Foundation Stones: Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul (Acts 3:1-10, 12:1-11; Psalm 19:2-3, 4-5, 34:2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9; Galatians 1:11-20; 2 Timothy 4:6-8, 17-18; Matthew 16:13-19; John 21:15-19;

Today, we celebrate the great feast day of two of the major foundation stones of the Church…the great Catholic Church that we have the extreme privilege to be a part of today.

It would be difficult to find two other actors in the New Testament Scripture that simultaneously display both the incredible differences we sometimes see within the Church and at the same time the overarching unity that can only be achieved by the Holy Spirit.

Peter was a lowly fisherman from a nearly forgotten village named Capernaum on the northern end of the Sea of Galilee.  He was among the first of the chosen Apostles, called at a time when he was faced with his sinful nature.  When he came to realize Jesus is Lord, he had an epiphany that included an amazing change of heart.  He immediately abandoned his former life to follow Him.

Meanwhile, Paul, the last of the chosen Apostles, was a great scholar and rabbi in the Temple. He had a solid social standing with dual citizenship in Judea and Rome.  Shortly after the crucifixion, he took it upon himself to persecute the Church in a zealous effort to protect what he thought was the tradition.

On the road to continue the persecutions in Damascus, he was faced with his sinful nature.  He came to realize Jesus is Lord during an epiphany that’s included an amazing change of heart.   He immediately abandoned his former life to follow Him.

Both Peter and Paul received special assignments from the Lord.  

Peter, as some of you have heard me discuss in previous homilies, was the Lord’s chosen Al Habayit of the Messianic Kingdom of the New Covenant.  “Al Habayit” (אשר על הבית) is the Hebrew phrase for "over the house" or "the one over the house".   This role is essentially a prime minister for the Kingdom, as we can read more about in the second book of Kings.  

The Lord chose him for this role when He gave Simon the keys to heaven and gave Simon the title of Peter, which of course means rock.  

Peter’s role as the Al Habayit (or the first pope, as we might think of it) was later confirmed by Jesus Christ with the three-fold instruction to tend to and feed His sheep until He comes again at His second coming.

Paul’s assignment was much different.  He was the Lord’s chosen instrument to carry His holy name to the Gentiles.  It was the Lord’s intention that through Paul’s efforts, we too, could become sheep….sheep to be fed through the sacramental life of His Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church.

Despite their diverse background and many differences, both Peter and Paul shared many commonalities.  Both men shared an immense love of the Lord.  

We see they shared a special fraternity such as when Paul stayed with Peter (or Cephas as he is also referred to in Scripture) for 15 days.  Cephas, but the way, is the Greek version of the word Peter, also meaning rock.  That would have been a solid 15 days of episcopal formation from Peter to Paul.

Beyond the special fraternity, we see the communion they shared through, with, and in the Eucharist.  

In his first letter, Peter reminds us that we actually taste the goodness of the Lord through the precious Blood of Christ as a spotless unblemished lamb (the Eucharist) and that it is through this spiritual sacrifice (the Mass) that we are built into a spiritual house.

Paul, in his first letter to the Corinthians, reminds us that it is the Body and Blood of Christ (the Eucharist) that is truly the New Covenant.  He reminds us of how to come together (at Mass) to eat the bread and drink the cup, teaching us exactly how to live in communion, how to live in the household of God.  Or, as he refers to in the first letter to Timothy, how to behave in the Church of the living God, the pillar and bulwark of Truth.

Both Peter and Paul are great pillars of the faith from the early Catholic Church, and both were martyred for that faith in Rome.

Both Peter and Paul are extraordinary examples of strength and boldness in evangelization, but both men also had their weaknesses. 

Peter could be impulsive and rash.  He had moments of doubt, denial, and fear.  He was often tempted by pride and ambition.

Paul also experienced fear.  He seems to have struggled at times with his temper and could certainly hold a grudge.  He was often extremely zealous.

In spite of their weaknesses, Both men found ways to surrender those weaknesses to the Lord in that the Lord could be the strength they needed to fulfill their roles.

Through this, both Peter and Paul show us how God’s providence can work in our lives, no matter how improbable it may seem.  Both men give us extraordinary examples of how to trust in the Lord, allowing the Lord to be our strength in the midst of our weaknesses.

What Peter does for the Jews in the first half of the Acts of the Apostles, Paul does the same for the gentiles in the second half.  Together, they did the work of Jesus Christ, laying the foundation of and building the framework for the Catholic Church that we, each and everyone, of us have an important part of today.

