Homily 25th Sunday Year C: Wise, trustworthy, detached stewardship

Homily for 25th Sunday of Ordinary Time Year C 2016

Amos 8:4-7; 1Timothy 2:1-8; Luke 16:1-13

Introduction

It might surprise us, it should shock us, that the hero of today’s gospel parable is the thieving, lying and conniving steward.  How can that be?  Surely Jesus could not possibly condone theft, lies and dishonesty!

Thankfully, the meaning of this parable can be found at the end of the gospel story, in the three conclusions about stewardship that Jesus makes.

Scripture and Theology

The first conclusion is about wise stewardship.  He says: “I tell you, make friends for yourselves with dishonest wealth, so that when it fails, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.”  With these words, Jesus commends the steward, not for his theft and lies, but for his decision to use his position to secure his future; faced with a crisis of losing his job, the steward employed the tools at his disposal, his ability to treat his master’s debtors kindly, and so secure friends.

Jesus is hereby urging his disciples to be equally enterprising in their use of the world's goods for a much loftier goal than earthly happiness – they should use their wisdom and cunning to establish the Kingdom of God and to secure their place in it.  Like the steward and even business people today use ingenuity to secure a passing advantage, the followers of Jesus must be ingenuous in how they use material resources, so as to secure a lasting advantage with God.   In short, Christians must exercise wisdom in our stewardship of material goods.

Besides ingenuity, in the second conclusion Jesus calls for trustworthiness in our stewardship.  He says: “If, therefore, you are not trustworthy with dishonest wealth, who will trust you with true wealth? If you are not trustworthy with what belongs to another, who will give you what is yours?”  It is exactly the lack of trustworthiness that landed the steward in trouble in the first place: he was squandering his master’s goods.  And it might be argued that lowering the amounts of the master’s debtors is another example of being untrustworthy.  But according to Bible Scholars, it is likely that the amounts by which the steward lowered the debts were simply his commission and not the master’s principal amount.  That is why the Master on learning this does not further condemn the steward but rather commends him for his prudence.

Similarly we Christians are stewards of what God has given us. We do not own it. In the kingdom, rewards will be given to those who demonstrate faithfulness in their earthly stewardship, using well what they had been given; that in fact is the very definition of a steward, one who takes care of another's property, like a supervisor of an apartment complex or a nanny of children, or an executor of a will.  Earthly things are basically dishonest wealth in the sense that they pale in value when compared to heavenly things.  That is why Jesus is adamant that unless we make good use of something that does not really have much value, we cannot hope to be given that which is really valuable, namely, eternal life.  Our trustworthy use of material things is a kind of dress rehearsal of our appreciation for the real gift of life with God.

Besides exercising wisdom and trustworthiness in our stewardship, in the third conclusion Jesus calls for detachment.  He says: “No servant can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and mammon."  This statement calls for the kind of letting go that the steward exercised when he gave up his commission, by lowering the debts of his master’s debtors.  He let go of one thing – his cut – so that he could secure another – his future.

Similarly for Christians, Jesus teaches that there is a fundamental incompatibility between serving God fully and being a slave to material things. Using material things is one thing, being a slave to them is another.  In our wise and trustworthy use of material goods, we must see them only as instruments or means to a greater end, see them as servants and not as our masters.  To be completely dependent upon wealth is opposed to the vision of Jesus who taught complete dependence on the Father as one of the characteristics of the Christian disciple.

Christian Life

And so Jesus does not condemn earthly riches and money in themselves; he only condemns their abuse and misuse.  For example, many of us have smartphones, which are very useful in communicating with each other, even seeing the video of people who are so far away, like some you do with your grandchildren or I do with my mother who is all the way back in Africa – smartphones are essentially good things.  But we can also misuse these good things, like when we use them to play games or send text message while at table or in company or worse still, when driving, and God forbid, in Church.

Like we don't stop using smartphones because they can be abused, Jesus too does not throw the baby out with the bath water, when it comes to material goods.  Rather, he encourages the wise, trustworthy and detached use of material goods, for building the Kingdom of God, something most us already do.

We do use material things wisely, trustworthily and detachedly when we work hard to feed our families, send our kids to school, and even give them a treat or a holiday every now and then.  This use of material things is certainly a sign of taking seriously our responsibility as Christian parents, and thus preparing the way for us and our children for the Kingdom.

