11th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Cycle A - June 18, 2023

 11th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Cycle A

June 18, 2023 – 5pm

Our Lady of Grace Parish, Parkton 

 

Relativism

 

Pope Francis, and before him, Pope Benedict XVI have often talked about the problem of relativism.

 

They see a tendency, especially in our Western world, to hold nothing as absolute. They say that many people have come to think that nothing is for certain. 

 

This tendency toward relativism is taking place in an atmosphere of great individualism, where I see myself as an individual person as absolutely primary. My goals and my desires are seen as the most important thing.

 

The dictionary defines relativism in this way. It is “the viewpoint that what is true or false or good or bad depends only on persons and circumstances.”

 

And so, I alone, by myself can determine what is right or wrong for me. Our Popes are pointing out the problems with this mindset. 

 

Now, it is true that all religions and all persons of good will have aspects of the truth. But not everything depends on what I think or what I feel, with no reference to any basis or norm beyond myself.

 

Our Catholic tradition holds that there are some absolutes, some things that are certain and definite. We see some of these absolutes in today’s readings and I want to highlight them for us.  

 

Absolutes 

 

For starters, we believe that God is love and that God loves humanity. In our second reading, Saint Paul says, “God proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

 

The idea is that God has this unconditional love for us. This is an absolute.

 

And then, we Catholics and all baptized Christians believe that Jesus is the Son of God. Once again, in our second reading, Saint Paul says, “We were reconciled to God through the death of his Son.”

 

The idea is that the divine presence, the Almighty God has emerged in our world in the person of Jesus of Nazareth and forged a oneness between God and us. This is also an absolute.

 

Next, we believe that we are to live out of this new relationship with God.  We call this relationship God’s covenant with us.

 

In our first reading, the Lord God says, “If you hearken to my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my special possession.”  This means that we need to carefully form our conscience, our inner compass of right and wrong, of good and bad, and then live out of this.

 

We form our conscience from two primary sources: 1) the Scripture, which is the inspired Word of God, and 2) the Church, which tries to apply this Word down through the centuries. Forming our conscience in this way and living out of this covenant relationship with God is also an absolute.

 

And finally, we are to live with a care for human life. In our gospel passage, Jesus sends the apostles out to “cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers and drive out demons.”  

 

Scripture scholars tell us that we are to interpret this on both a physical and a spiritual level. So, for example, “curing the sick” means caring for those who are physically ill, and it also means providing emotional and spiritual support to those burdened with their responsibilities in life. 

 

“Driving out demons” means helping those who are caught in a physical addiction to alcohol or drugs, and it also means praying out, praying out the spiritual demons that can possess us, like racism or sexual permissiveness. Living with this care for human life is also an absolute.

 

Conclusion

 

There are other absolutes.

 

These are the ones I see in today’s readings. They are opposed to a mindset of complete relativism where what I think or feel is all that counts.

 

And, very importantly, these absolutes are not restraints holding us back and they are not hurdles to jump through to get to heaven. Instead, these absolutes or certainties free us, they free us to live with direction and purpose, and they lead us to become whole and holy persons.

Solemnity of the Holy Trinity, Cycle A - June 4, 2023

 Solemnity of the Holy Trinity

Cycle A

June 4, 2023 – 5pm, 8:30 and 11am  

Our Lady of Grace Parish, Parkton 

 

Spiritual Genetic Code 

 

I don’t often watch TV crime shows, but I know that we sometimes see perpetrators identified by their DNA that is left at the crime scene.  

 

I think that our police in real-life solve some cases in this way. As we know, DNA is our genetic code.  

 

It is the genetic instruction that identifies us as human beings and as unique, individual persons. I got thinking about this as I reflected on today’s celebration of the Holy Trinity.  

 

We believe that we are made in the image and likeness of God. So, I am thinking that we must also have kind of a spiritual DNA.

 

In other words, God must have implanted within us certain elements that make us like him. And that means that these elements are indicators or even evidence of God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

 

God the Father

 

For example, isn’t it true that in some way we want to give life to something or someone other than ourselves? 

 

Last Sunday we had a baptism of a baby at the 11 o’clock Mass, and you could just see that mother and father bursting with joy at the new life they have brought into the world. Don’t all of us want to give life to someone, maybe to a person who feels very down and lifeless?

 

Don’t many of us enjoy seeing seeds or little plants sprout into life with veggies or flowers in our gardens? Don’t auto mechanics feel a sense of accomplishment by bringing a broken-down engine back to life for the owners of the car? 

 

My point is that we have this hunger to give life in some way. I suggest that this is part of our spiritual genetic code.

 

And I believe that this hunger for giving life is an indicator of the One who is the author or creator of all life. It is evidence of God the Father.

 

God the Son

 

And then, isn’t it true that we all want to be loved and to love?

