Last week on the Feast of Pentecost in my homily I said that it's a great day to be Catholic! We are so gifted! We are so primed! We are so ready to go out and make a real and lasting difference in the world as we find it May we rededicate ourselves to being Spirit-filled-and-sent Catholics today!
Today I would like to begin on another footing! IF we are so gifted! IF we are so primed! IF we are so ready to go out and make a real and lasting difference in the world as Catholic Christians, then why, as of late, is there such an unusual amount of negative commotion in the One Church that was sent out on that One Day to bring One Faith to all the world: drawing it together in unity and peace?
I am referring to the now familiar fact that a priest-president of a major Catholic University stood up defiantly against his own bishop and at least 82 other protesting bishops, and hundreds of thousands of faithful Catholics who petitioned him not to do what he did in inviting the President of the United States - who clearly demonstrates in certain critical areas of morality -values that directly oppose Catholic teaching - to speak at the Commencement Exercises of the University and award him an honorary law degree – causing embarrassment to the Church and grave scandal to the whole flock of God.
I am referring to the fact that a popular young publicly known priest in another part of the country recently not only "got caught" living a double-life but then left the priesthood of the Catholic Church (which he claimed to love so much) in order to marry the woman he was having an affair with - as an apparently quick and emotionally charged reaction to being caught - without proper time for thoughtful, objective and detached assessment of the entire situation in the light of his true vocation (whatever it might be), and his obedient response to it; and not only that, but in an even more stunning reaction to his misdeed, renounced his Catholic Faith completely by joining a protestant community and applying for its priesthood and being given permission immediately to start ministering to their people in a minor role – causing quite frankly a grave scandal in both religious communities.
I am talking about the fact that clergy abuse surfaced again recently, this time in Ireland, causing the healing scars of what happened in our own country these past several years to be brushed and bruised.
If the Church is so filled with the Holy Spirit and called to be the Light of the World: then how can all of these dark things be happening within it?
The answer is very simple: free-will. Men (and women) will always be free to choose the right or the wrong; the good or the bad; what is of God, what is of the Evil One. But even this takes some doing: for humans are pre-wired, pre-programmed as it were, to "go for the good and the right," it is part of our human nature. And then as I talked about last week there is Counsel as a Gift of the Spirit. This is what counsel is: it seasons our consciences with even more of a taste for the good and right – and it makes us want to go there. However, the Evil One who is still allowed to deal with us tempts us to go the other way: and since his greatest trick is camouflage, he makes the very bad appear o so good - and unless we think, pray, act and use WUCKPFF: especially, Counsel, then it is very easy to be duped. The things mentioned above have been examples of recent super-duping by the Evil One.
Now, the Good News today, on this Solemnity of the Most Blessed Trinity is that for the baptized and confirmed Catholic Christian person: there is an enormous amount of help available to successfully tread through life – day by day – for as long as we live. We have the very dynamic life of the Triune God within us. What is this "dynamic life?" It can be explained like this: before there was anything there was God, just God. He was Three Persons all intercommunicating with each another in a very living, dynamic, moving, energized sort of way. It was the Father, loving the Son; and the Son returning the love in a never-ending exchange: the circulating energy, love, friendship between Father and Son being the Holy Spirit. The Three Persons are all separate but equal; all individual, but united; all participating in what it means to be God. Where one is, the other two are truly there somewhere, somehow!
Then, God created everything, including people, male and female: man: to share the love and the friendship, to share his own dynamic life with persons outside himself: just because he could do it; and because love and friendship are expansive: they go out from themselves. But we know the relationship of love / friendship was all but destroyed by the Original Sin, until Jesus, Son of God, also came down to earth to become Son of Man. By his death on the Cross he restored the love / friendship relationship with the Father; and then when he returned to heaven he and his Father sent the Holy Spirit to remind us of all these things and to provide a way so we could be intimately reconnected to God (because we are born into this world still unconnected).
The way is baptism! Baptism is an amazing sacrament where our lives become completely different - we are born a new creation; we are alone no longer; we belong to a community of other baptized people and are confirmed (given gifts of the Spirit) to help each other out and the whole world the best we can! THIS GIVES US EVERY REASON TO HAVE HOPE: to believe that the Church has the fullness of God's presence no matter what might go on with individual members – who oftentimes have a very difficult time using the gifts they have been given. Without casting the first stone, (because we ourselves sin and sometimes choose to remain in darkness), we ought not judge these members; and also not neglect to pray for them to receive the fullness of God's grace and mercy that is always available to all of us! Yes! It is always a great day to be Catholic!
[Actually this homily is not finished – and actually it is the second of a three part series that began last week and will conclude next week (I didn't really even know this myself until I started writing it all out)– there is still a very important "missing piece" – perhaps during the week you can identify what that piece is? What is it that can guarantee that every day is a great day to be Catholic, come what may?]
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