Easter Sunday 1 Apr 2018 Sermon

Easter Sunday 1.4.18 Belief

We have suffered with Our Lord through His degradation, and now we find that degradation suddenly turning to great glory.

We are always inspired by stories of someone coming from an improbable position to one of triumph. This is the greatest by far of any such story.

We acknowledge that we are on a much lower scale, yet we can see the same pattern in our own lives, as we go through the valley of tears before we reach the mountain top.

Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy (Ps 125(126),5-6).

We are more familiar with the hard part than the glorious outcome! Some give up altogether, crushed by the hardness of it all. They should have waited, as we should keep waiting.

Imagine standing outside the tomb of our Lord, at any point between His death and resurrection. Looking at that stone wall of the tomb. Remembering what you saw on Friday. Can you believe that He would come out of that tomb? He said He would (Lk 18,33), but can you believe it?

That is really the test of our faith. We know the story. We know He did come out; so that question maybe is easy to answer.

But if you were alive then not now, it would not be so easy.

The test for us is not so much with the fact of the Resurrection, but with our current issues: Can you believe that God will deliver you from all your troubles and sorrows?

We are still ‘looking at a stone wall’. Will He come out? Will He hear my prayer? Will He come again to save the world?

I believe my Saviour liveth and on the last day I shall see him (Job 19,25)

To be able to look at death, and say I believe in life. To walk through a cemetery and say: I believe these people will come back to life. To look at all our problems, and say I believe God will solve these problems, will somehow get us through.

We do not have to know how, just believe that it will happen.

It is the same process that God has been doing ever since He began the restoration of the human race, after the Fall.

All the prophets, the great figures of the Old Testament, Christ Himself coming back to life, then the apostles, persecutions, martyrdoms… all manner of trouble we have been through; and yet here we are, still believing. Still looking at the wall.

I do believe; I do not worry about appearances because again and again God has exploded negative appearances and come up with highly positive results.

And the Resurrection is the best of them all.

In the meantime, as we bump along this rather difficult pathway, we never lose hope, never complain. We have our eyes fixed on the glory that awaits us if we persevere (2 Co 4,17)

We take every chance to reaffirm our belief in God, that He has the power and the desire to make things come right.

The more we believe, and the more people believing, the quicker things will lighten up. There does not need to be so much gloom as there is: it is caused by sin. Remove the sin and we feel a lot better straight away.

This is a day for victory against the odds. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair, persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed (2 Co 4,8-9)

Whenever you feel down and out, just remember Friday to Sunday, cross to resurrection, death to life. For us it is always Sunday, always life.

Palm Sunday 25 Mar 2018 Sermon

Palm Sunday 25.3.18 Sorrows

Our Lord went through all this pain

- because He thought it was necessary. People generally underrate how much damage theirs sins do. The Cross tells us that sin is a very serious matter.

- because it would be the perfect sacrifice able to atone for all sin of all time.

- because it would gather disciples (like us) who would be willing to die with Him, rather than kill Him.

The Cross would serve as a permanent reminder in this earthly pilgrimage of all these things, above all the need to persevere to the end.

It is consoling that we have the Resurrection, but there are times when we need to contemplate the darker side of things.

To let the full effect of Christ’s work operate on us, the least we can do is be grateful, and then to make an effort to free ourselves, or at least not dive back into the pit.

What he has done is a million times more than we can do for Him, but we should do what we can, and give Him the consolation that not everyone rejects Him.

Some Christians celebrate Easter without worrying about all that went before. They bypass the suffering and death, reasoning that He is risen now, and all the rest is past and gone.

Thus empty crosses.

Whereas the Church’s view is that we need to work through the details, to be fully engaged. Our own contemplation of the sufferings gives us a deeper appreciation of what is at stake.

Not least because our own lives are situated in a great deal of suffering and sorrow.

We are happy in principle, but we have so much to go through yet, to be fully in the clear.

We are in the valley trying to reach the top of the mountain.

The evil does not have to infect us. We could live among sinners without being one ourselves; it is just harder. But it can be done and should be done.