We use money wisely, trustworthily and detachedly when we faithfully pay our fair taxes for the good of our society, when we contribute to other community causes, and take care of the needy. Using our resources for the benefit of the community and especially the hungry and thirsty, the sick and imprisoned, the stranger and the naked, is certainly a way to secure our entrance into heaven, as Jesus promises in the parable of the Last Judgement.

We use our money wisely, trustworthily and detachedly when we give to the Church, both local and missionary, for the work of proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ.  There can be no surer way to secure the Kingdom of God and our membership in it, than by making sure that Kingdom becomes a reality in the first place.

Conclusion

During our working lives we set aside some money in investments and 401ks, to ensure that we shall have a pension or social security to care for our needs when we retire.  Similarly during our earthly lives, we should use what we have wisely, to ensure that at the end of this earthly life, we shall have an everlasting pension.

A story is told of a young girl who earned some money, helping around the house with various chores.  She then went to the dollar store and found some fake jewellery, which she really liked, because she had bought it with her very own money.  She used to wear that necklace all the time; to church and to school, to visit friends and even to bed.

Now one night, several months after she had bought her fake pearls, just before he read her a bedtime story, the dad asked her to give him the necklace as a sign of her love for him.  She said: "No daddy, not the necklace.  Perhaps you can take the Barbie."

The next night he asked her again, but she still said no.

On the third night when he came into her room, she was already seated on the side of the bed, with the necklace in her hands.  She told him: “Daddy, I have been thinking.  I love you so much.  Please take the necklace.”

The dad was so touched and broke down in tears.  And then he did what he had been planning all along; he took a necklace with real pearls from his pocket and gave it to her in exchange for the fake one.

Are we using wisely, trustworthily and detachedly what we have here, in exchange for something even better on the side?

Homily 24th Sunday Year C: We have a Loving Father

Homily for 24^th Sunday of Ordinary Time Year C 2016

Exodus 32:7-11,13-14; 1 Timothy 1:12-17; Luke 15:1-32

Introduction

Six months ago, during the Mass of the Fourth Sunday of Lent, we read the same gospel that we have just heard, the three parables about the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the prodigal son.

·        During Lent this gospel was given to encourage us on our penitential journey, assuring us that our penance and conversion would be rewarded with God’s forgiveness and pardon.

·        The same gospel is now proposed for us, to remind us of God’s mercy. 

·        During Lent, these parables inspired us to sing the popular hymn "Amazing Grace" and say "I once was lost, but now I am found."

·        Today, these same parable might inspire us to sing another hymn, which says: "There's a wideness in God's mercy like the wideness of the sea; there's a kindness in his justice, which is more than liberty."

Scripture and Theology

And so, we can reflect on the wideness God's mercy in two ways: first there is the mercy of forgiveness and second the mercy of concern.

Do you remember when as a teenager perhaps you stayed out late at night past the curfew your parents had set for you?  Perhaps you came home terrified at the punishment you would receive.  But when you arrived home, not only did your parents forgive you, they had stayed up late waiting for you, after calling all your friends' parents, concerned about your safety and welfare.

The gospel also shows us that God is merciful, not only because he forgives the sinner, but also because he cares about the sinner's welfare.  And Jesus teaches the message by telling three parables, because each parable speaks to a different audience about who God is.

The first parable of the Good Shepherd or the Lost Sheep was particularly suited to men who were shepherds.  They would understand immediately what looking for a lost sheep entailed: walking for many miles under the blazing sun in very dry conditions; slipping and sliding down on rocks; stumbling upon wild animals or ruthless rustlers.  And so when they heard Jesus suggest that God is this relentless shepherd, going to such great lengths to save a lost sheep, they understood the tremendous love God has for sinners and the lengths to which he goes to secure the sinner’s return.

The second parable of the Responsible Housewife or Lost Coin was most suited to women who at that time controlled the household check-book.  Every woman in the crowd would at once understand the desperation at the loss of the coin and the energy needed to find it.  Every woman in the audience would know how she would have to tear the house apart in a frantic search for the coin, which might mean the difference between the family having food for the day and going to bed hungry.  Hearing that God is like this woman, who goes to all these lengths to find a lost coin, they understood the tremendous love that God has for sinners and the lengths he goes to reclaim a sinner.

