St Paul in today’s Second Scripture Reading writes: “I give thanks to my God always on your account for the grace of God bestowed on you in Christ Jesus.” As we think about who we are and how we are known and what we stand for, what one word defines you? For myself personally, for the Schwartz family, and my hope for us the parish family of St. Joseph’s, I would like that one word to be gratitude. We live life with an attitude of gratitude. I believe each of us has one significant word to say with our lives: For me it is gratitude. Our lives are very much blessed and our best response is gratitude. A favorite theologian of mine is the German philosopher and mystic of the 14th century Meister Eckhardt. He writes: “If the only prayer you ever say in life is ‘thank you,’ that would be enough.” If the only prayer you say in life is ‘thank you,’ that would be enough. Jesus is the great teacher of gratitude – grateful for the love of His heavenly Father, and he showed that gratitude in his living and dying witnessing to the Father’s love. In the Gospel Jesus said: “Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?” What Jesus asks of us, what Jesus expects of us is gratitude.The meaning of the Eucharist is that we speak these words to our loving God: Thank you for sharing the life of Jesus with us. For us as Catholic Christians, the first Thanksgiving took place on another Thursday, approximately 2000 years ago, Holy Thursday, in a rented room in Jerusalem where Jesus gathered with His apostles and celebrated the Eucharist for the first time. May we be mindful that Jesus is the great teacher of gratitude – grateful for the love of His heavenly Father, and he showed that gratitude in His living and dying witnessing to the Father‘s love.
I invite you to consider that the first question the Lord is going to ask you on judgment day. Who is the person or persons who are the Lord’s friends that he is going to ask you about? On this the last Sunday of the liturgical year, the Feast of Christ the King, Jesus lets us know very clearly what is going to be on the final exam for each one of us. We will be graded on how well we have responded with compassion to those in need. The Gospel describes the Last Judgment scene. “The king will say to those on his right. ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.'" There is nothing mysterious or difficult to figure out about today’s Gospel. Each of us will be judged upon our performance of the simple works of mercy, we hear in the Gospel. For me, I need to spend less time behind my desk as the pastor and more time being with people in need. As we gather on Sunday to celebrate the beauty of our liturgy Sunday after Sunday, the Gospel reminds us of the liturgy of life without which all other liturgy in Church has no meaning. Plain and simple, if we are not focused in the liturgy of life in our service of one another, all other liturgy, no matter how beautiful it is, is pointless.Today we celebrate the Feast of Christ the King. This is ironic because Jesus never acted like a king. He embraced poverty, not wealth. He taught humility, not arrogance. He emphasized service, not domination. He chose a cross, not a palace. In His last words to us in the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus is telling us in advance that when we each stand before our God, we won’t be given a test that will be confusing or difficult. It will instead involve only the most practical questions: Did you feed the hungry? Did you shelter the homeless? Did you care for the sick? And our answer will be….
“Come share your Master’s Joy! As children of the light, God has carved out a portion of his very own treasure and entrusted it to us. Each of us is led by the Holy Spirit to do as we wish. This is our invitation to share eternal life with all in heaven. When I reflect on God’s treasures, I pray that all men and women will discover and embrace their talents and charisms and use them. The magnitude of God’s handiwork is beyond anyone’s comprehension. I am humbled and grateful for the life that Jesus has breathed into us. Out of his infinite wisdom he purposefully chose each one of us. He placed within our deepest being specific charisms. They are gifts of service to others, gifts that must be desired and pray for. Everything that God gives us flows from his loving kindness. We are asked to discover our charisms, understanding they are works of God with which we are asked to cooperate. The world is always in need of those who have discovered their talents and their spiritual gifts. The world depends on the giftedness of all people to build-up the body of Christ and to be a source of nourishment to one another.
As children of the light, God has carved out a portion of his very own treasure and entrusted it to us. Each receives no more than we can handle and each of us is led by the Holy Spirit to do as we wish. “Come share your Master’s Joy,” is our invitation to share eternal life with all the angels and saints in heaven. Those five precious words will be spoken to all who are willing to participate in God’s divine plan for salvation. I am humbled and grateful for the life that Jesus has breathed into us. Out of his infinite wisdom he purposefully chose each one of us. He enabled us with the ability to think and reason, make moral choices, express our artistic creativity, and live in harmony with others. How can we consistently be a channel of God’s love to others when we have to navigate around our own loneliness, sorrows, financial hardships, illness, and pure lack of time? The world is always in need of those who have discovered their talents and their spiritual gifts. The world depends on the giftedness of all people to build-up the body of Christ and to be a source of nourishment to one another.
I was Baptized, made my First Holy Communion, was Confirmed, and celebrated my first Mass as a priest at Our Lady of Good Counsel Church on Brooks Avenue in Rochester. This was my spiritual home as it was the spiritual home of my family and my parish family who supported me on my journey to the priesthood and, even more importantly, witnessed to me how to be a disciple of the Lord Jesus. This Church is very memorable to me not because of its brick and mortar but because it was the spiritual home of our family. In 2010 we celebrated the 150th anniversary of St. Joseph's Church. Our parish Church is our spiritual home and it has been for many, many families over the last 154 years. We have a great history. The most important thing we have done as a parish community over the last 154 years is that Sunday after Sunday after Sunday we have gathered to give thanks to the Lord our God in the mystery of the Eucharist. Jesus did not live and die for church buildings, as beautiful as they are. Jesus lived and died out of love for us who are made in his own image and likeness. The point of today's important feast is not to be edified by the magnificence of the architecture, but rather to reflect on how it is through Rome that we Catholics connect with all other Catholics throughout the world. Rome's failures are our failures, and Rome's glories are our glories. We are family connected in Jesus Christ to one another. As Roman Catholics, we are one people despite our many native languages, our diverse races and ethnicities, and the different and diverse ways our lives are gifted. We are united as one family. "Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?"
This weekend we celebrate the Feasts of All Saints and All Souls. The question posed for our reflection during the week was "How has your faith sustained you at times of loss?" There is of course no right answer, but for me it's hope. But what does hope look like? As I look out into this congregation I see and feel hope! The Feast of all Souls is not about sadness, although it is natural to have sadness remembering those who have gone before us, but this feast is truly about hopefulness and confidence. In this feast we remember those who have gone before us, those who are in the presence of God! We especially remember those in our family, our friends and fellow parishioners who are in the kingdom of God! We also take time to reflect on how much love we have for them and know that is only a small fraction of the immense love that God holds for them, and for all of us! Our faith calls us to have an attitude of hopefulness, as we reach out to support one another other and offer consolation for those who suffer and mourn. Our readings today convey this great hope and assurance that Christ has gone before us to prepare a place for us! We know that God promises us Life Everlasting - what greater hope can we have?