2nd Sunday after Pentecost 23 Jun 2019 Sermon

2^nd Sunday after Pentecost 23.6.19 Eucharist and Commitment

Today, the Sunday after Corpus Christi we can reflect further on the mystery of the Eucharist.

Let your good be in deeds not in words (epistle ). It is good to say the right thing as an incentive to go in the right direction, but the real test is actually doing the thing that has to be done.

A lover might say, I would swim any ocean for you, climb any mountain. But he knows he is never going to have to do that, so the sincerity of his words will never be tested.

Our Lord said, Greater love than this has no man, than that he lay down his life for his friends (Jn 15.13)

He said it and His words were put to the test: He did lay down His life.

He said He would be with us till the end of time, and He has made it so in the Eucharist, where He abides with us, and with which He makes us spiritually strong.

This is ‘doing’ not just talking about it. The Lord wants to make us copies of Himself, to have the same pattern of service to others, the same willingness for self-sacrifice, always seeking the will of God above all else.

He wants us to respond at our level to what he is doing at His level. Supernatural charity cannot be matched but it can at least be appreciated.

The Eucharist is God's main way of imparting grace to us here on earth. Its value is immense but can be appreciated only if we are fully engaged in the process.

There are certain subtleties which may be missed by those who have not cultivated a spiritual sense.

One who receives without faith has no spiritual hunger and will not benefit.

But if we develop our understanding to the point that we really want the things of God, and are prepared to learn what we do not yet understand – then we can make progress, and each reception of the Eucharist can take us further than the one before.

We need God’s  help to make us want what we should want.

The Eucharist will do things to us and for us, if we are prepared to commit ourselves to whatever may follow.

We receive on the Lord’s terms. Anything He wants is fine with me.

We cannot receive as if to say, I am only a little bit interested here, a little bit committed.

Otherwise it could be a sacrilegious communion and make it worse.

At the other end of the scale we do not have to be perfect but at least sincerely seeking the ways of God.

Saints show the way. Their love for the Eucharist was the same as for Jesus

Christ, and of course the Eucharist is Jesus Christ, but we do not necessarily act on that belief.

Many allow doubt to stifle their response. It is better to dive in, believing and then seeing that indeed the Lord is faithful to His promises.

So we come to the feast, the banquet where our soul is to be fed. It does not replace physical food, though it may have a healing effect on the body.

In this food we draw on the sacred humanity of Christ; it will impart to us the qualities of Our Lord Himself, making us more like Himself.

If we meet Him here He will meet us, and good things will happen, such as our becoming more like Christ!

We will never have to swim an ocean to prove our love for Christ. We might have to die for Him. Whatever it comes to we will be ready for it, having been constantly nourished by contact with Him, through this great Sacrament.

Trinity Sunday 16 Jun 2019 Sermon

Trinity Sunday 16.6.19 Mutuality

We value human love so much but may not realize where that love comes from.

God had it first. We did not invent it.

The joy of giving and receiving in mutual love - we derived that from God.

God is a Trinity of Persons, three Persons sharing one nature.

Each of the three Persons is constantly giving and receiving in love from the other two.

This was happening before the human race was created.

God made us in His image, which is why we have received the same impulse to give and receive.

We do not do it as well as God, not by a long way; but at our best we can at least follow the same principle.

We learn to love other people as much as ourselves; we discover the joy of giving to others, even of forgiving them when they offend us.

This is a major step and could only happen with God's help.

We discover that it is better to give than receive (Acts 20,35).

This enables us to share in that love between the Divine Persons.

This is what makes Heaven what it is. The main joy of Heaven is that we dwell with God. Yes, there are the people we love but to be with God is better still – because He is more lovable, being more perfect.

Without love we would be imprisoned in our individual selves. To discover how to give to one another is a liberation.

This is living in its fullest sense.

We come to know, love and serve God; for this He made us, and to this He calls us.

We do not do any of these three things enough. If we could get the first one right - to know Him better - the rest would come easily.

People think God is remote and impersonal.

Impersonal! He made the brand. He is Personhood full and complete; we are only copies and much inferior.

It is a common mistake that people make, to judge God by human standards.

People come to love each other, and then conclude that this is the highest point that can be reached.

They see God as something of an interruption to their plans.

The modern practice of marrying outside churches is a testimony to this. People getting married ask, What has this to do with God?

Nothing, except that He made them male and female, and instituted marriage; and is the source of whatever love a man and a woman can have for each other!

All human love comes from Him first. And it will only last, and bear fruit, if He is included at every point.

We should seek him out, therefore; not be ignoring Him.

And so we do today, on this special feast, singing His praises, seeking to enter that dimension so far higher than we could reach by ourselves.

We are allowed (through the sacred humanity of God the Son) to enter the Blessed Trinity’s exchange of mutual giving; and to benefit insofar as we allow ourselves to submit to the process.

When we feel unloved and unwanted we can turn to this reality, that God includes us in His inner life; that no one, however rejected by other people, is outside the scope of His love and mercy.

We go to the Source, and we find new depths.

If we had got this right from the start the world would look very different. There would be sufficient gratitude, docility, obedience… no one would be lonely or left out.

For now we offer our sorrow for sin, and adoration of God's infinite perfection.

