church in presenting Christ’s teachings correctly.  5) As a listening and speaking God, He listens to our prayers, enables us to pray, and speaks to us, mainly through the Bible. 6) As a Giver of gifts, He gives us His gifts, fruits, and charisms, thus enriching the Church.

 Life messages: We need to permit the Holy Spirit to take control of our lives: 1) by constantly remembering His holy presence and behaving well; 2) by praying for His daily anointing so that we may fight against our temptations and control our evil tendencies, evil habits and addictions; 3) by asking His daily assistance to pray, listening to God through meditative Bible reading, and talking to Him by personal, family and liturgical prayers;  and 4) by asking the help of the Holy Spirit to do good for others and to be  reconciled with God and others every day.  

Pentecost (June 5) Acts 2:1-11; I Cor 12:3b-7, 12-13; Jn 20:19-23 (or Jn 14:15-16, 23b-26) 

Homily starter anecdotes: 1) "Well, Chippie doesn’t sing much anymore.” It happened in Galveston, TX. A woman was cleaning the bottom of the cage of her parrot Chippie with the canister vacuum cleaner. She was not using an attachment on the tube. When the telephone rang, she turned her head to pick it up, continuing to vacuum the cage as she said, "Hello," into the phone. Then she heard the horrible noise of Chippie being sucked into the vacuum. Immediately she put down the phone, ripped open the vacuum bag, and found Chippie in there, stunned but still alive. Since the bird was covered with dust and dirt, she grabbed it, ran it into the bathroom, turned on the faucet, and held the bird under the water to clean it off. When she finished that, she saw the hair dryer on the bathroom sink. She turned it on and held the bird in front of the blast of hot air to dry him off. A few weeks later, a reporter from the newspaper that originally published the story went out to the house to ask the woman, "How’s Chippie doing now?" She said, “He just sort of sits and stares." -- Today’s Gospel tells us that was what happened to the apostles. They all were traumatized by the arrest and crucifixion of their master and bewildered by his post-Resurrection appearances and his command to prepare for the coming of his Holy Spirit.   Many of us can identify with Chippie and the apostles. Life has sucked us up, thrown cold water on us, and blown us away. Somewhere in the trauma, we have lost our song. Hence, we, too, need the daily anointing of the Holy Spirit to keep us singing songs of Christian witnessing through agápe love. http://www.biblestudyresources.com/devotionals/jesus/he_keeps_me_singing.htm

2) Treasure within: An old beggar lay on his deathbed.  His last words were to his young son who had been his constant companion during his begging trips.  “Dear son," he said, “I have nothing to give you except a cotton bag and a dirty bronze bowl which I got in my younger days from the junk yard of a rich lady.”  After his father’s death, the boy continued begging, using the bowl his father had given him.  One day a gold merchant dropped a coin in the boy’s bowl and he was surprised to hear a familiar ring.  “Let me check your bowl,” the merchant said.  To his great surprise, he found that the beggar’s bowl was made of pure gold.  “My dear young man," he said, “why do you waste your time begging?  You are a rich man.  That bowl of yours is worth at least thirty thousand dollars.” --  We Christians are often like this beggar boy who failed to recognize and appreciate the value of his bowl.  We fail to appreciate the infinite worth of the Holy Spirit living within each of us, sharing His gifts and fruits and charisms with us.  On this major feast day, we are invited to experience and appreciate the transforming, sanctifying, and strengthening presence of the Holy Spirit within us.  This is also a day for us to renew our promises made to God during our Baptism and Confirmation, to profess our Faith, and to practice it.  

3) “Lower your bucket-- taste and see”: More than a century ago, a great sailing ship was stranded off the coast of South America.  Day after day the ship lay there in the still waters with not a hint of a breeze.  The captain was desperate; the crew was dying of thirst.  And then, on the far horizon, a steamship appeared, headed directly toward them.  As it drew near, the captain called out, "We need water!  Give us water!"  The steamship replied, "Lower your buckets where you are."  The captain was furious at this cavalier response but called out again, "Please, give us water."  But the steamer gave the same reply, "Lower your buckets where you are!"  And with that they steamed away!  The captain was beside himself with anger and despair, and he went below.  But a little later, when no one was looking, a yeoman lowered a bucket into the sea and then tasted what he brought up: It was perfectly sweet, fresh water!  For you see, the ship was just out of sight of the mouth of the Amazon.  And for all those days they had been sitting right on top of all the fresh water they needed! --  What we are really seeking is already inside us, waiting to be discovered, waiting to be embraced: the Holy Spirit of God Who has been living within us from the moment of our Baptism.  The Holy Spirit is saying to us at this very moment from deep in our heart, "Lower your buckets where you are.  Taste and see!" Come, Holy Spirit!  Fill our hearts and set us on fire!  Amen.

# 4: Babel Tower of confusion  and the Pentecost Spirit of unity: The people used language to promote a human agenda (Gen 11:3-4). So, God confused tongues into many different languages (Gen 11:7). The result was disunity (Gen 11:6-7). At the Tower of Babel, God scattered the human family across the face of the earth in judgment (Gen 11:9). But on the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit used language to announce the mighty works of God (Acts 2:14-41). Thus the  Holy Spirit caused people speaking many different languages to understand one Gospel message (Acts 2:5-11). The result was unity (Acts 2:41). Pentecost was the beginning of the reunification of the human family as God sent men and women to gather into the New Covenant Church of Jesus Christ redeemed people from across the face of the earth (Acts 1:8; 2:37-41). (Rev. Michal E. Hunt) & https://www.calledtocommunion.com/2010/05/pentecost-babel-and-the-ecumenical-imperative/ 

Introduction: The Jewish Pentecost: Both the Jews and the Christians now celebrate Pentecost.  Along with the Feast of the Passover and the Feast of Tabernacles, Pentecost was one of the major feasts of the Jews.  During these three great Jewish festivals, every male Jew living within twenty miles of Jerusalem was legally bound to go to Jerusalem to participate in the feast.  The word Pentecost is Greek for pentecostes which means “fiftieth.” The feast received this name because it was celebrated fifty days after the Feast of the Passover.  Another name for the Jewish Pentecost is Shebuot or "The Feast of Weeks“ (the "week" of seven Sabbaths between Passover and Pentecost).  It was originally a day of thanksgiving for the completion of the harvest.  During Passover, the first omer (a Hebrew measure of about a bushel), of barley was offered to God.  At Pentecost, two loaves of bread were offered in gratitude for the harvest.  Later, the Jews added to the Feast of Pentecost the element of Yahweh’s Covenant with Noah, which took place fifty days after the great deluge.  Still later, they made this feast an occasion to thank God for His Sinaitic Covenant with Moses, which occurred fifty days after the beginning of the Exodus from Egypt. 

The Christian Pentecost: Pentecost marks the end and the goal of the Easter season.  For Christians, it is a memorial of the day the Holy Spirit descended upon the apostles and the Virgin Mary in the form of fiery tongues, an event that took place fifty days after the Resurrection of Jesus.  The Paschal Mystery -- the Passion, the Death, the Resurrection, and the Ascension of Jesus -- culminates in the sending of the Holy Spirit by the Father (at the request of His Son), on Jesus' disciples. The feast also commemorates the official inauguration of the Christian Church through the apostolic preaching of St. Peter, which resulted in the conversion of 3000 Jews to the Christian Faith.  Pentecost is, thus, the official birthday of the Church. But years ago, This Rock Magazine reported that there were 34,000 Protestant denominations which means that, on the average, more than sixty-nine new denominations had sprung up every year since the Reformation began in 1517.  So whose birthday is it anyway?  We say Pentecost is the birthday of the Church Jesus established nearly 2,000 years ago. -- Today’s Scripture readings remind us that Pentecost is an event of both the past and the present.  The main theme of today’s readings is that the gift of the Holy Spirit is something to be shared with others.  In other words, the readings remind us that the gift of the Holy Spirit moves its recipients to action and inspires them to share this gift with others. 

The first reading (Acts 2:1-11): The selection from Acts for today describes in detail the miraculous transformation that took place during the first Pentecost, thus fulfilling Jesus’ promise to his apostles that they would receive “Power from on high.”   There was first “a noise like a strong driving wind.”  Then there were “tongues as of fire” resting on the disciples, and each of them was filled with the Holy Spirit.  The first manifestation of their reception of the Holy Spirit came immediately, as the formerly timid, frightened apostles burst out of doors and began to proclaim the Good News of Jesus! Then, everyone there (regardless of their many different native languages), was able to understand the Apostles’ proclamation of the Good News  of the salvation of mankind, “in his own tongue.”  The Jews in the crowds came from sixteen different geographical regions.  The miracle of tongues on Pentecost thus reverses the confusion of tongues wrought by God at the Tower of Babel, as described in Genesis 11.  Later, the Acts of the Apostles describes how the Holy Spirit empowered the early Christians to bear witness to Christ by their sharing love and strong Faith.  This "anointing by the Holy Spirit” also strengthened the early Christian martyrs during the period of brutal persecution that followed, as it has done through the centuries and as it does today for the thousands of Christians presently under attack for their Faith who hold fast to it, drawing on the Power of the Holy Spirit as they live and as they die.  

In the Refrain for the Responsorial Psalm (Ps 104), we pray, “Lord, send out Your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth,” asking God for a “fresh anointing” of the Spirit for all of us.

In the second reading (I Cor 12:3-7, 12-13), St. Paul explains how the sharing of the various spiritual gifts of the Holy Spirit enriches the Church.  He refers to the varieties of gifts given to the Church as coming from the same Spirit Who activates all of them in Christians for the common good.  They are described as the gifts, fruits, and charisms of the Spirit.  They may take different forms like prophecy, teaching, administration, acts of charity, healing, and speaking in tongues; they may be granted to and reside in different persons like apostles, prophets, teachers, healers , and so on.  Paul lists the fruits of the Spirit in his Letter to the Galatians: “What the Spirit brings is … love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (5:22-23a).  He continues, “Since the Spirit is our life, let us be directed by the Spirit” (5:25).  Paul insists that these spiritual gifts are to be used in the present time for the benefit of others, for the common good, and for the building up of the Body of Christ.

In today’s Sequence, the Church repeats her payer of invitation to the Holy Spirit (Veni Creator Spiritus), asking Him to come to us all now and detailing the effects His presence and His gifts will have on all of us, if we choose to receive them. 

Today’s Gospel relates how the Risen Jesus gave his apostles a foretaste of Pentecost on the evening of Easter Sunday by appearing to them, sending them to carry on the mission given to Jesus by his Heavenly Father, then empowering them to do so by breathing upon them and saying, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” On the day of Pentecost, Jesus fulfilled his promise to send the Advocate or Paraclete. The gift of the Spirit would enable the Apostles to fulfill Jesus’ commission to preach the Gospel to all nations.  Today’s Gospel passage also tells us how Jesus gave to the Apostles the power and authority to forgive sins.  “Receive the Holy Spirit.  For those whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven; for those whose sins you retain, they are retained” (Jn 20:23).  These wonderful words, which bind together inseparably the presence of the Holy Spirit with the gift of forgiveness, are referred to directly in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  But they have a much wider meaning.  Those words remind us of the Christian vocation we all have, to love and forgive as we have been loved and forgiven in the world of today, which is often fiercely judgmental and vengeful.  

Exegetical notes: Role of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer and of the Church: How beautiful is the thought that the Holy Spirit lives within us!  Saint Paul reminds the Corinthian community of this fact when he asks, "Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?" (I Corinthians 3:16).  It is the Holy Spirit who develops our intimacy with God.  "God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts crying, ‘Abba!' ('Father!’)” (Gal 4:6).  "God’s love has been poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit Who has been given to us" (Rom 5:5). "No one can say, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ except by the Holy Spirit" (I Cor 12:3).  Moreover, we know that it is the Holy Spirit Who teaches us to pray (Rom 8:26).  By the power of the Spirit, we also know the Lord Jesus through His Church.  Pentecost Sunday is the birthday of the Church, for it was the coming of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles and Mary that brought the Church into full active life on earth, and is the Holy Spirit Who still enlivens, enlightens, guides, and sanctifies the Church; the Holy Spirit will continue to do these things and more until the end of the world, the Judgment  of all humanity, and the presentation by the Father of the Purified Church, the “Bride of the Lamb” to Jesus, His Son and our Lord.  The Psalm refrain for this Sunday’s Responsorial Psalm (Ps 104) says it so well: “Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.”  We know Jesus through the Sacramental Mysteries of the Church, and Holy Spirit is at the heart of the Sacramental life of the Church.  Baptism, Confirmation and Holy Orders are the Sacramental Mysteries through which people receive the seal of the Holy Spirit.  It would be impossible for us to receive Jesus in the Eucharist without the descent of the Holy Spirit at the Epiclesis of the Divine Liturgy.  Even the forgiveness of sins comes through the Holy Spirit (Jn 20:21-23).  The Holy Spirit both confirmed the apostles in Holy Orders as priests and empowered them to forgive sins by His Power, a work which He continues today in each of our priests. 

The action of the Holy Spirit in the daily lives of Christians: The Spirit is that Paraclete (a Greek word that is translated Counselor, Comforter, Helper, Encourager, or Enabler), Who quietly works in us and through us every day behind the scenes in the basic activities of our lives and the lives of the people around us. He is there in all His fullness wherever people worship and pray in the Name of Jesus. When we believe and trust in Jesus, we have that Faith through the Holy Spirit’s work in us, filling us with Himself and His Gifts. The Holy Spirit leads us to turn away from our self-worship and sinfulness and reassures us that we are still loved in spite of our sin, and  that Jesus died on a cross just to remedy the effects of those moments when we rebel against God's Way. It is the Holy Spirit Who confronts us and urges us to take a good look at ourselves and where we are heading, to make a U-turn, to leave the old behind and to try something new. The Holy Spirit is   not afraid to challenge us and stretch us to go and do things for Christ – things we have never done before or ever imagined ourselves doing. He’s the One Who says to us, "Stop being so self-focused. Stop looking into yourself all the time and being depressed by what you see or fooling yourself into thinking that what you see in yourself is enough to get you through! Look up, look away, look to Jesus and let Him turn your around; let Him take control!" “The feast of Pentecost celebrates the unseen, Immeasurable Presence of God in our lives and in our Church – the Ruah Who animates us to do the work of the Gospel of the Risen One, the Ruah Who makes God’s will our will, the Ruah Who IS  God living in us and transforming us so that we may bring His life and love to our broken world.  God “breathes” His Spirit into our souls that we may live in His life and love; God ignites the “fire” of His Spirit within our hearts and minds that we may seek God in all things in order to realize the coming of His reign.” (Connections). Through Baptism and Confirmation, and in the presence of the believing community gathered in prayer, we are “indelibly sealed” and “empowered” by the Holy Spirit, who now dwells within us (CCC #698).

The Holy Spirit, the Helper is quietly at work everywhere in our lives.  We meet Him: in the sincere concern of a friend for our health; in the generosity of those who give us so much help; in the inner strength we discover in times of crisis; in those moments when we admit that we have been wrong; in the making of a tough choice; in the resilience of people who face one bad thing after another; in times when we have dared to love even though it was hard to do so. The Holy Spirit, the Helper, is quietly at work.  We find Him: in our taking on responsibilities that we once thought beyond us; in our refusing to let the greed of society take over our soul; in our giving thanks always, even though times have been hard; in our rising above past failures and putting past hurts behind us; in our finding the Central Core of Peace in the midst of turmoil; in an adult patiently teaching a child self-esteem and self-control; in the person sitting quietly beside a hospital bed; in a parent praying for a troubled son or daughter. The Spirit calls us to repent, that is, to turn our lives around. We hear Him as He calls us to Faith and invites us, again,  to take up our cross daily and follow Jesus. Whenever we look to the Holy Spirit, He is within us as our Helper, always assisting us to be what God made  us to be.  The Holy Spirit helps us to be truly great by becoming servants to one another. Likewise, the Spirit deepens our awareness of Jesus loving us as He lives in our lives. It is the Holy Spirit Who gathers us around the cross of Jesus; Who changes our lives, helping us to be more patient and forgiving; Who enables us to seek new beginnings in our relationships with one another; Who urges us to let the power of God's love have the final say over the conflicts and difficulties we get into. He is available to us every moment of every day as we face the choices between remaining self-centred or becoming the God-cantered people, the Spirit is calling us to become in Christ.

Life messages:  1) We need to permit the Holy Spirit to direct our lives:  a) by constantly remembering and appreciating His Holy Presence within us, especially in the Sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation;  b) by fortifying ourselves with the help of the Holy Spirit against all types of temptations;  c) by seeking the assistance of the Holy Spirit in our thoughts, words, and deeds, and in the breaking of our evil habits, substituting for them habits of Goodness and Love;  d) by listening to the voice of the Holy Spirit speaking to us through the Bible and through the good counsel of others; e) by fervently praying for the gifts, fruits, and charisms of the Holy Spirit; f) by renewing our lives through the anointing of the Holy Spirit; and g) by living our lives in the Holy Spirit as lives of commitment, of sacrifice, and of joy.  We are called to love as Jesus loved, not counting the cost. As Saint Paul exhorts us, "Walk by the Spirit, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh.  If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit" (Gal 5:16, 25). 

2) We need to cultivate the spirit of forgiveness.  The feast of Pentecost offers us the chance to look at the role which forgiveness should play in our dealings with others.  Thus, we are challenged to examine our sense of compassion, patience, tolerance, and magnanimity.  Learning to forgive is a lifelong task, but the Holy Spirit is with us to make us agents of forgiveness.  If we are prepared on this day of Pentecost to receive the Holy Spirit into our lives, we can have confidence that our lives will be marked by the Spirit of forgiveness. 

3) We need to observe Pentecost every day.  "It will always be Pentecost in the Church," affirmed Saint Oscar Romero, Archbishop of El Salvador, on Pentecost Sunday 1978, "provided the Church lets the beauty of the Holy Spirit shine forth from her countenance.  When the Church ceases to let her strength rest on the Power from above which Christ promised her and which He gave her on that day, and when the Church leans rather on the weak forces of the power or wealth of this earth, then the Church ceases to be newsworthy.  The Church will be fair to see, perennially young, attractive in every age, as long as she is faithful to the Spirit Who floods her, and she reflects that Spirit through her communities, through her pastors, through her very life" [The Violence of Love, (Farmington, PA: The Plough Pub. Co.,  1998).] [Archbishop Oscar Romero was beatified May 23, 2015 by Pope Francis who canonized him October 14, 2018, the same day he canonized Pope Paul VI] Archbishop Romero’s declaration reminds us -- as does today’s Gospel -- that Pentecost is not just one day, but every day.  Without breath, there is no life.  Without the Spirit, the Church is a field of dry, dead bones. The Venerable Fulton J. Sheen once said about the Church, "Even though we are God's chosen people, we often behave more like God's frozen people--frozen in our prayer life, frozen in the way we relate with one another, frozen in the way we celebrate our Faith." [Bishop Fulton J. Sheen was declared Venerable by Pope Benedict XVI in June, 2012.] Today is a great day to ask the Holy Spirit to rekindle in us the spirit of new life and enthusiasm, the fire of God's love.  Let us repeat Saint John Henry Cardinal Newman’s favorite little prayer, “Come Holy Spirit:” 

“Come Holy Spirit
Make our ears to hear
Make our eyes to see
Make our mouths to speak
Make our hearts to seek
Make our hands to reach out
And touch the world with your love.  AMEN.”   

[Cardinal Newman was beatified September 19, 2010 by Pope St. John Paul II; he was canonized October 13, 2019 by Pope Francis]

4) We need to be Spirit-filled Christians: Spirit-filled people acknowledge their weaknesses, ask for the strengthening, anointing and guidance of the Holy Spirit every morning, ask for His forgiveness every evening, and pass on that forgiveness to those who sin against them. Spirit-filled people are praying people. Paul encourages us, "Pray on every occasion as the Spirit leads. For this reason keep alert and never give up; pray for all God's people" (Eph 6:18). Spirit-filled people are praying and worshipping God in their families and parishes. They try to grow continually in their Faith, and they seek out every opportunity to discover Christ and what it means to be children of God. Spirit-filled people are people who allow the Spirit to change their lives through their daily reading of the Bible and their frequenting of the Sacraments of Reconciliation and Holy Eucharist.  Spirit-filled people speak words that heal, restore, make people happy and build people up, instead of tearing them down. Spirit-filled people pass on the love of God to the people living around them by their acts of kindness, mercy and charity. Hence, let us ask the Holy Spirit for a spirit of love instead of hate, a spirit of helpfulness instead of non-cooperation, a spirit of generosity instead of greed, and a spirit of gentleness in place of our spirit of ruthlessness. 

Joke of the week: 1) The seven gifts in day-to-day life:

a) The gift of wisdom:  1) Four-year-old Amanda was taken to the doctor’s office with a fever.  The doctor looked in her ears and asked, "Who’s in there?  Donald Duck?" She said, "No."  He looked in her open mouth, "Who’s in there?  Mickey Mouse?" Again, she said, "No."  He put his stethoscope on her heart and asked, "Who’s in there?  Barney?" Amanda replied, "No, Jesus is in my heart.  Barney is in the pocket of my underwear."

2) There is an old joke about a man who asked his pastor whether it was okay to smoke while he prayed. His pastor said, “Absolutely not! When you pray, you should be completely devoted to prayer!” So the man went to another priest, but he changed his question, “Would it be okay to pray while I smoke?” “Yes, of course” was the answer.

3) Several years ago in Germany, while giving the Sacrament of Confirmation, a bishop was questioning the children who were about to be confirmed: “Who can administer the sacrament of confirmation?” he asked. A young girl answered: “Any bishop, once he's attained the age of reason!”

b) The gift of understanding: 1) A kindergarten teacher was observing her the children in her classroom while they drew pictures.  She would occasionally walk around to see each child's artwork.  As she came to one little girl who was working diligently, she asked what the drawing was. The girl replied, "I'm drawing God." The teacher paused and said, "But no one knows what God looks like." Without missing a beat, or looking up from her drawing the girl replied, "They will in a minute." 

2) "If I sold my house and my car, had a big garage sale and gave all my money to the Church, would that get me into Heaven?" I asked the children in my Sunday School class. "NO!" the children all answered. "If I cleaned the  Church every day, mowed the yard, and kept everything neat and tidy, would that get me into Heaven?" Again, the answer was, "NO!" "Well, then, if I were kind to animals and gave candy to all the children, and loved my wife, would that get me into Heaven?" I asked them again. Again, they all answered, "NO!" "Well," I continued, "then how can I get into Heaven?" A five-year-old boy shouted out, "YOU GOTTA BE DEAD!"

c) The gift of counsel: Just after receiving his driver’s license, a Lutheran minister’s son wanted to talk about using the family car.  “I’ll make a deal with you,” his father said.  “Bring your grades up, read your Bible more often, and get a haircut.  Then you may use the car once or twice a week.”  A month later the question came up again.  “Son,” the father said, “I’m proud of you.  I see you studying hard and reading your Bible every day.  But you didn’t get a haircut.”  After a moment’s pause, the son replied, “Yeah, I’ve thought about that.  But Samson had long hair, Moses had long hair, and even Jesus had long hair.”  “True," the father replied, “but maybe you noticed that they walked wherever they went?”

d) The gift of fortitude:  A mother refused to permit her little boy to go for a picnic with his classmates.  On the day of the picnic, however, she changed her mind and gave him permission.  But he sighed and confessed, "It's too late Mummy, I've already prayed for rain on the school picnic day!"

e) The gift of knowledge: 1) The story is told of a man who went to the priest and said, "Father, I want you to say a Mass for my dog." The priest was indignant.  "What do you mean, say a Mass for your dog?" "It's my pet dog," said the man.  "I loved that dog and I'd like you to offer a Mass for him." "We don't offer Masses for dogs here," the priest said.  "You might try the denomination down the street.  Ask them if they have a service for you." As the man was leaving, he said to the priest, "I really loved that dog.  I was planning to give a five-thousand-dollar stipend for the Mass." And the priest said, "Wait a minute!  Why didn’t tell me that your dog was Catholic?!"

2) A little boy wanted $100 badly and prayed for two weeks, but nothing happened. Then he decided to write a letter to the Lord requesting the $100. When the postal authorities received the letter addressed to the Lord, USA, they decided to send it to the White House so the President could have a look at it. The President was so impressed, touched, and amused that he instructed his secretary to send the little boy a $5.00 bill, as this would appear to be a lot of money to a little boy. The little boy was delighted with the $5.00, and sat down to write a thank-you note to the Lord. He wrote: "Dear Lord, Thank You very much for sending me the money. However, I noticed that for some reason You had to send it through Washington, DC, and those jerks deducted 95%."

