The pearl of great price: The Eucharist, the child, the poor. Sermon of July 24th

St. Anthony of Egypt sold all he had, entered the desert,
and endured every trial with joy - he had found the pearl of great price!

17^th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

July 24^th, 2011

Matthew 13:44-52

The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field which a person finds and hides again, and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.

Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant searching for fine pearls. When he finds a pearl of great price, he goes and sells all that he has and buys it.

When we hear the parables of the treasure and of the pearl, and learn how we are to be ready to sacrifice all things for the sake of the Kingdom of heaven, we may recall the memory of St. Anthony of the Desert – the Father of Monasticism, who lived at the turn of the 4^th century.

St. Anthony was only a young man, about 18 years old, when his parents both died and he was left an orphan. Wondering what the good Lord desired of him, he felt inspired to go to the church. Upon entering, Anthony heard the words of St. Matthew’s Gospel being proclaimed: If thou wilt be perfect, go sell what thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come follow me.

The young St. Anthony was deeply moved by these words and felt inspired to give generously to the poor. You see, his family had been very wealthy, so he sold a good portion of his inheritance and gave it to the poor.

However, he did not give everything away – perhaps he was thinking, “Lord, if you are really serious, if you want me to give over everything; you are ‘gonna have to say it directly!”

[those, of course, are my own words … I doubt St. Anthony would have put it quite that way!] J

Shortly thereafter, Anthony again entered the Church and heard the words of St. Luke’s Gospel: Take nothing for your journey; neither staff, nor scrip, nor bread, nor money; neither have two coats.

Deeply moved by the Holy Spirit, St. Anthony immediately went forth, sold what little inheritance was left to him, and gave the money to the poor. Then, this heroic soldier of Christ, left the world and entered the desert as a hermit. There he would remain for nearly 100 years!

Many people came to St. Anthony to seek his counsel, and he ultimately founded the first monasteries in the history of the Church. Was it easy? Of course it wasn’t easy! He lived in the desert of Egypt! It was very hard, he suffered much, he was bothered by all sorts of crazy people coming and pestering him. And, on top of all that, he suffered terribly from the attacks of demons!

But St. Anthony persevered through all of this because he was filled with a profound spirit of joy. He had found that treasure, he had taken possession of the pearl – having left all things, he obtained the Kingdom.

Now, most of us are not called to seek the pearl and the treasure out in the desert. Surely, some here are called in this way – there are likely some among our young men and women who are called to leave all and follow God through the vocation to the religious life or to the priesthood. But most of us will search for the treasure in the ordinary circumstances of daily life. Where then shall we find the Kingdom in midst of the world?

I want to point out three places where we find the treasure, where we gain that pearl – and these are three occasions which are common and ordinary.

First, we find the treasure in the Sunday Mass. If the Eucharist isn’t the pearl of great price, I don’t know what is! It is at the Mass that we gain the riches of everlasting life. Here, in our Sunday worship, we store up treasures in heaven.

How valuable the Mass is! There is nothing more important in our week than Sunday Mass

In fact, Sunday Mass (or Mass on Saturday evening) is so valuable … why, it’s even more important than hunting and fishing season! J

The Eucharist is so important, that we wouldn’t ever want to miss it or skip out on the Mass in order to fish or hunt. If we truly understood the value of the Mass and the Gift that we receive, we would never skip Mass – not for travel, not for vacation, not for games.

Remember, this isn’t just about an obligation (though, it is an obligation); we are talking about the treasure and about the pearl – we have found the Kingdom, be filled with joy and give all things in order to attend Sunday Mass every week without exception.

Second, we find the pear of great price in all the good things that God has in store for marriage and family life. If the child isn’t the pear, I don’t know what is! The gift of the child, how could we ever reject the child?!

And yet, far too often, many people (and even many Catholics) refuse to accept the gift of children. Using artificial means of regulating fertility is like finding the treasure and abandoning it. If we knew the gift of the child, we would never use birth control. A nation which uses contraception is a nation which has rejected the child.

God wants us to trust in him! Will it be hard? Of course it will be hard! Remember, Anthony was in the desert for 100 years; it wasn’t easy, but he was joyful. So too, we also must be joyful – consider the gift of the child and the grace of God who will always provide for us, if only we trust in him.

