Readings: Amos 8: 4-7; St. Paul’s 1st Letter to Timothy 1-8; Luke’s Gospel 16: 1-13

Are you aware how much God loves you? Every day take a moment to say, “Jesus loves me more than I can ever know.” If we do, we will know where our heart’s treasure is; we’ll  know the true source of our self-esteem. And should we forget, Jesus remains the source of our daily bread regardless – BUT isn’t it good to be reminded that we rooted in Christ daily?  “Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ on my right, Christ on my left –and in every direction the traditional Prayer of Saint Patrick encompasses. 

I remind us of God’s love in Christ today, because our readings are exceptionally challenging.  I don’t think we can take any of the Bible’s challenges to heart, unless we are secure that we are loved. Remember, all Jesus’ challenges are rooted in unconditional, unremitting, relentless love.  Dearly Beloved, are we convinced that we are so loved, that we can entertain what Jesus asks of us? 

What does he ask? What is the challenge?  In the wrestling match between God and mammon, use our possessions well, invest in our common humanity as Children of God, keep the Commandments. In common parlance,  Jesus is asking: “Which is the song you want to sing? “Money makes the world go round, the world go round!”) or “When charity and love prevail, there God is ever found?”       

Of course, we can’t do without love or money in this world, yet the Gospel insists that we cultivate love as our. When Jesus said, “Render to Caeser what is Caeser’s and to God what is God,” he meant that God is the foundation of life. Thus, all our obligations to the State must be grounded in Love of God and neighbor. Jesus was forever emphasizing the two Great Commandments. These are the foundation of the kingdom of God – the realities we are to live fully here on earth and for eternity.  One  is found in Deuteronomy 6:4:   

Hear, O Israel!^[b] The Lord is our God, the Lord alone! ⁵ Therefore, you shall love the Lord, your God, with your whole heart, and with your whole being, and with your whole strength. ⁶ Take to heart these words which I command you today. ⁷ Keep repeating them to your children. Recite them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you get up. ⁸ Bind them on your arm as a sign^[c] and let them be as a pendant on your forehead. ⁹ Write them on the doorposts of your houses and on your gates.”   

The other in Leviticus 19:18: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.”

These are the foundational Commandments of the Jewish faith that were and are precisely the ones upon which Chris builds his Church. May we never forget it!

Therefore, Jesus insists that we remain responsible in our worldly concerns – especially our finances, because everything we must be an opportunity for spiritual growth and renewal. This should not seem a daunting way of life. Just as the apostles cried out to Jesus: “Increase our Faith!,”  they probably prayed “Increase our Fishing Business!”  as much.  Because that is what we humans do! 

It is natural that as we pray “increase our faith”, we pray “increase how prosperity, too, for that is how we can engage fully in this world.  So by all means, ask, “Help my business to improve!”  “Help me get that raise I so desperately need!”  “Help me balance my budget!”  “Help our parish refurbish the roof!”  But don’t neglect the faith that supports every prayer, every person. For everyone needs one thing or another, and everyone needs God. 

The most important thing to remember: Jesus is not creating a dichotomy, an “either / or” or “black and white” approach to life. Instead ,he is saying, “everything is interconnected.” Being wise in small matters helps us navigate the more difficult, complex issues. Being rooted in faith, conscious of God and God’s will on a daily basis, will help us discern when God is truly working through us and through others, and when God is not.  So, as we work and look forward to our paychecks or social security, remember that every move we make, every step we take, is part of our Spiritual journey. Jesus builds on the Scriptures such as today’s First Reading: “God will not forget those who trample on the needy” in their striving for success. God will bless all mindful of our common humanity. That is the heart of spiritual growth.

One of our newly canonized Saints, Pier Giorgio Frassati centered his life in spiritual growth. He steeped himself in Catholic teaching, the writings of Sant Catherine of Sienna, prayer and service. He was fittingly declared a saintly model in the way he balanced his studies in Engineering, his love of sports and recreation (he was a Mountain climber!), with his prayer life as a Third order Dominican — for amid all these enterprises, Pier visited  nearby slums in Rome, distributing his personal family allowance to the indigent, the sick, and the miserable. He is a prime example of the  holy integration of life in Christ:  “Be yourself and be generous.” 