3) The Two Ushers: Six-year-old Angie and her four-year-old brother Joel were sitting together in Church. Joel giggled, sang, and talked out loud. Finally, his big sister had had enough. “You're not supposed to talk out loud in church” “Why? Who's going to stop me?” Joel asked. Angie pointed to the back of the church and said, ”See those two men standing by the door? They're ‘hushers.'” 

f) The gift of piety: A pious man, who had reached the age of 105 suddenly stopped going to synagogue. Alarmed by the old fellow's absence after so many years of faithful attendance, the Rabbi went to see him. He found him in excellent health, so the Rabbi asked, "How come after all these years we don't see you at services anymore?" The old man lowered his voice. "I'll tell you, Rabbi," he whispered. "When I got to be 90, I expected God to take me any day. But then I got to be 95, then 100, then 105. So, I figured that God is very busy and must have forgotten about me, and I don't want to remind Him. 

g) The gift of fear of the Lord: Do not ride in automobiles: they are responsible for 20% of fatal accidents.  Do not stay home: 1% of all accidents occur in home.  Do not walk on the streets or sidewalks: 14% of all accidents occur at such times.  Do not travel by air, rail, or water: 16% of all accidents happen on planes, trains or boats.  Only .001% of all deaths occur in worship services in Church, and these are usually related to previous physical disorders.  Hence, the safest place for you to be at any time is at Church!!!                                              

YouTube Videos on the Pentecost

1. Catholic video: https://youtu.be/FvLFQhQplKs 

2. https://youtu.be/7TyCwUrR_OM

3. https://youtu.be/FIJrk9-dtRE 

4. https://youtu.be/FvDf6WqxWeY 

         5) Fr. Don’s video homily collections: https://sundayprep.org/prep-videos/   

         6) Video Sunday-Scripture study by Fr. Geoffrey Plant:  

             https://www.youtube.com/user/GeoffreyPlant2066     

          7) Who is Holy Spirit? Jimmy Akins:  https://youtu.be/obfFIIjJ3t4 

          8)Bishop Barron on the Holy Spirit: https://youtu.be/1INut0Gi09Q 

31 Additional anecdotes for Pentecost Sunday

1) The Spirit of God is the melody that energizes the Church: In the last years of his life, the great cellist and conductor Pablo Casals suffered greatly from rheumatoid arthritis and emphysema.  At 90, he was badly stooped, and his head pitched forward; his breathing was labored.  He needed the help of his wife, Marta, to get dressed in the morning.  Marta would then help him shuffle into his studio where he would, with great difficulty, arrange himself on the piano bench.  Casals would then manage to raise his swollen, clenched fingers above the keyboard. A visitor describes what he saw next one particular morning: “I was not prepared for the miracle that was about to happen.  The fingers slowly unlocked and reached toward the keys like the buds of a plant toward the sunlight.  His back straightened.  He seemed to breathe more freely.  Now his fingers settled on the keys.  Then came the opening bars of Bach’s Wohltemperierte Klavier [Well-tempered Clavier], played with great sensitivity and control . . . He hummed as he played, then said that Bach ‘spoke to him here’ – and he placed his hand over his heart. Then he plunged into a Brahms concerto and his fingers, now agile and powerful, raced across the keyboard with dazzling speed.  His entire body seemed fused with the music; it was no longer stiff and shrunken but supple and graceful and completely freed of its arthritic coils. Having finished the piece, he stood up by himself, far straighter and taller than when he had come into the room.  He walked to the breakfast table with no trace of a shuffle, ate heartily, talked animatedly, finished the meal, then went for a walk on the beach.” (From Anatomy of an Illness as Perceived by the Patient: Reflections on Healing and Regeneration by Norman Cousins). -- Like music that inspires and exhilarates, the Spirit of God is the melody that energizes the Church, uniting our many different voices into the song of the Love of God.  God has formed us into a community, or Church, an instrument for bringing His life and love into our world.  But what makes our Church more than just a gathering of good people is His “Breath” infusing the Church with the music of His Divinity.  Today we celebrate that presence.  In Jesus’ breathing upon the assembled disciples on Easter night the new life of the Holy Spirit, the community of the Resurrection — the Church — takes flight.  That same Holy Spirit continues to “blow” through today’s Church giving life and direction to our mission and ministry to preach the Gospel to every nation, to immerse all of humanity into the music of God’s love and the symphony of the Resurrection.    

2) Paderewski immortalizing a boy’s music: Once, a mother took her five-year-old son with her to a concert by Ignace Paderewski, the great Polish pianist. The mother and her son got their seats close to the stage. Then the mother met her old friend and got involved talking with her. She failed to notice that her son had slipped away to do some exploring. At the right time the lights dimmed and the spot light came on. Only then did the mother see her five-year-old son on the stage, sitting on the piano bench, innocently picking out "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little star." Before she could retrieve her son, Paderewski walked on to the stage. Walking over to the piano, he whispered to the boy, "Don't stop! Keep playing." Then, leaning over the boy, Paderewski reached out his left hand and began to fill in the bass. Later, he reached around the other side of the boy and added a running obbligato. Together, the great maestro and the tiny five-year-old mesmerized the audience with their playing. --  The image of the great maestro and the tiny five-year-old at the piano makes a fitting image of the Holy Spirit coming upon the disciples. On the first Pentecost, the Holy Spirit whispered encouragement to the disciples. The Holy Spirit transformed the feeble efforts of the disciples into something powerful. (John Pichappilly in The Table of the Word; quoted by Fr. Botelho).

3)  Why are the Swiss watches gone? If in 1968 someone had asked which country would dominate watch-making in the 1990s, most people would have said Switzerland. This is because Switzerland had dominated the world of watch- making for the preceding sixty years. They had led the search for new ways to manufacture better and more durable watch parts. They had developed the best waterproofing techniques. In fact, in 1968 the Swiss made 65% of all watches sold in the world, and laid claim to 90% of the profits. However, by 1980 in Switzerland, watchmakers had been laid off by the thousands and the Swiss controlled a paltry 10% of the watch market. Why? The Swiss had ignored an important new development, the Quartz Movement. Ironically, it was  a Swiss who invented the Quartz movement, but the innovation was rejected because the resulting watch had no mainspring or knob. That was too much of a paradigm shift for them to embrace. It was too new and too strange. --Today's text from Acts tells of a powerful paradigm shift in the people of God demanded by "God's deeds of power," the miraculous activities that accompanied the descent of the Holy Spirit on the apostles and Mary, the Mother of God and of the Church.

4) Speaking the same language: In 1887, Dr. Ludwig Zamenhof, a Polish linguist, constructed a new language that could be shared by people throughout the world.  The artificial language Dr. Zamenhof created is called Esperanto, "the language of hope."  The name signifies hope for humankind that a common language might heal the divisions that exist among the different peoples of the earth. -- The feast of Pentecost is the Church's celebration of her unity and universality in the Holy Spirit, and so some of the readings used express this in terms of language.  Dr. Zamenhof's invention of Esperanto as a universal language has been followed by the establishment of the United Nations Assembly and simultaneous translation, by Summit meetings of the heads of nations, by cultural exchanges, and by the revival of the Olympic Games. But Pentecost is more than a work of human creation, more than a work of art and music. Pentecost is a new outpouring of God's Spirit into our hearts to kindle in us the fire of his love (Albert Cylwicki in His Word Resounds). 

5)  All Mr. Yates needed was suddenly provided. During the Great Depression, a man by the name of Yates owned a sheep ranch in West Texas. Day by day he grazed his sheep and wondered how he was going to pay his bills. It was in the middle of the Depression, and even government subsidies would not give him enough income to break even. Then one day an oil company came to town. They asked permission to drill a wildcat well on Mr. Yates' land. At 1,115 feet, they struck oil to the tune of 80,000 barrels a day. All Mr. Yates needed was suddenly provided. -- When I read that old story, one that Bill Bright tells, I wondered if it might be a parable of our spiritual life. “All I have needed Thy hands have provided,” sings the hymn, Great is Thy Faithfulness. That is a parable of our spiritual life. The power we need to become what God intended us to be is already in our souls in the form of the indwelling Holy Spirit.

6) "Oh, it sleeps about eighty." A family driving a large camper pulled up in front of the Church just as the pastor started toward home. Desiring to be friendly, the pastor introduced himself and expressed his admiration for the camper. The man of the family told him rather proudly: "This camper sleeps eight people." Then he asked: "What is the capacity of your Church, Pastor?" The beleaguered pastor replied rather glumly, "Oh, it sleeps about eighty." -- It is embarrassing sometimes how little the modern-day Churches resemble the Church that first Pentecost: the sound of a wind-storm, tongues of fire, disciples speaking in different languages, thousands being added to the Church and lots of excitement – excitement everywhere!

7) “I'm gonna run her through that thing one time." Two brothers grew up on a farm in a rural area near Cairo, Georgia. One brother took to education like a duck to water. He graduated from Georgia Tech and became a renowned engineer in Chicago. The other brother was content to stay home and farm. Some years later, the learned brother was invited to give a speech in Atlanta at the Peachtree Plaza Hotel. He had not seen his brother in a long while so he invited him to bring his family to the hotel and spend a little time with him. The rural brother had never been in a town bigger than Cairo. He and his wife and son piled into their pickup truck and headed for Atlanta. After a fearful experience on the interstate highways, they pulled up in front of the Peachtree Plaza. The farmer left his wife in the truck. He and his son went inside to check in. Just inside the entrance were a number of elevators. The farmer had never seen one before. He watched a large, very plain, middle-aged lady step inside one of those little rooms. The doors closed. After about a minute, the doors opened and out stepped a young lady who was a vision of loveliness. The farmer's eyes bugged out. Quickly he punched his son and said, "Boy, go get your Maw. I'm gonna run her through that thing one time!" --  At Pentecost, a ragged aggregation of misfits was transformed into a disciplined cadre of spiritual storm troopers. The wimps became warriors!

8) Wilma Rudolph winning Olympics gold medals: Neil T. Anderson, in his book Victory over Darkness, tells a thrilling story about a little girl born with major health problems which left her crippled. She had a large, wonderful Christian family. Her mother used to tell her. "If you believe, God will make it happen. You will be able to run around like your brothers and sisters." She took her mother’s counsel to heart and began to believe that God could heal her. She practiced walking without her braces with the aid of her brothers and sisters. On her twelfth birthday, she surprised her parents and her doctors by removing her braces and walking around the doctor's office unassisted. She never wore the braces again. Her next goal was to play basketball. The coach only agreed to let her play as a means of getting her older sister on the team. One day she approached the coach and promised him if he would give her an extra 10 minutes of coaching each day, she would give him a world-class athlete. He laughed, but seeing she was serious, half-heartedly agreed. Before long her determination paid off. She was one of the team's best players. Her team went to the state basketball championships. One of the referees noticed her exceptional ability. He asked if she had ever run track. She hadn't. He encouraged her to try it. So after the basketball season she went out for track. She began winning races and earned a berth in the state championships. At the age of 16, she was one of the best young runners in the country. She went to the Olympics in Australia and won a bronze medal for anchoring the 400meter relay team. Four years later in Rome she won the 100-meter dash, the 200meter dash and anchored the winning 400-meter relay team "all in world-record times.” Wilma Rudolph capped the year by receiving the prestigious Sullivan Award as the most outstanding amateur athlete in America. Her faith and hard work had paid off. [Neil T. Anderson, Victory over Darkness (Ventura, California: Regal Books, 1990), pp. 107-108.] -- In a sense, that is what Pentecost is about. People opened themselves to the Holy Spirit, and the Spirit empowered them to do things they never dreamed possible. Pentecost is about empowerment: "a small group of folks turned the world upside down.”

9) In yachting, no wind means no race!  Rev. Alan Walker of Australia often tells about the race of the sailing yachts in which Australia finally defeated the USA for the prized America's Cup. For 132 years, the cup was kept and defended by the United States. Again, and again there were challenges for the cup, but each time it was retained by the USA. Finally, in 1983 Australia mounted a serious challenge. The event took place as scheduled, and after six races, the two yachts were deadlocked at three wins each. Now the whole world seemed to take notice. Australia was alive with anticipation. The sporting world was focused on the race. The day came for the final race. After more than 100 years, the United States was in danger of losing its very precious cup. Thousands of people came to watch the race. Television cameras were ready to beam the race by satellite around the world. The crews were ready. The boats were polished. The yachts pulled into place at the starting line. All was ready, but there was no race! There was not enough wind. In yachting, no wind means no race!" -- In the life of the Church, as in yachting, no wind, no race. Who would deny that the Church today lacks power, life, energy, excitement? The Church today needs the power of the Holy Spirit. 

10) Torch and Bucket: There is the story of a person who saw an angel walking down the street. The angel was carrying a torch in one hand and a bucket of water in the other. “What are you going to do with that torch and that bucket of water?” the person asked. The angel stopped abruptly, looked at the person and said, “With the torch, I’m going to burn down the mansions of Heaven, and with the bucket of water, I’m going to put out the fires of hell. Then we’re going to see who really loves God. -- The angel’s point is that many people obey God’s Commandments out of fear of punishment of Hell or hope of reward in Heaven. They don’t obey him for the reason Jesus gives in today’s Gospel: they don’t obey them out of love. “If you love me,” Jesus says in today’s reading, “you will obey my commandments.” (Mark Link in Sunday Homilies).  

11) Do you belong to a Pentecostal church? During the Italian occupation of Ethiopia in the days of Mussolini, Christian believers suffered considerable persecution. In his book, Fire on the Mountains, Raymond Davis tells of the love demonstrated by believers for each other during this period of affliction, which in turn made a major impression on unbelievers. For example, no provision had been made by the invading army to feed the prisoners they had taken. This was the responsibility of relatives and friends. Christians in the prisons had no problem, though. They were well cared for by friends and family. In fact, so much food was brought them by fellow believers and Church groups that enough remained to feed the unbelieving prisoners also. This observable love, vibrant though nonverbal, brought many to seek the Lord. Such love had previously been unheard of. As a result the word spread far and wide. Non-believers sought out believers to learn more about the Christian Faith. When prisoners who had come to know Christ while in jail were released, they went back home and attended the nearest Church. [Leslie B. Flynn, You Don’t Have To Go It Alone, (Denver, Colorado: Accent Books, 1981).]   -- It is only right, then, that we should pray that we might be a “Pentecostal Church,” if we understand what that means.

12) “I need to know if you are Pentecostal.” The well-known author and preacher, Fred Craddock, tells a rather funny story about a lecture he was giving: A few years ago, when he was on the West Coast speaking at a seminary, just before the first lecture, one of the students stood up and said, "Before you speak, I need to know if you are Pentecostal." The room grew silent. Craddock said he looked around for the Dean of the Seminary! He was nowhere to be found. The student continued with his quiz right in front of everybody. Craddock was taken aback, and so he said, "Do you mean do I belong to the Pentecostal Church?" He said, "No, I mean are you Pentecostal?" Craddock said, "Are you asking me if I am charismatic?" the student said, "I am asking you if you are Pentecostal." Craddock said, "Do you want to know if I speak in tongues?" He said, "I want to know if you are Pentecostal." Craddock said, "I don't know what your question is." The student said, "Obviously, you are not Pentecostal." He left. -- What are we talking about this morning? Is the Church supposed to use the word Pentecost only as a noun or can it be used as an adjective? And so I ask you: Are you Pentecostal? If the Church is alive in the world, it is Pentecostal. The Church is alive if we are in one accord, if we are sharing our blessings with the less fortunate ones, if we are joined together in prayer, and if we are repenting people asking forgiveness from God and others every day. 

13) “It was the Holy Spirit.” Fr. Bob Spitzer, a Jesuit priest who was the president of Gonzaga University for 12 years tells about a powerful prayer to the Holy Spirit. It involves asking for the healing of hurts and memories, not just for one’s own self, but for those one has harmed, always seeking forgiveness. He tells the story of making an offhand comment that afterwards he regretted. Unable to call the man, he went to the chapel and asked the Holy Spirit to heal any harm he had done. A few days later, something extraordinary happened.  Fr. Spitzer ran into the man walking on the campus, and the man said, “You know Father, I’ve been thinking about what you told me.  At first I was kind of angry, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized what you were getting at.  You actually helped me a great deal.”--  As Fr. Spitzer remarked later: “It was the Holy Spirit.” (http://www.magisreasonfaith.org/files/pdfs/spitzerbio.pdf).

14) The Holy Spirit is a Spirit of communication:  There have been numerous books written on the difficulty that men and women have in communicating. It has been estimated that women say something like 6,000 – 8,000 words a day and that men utter 2,000 – 4,000 words a day. At the end of the day the man has spoken his 4,000 words and doesn’t want to communicate any more. He simply wants to sit quietly, watch TV and go to bed. A woman most likely won’t have spoken her 8,000 words for the day yet. She may have 2-3,000 words to go and uses them to share every event of the day. This conversation may sound familiar. Wife: Hi darling …it’s good to see you home. How was your day? Husband: Good. Wife: I heard that you were going to finalize that big deal today. How did it go? Husband: Fine. Wife: That’s good. Do you think the boss will give you a raise? Husband: Maybe. Wife: Hey! Today I found out that I’m pregnant. Husband: That’s good. and so on… and then she goes on to tell everything that happened in her day. --- The Holy Spirit communicates with men and women equally through the Holy Bible and inspires them and guides them in their communication with God. May God's Spirit guide and help us as we go out from here today and give us the courage and power to speak his Word to others.  (Rev. Gerhard)-

15) Come, Holy Spirit: There was, in Europe, a period of human history called the Dark Ages. It started in about the fifth century and continued for the next 600 years. You might say it was a 600-year depression – food was scarce, people lived hand-to-mouth – and Western civilisation barely hung by a thread. The one bright spot was the local Cathedral. Building Cathedrals, even in small towns, gave work to thousands of people. These buildings became the cultural, social and spiritual centres of life. Murals, stained glass windows, sculptures, and pageantry helped teach the great stories of the Bible at a time when very few people could read. With this in mind, some of the cathedral builders chose to impress on the people the meaning of Pentecost. In the great domed,  richly painted ceilings were a number of small carefully disguised doors. During worship on Pentecost when the whole town was gathered in the cathedral, some unlucky parishioners were drafted to climb up on to the roof. At the appropriate moment during the liturgy, they would release a live dove through the one of the small doors. This dove would swoop over the congregation as a living symbol of the presence of the Holy Spirit. At the same time the choir boys would make whooshing noise, the doors in the ceiling would be opened again and this time rose petals would be showered on the congregation, symbolizing tongues of flame falling on the worshippers below. --  You can imagine the impact that this had on those medieval Christians whose lives were drab and hard. They might not have been able to read about Pentecost from the Bible but nevertheless this visual demonstration must have left a lasting impression. (Rev. Gerhard).

16) Together they finished the race. Derek Redmond ran in a semi-final of the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. Halfway round the track this British athlete collapsed with a torn hamstring. For some strange reason, he wanted to finish the race, and he struggled to his feet. Derek's Dad got up out of the stand, and he broke his way through security. His Dad picked up his crying son, and together they finished the race. -- That man did what the Holy Spirit does for us. It’s when we are spiritually exhausted, when we find ourselves giving into the spirit of slavery again and again, when we can't pray, when we don't want to pray, when our Faith is just not strong enough –-  when there is no way we can finish the race -- that is when the Spirit picks us up and drags us to the finish line. (Rev. Gerhard).  

17) Some Pentecost traditions: Some parishes have begun the tradition of encouraging people to wear red clothing on Pentecost, since red is the liturgical color of the day. -- This reflects the old custom of decorating homes and churches with colorful flowers on this day. In Poland, for example, and among the Ukrainians, Pentecost is sometimes called the “Green Holiday,” and in Germany the “Flower Feast.” In some Latin countries, there is the term Pascha Rosatum, Latin words that mean “Pasch [“Easter,” we would say] of Roses.” And in Italy there is the name Pascua Rossa, meaning “Red Pasch [“Easter,” again],” inspired by the red vestments worn on Pentecost. Medieval Christians liked to dramatize the Pentecost symbols of the dove and flames of fire. Historical accounts tell us, for example, that in France, when the priest intoned the words “Come, Holy Ghost,” trumpets would blow, signifying the violent wind of which the Scriptures speak. In other countries, choirboys would hiss, hum, make odd noises with wind instruments, and rattle their benches. Then from a hole in the wall above, called “The Holy Ghost Hole,” a great swinging disk with a beautiful image of a dove would descend, and remain suspended above the middle of the church. From the same opening in the wall would follow a shower of flowers, representing the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and water symbolizing Baptism. In the thirteenth century, French cathedrals would release white pigeons inside the buildings, and drop roses from the Holy Ghost Hole. Some towns in central Europe even dropped pieces of burning straw, representing the flaming tongues of Pentecost. This last custom eventually found disfavor, as more and more churches and worshipers caught fire, spiritually and literally. (Fr. Hoisington). 

18) "Did you and Grandma ever get into any fights?" A little girl asked her grandfather, "Did you and Grandma ever get into any fights?" The grandfather replied: "We don't talk about it very often, but there was a time when we were not getting along very well. We seemed to be picking on each other a lot and finding all kinds of things to argue about and really getting on one another's nerves. Well, one day I came in from the garden and I heard a voice upstairs. I went to the stairs and heard your grandmother telling God what she could not bring herself to tell me." "Well, what did you do?" asked the granddaughter. "I quietly walked up the stairs," he replied, "and knelt down beside her and told God my side of the story. And from that day to this, we have never had a problem which we couldn't resolve by talking it over with each other and with God."-- Do you think the Holy Spirit was active in that couples' marriage? There can be no doubt. Conflict will always remain part of every relationship. The fruits of the Spirit – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control – will always remain critical for happy relationships with others.

19) The Holy Spirit clean-up job: The Holy Spirit not only gives life but even brings dead bones to life. In Greek mythology, we read about the demi-god Hercules, son of Zeus and Alcmena. He was noted for his strength and was commanded by the King (whom he was serving in expiation of a crime), to clean the stables of Augeas, which housed 3000 oxen. The stable had not been cleaned for 30 years and Hercules was told to do the job within a day. This was a herculean job to complete. He could not do it by his own enormous power, so he directed the river Alpheus to run through the stable and so completed the task. -- The apostles themselves did a great job of cleaning and giving life to people by serving as conduits for the Holy Spirit Who moved through the Apostles and into all who were willing to listen to their words and receive Him into their lives.  (Elias Dias in Divine Stories for Families).

20) Unseen Guest: Rossini was a great composer of beautiful music,  and the King of France, in gratitude and to honor him,  presented Rossini with a watch which he kept in his showcase with great pride. One day he showed it to his friend. His friend was surprised to know the real worth of the royal watch. He touched a button on the watch and a beautiful photograph of Rossini popped up. All stood in awe! -- Rossini had had the watch for several years and but had never realized its value and importance. Many people do not know much about the Holy Spirit and His importance in our lives. (Elias Dias in Divine Stories for Families; quoted by Fr. Botelho). 

21) “Life after Delivery?” In a mother’s womb were two babies. One asked the other: “Do you believe in life after delivery?” The other replied, “Why, of course! There has to be something after delivery. Maybe we are here to prepare ourselves for what we will be later.” “Nonsense” said the first. “There is no life after delivery. What kind of life would that be?”  The second said, “I don’t know, but there will be more light than here. Maybe we will walk with our legs and eat from our mouth. Maybe we will have other senses that we can’t understand now.” The first replied, “That is absurd. Walking is impossible. And eating with our mouths? Ridiculous! The umbilical cord supplies nutrition and everything we need. But the umbilical cord is so short. Life after delivery is to be logically excluded.” The second insisted, ”Well I think there is something, and maybe it’s different from life here. Maybe we won’t need this physical cord anymore.” The first replied, “Nonsense. And moreover, if there is life, then why has no one ever come back from there? Delivery is the end of life, and in the after-delivery there is nothing but darkness and silence and oblivion. It takes  us nowhere.” “Well, I don’t know,” said the second, “but certainly we will meet Mother and she will take care of us.” The first replied “Mother? You actually believe in Mother? That’s laughable. If Mother exists, then where is She now?” The second said.” She is all around us. We are surrounded by Her. We are of Her. It is in Her that we live. Without Her this world would not and could not exist.”  Said the first: “Well I don’t see her, so it is only logical that she doesn’t exit.” To which the second replied, “Sometimes, when you’re in silence and you focus and listen, you can hear Her loving voice, calling down from above.” -- Today is Pentecost: The Church’s birthday! “Before Pentecost, the disciples were unsure of what they were to do next, and spent most of their time in hiding. After Pentecost and the gift of the Holy Spirit, they understood their mission to spread the Good News of Jesus, and they had the courage to come out of their hiding and speak openly about who Jesus was, and what he had accomplished by his dying and rising. (http://www.staugustinechurch.net/homilies/pentecostSundayhomily.htm) 

22) The Shakespearean Advocate who saved a life: One of the popular comedies of William Shakespeare   is The Merchant of Venice.” Antonio, a successful merchant of Venice, got into trouble because of his generosity. His friend Bassanio asked Antonio for a loan. Antonio agreed, but, as all of his assets were tied up at sea, the two went to Shylock, a Jewish moneylender. Shylock agreed to lend them 3000 ducats, but only if Antonio would sign a bond offering a pound of his flesh if the loan was not repaid in three months’ time. Antonio assented to the arrangement. Unfortunately, Antonio was not able to keep his word. The case reached the court. Shylock refused Bassanio's offer of 6,000 ducats, twice the amount of the loan. He demanded his pound of flesh from Antonio. Everyone present at the scene pleaded for the life of Antonio. But Shylock was adamant that he wanted the will to be carried out. Thus, the court must allow Shylock to extract the pound of flesh. At that very moment, a young  Advocate arrived offering to serve as Defense Lawyer for the case of Antonio.  In due course, the Defense Advocate argued that the bond allowed Shylock to remove only the flesh, not any drop of "blood", of Antonio. Thus, if Shylock were to shed any drop of Antonio's blood, his "lands and goods" would be forfeited under Venetian laws. -- The young  Advocate stepped in at a moment when Antonio was in utter hopelessness. He was sure that he would lose his life. But the Defender’s arguments and reasoning brought hope to Antonio who began to be reassured. In this crisis, the presence of an Advocate brought great change to the troubled life of Antonio. The disciples of Jesus, too, were in great hopelessness after the Ascension of Jesus. The message of Resurrection gave them hope and courage. However, that lasted only for forty days. After the Ascension they  waited in Jerusalem following Jesus’ instructions, and they prayed. Then came the great miracle. They found the Great Advocate in their midst.  The Holy Spirit descended upon them like tongues of fire, confirming their hopes and igniting their courage. It was the Holy Spirit Who transformed the ignorant men into possessors of Divine Wisdom. It transformed the cowards into heroes and desperate men into dreamers. (Fr. Bobby Jose)

23) Carnal versus Spiritual: There was once an Eskimo who used to take his two dogs for a bet-fight in the town square. One was a black dog the other was white. The people gathered week after week to see the dogs fight and bet heavily on the outcome. On some days, the black dog won, and on others the white prevailed. No matter which dog won, the Eskimo made money. The secret behind his duping of the people was that he would feed well the dog which he wanted to win. -- Do you feed your spiritual self and keep it strengthened by the daily anointing of the Holy Spirit to win over the carnal person? "For I delight in the law of God after the inward man, but I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members." (Daniel Sunderaj in Manna for the Soul; quoted by Fr. Botelho).

