Homily  Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A,

September 28, 2014

Paradox.  Among its many definitions is this:  an opinion or statement contrary to commonly accepted opinion.

Today’s readings are full of paradoxes, full of seemingly contradictory statements.  If we look closely at our society, our culture, and then study these readings, we are going to receive a clear lesson in recognizing a paradox, and having recognized this, learning what we must do in order to enjoy eternal happiness in Heaven.

First, what does our Culture teach us about happiness?  What must we do in order to be fulfilled, to be truly happy, according to the accepted wisdom of our society?  Why, we must look out for ourselves, we must put our own interests first.  Ever hear the phrase “Who ever has the most toys wins!”  When we see someone buy a new, bigger house, don’t we think to ourselves “maybe my house is too small to be happy in?”  When someone buys a new car, do we think to ourselves “Maybe my car is getting too old? Maybe it’s time for a new one?”  How about bling?  Are our clothes, jewelry too plain? Will people notice us if we aren’t making a statement with bigger, better stuff?

Watch television any day, and you will be inundated by voices telling you that you need more, you need newer, you need bigger everything.

Let’s start with the Gospel.  In Palestine, during Jesus’ time, who were the respectable people, the ones in charge?  The High Priests, the Saducees, the Pharisees.  They were successful, shown respect, sat in the best seats, and looked down on anyone and everyone who wasn’t as fortunate as themselves.  Obviously God had blessed them with success and riches, right?  But what did Jesus say to them?

“Truly, I say to you, the tax collectors and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you?”

In the Psalm we hear:

“Good and upright is the LORD; therefore he instructs sinners in the way.  He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way.”

Humility is what God wants from us.  He wants us to consider ourselves the least, to put others’ needs before our own.  He wants us to realize that we are sinners, and in doing so to beg for God’s forgiveness and mercy. 

Paul’s Letter to the Philippians gives us a clear view of what is expected of us:

“Do nothing from selfishness or conceit, but in humility count others better than yourselves.  Let each of you look not only to his own interests but also to the interests of others.  Have this mind among yourselves, which was in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.  And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross.”

Jesus was challenged by the Pharisees, criticized by them for eating with sinners, tax collectors, and harlots.  The sinners, tax collectors, and harlots knew their places.  They were never allowed to forget who they were.  To eat with them, to sit among them, to brush up against them, made you ritually unclean.  And instead of putting themselves up in front, in the places of honor, like the Pharisees, they stayed in their places, in the background.  And when Jesus came preaching of God’s mercy and forgiveness, they repented and changed their ways.

Paul, a former Pharisee, saw this paradox, and tells us that humility, not conceit is what will open the gates of Heaven for us.  Repentence, turning away from sin, is what the Lord desires from us.

We’ve gotten a concrete example of this in the life of a man that we just buried this week, Fr. Gus.  He was humble, always putting the needs of the sick, the poor, the destitute, ahead of his own needs.  Let us remember to follow Jesus’ example, to follow Blessed Theresa of Calcutta example, Fr. Gus’s example.

In the final analysis, there is the interplay between the justice of God versus the mercy of God.  We know that none of us hopes to receive merely what we deserve, for as we are all sinners, we place our fate at the mercy of the Father. In true humility, we can do nothing less!

With the hope of Mercy, we must truly strive to become an Amazing Parish.  We, as a community of Faith, must strive to let the Light of Christ shine through us in everything that we do.  By doing God’s will we hope to draw everyone to God.  We all have a part to play.   With God’s grace at work in our lives, our parish can do amazing things!