This is what I referred to in my Easter Mass homily. Read it with joy!

From an ancient homily for Holy Saturday

The Lord's descent into the underworld

Something strange is happening – there is a great silence on earth today, a great silence and stillness. The whole earth keeps silence because the King is asleep. The earth trembled and is still because God has fallen asleep in the flesh and he has raised up all who have slept ever since the world began. God has died in the flesh and hell trembles with fear.

  He has gone to search for our first parent, as for a lost sheep. Greatly desiring to visit those who live in darkness and in the shadow of death, he has gone to free from sorrow the captives Adam and Eve, he who is both God and the son of Eve. The Lord approached them bearing the cross, the weapon that had won him the victory. At the sight of him Adam, the first man he had created, struck his breast in terror and cried out to everyone: “My Lord be with you all.” Christ answered him: “And with your spirit.” He took him by the hand and raised him up, saying: “Awake, O sleeper, and rise from the dead, and Christ will give you light.”

  I am your God, who for your sake have become your son. Out of love for you and for your descendants I now by my own authority command all who are held in bondage to come forth, all who are in darkness to be enlightened, all who are sleeping to arise. I order you, O sleeper, to awake. I did not create you to be held a prisoner in hell. Rise from the dead, for I am the life of the dead. Rise up, work of my hands, you who were created in my image. Rise, let us leave this place, for you are in me and I am in you; together we form only one person and we cannot be separated. For your sake I, your God, became your son; I, the Lord, took the form of a slave; I, whose home is above the heavens, descended to the earth and beneath the earth. For your sake, for the sake of man, I became like a man without help, free among the dead. For the sake of you, who left a garden, I was betrayed to the Jews in a garden, and I was crucified in a garden.

  See on my face the spittle I received in order to restore to you the life I once breathed into you. See there the marks of the blows I received in order to refashion your warped nature in my image. On my back see the marks of the scourging I endured to remove the burden of sin that weighs upon your back. See my hands, nailed firmly to a tree, for you who once wickedly stretched out your hand to a tree.

  I slept on the cross and a sword pierced my side for you who slept in paradise and brought forth Eve from your side. My side has healed the pain in yours. My sleep will rouse you from your sleep in hell. The sword that pierced me has sheathed the sword that was turned against you.

  Rise, let us leave this place. The enemy led you out of the earthly paradise. I will not restore you to that paradise, but I will enthrone you in heaven. I forbade you the tree that was only a symbol of life, but see, I who am life itself am now one with you. I appointed cherubim to guard you as slaves are guarded, but now I make them worship you as God. The throne formed by cherubim awaits you, its bearers swift and eager. The bridal chamber is adorned, the banquet is ready, the eternal dwelling places are prepared, the treasure houses of all good things lie open. The kingdom of heaven has been prepared for you from all eternity.

Homily...Peter the Preacher

As one who preaches, I was intrigued by the sermon give by St. Peter as recorded in the Acts of the Apostles. The reading began by saying, "Peter stood up with the Eleven and proclaimed..." All of our preaching today must be "apostolic," or based on the preaching of the Apostles since they were the ones who spent time with the Lord.

Peter's basic message was this: "Let the whole house of Israel know for certain that God has made both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified." These were dangerous words for they implied that Caesar was NOT the Lord, a crime for which your life would be taken by the Roman Empire. And in fact that is what Peter and the other apostles suffered. But his preaching "cut to the heart" and caused the people to ask what they should do. Peter was clear as we should be today: "Repent and be baptized." Our life must always be about repentance and conversion, a change of heart. 

Finally, Peter said that the people must "Save themselves from the corrupt generation." We too need to proclaim that much of our society is corrupt as well today. So the challenge is given to us. Will we allow Jesus to be the Lord of our lives or we will live as the Masters of our own life?