The way to space out children and to be responsible in parenting is to use Natural Family Planning, not contraception. Natural Family Planning is the great means for parents to find the treasure of the Kingdom and to receive God’s plan for their family with joy.

Third, we find the treasure in being generous to the poor. The poor are that treasure hidden in society, neglected and ignored by so many. If we cannot see that the poor are that pearl, then we have missed Christ who is present to us through them.

The US Dollar is losing strength every day – I hear that it is worth less even than the Canadian Dollar. You may as well give your money to the poor before it is worth nothing at all! J

Mercy covers a multitude of sins, and those who are generous to the poor are the true friends of God.

Finally, if we really believe that these three – the Mass, the child, and the poor – truly are the pearl and the treasure, then we ought to be filled with joy! Here is our means of attaining to the Kingdom of God, which is worth more than any passing treasures of earth; let us sacrifice all our self-love, all our selfishness, all our distrust. You will lose nothing, but you gain everything! And, consumed with the joy of God’s Kingdom, we should be bold in speaking of these things with others.

If we believe that the Eucharist is the great Gift that it is, we will try to bring fallen-away Catholic back to Mass. If we know that the child is a pearl given us by the Lord, we will not be afraid to proclaim the truth about marriage and family, and to encourage others to use Natural Family Planning [and parents and grandparents have a special obligation to explain this to their children]. Finally, if we know that the downtrodden are that true treasure, we will not be ashamed to defend the poor and to be a witness of God’s preferential love for them.

Be joyful! Though these pearls and treasures may only be obtained through much sacrifice, if only you preserver in God’s love, you shall soon attain to life everlasting.

How to have a happy and holy family, Sermon for the feast of the Holy Family

 Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph

December 26^th, 2010

Matthew 2:13-15, 19-23

Joseph rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed for Egypt.

Today, the feast of the Holy Family, we are afforded the opportunity to consider the great dignity of married life. The vocation to marriage is indeed a high calling, both a challenge and an immense supernatural blessing. As we think of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, we are both encouraged to strive forward in our own vocations and we are strengthened by their example to persevere in the face of every difficulty.

As we consider the home in Nazareth, there are two central realities which come to light: first, this home was a place of prayer; and second, the Holy Family worked hard. Prayer and work intertwined to create a marvelous harmony in the life of the Holy Family.

First, we consider the Holy Family as an example of prayer. The home in Nazareth has a spirit of quite about it – I do not say that Jesus, Mary and Joseph were perpetually silent, not by any means! Certainly, there was much joy and even laughter in that house; for the happiest people are holy people, and so the three holiest people will certainly be the most joyful Family of all. Yet, there is something of a spirit of quite which is associated with the home in Nazareth – it is the silence of prayer.

Note well how this prayerful silence differs from the sad and angry silence which is present in so many families today. Today, there is silence in the home because the husband and wife are angry with one another, or the parents and children are at odds. The silence in many families today comes from sin.

But this was not the silence of the Holy Family, it was a silence filled with love, filled with prayer.

We know that the Holy Family prayed together regularly, as all families must. Indeed, the family is the first school of prayer. But this meant more than just common prayers said together each day, for the Holy Family this also meant times for personal silent prayer as well. In addition to their common prayers, Mary and Joseph (and Jesus as he grew older) took time each day for personal mental prayer and meditation.

We can imagine how Joseph would take care of the Christ Child, so that Mary would have an opportunity to make a meditation – perhaps for an hour. Then, Mary would in turn allow Joseph to take his time for daily mental prayer as well.

And this is something which every family must do – husbands and wives must give each other the opportunity for daily mental prayer, this daily period of meditation is essential for any Christian family.

Moreover, in addition to teaching their children the common prayers that are said together, parents ought to instruct their sons and daughters on how to make a meditation. By the time a child is in high school, he should have learnt from his parents how to pray with Scripture, alone and in quite.

But it was not all prayer in that holy house of Nazareth – there was much hard work too! The Holy Family offers us an example of consecrated labor. Joseph was dedicated to his profession as a carpenter, and he worked hard to complete his work with perfection. But he didn’t put his job ahead of his Family either. When the angel came and told him to flee to Egypt, Joseph willingly abandoned his work, sacrificing his business, for the sake of his wife and her Child. Joseph knew the true value of labor and he was a good worker, but he also knew that his vocation as a husband and father came first.

