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All posts for the month October, 2001

Ordinary 30

Posted by Father Tom Boyer on October 28, 2001

Posted in: Homily.

October 28, 2001 Sirach 35: 12-14 ,16-18 + 2 Timothy 4:6-8, 16-18 Luke 18:9-14

The parable is not about Payer, Pharisees, nor Tax Collectors.When we start with thinking, then we reveal that we think it’s about us. It isn’t.It’s about God.It’s about a God who forgives and justifies sinners.All that is needed to experience the divine mercy is to recognize oneself as such before God. (That, just as an aside, is one of the reasons why we Catholics go to confession. not because it’s the only way to be forgiven, but because it publicly gives witness to our condition as sinners in need of mercy )

What is happening here on the road to Jerusalem is Luke’s effort to bring disciples to recognize that they are Justified,but the point is that they are justified not by what they do, who they know, or where they are,but that they are justified by God, not by anything they can do or sayAgain, Luke is looking at virtues, not behavior It’s a matter of attitude.There is nothing wrong with either prayer in this storyIn fact, they are both reciting psalms: the Pharisee is using Psalm 17 and the Tax Collector is using Psalm 34.The problem is not the prayer, the problem is the focus. All the Pharisee can do is recite what he has done.His prayer is all about him.What the Tax Collector does is make God the center of his prayerOne has no room for God because he is so filled with his own accomplishments. The other acknowledges God as the source and ground of his life and hope.He is justified, not the other one.

Disciples of Jesus Christ are a people justified, not by what they do,but by the God who saves them, has mercy on them, and sees truth in the heart. What we hear in the parable is not just what these two men think of themselves. They also reveal what think of God.The Pharisee regards God as something he deserves or earns: like stock in a corporation. It’s as though he is waiting for some special honor or privilege. The Tax Collector sees God as wholly other, as holiness, yet so in love with sinners like him that he could be pardoned.

Disciples of Jesus Christ are a people justified, not because God owes them something,  but because they have stood in truth before God and acknowledged their need and the inadequacy of their own deeds to save themselves.It is discomforting to recognize how much of the Pharisee there is in us,how quickly when sorrow comes we say· “Why has this happened to me? I go to Mass, I pray, I’m just and fair and good? Why?”It’s a thinking that suggests that we have a right to expect favors, and if they don’t come, everythmg falls apart.This is not the disciple’s virtue.

Disciples of Jesus Christ are justified by the truth of their sinfulness and God’s free gift to all who will come m that truth.It is not a matter of human achievement.In the new order Jesus came to maugurate, it is the era of salvation and justification experienced as a gift, not as a nght.In such disciples then, righteousness is never about self, but always about the God who saves with mercy, forgiveness and love.As Disciples in formation then,we come humbly into this holy place and into the prayer of this Eucharist acknowledging what God has done for us in spite of what we have failed to do, and we rejoice in what is promised to us and to all who seek and share mercy and forgiveness.We might therefore cling to the hope that we shall go home today justified and give glory to God.

Ordinary 29

Posted by Father Tom Boyer on October 21, 2001

Posted in: Homily.

October 21, 2001 Exodus 17:8-13 + 2 Timothy 3:14-4:2 + Luke 18:1-8

Luke pulls a switch with this the parable todayI suspect that when Jesus used this parable, it was, like all his parables, about God, his “Father”In which case, the point of the story was the judge, and the listener would have drawn into a reflection upon the surprising figure who is moved by this persistent widow to provide the justice for which she pleas.Yet, when Luke tells the story it is not so clearly about the judge.In the context of the journey to Jerusalem the widow emerges as the story’s focus.

For the past sixteen weeks, the Jesus of Luke’s Gospel has been guide and mentor in the way to Jerusalem.The ongoing spiritual formation of disciples provides sound advise to sober and strengthen believers who day after day live with the challenges of a worldly kingdom and walk the moral minefields of materialism and consumerism.The injustice that surrounds us makes this parable all too real.We know the two-tier society of rich and poor, those on the inside and those on the outside, the “haves” and the “have nots” are not invisible.We know how “justice” as a system works too, and so the thought of this judge is not too far from the truth.He has no conscience, this judge; he cares nothing for ethics, and he functions only for his own good, not for the widow’s.She doesn’t have the right connections to gain access to justice, so she uses prayer, and she uses it persistently.