We are probably most familiar with the third parable, commonly called the Parable of the Prodigal Son, because it speaks to the children.  But a more accurate title should be, the Parable of the Loving Father.  You see, the father in that parable was loving, not just to the younger son, but to the older son as well.

·        We heard that "While he [the younger son] was still a long way off, his father caught sight of him, and was filled with compassion. He ran to his son, embraced him and kissed him."  Like the parent who waits up at night for the wayward teenager to return home, the father in the parable, and God our Father is anxiously waiting for the sinner to return to him.  Even better, when the son returned, the Father decked him out in the finest clothing and jewellery and ordered a festival in his honour with the fattened calf as the main entré.

·        As for the older son, the one who refused to come in and join the feast, we heard that the father went out there to seek him and plead with him, because this son too was lost, he was filled with envy and perhaps a little anger at his father.  That is why the Father tells him: "My son, you are here with me always; everything I have is yours."

And so, the message of all three parables is this: God the Father that Jesus has come to reveal does not only forgive sinners who come back to him; he is also anxiously waiting for their return and often goes out to seek them.  The Pharisees and scribes especially needed to hear this message, because as we heard at the beginning of the gospel, they were complaining that Jesus was spending way too much time with tax collectors and sinners.  They said: “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”

Christian Life

We too need to hear this message, not only for ourselves but for others.  That is why since he became pope, Pope Francis has made God's mercy a central plank of his teaching.  He continues to teach us that yes, like any good parent, our God is demanding; he wants us to obey his laws.  But again like any good parent he knows that sometimes we fail.  And if we return to him in sorrow and contrition, especially when we want to renew our lives, he will gladly have us back.

One of the ways the Pope has propagated this message is by calling this Jubilee Year of Mercy, whose many activities should help us experience God's mercy.  One of these activities is confession.  Pope Francis has invited us to go confession more frequently and share in God's mercy.  Here in New Orleans, our Archbishop has asked parishes and priests to provide confession throughout the Archdiocese always, but in a special way this coming Wednesday, the Feast of the Holy Cross.  We all need to experience this mercy of God, so that we can then go and share it with others.

Conclusion

Let us not let this Jubilee Year of Mercy go by without leaving an impact on us.  May our reflection on these parables and our own participation in confession, help us to realize more and more of God's mercy.

When at last we return to God, we shall experience the fullness of his mercy, when he will say to us: “Let us celebrate with a feast, because this son of mine, this daughter of mine, was dead, and has come to life again; he was lost, and has been found.”

Homily Ordinary Sunday 23 C 2016 - Following Christ Goes Beyond Fuzzy Feelings

Homily for 23rd Sunday of Ordinary Time Year C 2016

Wisdom 9:13-18; Philemon 9b,12-17; Luke 14:25-33

Introduction

In today’s gospel, Jesus has two distinct but related lessons for his followers.

First, Jesus wants us to know that following him is difficult; it involves sacrifice and suffering, giving up family and property and carrying our crosses.

The second lesson is that following Jesus requires a conscious choice and deliberate effort.  Let us explore this second lesson a little more.

Scripture and Theology

To explain that following him must go beyond fuzzy feelings, Jesus gives two ordinary life examples where calculation and preparation is of utmost importance.

·        The builder of a tower, for example, must calculate the cost of the whole project, before he starts working on it. Otherwise half-away through the construction, he might run out of money and have a half-finished building.

·        The king going to war also must first assess his chances of victory.  If, for example, he has fewer men than his opponent, he might consider negotiating a peace-deal, since war in this case would be futile.

With these examples, Jesus is teaching that Christians, like the builder and the king, must be intentional and deliberate in choosing to follow him.

·        Take the majority of us, who were baptized as babies; we cannot take our Christian faith for granted.  What if our parents were Jewish, or Muslim or Jehovah’s witnesses?  Would we be followers of Jesus?  That is why we cradle Catholics at some point in our adult life, must also make a conscious choice to believe, worship and live as Jesus teaches.

·        Those who come to the faith as adults, clearly make a conscious choice.  But even they have to ask why they are becoming Catholic.  It cannot simply be because of an emotional excitement that comes from attending a retreat or a pilgrimage or hearing a touching homily.  Such excitement must mature through sweat and suffering, through reason and conviction, through deliberation and effort to be a faithful Christian.

Whether we are cradle Catholics or adult converts, our faith in Jesus must be more than following a whim; it is a lifelong project, a total commitment to Jesus.