And after Joseph worked hard all day in the shop, what did he do? Did he go out to the bar with “the guys”? Did he seek relaxation in the secular distractions of the world? Of course not! After a long day of work, Joseph returned home to his Family. He went to Mary and to Jesus, he fulfilled his primary vocation as father of the household.

Now I do not say that it is wrong for a man to go out with friends every so often, but we ought to ask ourselves where we find our true consolation and rest. Do we seek consolation and joy in the world, or in our family? Do we get rest and relaxation by fleeing our responsibilities, or is our true rest found with our family? Let us heed the example of St. Joseph, the worker and the spouse.

And what of Mary? She too worked hard! She was dedicated to the care of her home – for her profession was to be the housewife in the Holy Family. Did she spend her day gossiping and chattering endlessly? Of course not! She was dedicated to her work, and she fulfilled her responsibilities as the Mother of Jesus.

Consider where Mary found her consolation, joy and refreshment. It wasn’t in going off shopping all the time. She didn’t always need the newest fashionable clothing. She was constantly looking for ways to spend Joseph’s money. Rather, she found her consolation in her husband and her Son. Mary’s rest and joy was to be with her Family.

Likewise, Jesus, as he grow older and became a young adult, was not always off with friends running around Nazareth. No! He knew his duties to his Family. He loved Joseph and Mary very much, and so he spent time with them and they were his true joy.

Now I know that this can all be pretty challenging. I know that the Christian ideal of married life is exalted indeed. But we need not be discouraged, we must never despair.

If you find that family life is difficult, if you find it hard and full of sorrow; the Holy Family is with you.

Remember, that Jesus, Mary, and Joseph (as holy as they were) suffered many hardships and difficulties. No one can claim to have had a more difficult family life than the Holy Family – even looking past all the challenges which arose from the miraculous nature of Christ’s conception (challenges which nearly led Joseph to divorce the Blessed Virgin), from the moment that Christ was born the Holy Family suffered persecution and difficulties. When Jesus was just a baby, King Herod sought to kill him and they all had to flee to Egypt.

Recall as well that Joseph died when Jesus was not yet thirty years old – what sorrow this must have caused Jesus and Mary! Moreover, Jesus himself was murdered in the prime of his life, leaving Mary in grave sorrow and affliction.

Indeed, this is a Family well acquainted with grief. And so, if your family suffers, if your family struggles – the Holy Family is closest to you today! Jesus, Mary, and Joseph are your companions; turn to them, speak with them, ask them for assistance and aid. Consecrate your family to the Holy Family, and they will bring you safely through the storms of this life unto life everlasting.

For Respect Life Sunday: A sermon on abortion and contraception, October 3rd

Respect Life Sunday

October 3^rd, 2010.

2 Timothy 1:6-8, 13-14

For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice but rather of power and love and self-control.

I would like to share with you a very beautiful story from the life of Mother Teresa, a story of great compassion and love. In 1994, Mother Teresa was invited to Washington, D.C. to give a speech at the National Prayer Breakfast. She was invited because of the great work she had done with the poor in Calcutta and throughout the world. The theme for her talk that year was world peace, but we are not at all surprised to see that she began by speaking about the Gospel.

She told us of how much Jesus loves each and every one of us. How he loved us so much that he not only became man for us, but he even sacrificed his own life in order that we might live forever. Mother Teresa pointed out that the love of Christ teaches us how to love – we must imitate our Savior and “love until it hurts.” This is what true love requires: self-donation and self-sacrifice, giving until it hurts. It was love that led Christ to die for us, so too only love can bring us to sacrifice for Christ and for others.

Mother Teresa told us that we cannot say we love God without loving our neighbor, and that we have not really loved out neighbor until we have given until it hurts. Until we are willing to sacrifice our wants and desires in order to help others, we will only bring injustice into the world. We must imitate Christ and die for love of others.

This ought not to have been a surprise to anyone; as a bride of Christ, Mother Teresa would certainly begin with the Gospel. But what she said next probably caught nearly everyone by surprise.