May tonight’s Eucharist offer us a deeper experience of God’s love for us, releasing us from our anxieties over what we don’t have, so that what we do have keeps a generous amount of our time, talent, and treasure for others. So that they, too may have an experience of God, that, in turn, affords them time to consider Jesus as the Way, the Truth, and the Life. 

by Rev. James M. DiLuzio CSP

The following comes from a short story by Anton Chekhov: There once was a wealthy Russian Matron– demanding, impatient, dismissive to the point of cruelty in the way she treated her maid servant.  One day, in a particularly angry and condescending mood, the matron snaps at the young woman as usual. This time, however, she focuses on the girl’s eyes and realizes for the first time the deep humility–the depth of the servant’s unconditional care for the older woman.  The matron bursts into to tears. She cries out, “How is it you care for me?  I have not shown you the slightest kindness. How is it that you take my abuse time and time again? I am undone!” The matron sits at her desk and sobs uncontrollably, waving the maid away.  Chekhov leaves us there. What will happen next?  Will any good come of it this encounter or will all go back to the way things were? 

Human Nature is filled with contradictions. Often, we are BLIND TO GRACE. Yes, even we disciples get caught up in our own drives, our own priorities, our own needs. We take others for granted. Tempted to believe  we are above the common fray; we think we are not like others. We fancy ourselves “superior specimens.”  In frivolous moments it may be fun to think that even God could learn a thing or two from us!  But should we fully believe that, should we think that our achievements are all that matter in this world,  or that beyond our personal comfort, nothing matters, nothing is worth striving for– we are in a bad state. It is called SIN.  We are prone to it. It enervates us, makes us fatigued. We live for ourselves without  a quest, a greater good, a greater Truth to inspire us.  This is why the Mass begins with the Confiteor, or Penitential Rite. This is why the phrase “have mercy on us” is included in the Gloria we pronounce every Sunday. Our souls cannot move into Sacred Space without self-scrutiny for the love of God. And it is because we are loved by God that we trust our failings are forgiven and hope becomes eternal.  

Sadly,  there are those among us who adopt a different worldview.  Oozing arrogance, they stain their souls with overindulgence. They take their delusions of grandeur all too seriously, regarding no one worthy of their time beyond those who serve their purposes and priorities. Often bitter and vengeful, they succumb to the deadliest of the Seven Deadly Sins: Pride beyond the need for relationships, beyond self-scrutiny, beyond the give and take of forgiveness, beyond God. 

In today’s Gospel, Jesus stands before such a person. His name is Pilate. Notice the extraordinary contrast between one man and the other. Pilate is cynical. Pilate is bored and bothered. Pilate believes  he can afford to be thus, because, after all, he is Caesar’s regent. He has legions of armies behind him.  

Jesus on the other hand stands alone,  seemingly powerless before this earthly judge. Yet take note of Jesus’ confidence, his self-awareness, his courage to speak TRUTH to Pilate who cannot imagine TRUTH to be POWER. The Truth that Jesus speaks: Life is rooted in the Absolute Goodness of God. Only  belief in God, God’s patience, God’s mercy, God’s Justice, and  God’s care for creation bring fullness of life. God’s Holy Spirit empowers courage in us to wage against the falsehoods, the evils of this world. Jesus embodies those Truths and invites us to incarnate them, too. Trust in ourselves and in our illusions, well, then our potential for building strong character, our strivings for heaven are lost. Trust in God, in Christ, and the Gifts of the Holy Spirit, then Prudence, Temperance, Justice, and Courage deliver us into the Kingdom Jesus inaugurated. A kingdom where Faith, Hope, and Love reign eternally. 

Pilate does not see this.  He does not see Jesus as Jesus is meant to be seen. If he did, he might have noticed Jesus’ compassion and care—yes, care, even for Pilate. He would have seen himself as a lost sheep, recognize his arrogance as his false self — a camouflage for his inner fear and confusion, compelling him to avoid the good, the right, the  virtuous and take the easy way out –giving in the manic cries of a crowd who could not see what they were becoming, the temptations to which they succumbed.   Alas, neither they nor Pilate took the time for  self-scrutiny, for he became their spokesman in the way he scoffs Jesus.  Jesus said, “Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.”  Pilate’s cynical response: “What is truth?”

Happily, we are not celebrating Pilate today.  We are worshiping Jesus as Christ and True King, the only TRUE Messiah. Jesus does not compromise eternal verities. Jesus abides in universal, absolute, and necessary Truths that alone offer human fulfillment. Jesus knows too well what Pilate represents–a world that sees no end but its own ends. A world that hides behind delusions of grandeur, manipulating Justice to its own ends.  

Today we acknowledge, once again, Christ the King as the only one worthy of the title. We pray that in the presence of temptation, we will not forsake truth, even amid confrontation and conflict.  BUT WE WILL FORSAKE EASY WAYS OUT OF DIFFICULT SITUATIONS. We pray to strengthen one another in building character– not compromising our true self – because we do not have to! Jesus is Christ, Lord, and Our God and He is here to help.