In the musical Fiddler on the Roof, Tevye the husband, probably sad that his daughters are leaving him to get married, asks his wife Golde: “Do you love me?”  She is surprised and exasperated by the question and brushes him off.  But he insists and keeps asking: “do you love me?”  She attempts to respond:

For twenty-five years I've washed your clothes,

Cooked your meals, cleaned your house,

Given you children, milked the cow,

After twenty-five years, why talk about love right now?"

But he is not satisfied.  After going back and forth, finally she asks herself:

"Do I love him? For twenty-five years I've lived with him, fought with him, starved with him... If that's not love, what is?"

The words of Golde teach us that we cannot really love another person only by feelings or even words; true love involves giving oneself completely.  If we say we love Jesus, he wants that love to be demonstrated in the everyday decisions we make, to consciously choose to love him and love our neighbour.

Our love for Jesus could be compared to having a million dollars that you want to give to your spouse or children.  Rather than write them one big check, Jesus is suggesting that we give out this money daily, perhaps 1 or 10 or 20 or 50 dollars each day, thus stretching out that love and making it count each day.

Christian Life

In other words, Christianity is not a joke, it is not child’s play, it is not even a leisure activity to be indulged in for one hour on Sunday.  It is a program of a lifetime, a program of becoming saints.

This Sunday the Catholic Church canonizes Mother Teresa of Calcutta.  In doing so the Church is proposing her as a model of how to follow Jesus.

Mother Teresa is clearly a good example of the first lesson of Jesus in today's gospel, that which requires Christians to carry their crosses.  Her whole life was giving up family and property, and giving herself to the poor and needy.

But Mother Teresa is also an example of the second lesson that Jesus teaches, that which requires Christians to consciously choose to follow him.

• Baptized as a baby in 1910 in Albania, from the age of 12 to 18, young Teresa struggled with the decision of whether or not to become a nun.
• After joining the Loretto sisters, for twenty years she faithfully served as a missionary teacher and school principal in India, alleviating the poverty and ignorance of her students through education.
•  But ever the conscious follower of Jesus, from 1946 for two years Mother Teresa discerned the call to leave teaching and instead go to care for the physical needs of the poor, especially in the slums and streets of Calcutta.
• Her discernment would blossom into the religious congregation of the Missionaries of Charity with their white and blue saris.  For fifty years, until her death in 1997, Mother Teresa lived out her calling by caring for the poor and needy, in India and throughout the world, including this country.
• And yet even as she was doing all this great work, earning a Nobel peace prize in 1979, Mother Teresa daily struggled with her faith.  Thankfully she took it seriously enough to seek the Lord's guidance in prayer and spiritual direction.  Until her death, she consciously chose to follow the Lord.

Conclusion

Like Mother Teresa, you and I are also called to become saints, and like her we must do so by finding out what our specific path to sainthood is.

A story is told of a young lady, an artist and actress who lived in New York City.  Although she herself came from a rather difficult background, she was obsessed with Mother Teresa and what Mother did.  For this young lady, Mother Theresa was the height of what every human being should be and she wanted to be like her and with her.  In 1985, she found out that Mother Teresa was coming to New York to speak at the United Nations. Searching high and low, she found out where Mother was staying and went to the hotel to see her.

And as she was at the gate of the hotel, Mother’s car pulled up and all these little nuns came out and then finally Mother Teresa herself.  This young lady ran up to Mother and said: “I am so glad to meet you; all the work you do is so wonderful.”  Mother Teresa used to all this kind of attention was gracious and took her hand and listened to her.  The girl went on: “The work you do is so wonderful that I want to come to Calcutta and do that work with you.”

But Mother Teresa shook her head and said, “No. You don’t do this work because you think it is wonderful. You do this work because you so love the poor people of Calcutta that you cannot be away from them; that is when you come.”  The young woman was a little disappointed but she understood.

Then Mother Teresa asked her: “But what do you do?”  She replied, “Well what I do is not important.  I work in a theatre and help put on plays.  What use is that?”

Mother Theresa said to her: “There are so many different kinds of famine in this world.  In my country of India, there is a famine of the body; in this country of America, there is a famine of the spirit.  Stay here and feed your people.”

You and I must also ask ourselves:  "And I am consciously finding out how Jesus wants me to follow him and then daily choosing that specific path to sainthood?"