She emerges as the prime figure for us in our study and reflection on discipleship; not because she is a widow,not because she is alone, not because she is woman,nor because she is an uneducated outcast without a name, wealth, land or power But she emerges because, unlike others of her kind, she is persistent, constant, steady, and unbending in face of any obstacle.The virtue she offers disciples is the virtue of persistent prayerAgain, it’s not something you do, it’s a virtue and a way of doing things. It means that prayer in the life of disciple is not occasional nor convenient. It does not only rise up in time of trouble, but it is constant, steady, and persistently a part of every day and every moment.

This kind of life – filled with prayer, is the clearest sign of faith.It is not about the “right” prayer, about devotions, or about the prayers of Christians, Jews, or Muslims.

It is about a life style that is constantly prayerful, always lived in the presence of God, and seeing and relating all things to divine will and the divine presence.This kind of faith is not something taught in catechism or school, but something caught by attitude and example.It is the consequence of a God-centered life rooted in conviction and trust in a God who will never abandon or ignore those who entrust themselves to the divine power, care and mercy in prayer.

It is because of the shift from self to God that perseverance in prayer becomes possible,because God, who is utterly reliable,has pledged to hear prayers and has promised that those who ask receive, those who seek find and those who knock will find that no door shall be closed to them. In that kind of faith, persistent prayer becomes not only possible but a permanent practice in the life of the believer and disciple.

The first witness to this truth is Jesus himselfwhose life is one of prayer that ultimately leads him through darkness, loneliness, death, and the grave to the ultimately victory of Justice.It can be no different then for his disciples.The judges of this world tell us “No” and “Go away”but prayer in the style of this widow sustains our hope and renews the courage of all who cry for justice.If a corrupt and self-preserving judge will finally give way to the cry of that widow,how much easier will be it be with a God of Mercy and Compassion?

Ordinary 28

Posted by Father Tom Boyer on October 14, 2001

Posted in: Homily.

October 14, 2001 2 Kings 5:14-17 + 2 Timothy 2:8-13 + Luke 17:11-19

It is certainly a story about boundaries – about boundaries disregarded.It makes no difference that those unclean are to avoided. It makes no difference that they live across the boarder, and it makes no difference that they are SamaritansWhere there is faith, there is healing: that is the issue here, and faith is not limited to just the “right” people:those who live on the right side of the boarder or those who are nice and clean.With Jesus Christ, and for His disciples, there are no boundaries when it comes to service and a share in healing grace.There are no boundaries when it comes to restoring those who have been excluded,but boundaries is not exactly what this is all about, and this story,told on the way to Jerusalem, puts before us a contrast from which we may draw another of the disciple’s virtues.

Luke proposes a distinction here between the nine and the one:a distinction we might describe as physical healing and spiritual healing. Notice that the healing of their physical infirmity did not bring salvation.Although the nine who did not return to Jesus were indeed cured physically, there is no mention at all of their spiritual healing or salvation.On the other hand, the one who returns to Jesus, the one who acknowledges what God had done for him through Jesus Christ is the one who is saved by faith.Because of his gratitude by which he gave evidence of his faith, this GRATEFULleper was enabled to experience salvation beyond his physical cure.It is Gratitude that Luke singles out as a virtue to be found in disciples of Jesus Christ.In Luke’s thought, the grateful recognition of God’s initiative that brings healing and salvation is surest sign of faith.One’s faith is confirmed by the witness of gratitude. Without it, there is no assurance of Salvation.

Faith for the disciple of Jesus is not a matter of rules kept nor prayers said.It is a matter of Gratitude in response to the initiative God has taken on our behalf.Disciples are Grate/ul.They recognize what God has done for them.They return again and again to the feet of the master and “speak his praises”, as the Gospel describes it.This is a public recognition, please take note.