24) Film: Being John Malkovich: In the very strange 1999 surrealist movie, Being John Malkovich, someone discovers a portal into Malkovich's mind, enabling visitors to see and experience things through his body and to influence his actions. He becomes aware of what's happening and finds the portal himself. At the climax of the movie, there is a bizarre but powerful scene when he enters the portal, being swept down a dark tunnel with a roaring sound to emerge as a participant/observer in his own world. He discovers that everyone has his face and his voice, and every word spoken is in his name.-- Connections with the Pentecost story: the paradox of the Creator entering his own creation by an unexplainable power; the potential of the portal to connect people in an unprecedented kind of indwelling. But the exploitation of the portal by those who find it -- selling access, allowing it to be used to violate someone's integrity -- reminds me of all who abuse the gift of the Spirit for their own ends or to manipulate others. Seeing the face of Malkovich everywhere reminds me of the Spirit making Jesus present through us in a new and all-encompassing way. We are recognizably Christ-like, though still ourselves, and all we say and do is “in his Name.” It's a frightening moment in the movie, because Malkovich has no wish to become omnipresent as a Christ-figure, but the image is powerful. (Marnie Barre, “Film insights” in The Text this Week; quoted by Fr.  Botelho).

25) Holy-Roller Service: A little girl was visiting her grandmother in a small country town in the Southern United States. They attended a very emotional religious service, where people expressed their feelings by jumping about and shouting; it was what we might call a "Holy Roller" service. The little girl asked her grandmother if all that jumping meant the Holy Spirit was really there. Her grandmother said. "Honey, it don't matter how high they jump up! It's what they do when they come down that will tell you if it's the real thing!" -- It would be good if we were a little more enthusiastic about our religion, but what matters is what we do in everyday life. Does the Holy Spirit have a practical effect on our daily life? In what way? (Gerard Fuller in Stories for all Seasons; quoted by Fr. Botelho).

26) High tide of the Holy Spirit: A ship strayed off course near San Diego some years back. It became stuck in a reef at low tide. Twelve tugboats were unsuccessful in their attempts to budge it. Finally, the captain instructed the tugs to go back home. He sighed, "I'll just be patient and wait." He waited until high tide. All of a sudden, the ocean began to rise. What human power could not do, the rising tide of the Pacific Ocean did. It lifted that ship and put it back into the channel. -- Something like that happened to the early Church on the Day of Pentecost. They were all together in one place,  waiting, wondering,  praying, when suddenly the tide of Holy Spirit rolled in and they were transformed.

27) Niccolo Paganini on one string:  The renowned Italian violinist, violist, cellist, guitarist, and composer, Niccolo Paganini, was due to perform one night in a very prestigious Concert Hall in Paris. Even as he walked on to the stage, the audience stood up and cheered with irrepressible excitement and heart-warming esteem. Resting his violin under his chin, the celebrated musician began to play with such dexterity and brilliance that the audience listened with spellbound silence. Suddenly one string of the violin snapped. But the consummate professional was not deterred. On the contrary, he continued to play with three strings, and the music was just as fascinating and impressive. Moments later a second string snapped; and minutes later the third. The audience gasped in stunned disbelief. What was Paganini going to do? Would he bow and leave regretfully? Without losing his cool, the famous maestro raised his hand, called for silence and announced: "Ladies and gentlemen, you are about to hear Paganini on one string." What followed thereafter literally took everyone's breath away - the performance was flawless, the music exquisite, the entertainment heavenly and just on one string! Such is the incomparable touch of the Master's hand. --This extraordinary story aptly describes the singular and marvelous role of the Spirit in our personal lives. (J. Valladares in Your Words, O Lord, Are Spirit, and They Are Life; quoted by Fr. Botelho).

28) Why Isn't the Holy Ghost Included?  A woman wrote to Reader’s Digest. She wanted to tell about an experience that she had when she took a young girl from India to Church with her. It was the eleven-year-old girl’s first exposure to a Christian worship service. The young lady’s parents were traveling on business and had left her in the care of their American friends.  The little Hindu girl decided on her own to go with the family to Church one Sunday.  After the service was over, they went out to lunch. The little girl had some questions. She wondered, "I don’t understand why the West Coast isn’t included,  too?"  Her Christian friends were puzzled and asked, "What do you mean?"--  She responded, "You know. I kept hearing the people say, ‘In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the whole East Coast.’" 

29) Different gifts, the same Giver: Max Herr, aged 75, retired in March, 1981 after 52 years as the official Vatican clock-winder. Pope St. John Paul II received this German-born clockmaker and his family in a special audience at the time of his retirement. There are some 50 pendulum clocks in the Vatican. Since 1929, Herr had made the rounds every Friday winding and resetting them. When they or the many non-pendulum clocks needed repair, he would clean and overhaul them. Six popes had been his friends, and he had many “professional” memories of them. Pope Pius XII used to have him set all the clocks fifteen minutes ahead. Pope Paul VI found ticking clocks a distraction, so he kept only one timepiece in his rooms: a small alarm clock he had used since seminary days. American friends gave John Paul II a grandfather chime clock when he was installed as Pope. -- Max Herr was certainly not the most important figure in the central offices of the Catholic Church. But the role he played in the Vatican, however humble, was expert and indispensable. The popes are called by God to save eternal souls, but they must do their work in a world where time rules. In a sense for 52 years this German clockmaker had kept the whole Church going! -- That is what St. Paul meant when he said, “There are different gifts but the same Spirit; there are different ministries but the same Lord.” Whether great or small, we should all be happy to use our God-given talents for the benefit of others. “To each person the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.” (1 Cor. 12:7. Today’s second reading). –(Father Robert F. McNamara. 

30) “Now you know where God lives.” (In a Reader’s Digest’s article, quoted by Fr. Simplicio Apalisok in his homily book, an author tells how as a child, he was captivated by the sight of an old man prayerfully peering into an old cistern. Intrigued about what the old man was looking at, the boy edged up to the cistern and tried to see over the ledge. The old man held him with his shovel-like hands helped him over the ledge of the wheel. “Do you know who lives there?” the old man asked. The frightened boy shook his head. “God lives there. Look!” but the boy only saw his reflection in the still water. “But that’s me,” said the boy. -- “That’s right,” said the old man. “Now you know where God lives.” (https://justmehomely.wordpress.com/2012/05/19/pentecost-sunday-year-b/)

31) Teilhard de Chardin , Karl Rahner and Hans Küng  on Pentecost: “The day will come,” said Teilhard de Chardin, “when, after harnessing space, the winds, the tides and gravitation, we shall harness for God the energies of love. And on that day, for the second time in the history of the world, we shall have discovered fire.” -- In a sense the annual feast of Pentecost is another opportunity, placed in the path of the believer, for discovering and participating in the ever-present fire which is God’s love. Pentecost rounds out and climaxes the Easter event. All that we have remembered and celebrated, viz., Jesus’ saving death, His Resurrection and His Ascension to glory, all of these sacred events took place so that the Holy Spirit might be unleashed upon the world. As Karl Rahner (The Great Church Year, the Crossroad Pub. Co., New York: 1994), once explained, “Pentecost calls us to the realization that the Center of all reality, the innermost Heart of all infinity, the Love of the all-holy God, has become our Center, our Heart. God is ours. God has been given to us as gift, without reserve. God has made our own the joy, freedom, knowledge and peace of the Divine life” Hans Küng (Why I Am Still a Christian, Abingdon Press, Nashville TN: 1987) suggests that before the power of the Holy Spirit can truly take hold, all contrary spirits must be exorcized… to “… make room for the Spirit who is both tender and strong, who reconciles and unites.” (Sanchez Files). (L/21)

32) Aggiornamento:  Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli (1881-1963) was the third of the 13 children born in a poor Italian family in 1881. As he was very intelligent, after being consecrated as a bishop in 1925, he served as a papal delegate in Bulgaria, Turkey, and France. In 1953 he became the Patriarch of Venice as well as a cardinal. When Pope Pius XII died on October 9, 1958, Roncalli was elected pope at  the age of  77 under the name John XXIII. He was considered a transitional pope, and nobody expected much from him. -- However, he surprised the world by convening Vatican Council II and asking the faithful to pray for a new Pentecost. He believed that only with a new outpouring of the Holy Spirit could the Church be renewed and updated (aggiornamento). That was why he asked the people to pray for a second Pentecost like the first one. (Fr. Jose P CMI) .

33) Poor diocese became rich  by revenues from donated land: Sara Tracy was born on December 6, 1827 in New York City. She was the heiress to the vast fortune of her brother, Edward Tracy. While on a trip to Rome in 1899, she happened to meet Bishop Patrick James Donahue on the ship by which they were traveling to Italy. Tracy spoke with Donahue during their trip on a personal matter. As they disembarked the ship, Tracy handed a check of $5,000 to Donahue for the needs of the diocese. She would continue to support the diocese during her lifetime and would, at her death, leave her entire estate to Bishop Donahue. The proceeds from this estate bequest allowed the establishment of Wheeling Jesuit College (later Wheeling University), the building of numerous facilities across the diocese, as well as the establishment of numerous outreach ministries. The investments were especially valuable for the lands that produced oil and natural gas revenues over the years. Bishop Mark E. Brennan was the first bishop to fully disclose and list the value of the investments from this fund. As of 2020, the investments from securities and mineral rights exceeded $286 million dollars, annual royalty revenues were $13.9 million dollars, with total revenues from investments exceeding $15 million dollars for the year, 2020. (Wikipedia). -- The Holy Spirit indwelling  in each baptized Christian makes him or her richer and holier than what any worldly deposit can give. 

The sequence for Pentecost, the "Veni, Sancte Spiritus" 

Come, Holy Spirit;

shine in us with the heavenly light of Your own radiance.

Come, Father of the poor, come, Gift-giver,

come, Light of hearts.

You, gentle Guest of the soul, are the surest Consoler,
cooling our fever-heat.

You are Rest when we labour, relief in searing heat,

Solace when we weep.

O most blessed Light!

Fill the secret inward spaces

of the hearts that turn towards You.

Without Your mysterious glory,

nothing in human spirits is free from poison.

Wash what has become soiled in us;

moisten what has dried out;

heal whatever is wounded.

Make supple what has stiffened,

melt what is frozen in us,

straighten what has become bent.

To us who believe in You, who trust in You,

give Your seven-fold gifts of healing.

Grant, as Your gift, the fruits of virtue;
grant, as Your gift, salvation at the end;
may Your gifts bring undying joy.

Amen, alleluia!

In simple and powerful imagery – Mexican poet Amado Nervo, puts it as follows:

 Alone we are only a spark, but in the Spirit we are a fire.

 Alone we are only a string, but in the Spirit we are a lyre.

 Alone we are only an anthill, but in the Spirit we are a mountain.

 Alone we are only a feather, but in the Spirit we are a wing.

Alone we are only a beggar, but in the Spirit we are a King. L/22

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“Scriptural Homilies” Cycle C (No 36) by Fr. Tony: akadavil@gmail.com

Visit my website by clicking on http://frtonyshomilies.com/ for missed or previous Cycle C homilies, 141 Year of Faith “Adult Faith Formation Lessons” (useful for RCIA classes too) & 197 “Question of the Week.” Contact me only at akadavil@gmail.com. Visit also https://www.catholicsermons.com/homilies/sunday_homilies  under Fr. Tony’s homilies and  under Resources in the CBCI website:  https://www.cbci.in  for other website versions.  (Vatican Radio website: http://www.vaticannews.va/en/church.html uploaded my Cycle A, B and C homilies in from 2018-2020)  Fr. Anthony Kadavil, Chaplain, Sacred Heart Residence of the Little Sisters of the Poor, 1655 McGill Ave, Mobile, AL 36604 .

At the cathedral in Chartres, the figure of Jesus is surrounded by seven doves, symbolizing these seven gifts of the Holy Spirit: wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord. The Messiah will be filled up with all of the powers and energies of God’s Spirit. (Bishop Barron). 

Easter VI [C] (May 26) Homily Jn 14:23-29 (One-page summary) L/22 

Introduction: Today’s readings show us the effects of the abiding presence of God in His Church and of His indwelling in each one of us. Scripture lessons: The first reading, taken from the Acts of the Apostles, tells us how the Holy Spirit, indwelling in the Church, helped the apostles to solve a major doctrinal problem about the Gentiles becoming Christians, which shook the very foundation of the early Church. The Responsorial Psalm (Ps 67) prays that all the nations on the earth may recognize their God and praise Him.  The second reading, taken from the Book of Revelation, describes the Church as the Heavenly Jerusalem which replaces the holy presence of God in the Holy of Holies in the Temple in Jerusalem. This New Jerusalem is a city united in love, with the victorious Jesus residing in it and in each of its members. The Gospel passage reminds us that the Holy Spirit, abiding within us, is our Teacher, our Advocate, and the Source of our peace and joy.  The passage offers a vision of hope as well.  Jesus promises his followers that the Holy Spirit will come and instruct them in everything they need to know.

Life messages: 1) Let us be aware of the abiding presence of God within us: We live in the New Covenant of Jesus, daily facing uncertainty, conflict, and temptations.  It is the abiding presence of God within us that enables us to face the future with undying hope and true Christian courage.  The Holy Spirit Whom the risen Lord asked His Father to send upon His Church prompts us to turn to His Holy Scriptures for support and encouragement, enables us to learn the Divine truths, and grants us His peace at all times.  However, to be able to receive these gifts, it is necessary for us to spend a little time each day in personal prayer, talking to God and listening to Him.  We must deepen our relationship with Jesus, learn to get in touch with him, and sincerely love him.  When we listen to the Holy Spirit, we will   know His plan for our life and His solutions to whatever problems we face.  We will be able to love our fellow human beings, and there will be a core of peace within us.  The Holy Spirit teaches us through the Scriptures and preaching during the Holy Mass. Jesus loves us and comes to us in Communion.   When the Mass is ended, we go forth in the peace of Christ -- all this under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. 

2) We need to have the conviction that we are not alone:  One of the great social and ethical problems of our time is isolation.   Today approximately 25% of all adults live alone.   Spouses, parents, and children often live as virtual strangers to one another.   This is unfortunate because we never need to be alone.   Jesus can always be present to us.   He shares his joy with us and replaces the burden of our guilt with the freedom of forgiveness.  He takes our grief and turns it into joy.  We need only allow Jesus into our lives to be rid of this loneliness.   Oneness with Jesus is the greatest gift we can give our children, our friends, or those who see no purpose in life.   We can help to bring people into unity with Jesus, a unity that will change their lives.  As we celebrate this Eucharistic meal, our Mass, let us celebrate in a special way the price Jesus paid for our redemption.  May this Eucharistic celebration empower us to lead a true Life of the Spirit!

 Easter VI [C] (May 26): Acts 15:1-2, 22-29; Rv 21:10-14, 22-23; Jn 14:23-21

Homily Starter Anecdotes: #1) “Temples of the Holy Spirit”: Francis of Assisi was an ardent advocate of the doctrine of the indwelling of God in man. It enabled him to love everyone equally whatever his status in life. One day he met a fellow who had no love for God. As they walked along, they met a man who was blind and paralyzed. St. Francis asked the sightless cripple: “Tell me if I were to restore your eyesight and the use of your limbs, would you love me?” “Ah,” replied the beggar, “I would not only love you, but I would be your slave for the rest of my life.” “See,” said Francis to the man who maintained that he could not love God, “this man would love me if I gave him his sight and his health. Why don’t you love God who created you with eyesight and strong limbs?” -- That is what Jesus tells us in today’s Gospel. If we love Jesus because of the countless blessings he has given us, and so keep his word as the center of our life,  he will start dwelling within us in the company of his Father and the Holy Spirit, making us the temples of the Triune God. (Msgr. Arthur Tonne). (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)     

# 2: Helen Keller’s indwelling God? The story is told that after Helen Keller’s teacher, Annie Sullivan, had given her the names of physical objects in sign language, Miss Sullivan attempted to explain God and tapped out the symbols for the name "God." Much to Miss Sullivan’s surprise, Helen spelled back, "Thank you for telling me God’s name, Teacher, for He has touched me many times before." -- How could Helen Keller have known about God? Although she was blind and deaf, Helen Keller knew God, for God had shown Himself to her. That is the “revelation” of an indwelling God about whom today’s Scripture readings speak.  (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)      

 #3: “The most unpromising boy in my class” A  schoolmaster in France was discouraged with one of his students. He wrote in his roll book concerning this student: "He is the smallest, the meekest, the most unpromising boy in my class." Half a century later, an election was held in France to select the greatest Frenchman. By popular vote, that meekest, smallest, most unpromising boy was chosen. His name? Louis Pasteur, the founder of modern medicine. When he was seventy-three, a national holiday was declared in his honor. He was too weak to attend the ceremony in Paris, so he sent a message to be read by his son. The message read: "The future belongs not to the conquerors but to the saviors of the world" [Edward Chinn, Wonder of Words (Lima, Ohio: C.S.S. Publishing Co., Inc., 1987), p. 18.] -- Louis Pasteur was driven by a great purpose. Your name and my name may never be household words as is Pasteur's, but we, too, can be driven by a great purpose. Christ can give us that purpose. But there is one thing more Christ gives us. He gives us the presence of the Holy Spirit as promised in today’s Gospel. A healthy sense of identity and a driving purpose are not enough in themselves. One thing more is needed. It is the in-dwelling Spirit of the living God. (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)     

Introduction: Today’s readings show us the effects of the abiding presence of God in His Church and of His indwelling in each one of us. The first reading, taken from the Acts of the Apostles, tells us how the Holy Spirit, dwelling in the Church, helped the apostles to solve a major doctrinal problem, which shook the very foundation of the early Church. The Responsorial Psalm (Ps 67) prays that all the nations on the earth, not just Israel, may recognize their God and praise Him. The second reading, taken from the Book of Revelation describes the Church as the Heavenly Jerusalem, a city united in love, with the victorious Jesus residing in it and in each of its members, replacing the holy presence of God in the Holy of Holies of the Temple in Jerusalem. The Gospel passage reminds us that the Holy Spirit abiding within us is our teacher and the Source of all peace.  The passage offers a vision of hope.  Jesus promises his followers that the Holy Spirit will come and instruct them in everything they need to know.

 The first reading: Acts 15:1-2, 22-29, explained:  The first major controversy in the infant Church was about "what one must  do to be saved."  For the first 15 to 20 years of the Christian era, all Jesus’ followers were Jewish.  During that period, any Gentiles who wanted to become Jesus’ disciples were expected first to become Jews. They had to attend Sabbath synagogue services and keep the 613 Torah laws.  This situation began to change when a few “liberal” Christian communities like the newly founded Church of the Gentiles in Antioch, began to admit Gentiles into their number without demanding that they first be converted to Judaism.  Some of the Judeo-Christians from Judea and Jerusalem argued that the new Gentile converts must observe the Mosaic Law of circumcision, dietary regulations, purification rituals, etc.  The issue couldn't be settled on a local level, although Paul and Barnabas tried that at first.  Hence, they had to go to Jerusalem to consult the apostles.  The apostles convened the first Cburch Council at Jerusalem and, with the clear leading of the Holy Spirit, decided that the Gentiles need not become Jews first, to be saved as Christians.  The decision was momentous for two reasons.  First, it marked a significant break of Christianity with Judaism. Second, it put the burden of salvation on God rather than on man.  In other words, it is God’s love and His gift to us of Faith in Jesus that save us when we receive it and live it out. Our prayers, sacrifices or keeping of the Law, are only expressions of our gratitude to God, which foster our Faith.  We see Saint Paul wrestling with this question, first in Galatians, then, in a more polished way, in Romans. (The New Covenant was sealed not with the blood of circumcision, but with the blood of Jesus Christ (CCC #610, 613). This and other dogmas are examples of the exercise of authority given to the Church Magisterium by Christ. Belief in  -- acceptance of -- such dogmas is obligatory since they are truths contained in divine Revelation or have a necessary connection with them (CCC #88).

(A question on dissension answered: The early Church seems to be embroiled in dissension less than one decade after the Resurrection of Jesus. Can the Holy Spirit really be at work in those circumstances? Perhaps the question could be rephrased this way: “Is there a place for both controversy and peace in our Church?” There are a lot of ways to nuance the meanings of “dissension” and “debate,” but the underlying thrust is the same: disagreement over a matter of importance, at least to the parties engaged in debate. The year is only about 49 or 50 AD when this occurred, which shows that lively arguments were arising whenever “changes” occurred that would alter or even threaten to modify “established” rituals and practices. The answer is a resounding “YES.” The Church grew and still grows in understanding its Faith through lively discussions and debates among qualified theologians. Those discussions have been going on ever since the vision of St. Peter (Acts 10) which led to the baptism of the first Gentiles (Cornelius’ household), around 43 AD. It is important to recognize the wording of the Apostles’ decision regarding the waiver of the former discipline of circumcision: “For it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit AND  to us to lay upon you no greater burden than…necessary things…” (Acts 15:28). Clearly, the dietary laws, variations in certain rituals, and similar disciplines were deemed eligible for change as circumstances warranted. Every suggested change creates healthy discussions and is preceded by healthy discussions. Closure is then brought to the discussion at some point in time, when the Apostles (or their successors, the united Bishops) reach a decision. Cultural conditioning plays a large part in some decisions (e.g., Paul insisting that women had to wear hats in church), as it does today; these are also identified as matters of “discipline.” ( Fr. Robert F. McNamara).

The Catechism on healthy debates: Perhaps it is better to leave the debates in the hands of the theologians, who are schooled in the ways of theological research (CCC #94), and who know the difference between debate and dissension. At some point in time, the Magisterium — the official and recognized teaching office of the Catholic church — reaches a decision on a subject, and to that decision we owe the obedience of Faith (CCC#144, 85, 88) or assent of Faith (optimally), or as a minimum the religious respect of intellect and will; and the Christian faithful are called upon “to take care to avoid whatever is not in harmony with that teaching” (Canon Law #752).

The second reading, Revelation 21:10-14, 22-23, explained: The Book of Revelation was written to bolster the Faith of the persecuted Christians of all ages. Everything John described via symbols, signs, numbers, etc. has already happened except, of course for the second advent of Jesus in glory. John’s vision of a new Jerusalem should be understood as a description of the Church, rooted initially in time and space, but growing and evolving toward an eschatological future. It describes the Church as the Heavenly Jerusalem, a city united in love, with the victorious Jesus residing in it. While the earthly Temple was often thought of as a reflection of the Heavenly Temple, there will be no Temple in the New Jerusalem because the Almighty and the Lamb will be the Temple.  They will provide all the light that is necessary, so there will be no need for the sun or the moon. Ancient Jerusalem had long been for the Jews a token of God's presence with them.  God had aided them in capturing and holding it, in making it their capital, in building the Temple there, and in returning to it after their exile in Babylon. Within the holiest chamber of the Jerusalem Temple, they kept the stone tablets of the Law, given by God, in an enthroned chest known as the Ark of the Covenant.  God dwelt in a particular way in the space above the ark. This is, in the end, a metaphor for the Church, which is called to reveal to the human race God's presence among us.  

Gospel exegesis: John (Chapter 14) continues to recount Jesus’ farewell discourse after the Last Supper.  Today's Gospel passage explains the doctrine of the indwelling of the Holy Trinity in the human soul, and the role of the Holy Spirit in our lives. 

1) The abiding presence of God in the human soul: The promise of God's abiding presence must have been of great comfort to John's community who knew that the Temple in Jerusalem -- the symbol of God's presence with His people -- had been destroyed by the Roman army.  In today's Gospel passage, Jesus tells us that the one thing in life which we can always trust is God’s presence. God inhabits our hearts so deeply and intimately that we become the visible dwelling place of God.  His living and life-affirming Presence is always with us, yet '"hidden" in the very things we so often take for granted.  Thus, we are invited to look for and encounter -- "God-with-us," yet "hidden" -- in the person sitting next to us, in the words we speak, and in the songs we sing at worship. 

2) Condition for the indwelling of the Holy Trinity: Jesus teaches us the condition for this indwelling of the Holy Trinity, namely, we have to show our love of God by keeping his word.  And this keeping of his word will be facilitated by the Holy Spirit, God's Holy Breath. 

3) The role of the Holy Spirit is twofold: a) to "teach" the disciples and b) to “remind" them of what Jesus has already taught them” (v. 26). “At work since creation, having previously ‘spoken through the prophets,’ the Spirit will now be with and in the disciples, to teach them and guide them ‘into all the truth’” (CCC  #243).  Jesus affirms that even though He will no longer be visibly with them, he will continue to be present among them through the Holy Spirit.  The Spirit of Truth will continue teaching them and helping them to understand and to build on what Jesus has already taught them.  The Advocate will bring no new revelation because God has already revealed Himself in Jesus.  But the Advocate will deepen their understanding of the revelation given by Jesus.