And done to such an extent that even the sinners want to come and join us, like those who realized at the Cross that they needed to be with Him, not against Him.

We are changed by contemplating Him in his sufferings and death, enabling us to be more compassionate, patient, trusting etc.

And we live with greater humility and charity as regards other people. We are not so angry in our thoughts, more willing to forgive, keeping the spirit of Calvary foremost.

Let us spend this next week in extra contemplation of such things, and much prayer.

Holy Week times

Holy Week times (for Adelaide)

Holy Name Church, Stepney: 

Holy Thursday 29 March: Mass 7.30pm

Good Friday 30 March:   Stations 11am, Main Liturgy 5pm

Holy Saturday 31 March: Vigil begins 9,30pm

Easter Sunday 1 April: Mass 9.15am and 5pm

St Monica's, Walkerville 
Easter Sunday 8am

Sacred Heart, Hindmarsh   
Easter Sunday 5pm

Reminder: Daylight Saving ends Sunday morning 3am. Clocks go back one hour

Happy Easter to all!

Passion Sunday 18 Mar 2018 Worth of Christ

Passion Sunday 18.3.18 Worth of Christ

People talk of the net worth of millionaires and billionaires.  The ‘worth’ is measured in money, as if that settles everything.

What then is the net worth of Jesus Christ? It cannot be put in money terms. He is beyond earthly currencies.

He is ‘above all principality, and power, and virtue, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come. Ep 1,21.

For in him were all things created in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones, or dominations, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him and in him. Col 1,16

He is simply God, with all perfection that comes with that title.

How can it be then that He is so much ignored on one hand, and despised on another?

How can someone so good be so much disliked. Sin has turned us sour, and made us resent what should be loved. The fallen angels have spread their malice, and we have had more than a touch of it.

As we enter these two weeks of Passiontide let us re-affirm all that we know about Him, and give Him some of the praise and gratitude that have been so much lacking for 2000 years.

What is His value? Well, even if He had simply stayed on earth and gone about doing good -  He could heal your sickness, or raise you back to life, or teach you how to live, or give your life meaning, or give sight to the blind, or set the captives free (Lk 4, 18-19).

He could have just stayed with us and gone about working miracles until the present day.

But He did something even more useful for us: He died. He is worth more to us dead than alive, we could say. We understand that His death (epistle) releases the power of His Precious Blood into the world, forgiving sinners, transforming people to be free of sin, and willing to die with Him. We are made into new people.

His Blood has infinite value, and re-establishes the link with God which has been broken.

Many do not appreciate the Precious Blood, or God Himself, or the need to be linked with God. They shrug with indifference, ignorance, and hardness of heart.

The gift is no less important for being so unappreciated. To be thankful for that gift, to be in awe of it, this is our task.

What is this man worth? Ecce Homo. This is the Lamb of God, the Saviour. Bow down before Him. as though there is nothing else to compare - and there is not!

We do not just fit Him into our schedule, giving Him some time here and there. We base our lives around Him.

People generally follow the lead of others, so it becomes the norm to push Him to the side. They will say you are crazy if you do any more than the average.

Yet to have Him anywhere but at the centre of our lives does not make sense. Knowing His worth we are drawn to Him, in prayer, sacrament, and work. All our thoughts, desires, hopes go to Him.

What is His net worth? Alive, He could heal us; Dead, He could save us; Resurrected, He can heal and save, and not only the Jews but all peoples. He is worth knowing!

I want nothing but to know Christ crucified, says St Paul (1 Co 2,2). Apart from Him I count all else as dung…Ph 3,8).

The next two weeks the Church travels through the mysteries of Our Lord’s death and resurrection. Let us be part of that, and let Him work in us. If we die with Him we shall live with Him (2 Tm 2,11).

If we gauge His true worth, we find our own.

4th Sunday of Lent 11 Mar 2018 Sermon

4^th Sunday of Lent 11.3.18 Joy and Sorrow

This fourth Sunday of Lent is known as Laetare Sunday, a time to rejoice.

Every Sunday is a celebration of the Resurrection, and we are always better off for recalling that event.