Just as Jesus sent Peter and Paul out to extend the Kingdom of the Sacred Heart of Jesus into the world around them, He also sends us to do the same.

At Confirmation, like Peter and Paul, you received your assignment from the Lord to be missionary disciples.  Of course, that doesn’t mean we will be pope like Peter was, or like Leo the XIV is today.  Nor does it mean that we have to travel thousands of miles to foreign countries, often putting our lives in danger, like Paul.

We simply need to be open to those in our lives that need to hear the gospel message and make God’s love visible to them.  

That starts with building a relationship, allowing them to develop a sense of trust with us.  Through that trust, an openness will develop where they will listen to the Gospel message and it will resonate.  Ultimately, they will see the Joy of the Gospel in your life, and they will want the same.

We come here, to Mass, to be nourished and strengthened for this mission by the Bread of Life and the precious Blood of Jesus Christ.  

At the end of Mass, you will hear me pronounce, “Go in peace, glorifying the Lord by your life.”  To which you will respond “Thanks be to God.”

This is your moment to rejoin Peter and Paul in the glory of missionary discipleship extending the Kingdom of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ into the world around you, one heart at a time.

Thanks be to God!

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The Reign of the Sacred Heart: Solemnity of Most Sacred Heart of Jesus (Ezekiel 34:11-16; Psalm 23:1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6; Romans 5:5b-11; Luke 15:3-7)

On December 27th, 1673, in the wake of the Thirty Years War and the continued divergence of the Protestant movement away from the true presence of Jesus in the Eucharist and the Liturgy, Saint Mary Margeret Alacoque was given a vision of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ while praying before the Blessed Sacrament.

This is what she wrote in her diary:

“Our Lord made me rest for several hours on His sacred breast ... After that I saw this divine Heart as on a throne of flames, more brilliant than the sun and transparent as crystal. It had Its adorable wound and was encircled with a crown of thorns, which signified the pricks our sins caused Him. It was surmounted by a cross which signified that, from the first moment of His Incarnation, that is, from the time this Sacred Heart was formed, the cross was planted in It; that It was filled, from the very first moment, with all the bitterness, humiliations, poverty, sorrow, and contempt His sacred humanity would have to suffer during the whole course of His life and during His holy Passion. He made me understand that the ardent desire He had of being loved by men and of drawing them from the path of perdition into which Satan was hurrying them in great numbers, had caused Him to fix upon this plan of manifesting His Heart to men, together with all Its treasures of love, mercy, grace, sanctification and salvation ... . This devotion was a last resort of His love .… [He] wished to favour men in these last centuries with his loving redemption, in order to withdraw them from the empire of Satan, which He intended to destroy, and in order to put us under the sweet liberty of the empire of His love.”

There would be a total of three such visions.  In these visions, Jesus expressed His yearning for His love to be returned with love.  Jesus requested that we make reparation to His Heart for the ingratitude of mankind.  Jesus asked us to honor Him and put all our trust in Him alone.  He implored that we honor and love God the Father more.

He wants to reign over families and nations everywhere.  He wants to saturate all of humanity with the grace that flows from His Heart.  

Through a devotion to His Sacred Heart, Jesus made the following promises:

1. I will give them all the graces necessary in their state of life.
2. I will establish peace in their homes.
3. I will comfort them in all their afflictions.
4. I will be their secure refuge during life, and above all, in death.
5. I will bestow abundant blessings upon all their undertakings.
6. Sinners will find in my Heart the source of an infinite ocean of mercy.
7. Lukewarm souls shall become fervent.
8. Fervent souls shall quickly mount to high perfection.
9. I will bless every place in which an image of my Heart is exposed and honored.
10. I will give to priests the gift of touching the most hardened hearts.
11. Those who shall promote this devotion shall have their names written in my Heart.
12. I promise you in the excessive mercy of my Heart that my all-powerful love will grant to all those who receive Holy Communion on the First Fridays in nine consecutive months the grace of final perseverance; they shall not die in my disgrace, nor without receiving their sacraments. My divine Heart shall be their safe refuge in this last moment.