Readings;  Wis 7:7-11  and Ps 90:12-13, 14-15, 16-17  and Heb 4:12-13  and Mk 10:17-30 or 10:17-27

I was giving a retreat. I was preaching on this passage and linking it to Luke’s version of the Beatitudes in which for every blessing there is a woe – “Blessed are the poor for the kingdom of God is theirs. Woe to you who are rich, you have received your consolation.”

A man in the congregation stood up. “I take offense to what you just read. I am sick and tired of the Church preaching against the rich. We do a great deal for our churches.  It is because of us you have a new roof on this building. Because of us you priests have food on the table! Where would Catholic Charities be without us?” 

I said, “I don’t think this Gospel is condemning your generosity, Sir. Why don’t we explore the passage and see if we can find some common ground.”

He replied, “Dear God, can’t you talk about something else? ” He sat down. 

“What is at the heart of the phrase “give all to the poor?” anyway?  No one can give all to the poor without becoming destitute. Is Jesus’ phrase “nothing is impossible for God” about making us all destitute? Perhaps the man was right to be offended! 

Could it be that “Giving up everything” is about centering ourselves in God – thinking of God in every choice we make, every word we speak?  

Do we think of God after a harmonious event? 

Do we think of God when we find ourselves in love? 

Do we recognize that that woman or man or spouse, or friend who touches our hearts so deeply could be God’s gift to us? 

Do we  think of God when we get an “A” on a test, celebrate a birthday, or will we,  think of God should the Yankees win the world series?  

Ultimately, Providence is at work. Our lives are not our own. That is True Wisdom. 

The GOOD NEWS TODAY IS THAT WE ALL CAN PARTICIPATE IN THE KINGDOM OF GOD no matter our income, our social contacts, our achievements. When our riches, our accomplishments, root us in a mindset that they come from God –or God’s good purposes– ALL IS WELL, and the Kingdom of God is at hand. Nevertheless, riches are but the crust on a loaf of bread.  We love the crust – crispy, tasty, buttery. The heart of the bread, however — what Jesus calls the kingdom of God, the bread of life — finds itself in the essence, the nutritive elements in the bread: the yeast, the risen dough. That’s what is important.  It is not the crust, but the whole loaf that represents Kingdom that is bread for all the faithful. Best of all, bread is more spiritually nutritious when it is broken and shared. 

The man stood up again. He  said:  “I don’t know why you have to talk about this,” he said. “ Show some gratitude for the wealthy or leave us alone.” 

I said, “I am sorry, sir.  I thought my reflection would put us on the same page.” 

He said, “No, father, we are not on the same page.” Suddenly the congregation, called out in one voice: “Turn the page! Turn the page! Turn the page!” 

I would like to leave us with this:  We have no idea what happened to the rich young man in the Gospel after he left Jesus’ company. We must take note, however, that although he was wealthy, he was not content, and he WAS asking questions. What if he had stood his ground and said to Jesus, “Explain yourself.”  Alas, he did not. 

This Scripture reminds us that there is a time for everything under the sun. Maybe the young man in the Gospel just wasn’t ready to go further. The man at my retreat, at least, felt comfortable enough to voice his objections. Who knows what life may have had in store for either one of those rich men? Who knows what questions will arise in the hearts and minds of anyone as we go on our way? 

I invite us today to TRUST IN GOD’S TIMING. Trust that today we are hearing what we might need to hear.  But, if we are not “hearing what we need to hear,”  just knowing that we’re not ready to engage in what we hear- having that kind of self-knowledge – might just be enough to be good for today. What is most important, however, is that we keep coming back. Keep asking, keep praying, keep pitting our answers against others to see what we come up with together.  Keep the book open, without judging one other. It is vital that we honor the fact that we are all in different stage in our respective faith journeys. We turn the pages at our own pace, trusting that Jesus, God as a human person,  is all in all. That’s true Faith. Who knows? Perhaps, someday, in some way, we may find ourselves all on the same page.

Readings may be found at https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/091524.cfm:

Who are the people who “light up our life?”  They are the people we are always happy to see – no matter the occasion, no matter what state they find us in -happy, sad, distracted, whatever. They are the people who bring us comfort, joy, hope, and those whom we readily, freely affirm, and who, in turn, affirm us. These are the people who engage us in LIFE – its joys and sorrows, goals and dreams and disappointments. These are the people who are REAL. 

In his book ON THE THRESHOLD OF HOPE, Pope Saint John Paul II wrote that “the search for God and the search for ‘self’ is one and the same search.”  So, to answer the question who Jesus is, we do well to begin with ourselves. 

