Homily Cycle A 01-19-20

Mark Laidlow, a writer, said adding one short phrase to the second sentence of any book would increase readership and intensify intrigue in the work.  [#Laidlowsrule] We are going to take the first verse from the first book of the Bible [Genesis], “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” Now using Mark’s suggestion, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”  And then the murders began ….

Wow what a difference, Laidlaw’s recommendation certainly produces more intrigue and interest, BUT our Reading from Isaiah produces its own intrigue and interest because we [you & I] are called to be servants.  What does that mean, what does that entail?  We will explore that together.

Isaiah tells us that God is our strength and we will be a light to the nations, we will shine the Lord’s light in our troubled world.  A world increasingly darkened by sin and by “buffered selves” [Charles Taylor].  In our Responsorial Psalm, we sang “Here am I, Lord, I come to do Your will.”  Is doing God’s will your top priority?

In our second reading, St. Paul reminds us of our call to be holy, called by God to be holy, and to bring God’s light to the world.  In today’s Gospel John the Baptist called Jesus, “the Lamb of God.”  We are called to emulate the Lamb of God, that is the core of our servanthood, our discipleship.  In Aramaic lamb [talya] has several meanings: lamb, servant, slave, we are called to offer our lives to Jesus, the Son of God.  So, we are called to be lambs, servants and slaves of the Lord.

At the beginning of Mass, you heard that we are in “Ordinary Time” - that sounds boring, dull, uninteresting, ho-hum, BUT it is anything LIKE THAT!  Ordinary Time is spiritual strengthening time, spiritual muscle building time.

The Christmas hustle & bustle are behind us, Lent [February 26^th] and Easter [April 12th] are in front of us, so “Ordinary Time” is our opportunity to focus our daily lives on our spiritual enrichment and growth.  Ordinary Time is an opportunity for us to reflect the Light of Christ that we received at our Baptism to the world, by how we live.

 

 This past Friday at our School Mass I talked to the students and teachers about being Salt, about adding flavor, specifically Catholic flavor to our world and to do that by living our faith.  Not with Catholic stamped on our foreheads or our shirts, but in our actions. 

Martin Luther King Jr, two months before he was assassinated, preached about his funeral eulogy.  Here are some excerpts from his sermon,

“Every now and then I wonder what I want them to say.  I'd like someone to mention that day that Martin Luther King, Jr., tried to give his life serving others. I'd like someone to say that day that Martin Luther King, Jr., tried to love somebody. I want you to be able to say that day that I did try to feed the hungry… to clothe those who were naked… to visit those in prison… that I tried to love and serve humanity." He concluded with these words: I “… want to leave a committed life behind."  [www.Sermons.com]

Ordinary Time gives us a chance to reflect on our eulogy, what we would like said about us and how we lived.  Take a few minutes to reflect on what you are really committed too.

May God Be Praised!