4) Jesus gives his followers four gifts:  First, he gives them his love, which will enable them to keep his word. Next, he gives them the Holy Spirit, who will teach them everything they need to know. The Holy Spirit is the abiding love of God available to us, enabling us to accept the friendship of Jesus, while imitating Him, the Master.  Third, he gives them His peace to strengthen them against fear in the face of trouble. Here "peace" is not just the absence of conflict, but also the far wider concept of shalom, the total well-being of the person and community.  The promise of the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, will bring a peace that will quell their fears of the unfolding darkness ahead. “In Johannine language, peace, truth, light, life and joy are figurative terms reflecting different facets of the great gift that Jesus has brought from God to the world. 'Peace is my gift to you,' is another way of saying, 'I give them eternal life' (Jn 10:28) (Raymond E. Brown). The Holy Spirit is available as Comforter and Guide to those who believe in Jesus and follow in his way. The One God -- the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit – is pure Love. This Love, the Triune God, comes and lives in us, takes up residence in us and lives in our body. When God’s love lives in us, and we live in Him, there is much more peace in our families, our Churches, our offices.  Fourth, Jesus rewards them with the assurance of his second coming. 

Life messages: 1) Let us be aware of the abiding presence of God within us: We live in the New Covenant of Jesus, daily facing uncertainty, conflict, and temptations.  It is the abiding presence of God within us that enables us to face the future with undying hope and true Christian courage.  The Holy Spirit, sent upon the Church by the Father at the request of the risen Lord, prompts us to turn to His Holy Scriptures for support and encouragement, enables us to learn the Divine truths, and grants us His peace at all times.  However, to be able to receive these gifts, it is necessary for us to spend a little time each day in personal prayer, talking to God and listening to Him.  We must deepen our relationship with Jesus, learn to get in touch with him, and sincerely love him.  When we listen to the Holy Spirit, we will   know His plan for our life and His solutions for whatever problems we face.  We will be able to love our fellow human beings, and there will be a core of peace within us.  The Holy Spirit teaches us through the Scriptures and preaching during the Holy Mass as well as in our prayer and our private reading of Scripture. Jesus loves us and comes to us in Communion.   When the Mass is ended, we go forth in the peace of Christ -- all this under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

2) We are not alone:  One of the great social and ethical problems of our time is isolation.   Today approximately 25% of all adults live alone.   Spouses, parents, and children often live as virtual strangers to one another.   This is unfortunate because we never need to be alone.   Jesus can always be present to us.   He shares with us his joy and replaces the burden of our guilt with the freedom of forgiveness.  He takes our grief and turns it into joy.  We need only allow Jesus into our lives to be rid of this loneliness.   Oneness with Jesus is the greatest gift we can give our children, our friends, or those who see no purpose in life.   We can help to bring people to unity with Jesus, a unity that will change their lives. As we celebrate this Eucharistic meal, our Mass, let us celebrate in a special way the price Jesus paid for our redemption.   May this Eucharistic celebration empower us to lead a true Life in the Spirit.

JOKE OF THE WEEK

1) Here is an Irish lyric: "Paddy Murphy went to Mass, never missed a Sunday. But Paddy Murphy went to hell, for what he did on Monday." 

2) Don’t lose your mental peace: The Sunday school children had all been photographed with pastor sitting in their center. The pastor was trying to persuade the children to buy a copy of the group photo. "Just think how nice it will be to look at it when you are all grown up and say, 'There's Jennifer; she's a lawyer,' or 'That's Michael; he's a doctor.' A small voice at the back of the room rang out, "And there's our Pastor; he's dead." 

3)  Peace and Relaxation: Did you know that.....If you can start the day without caffeine, if you can get going without pep pills, if you can always be cheerful, ignoring aches and pains, if you can resist complaining and boring people with your troubles, if you can eat the same food every day and be grateful for it, if you can understand when your loved ones are too busy to give you any time, if you can take criticism without resentment, if you can ignore a friend's limited education and never correct him, if you can resist treating a rich friend better than a poor friend, if you can conquer tension without medical help, if you can relax without liquor, if you can sleep without the aid of drugs, ...Then you are probably the family dog! 

USEFUL WEBSITES OF THE WEEK

1) Fr. Don’ collection of video homilies & blogs: https://sundayprep.org

2) Video Sunday-Scripture study by Fr. Geoffrey Plant:

 https://www.youtube.com/user/GeoffreyPlant2066

3) Dr. Brant Pitre’s commentary on Cycle C Sunday Scripture for Bible Class: https://catholicproductions.com/blogs/mass-readings-explained-year-c)      

20 Additional anecdotes 1) The ‘Butterfly Effect’     “Today’s real borders are not between nations, but between powerful and powerless, free and fettered, privileged and humiliated. Today no walls can separate humanitarian or human rights crises in one part of the world from national security crises in another. Scientists tell us that the world is so small and interdependent that a butterfly flapping its wings in the Amazon forest can generate a storm on the other side of the earth. The principle is known as the ‘Butterfly Effect.’” (Kofi Annan –“Excerpts from Nobel Prize acceptance speech”). -- Today we realize more than ever, that the world of human activity also has its own ‘Butterfly Effect’ for better or for worse. The classical example is the history-making growth of Christianity in the first century by the Spirit-transformed lives of the apostles and early Christians. (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)     

2) Two loves in our lives: Jimmy Carter, in his book, Sources of Strength, tells about interviewing Eloy Cruz, an admirable Cuban pastor, who had tremendous rapport with poor immigrants from Puerto Rico. “What is the secret to your success?” asked Carter. -- Pastor Cruz replied, “Señor Jimmy, we need to have only two loves for our lives, love for God and love for the person who happens to be in front of us at any time.” (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)     

3) "You were walking with Mary Susanna Brown, a child of God": Retired Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, (the eldest son of Boston physician, poet, and polymath, Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes), was walking down a street one day. A little girl joined him. When the girl started to turn back home, the famed jurist said, "When your mother asks you where you've been, tell her you've been walking with Oliver Wendell Holmes,” to which the little girl replied confidently, "And when your folks ask you where you've been, tell them you were walking with Mary Susanna Brown, a child of God." -- There's a little girl with a healthy sense of who she is! Psychologists tell us that a healthy sense of identity is one of the most valuable gifts we can give our children. We are God’s children and our God is an indwelling God. First, however, we need that gift ourselves. And if we did not receive it from our parents, we will need to look to God. (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)     

4) Head and tail fight of bulldog ants: The philosopher Schopenhauer once compared us to a Bulldog Ant. If we cut a Bulldog Ant in half, the front and rear segments will enter into a savage fight. The head will seize the tail with its teeth, while the tail will sting the head with fury. The fight might last for hours. -- That is the way some of us are on the inside. There is part of us that wants to move ahead and a part that wants to stand absolutely still. There is a part of us that wants success and recognition. There is another part that wants to sit on the river bank and while away the hours. There is a part of us that wants to serve Christ. There is another part that says, "No, I've enough to do right now. Let someone else take their turn." There is a fierce battle going on within many of us. Few of us know what it is to live lives of contentment and peace. -- Jesus said to his disciples, "I am leaving you with a gift -- peace of mind and heart! And the peace I give isn't fragile like the peace the world gives. So don't be troubled or afraid"(Jn 14:27) What a promise! What a gift! Peace of mind and heart. He can give it to us. (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)     

5) Love as Jesus loved: Jesus said, "I love you just as the Father loves me; remain in my love." (John 13:9). During World War II, a prisoner escaped from a labor detail in Auschwitz, a Nazi concentration camp in Poland. The camp commander announced that if he were not found in 24 hours, 10 of the 600 men in Block 14 would be picked at random to starve to death. Next morning the prisoners were lined up and stood all day in the burning heat of the sun. At 6 pm, 10 were selected at random. One was the father of a family. As they were being marched off, a Franciscan priest among the prisoners, St. Maximilian Kolbe, offered to take his place. The Nazi officer in charge was stunned, but he regained his composure and said, "Accepted."  -- The priest's heroic act of love for a fellow prisoner is a faint reflection of Jesus' love for us,  and of the Father's love for Jesus. Can I recall a time when I went out of my way and offered to help someone in need? The greatest love a person can have for his friends is to give his life for them. (Jn 15:13). (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)     

6) "Were we shot down?" A commercial airline pilot on one occasion made a particularly bad landing. The wheels of the big jet hit the runway with a jarring thud. Afterward, the airline had a policy, which required that the pilot stand at the door while the passengers exited. He was to give each of them a smile and say, "Thanks for flying with us today." In light of his bad landing, he had a hard time looking the passengers in the eye, thinking that someone would have a smart comment, but no one seemed annoyed. Finally everyone had gotten off except for one little old lady walking with a cane. She approached the pilot and asked, "Sonny, mind if I ask you a question?" "Why, no, Ma'am, what is it?" said the pilot bravely. "Did we land," she asked, "or were we shot down?"  --- Maybe you've had days like that, days when it felt like you were shot down. Even worse, maybe things are going quite well for you, really. Your friends and your family tell you how fortunate you are. But you don't feel fortunate. In fact, your life is somewhat tortured by a nagging fear that you cannot even define. It is at those moments that God wants us to turn to Him. He is our Peace, always. (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)     

7) "Mommy, are you there?": I recall the story of a little girl who, when trains were popular transportation, was taking her first train ride with her parents. As night descended, the mother took the girl, who was clearly quite anxious, and placed her on the upper bunk of the sleeper. She told her little one that up there she would be nearer to God and that God would watch over her. As silence enveloped the young lady she became afraid and called softly, "Mommy, are you there?" "Yes dear," came the response. A little later, in a louder voice, the child called, "Daddy, are you there, too?" "Yes dear," was the reply. After this had been repeated several times one of the passengers sharing their sleeper car finally lost his patience and shouted loudly, "Yes, we're all here, your father, your mother, your brother, and all your aunts and cousins; now settle down and go to sleep!" There was a moment of silence and then, in hushed tones a little voice asked, "Mommy, was that God?" -- Jesus, in offering peace, does not say, "I'm here, the Holy Spirit's here and God is here, now be at peace!" The peace that Jesus offers cannot be had simply by desiring it. The peace of God is a gift; it can only be received as a by-product of Faith. That's why the world is largely a stranger to it. (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)     

8) Brendan Behan, an Irish playwright, virtually drank himself to death. His biographer attributes it to an unrelenting sense of guilt. Behan went to England on a mission for the I.R.A. One day he planted a bomb set to go off during rush hour. It exploded as a young woman with her baby was passing by. Both died in the blast! Brendan Behan was overwhelmed with guilt for killing that innocent woman and her baby. And as time went on he increasingly tried to drown his memories and silence his conscience in a bottle, without success! -- Guilt is a terrible thing. Wouldn't it be wonderful if we had a guide in life a guide Who will help us avoid those things that we know are wrong, those things that fill us with regret? Christ has promised us such a guide. That guide is the Holy Spirit. (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)     

9) Loving grandpa and the naughty grandchild: Grandpa walked into the family room and found his little grandson, Jeffy, standing up in his playpen, crying. He looked so pitiful, standing there in his little baseball T-shirt and diaper. His face was red and tear-stained from crying. When Jeffy saw his grandpa, his face lit up in a way that smote the old man’s heart. He immediately reached up his chubby little hands in supplication. “Take me out, Papa, out!” What grandpa could resist such a plea? Not this one! He walked over to the playpen and reached down to lift his little buddy out of captivity and distress. Just then, however, Law and Order stepped into the room. Jeffy’s mother walked out of the kitchen with a dishtowel in her hand and spoke sternly. “No, Jeffy! You are being punished. You have to stay in bed! Leave him right there, Dad.” Oh, fine. Now what’s a grandpa to do? His grandson’s tears and reaching little hands tugged mightily at his heart – but he didn’t want to interfere with a mother’s discipline either. What could he do? Love found a way. Since Grandpa couldn’t take Jeffy out of the playpen, he climbed in with him. “If you’re in the playpen, Buddy, I’m in the playpen. What’s your sentence? How long are you in for?” --  And finding a big, jolly grandpa suddenly filling his little prison cell, the little boy found comfort even in his captivity. Today’s readings explain God’s indwelling in the Church and in the believers in terms of God’s love for His children. (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)     

10) The Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoyevsky regarded by many as one of the greatest literary geniuses of all time. His books are classics. The Brothers Karamazov is regarded by many as the greatest novel ever written. His stories all have a similar theme, that our redemption is to be found through suffering, not simply physical suffering, but in the anguish of our selfhood. We become fully human, Dostoyevsky believed, by being tested and being strengthened through it [Pulpit Resource, Vol. 9, No. 2 (Logos Art Productions, Inver Grove, Minnesota) pp. 14-15.] -- The peace which Jesus gave to the disciples involved very little contentment. They had to endure persecutions, misunderstanding, and hardships of every kind. (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)     

11) “But Papa, I love him; he loves me.” In the Broadway play and movie of the same name, Fiddler on the Roof, the chief protagonist is Tevye, a poor Russian Jew struggling to make a life for himself and his family. Economically and politically strapped by the harsh conditions of life prior to and during the Russian Revolution (ca. 1917), Tevye the milkman can hold onto little else except his traditions. However, even these began to crumble when his eldest daughter refuses to acquiesce to an arranged marriage and opts for love in poverty rather than wealth without love. Further shaken by the marriage of his second daughter to a Russian who favors the revolution, Tevye seems unable to bear anything more. But the final blow comes when his youngest daughter chooses to marry Christian. When Tevye argues with his daughters in favor of the centuries’ old traditions of their people, they counter him on every point with the simple explanation, “But Papa, I love him; he loves me.” --  Love proved to be a force powerful enough to overcome separatism and the distrust of others and their ways on the grounds that they did not share the same roots, background and beliefs. In Tevye's family, love began to establish new traditions, though not easily or rapidly. The family which was the early Church also struggled with the tasks of surrendering old ways (as described in the first reading) and of learning and establishing new ones as it grew and developed. Based on love and founded in peace, the Church’s new traditions were inspired, supported and guided by none other than the Holy Spirit. (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)    

12) Conversion: Joshua, a young Jew, fell in love with Mary, a devout Catholic. When Joshua proposed to Mary, she sought counsel from her parents, each of whom advised her differently. “Convert him to Catholicism!” commanded Mary’s dad, but her mum said, “Love him tenderly and God’s Spirit will work wonders!” Mary’s dad wouldn’t give in and ordered her to work hard at converting Joshua to Catholicism. Mary obeyed and Joshua was duly converted. Weeks later Joshua called off the marriage. “What’s up?” asked Mary’s dad. Mary sobbed: “Joshua wants to be a priest!” (Francis Gonsalves in Sunday Seeds for daily Deeds). (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)    

13) The little mediator, Wee Willie Winkie: John Ford's superb family action-adventure film, Wee Willie Winkie (1937), is loosely based on Rudyard Kipling's popular story from his Tales of British India.   The setting of this movie is 19th century British-occupied India. Little Priscilla Williams and her widowed mother travel to India to live with their relative, Colonel Williams. The colonel ruled his British Army base in India with an iron fist making of it an oppressive place.  Priscilla is a very curious, precocious child, who gains the nickname of "Private Wee Willie Winkie.”  The little girl quickly charms everyone around her, including a tough Scots Sergeant. After a series of adventures, she wins the hearts of everyone by challenging the prejudicial assumptions of both friends and enemies.  Her innocent, yet challenging questions are instrumental in helping Colonel Williams and Islamic freedom fighter, Khoda Khan, to see the senselessness of violence.  This leads them to a negotiated peace. -- Today’s Gospel assures us that it is the abiding presence of God the Father with God the Incarnte Risen Son in the Holy Spirit within us,  which gives us lasting peace. (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)     

14)  A New Advocate:      When the heartbroken Nathaniel Hawthorne went home to tell his wife that he had been a failure and had been fired from his job in a customhouse, she surprised him with an exclamation of joy. “Now,” she said triumphantly, “you can write your book!” “Yes,” replied Nathaniel, “and what shall we live on while I am writing it?” To his amazement, she opened a drawer and pulled out a substantial sum of money. “Where on earth did you get that?” he exclaimed. “I have always known you were a man of genius,” she told him. “I knew that someday you would write a masterpiece. So every week out of the housekeeping money you gave me I saved a little. So here is enough to last us a whole year!” From her confidence and encouragement came one of the greatest novels of United States literature, The Scarlet Letter. –- As a farewell, gift Jesus spoke of the gift of the Holy Spirit, the Advocate he would give us. On the Divine level, deeper experiences of God do not make Christians immune to human problems and pain, but Jesus showed that his peace can be present even in the midst of insults, persecution, and approaching death. (Harold Buetow in God Still Speaks: Listen!) (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)     

15) "Padre, padrecito," he exclaimed, "I knew you would come."  It happened that a missionary priest was visiting his extensive parish, high in the Andes Mountains. The best way to reach certain parts of the parish was on horseback. Once, toward sunset, the priest got disoriented and could not find the way back to his base camp. Rather than risk exposure at such an altitude, he decided to give his horse free rein and hope to find shelter. After a couple of hours of wandering, he saw a welcome sight. In the distance a lamp burned in a hut. This was unusual because the native people went to bed shortly after dark in order to get up at an early hour. When the priest got near the hut, a man ran out, "Padre, padrecito," he exclaimed, "I knew you would come." Surprised, the priest asked how he knew that. The man said, "My mother has been praying all day that a priest would come. She is dying." The priest went inside, heard the woman's confession, then gave her Holy Anointing and Holy Communion. The woman softly spoke these final words, "Taita Dios heard me." -- Taita Dios is not easy to translate. Dios of course means God, but Taita is hard to translate. It is an intimate, affectionate way of addressing one's father. Taita is like "daddy," except that a grown-up man could say it with no embarrassment. Taita Dios, my dear Father, has heard me. In today's Gospel, Jesus tells us that if someone keeps Jesus' word, "the Father will love him." He then describes an intimacy impossible for us to imagine. He tells us that he and the Father will dwell within us - by the power of the Holy Spirit. (Phil Bloom). (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)     

16) "I would obey the commandments of God." When Jimmy Carter was running for President of the United States, one of the more vivid moments in the campaign passed by almost unnoticed. One Sunday morning, candidate Carter had been worshipping at the Baptist Church in Plains, Georgia. When the service was over, he exited the church into the swarm of press encamped on the church's front lawn. Cameras whirring, video lights glaring, microphones thrust forward, the media mavens moved in for interviews, pushing themselves to think of clever questions to ask a presidential candidate on the way out of a Southern Baptist Church. Suddenly, a reporter, probably in a stroke of luck, shouted out a question that genuinely mattered: "Mr. Carter, suppose when you are President, you get into a situation where the laws of the United States are in conflict with what you understand to be the will of God. Which will you follow, the laws of the state or the commandments of God?" Carter stopped, looked up, and blinked into the bright Georgia sun, obviously turning the question over in his mind. Then, perhaps still "in the Spirit on the Lord's Day," perhaps with the Spirit gently whispering the lyrics of the Gospel into his ears, he turned toward the reporter and replied, "I would obey the commandments of God." Alert aides, alarmed by this candor, unnerved by their candidate's near-treasonous remark, hurriedly whisked him away from the press and into a waiting car. -- Carter the politician should have avoided the question, or hewed closely to the law of the land, but Carter the Christian had the Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ whispering in his ear, "Do you love me? The world cannot see or know me, but do you love me? Do you keep my commandments?" The reason we need the Holy Spirit murmuring the Gospel in our ears, of course, is that we are notoriously forgetful. (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)     

17) The true peace Christ brings us, according to St. Francis Assisi: The Little Flowers of St. Francis, composed at the end of the 14th century by a Tuscan, is  based on Actus beati Francisci et sociorum eius in divided into 53 short chapters. Here is a gripping story told in the book.  “Walking one day in the bitter cold with Brother Leo, St Francis began to teach him about perfect joy and perfect peace. He called to Brother Leo, who was walking on before him, and said to him: 'If we monks were great holy men who edified all those around us, this would not be perfect joy.' A little further St. Francis called to Brother Leo again: 'O Brother Leo, if we monks were to make the lame to walk, if we should make straight the crooked, chase away demons, give sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, speech to the dumb, and, what is even a far greater work, if we should raise the dead after four days, write that this would not be perfect joy.' ….After some two miles of this Brother Leo finally spoke up and said: 'Father Francis, I pray thee teach me wherein is perfect joy.' Francis then teaches him this: 'If, when we shall arrive at St Mary of the Angels, all drenched with rain and trembling with cold, all covered with mud and exhausted from hunger; if, when we knock at the convent-gate, the porter should come angrily and ask us who we are; if, after we have told him, "We are two of the brethren," he should answer angrily, "What ye say is not the truth; ye are but two impostors going about to deceive the world, and take away the alms of the poor; begone, I say"; if then he refuse to open to us, and leave us outside, exposed to the snow and rain, suffering from cold and hunger till nightfall - then, if we accept such injustice, such cruelty and such contempt with patience, without being ruffled and without murmuring, believing with humility and charity that the porter really knows us, and that it is God who maketh him to speak thus against us, write down, O Brother Leo, that this is perfect joy. And if we knock again, and the porter come out in anger to drive us away with oaths and blows, as if we were vile impostors, saying, "Begone, miserable robbers! To the hospital, for here you shall neither eat nor sleep!" - and if we accept all this with patience, with joy, and with charity, O Brother Leo, write that this indeed is perfect joy. And if, urged by cold and hunger, we knock again, calling to the porter and entreating him with many tears to open to us and give us shelter, for the love of God, and if he come out more angry than before, exclaiming, "These are but importunate rascals, I will deal with them as they deserve'; and taking a knotted stick, he seize us by the hood, throwing us on the ground, rolling us in the snow, and shall beat and wound us with the knots in the stick - if we bear all these injuries with patience and joy, thinking of the sufferings of our Blessed Lord, which we would share out of love for him, write, O Brother Leo, that here, finally, is perfect joy.’  -- I believe that what St Francis was saying to Brother Leo was that the Peace of Christ comes through our acts of obedience especially obedience in times of suffering. We will do well if we remember that true peace is the assurance that one day our Brother Jesus will return to take us back, back to our Father's house. “So, do not let your hearts be troubled neither let them be afraid.” (Jn 14:1) Amen. (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)     

18) Peanut in our pocket:  There is a story told  about a young lady named Sally. Sally was growing up, becoming a woman, preparing to go off to college. Her mother had struggled to provide for her education, an especially difficult task since her father had died several years earlier. Her mother had made every effort within her power to raise Sally right. Now Sally would be on her own, an exciting and frightening time. Sally had strong reservations about leaving her mother alone to mind the farm and do the chores. She was also nervous about having to find her own way without her mother's guidance. As she prepared to meet the bus, bags packed and ready, her mother took her arm and said to her, "You're gonna see things an' do things you ain't never heard of, and you won't know which way to turn sometimes. You 'member how you used to tug on my apron string when you wanted something, and I'd see to what you was after? You 'member how when you was too close to the road, and I'd holler to you to tell you to get away from there'?" her mother gently reminded her. "Well, I'm gonna be there with you in your heart, but it'll be up to you to listen to what I told you. I can't kiss your hurts when you fall down an' skin your knee or quiet you when the big storms come rollin' through. But, I'll be close as a peanut in your pocket when you need me. If you're afraid, I'll stand with you. And if you are hurting, you can feel me close, and if you do wrong, I'll whisper the truth to ya, so you won't do it no more." The tears came to both their eyes. Her mother opened the dresser drawer and took out a neatly folded handkerchief and placed it in the pocket of Sally's dress. Upon leaving, Sally felt completely alone. As she fought back the tears, she reached into her dress pocket to take out the handkerchief her mother had placed there. Then she noticed a knot in one corner just like her mother used to tie her milk money in her handkerchief. Upon untying the knot, she found a single peanut. She knew that her dear mother would always be with her in her heart (3. Parables submitted by Ron Alberston). -- The Good News is that God wants to dwell in our lives. God wants to take up residence in our hearts. God wants to be with us always, as close as a peanut in our pocket. (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)     

19) "Watch Jimmie in chapel:" In his book, The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat, Oliver Sacks tells the story of Jimmie, a former sailor, now a patient in a nursing home, whose severe neurological disorder had left him with a profound and permanent amnesia. He simply had no memory of anything from 1945 on. Having no ability to retrieve the past and no ability to construct a meaningful present, Jimmie lacked the continuity that makes for a sense of the self. He was, wrote Sacks, a person who "wore a look of infinite sadness and resignation." However, when Sacks asked the Sisters who ran the nursing home whether Jimmie had lost his soul, the Sisters were outraged by the question. "Watch Jimmie in chapel," they said, "and judge for yourself." So Sacks did watch Jimmie in chapel, and there he observed an astounding transformation. He saw an intensity and steadiness in Jimmie that he had not observed before. As he received the Sacrament, there was "perfect alignment of his spirit with the spirit of the Mass." There in worship, Jimmie was no longer at the mercy of a faulty and fallible memory. "He was wholly held, absorbed ...." He whose mind was broken was given in worship, "a continuity and unity so seamless it could not permit any break." . (Oliver Sacks, The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat, is reported in Craig Dykstra, "Memory and Truth," Theology Today, XLIV/2, p. 162).  -- Jimmie in his own way is like all of us. In the final analysis, none of us is able to construct a self. We must all be given a story and a continuity not of our own making. Where we have no faithful memory, God remembers, and by the grace of God, the Spirit whispers the lyrics of the saving Gospel in our ears. (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)       

20) The City Sparkled Like a Diamond: We pray for the dead, “May perpetual light shine upon them”. Have you ever wondered what sort of light perpetual light would be? Soft and white, perhaps, like the light of a frosted bulb? Piercing, like the headlight of a motorcycle? Scary electric blue, like a flash of lightning? Too dazzling even to look at, like the glare of the summer sun? It might resemble any of these. But somehow, I believe that the light in heaven will be more gracious. -- Today’s second reading suggests what I mean. St. John had a preview of the “new Jerusalem” to be sent down by God. He says, “The city had the radiance of a precious jewel that sparkled like a diamond.” In other words it shone with a glittering, amiable, transparent light. John used similar descriptions elsewhere in the Book of Revelations: “The city was of pure gold, crystal clear” and “The streets of the city were of pure gold, transparent as glass. The floor around (God’s) throne was like a sea of glass that was crystal clear.”  Centuries before St. John’s days, the prophet Ezekiel had described the sky above God, whom he too saw in a vision, as shining “like glittering crystal.“ From 1915 to 1917 the three children of Fatima, Portugal – Lucia, Francisco and Jacinta – had several visions of Our Lady and of angels. They, too, described the light in these visions as something you could see through. Lucia has recorded that the angel they saw in 1916 “was a young man, about 14 or 15 years old, whiter than snow, transparent as crystal when the sun shines through it.” And when Our Lady appeared to them on May 13, 1917, Lucy said “she was more brilliant than the sun, and radiated with a light more clear and intense than a crystal glass filled with sparkling water when the rays of the burning sun shine through it.” I think I would like that sort of light. (Father Robert F. McNamara). (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)       L/22

“Scriptural Homilies” Cycle C (No. 33) by Fr. Tony: akadavil@gmail.com

Visit my website by clicking on http://frtonyshomilies.com/ for missed or previous Cycle C homilies, 141                   Year of Faith “Adult Faith Formation Lessons” (useful for RCIA classes too) & 197 “Question of the Week.” Contact me only at akadavil@gmail.com. Visit also https://www.catholicsermons.com/homilies/sunday_homilies  under Fr. Tony’s homilies and  under Resources in the CBCI website:  https://www.cbci.in  for other website versions.  (Vatican Radio website: http://www.vaticannews.va/en/church.html uploaded my Cycle A, B and C homilies in from 2018-2020)  Fr. Anthony Kadavil, Chaplain, Sacred Heart Residence of the Little Sisters of the Poor, 1655 McGill Ave, Mobile, AL 36604 .

