Homily Feast of Christ the King (What is Practical, Just, and Prudent?)
Homily Feast of Christ the King (What is Practical, Just, and Prudent?)
We believe as Christians that there will be a particular judgement at the end of our life. We hear Jesus say that in the Gospel. If that is going to happen, we probably would all like to know what Jesus will consider. Jesus says in the Gospel of Matthew that there will be very measurable reasons why God is going to be pleased with our life or displeased. The question, we will have to be answer, is whether we have been charitable or not. And there are questions beyond that.
The writer of the Letter of James, in the New Testament, is one of the most practical Theologians whoever wrote. He asks in the second chapter of his epistle, “My friends, what good is it to profess faith without practicing it? Such faith has no power to save one does it?”
James has the same outlook as the writer of Matthew. He observes that if a brother or sister has nothing to wear or has no food to eat and we say I will pray for you, goodbye and good luck, then what good is such a faith? A Christian looks at the to the concrete needs of people and tries to meet them. We are most faithful to Jesus when we see the poor or sick or vulnerable and we try to help. But why should we do this? Is it just because we might be better off and we should?
I am reminded of one of our parishioners who had her own way of applying this parable. She died at 91 this week. Her name was Alberta DeDoncker. Alberta was a super volunteer. She took care of church’s vigil light stands. She helped at funeral lunches. She tried to be helpful in so many ways. But what motivated her?
Every so often Alberta would come to our office with an envelope that had a few dollars in it. She would give it to one of the staff. Whoever received it, would come to my office with the envelope after Alberta left. I would be told; “Alberta went to the casino again and she won today. She wants to give a portion to the church.” Alberta’s motivation was obvious. She saw all she received as a gift from God. She felt it was only just that she would give God a gift in return. Our charitable motivation is strong when it is motivated by a sense of justice. But how much should we give? How do we calculate it?
We have a lot of people in need right now. We might have the sense that our charity should be without measure. As a priest I feel frustrated that I cannot go over to the hospital or nursing home to visit the sick for that is what the Gospel of Matthew says Jesus would have me do. But with the pandemic should I put my life in danger? I struggle with that question. But I ran across this story recently.
In Milan Italy in 1576 a plague struck. In eighteen months, 17,000 people died. Even at this time in history people had a sense that social distancing was the best way to arrest a plague. The clergy wanted to help the sick. A local Franciscan community zealously, without regard for their own safety, rushed out to minister to the sick. Many of them died. The Jesuit community in Milan made another decision. The Jesuits picked out certain members to minister to the plague victims. The Jesuits staffed dozens of schools nearby. The community prayed over the situation, trying to discern what was best. Realizing that that once the plague died down, there would be an ongoing need for schools they decided to quarantine most of their community. When the sickness subsided, they went back to their teaching.
We are in the situation right now where we ask. What is practical? What is just? How do we take the long view? We contemplate that in our parish on this Sunday when we reflect on our offertory stewardship for the upcoming year. We realize that all charitable institutions are suffering right now. The question is, should these institutions stop asking for support during this crisis? We hear there is a light at the end of the tunnel. But when we come out of the tunnel will our Catholic parishes and schools be financially healthy? People have been very good about trying to support our offertory needs, but we are not meeting budget.
This is Offertory Commitment Sunday. During the week, everyone should have received a letter asking for offertory support. We simplified the process this year. As your pastor, I would ask only that you reflect in your own heart as to what you can donate to the offertory in the year ahead. Ask the questions. What is practical? What is just? What can our family responsibly give this year?
Reflection Questions:
- Is helping the poor a matter of justice? Why or why not?
- Did the Jesuit community make a good decision? Is it important to be prudent with our sacrifices?
Dear Parishioners,
Next week we begin the Advent season. We will be adjusting our schedule in several ways. There will be no Reconciliation Services this year because of the need to keep gatherings to a minimum. We will extend hours for the Sacrament of Reconciliation to an hour on Saturday and we will have extra times during the week. Please watch the bulletin for details. We will be having three prayer services on Sundays. We hope to livestream on Facebook for those who will not be able to come in person. We will try to have other activities as we can.
This week we will be distributing the missalettes. We are not to share them at Mass because of COVID. Starting Wednesday we will have extra missalettes available in a box outside the Lee Parish Center front door. If you need one to pray at home, please stop by and take one.
May Our Lady and all the Angels and Saints watch over you.
Fr. Mark