 

For example, don’t we look for affirmation from those who are close to us? And, on the other hand, don’t we feel good when we have helped someone in need or given a gift to someone special?

 

The idea is that within us there is this hunger to love and to be loved. I suggest that this is also part of our spiritual genetic code.

 

This is why the words in today’s gospel really get our attention: “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son…” And in another passage, the Scripture goes so far as to say: “God is love” itself.

 

So, I believe that our hunger to love and to be loved is also an indicator of God. It is evidence of God the Son.  

 

God the Holy Spirit

 

And finally, isn’t it true that we often want to be with others?

 

If a husband and wife are apart because one of them is travelling, don’t they try to be “with” each other through a text or phone call? When we go to an O’s game, don’t we usually invite someone to go with us?

 

Don’t we keep photos around the house of our loved ones? Don’t we enjoy sharing a nice dinner with others?

 

The idea is that deep down within us there is this hunger for relationship. I suggest that this is also part of our spiritual genetic code.

 

And I believe that this hunger to be with others is an indicator of God within us and drawing us to relationship. It is evidence of God the Holy Spirit.

 

Conclusion

 

So, maybe this can be a way of approaching the Holy Trinity!

 

Maybe we have a spiritual genetic code, something like our physical genetic code. And maybe these deep down, built-in hungers 1) for giving life, 2) for loving and being loved, and 3) for relationship with others – maybe these hungers are indicators and even evidence of God – God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Feast of Pentecost, Cycle A - May 28, 2023

 Feast of Pentecost

Cycle C

May 28, 2023 – 5pm, 8:30 and 11am  

            Our Lady of Grace Parish, Parkton

 

Good or Bad News 

 

When I was a child, my parents would sometimes take us to downtown Baltimore, and I remember seeing some street preachers.

 

These preachers were trying to convert people to Jesus. They would shout out and denounce everyone’s sinfulness and threaten damnation if people didn’t listen.

 

This is my earliest recollection of what is called evangelization. By the way, Pope Francis talks about evangelization in his message for today’s Feast of Pentecost. 

 

The word evangelization comes directly from the Latin word that means gospel or good news. So, evangelization means that we bring the gospel or good news of Jesus to the world around us.

 

As I look back, I wasn’t hearing much good news from those street preachers. They were scary, and it felt like bad news. 

 

Naming Grace 

 

I have come across another, and I think much better approach for bringing the good news to people here in the twenty-first century.

 

Some of our theologians hold that evangelization is first about naming grace – naming grace.It is not about bringing God to people, as if God were not already there.

 

Instead, when we evangelize, we first name or point out how God is already present. This is what Saint Paul is getting at in our second reading when he says that there are lots of differences among us but the same God at work.

 

So, we are to look at life with the eyes of faith and help each other see life as touched by God. We are to look at the human and the everyday and name the grace that is already there. 

 

Examples of Naming Grace

 

For example, a child is born. We are happy for the parents, and we stand with them in awe of this new life from God.

 

Or our teens and young adults spend a week at a work camp in Appalachia helping to repair a family’s home. And we affirm them and see God working in their giving of themselves in that way.

 

Or our nurses and doctors work long hours to care for the sick in our hospitals and urgent care centers. And we thank them and see the healing action of God working through them. 

 

Or we see a couple celebrating their fiftieth or first anniversary of marriage. And we celebrate with them and see the enduring love of God in them.

 

So, we affirm and celebrate those who are at the center of these experiences. We name the grace, the grace of God.

 

And we name this grace as acting in and through others regardless of where they are with faith. That, I believe, must be the first step of evangelization in this century and culture. 

 

Naming Jesus

 

And then, after naming the grace, we can proceed to the next step: naming Jesus and extending an invitation to follow his way.

 

Notice, in both steps, we are positive. We are not like the street preachers I remember as a child and some preachers I hear and hear about today whom I find to be very negative.  

 

We are not condemning or labeling others as in mortal sin. We are not threatening others with damnation and manipulating them with fear.

 

Instead, we are positive, first naming the grace that is already present and then naming Jesus. And we name the way of Jesus in a way that is appropriate – often just by the example of our lives or maybe by inviting someone to a Sunset Social or Holy Grounds here at the parish or maybe by sharing with another a booklet that we have found inspiring.

 

Notice: that’s what the first disciples do in our first reading today. They speak, they communicate in ways that others could listen to and receive.  

 

And notice: there can be no force or coercion or guilt trip here. There is simply and powerfully a naming of Jesus with an appropriate kind of invitation. 

 

This, I am so convinced, is the way to evangelize today – the way to proclaim the good news in our century and culture. Name the grace that is already there and then name Jesus with an appropriate kind of invitation.

 

That is how the first Pentecost happened and succeeded. And that’s how it can happen again today.