Good Friday (April 15, 2022)

 Seven Words from the Cross
Biblical anecdote: Hagar at Beer-Sheba versus Mary at Calvary: "Let me not watch to see the child die," (Gn 21:16) lamented Hagar, after putting down her child Ishmael, son of Abraham, under a shrub, and then going and sitting down opposite him, about a bowshot away. Hagar was the slave and maidservant of Sarah, who voluntarily sent Hagar  to Abraham’s bed as a substitute for herself for she had proved barren. But later, when Hagar gave birth to Ishmael, Sarah became jealous of her and her son; Sarah insisted that Hagar and her son should be cast out. Early the next morning Abraham got some bread and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar. Then, placing the child on her back, he sent her away. "As she roamed aimlessly in the wilderness of Beer-Sheba, the water in the skin was used up," (Gn  21:14-15), and Ishmael was about to die of dehydration in the scorching heat of the sun. It was then that, Hagar, his broken-hearted mother, prayed to God, lamenting that she could not watch her son dying of thirst in the hot desert. Genesis tells us how God intervened and saved Hagar and her son. Centuries later on Calvary we see another mother - Mary - remaining at the foot of the cross of her son Jesus, determined to keep watch with him as he died for the sins of mankind and to hear his last sermon of seven words from the cross. We, too, are invited today to hear what she heard and to see how her son died as our Savior. Let us repeat what Peter said on the mountain of Jesus’ Transfiguration: "Lord, it is good that we are here." 

Introduction: There were three crosses on Golgotha.  On the right and on the left were two robbers being crucified for rebellion and murder. On the central cross, Jesus died for our sins. On one side of Jesus hung a criminal who taunted Jesus in disbelief; he died in sin. On the other side of Jesus, however, hung a criminal who believed in Jesus. He scolded the mocker and begged, “Jesus, remember me when You come into Your Kingdom.” He died to sin and, Jesus promised this thief would be with him in Paradise that very day. On the central cross (with its mocking title, “Jesus the Nazarene king of the Jews,” in three languages) hung a sinless Sufferer!  He was dying for the sins of the world.  Hanging on that cross, Jesus spoke seven times during the closing moments of his earthly life.  It has been an age-old practice in the Church to reflect on these last words of Jesus from the cross as an integral part of  the Good Friday observances so that we may repent of our sins and resolve to renew our lives and thus participate fully in the joy of Jesus' Resurrection. 

1. The word of Forgiveness: “Then said Jesus, ‘Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do’" (Lk 23:34). While the crucified convicts would shriek and curse and spit at the spectators, Jesus, innocent of any crime against God or humanity, betrayed, arrested, scourged, and condemned, did not. Now, from the cross, Jesus' thoughts reached above his pain and rejection. Instead of being consumed by his own pain and misery, Jesus asked forgiveness for those responsible for the evil done to him - and by extension, for all who ignorantly go the way of sin and death. Jesus prayed for those who condemned him, mocked him, and nailed him to the Cross - and for those who from all the nations and down through the years would crucify him by their sins.
Jesus is practicing what He preached - unconditional, forgiving love.  One day Jesus preached on the mountain, "Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them that spitefully use you and persecute you" (Mt 5:44).  Jesus reminded Peter that there should not be any limit to forgiveness.  He sadly addressed Judas, leading the soldiers to arrest him, as friend.  It is this model which the first Martyr Stephen followed (Acts 7:60).  Archbishop Oscar Romero, the outspoken champion of the oppressed, said the same first word of Jesus from the cross, as he was shot dead at the altar.  St. Cyprian gave gold coins as his farewell gift to his executioner, and St. Thomas More hugged and kissed his executioner.  It was Christ's unconditional forgiveness, with the darkness at noon and the earthquake, which prompted the centurion in charge of Jesus' crucifixion to proclaim, "Truly he was the Son of God." 

Anecdote: June 22, 1996 in Ann Arbor, Michigan, there was a rally of the Ku Klux Klan at the City Hall. It was quite legal. There were also 300 anti-Klan people assembled to protest the rally. One white male Klansman stood out, perhaps because he was proudly displaying Confederate flags on his vest and T-shirt. Suddenly, without warning, a swarm of angry anti-Klan demonstrators rushed him, pushed him to the ground, beat him with their signs and kicked him. Appalled, an 18-year-old African-American girl named Keisha Thomas, threw herself over the fallen man, shielding him with her own body from the kicks and punches. Keisha, when asked why she, a black teenager, would risk injury to protect a man who was a white supremacist said, "He's still somebody's child. I don't want people to remember my name, but I'd like them to remember I did the right thing." A black teen laying down her life for a racist - an enemy. I think Keisha understood Good Friday, understood Jesus' words "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do."

Life lesson--unconditional forgiveness: If someone hurts our feelings can we forgive that person, pray for God's blessings on him or her and continue to treat him or her as our friend?  Here is a Chinese proverb: "One who hates another digs two graves: one for himself and the other for the one he hates."  St. Paul admonishes, "Be ye therefore kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another" (Eph 4:32).  He advises the Romans: "If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals upon his head. Do not be conquered by evil but conquer evil with good" (12:20-21).

2. The word of Assurance: “Then [the criminal who had scolded his fellow criminal for mocking Jesus] said, ‘Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.’ He replied to him, ‘Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.’ (Lk 23:42-43).  On either side of Jesus, on their crosses were two thieves.  These two were really guilty men who deserved death.  When sunlight falls on wax it melts, but the same heat hardens clay.  The waxy heart of the thief on the right (traditionally called Dismas), literally melted with repentance at the sight of Jesus crucified, prompting him to address Jesus humbly and devoutly, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."  Jesus said, "Today you shall be with me in Paradise." Dismas did not have to confess all his sins to Jesus - Jesus forgave and forgot them all… and at once!  But the hard-hearted, unrepentant sinner on the left remained that way in spite of Jesus' presence and exemplary, heroic death right before his eyes.   

Judas committed the same folly as the thief on the left, hardening his heart with unbridled love for money, in spite of his three years of close association with Jesus and active participation in his healing and preaching ministry.  The same thing happened to Cardinal Woolsey of England who sided with the emperor Henry VIII in creating a heretical Christian denomination and died in despair, while Henry's Vice Chancellor, Sir Thomas More bravely courted martyrdom for his Faith and died a martyr’s death.

Life lesson: We are here to remember how Jesus died on the cross to save each human soul, paying his life as ransom.  Will we follow the example of the repentant thief who, seeing the death of Jesus, was converted  --  or will we go out of the Church today unmoved, our hearts hardened,   returning to the world of our sins and infidelity like the unrepentant sinner who died in his sins in the presence of the Lord of mercy and forgiveness? 

3. The word of Comfort:  “When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple there whom he loved, he said to his mother, ‘Woman, behold your son.’  Then he said to the disciple, ‘Behold, your mother.’ And from that hour the disciple took her into his home” (Jn 19:26-27). Jesus' disciples had deserted him; his friends had forsaken him; his nation had rejected him; and his enemies cried out for his blood.  But his faithful mother stood there sorrowing at the foot of the Cross.  Who can grasp the grief of Mary watching her son suffer - the grief of a mother watching her son die as a criminal on a cross?  And who can grasp the grief of the son - the son who must see his mother's heart pierced by a sword as prophesied by Simeon, when Jesus as a baby was presented in the Temple?  Jesus announces from the cross that he is going to give us the most valuable and the last gift: "Here is your mother." Here is the one I love, for you to love, and for her to love you - the one who taught me, the one who fed me, the one who wiped away my tears, the one who hugged me, the one who will be with you and pray for you.  

"Woman": That's how Jesus called her mother. Jesus is calling his mother by the most glorious word at that moment, "woman,” reminding us that his mother is the "woman" of Gn 3:15, the one who  will crush the head of the serpent, Satan, with the Blood of Christ which Jesus poured out for us to the last drop. He had nothing else left but his Mother, and he gave her to us, too. His own Mother was to be our spiritual Mother in his Church, his Mystical Body, of which he is the head, and the Christians the members. And, as in any other body, the Mother of the Head is also the Mother of the members of the Body, the Mother of each one of us (Col.1:18, Eph.4:5-6). Mary is the Mother of Sorrows, because at the foot of the Cross she suffered in spirit all Jesus suffered in the flesh and, so doing, gave birth to us in Christ. She is indeed our Mother.   

Life lesson: This is Jesus' loving death-bed gift to each of us who believe in him: Jesus’ own mother as our mother, -- the mother of Christians, mother of the Church -- to honor, love, and respect and imitate.  She is the supreme model of trusting Faith in God, the model of perfect obedience to the will of God, and the model of perfect surrender of one's life to God. "Behold, your mother!" Pope St. John Paul II said, in addressing World Youth Day (n. 3; ORE, 19 March 2003, p. 6), "Jesus addresses these words to each of you, dear friends. He also asks you to take Mary as your mother 'into your home', to welcome her 'as one of yours', because 'she will discharge her ministry as a mother and train you and mould you until Christ is fully formed in you.'" May Mary make it so that we respond generously to the Lord's call, and persevere with joy and fidelity in the Christian mission!  The words which the Finger of God engraved on two tables of stone at Mount Sinai were never repealed.  The Bible still says, "Honor your father and your mother."  Those of us, whose parents are still living, need to follow the example of Jesus on the Cross.  Women, behold your children; children, behold your mothers.

4. The word of Desolation: “From noon onward, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon.  And at about three o'clock Jesus cried out in a loud voice, ‘Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?’ which means, ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’”  (Mt  27:45-46).  This fourth and central Word of Jesus on the Cross is another prayer, from the Psalms. All during his ministry Jesus had known what it meant to be forsaken.  Early, the members of his own family forsook him.  Nazareth, his home-town, had forsaken him.  The nation he came to save rejected him.  But in every such instance he could always steal away to the tender healing fellowship of his Heavenly Father and find his purpose and strength in His presence.  But now, even God seems to have turned away from him, permitting him to experience the ultimate intensity of rejection and loneliness in human life. Hence, Jesus quoted the first portion of Psalm 22:1, a prophecy of the Messiah's suffering and exaltation.

Life lesson: Every one of us experiences despair and rejection at certain periods of our life. When our dear ones die or fall terminally ill, when the only support of the family is accidentally removed, when the spouses are divorced, when the country faces serious threats to its safety, we ask the question, "Where is God?" Shortly before he died, Voltaire (Francois-Marie Arouet), the French atheist and writer, is reported to have said the following words to his physician, "I am abandoned by God and man! I will give you half of what I am worth if you will give me six more months of life." 

Anecdote: Rose Kennedy's children nine children were a joy to her. In her 1974 autobiography, Times to Remember (as quoted in her obituary), she declares, “I looked upon child-rearing not only as a work of love and a duty but as a profession … What greater aspiration and challenge are there for a mother than the hope of raising a great son or daughter?”  Rose, a life-long devout Catholic lost her first son in 1944 in World War II flying a mission from England; her daughter Kathleen, widowed in the same war, in 1948 in a plane crash; her second son, President  John Fitzgerald Kennedy, to assassination in 1963; and her third son, Robert Francis (“Bobby”), then running for the Democratic Presidential candidacy,  to assassination). Of her family’s response to all these griefs, she wrote (in the context of Jack’s death), “We in the family reacted to our common grief in our own ways. But we could all be reasonably steady because of the faith, hope, and love we shared. And because we knew quite well what Jack would want from us.  He would want courage, he would want as many smiles as we could manage, and he would want his death to be an affirmation of life” (382). Rose persevered in her Faith and trust in God, declaring at the end of the autobiography,  “If God were to take away all His blessings, health, physical fitness, wealth, intelligence, and leave me but one gift, I would ask for Faith—for with Faith in Him, in His goodness, mercy, love for me, and belief in everlasting life, I believe I could suffer the loss of my other gifts and still be happy—trustful, leaving all to His inscrutable providence.  When I start my day with a prayer of consecration to Him, with complete trust and confidence, I am perfectly relaxed and happy regardless of what accident of fate befalls me because I know it is part of His divine plan and He will take care of me and my dear ones” (444).   Jesus invites us to have this kind of trusting Faith -- the trusting Faith of the Old Testament Job -  in our moments of despair and helplessness. (https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/column/rose-mother-of-john-f-kennedy-2741) & video:  https://youtu.be/FDnHiiWt1SY)

Life lesson: Jesus' word of desolation teaches us that there is no despair so deep, no evil so overwhelming, no place so far removed from joy, light, and love, or even from the very heart of God which God Incarnate has not experienced before us, and where God cannot meet us and bring us home.  In the hardest moments, when we have been stretched out and are in great pain, we always know that He is there, by our side, feeling everything that we are feeling, and that He will not fail us, forsake us, or abandon us.  Jesus is atoning for the sins of despair by experiencing rejection from all quarters.  Let us never lose hope of the mercy of a loving and forgiving God in spite of the number and gravity of our sins.  Jesus is also teaching us the truth of the horrible reality of Hell, of the eternal and sad fate of forsaking of God.

5. The word of Suffering: "After this, Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, ‘I thirst’" (Jn 19:28).  "Zhena" - "I thirst," the fifth word of Jesus from the cross, is the shortest of the seven, reminding us of Psalm 22:15: "My throat is as dry as dust, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth." While Jesus was dying on the Cross, he had developed an agonizing thirst.  Death by Crucifixion is one of the most painful modes of torture ever devised by man.  The draining away of blood from the body brings on intensive thirst.   The physical agony of thirst is terrible beyond the power of words to describe. The whole body cries out for water - water to moisten a parched mouth, water to free a swollen tongue, water to open a rasping throat that cannot gasp enough air, water to keep life alive just a few moments longer.  The psalmist prayed (Psalm 63:2): "O God, you are my God -- for you I long!  For you my body yearns; for you my soul thirsts, like a land parched, lifeless, and without water."

Jesus expressed this thirst for souls in his encounter with the Samaritan woman at the well, offering her the water of everlasting life. Jesus thirsts for souls. He is dying to save our souls from sin and from Satan, souls who will live performing the glorious duty of doing the will of God, souls who will burn with the fire of the love of God, souls who will love their neighbor, because whatever they do to their neighbor they are doing it to Christ (Mt 25:31-46). The chapels of the houses of Mother Teresa of Calcutta have the word, "I thirst" at the side of every Tabernacle. Jesus was thirsty for souls who love, who live this life saved by Christ doing good, feeding the hungry, helping the sick and the needy, and visiting those in prison.  All the great missionaries from St. Paul to Pope St. John Paul II have been keenly aware of this great Christian mission.  St. Francis Xavier's prayer was, "give me souls and take away everything else from me."

Life lesson: Jesus' thirst was more for souls who really thirst for God.  All Christians are to be missionaries who satiate this thirst of Christ by preaching him, mainly through their exemplary and transparent Christian lives, and drawing others to love and believe in Him. When Jesus says, "I thirst," he is not only identifying with the needs of humanity, he is experiencing them. When we thirst, Christ thirsts. When the poor thirst for clean water to drink, Christ thirsts. When children thirst for parents who will love them and not abuse them, Christ thirsts. When those who are marginalized by society because of gender, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, or political views thirst for belonging, Christ thirsts.

6. The word of Triumph: "When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, ‘It is finished’" (Jn 19:30).  The Savior was about to die. It was for this cause that Jesus had come into the world and, now that His mission was accomplished, He declared definitively, "It is finished!" meaning that the work of salvation entrusted to him as the Messiah of God   is now "accomplished, fulfilled, achieved." Jesus lived only half the normal span of human life in his century.  During that time, he was criticized and despised and rejected.  He was captured in the Garden of Gethsemane, led to the Judgment Hall, and condemned to die.  Now his suffering has ended. The ordeal is  finished, and nothing remaines but the blessed peace of the absence of all sensation.  Furthermore, all that was prophesied and prefigured in the Old Testament concerning His death has been fulfilled.  And finally, the work of redemption planned by God the Father from all eternity has been completed.  But Jesus' declaration is more than just welcoming the ending of pain, and it is more than joy at the deliverance death brings.  He does not merely say, "It is over;" he says, "It is accomplished, fulfilled, achieved."  Scholars got more insight into the meaning of this expression a few years ago after some archaeologists dug up in the Holy Land a tax collector's office that was almost intact, with all the tax records and everything. There were two stacks of tax records and one of them had the word, tetelestai, on the top. In other words, "paid in full." These people don't owe anything anymore. So, when Jesus said, "It is finished," what is finished? It is the debt we owe God by our sins. It has been paid in full! This is a declaration of victory.  It echoes the statements of completion in Genesis (2:1) and Revelation (16:17). The words "It is finished" are also a declaration of victory in the sense that Jesus has completed, accomplished, what God had sent him to do in this world. This victory is  like that of the athlete who enters a marathon race with the single-minded intention of both reaching the finishing line and coming in first. It is like that of the student who is finally reaching the goal after years of study, namely, graduation and a degree. It is like that of the author or artist, who after years of research and struggle finally completes his masterpiece, his most significant and enduring work. It is like that of the person who has  undergone major surgery and has recuperated completely. For John the words of Jesus, "It is finished," are the epitome of Christ's life and ministry; the words are spoken by the King of kings on his throne, which is the cross. Jesus has won the victory over sin, evil, and death by willingly, and lovingly, allowing himself to submit to these powers. In so doing, he has defeated them.  

Life lesson: Can I die saying joyfully and gratefully the sixth and seventh words of Christ in all sincerity?  It is possible if I live my Christian life doing the will of God in all sincerity and commitment. If a Christian is in the kitchen doing the will of God, said, St. Teresa of Calcutta (Mother Teresa), her actions are as important to God as when the Pope is preaching to millions. 

7. The word of Committal: "Jesus cried out in a loud voice, 'Father, into your hands I commend my spirit'; and when he had said this he breathed his last"(Lk 23:46).  Jesus was always submitting himself to God, and when he died, he died just as he had lived.  Jesus entrusted his spirit -- his life -- and all that had given it meaning  to God his Father in Faith.  Even at the point of his own abandonment, when the good seemed so very far away, he proclaimed his Faith in God which the darkness could not overcome: "Father, into your hands, I commend my spirit."

Life lesson: We, too, are told "Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him and He will act” (Ps 37:5). Let us live in such a way as to hear the welcome words of God our Father, "This is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased."  The Christian should be able (like Stephen in Acts 7), to cry with his last breath, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." When we see someone hurting, how often have we listened,  and invited the sufferer to prayer? How often have we failed to invite someone to Mass, a prayer service, or Bible study, because of the possibility of rejection? Just as Christ taught us to pray, he also offered this small prayer for strength, "Into your hands, Father, I commend my Spirit." 

 
Concluding anecdotes #1) "HE DIED FOR ME."  It was February 1941, Auschwitz, Poland. Maximilian Kolbe was a Franciscan priest put in the infamous death camp for helping Jews escape Nazi terrorism.
Months went by and in desperation, one of his fellow prisoners escaped from the camp.  The camp rule was enforced. Ten people would be rounded up randomly and herded into a cell where they would die of starvation and a final exposure to lethal gas, as a lesson against future escape attempts. Names were called. A Polish Jew, Frandishek Gasovnachek, was called. He cried, "Please spare me, I have a wife and children!" Kolbe stepped forward and said, "I will take his place." Kolbe was marched into the starvation cell with nine others where he managed to live until August 14, 1941. This story was chronicled on NBC news special several years ago. Gasovnachek, by this time 82, was shown telling this story while tears streamed down his cheeks. A mobile camera followed him around his little white house to a marble monument carefully tended with flowers. The inscription read: IN MEMORY OF MAXIMILIAN KOLBE HE DIED IN MY PLACE. Every day Gasovnachek lived since 1941, he lived with the knowledge, "I live because someone died for me." Every year on August 14 he travels to Auschwitz in memory of Kolbe. "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends" (John 15:13).

# 2) The gladiator: Rome was celebrating its temporary victory over Alaric the Goth in its usual manner, by watching gladiators fight to the death in the arena, when suddenly there was an interruption.  A rudely-robed figure boldly leaped down into the arena.  Telemachus was one of the hermits who devoted themselves to a holy life of prayer and self-denial and kept themselves apart from the wicked life of Rome.  Although few of the Roman citizens followed their example, most of them had great respect for these hermits, and the few who recognized Telemachus knew that he had come from the wilds of Asia Minor on a pilgrimage to visit churches and to celebrate Christmas in Rome.  Without any hesitation, Telemachus advanced upon the two gladiators who were engaged in their life-and-death struggle.  Laying a hand on one of them, he sternly reproved him for shedding innocent blood, and then, turning toward the thousands of angry faces around him, called to them: "Do not repay God's mercy in turning away the swords of your enemies by murdering each other!"
Angry shouts drowned out his voice.  "This is no place for preaching!  On with the combat!"  Pushing Telemachus aside, the two gladiators prepared to continue their combat, but Telemachus stepped between them.  Enraged at the interference of an outsider with their chosen vocation, the gladiators turned on Telemachus and stabbed him to death.  The crowd fell silent, shocked by the death of this holy man.  But his death had not been in vain, for from that day on, no more gladiators ever went into combat in the Roman Colosseum (Source: John Foxe, Foxe's Christian Martyrs of the World, pp. 26-27).

# 3: How can I ask God "Why Me?" Arthur Ashe, the legendary Wimbledon player was dying of AIDS which he contracted from infected blood he received during a heart surgery in 1983. From the world over, he received letters from his fans.  One of them asked, "Why does God have to select you for such a bad disease?"
To this Arthur Ashe replied: “The world over--50,000,000 children start playing tennis, 5,000,000 learn to play tennis, 500,000 learn professional tennis, 50,000 come to the circuit, 5000 reach the grand slam, 50 reach the Wimbledon, 4 to semi-finals, 2 to finals. When I was the one holding the cup, I never asked God, "Why me?" And today in pain, I should not be asking GOD "Why me?" (http://boardofwisdom.com/togo/Quotes/ShowQuote?msgid=181446#.VWobr0oo4dU)  L/22

“Scriptural Homilies” Cycle C (No.26) by Fr. Tony: akadavil@gmail.com

Visit my website by clicking on http://frtonyshomilies.com/ for missed or previous Cycle A homilies, 141 Year of Faith “Adult Faith Formation Lessons” (useful for RCIA classes too) & 197 “Question of the Week.” Contact me only at akadavil@gmail.com. Visit also https://www.catholicsermons.com/homilies/sunday_homilies  under Fr. Tony’s homilies and  under Resources in the CBCI website:  https://www.cbci.in  for other website versions.  (Vatican Radio website: http://www.vaticannews.va/en/church.html uploaded my Cycle A, B and C homilies in from 2018-2020)  Fr. Anthony Kadavil, Chaplain, Sacred Heart Residence of the Little Sisters of the Poor, 1655 McGill Ave, Mobile, AL 36604 .

Lent V [C] (April 3) Sunday (Eight-minute homily in one page) L/22

Introduction: Reminding us of God’s readiness to forgive sin, give the sinner a second chance, bind up broken lives, and restore people to His friendship, today’s readings challenge us to show the same mercy to the sinners around us and to live as forgiven people, actively seeking reconciliation with God and one another. The central theme of all three readings is a merciful God’s steadfast love.  The readings remind us that we should not be self-righteous and condemn the lives of others when God is calling them tenderly to conversion. 

Scripture lessons summarized: Explaining how a merciful God forgives the sins of His chosen people and leads them back from the Babylonian exile, the first reading reminds us that we too are forgiven, and we are saved from our own sinfulness. In the second reading, Paul presents himself as a forgiven sinner who has been completely transformed by his Faith in Christ Jesus. His life is an example of the Gospel exhortation, “Sin no more.” Paul loves Christ so much he wants to share in His sufferings and even in His death so that he may share Christ’s Resurrection. The sinful woman’s story of sin committed, and sin forgiven in today’s Gospel, shows the inexhaustible mercy and compassion Jesus offers to repentant sinners. In addition, by making sinlessness the condition for throwing the first stone, Jesus forces the accusers to assess their own souls and to leave. Thus, He grants justice to the accusers and mercy to the sinful woman. In our own lives, we bear witness to the Justice of God by confessing our sinfulness and resolving to avoid sin, and we bear witness to God’s Mercy by accepting the forgiveness of our sins and promising to forgive those who have offended us. 