Yet we might wonder how we can be joyful in a world where so much goes wrong and, if anything, is getting worse.

We find that we can be joyful and sorrowful at the same time. There are different layers. Some things are on the surface, others are deeper down.

Think of a pool of water. If the world is a pool, then there is always trouble on the surface. But if we look deeper we find perfect calm.

The wind is howling and the waves are rising and the boat is being tossed about. But deeper down all is calm. There we are filled with joy, hope, peace, etc.

It might be so deep sometimes that we know it only in our subconscious. But through faith we know there is such a place, where all is secure, and that is our joy.

The security comes from the certainties which we enumerate in our Creeds. There is a God, who does exist, and who has done all those things we know of - become Man, died on the Cross, Risen again, sent the Holy Spirit, promised to come again; who is willing to forgive our sins no matter how many times we have failed Him.

This is all very consoling material.

We carry this truth around with us. It is better than money in the bank. It is more powerful than a sword or a gun. It transforms reality for the better.

It is so powerful because it is true, and nothing can make it untrue. People do stop believing it, but that is a change in them, not in the objective truth itself.

The saints show us the way. St Paul could be happy with ‘full stomach or empty’ (Ph 4,12) To him ‘life is not a thing to waste words on’ (Ac 20,24).

We are not as strong as that. We still worry about circumstances (the top of the pool). But we can get better at this.

There are many things which are genuinely bad, however, which can further challenge our joyfulness. Injustice, cruelty, murder, rape, genocide etc etc. How can we come up smiling after hearing of these things?

Even the worst things do not change what we know to be true. We can grieve, we can weep, yet in doing so we are not denying all that we believe. In time, in God’s order, the good will prevail.

Every sin and disorder will be dealt with; every unjust suffering set right.

All can be absorbed in God’s justice and mercy. We must remember that it is all His universe anyway. Nothing can happen outside of His providence.

We do what we can to stop injustices, and set things right, but what we cannot change we commend to God’s mercy. He will know what to do.

We are, in a way back at the beginning: we could be as happy here today as on the first Easter when the disciples discovered that Christ had risen; or at the first Pentecost when they burst out onto the streets with joy.

Nothing has changed, except our enthusiasm has cooled greatly.

We have allowed ourselves to be smothered with gloom and anxiety, and in that anxiety we do not go deep enough into the pool to derive consolation.

Staying only on the surface people will neglect prayer; and then, operating only on their own strength, they find they cannot cope; becoming cynical instead of joyful.

All of which can happen to us. And why, therefore, we need to ensure that we are in tune with the depths of our faith, constantly reaffirming that faith, which is our treasure.

We are rich, but if we forget where we have buried the treasure we are poor again.

We are happy, even if we do not know it – we could say! May the Lord help us to know how happy we are, or ought to be.

3rd Sunday of Lent 4 Mar 2018 Sermon

3^rd Sunday of Lent 4.3.18 Purity

Do not even mention such things as fornication and all uncleanness, says St Paul in today’s epistle (Ep 5, 1-9). However, these things are ‘mentioned’ a great deal in our current society.

The world is swimming in impurity, with indecency of every sort on the increase – such as internet pornography, and generally outrageous, defiant behaviour such as in the Mardi Gras procession (Sydney), or blasphemous festivals such as we have here (Adelaide).

Many Catholics, influenced by this public acceptance of indecency, think that the goalposts have been moved; that somehow, what used to be condemned is now alright with God. Who is going to tell God that His commandments have changed?!

No, if it was a sin back then it still is. Whether it is 2018 or 1918, some things are wrong in themselves, and just looking at the calendar cannot suddenly make them right.

Nor can any amount of public opinion change fundamental moral values. Even if a majority of people approve something (such as homosexual ‘marriage’) it cannot suddenly become alright.

What has changed is that it is now a lot easier to commit the same old sins because public acceptance has never been higher.

So things which would have been ‘shameful’ once are now taken for granted (such as ‘living together’). This does not, however, make it any less sinful.

Fortunately, it can all still be forgiven, if only people will recognize the sin and ask for God’s mercy.

