'People predestined for the Pearl' (Sunday homily)

 If you want to summarize what the readings are about, you can say,

"People predestined for the Pearl.”

Let’s talk about that.

Before he formed the world, God already knew everything 

that would unfold — all the trouble, all the failure, all the sin.

And yet God went ahead with Creation.

This was an act of love and confidence on God’s part—

He knew how he would overcome evil 

and transform it into even greater good.

Paul adds, “he also predestined.” What does this mean?

It means that God desires and intends the salvation of everyone, 

by conforming us to the image of his Son. 

He offers us more than enough grace—abundant, persistent grace—

but it remains up to us to respond to it and cooperate with it.

That is why we make no assumptions about heaven or hell, 

for others or even for ourselves.

It’s like this: suppose I plan a dinner for ten people. 

Because I genuinely want everyone to come, 

I send each one a personal invitation. I call to remind them. 

I describe how wonderful the evening will be. 

And on the day itself, I even arrange rides for anyone who needs one.

But does all that guarantee that every single person 

will certainly be there?

No. Some may still choose not to come. 

They may even start out and then turn back.

So it is with God’s Kingdom: God has plans for us. 

He gives us every advantage,

and his grace enables us to answer his call freely.

Yet one thing God will not do:

He won’t make your decisions for you.

When Saint Paul speaks of God’s plan, 

he is not talking only about individuals, but about humanity as a whole.

So, when we answer His call, it’s not enough to take care of ourselves;

we care for one another.

This is how God’s plan unfolds to undo the evil in our world.

Thus, we share our faith: 

"Let me tell you about the Pearl; his name is Jesus…"

And in sharing our own story of finding the Pearl,

We also help answer the needs of our world:

we work with God 

to bring some measure of justice and dignity, to the poor, 

to the laws we live by and to how nations work together.

It makes no sense for us to say, 

we have the Pearl of God’s Wisdom in our midst,

and then remain passive:

> when our laws fail to protect the unborn,

> when our entertainment and media culture 

consumes the innocence of the young,

> when you and I ignore the opportunities we get daily 

to be generous toward others; not necessarily with money, 

but perhaps with our time and our patience.

This is not Wisdom!

Solomon was given wisdom, 

but if you look at his life, he wandered off the path. 

If you and I do not use the wisdom and grace we’ve been given 

to make a difference, how are we different?

You might have noticed the role desire plays in the readings:

Solomon desired wisdom. The merchant desired the Pearl.

The author of the psalm sings, “Lord, I love your commands.”

Some people seem not to hunger for God. 

In many ways they do, but they don’t yet recognize it. 

God may awaken that yearning in ways we don’t expect.

But for us — we have been given this longing. 

Indeed, God himself is this Desire, 

in the Holy Spirit poured into our lives. 

If we ask, God will give us even more. 

So what excuse can we offer?

Others can honestly say, “I didn’t know about the Treasure.”

But we know.

You and I recognize the Eucharist as the Pearl beyond price.

We realize that Mass is the closest we get to heaven on earth.

Jesus is the Wisdom and Truth for whom we were predestined.

He is the Beauty that wounds our hearts with longing.

What are we willing to give up to have him?

The 'appalling strangeness' of God (Sunday homily)

 The Book of Wisdom is unfamiliar to most of us. 

But let’s not be afraid of the deep end of the pool; let’s dive in!

This first reading comes from a section 

where the sacred author reflects on God leading his people out of Egypt. 

He contrasts the true God with the fake gods of Egypt 

and, more broadly, with the gods of the nations. 

What struck him about those pagan gods 

was that none of them had care of everything. 

Each had his or her own “portfolio.”

But Israel’s God has no rivals, no competition, no need to “win” or prove himself. 

He alone has care of all.

That leads to the truly startling thing the Book of Wisdom shows us;

that God does not think or act the way we expect him to. 

As the novelist Graham Greene put it, 

we cannot conceive “the appalling strangeness of the mercy of God.”

What is so appalling and strange? 

God isn’t overly interested in retribution or balancing the books.