Homily...Ite Missa Est

During the singing of the Lamb of God at Mass, the priest is breaking the large host into smaller pieces. This is to symbolize how we, though many, are receiving from the One Bread, the same Body of Christ. In the earliest days of the Church, the eucharist or Mass was known as "the breaking of the bread." At the end of the gospel today, we are told that the disciples recognized Jesus in the breaking of the bread. When he "broke bread" with them, they remembered how he did the same at the Last Supper. 

When Mass was in Latin, the priest ended it by saying "Ite, missa est." That means, "Go, the Mass is ended." "Ite" means "go" and "missa" means "to be dismissed." This is where we get the word "Mass." In the Roman Missal, the priest has 4 options for the dismissal of the people after the final blessing. They all begin with the word, "Go": Go forth, the Mass is ended. Go and announce the gospel of the Lord. Go in peace, glorifying the Lord with your life. Go in peace.

We are not just announcing the end of Mass, but telling people to go from there in order to live the faith they just celebrated. Go and glorify the Lord with your life. Go and live in peace. Go and announce the gospel by the way you live. We are sent on a mission to bring our faith into daily life

Homily...Jesus as Lawgiver?

On Friday I watched the tens of thousands of people walk in the March to Life annual gathering in Washington D.C. Given our "culture of death" as St. John Paul II called it, I hope to begin adding my voice and my presence to this March for Life next year. I never feel that I do or say enough when it comes to pro-life issues though I firmly believe in God our Creator and in the sanctity of all human life.

But it does cause me pause to consider how effective these efforts are in changing the law which has legalized abortion. Would the cause be better served in the long run by a sincere effort not only to change the law (which is good & necessary), but to enter into conversation with others about why we believe life begins at conception and to discuss how we as a country can better value all human life, from the unborn to those born into poverty, illness or injustice. 

Even if the law against abortion were changed tomorrow, we would still have the much harder work of helping others to change their minds & their hearts. As we become older, perhaps the beatitudes of the New Testament become more important than the commandments of the Old Testament. Jesus did not come as a lawmaker. He came to persuade us rather than command us. He came to help us change not only our behavior but our attitudes. We are blessed when we are meek and merciful and when we try to be peacemakers even when persecuted for the sake of righteousness. 

Homily...The Lamb of God

For the Jewish People, the sacrifice of an animal in the Temple (often times a lamb) was an important ritual. It expressed their desire for the forgiveness of their sins. Prior to entering the Temple, they would perform a ritual bath called "mikveh" as a sign of their desire to be clean before God. 

John the Baptist was the son of an Old Testament priest who were the ones that offered sacrifices in the Temple on behalf of the people. So he of course knew well of the "mikveh." When he baptized people in the Jordan river, he did so as a cleansing for the repentance of their sins. But he did so in order to prepare the people to recognize Jesus as the New Lamb of Sacrifice, the one who would offer himself to God so that we might know our sins were truly forgiven. 

So when he saw Jesus, he proclaimed, "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world!" But what does this mean for our life, for our faith today? The knowledge that we are forgiven of our sins is so foundational to our relationship with God. Without knowing of God's mercy, how would we be able to have a friendship with God? We must come before the Lord knowing in our heart that our sins have been forgiven. So now we too can exclaim with John the Baptist, "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world." 

Homily...Blessings on Us

People ask priests to bless religious articles...rosaries, medals, statues, etc. We ask God's blessing on special occasion such as a wedding anniversary or on the beginning of a new year. The priest blesses the people at the end of Mass. But today God gives us a blessing in his own words: "May the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord's face shine upon you and be gracious to you. May the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace."

How can we be changed, helped by this blessing? When the Lord says he will "keep us", he is saying he will protect us, keep us close. We are safe with him. When he let's his face shine upon us, he expresses his delight as he looks upon us. Look at the faces of Jesus, Mary & Joseph in a manger scene. Look at how they delight in one another, much as we delight in the face of a child or an infant, and they delight in us. Countenance means a "facial expression that offers approval." God looks at us with unconditional love and so we can be confident that he accepts us, sinners though we are.