There are many ways we can increase a devotion to the Sacred Heart in our lives.  I share a few now:

1. Make a morning offering prayer consecrating your day to the Sacred Heart.
2. Prominently display an image of the Sacred Heart in your home.
3. Carry or wear a Sacred Heart Badge.
4. Commit to Eucharistic Adoration on a regular basis.
5. Practice the First Friday devotion.
6. Enthrone your home to the Sacred Heart.
7. Consecrate yourself to the Sacred Heart.
8. Pray the Litany of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
9. Pray the Novena to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
10. Pray, fast, and give alms in reparation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Ultimately, Jesus wants to pour out His entire self to us through the Eucharist, through the Sacred Heart.  But for us to receive the gift of divine love, we must allow ourselves to pour out our entire self to Him in our acts of worship in the Mass as well as our acts to love our neighbor.  This pouring out of self in self-deferential love is ultimately what communion is all about.  

Over time, a devotion to the Sacred Heart can help us increase in our humility to be able to pour out ourself into Him and, in turn, open ourselves up to allow Him to pour Himself into us…filling us with the Flame of Love.  

When we are truly set ablaze by the Flame of Love, there is nothing we shall want.

Thanks be to God!

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Where Is Your Fulfillment?: Friday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time (2 Corinthians 11:18, 21-30; Psalm 34:2-3, 4-5, 6-7; Matthew 6:19-23)

As I reflected on Saint Paul’s letter to the Corinthians, I couldn’t help but also reflect on the situation that our new Roman Pontiff has walked into.  As the political and economic gaps around the world continue to widen and intensify, that spirit of division continues to make itself more present within the Church.  

We can say many things about the pontificate of Francis, but one many of us would likely agree on is that it definitely made many folks run to their respective corners, boasting of their personal opinions. 

The spirits of division and dissension (and the very real dangers those represent) are unfortunately running viral within the Church.

In places across Africa, China, and Central America, among others, we have bishops and other clergy that are imprisoned, beaten, tormented, and even martyred for their love of Jesus Christ and His Church.

Meanwhile, in the United States, we seem to like to squabble.  Some of us squabble about which form of the Liturgy we believe is superior to all the other forms of Divine Liturgy.  Others of us squabble about some of the organizational changes that are being made to better meet the needs of changing demographics, especially in light of the statistical trends of the number of priests available to serve those demographics.  Still others squabble over the priests we have as opposed to being grateful that we even have a priest that can administer the sacraments to us.

At the same time, our lives aren’t really in danger, and we are fortunate to have ample access to the Sacraments; unlike our brothers and sisters in other parts of the world.

I say this not to belittle the very real concerns many of us have about the state of the Church in America.  Trust me, I have many opinions that would not be appropriate to announce from the ambo.  

At the same time, I think this relates to what is at the heart of Paul’s message today:  namely, how we can process the daily pressure and anxiety that many of us feel for the Church today.  I can give you two options to consider.

We can react to things from a secular worldview (which many of us unfortunately do), or we can respond to it through a sacramental worldview.  Responding through a sacramental worldview means accepting things as they are and trusting that God’s will will be done as Divine Providence continues to unfold.

Or as Jesus might lovingly put it, “You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.”

When we think as human beings do, when we process what we see from the secular worldview, we are more likely to boast of our opinions and preferences.  We are naturally going to feel anxiety, fear, distrust, and distress; perhaps even frustration and anger; and likely at the very least confusion.

But, when we trust in the promises of Jesus Christ that the Holy Spirit is ultimately guiding the Catholic Church, then we don’t feel the need to boast in that we can trust that in the midst of the toils and hardships we experience as a result of the human weaknesses in our midst, a greater good will be brought about for the glory of God.  If we can simply surrender it all to the care of God, then He will relieve us of our distress.

When we allow our will to be aligned with the will of God, even in matters of the Church such as our preferences around the Liturgy, the clergy, and parish organization, then we can truly begin to think as God does…and we can be at peace.  

Sometimes, that means reminding ourselves that our fulfillment is not in the Liturgy itself, but in the Eucharist.  Sometimes, that means reminding ourselves that our fulfillment is not in a building nor in the memories made in a particular building, but solely in the Eucharist.  Sometimes, that means letting go of how we have always done it in our ministries, in order to embrace where the Holy Spirit is leading us now.

I do not envy Pope Leo XIV, Archbishop Rozanski, and the other bishops and even the pastors around the world that are facing these issues head on.  But at least they recognize there are very real problems and they are trying to discern how the Holy Spirit is leading them through these problems.  

We may not always agree with their vision and we may not always initially see the wisdom behind their decisions, but our job, to echo Saint Teresa of Calcutta, is to be faithful.  

Through our faithfulness, God rescues the just.

Thanks be to God!

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