He is all about conversion. He wants us changed, healed and made new.

Many of us imagine sin like a traffic stop. 

You’re speeding, the officer pulls you over, you show your license, 

accept the ticket and pay the fine. Done. 

A lot of people picture confession the same way: 

break a rule, say the penance, pay the fine, and you’re square.

That misses the point entirely.

The real problem with sin isn’t just that we broke a rule. Sin is corruption. 

Think of a car you love that starts to rust. At first, it’s just a spot or two. 

You can hide it. But rust spreads. It eats away at what is sound. 

Eventually, the car becomes unsalvageable.

Sin does the same to our human nature. 

It starts small, we ignore it, and it spreads—

corrupting desires, relationships, our whole life. 

When something is ruined by rust or wear, we throw it away. 

When people ruin themselves, we often do the same. 

But God refuses to do that. 

And at times his approach feels downright offensive to us.

People mock the Catholic faith: “Someone can live a terrible life 

and at the last minute say sorry, go to confession, or get baptized, 

and it’s all wiped away?” 

Yes, it’s true—because God’s mercy is that deep, that wide, that total. 

But what they miss is that forgiveness without conversion is meaningless. 

It is more than canceling a debt. God makes us new.

This is a big reason why God lets the wheat and the weeds grow side-by-side. 

Weeds don’t turn into wheat on our farms, 

but in the field of God’s mercy, hearts do change.

Conversion is rarely instantaneous or painless. 

It is the frustration of hearing “No” to what is wrecking us —

“No” to the cravings, the grudges, the selfishness — 

so we can say a wider, freer “Yes” to life. 

It’s the reverse path from corruption. 

Cleaning rust takes elbow grease or a powerful solvent. 

Getting back in shape after years of neglect is hard work. 

The same is true for the soul.

Even those deathbed conversions that people scoff at 

involve a mystery we cannot see. 

I cannot imagine, nor can you, what a soul must undergo 

to be made ready for heaven after a lifetime of resistance. 

That is part of why we speak of purgatory: 

the purging of what is corrupt so we can enter glory whole and holy.

It would be easier if we could just pay a fine. But God is not a bored bureaucrat. 

He is the Father who created you for a glory we cannot begin to imagine. 

He is the Son who went to the Cross to pay the debt once and for all. 

He is the Holy Spirit—the universal solvent—

who will undo the rust in our lives if we let him

Conversion usually begins with a moment of surrender, 

but then it continues: a choice, followed by a thousand more. 

Maybe dare to ask the Holy Spirit to show you one spot of rust—

and with his help, make a plan to begin cleaning it.

About Saint Henry (Sunday homily)

 Our air conditioning has been revived 

but is very tenuous so I will be brief.

This weekend we remember the patron of this church, St. Henry.

It doesn’t seem that many politicians have been recognized as saints.

You and I can speculate about why! 

So, when one makes it, we should take note.

One point that is hard to appreciate about Henry 

has to do with his involvement as emperor in the Church. 

He worked passionately to clean up immoral behavior 

in monasteries and slap down clerics who traded sacraments for money. 

He supported more beautiful celebration of the sacred liturgy.

Yet as Americans, the very last thing we want 

is a politician using government power to shape the Church! 

Instead, we apply the lesson by taking up this call ourselves. 

Through baptism, each of us shares 

in the dignity of Christ as priest, prophet, and king.

One great strength of the Church in our country 

is the activism of lay Catholics, being well informed about our Faith, 

and being engaged with decision-making.

For example, Archbishop Casey is inviting every Catholic 

to participate in an upcoming archdiocesan synod. 

This week you can sign up online, just google “Synod 2027 Cincinnati.”

Another way the grace of baptism is powerfully at work

is lay Catholics embracing evangelization 

as their personal task, not just for the priest.

Think about what God told Isaiah just now, 

and what the Son of God told us: 

The ordinary deeds of generosity and justice – 

which all of us can offer – bring the glory of God into our world.

Jesus did not say, you are a light to your neighbor but to the world. 

Yet: that light illuminates the world, one neighbor at a time.