Life messages: # 1: We need to become forgiving people, ready for reconciliation: Jesus has shown inexhaustible mercy and compassion to sinners by dying for our sins. But we are often self-righteous, like the Pharisees, and ready to spread scandal about others with a bit of spicy gossip. We are judgmental about the unmarried mother, the alcoholic, the drug addict, or the shoplifter, ignoring Jesus’ command: “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.”  Let us learn to acknowledge our sins, ask God’s forgiveness every day and extend the same forgiveness to our erring brothers and sisters. We need to learn to hate the sin but love the sinners, showing them Jesus’ compassion and working with the Holy Spirit to make our own lives exemplary so that we can help lead them to Jesus’ ways. 

2) We have no right to judge others: We have no right to judge others because we often commit the very faults we condemn, we are often partial and prejudiced in our judgments, and we do not know the circumstances which have led someone to sin. Hence, let us leave the judgment to our merciful God Who does read people’s hearts. We should show mercy and compassion to those who sin because we ourselves are sinners in need of God’s forgiveness. The apostle Paul reminds us: “But if we judged ourselves, we would not come under judgment.” (1 Cor 11:31). 

Lent V [C] (April 3) Is 43:16-21; Phil 3:8-14; Jn 8:1-11  

Homily starter anecdotes # 1: Divine mercy on Chuck Colson: Probably, Chuck Colson (Charles Chuck Wendell Colson, 1931-2012) got inspiration from John Profumo to make a similar change of direction during the seven months  he served in the Federal Prison, Maxwell, Alabama, for acting as President Nixon's "hatchet man” in the Watergate Scandal. After his prison term, Colson became an Evangelical Christian leader who founded Prison Fellowship and Breakpoint. He was the founder and chairman of The Chuck Colson Center for Christian Worldview, which is "a research, study, and networking center for growing in a Christian worldview.” While Colson lived, the Center’s work included Colson's daily radio commentary,  Break Point, which was heard in its original format on more than 1,400 outlets across the United States. Colson was a principal signer of the 1994 Evangelicals and Catholics Together ecumenical document. He was joined by leading Evangelical Protestants and Roman Catholic leaders in the United States. -- Today’s Gospel describes how Jesus restored a sinful woman by lavishing on her his Divine mercy and forgiveness. She may have become Christ’s follower bearing witness to his mercy till her death. (http://frtonyshomilies.com/)

2) Second chance: Dr. A.J. Cronin was a great Christian physician in England. One night he assigned a young nurse to a little boy who had been brought to the hospital suffering from diphtheria and given only a slight chance to live. A tube was inserted into the boy's throat to help him breathe. It was the nurse's job periodically to clean out the tube. As the nurse sat beside the boy's bed, she accidentally dozed off. She awakened to find that the tube had become blocked. Instead of following instructions, she was immobilized by panic. Hysterically she called the doctor from his home. By the time he got to the boy, he was dead. Dr. Cronin was angry beyond expression. That night Dr. Cronin went to his office and wrote his recommendation to the board demanding the immediate expulsion of the nurse. He called her in and read it, his voice trembling with anger. She stood there in pitiful silence, a tall, thin, gawky Welsh girl. She nearly fainted with shame and remorse. "Well," asked Dr. Cronin in a harsh voice, "have you nothing to say for yourself?" There was more silence. Then she uttered this pitiful plea, "...please give me another chance." Dr. Cronin sent her away. But he could not sleep that night. He kept hearing some words from the dark distance: "Forgive us our trespasses." The next morning Dr. Cronin went to his desk and tore up the report. In the years that followed he watched as this slim, nervous girl became the head of a large hospital and one of the more honored nurses in England. -- Thank God for a second chance, and a third chance, and fourth chance! Do you need to encounter God's forgiveness? He died on a cross to make it available. (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) 

# 3: How to Clean Practically Anything -- except sin! Consumers Report put out a little book entitled, How to Clean Practically Anything. The book tells you what solvent to use for nearly every kind of stain. Here are a few. Glycerin will remove the stain from a ball point pen. Boiling water will remove berry stains. Vinegar will remove crayon stains. To remove a rust stain from your cotton work clothes, moisten the spot with some full-strength vinegar and then rub in a bit of salt. Ammonia will remove blood stains. Alcohol will remove grass stains. Hydrogen peroxide is good for magic marker stains. Mix a teaspoon of 3% hydrogen peroxide with a little cream of tartar or a dab of non-gel toothpaste. Rub the paste on the stain with a soft cloth. Rinse. The stain, whatever it was, should be gone. Try a little meat tenderizer to remove protein-based stains like milk, chocolate, and blood from clothes. Use bleach on mildew stains. Lemon juice works well on rust stains. -- But you know what? The book lists absolutely nothing for the stain of sin. And the reason it doesn't is because there is only One Person Who can do that. Only Jesus Christ, the Incarnation of Divine Mercy, as described in today’s Gospel, can forgive us our sins when we repent, confess our sins, and ask God’s pardon and forgiveness. (http://frtonyshomilies.com/)

# 4: Mother Teresa on the Sacrament of Divine Mercy: While Mother Teresa is certainly famous for the charity with which she poured herself out in love for Christ in the distressing disguise of lepers, AIDS victims, the dying, and the untouchables, she was likewise a great “Missionary of Mercy” in calling everyone to receive Jesus’ forgiving love in the Sacrament of Confession, a Sacrament she received at least once a week. She would counsel others, “One thing is necessary for us: Confession. Confession is nothing but humility in action. We call it Penance, but really it is a Sacrament of Love, a Sacrament of forgiveness. It is a place where I allow Jesus to take away from me everything that divides, that destroys. Confession is a beautiful act of great love. Only in confession can we go in as sinners with sin and come out as sinners without sin. … There’s no need for us to despair, no need for us to commit suicide, no need for us to be discouraged, if we have understood the tenderness of God’s love.” -- She said elsewhere, very simply, “Confession is Jesus and I, and nobody else.” And then she told us, “Remember this for life.” (http://frtonyshomilies.com/)

Introduction: Today’s readings remind us, first, of the horror and the just consequences of sin; second, of the incredible gift of God’s mercy; and third, of what we need to do to receive that mercy. Reminding us of God’s readiness to forgive sin and to restore people to His friendship, today’s readings challenge us to show the same mercy to the sinners around us and to live as forgiven people, actively seeking reconciliation. Mercy and pardon are the hallmarks of the Christian. The central theme of all three readings is a merciful God’s steadfast love. Both the verses of the Responsorial Psalm (Ps 126) and the reading from Paul invite us to respond to such Divine graciousness with joy and gratitude.  The readings also encourage us to reflect seriously on the ultimate example of God’s compassionate love for us. They remind us that we cannot self-righteously condemn the lives of others when God is calling them tenderly to conversion. Repentance is not something we do. Rather, repentance is allowing the forgiving power of God to touch our lives and lead us along new paths. Explaining how a merciful God forgives the sins of His chosen people and leads them back from the Babylonian exile, the first reading reminds us that we too are forgiven, and that we are saved from our own sinfulness. In the Responsorial Psalm (Ps 126), the Psalmist reminds us of the joy God’s Mercy brings us when we ask for and receive His pardon. In the second reading, Paul presents himself as a forgiven sinner who has been completely transformed by his Faith in Christ Jesus. His life is an example of obedience to the Gospel exhortation, “Sin no more.” Paul loves Christ so much that he wants to share in his sufferings and even in his death so that Paul                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 may share in Christ’s Resurrection. The sinful woman’s story of sin committed, and sin forgiven in today’s Gospel also shows the inexhaustible mercy and compassion Jesus grants to sinners. It invites us to recognize and experience in our own  lives both God’s Justice and His Mercy. We bear witness to the Justice of God by confessing our sinfulness and determining to avoid sin, and we bear witness to God’s Mercy by accepting the forgiveness of our sins and by determining to forgive those who have offended us.

First reading: Is 43:16-21, explained: Today’s Old Testament passage comes from the part of the Book of Isaiah that celebrates the permission from Cyrus the Great (538 BC), for Israel to return to Jerusalem from its exile in Babylon. After blaming the people, through His prophet Isaiah, for the unfaithfulness that had led to their exile, the Lord God assures the Babylonian exiles that He is going to end their prophesied 70 years' exile in Babylon. By having Isaiah remind them of how God had liberated their ancestors from their slavery in Egypt eight centuries earlier, (miraculously destroying the army of the Pharaoh and providing their food and water in the desert), the Lord God assures the exiles that He has forgiven their sins. Through His prophet, the Lord exhorts His people to look to the past and to remember the wondrous acts He has wrought for them through all the stages of their development as a people.  He tells them He will provide for their return journey from Babylon to Jerusalem, giving them food, water, and protection from wild animals in the desert. The reading gives us the message that we, too, are forgiven, and we are, with His grace, walking His Way of Salvation away from our own sinfulness and toward Heaven.  Today we hear the Lord God, through His Prophet Isaiah both reminding the exiled Jews of how God saved them in their Exodus from Egypt, and promising a new Exodus that will make the original pale by contrast. Paul tells us (in the second reading) that new Exodus is the death and resurrection of Jesus. We  can be part of that new Exodus by following Christ in his suffering. We are already united with Christ but we are not finished; we must still run the race; we are called to deeper conversion, to more complete identification with him. It is like the woman caught in adultery. She was forgiven and given life, but she was commanded “Go, and sin more.” Like us she embarked on a life-long commitment to Christ.

Second reading: Phil 3: 8-14, explained: Saint Paul had tried all his life to earn God's favor by carefully keeping the Law of Moses and by zealously doing what he thought God wanted. Paul enjoyed Roman citizenship and, in addition to his knowledge of the Greek language, culture, and philosophies, he had also been schooled in his Jewish heritage under Gamaliel, an eminent rabbi (Acts 22:3). His conversion to Christ made him re-evaluate all that "as loss" and "rubbish." Thus, Paul expresses his deep regret and repentance for having persecuted Jesus in His Church and for his own futile attempts at “earning righteousness” by strict observance of the Mosaic Law before his conversion. Now he understands that the only real way to righteousness is to accept it as an undeserved gift of God's grace. Faith here means belief that Jesus Christ has won this righteousness for us. Faith also means making the honest admission that we, by ourselves, cannot keep any law well enough to earn righteousness, with the confidence that God is good enough to give it to us anyway. Paul does not renounce the moral law, but he sees the righteousness that comes through Faith in Christ as the righteousness from God.  As a result, he loves Christ so much he wants to share in his sufferings, even in his death, so that Paul may share in Christ’s Resurrection. Just as, in the first reading, Judah is invited by a forgiving God to forget its past sins and their dreadful consequences, Paul acknowledges that the merciful Lord has unconditionally pardoned his sins against Christians. Paul regards himself as having “been taken possession of by Christ Jesus,” and as constantly striving to be ever more conformed to the pattern set by Christ. 

Gospel exegesis: Text omitted by ancient manuscripts: This powerful narrative of Jesus and the accused woman is not found in the earliest and best manuscripts of John, but appears in other important manuscripts after Lk 21:38. Almost all scholars today recognize that this text was not originally part of John’s Gospel—but it was obviously such an important story from the life of Jesus that the early Christians wanted to ensure it was not lost, even if they weren’t entirely sure of where to place it. It seems to have much more in common with Luke’s Gospel, and it is very possible that it is a fragment from one of Luke’s sources.  This account is undeniably rich in theological and moral significance, and in psychological and human drama.  Still, early Church authors, such as Papias (ca. A.D. 120) and the author of the Syriac “Teaching of the Twelve Apostles” (3rd cent.), knew of such an incident, and Jerome included it in his translation. For these reasons the story is judged canonical by Catholics. It might have been omitted in some early rigorist traditions because the early Church, in its struggle to maintain strict penitential discipline, perhaps could not deal with the ease with which Jesus forgave the woman. In this episode Jesus seemed too “soft” on sin. Perhaps for this reason, the story was temporarily set aside by the early Church and was only later granted canonical approbation.

 The context and the trap: The incident happened in Jerusalem, in the precincts of the Temple where Jesus had been teaching. [“The scribes and the Pharisees” is often a stock phrase in the Gospels for “those Jews who disagreed with Jesus and opposed him.”] The scribes were a group of people with special training in Scripture and in the interpretation of Jewish law. They were also called lawyers or theologians and most of them were Pharisees. [The Pharisees were members of a lay movement that sought to extend God’s reign into every aspect of a person’s day.] The scribes and Pharisees brought forward a woman caught in the act of adultery. It was a pitiful, heart-wrenching scenario, calculated to cause her ultimate shame. The Mosaic penalty for such an offense was death by stoning, although there is no evidence that this ever took place, certainly not in Roman times. Besides, Moses commanded that both partners in adultery should be stoned, not only the woman. (Lv 20:10; Dt 22:22). Stoning was mostly done in cases of blasphemy; such was the case with Stephen, whom we read about in the book of Acts. The Jewish civil and criminal code considered three grave sins as punishable by death, namely idolatry, murder, and adultery. Deuteronomy prescribes death by strangulation for a married woman caught in adultery. If the guilty woman is betrothed, she has to be stoned. In both cases they have violated God’s sixth commandment and have destroyed the fidelity and unity of marriage. "It is a terrible thing for a sinner to fall into the hands of his fellow sinners.” (F. B. Meyer). His opponents wanted to use the occasion to embarrass Jesus, because he had the reputation of proclaiming God’s mercy toward sinners. If he insisted on following the Law exactly, his reputation as a prophet of God’s mercy would be open to question. Besides, if Jesus consented to her death by strangulation or stoning, he would be violating the Roman law, which forbade killing by private citizens. If he took the side of the adulterous woman, he was open to the charge of ignoring God’s Law and God’s Justice as given by Moses. This was the ingenious trap they had set for Jesus.

Jesus’ fair verdict: Initially, Jesus showed his lack of interest in the case by simply writing on the ground. But he was the only one in the group who could rightly judge the woman. The woman waited to hear Jesus' verdict. She knew that she was guilty. She had passed the judgment on herself, and she accepted Jesus' right to do the same. Perfectly understanding the secret intentions of her self-righteous accusers and the helplessness of the repentant sinner, Jesus gave his verdict: “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” Jesus confronts their self-righteousness with a demand that they first examine their own consciences before they accuse another. Thus, he turned the accusers’ attention back on themselves and made them realize that they, too, were sinners. St. Augustine puts Jesus’ stand as follows: “Let this woman be punished, but not by sinners; let the law be applied, but not by its transgressors.” Thus, Jesus ingeniously escaped from the trap by leaving the judgment to the consciences of the accusers. This reduced the accusers to silence, prompting them to leave in shame. According to Jewish custom, in the absence of eyewitnesses, the eldest should have begun the stoning, and since stoning was work, it was forbidden on a Sabbath day according to Mosaic law,  and stoning one to death was a violation of Roman law.  So,  the accusers melted away, beginning with the elders, who, like the elders in the story of Susannah (Dn 13), had probably brought the charge.  Since the elders left scene first followed by youngsters the case against the woman was dismissed.  By appealing to the Justice of God and the injustice of humans, Jesus upheld God’s mercy. The moral of the story is not that sin is of no importance, or that God does not punish sin, but that God extends mercy to repentant sinners in order that they may turn from their sins.

Jesus keeps scribbling in the sand: The response of Jesus was a symbolic action. According to the Gospel writer: “Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with his finger” (Jn 8:6).This parabolic act is probably an allusion to Jer 17:3: “Those who turn away from thee shall be written in the earth, for they have forsaken the Lord, the fountain of living water.” If so, Jesus’ writing on the ground is an indirect reminder of the “guilt” of those who were condemning the adulterous woman. Jesus is saying that he will not permit the Law to be manipulated by the Pharisees to condemn those they label as sinners, when the hypocritical condemners themselves are also sinners. Thus, just as the scribbling of Jesus that was written on the ground or in the sand will disappear with the wind and rain and be forgotten, so will the sins that God has forgiven disappear and be forgotten.

Judgment with a stern warning: Since Jesus knew that her sin was a violation of the sixth commandment, “You shall not commit adultery,” he gave the woman the strong warning, “Go, and from now on, do not sin anymore.” Jesus did not shrink from calling her deed a sin, inappropriate and offensive to the Justice of God. He forgave the sinner, but he upheld the Justice of God by not excusing or explaining away the sin. Without minimizing her sinfulness, Jesus showed the sinner the respect she deserved as a human being, treating her with compassion. Clearly, he valued repentance and conversion more than simple reprisal. Not only did Jesus not condemn the woman, he also gave her hope for the future. Jesus is thus portrayed as a living expression of the Divine Mercy, a wise and kind judge, more concerned with forgiveness and rehabilitation than with punishment and death. St. Augustine captures this scene with his apt remark: relicti sunt duo miseria et misericordia (“There are but two left: misery and mercy”). Her story of sin committed, and sin forgiven is an example of the inexhaustible mercy and compassion shown by Jesus to sinners. When we repent and express sorrow for our sins Jesus will say “Neither will I condemn you. Go and sin no more.” Jesus’ answer is somewhat ambiguous, and it is perhaps because it was considered “soft” on sexual immorality that some Christian communities might have hesitated to incorporate this particular story into their New Testaments. But Jesus does tell her “not to sin again,” which certainly implies that her behavior was, in fact, sinful; He does not excuse the fact of the sin, or deny its wrongness, but He chooses not to dwell on it, knowing that the entire experience has been more than traumatic enough.

Story of Divine mercy: God imposed the death penalty in the Old Testament for all types of serious sins: for idolatry, murder, blasphemy, using the Lord’s name in vain, profaning the Sabbath, cursing or striking father and mother, kidnapping, and several sexual sins (see Ex 19, 21, 22, 31, 35 and Lv 20). The Church still teaches that there is still a “death penalty,” an eternal death penalty, associated with such grave sins. That is why we call this type of sin “mortal,” or “deadly.” When we commit such an act with full knowledge and deliberate consent, we die spiritually, we commit spiritual suicide, and we cause definitive self-separation from God. When we understand why the death penalty is just for such sins, we will appreciate in its depth God’s merciful love on the Cross. Besides, God Himself revealed, especially through the Prophets Jeremiah, Isaiah, Hosea, and Ezekiel that every sin is an act of adultery because it is being unfaithful to the spousal covenant of love we have entered into with God (see Jer 3:20, Is 1:21, Is 57:8, Hos 2:2-5, Hos 3:1-5, Hos 9:1, Ez 16:30). Hence, the story of the woman caught in adultery helps us recognize and receive the immensity of God’s mercy. That is why Pope Francis in his first Sunday homily as Pope declared: “God never tires of forgiving us…. It’s we who tire of asking for forgiveness.” Then he prayed, “May we never tire of asking for what God never tires to give!” According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, home is the first Christian school where one learns love and repeated forgiveness (CCC #1657), based on the loving mercy of God. The gates of forgiveness should always be open to anyone who turns away from sin. There is no sin, however serious, that the Church cannot forgive (CCC #982).

Life messages: # 1: We need to become forgiving people, ready for reconciliation: Jesus has shown inexhaustible mercy and compassion to sinners by dying for our sins. But we are often self-righteous, like the Pharisees, and ready to spread scandal about others with a bit of spicy gossip. We are judgmental about the unmarried mother, the alcoholic, the drug addict, or the shoplifter, ignoring Jesus’ command: “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.”  Let us learn to acknowledge our sins, ask God’s forgiveness every day and extend the same forgiveness to our erring brothers and sisters. We need to learn to hate the sin but love the sinners, showing them Jesus’ compassion and working with the Holy Spirit to make our own lives exemplary so that we can help lead them to Jesus’ ways.

2) We have no right to judge others: We have no right to judge others because we often commit the very faults we condemn, we are often partial and prejudiced in our judgment and we do not know the circumstances which have led someone to sin. Hence, let us leave the judgment to our just and merciful God who reads people’s hearts. We should show mercy and compassion to those who sin because we ourselves are sinners in need of God’s forgiveness. The apostle Paul reminds us: “But if we judged ourselves, we would not come under judgment.” (1 Cor 11:31).

JOKES OF THE WEEK:

1) Pastor and Farmer: “Do you smoke, drink or curse?” The pastor asked the old farmer. It was a hesitant, “Well, every once in a while.” “You know, John, I don’t smoke, drink, or cuss…” “Yessuh, pastor, but you don’t farm either...!”

2) Gary Dearing told a story about his Air Force Colonel, who served as inspector general of his command, and paid particular attention to how personnel wore their uniforms. “On one occasion the Colonel spotted a junior airman with a violation. ‘Airman,’ he bellowed, ‘What do you do when a shirt pocket is unbuttoned?’ The startled airman replied, ‘Button it, sir!’ The Colonel looked him in the eye and said, ‘Well?’ At that, the airman nervously reached over and buttoned the Colonel's shirt pocket.”

Websites of the Week

1)  Fr. Don’ collection of video homilies & blogs: https://sundayprep.org

2) Video Sunday-Scripture study by Fr. Geoffrey Plant:

 https://www.youtube.com/user/GeoffreyPlant2066

3) Dr. Brant Pitre’s commentary on Cycle B Sunday Scripture: https://catholicproductions.com/blogs/mass-readings-explained-year-c 

4) Website for young adults: http://bustedhalo.com/ 

5) Collection of Catholic Q & A; http://www.catholicqanda.com/ 

6. Bible on your desktop: http://www.usccb.org/bible/books-of-the-bible/index.cfm 

7. Catholic answers: http://www.catholic.com/ 

8. Text week homilies: http://www.textweek.com/mkjnacts/jn8.htm 

23 additional anecdotes:

1) Ann Landers: Some time ago a lady wrote to the famous advice columnist Ann Landers and asked this question, "Do all men cheat on their wives? I have been suspicious of my husband for some time. I even hired a private detective to trail him, but he couldn't come up with a thing. I went to a lawyer. He told me to grow up and accept the fact that all husbands fool around. Do they?" Ann Landers very wisely replied, "No. There are plenty of married men who never cheat, and your husband could be one of them. The only thing you can be fairly sure of is that your lawyer cheats on his wife." -- Cheating on one's wife or husband is called adultery in the Bible. It is prohibited by the Sixth Commandment. (http://frtonyshomilies.com/)

2) The Scarlet Letter: In 1850 Nathaniel Hawthorne published The Scarlet Letter. Its setting was a Puritan community in Boston in early New England. Hawthorne’s novel tells the story of Hester Prynne who was forced to wear the scarlet letter “A” for “adultery” because she had given birth to an illegitimate child and refused to name the father. The child’s father was none other than the community’s minister, Arthur Dimmesdale. Hester bore the letter, the public scorn and the humiliation alone, while the minister had merely to bear the pangs of conscience. After many years, the minister finally confessed his secret sin to the people and later died in peace. Hester continued to wear her letter, and went on to live like a saint bringing happiness to her disturbed illegitimate daughter and helping others in their troubles. The townsfolk said the letter stood, not for Adultery as it had done but now for Able, and a sign of honor. -- The Scarlet Letter has some similarities with today’s Gospel story of the woman caught in adultery. (http://frtonyshomilies.com/)

3)  John Profumo – a sinner restored: The story of John Profumo (91) (1915-2006) is that of a man who made one terrible mistake but sought his own redemption in a way which has no precedent in public life either before or since. No one in public life ever did more to atone for his sins; no one behaved with more silent dignity as his name was repeatedly dragged through the mud. Profumo's transgression came when the Tories had been in power for 11 years. He was then a promising Secretary of State for War, married to the actress Valerie Hobson, one of Britain's leading actresses of stage and screen in the 1940s and 1950s. But he had a secret relationship with Christine Keeler, a call-girl who had been - separately - seeing the Russian naval attaché and spy, Yevgeny Ivanov.  This was at the height of the Cold War. When this matter was brought to light, Profumo made the matter worse by lying to the House of Commons. Later, he had a change of heart, went to the Prime Minister, confessed his guilt, and resigned on June 5, 1963 from the Cabinet in shame. Filled with remorse, Profumo never sought to justify himself or seek public sympathy. Instead, for the next four decades he devoted himself to Toynbee Hall, a charitable settlement at Spitalfields in the East End of London. He began by washing dishes, helping with the playgroup and collecting rents. Later he served with the charity's council, eventually becoming its chairman and then president. From his tiny office at Toynbee Hall, Profumo kept up a ceaseless flow of letters to anyone who might be able to speak, give money or do anything to assist the charity in its work of helping the poor and down-and-outs in the East End. Largely through his efforts, Toynbee Hall became a national institution. Profumo's dedication and dignity won him enormous admiration from people in all walks of life. Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher called him "one of our national heroes." When he was sixty years old, at the 1975 Honors Party honoring distinguished citizens, Elizabeth II, the Queen of England, named John Profumo, the sinner, among the distinguished citizens of her realm. Thus he was fully restored. ("http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1512656/John-Profumo.html). -- Today’s Gospel describes how Jesus restored a sinful woman by lavishing on her his Divine mercy and forgiveness. She may have become Christ’s follower bearing witness to his mercy till her death.  (http://frtonyshomilies.com/)

4) Jesus and the Fallen Woman: The woman caught in adultery described in today’s Gospel has inspired a wide variety of Christian art. The most striking is Jesus and the Fallen Woman,” by Lucas Cranach, the Younger (c. 1570), now exhibited, as is Rembrandt’s Return of the Prodigal Son” in The Hermitage at St. Petersburg. At the front center of the painting are Jesus and the woman. Cranach captures that moment when Jesus turns toward the accusers and challenges those without sin to cast a stone. His expression is stern but troubled, and his right hand reaches out toward the woman. Most remarkable, the woman is not bowed to the ground in front of Jesus as in much art work, but is standing at his left. She is very young, with eyes closed, looking forlorn and resigned to her fate. Her head is inclined toward Jesus’ shoulder, and her hand rests on his arm. Most striking, as one follows the lines of the painting, is that her right hand is entwined with the left hand of Jesus in a gesture of exquisite tenderness. The hands of mercy are joined to the hands of a suffering person facing execution. -- Jesus and the young woman in Cranach’s painting can be our guides through Lent and Paschaltide. With heads inclined toward Christ and hands intertwined with his, we can go forward as forgiven sinners, yet called to be companions of Jesus. (http://frtonyshomilies.com/)