It is not something the leper does quietly in his heart or at home in his room.This “gratitude”, found in a disciple of Jesus, moves one to public recognition and acknowledgment of one’s gratitude.This 1s why we are here, in this public place rather than on the golf course, at brunch, or in bed at this hourThe disciple of Jesus is grateful in an open, public wayThe disciple of Jesus is found at the master’s feet giving praise and thanks.

Gratitude for a disciple of Jesus is way of life, not passing emotion.It is a life changing conversion that is as public as a known leper throwing himselfat the feet of Jesus Christ in a Samaritan town. We are not talking personal, private stuff here.Disciples formed in Luke’s traditionare a people who have known what it meansto be accepted, included, healed, saved, and graced by a God who ignores all boundaries,and their gratitude is contagious.

Ordinary 27

Posted by Father Tom Boyer on October 7, 2001

Posted in: Homily.

October 7, 2001 Habakkuk 1:2-3;2:2-4 + 2 Timothy 1:6-8;13-14 + Luke 17:5-10

An interesting and very revealing thing can happen with this parable if you want to pay attention to yourself. Think for a moment about which of the two people you identify with, and then as you reflect on the parable, you begin to see it from one side or the other; the master or the servant/slave. There is not much in our culture and society that would encourage us to hear this parable from the side of the slave/servant. I think almost invariably, we tend at first hearing to work from the view point of the master Now granted, the grammar and structure of the story as we receive it is tilted somewhat toward the master’s side; but anyone who is a real servant/slave at heart would continue to hear it from the other side. That is important to think about, because the real issue here is not how the boss treats the servant but how the servant understands his role. If we hear this parable in it’s place on the journey to Jerusalem with all its commentary on the virtues of a disciple, then it’s the servant in the story who has the most to tell us, and from whom we should be drawing the lesson.

The story, in a somewhat “back-door” way, reminds each ofus of our servant­ hood, and how tempting it is to opt for a role reversal. The story speaks to us of Duty, and it proposes that a disciple of Jesus is dutiful.

From the time of our mythic ancestors called: Adam and Eve, creatures and servants have attempted the role reversal so evident in this parable. Faith gives us the insight to see who we are: servants in the manner of Jesus who did not cling to anything godly, but emptied himself and assumed entirely the role of the servant/slave. When the disciple views what God has done for us in Jesus Christ, then the responsible disciple gives back what is due – which is what “duty” is all about: giving what is due. It isn’t something extra, nor is it something for which congratulations should be in order It is simply a matter of recognizing what is due. Discipling in this sense is done then not because God deserves it, but because the disciple recognizes that God is God and we are servants. That’s the way it is from the very beginning.

Fidelity to the duties of discipleship provides no grounds for triumphalism nor feelings of moral superiority, nor does should it anticipate special honor or appreciation. A servant serves the master That is what a servant does. It is the servant’s duty, because the master is “due” service. This kind of thinking and self awareness is part of the very fabric of the disciples identity It is rooted in the virtues we have already explored: Humility, Watchfulness, Awareness, Wisdom, and Prudence. They all provide the character that brings one to fulfill one’s duty

In the disciple of Jesus Christ, there is no room for the “look what I have done”  attitude. In fact, there 1s no time for such vainglory, because there is always more to do. Created and sustained in every breath by God, we know that we owe everything to God.

The cry of the apostles: “Increase our faith.” which began this section reflects their awe at the enormity of what Jesus asks of them. His suggestion is that 1t is not a matter of quantity, but simply a matter of trusting the faith that God has given them, and fulfilling their duty as disciples. The issue arises in this case by a teaching of Jesus we did not hear proclaimed m the verses assigned for today, but they are there just before we began with an instruction to them about forgiveness. It is not the quantity or extent of a person’s faith that is at issue here. It is not a matter of more faith, but of a life consistent with that faith we already have. What matters for the disciple of Jesus Christ is the exploitation of the faith that we already have in the fulfillment of our duty as servants. That is what it will take to bring the fulfillment of God’s saving plan. servants who know and fulfill their duty