“But I feel that the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion, because it is a war against the child, a direct killing of the innocent child, murder by the mother herself. And if we accept that a mother can kill even her own child, how can we tell other people not to kill one another?”

Now I know that abortion is a sensitive issue, even for many Catholics. I am quite certain that many of us here have been affected personally by abortion in some way, either through family or friends, or perhaps through participating in an abortion ourselves. This can be a very difficult topic to hear about, but I would ask that you open your hearts to the words of Mother Teresa. If you know anything at all about Mother Teresa, I hope you know this – She loves you. If you can be certain about anything at all about Mother Teresa, it is this – whatever she says, she says it because she loves you and she wants you to be happy. These words are indeed challenging, but they are also words of love.

Mother Teresa continued, “How do we persuade a woman not to have an abortion? As always, we must persuade her with love and we remind ourselves that love means to be willing to give until it hurts. Jesus gave even His life to love us. So, the mother who is thinking of abortion, should be helped to love, that is, to give until it hurts her plans, or her free time, to respect the life of her child. The father of that child, whoever he is, must also give until it hurts.”

“By abortion, the mother does not learn to love, but kills even her own child to solve her problems. And, by abortion, the father is told that he does not have to take any responsibility at all for the child he has brought into the world. Any country that accepts abortion is not teaching its people to love, but to use any violence to get what they want. This is why the greatest destroyer of love and peace is abortion.”

If many of the people at the Prayer Breakfast were on the edge of their seat up to this point, what Mother Teresa said next probably astonished all present – and perhaps it shocks us as well.

“I know that couples have to plan their family and for that there is natural family planning. The way to plan the family is natural family planning, not contraception.”

Here we need to point out that natural family planning has had many advancements in recent years. It is not just the old rhythm method – in fact, many statistics show that Natural Family Planning is more effective than the most common methods of contraception, and it has none of the adverse side effects. But as great as the statistics are and as good as it is that natural family planning is effective, there is something much more important – contraception destroys the love between a husband and a wife, but natural family planning nurtures love and teaches love.

Mother Teresa says, “In destroying the power of giving life, through contraception, a husband or wife is doing something to self. This turns the attention to self and so it destroys the gift of love in him or her. In loving, the husband and wife must turn the attention to each other as happens in natural family planning, and not to self, as happens in contraception. Once that love is destroyed by contraception, abortion follows very easily.”

Now I know that these words can be very challenging and may even seem too difficult for some; and I know also that, despite the Church’s clear teaching, many Catholics use contraception. Again, remember that Mother Teresa speaks to you out of love. She desires your happiness, she want your family to grow closer together.

Contraception destroys the love between the couple, and thus destroys the family – for if a couple will not give themselves to one another in love, how can they ever fully love their children? This is why Mother Teresa connects contraception with abortion – both destroy love, both treat children as a ‘choice’ rather than a gift.

“I also know that there are great problems in the world,” Mother Teresa says, “We cannot solve all the problems in the world, but let us never bring in the worst problem of all, and that is to destroy love. And this is what happens when we tell people to practice contraception and abortion.”

I would like to conclude by putting two women before your hearts and minds: Margaret Sanger, who founded Planned Parenthood, and Mother Teresa. On the one hand there is Margaret Sanger, she herself admits that she founded Planned Parenthood with the specific intention of destroying culture. She promoted contraception and abortion as a means of eliminated blacks, Hispanics, and the poor – Planned Parenthood, from its conception, has been an institution bent on tearing down, on destruction. Even today, it has been shown that Planned Parenthood targets minorities – it is a form of eugenics, an establishment which brings only death.

On the other hand, we have Mother Teresa and the Church. She speaks to you out of love. While Margaret Sanger and Planned Parenthood become rich through selling their cancer-causing Pill, Mother Teresa became poor to serve and to love. While Planned Parenthood works to tear down, Mother Teresa gave her life to build up.

We have these two choices: Life or death, love or hate, the Church or Planned Parenthood.

“If we remember that God loves us, and that we can love others as He loves us, then America can become a sign of peace for the world. From here, a sign of care for the weakest of the weak – the unborn child – must go out to the world. If you become a burning light of justice and peace in the world, then really you will be true to what the founders of this country stood for. God bless you!”