5) Love and marriage are a cycle. Some time back Ann Landers received a beautiful letter from a wife in Ohio. She wrote, "My husband is a laborer. He leaves home at 7:00 AM and puts in long, hard days at work. If he can get overtime, he grabs it. When he comes home at night, he paints the house, fixes whatever is broken, and helps with the kids. At the end of the week he hands me his paycheck and apologizes because it isn't more. He never complains when I give him ground meat in eleven different shapes. At night when he puts his arms around me and pulls me close, I feel that whatever I've done for him was not enough. Love and marriage are a cycle. The more you do for a man, the more he loves you. The more he loves you, the more he tries to do for you. And so it goes, round and round. It's so simple. Why don't more people figure it out?" -- One thing is sure...that lady in Ohio won't have adultery problems; nor will anyone with a marriage of that quality. Their lifestyle follows the command of St. Paul: "Honor Christ by being servants of each other." (Ephesians 5:21) . (http://frtonyshomilies.com/)

6) "Where was the Garden of Eden?" Dr. Carlyle Marney was asked a question by one of his freshman students one day. The student asked, "Where was Eden?" Dr. Marney put down his pen, turned to the college freshman, and replied, "I can tell you exactly, in Tennessee." "What?" gasped the student. "Knoxville, Tennessee, 215 South Elm Street," Marney insisted. "It was there on Elm Street, when I was a boy, that I stole a quarter out of Mama's purse and ran to the store and bought a bag of peanut clusters and ate it as fast as I could. Afterward, I was so ashamed that I came back home to 215 Elm Street and hid in the closet. Mom found me and asked, 'Why are you hiding? What have you done?'" ["Geography Lesson," Herald of Holiness, February 1996, p. 2]. -- I personally don't think anybody needs help locating their own Eden, do you? That's the place where we first knowingly betrayed and disobeyed God. Our Eden is that situation or that place where we first discovered that we suffer from the same disease as Adam and Eve and every other human being in existence. We suffer from the debilitating symptoms of sin. Now, pick up a stone. Hold the stone in your hand and think about your Eden. Hold the stone in your hand and wrap that thought, that memory, that time of Eden in your life around the stone. Those moments stick with us and weigh us down and drag us down and slow us down and bring us down. -- But here's the Good News. We don't have to be weighed down by the weight of sin, God wants to lift us up. The God Jesus revealed to us is a God who patiently waits for His wayward children to come back home. (http://frtonyshomilies.com/)

7) Guilty: Dr. Karl Menninger, well-known psychiatrist, wrote a book a few years ago entitled, Whatever Became of Sin? In it, he reported how a stern, plainly dressed man appeared on a busy corner of Chicago’s Loop. As people passed by, he would from time-to-time solemnly lift his arm and point to a passerby and say just one word; “Guilty!” Then without changing expression, he would drop his arm. After a few seconds, he would raise his arm again, and with an accusing finger pointing at another person, he would utter that one-word indictment: “Guilty!” The effect of this on the people on was extraordinary. Some stared, started to laugh, then stopped, hesitated, looked around with furtive glances, and hurried on with quickened step. One passerby turned to a companion and exclaimed, “But how did he know?” -- We do not have to have an eccentric street preacher pointing an accusing finger to remind us of our guilt. We have more authentic inside information. We call it conscience or God’s voice within us. (http://frtonyshomilies.com/)

8) "Turn it over." John R. Aurelio, in his book Colors: Stories of the Kingdom (Amazon.com), gives us a beautiful portrayal of this side of God. He writes: On the sixth day, God created Father Adam and Mother Eve. On the seventh day, as God was resting, they asked Him if He would give them something special to commemorate their birthday. So, God reached into His treasure chest and took out a sacred coin. Written on it was the word "LOVE." On the eighth day, Father Adam and Mother Eve sinned. As they left the Garden of Eden, they asked God for an assurance that He would not abandon them. "You have the coin," He told them. "But, the coin says LOVE," they answered. "We have lost love. However will we find it again?" "Turn it over," God said. On the other side of the coin was written the word "FORGIVENESS." -- There is great truth in that. There is no love without forgiveness and there is no forgiveness without love. They are the two sides of the same coin. And the Good News is that God loves you no matter what you've done or what you've thought of doing. God loves you. That's the bottom line: God loves you. And God wants each of us to turn over the coin. (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) 

9) "Christ said, 'I don't remember.'” In his book, A Forgiving God in an Unforgiving World, Ron Lee Davis tells the true story of a priest in the Philippines, a much-loved man of God who carried the burden of a secret sin he had committed many years ago. He had repented but still had no peace about it. In his parish was a woman who deeply loved God and who claimed to have visions in which she spoke with Christ. The priest, however, was skeptical about that. To test her he said, "The next time you speak with Christ, ask him what sin I committed while I was in the high school." The woman agreed. A few days later the priest asked, "Well, did Christ visit you in your dreams?" "Yes, he did," she replied. "And did you ask him what sin I --  She smiled and answered, "Christ said, 'I don't remember.' (http://frtonyshomilies.com/)

10) “Who will cast the first stone?” There is a down-home story about a small-town veterinarian who had invented an instrument with which, he boasted, even a child could administer a capsule to a horse, no matter how unruly or reluctant the horse might be. One summer the vet went to county fair to demonstrate his new invention. They couldn’t find anyone who would permit his horse to be a part of the experiment, but they did find a mule, and soon a crowd had gathered to watch. Undaunted, the veterinarian inserted a long glass tube into the mouth of the mule, inserted a capsule in the other end, took a deep breath and put his mouth to the free end of the tube. But the mule blew first! -- Now that story reminds us that when we tell others what is good for them, we better be prepared to swallow the same ourselves! So, the theme of our homily today is “Who will cast the first stone?” (http://frtonyshomilies.com/)

11)“Every Jew must die before he will commit idolatry, murder or adultery.” According Jewish law, adultery was among the most serious crimes. The Rabbi said, “Every Jew must die before he will commit idolatry, murder or adultery.” So, adultery was one of the three gravest sins. The law was quite clear on the matter. Though there were certain differences in the way the death penalty was to be carried out, yet there was no question — death was the penalty for adultery. The woman knew this. -- Can you get even a faint hint of the despair, the anguish, the ravaging shame, and hopelessness that gripped this wretch of a creature, this “soiled plaything of men” as they came dragging her into the presence of Jesus. And where was the man who was her partner in sin? In the Mishnah which was the code of Jewish law, it was stated that the penalty for adultery was strangulation for both man and woman. Even the method of strangulation is laid down. “The man is to be enclosed in dung up to his knees, and a soft towel set within a rough towel to be placed around his neck (in order that no mark may be made, for the punishment is God’s punishment.) Then one man draws in one direction and another in the other direction, until he be dead.” (Barclay, The Daily Bible Study, The Gospel of John, Vol. 2, p. 2). (http://frtonyshomilies.com/)

12) "There it is. That's it, my life." In the movie, With Honors, Joe Pesci plays Simon Wilder a homeless man slowly dying from asbestos poisoning. Brendan Fraser portrays Montgomery 'Monty' Kessler, a student at Harvard who has reluctantly befriended Simon. In one of their conversations Simon pulls out a leather pouch and says, "There it is. That's it, my life." He dumps a bunch of stones out in his hand, picks up one and says, "I got this one on a beach in Bali. Best night's sleep I ever had." Monty asks, "You remember one night of sleep?" Simon says, "Last good one I had." Monty then asks, "What's that shiny white one?" "A woman. The one. The one true love. Yep, each stone tells a story that I want to remember. All I do is put them in my hand and rub them and abracadabra, I'm back there." They walk on and Monty asks, "Tell me about the woman." Simon says, "I can't. I'm not holding the stone." -- You know, there are a lot of stones and rocks in the Bible. There's Peter the Rock who sank like a rock when tried to walk on water. There are the stones, which Jesus said would break into song on Palm Sunday if the people didn't sing. There's the stone that sealed the tomb, which was rolled away so we could see inside and see that no mere grave could hold the Son of God. There are the stones used to build the Temple. And then there are the stones you're holding in your hand, the ones related to the passage for the day. You might call these stones, the First Stones. Let's look at the passage for today. (http://frtonyshomilies.com/)

13) Our spirituality and our sexuality are vitally connected. Fidelity in marriage and celibacy in singleness are expressions of our spirituality. Our spirituality and our sexuality are vitally connected. There is a mystery here; something more than meets the eye. Scott Peck says the sexual and spiritual parts of our personalities lie so close together that it is hardly possible to arouse one without the other. C.K. Chesterton put it this way, "Every man who knocks on the door of a brothel is looking for God." Lewis Smedes put it this way, "Nobody can go to bed with someone and leave his soul parked outside." Back when I used to do a lot of marriage counseling, David Mace was my hero. David tells about a client who said, "My husband and I always have prayer before we make love." "I was curious," says David, "so I asked her what they said." "Well," she replies, "we relax in each other’s arms and my husband says, 'For what we are about to receive, may the Lord make us truly thankful.'"  --May their numbers increase! The vital connection between our spirituality and our sexuality is an essential link that the Church needs to help people to understand. (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) 

14) The Legend of Bagger Vance:  There's a great scene in the movie The Legend of Bagger Vance which illustrates that point. If you remember the story from a few weeks ago, Bagger Vance is about a mythical golf match in the 1930's between golf legends Bobby Jones, Walter Hagen and a hometown ace Rannulph Junuh. As a teenager, Junuh had Tiger Woods' kind of skill and was destined to become something huge. But after a tour of duty during World War I, he came back changed and haunted. He tried to exorcise his demons through a reclusive life of alcohol and gambling. His former girlfriend persuaded him to join the match between two greats, even though he kept saying he had lost his swing. While Junuh was hitting practice balls one night, a transient caddy by the name of Bagger Vance entered his life, offered to help get him ready for the match and in the process helped him rediscover his passion both for life and for the game. In this scene Junuh had found his swing and things were going great for a while until he sliced one into the woods. As he entered the woods to find his ball, he was drawn back into the battle which had scarred his life so deeply, the battle of which he had been the only survivor. It all came crashing in on him and, as he reached to pick up his ball and call it quits, Bagger broke the spell and asked if he'd like a different club. Junuh said, "I can't do this. You don't understand." Bagger says, "What I'm talking about is a game. A game that can't be won, only played. Ain't a soul on this earth ain't got a burden to carry that he don't understand. You ain't alone in that. But you been carryin' this one long enough. Time to go on. Lay it down." Junuh says, "I don't know how." Bagger says, "You've got a choice. You can stop. Or you can start. Walkin' right back to where you always been. And then stand there. Still. Real still. And remember." Junuh says, "It's too long ago." Bagger says, "Oh, no sir. It was just a moment ago. Time for you to come on out the shadows, Junuh. Time for you to choose. You ain't alone. I'm right here with ya. I've been here all along. Now play the game. Your game. The one that only you was meant to play. The one that was given to you when you come into this world. Strike that ball, Junuh. Don't hold back. Give it everything. Now's the time. Let yourself remember. Remember your swing." -- Of course, it's the movies and Junuh does. He makes a fantastic, unbelievable shot and in so doing steps out of the darkness of the shadows of his past and into the light of a New Life, as the person God created him to be.  -- That is exactly what Jesus told this woman caught in sin, this woman used as a pawn to trap him. "It's time for you to come on out of the shadows. It's time for you to choose. You're not alone. I'm right here with you. I have been here all along." That's what Jesus tells each of us. "It's time to come out of the shadows and into My light. I'm right here with you and I have been all along. It's time to walk in the light of life." What does that mean, to walk in the light? Well, I think it means you have to let go of the past. You have to let go of the shadows and darkness. That's the only way we can step into the light. Unfortunately, a lot of us don't let go of the shadows. Sometimes the light seems too bright. We're afraid to step into the light because we're not ready to see ourselves as we really are. We're afraid of what we'll see and what God might see. (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) 

15) “The Selfish Giant.” Oscar Wilde’s story “The Selfish Giant” has a great message. Every afternoon, the children used to go and play in the Giant's garden. It was a large lovely garden, with soft green grass. Here and there over the grass stood beautiful flowers like stars, and there were twelve peach-trees that in the spring-time broke out into delicate blossoms of pink and pearl, and in the autumn bore rich fruit. The birds sat on the trees and sang so sweetly that the children used to stop their games in order to listen to them. "How happy we are here!" they cried to each other. One day the Giant came back. He had been to visit his friend the Cornish Ogre, and had stayed with him for seven years. When he arrived he saw the children playing in the garden. "My own garden is my own garden," said the Giant; "and I will allow nobody to play in it but myself." So he built a high wall all round it, and put up a notice-board. TRESPASSERS WILL BEPROSECUTED. The poor children had now nowhere to play. Then the Spring came, and all over the country there were little blossoms and little birds. Only in the garden of the Selfish Giant it was still winter. The birds did not care to sing in it as there were no children, and the trees forgot to blossom. "I cannot understand why the Spring is so late in coming," said the Selfish Giant, as he sat at the window and looked out at his cold white garden; "I hope there will be a change in the weather." But the Spring never came, nor the Summer. One morning, he saw a most wonderful sight. Through a little hole in the wall the children had crept in, and they were sitting in the branches of the trees. In every tree that he could see there was a little child. And the trees were so glad to have the children back again that they had covered themselves with blossoms. And the Giant's heart melted as he looked out. "How selfish I have been!" he said. He took a great axe and knocked down the wall. -- Oscar Wilde’s story gives the picture of a man who has understood what he has done was wrong, and corrected himself by knocking down the walls that he has built. Today’s Gospel presents before us the picture of a woman who stood at the feet of Jesus with the realization that she had done wrong and she was ready to change her ways. Jesus’ reply to her was amazing, “Go, and don’t sin anymore.” (Fr. Bobby). (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) 

16) Doodles before stones: Writer Anne Lamott’s life is a story of resurrection — from a train wreck of booze and drugs and destructive relationships to creating, as a single mom, a loving home for her son Sam and establishing her own solid, grounded relationship with God.  With humor and insight, she has written about her finding God in the joys and messes of the everyday.  In her book, Plan B: Further Thoughts on Faith, Lamott reflects on today’s Gospel: “In John 8, when the woman is about to be stoned by the Pharisees for adultery, we see Jesus doodling in the sand.  The Pharisees, the officially good people, are acting well within the law when they condemn the woman to death.  A huge crowd of people willing to kill her joins them.  The Greatest Hits moment here comes when Jesus challenges the crowd: ‘Let him who is without sin cast the first stone.’  But the more interesting stuff happens before, when he leaves the gathering storm, goes off by himself, and starts doodling. Jesus refused to interact with the people on their level of hatred and madness.  He draws in the sand for a time.  The Gospel doesn’t say [what’s he’s drawing].  But when he finally faces the mob and responds, all the people who were going to kill the woman have disappeared.” --  You have to wonder:  Where was the man with whom she committed adultery?  Some people suggest he was in the crowd, waiting to join in with the others and kill her.  We don’t know.  But I can guess how the condemned woman must have felt — surprised.  She was supposed to die, and her life was spared.  Hope always catches us by surprise.” (Fr. Kayala). (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) 

17) “He doesn’t deserve mercy! " The story is told of a young French soldier who deserted Napoleon’s army, but who within a matter of hours was caught by his own troops. To discourage soldiers from abandoning their posts the penalty for desertion was death. The young soldier’s mother heard what had happened and went to plead with Napoleon to spare the life of her son. Napoleon heard her plea but pointed out that because of the serious nature of the crime her son had committed he clearly did not deserve mercy. “I know he doesn’t deserve mercy” the mother answered. “It wouldn’t be mercy if he deserved it.” -- That’s the point about mercy: nobody deserves it. It is given freely! (Quoted by Fr. Jude Botelho & Fr. Lakra). (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) 

18) Circus of judgment in the Church: I recently read a book about the circus when it traveled to small towns by train. The author described in detail the unofficial hierarchy of the traveling circus. From the ring master through various performers down to the roadies who set up the tents, everyone knew their place in the food chain. Even the freak show performers or side show acts created a system of evaluating their peers. As I read the book I couldn't help thinking that you don't have to join the circus to experience the cutting edge of judgment; just go to Church! We judge people by the color of their skin, the brand names of their clothes, type of car, their accent, athletic prowess, education musical ability, religious background, and the list goes on and on. Are you a tither? Do you have a daily quiet time? Do you watch R rated movies? Do you attend a Christian school or the pagan public schools? Have you ever looked at pornography? Are you Republican or Democrat? Are you Spirit-filled? Do you speak in tongues? Are you divorced? Are you one of the good-looking people, or did you get hit with the ugly stick a few times? When you face situations where the labels we place on certain people instead of the love Christ determines an outcome, how do you respond? -- I am not ignoring sin, nor does this story suggest that we ignore sin and its damaging effects upon people's lives, but the Scripture does teach that using other people as a stepping stone is offensive to a holy God. The most offensive sin described in this story is not the adultery; it is the malice, arrogance, and ignorance of the Pharisees to use the sin of another person for personal gain while ignoring the sin that resides in their own heart. The voice of the critic seeks to condemn you by exploiting and exposing all your failures. In contrast, the voice of Christ confronts our sin with love and provides a better way to live. (Rev. Steve Andrews). (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) 

19) A terrifying moment: On March 22, 1824 an incident took place in Madison County, Indiana, which came to be known as the Fall Creek Massacre. Six white men murdered nine Seneca and Miami Indians and wounded another. Among the nine dead were three women and four children. The six men were apprehended and tried and some were executed. One of the men named John Bridge Jr. was sentenced to death by hanging for his part in the massacre. He was to be executed on June 3, 1825. His father, John Bridge Sr. and another man named Andrew Sawyer, who was John Bridge Jr.’s uncle, were also to be executed that day.      John Bridge, Jr., along with a large crowd, witnessed the hangings of his father and uncle as the crowd waited expectantly for a pardon from the governor. With no sign of a pardon, a sermon was preached as the crowd waited expectantly. Finally, John Bridge, Jr. was led to the gallows and the rope was lowered over his head. But as the men waited for a signal, a cheer arose from the back of the crowd.     A stranger rode forward and looked the condemned man in the face. "Sir, do you know in whose presence you stand?" Bridge shook his head. "There are but two powers known to the law that can save you from hanging by the neck until you are dead, dead, dead; one is the great God of the Universe, the other is J. Brown Ray, Governor of the State of Indiana; the latter stands before you…" Handing over the written pardon, the governor announced, "you are pardoned."      In an instant, what had looked like a hopeless situation became a door of hope. John Bridge Jr. went back home, settled down, opened a dry goods store and died peacefully, fifty-one years later! --    I told that story to ask this question: Can you imagine the fear that must have gripped the heart of that young man as he watched his father and his uncle die, knowing that he was next. Can you imagine the terror as he was led onto the gallows and that noose was placed around his neck? It must have been a moment of terror like few have ever experienced! (The Sermon Notebook). But, I know one person who experienced that feeling. This poor sinful woman whose story is related in this text -- she knew that kind of fear. As she is led trembling into the presence of Jesus, she knows in her heart that she is about to die a horrible death by stoning. (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) 

20-) During this Lent.

Give up complaining.....focus on gratitude.

Give up pessimism...become an optimist.

Give up harsh judgments...think kind thoughts.

Give up worry......trust Divine Providence.

Give up discouragement.....be full of hope.

Give up bitterness......turn to forgiveness.

Give up hatred.....return good for evil.

Give up negativism.....be positive.

Give up anger......be more patient.

Give up pettiness.....become more mature.

Give up gloom.....enjoy the beauty that is all around you.

Give up jealousy....pray for trust.

Give up gossiping.....control your tongue. 

Give up sin.....turn to virtue.

Give up giving up....hang in there !!!!! (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) 

21) Formed in the pattern of His death: A good saint to think about in Lent is St. Gemma Galgani. Within just a few years this modern Italian laywoman (1878-1903) achieved a remarkable likeness to the suffering Christ. Gemma was a mystic – one of those rare souls called to so high a level of communication with God that we ordinary Christians simply cannot comprehend it all. Her vocation was to suffer with Christ. To the physical trials of spinal tuberculous were added many supernatural trials. For instance, over several years she bore the stigmata of Christ’s passion: not only the marks of His nails but of His scourging and His crown of thorns. She even experienced His bloody sweating. Constant meditation upon Jesus’ death won for her a sense of His constant presence; and while in these ecstasies she had many conversations with Him in a low, sweet voice. Now, the Church does not canonize people just because they are mysteriously marked with the wounds of the Passion. On these phenomena she passes no official judgment. When Pope Pius XI declared Gemma Galgani a saint in 1933, it was because of her gentle patience, her heroic virtue during years of pain. Still, God does occasionally give to the world, it seems, a certain holy people who resemble Christ even more in being given the marks of His agony and crucifixion. Some think St. Paul may have been the first to receive this heavenly “branding”. At all events, Paul says (in today’s second reading): “I wish…to know how to share in His sufferings by being formed into the pattern of His death.” -- Why so? Because it is only by uniting ourselves with Christ in His death that we can deserve to be united with Him in His resurrection. The whole paradox of Lent is “dying in order to live.” In that sense we can say that St. Gemma Galgani was Lent personified. (Father Robert F. McNamara). (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) 

22) The accused: The movie, “The Accused”, for which Jodie Foster won an Academy Award for her performance as Sarah Tobias, a rape victim, is based on actual events that took place in Massachusetts, U.S.A. Sarah Tobias, a working-class waitress who lived with a man outside of marriage, sought to unwind in a bar after a fight with him. Three young men raped her while the patrons of the bar looked on and did nothing to help her.  Kathryn Murphy, the assistant district attorney appointed to prosecute the case against the men, seemed at first committed to winning the case against them. But, when faced with the fact that Sarah would not make a sympathetic case because of her behavior the night of the assault when she drank, smoked pot, and dressed and acted provocatively, Kathryn let the rapists plea to a lesser charge. Sarah felt betrayed because she was not given a chance to tell her story in court. She was deeply pained and humiliated. Though not impeccable in her behavior, she was truly a victim of sexual violence. She practically became “the accused.” -- Sarah Tobias is like the woman presented in today’s Gospel reading, a woman in need of justice and mercy, a woman in need of redemption. (Lectio Divina). (http://frtonyshomilies.com/)

23) The balm of forgiveness made her a “new creation”. There is a story in an inspirational magazine about a lady who had terribly wronged her best friend, a classmate in college. She had a crush on a handsome football player who eventually became her best friend’s husband. One summer the couple invited her to their beach house for a week’s vacation. Her secret feelings for the blond and good-looking athlete never changed and were not attenuated by the passing of years. One afternoon, her friend went downtown for an errand and she was left alone with the secret love of her life in that cozy beach house. The “inevitable” happened. Without willing or planning it, she spent an adulterous moment with her best friend’s husband. When it was all over, she was overwhelmed with remorse and unbearable guilt. She terminated her vacation prematurely and avoided further contact with the couple. When her friend’s husband died, she felt an irresistible urge to attend the funeral. Her friend had a heart-to-heart talk with her. She revealed that she knew what happened. Since she continued to love her husband and to treasure the friendship with her erring friend, she had forgiven each of them from the heart. --The forgiven adulterous woman felt renewed and became whole again. The refreshing balm of forgiveness made her a “new creation”. Actualized and offered to us in Christ Jesus, the grace of merciful forgiveness with its healing, renewing and recreating quality springs forth like living water from the loving heart of God. (Lectio Divina). (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) L/22

“Scriptural Homilies” Cycle C (No. 23) by Fr. Tony: akadavil@gmail.com

Visit my website by clicking on http://frtonyshomilies.com/ for missed or previous Cycle C homilies, 141 Year of Faith “Adult Faith Formation Lessons” (useful for RCIA classes too) & 197 “Question of the Week.” Contact me only at akadavil@gmail.com. Visit also https://www.catholicsermons.com/homilies/sunday_homilies  under Fr. Tony’s homilies and  under Resources in the CBCI website:  https://www.cbci.in  for other website versions.  (Vatican Radio website: http://www.vaticannews.va/en/church.html uploaded my Cycle A, B and C homilies in from 2018-2020)  Fr. Anthony Kadavil, Chaplain, Sacred Heart Residence of the Little Sisters of the Poor, 1655 McGill Ave, Mobile, AL 36604 .

O. T.  VIII [C] (Feb 27) Homily (8-minute homily in one-page) (L/22) 

Central theme: Jesus draws our attention to practical points of Christian living and challenges us to use our words as he used his in his preaching and healing ministry -- to heal, to restore, and to bring back life, joy, and hope. Today’s readings also instruct us to share our Christian life, love, and spiritual health by our words, and to avoid gossiping about and passing rash, thoughtless, pain-inflicting judgments on others, thus damaging their good reputation and causing them irreparable harm. 

Scripture lessons: The first reading, taken from the Book of Sirach, teaches that what is inside us is revealed through our conversation – as the grain and husks are separated in a farmer’s sieve, as the quality of the shaped clay is revealed in the potter’s fire, and as the size and quality of a tree’s fruit reveal the care it has received from the planter. Sirach’s teaching serves as an excellent preview for today’s Gospel, which reminds us, when we’re feeling judgmental, to think before we speak because what comes out of our mouth reveals our heart. The Responsorial Psalm (Ps 92) advises us to spend our time praising and thanking God for all His blessings. In the second reading St. Paul advises the Corinthian Christians “to be firm, steadfast, always fully devoted to the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain,” instead of wasting time on useless and sinful conversations, which bring punishment instead of the victory of resurrection and eternal reward. In today’s Gospel passage, taken from the Sermon on the Plain given in Luke’s Gospel, Jesus condemns our careless, malicious and rash judgments about the behavior, feelings, motives, or actions of others by using the funny examples of one blind man leading another blind man and one man with a log stuck in his eye, trying to remove a tiny speck from another’s eye.  