"How we see God has an enormous impact on our lives. Our image of God is the lens through which we see ourselves, others & the world." (Matthew Kelly) So how does this blessing help us in our image of God? For that will determine how we relate to God throughout this year ahead of us. 

Homily...Joseph the Silent Witness

Did you ever notice that St. Joseph is never quoted in the Scriptures? the Bible tells us what Mary said to the angel, to her cousin Elizabeth, to the waiters at a wedding reception, even to Jesus. But the Bible does not include one word that Joseph ever spoke.

Even in our Christmas carols, we sing about Mary, angels, shepherds, kings, but rarely about Joseph. On our Christmas cards, Joseph is often pictured, but there are many times when a card may show the Madonna & Child without Joseph in the scene.

We have record of anything Joseph ever said because his witness to God is in what he does more than in what he says. Our witness to God may be the same. We may not talk much of God, but we can show we are people of deep faith. Our presence at Mass every week is a loud testament to our faith. St. Francis of Assisi said, "Preach the gospel at all times. If necessary, use words." That is a good summary of today's message & of Joseph's holiness. 

Homily...Christ the Thief

There have been found many ancient symbols used by the early Christians: a person with hands outstretched in prayer, a boat (symbol of the Church), an anchor (symbol of hope), two birds (symbol of peace), and so on. 

Though there are dozens of these symbols or images (such as Christ the Good Shepherd) that have been used to express our Christian faith, one I have never seen anywhere is an image of Christ the Thief (perhaps it would show him wearing some kind of a mask, as a thief would be pictured today). But Jesus speak of himself in this way: "If the master of the house had known the hour when the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. In the same way, you must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come."

A thief is successful only because of the element of surprise. A thief will invade mostly at night when people are asleep & so not watching over their property. So the image of Jesus as a thief reminds us of the importance of staying awake. To be awake is to have a spiritual alertness, an awareness that the Lord who will come at the end of our life is with us now in our life. We need not be afraid if we are live in the light of faith and not in the darkness of sin. We light our 4 Advent wreath candles so that we may live in the light of the Lord. 

Homily...Perseverence is the Answer

3 years ago, when we last heard today's scripture readings, I was announcing to the people of my former parish that I would be leaving them to become Pastor at St. Leo the Great. I had mixed emotions about that. I looked forward to being at St. Leo's, but knew it would be hard to leave the people I got to know and care about for almost 5 years. 

Six years before that, again when we heard these same scripture readings (they run on a three year cycle), I was telling the people of the parish I was assigned to at that time that the parish would be closing. Again, we shared feelings of anger, uncertainty, and fear. 

But as I look back on these and many other such experiences when change was imminent, I recognize now that I was able to persevere and so found many blessings during difficult times. When Jesus spoke of the fearful future to his people, he invited them to work on the virtue of perseverance. He said it would secure their lives. In my experience, it does just that. We find security if we stay the course, trust in God and put one foot in front of the other. We see the "sun of justice rise with its healing rays."

Homily...Christianity is not primarily about being good

I remember those times in elementary school when the gym teacher decided we were going to play baseball in the church parking lot. Two students would be told to choose their teammates. Let's just say that I wasn't the first choice...or the second, or the third... You get the picture. I just wasn't good enough. 

But when it comes to following Christ, we are not chosen because we are good. We are chosen because God is good. Jesus invited Zaccheaus into a personal relationship. But not because Zaccheaus was good. He was a tax collector, aka a cheater. He was likely not religious & certainly not popular. He didn't even climb the tree because he wanted to follow Jesus but only to see why Jesus was so popular. But after Jesus spoke to him, he decided to do good by giving money to the poor and paying back those he extorted. 

The goal of Christianity is not to become more ethical or moral people. It is important that we learn to do what is right and good, but Christianity is first about having a relationship with Jesus Christ. Faith is a response to God's offer of friendship. Only after we respond can we hope to imitate God's goodness.