There is another detail from Henry’s life that shines like a supernova 

across the 1,000 years that separate us from him. 

Henry and his queen, Cunigunde, were unable to have a child. 

Most rulers would rid themselves of their spouses in this situation, 

no matter the damage caused. 

Henry remained faithful to her, and by all accounts, 

they were a partnership. 

In the city of Bamberg, there is a massive cathedral which he built. 

I’ve been there. But what I recall most powerfully 

wasn’t the impressive architecture, but the two graves, 

of Henry and Cunigunde, side by side.

It is fun to imagine being an astronaut or a king; 

to do valiant deeds that change the world. 

And perhaps you will ride a rocket and be the first president of Mars!

But in any case, the moments that matter come in small choices, 

out of everyone’s sight but God’s. 

It recalls a well known quote, attributed to many: 

“Sow a deed, reap a habit; sow a habit, 

reap a character; sow a character, reap a destiny.”

Saint Henry & Saint Cunigunde: pray for us!

Be little -- like God (Sunday homily)

Last week, we heard our Lord Jesus speaking to – and about – 

his Twelve Apostles before sending them out, for the first time, 

to be ambassadors of his Kingdom.

In between the reading for last week, and what we hear today, 

The Lord praises John the Baptist, 

who is entirely open to the Holy Spirit, 

while then speaking very severely about several towns he visited, 

because they hardened their hearts to his presence.

And that brings us to today, 

where Jesus contrasts those that are wise and learned, 

and “little ones.” 

Last week, it was the Apostles who were “little ones.” 

Now, he is inviting everyone to be a “little one.” 

Then, we have something stunning. 

And I want to slow down here, to bid you slow down and notice this. 

When Jesus says of himself, “I am meek and humble of heart,” 

realize who is saying this. 

The Second Person of the Trinity – 

all powerful God who created all things – 

is saying: “I am meek and humble of heart.”

God is “meek and humble of heart”! 

I’m going to be silent for a bit so you can dwell on that for a moment. 

(Long pause.)

When God says this of himself, 

what does that fact change for how we, his creatures, operate? 

If God can say this, who of us would hold back?

What kind of conversion does this demand of each of us?

So, as we know, this is our nation’s 250th birthday! What a moment!

No nation in history ever created itself in the way we did.

Our nation is founded, as much as anything, on an idea:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, 

that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator 

with certain unalienable rights, 

that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

Against all odds, we won our independence.

We began as a fragile, uncertain republic. We were a “little one.”

Today, we are the biggest of the big.

No nation has been so blessed with prosperity, technology and liberty. 

None has ever been as powerful as we are.

In light of today’s Gospel, that is a spiritually perilous place to be!

Because our nation is governed by “we the people,”

Then we the Catholics have a grave duty to be witnesses.

To be prophets. To be prayer warriors. 

Let me add, just as our nation enjoys such astounding advantages,

So too do we as Catholics in this country.

When our nation was founded, 

our religious holidays were illegal in some colonies 

and we were barred from public office in others.

Today, we have Catholics in the highest offices.

For heaven’s sake, a fellow American is our pope!

So, these successes can tempt us to be complacent.

We have so much richness in our tradition that if we aren’t careful, 

we can be smug, or seem like know-it-alls.

Let’s go back to the astounding thing God said of himself: 

“I am meek and humble of heart.”

As witnesses sent by him to repeat his words: “Come to me,”

Our hearts must likewise be humble and meek.

That transformation happens through our own ongoing conversion.

There is no better spiritual medicine, to change our hearts, 

than the sacrament of confession.

A powerful prayer to begin each day is the Morning Offering.

Taking time each day to ask help – from God and others – 

exercises our humility.

One day, each of us will come face-to-face with Jesus, our Lord.

He showed us what his heart looks like.

Do we not long to show him a heart that looks like his?

Of course we do! 

But if that seems too overwhelming, hear again what Jesus also said: 

“Come to me…take my yoke…I’ll give you rest.”

Jesus is ready to do this work with us, through us.

He asks you and me to surrender our hearts to him, to become like his.