Sunday, June 19, 2016

Homily 2016/06/19 - Identity

Why did Jesus ask his disciples, ‘who do YOU say that I am ?’ Was he having an identitycrisis ? Did he forget what he was about ? I think he recognized a teachable moment and wanted to force the disciples to get off the fence. I picture it went down something like this : Jesus was praying and overheard the apostles discussing among themselves just WHO Jesuswas. ‘Well – I heard somebody say he was Elijah reincarnated’… Yeah… I heard that, and somebody said one of the ancient prophets has come back – I’m kinda leaning toward thattheory. But… Jesus wanted them to commit – to make a decision for themselves… who IS Jesus ? Once you define who someone is, it has direct implications for how you live.

So when Peter answers, ‘The Christ’ – you would THINK Jesus would give a sigh of relief or applaud that they had figured it out, but instead, he almost scolds them - like – ‘Shhh… don’tsay that too loud… that is dangerous talk’. You gotta wonder again – Jesus – why are youacting like that !?

Because, while the disciples had gotten his title right – ‘the Christ’ – he knew they didn’t have a clue what that meant. This was a teachable moment, so Jesus jumped right into it : Yes – you’re right, but what that means is that it is inevitabe that I’m going to be put to death… and you should know that anybody who wants to follow me is going to have the same fate.

That has direct implications for you and me here today. Who do YOU say that Jesus is ? If wereally BELIEVE that Jesus is the Messiah, then it implies a lot about who WE are and how welive our lives. Disciples of Jesus above all show love to the world. When we do that, we’ll makeenemies…because evil doesn’t like to be challenged. Yep, If you and I do Christianity right, they’ll nail us to a cross too.

Blessed ArchBishop Romero was shot in 1980 while saying Mass because he dared to speakout against the corruption and injustices in San Salvador. The people in power didn’t like for himto rock the boat. Even look at Mother Teresa’s life – she was constantly showing love to the poorest of the poor – and that earned her many enemies. Nobody likes a goody-two-shoes, sothey looked for a way to discredit her or to block her from building some of her ministry.

It’s not that we as Christians must SEEK OUT suffering… it’s more of a cause and effect… When we challenge injustices, somebody is not going to like it. On the other hand, as disciples of Christ, we find our greatest JOY in doing things for others. Like giving up our Saturday to work at the Community Meals is a small way we ‘suffer’, but we also experience the Grace of God when we do it.

So, hopefully it’s clear that when Jesus says ‘Who do YOU say that I AM ?’, he’s really askingus to define who WE are.

This question is particularly important right now as our parishes merge. In case you’re visiting, let me explain briefly – St. Celestine and St. Raphael are two parishes – but In less that twoweeks, we will officially become St. Isidore parish.
It’s a new beginning – a moment to ask : Who are we ? Why do we exist ? To answer thosequestions, we’ve been working on a Mission Statement. This may not be the final version yet, but I wanted to share it with you in case you have input.

We the parish of St. Isidore
witness to the world the love of Christ and
invite others to personally experience the Grace of God
through prayer, acts of service, spiritual formation,
and to encounter Jesus the Sacraments.

Let me read it one more time. As I do – think about these questions : Does it really describewhy St. Isidore exists ? Ask yourself, do I personally believe in this mission enough to let itdrive how I act and live in our community ? If you have any thoughts or ideas, share them withme.

We the parish of St. Isidore
witness to the world the love of Christ and
invite others to personally experience the Grace of God
through prayer, acts of service, spiritual formation,
and to encounter Jesus the Sacraments.

Who do you think St. Isidore parish SHOULD be ? Who are we really ?

All of these answers rest on how we answer Jesus as he asks each of us personally :
​Who do you say that I am ?