Who first introduced us to “the Light?”  Who brought us to life? Might as well start with our parents – everyone has them, even if they were not the ones to nurture us after birth.  But today I am thinking of a most nurturing mother and father, or any caretaker caressing an infant, engaging in a baby’s smiles, the coos.  There is not just joy here, but anxieties, too, but not without hope that all will be well, and that this new life will prosper. In all of this, faith offers comfort in this wonderful quote from the prophet Jeremiah 29:11 on behalf of God: “For I know well the plans I have in mind for you—oracle of the Lord—plans for your welfare and not for woe, so as to give you a future of hope.” 

Keep that quote in mind as we follow our parents or guardians sending us off to school for the first time—feelings of excitement, yes, but also fear, and sadness mixed with longing, acknowledging the passage of time, the deep realities of change. That’s what they felt, and likely, that’s what we felt, too. 

Life engages us time and time again and again in all the human realties of thought, and feeling.  Our first days of school (thinking of the highs and lows starting Kindergarten!) and later, when we were off to junior high, high school, college. Did he get any easier? One experience building upon another- sometimes “yes,” sometimes “no.”  And then, for all the love we may have experienced from those who Light Up Our Life, still, the securities and the insecurities we encounter completing job applications, dating, announcing our engagements or entrance into the priesthood. Love we experience from others could have, can still, if we let us,  root us in a deep acceptance of life’s realities, of who we are, who we are not, of successes and failures along the way, of, yes, in religious language, the realities of sin and grace. Faith addresses these realities by acknowledging the Crosses we bear, while knowing that all things will pass. Sorrows can and will be turned to—well, if not always JOY, at least to WISDOM, to greater faith, hope, and, above all, love. 

In the powerful Genesis story Adam proclaims one of the great comforts in the Creation, speaking of  Eve “This one, at last, is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; This one shall be called ‘woman,’ for out of man this one has been taken.” This is part of our comfort and hope. Essentially, we are never alone. We are destined for relationship with God and others.  Our Trinitarian Faith affirms God is the essence of Being, i.e., God is Relationship itself, and relationship is the Life God calls us to embrace.  This is very important in our response to who Jesus is. 

The Church reminds us continually that Jesus is bone of our bones, flesh or our flesh, making Him the light of our lives, indeed, the light of the world.  He engaged in the joys of life and its pain, enduring the Passion, the Cross. The Resurrected Jesus refers to himself in a similar way when He says  to the disciples: “Look at my hands and my feet, that it is I Myself. Touch me and see, because a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you can see, I have.”  Thus, we must examen our relationship with HIM and others because we are extensions of Jesus’ very flesh and bones. 

THE CREED SAYS: “and (He)  became man.”  All was created WITH HIM, THROUGH HIM, AND IN HIM to culminate in His person, in a particular historical, biblical time and place. Jesus comprises all aspects of creation -material, emotional, spiritual, and more because of God’s intentionality, that all came before Him and is retained by Him for Him to be part of this world. However, Jesus’ life on earth was not an end in and of itself,  but life with a purpose, to engage in the pattern of dying and rising to inaugurate a transition to something yet to be fulfilled, as the Bible says, into “a new heaven, a new earth,” including a newly defined, ever-perfecting humanity for all. For the Creed states “He rose again on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures.”: 

Here we have the vision on our horizon. In these lines we find both a literal and spiritual acceptance of the value of LIFE, physical, human life, in both joys and sorrows, engaging in the thoughts and feelings of parents, single people, babies, children, adolescents, young adults, mature individuals in every stage reminding us to accept the pattern of Jesus which is the pattern of Creation and everything – life, death, rising, renewal, change, dying and rising.  This is LIFE in its fullness, LIGHT for our lives, and the depth meaning of love because, as we acclaim in the Creed: and his kingdom will have no end.                    

JESUS is the Godman, who is NOT JUST AN IDEA, CONCEPT, A TEACHING, BUT INCARNATE FLESH, transformed yet all too REAL. This is  why the church insists on perpetuating eucharist.  This is why we come to the table and worship and be thankful, unafraid of the fullness of life, joys, sorrows, all of it.     Again, I repeat that thought I began with from Pope Saint John Paul II wrote “the search for God and the search for ‘self’ is one and the same search.”  So here is our answer to Jesus: 

Who do we say Jesus is today?  “Jesus, you are who we are:  We are You, and You are Us. We are bone of your bones, flesh of your flesh, ready to die and rise, picking up our crosses not in despair but in hope and perseverance because that is what LIFE is, both LIGHT and Darkness. For where there is Great LIGHT, there is also Shadow, yet all of it, yes all of it is sustained by LOVE.  And that is LIFE in its fullness. So, what can we say to Jesus when he asks, “Who do you say that I am?”  Jesus, this is our answer, our answer is this: JESUS you are bone of our bone, flesh of our flesh.  Jesus, you are LOVE.