Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus

The feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, along with that of Divine Mercy which we celebrate on the Second Sunday of Easter, is the ideal antidote to the pessimistic, impersonal and lonely Universe envisaged by materialistic atheists and stern faced double predestination Puritans. Despite unfortunately mawkish and kitsch representations of the Sacred Heart that abound in homes and churches the love of Christ that burns for humanity reminds us of both the Incarnation and the humanity of Christ. His love, which is available especially for the down trodden, poor and the lowly, is one that we can identify with on a personal level. It is not a distant and isolated God o the Deists but a entry into our human condition not only in suffering but also in love. This has the consequence of drawing us into gratitude such that we find it easier to love others and forgive offences when they occur.

 

13th Sunday in Ordinary Time

In the Second Reading today St Paul admonishes the Galatians: "For freedom Christ has set you free. Stand firm, therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery." (Gal 5: 1) The rabbis of the time spoke of the "yoke of the law" so St Paul is speaking not so much on this occasion about the practice of slavery in the Roman Empire but rather the way in which we live out our spiritual and private lives. Nevertheless, we are fortunate to live in an age and a society where slavery, as formal institution, is illegal although sadly individuals are still trafficked and exploited by unscrupulous criminals. Applying the reading to ourselves we need to be alert to the unseen yoke of sin and compulsions that rob us of our freedom and bring us despair rather than joy and life.. This occurs regardless of social or financial status. People can be slaves to greed, ambition, sensuality and hate as well as alcohol, narcotics and gambling. What is the cure? I suggest it is an attitude of service towards others, inspired by the example of Christ: "just as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." (Mtt 20: 28) This attitude transforms our hearts so we act, even in the small tasks of daily life, out of love rather than resentment or compulsion: "Render service with enthusiasm, as to the Lord and not to men and women, knowing that what good we do, we will receive again from the Lord, whether we are slaves or free." (Eph 6: 7-8)

The Body and Blood of Christ

It pays to look at all of the readings for this week to get an entree into the great mystery which is the Blessed Sacrament. The First Reading speaks of Abraham and Melchizedek. This calls to mind the part of the Roman Canon (Eucharistic Prayer I) which states: "Be pleased to look upon these offerings with a serene and kindly countenance, and to accept them, as once you were pleased to accept the gits of your servant Abel the just, the sacrifice of Abraham, our father in faith, and the offering of your high priest Melchizedek, a holy sacrifice, a spotless victim...". In these few words the roots of the Eucharist from the beginning of the human story in Genesis through the trials of the Old Testament are manifest. The Second Reading, with the institution narrative, handed on by St Paul: "I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you..." (1 Cor 11: 23), testifies to the liturgical acceptance and appreciation of the earliest Christians as they obeyed the command "Do this in remembrance of me." (1 Cor. 11: 24) The miraculous multiplication of food from the Gospel, as relate by St Luke, reminds us of the Exodus story and how the Israelites were not only saved by the blood of lambs, smeared on their lintels, but were also nourished with manna until they reached the Promised Land. Christ, the new Moses, leads his people through the exodus of death to the Resurrection through the gift of the manna which is his own Body and Blood. The Early Christians, in The Didache picked up on this in one of the earliest recorded Eucharistic Prayers: "Just as the broken loaf was scattered over the hills as grain, and, having been gathered together, became one; in like fashion, may your church be gathered together from the ends of the earth into your kingdom." (Ch. 9: 4) In this way we can get some idea of how our Sunday Eucharist contains within it the whole mystery of Christ and the story of salvation. 

Trinity Sunday

In the First Reading we hear of the wisdom of God at the beginning of Creation: "... and I was daily his delight, rejoicing before him always, rejoicing in his inhabited world and delighting in the human race." (Prov 8: 30-31) What a contrast this is to the cold, impersonal deity imagined by the theists and other philosophies/religions! The Holy Trinity is an infinite, dynamic, synthesis of perfect love. This, nevertheless, still sounds somewhat impersonal. Yet, love is necessarily relational so, although our discourse on the nature of God often takes a philosophical turn, the God perfectly revealed in Christ Jesus is both omnipotent and personal, eternal and incarnated, just and merciful. We could not have known this without the revelation given us in Jesus Christ and through the gift of the Holy Spirit. Other religions and world views necessarily are constrained by the limitations of human reason which struggles to comprehend or even consider so great a mystery. Christian need to be confident that God's revelation of himself, in Jesus Christ, is reliable even if it seems incredible. To help us we have the Holy Spirit who guides us to the truth even when our intellects struggle: "When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come." (Jn 16: 13)

Pentecost

Last Sunday we entered into the mystery of the Ascension when Christ brought an end to his earthly ministry. Today we celebrate the mystery of the Church which prolongs, in a sacramental way, the presence and action of Christ in the world. As we gather at Mass we need to be aware of just how special it is to be Church and the role each one of us is called to play in the divine plan for the salvation of the world. Church doctrine teaches: "By an utterly free and mysterious decree of His own wisdom and goodness, the eternal Father created the whole world. His plan was to dignify men with a participation in his own divine life. He did not abandon men after they had fallen in Adam, but ceaselessly offered them helps to salvation, in anticipation of Christ the Redeemer... All the elect, before time began, the Father 'foreknew and predestined to become the image of his Son, that he should be the firstborn among many brethren' (Rom 8: 29)." He planned to assemble in the holy Church all those who would believe in Christ. Already from the beginning of the world the foreshadowing of the Church took place. She was prepared for a remarkable way through the history of the people of Israel and by means of the Old Covenant. Established in the present era of time, the Church was made manifest by the outpouring of the Spirit." (Lumen gentium, 2) It is this same Church, enlivened by that same Spirit, that gathers in our church buildings today with the same mission and purpose. The Catechism tells us: "thus the Church's mission is not an addition to that of Christ and the Holy Spirit, but is its sacrament in her whole being and in all her members, the Church is sent to announce, bear witness, make present, and spread the mystery of the communion of the Holy Trinity." (CCC 738). With this in mind let us open our hearts to the Holy Spirit today so we may be filled with his gifts and bearers of his fruits.