Life messages: We should avoid judging others because 1) No one except God is good enough to judge others because only God sees the whole truth, and only He can read the human heart. Hence, only He has the ability, right, and authority to judge us. 2) We do not see all the facts or circumstances or the power of the temptation which has led a person to do something evil. 3) We are often prejudiced in our judgment of others, and total fairness cannot be expected from us, especially when we are judging those near or dear to us.  4) We have no right to judge because we have the same faults as the one, we are judging and often in a greater degree (remember Jesus’ funny example of a man with a log in his eye trying to remove the dust particle from another’s eye?) St. Philip Neri commented, watching the misbehavior of a drunkard: “There goes Philip but for the grace of God.” Abraham Lincoln said that the only one who has the right to criticize is the one who has the heart to help. 5) Hence, we should leave all judgment to God, practice mercy and forgiveness, and pray for God’s grace to get rid of all forms of hypocrisy in our lives. Let us remember the warning of saints: “When you point one finger of accusation at another, three of your fingers point at you."   

OT VIII [C]: (Sir 27:4-7; Ps 92:2-3; 13-16; I Cor 15:54-58; Lk 6:39-45)  

Homily starter anecdotes: # 1: Rash judgment on buying “Luxury items” with food stamps: A grocery store check-out clerk once wrote to advice-columnist Ann Landers to complain that she had seen people buy "luxury" food items—like birthday cakes and bags of shrimp—with their food stamps. The writer went on to say that she thought all those people on welfare who treated themselves to such non-necessities were "lazy and wasteful." A few weeks later Lander’s column was devoted entirely to people who had responded to the grocery clerk. One woman wrote: “I didn’t buy a cake, but I did buy a big bag of shrimp with food stamps. So what? My husband had been working at a plant for fifteen years when it shut down. The shrimp casserole I made was for our wedding anniversary dinner and lasted three days. Perhaps the grocery clerk who criticized that woman would have a different view of life after walking a mile in my shoes.” Another woman wrote: “I’m the woman who bought the $17 cake and paid for it with food stamps. I thought the check-out woman in the store would burn a hole through me with her eyes. What she didn’t know is the cake was for my little girl’s birthday. It will be her last. She has bone cancer and will probably be gone within six to eight months.”  -- Today, Jesus advises us to leave the judgment to God and to show mercy and compassion. (Rev. Richardson). http://frtonyshomilies.com/ 

# 2:  Valuables in safe custody: In his little book, Illustrations of Bible Truth, H.A. Ironside points out the folly of judging others. He relates an incident in the life of Bishop Potter. "He was sailing for Europe on one of the great transatlantic ocean liners. When he went on board, he found that another passenger was to share the cabin with him. After going to see the accommodations, he came up to the purser’s desk and inquired if he could leave his gold watch and other valuables in the ship’s safe. He explained that ordinarily he never availed himself of that privilege, but he had been to his cabin and had met the man who was to occupy the other berth. Judging from his appearance, he was afraid that he might not be a very trustworthy person. The purser accepted the responsibility for the valuables and remarked, ’It’s all right, Bishop, I’ll be very glad to take care of them for you. The other man has been up here and left his valuables for the same reason!’" (Daily Bread). -- This is what happens when we make rash judgments. http://frtonyshomilies.com/ 

# 3:  Don't judge a book by its cover: Schoolteacher Dodie Gadient decided to travel across America and see the sights she had taught her students about, for the last 13 yrs. Traveling alone in a truck with a camper in tow, she launched out. One afternoon as she was rounding a curve on I-5 near Sacramento in rush-hour traffic, the water pump blew on her truck. She was tired, exasperated, scared, and alone. In spite of the traffic jam she caused, no one seemed interested in helping. Leaning up against the trailer she prayed, “Please Lord send me an angel, preferably one with mechanical experience!” Within 4 minutes a huge Harley drove up ridden by an enormous man sporting long black hair, a beard and tattooed arms. With an incredible air of confidence, he jumped off and without even glancing at Dodie went to work on the truck. Within another few minutes, he flagged down a larger truck, attached a tow chain to the frame of the disabled Chevy and whisked the whole 56-ft rig off the freeway onto a side street where he calmly continued to work on the water pump. The intimidated, schoolteacher was too dumbfounded to talk. Especially when she read the paralyzing words on the back of his leather jacket: Hell's Angels. As he finished the task, she finally got up the courage to say, “Thank you.” Noticing her amazement at the whole ordeal, he looked her straight in the eye and said, “Don't judge a book by its cover!” -- With that he smiled, closed the hood of the truck and straddled his Harley. With a wave he was gone as fast as he had appeared. (Rev. Jeffrey Stewart). http://frtonyshomilies.com/ 

# 4:  That person is me: C.S. Lewis wrote, “There is someone I love, even though I don’t approve of what he does. There is someone I accept, though some of his thoughts and actions revolt me. There is someone I forgive, though he hurts the people I love the most. That person is me.” http://frtonyshomilies.com/

Introduction: Jesus draws our attention to practical points of Christian living and challenges us to use words as he used them in his preaching and healing ministry, to heal, restore and bring back life, joy, and hope. Today’s readings also instruct us to share our Christian life, love, and spiritual health by our words, and to avoid gossiping about and passing rash, thoughtless and pain-inflicting judgments on others, damaging their good reputation and causing irreparable harm. 

Scripture lessons summarized: The first reading from the Book of Sirach teaches that what is inside us is revealed through our conversation -- as the grain and husks are separated in a farmer’s sieve, as the quality of the newly formed clay pot is revealed in the potter’s fire, and as the size and quality of a tree’s fruit reveal the care it has received from the planter. Sirach’s teaching serves as an excellent preview for today’s Gospel. It reminds us, when we’re feeling judgmental, to think before we speak because what comes out of our mouth reveals our heart. 

The Responsorial Psalm (Ps 92) reminds us  “It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praise to Your Name, Most High, to proclaim Your Kindness at dawn and Your Faithfulness throughout the night!”(Vv 2-3). In the second reading St. Paul advises the Corinthian Christians “to be firm, steadfast, always fully devoted to the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain,” instead of wasting time on useless and sinful conversations which bring punishment instead of the victory of resurrection and eternal reward. In today’s Gospel passage, taken from the Sermon on the Plain given in Luke’s Gospel, Jesus condemns our careless, malicious and rash judgments about the behavior, feelings, motives or actions of others by using the funny examples of one blind man leading another blind man and one man with a log stuck in his eye trying to remove a tiny speck from another’s eye. 

The first reading (Sir 27:4-7) explained: In the Greek version of the Bible, the first title of this book was “The Wisdom of Ben Sirach.” It was the book most used in the liturgy.  In fact, in the early Church it was a kind of official catechism used in the catechumenate, and hence its Greek name in the Septuagint is Ecclesiasticus.  According to the prologue and other passages in the book, the inspired author was a learned scribe, a humble and zealous man, who lived in Jerusalem. From an early age he had meditated deeply on Sacred Scripture.  This book played an important part in shaping the Faith of the Jewish people. It equipped them to cope with the imminent menace of Greek culture, which ran completely counter to the monotheism of the people of the Old Covenant. Since the book was written in Greek, not in Hebrew, the Jewish scholars who finalized the canon of the Hebrew Bible after Jesus’ Resurrection did not include it in the canon of the Hebrew Bible. But since it was included in the Septuagint, the Catholic Church retains it as an inspired book of the Bible. Sirach advises us not to praise any man before he speaks, for it is then those men are tested. Speech is the principal criterion for evaluating a person’s character. The sacred author first uses an agricultural image to explain his point. When a sieve is shaken, the grains fall to the basket beneath the sieve and the husks remain in the sieve showing their ugly emptiness. The same thing happens when a man speaks: his faults, his pride, and his ignorance are exposed. The second image used is the potter’s furnace. If the clay isn’t completely dry, the piece explodes in the kiln (furnace). In the same way, conversation is the test of a man. The fruit of a tree shows the care it has had; As an example, sycamore fruit had to be punctured to grow fat and juicy; this was the job of the “dresser of sycamores.” In the same way, a man’s speech discloses the bent of his mind. Praise no man before he speaks, for it is then that men are tested. 

The second reading (I Cor 15:54-58) explained: When Paul called the Corinthian Christians to affirm their Faith in the power of Jesus over death by his Resurrection, he challenged them to affirm their freedom from death, from sin, and from the Law, and to exercise that freedom “by being fully engaged in the work of the Lord,” (v. 58), instead of divesting themselves of the body and all that it entails. Thus, the faithful will transform their corruptible physical bodies into incorruptible spiritual bodies in their resurrection, and experience immortality. Paul denies the teaching of the Corinthian philosophers that the attainment of the “ideal” existence or salvation from this world can be accomplished in individuals by their own efforts to live “properly.” Paul teaches that the transformation to immortality has been made possible for all only because of Jesus Christ. His death on the cross and his rising alone have accomplished the victory over death. Hence, Paul concludes: “Therefore, my beloved brothers, be firm, steadfast, always fully devoted to the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.” The hard work of the Christian life is not in vain, because the Christian is “in the Lord” who has already won the victory. 

The Gospel exegesis: Luke may have collected together sayings of Jesus which were spoken on different occasions, thus giving us a kind of compendium of rules for life and living. We may be able to trace four pieces of advice from today’s Gospel passage. 

1) Advice for students & teachers of Scripture: The Christian disciples are called upon to be both guides and teachers. Since a teacher cannot lead his students beyond what he himself has been taught, he must learn from the best teacher and then continue to learn Scripture from all available sources, the best being the Holy Spirit Who inspired Holy Scripture. Then, the learner must apply what he has learned to his own life before trying to teach others. Our goal in the Christian life must be to become like our Teacher, Jesus, in our thoughts, words, and actions.

2) We should not be blind guides: In order to lead a blind person, one must be sighted; in order to teach, one must be knowledgeable; otherwise, the blind person and the student will be lost. The sight and the knowledge specified here are the insights that come through Faith and the Holy Spirit, and the knowledge that comes from a Faith-filled relationship with the Lord. The point of this image of the blind leading the blind is that we must be careful when choosing whom to follow, lest we stumble into a pit alongside our blind guide. A corollary is that we have no business trying to guide others unless we ourselves can see clearly. This is an important message in a day when so many self-appointed gurus vie for control of our spiritual affairs, our financial affairs, our medical affairs, our romantic affairs, our family affairs. Some are blind, but others see our vulnerabilities—see where they can take advantage of us. When choosing a guide—particularly a spiritual guide—it pays to be very, very careful. Therefore it is most important to go in for regular “eye exams.” Every day, Christians should go to God, our spiritual Eye Doctor, to ask Him to check our vision. As we get into the Word, as we pray, He corrects our sight, and He shows us what to watch out for. It is vitally important that we have this regular “eye exam,” because we are not alone in the car. There are people who trust us to lead them to safety. It may be our children, or our spouse. It may be a friend. It may be people in the Church or community who are following where we lead. If we lead them off a cliff because of poor vision, God will hold us accountable. Listen to the words of Paul in Romans 2:19-23. “ If you are confident that you are a guide for the blind and a light for those in darkness, that you are a trainer of the foolish and teacher of the simple,  because in the law you have the formulation of knowledge and truth, then you who teach another, are you failing to teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? You who forbid adultery, do you commit adultery? You who detest idols, do you rob temples? You who boast of the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law?”

3) We have no right to criticize and judge others: The first reason Jesus gives us is that we have no right to criticize unless we ourselves are free of faults. That simply means that we have no right to criticize at all, because "there is so much bad in the best of us and so much good in the worst of us that it ill becomes any of us to find fault with the rest of us." Jesus clarifies his point by presenting the humorous simile of a man with a log stuck in his own eye trying to extract a speck of dust from someone else's eye. The task of fraternal correction (removing specks, etc.), should not be attempted, then,  without prior self-examination, though the disciple need not be completely without imperfections before the process can begin.

What did Jesus mean when he said not to judge others? Jimmy Akins: 1) Not a cover for immoral behavior in general. It’s clear that Jesus did not intend his words to be used as a cover for immoral behavior. 2) Not even a cover for sexual misbehavior [Mt 5:27-28]. 3) Not a prohibition on admonishing others. Jesus also did not intend his words to be used to stop others from admonishing others when they are committing sinful behavior [Mt 28:19-20]. 4) Not an endorsement of moral relativism. Taking Jesus’ teaching out of context, one might try to use it as a pretext for moral relativism—the idea that all moral judgments regarding the conduct of others are to be suspended and each person is to be allowed to define what is morally good for himself. Then what did Jesus actually say? In both Matthew and Luke, the statements that follow the prohibition on judging indicate that it is an elaboration of the Golden Rule—the idea that we should treat others the way that we, ourselves, want to be treated. 6) When Jesus says, “Judge not, lest ye be judged,” he means: “Don’t judge or God will judge you.” What Jesus means is that God will judge us. He’s made that perfectly clear in the Bible, and in the teaching of Jesus in particular. There will be a Last Judgment at the end of the world, as well as a particular judgment at the end of our earthly lives. So, it isn’t a question of escaping God’s judgment. It’s a question of how we will be judged. The right approach is to ask: Given that you will be judged for what you have done, what kind of judgment do you want? If we are in our right minds, we want a judgment done with mercy, compassion, and forgiveness. And that’s the way Jesus wants us to treat others: He wants us to be merciful, compassionate, and forgiving to them. In this context, what he means by “judging” is the opposite of doing those things—being unmerciful, uncompassionate, and unforgiving. In addition to “not judging” involving being merciful, compassionate, and forgiving to others, it can include other things, such as: Giving others the benefit of the doubt. Leaving the ultimate judgment of others to God instead of simply concluding that someone is (or should be) damned. (http://www.ncregister.com/blog/jimmy-akin/what-did-jesus-mean-when-he-said-not-to-judge-others-10-things-to-know). 

4) We must be good at heart to be good at our deeds: In order to distinguish the good tree from the bad tree we need to look at the fruit the tree produces (deeds) and not at its foliage (words). "The treasure of the heart is the same as the root of the tree," St Bede explains. "A person who has a treasure of patience and of perfect charity in his heart yields excellent fruit; he loves his neighbor and has all the other qualities Jesus teaches; he loves his enemies, does good to him who hates him, blesses him who curses him, prays for him who calumniates him, does not react against him who attacks him or robs him; he gives to those who ask, does not claim what they have stolen from him, wishes not to judge and does not condemn, corrects patiently and affectionately those who err. But the person who has in his heart the treasure of evil does exactly the opposite: he hates his friends, speaks evil of him who loves him and does all the other things condemned by the Lord" (In Lucae Evangelium Expositio, II, 6). In verse 46, Jesus asks us to act in a way consistent with being Christians and not to make any separation between the Faith we profess and the way we live: "What matters is not whether or not we wear a religious habit; it is whether we try to practice the virtues and surrender our will to God and order our lives as His Majesty ordains, and not want to do our will but His" (St. Teresa of Avila, Interior Castle, II, 6).

Life messages: 1) We need to avoid hypocrisy: Let us acknowledge the hypocrisy we all live every day. It is the word Jesus used. We tell people how concerned we are about our kidneys and hearts when we don’t give a second thought to the gaping, rotting wounds of sin covering us from head to toe. It is even worse when someone else falls into sin. Ignoring the glaring faults of our own, we point the finger of accusation, and whisper about them, and say, “How could they?” instead of asking “How could we?” We must look to our own sin first. This is the truth of Lk 6:39-42. As a disciple of Jesus Christ, I must be honest with myself. If I have trouble seeing my sin, and my failures, I have to go to Jesus and ask Him to point them out to me through prayer and through His Word. And He will. I must be ready for some painful “I” surgery. But I am sure to come out with better vision, and better eyesight, because I looked to myself first.

2) We should stop judging others harshly and unreasonably because a) No one except God is good enough to judge others because only God sees the whole truth, and only He can read the human heart; hence, only He has the right and authority to judge us. b) We are often prejudiced in our judgment of others, and total fairness cannot be expected from us. c) We do not see all the facts, the circumstances or the power of the temptation, which have led a person to do something evil. d) We have no right to judge others because we have the same faults and often to a more serious degree than the person we are judging (remember Jesus’ funny example of a man with a log stuck in his eye trying to remove the dust particle from another’s eye?) St. Philip Neri commented, watching the misbehavior of a drunkard: “There goes Philip but for the grace of God.” 

3) Hence, we should leave all judgment to God and practice mercy and forgiveness, remembering the advice of saints: “When you point one finger of accusation at another, three of your fingers point at you." Let us pay attention to the Jewish rabbi’s advice: “He who judges others favorably will be judged favorably by God.  

Jokes of the week

Source: (https://www.pinterest.com/pin/223280094010936796) 

1) Judgmental husband: There’s the story of the conscientious wife who tried very hard to please her ultra-critical husband but failed regularly. He always seemed the most cantankerous at breakfast. If the eggs were scrambled, he wanted them poached; if the eggs were poached, he wanted them scrambled. One morning, with what she thought was a stroke of genius, the wife poached one egg and scrambled the other and placed the plate before him. Anxiously she awaited what surely this time would be his unqualified approval. He peered down at the plate and snorted, “Can’t you do anything right, woman? You’ve scrambled the wrong one!”

2)“Go thou and do likewise!” After a minister preached a sermon on spiritual gifts, he was greeted at the door by a lady who said, “Pastor, I believe I have the gift of criticism.” He looked at her and asked, “Remember the person in Jesus’ parable who had the one talent? Do you recall what he did with it?” “Yes,” replied the lady, “he went out and buried it.” With a smile, the pastor suggested, “Go thou, and do likewise!”

3) Judge Not

I was shocked, confused, bewildered
As I entered Heaven's door,
Not by the beauty of it all,
Nor the lights or its decor.

But it was the folks in Heaven
Who made me sputter and gasp--
The thieves, the liars, the sinners,
The alcoholics and the trash.

There stood the kid from seventh grade..
Who swiped my lunch money twice.
Next to him was my old neighbor
Who never said anything nice.

Herb, who I always thought
Was rotting away in hell,
Was sitting pretty on cloud nine,
Looking incredibly well.

I nudged Jesus, 'What's the deal?
I would love to hear Your take.
How'd all these sinners get up here?
God must've made a mistake.

'And why's everyone so quiet,
So somber - give me a clue.'
'Hush, child,' He said, 'they're all in shock.
No one thought they'd be seeing you.'

                                             Bind leading the blind

Websites of the week

1) Fr. Don’ collection of video homilies & blogs: https://sundayprep.org

2) Video Sunday-Scripture study by Fr. Geoffrey Plant:

 https://www.youtube.com/user/GeoffreyPlant2066

3) Dr. Brant Pitre’s commentary on Cycle C Sunday Scripture for Bible Class: https://catholicproductions.com/blogs/mass-readings-explained-year-c  

4)Movie & DVD reviews: http://www.catholicnews.com/movies.cfm 

5)Catholic perspectives: http://sansecondodasti.org/!SanSec_htm/Catholic%20Perspectives/catholic_perspectives.htm 

6)Catholic calendar: http://www.cathcal.org/index.php 

7)http://thecatholicguy.tv/lent2016/ 

8)Healing in marriages: http://www.maritalhealing.com/ 

15 Additional anecdotes:("Stories have power. They delight, enchant, touch, teach, recall, inspire, motivate, challenge. They help us understand. They imprint a picture on our minds. Consequently, stories often pack more punch than sermons. Want to make a point or raise an issue? Tell a story. Jesus did it. He called his stories ‘parables.'"(Janet Litherland, Storytelling from the Bible). In fact Mark 4:34 says, "he [Jesus] did not speak to them without a parable..."Visit the article: Picturing the Kingdom of God by Fr. Brian Cavanaugh, TOR: http://www.appleseeds.org/picture.htm)

1) Mom with one eye: My mom only had one eye. I hated her… She was such an embarrassment. She cooked for students and teachers to support the family. There was this one day during elementary school where my mom came to say hello to me. I was so embarrassed. How could she do this to me? I ignored her, threw her a hateful look and ran out. The next day at school one of my classmates said, “EEEE, your mom only has one eye!” I wanted to bury myself. I also wanted my mom to just disappear. I confronted her that day and said, “If you’re only gonna make me a laughing stock, why don’t you just die?” My mom did not respond… I didn’t even stop to think for a second about what I had said, because I was full of anger. I was oblivious to her feelings. I wanted out of that house and have nothing to do with her. So, I studied real hard, got a chance to go abroad to study. Then, I got married. I bought a house of my own. I had kids of my own. I was happy with my life, my kids and the comforts. Then one day, my Mother came to visit me. She hadn’t seen me in years, and she didn’t even meet her grandchildren. When she stood by the door, my children laughed at her, and I yelled at her for coming over uninvited. I screamed at her, “How dare you come to my house and scare my children! GET OUT OF HERE! NOW!!!” And to this, my mother quietly answered, “Oh, I’m so sorry. I may have gotten the wrong address.” – and she disappeared out of sight. One day, a letter regarding a school reunion came to my house. So, I lied to my wife that I was going on a business trip. After the reunion, I went to the old shack just out of curiosity. My neighbors said that she died. I did not shed a single tear. They handed me a letter that she had wanted me to have. “My dearest son, I think of you all the time. I’m sorry that I came to your house and scared your children. I was so glad when I heard you were coming for the reunion. But I may not be able to even get out of bed to see you. I’m sorry that I was a constant embarrassment to you when you were growing up. You see……..when you were very little, you got into an accident, and lost your eye. As a mother, I couldn’t stand watching you having to grow up with one eye. So, I gave you mine. I was so proud of my son who was seeing a whole new world for me, in my place, with that eye. With all my love to you, Your Mother.” (https://mygoodtimestories.com/2013/09/16/the-mother-with-one-eye/) http://frtonyshomilies.com/ 

2) Things are never quite as they appear -- sometimes!!  A woman was flying from Seattle to San Francisco. Unexpectedly, the plane was diverted to Sacramento along the way. The flight attendant explained that there would be a delay, and if the passengers wanted to get off the aircraft the plane would re-board in 50 minutes…Everybody got off the plane except one lady who was blind…A man had noticed her as he walked by and could tell the lady was blind because her guide dog lay quietly underneath the seats in front of her throughout the entire flight… He could also tell she had flown this very flight before because the pilot approached her, and calling her by name, said, “Kathy, we are in Sacramento for almost an hour, would you like to get off and stretch your legs?” The blind lady said, “No thanks, but maybe Buddy would like to stretch his legs.” All the people in the gate area came to a complete stand still when they looked up and saw the pilot walk off the plane with a guide dog for the blind! Even worse, the pilot was wearing sunglasses! People scattered. They not only tried to change planes, but they were trying to change airlines! (https://mygoodtimestories.com/2014/02/16/things-are-not-always-as-they-appear/) http://frtonyshomilies.com/ 

3) A brick hit his Jaguar XKE: (Chicken Soup for the Soul - 5th Portion. The story was written by Josh Ridker) A little while ago, a young and very successful executive named Josh was traveling down a Chicago neighborhood street. He was going a bit too fast in his sleek, black, 12-cylinder Jaguar XKE, which was only two months old. He was watching for kids darting out from between parked cars and slowed down when he thought he saw something. As his car passed, no child darted out, but a brick sailed out and – WHUMP! – it smashed Into the Jag’s shiny black side door! SCREECH..!!!! Brakes slammed! Gears ground into reverse, and tires madly spun the Jaguar back to the spot from where the brick had been thrown. Josh jumped out of the car, grabbed the kid and pushed him up against a parked car. He shouted at the kid, “What was that all about, and who are you? Just what the heck are you doing?!” Building up a head of steam, he went on. “That’s my new Jag, that brick you threw is gonna cost you a lot of money. Why did you throw it?”

“Please, mister, please. . . I’m sorry! I didn’t know what else to do!” pleaded the youngster. “I threw the brick because no one else would stop!” Tears were dripping down the boy’s chin as he pointed around the parked car. “It’s my brother, mister,” he said. “He rolled off the curb and fell out of his wheelchair and I can’t lift him up.” Sobbing, the boy asked the executive, “Would you please help me get him back into his wheelchair? He’s hurt and he’s too heavy for me.” Moved beyond words, the young executive tried desperately to swallow the rapidly swelling lump in his throat. Straining, he lifted the young man back into the wheelchair and took out his handkerchief and wiped the scrapes and cuts, checking to see that everything was going to be OK. He then watched the younger brother push him down the sidewalk toward their home. It was a long walk back to the sleek, black, shining, 12-cylinder Jaguar XKE --a long and slow walk. Josh never did fix the side door of his Jaguar. He kept the dent to remind him not to go through life so fast that someone has to throw a brick at him to get his attention. -- Some bricks are softer than others. Feel for the bricks of life coming at to you. For all the negative things we have to say to ourselves, God has positive answers.  https://mygoodtimestories.com/2014/03/07/a-chicago-story-the-brick/ http://frtonyshomilies.com/  

4) “My sins run out behind me, and I do not see them: A member of a monastic order once committed a fault. A council was called to determine the punishment, but when the monks assembled it was noticed that Father Joseph was not among them. The superior sent someone to say to him, “Come, for everyone is waiting for you. So, Father Joseph got up and went. He took a leaking jug, filled it with water, and carried it with him. When the others saw this they asked, “What is this, father?” The old man said to them, “My sins run out behind me, and I do not see them, and today I am coming to judge the error of another?” Source: unknown http://frtonyshomilies.com/ 

5) The Elephant Man (https://youtu.be/oRPARnyPiOI?list=PLEA7F76BFCF2A5BB7) 

Under the name of John Merrick, the movie