All glory to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Pentecost Sunday 9 Jun 2019 Sermon

Pentecost Sunday 9.6.19 Desire

We call on the Holy Spirit to come upon us, individually and collectively.

We could call this the macro and the micro view.

The macro view takes in the whole Church and the whole world. We often find ourselves discussing the problems of both, and there are so many.

We need the Holy Spirit to come and renew the Church, the nations, the whole lot.

Renewal, of course, presupposes repentance and conversion happening first. These are implied in the phrase, Come Holy Ghost.

Then we have the micro view, which means each person. Pick any person at random and it would be a safe bet to say this person needs the Holy Spirit – to remove sins and faults, and to grow in virtues and gifts.

We can pray at the macro and micro level at the same time. They are both urgent.

We can pray, Come Holy Spirit, fall upon  a particular person, or on a whole nation.

Whether it is a big or small target, the need is everywhere and the principle the same.

God will come if we ask Him, in the right way, and with sufficient fervour.

We ask Him to come though He has already come? He has come but we always need more of Him. We return to the fountain to sustain us with heavenly nourishment.

Why do we have to ask  Him when He wants to come anyway? Because God wants us to desire what is really most important.

He wants us to mature spiritually to the point that we can recognise our need. We need the Holy Spirit more than any worldly consideration.

The more clearly we see this the more fervently we are going to pray and the more likely God is to answer that prayer.

It is not enough just to wish things to be different; we must be prepared for a little blood, sweat and tears; to show that we really mean this request and all that comes with it.

We also ask the Holy Spirit for ourselves, because we all have need of Him.

I cannot stop nations fighting wars, or a thousand other social and moral evils. But I can stop my own sin and improve my own response to the grace of God.

This is where it begins. If one person does something extra that will make the Church stronger and more able to help others.

Thousands of small candles can make a big light.

We recall the first Pentecost and countless miracles God has worked in our midst to revive our confidence. What marvels the Lord has worked for us. (Ps 125 (126), 3).

When we recall these major feasts it is as though we are part of the event. Imagine being at that first Pentecost. Whatever you would feel or think there still applies now, in all its freshness.

Those were the glory days but they are not out of our reach. Everything that happened there and then can happen here and now.

Renewal is possible at any time.

It is a matter of asking. There are restaurants where you can eat as much as you want for a fixed price.

In spiritual terms you can have as much of the Holy Spirit as you dare to ask.

This is not selfish; He wants us to want Him, and others will certainly benefit from any step we take in that direction.

We never know who or  how many will respond to the invitation, but we can generate some heat and light by our own responsiveness.

Pentecost wakes us up; shakes us from any lethargy or despondency.

Constantly we raise the cry: Come, Holy Ghost.

Sunday after the Ascension 2 Jun 2019 Sermon

Sunday after Ascension 2.6.19 MasterClass in prayer

If you were to ask a group of people what they most want there are not likely to be many who would say they want to know God better, to possess Him, to serve Him etc. Most would be asking for more modest things like more money, better health, and fulfilling relationships.

Yet to want God is really our greatest need even if we do not know it. Our hearts were made for Thee, O Lord, and they are restless until they rest in Thee – St Augustine.

Many would ask for things like world peace, an end to hunger and poverty - noble enough objectives.

We all want the world to improve on how it is. For that to happen, however, sooner or later we have to go to God for the necessary firepower.

We will never get people to live in peace or mutual concern unless God is invoked. There is too much sin in the system; and people are too much damaged to be able to improve just by their own goodwill.

In this current week the Church re-lives the intense prayer of Our Lady and the apostles in the Upper Room.

Those gathered in that room all desired the same thing; were all focused on one outcome: that God would come into their midst.

We can learn a lot about prayer from that group. We learn to imitate them in serious and continuous prayer. We cannot do this on our own strength. We cannot meet even our personal needs, let alone the needs of the whole world unless we call God in to act.

We need God's help to ask God to help us! He will give us enough grace to enter the prayer, and if we use that grace, then He will grant many other blessings.

To receive God fully we have to empty out the non-essential, especially anything sinful; and fill our minds with all that is good (Ph 4,8).

If it took nine days of prayer from such exalted company as Mary and the apostles, how can we expect to cope with anything less than full commitment?

It may be difficult to begin prayer if we are not in the mood, but once we start the momentum will build. Our faith will increase, as will our charity. We will come to see prayer as communion with God, the ultimate good.

As the prayer increases more mountains will move; miracles will happen (Mk 11,23).

The whole Church should be at prayer day and night, as in those first days.

God will come if we ask Him. But if we are asking for a major manifestation of God's power then we have to be prepared to put in some work on that point.

If we are to receive the Holy Spirit we have to be prepared to work hard to establish the conditions whereby He can come – humility, trust, non-complaining, complete submission to God's will.

There has to be a certain abandoning of ourselves. We might like to tell God what we need, but when we say, Come... we are really saying Come in Your time, in Your way, on Your terms.

I am the clay, You are the Potter. Or I am the empty vessel, Fill me. Or I am the page, write on me.

How much do we want this?  More than we know! To pray like this is to pray for everything else that needs to happen. This prayer will set us up, strong in faith, and other prayers will flow naturally.

Let us take the MasterClass in prayer, from the Upper Room.