Someone will say: Catholics must live in the real world, and cannot live in a ghetto; cannot be cut off from the surrounding culture.

No, but Our Lord did say, that if your hand should cause you to sin, cut it off (Mt 5,30)! This means that we must take whatever steps to ensure that we do not sin.

If we live in a culture which is immersed in impurity, then fairly strong measures are required from us to stay faithful to Christ.

In everyday life, we exercise care if there is a danger around. If we were walking along a rough uneven path we walk slower. Just so, with the moral life – we are careful where we look, where we go, whom we mix with.

We just have to find our way and hold firm. Many are losing their way, even people whom we would have expected to be stronger.

How are we going to hold firm? By observing the disciplines of our faith – prayer, fasting, self-denial, good works. Just the basics over and over. It is the only way to stay sane.

We reaffirm the truths we hold, and we constantly reset our behaviour to make sure it matches those beliefs.

It was not meant to go the way it has. The Church was supposed to take over the surrounding society, not give in to it. There would be no ghetto, because the whole town would be Catholic. That is still the plan, whether or not we can manage it.

In such a world there is no room for sin. It is this kind of world envisaged by St Paul, and in today’s Gospel, where the demons are kept at bay.

Purity is not just avoiding bad things. It enables us to appreciate the spiritual nature of each person. We are not just bodies but souls, each person having a unique identity and infinite value.

New ways, old values. Keep the technology, but use it for good.

People look for antiques, yearning for things that remind them of the past. Well, let’s go back to when sin was sin, and people still called it that.

And God, ever ancient and new, will deliver us from all that would harm us.

2nd Sunday of Lent 25 Feb 2018 Sermon

2^nd Sunday of Lent 25.2.18  Uniqueness of Christ

People judge Christianity by the Christians, and that is a mistake.

The place to look to justify Christianity is Christ.

He is Perfection, and all good comes from Him. We cannot do better, or other than approach Him, in worship and obedience.

If we go by the Christians themselves it is easy to find fault in any direction; and then conclude: Well, I don’t have to be part of any such religion which has so many dubious adherents.  But there is still the question of Christ Himself. No matter how bad His disciples may be, He Himself is perfect, and deserves the respect of all for that.

In His earthly life Our Lord worked continuous miracles, each one further establishing His authenticity, as being from God, and indeed God Himself!

The Transfiguration is another reminder of His supremacy, showing Him as the fulfilment of all law and prophecy. Law, as in having the authority to decree what is right and wrong. Prophecy, as in bringing events to their proper conclusion.

He is on top of everything and everyone. There is no greater authority in the world. His authority extends to all times and places.

He is all truth and all power. He is the One (and the only one) who has the power to save – that is, to forgive sin, to restore life where it has been lost.

He is the only saviour of the human race; the only God.

The modern world prides itself on respecting diversity, pluralism, welcoming every belief system under the sun.

The welcome gets a bit cool sometimes when it comes to Catholicism, but anyway this ‘diversity’ is missing the point.

It means that people will regard all religions as much the same (including having no religion), and that is to deny that Christ is the unique Saviour of the world.

As soon as we let false religions in, the true religion is diluted.

Many Catholics have lost their faith in just this way. Too much respect for falsehood, too little for the Truth.

As well as this false tolerance, the world also specializes in Distraction. There is always some new activity or pursuit, always something to keep off the one point that really matters - if you die where will you go?

Every one of us is on death row and facing judgment, eternity, heaven or hell!

The True God finds His creation a very stiff-necked people. First the Jews were stubborn, now every other race.

Still He continues to offer salvation. Despite all our sins He still wants to save us.

His ways are not our ways (Is 55,8), but we should go by them all the same.

He could make His presence more obvious to the world, but the nature of salvation requires that He be somewhat indirect in His dealings with us.

Salvation only works if we interact with God. We cannot be saved if we are completely oblivious to Him. We have to make some sign of being alive, even if it is only sincere contrition.

We are saved:

if we humble ourselves before Him;

if we develop personal trust in Him, believing that whatever comes, He will make it right.

if we cast off all false gods, and submit to the God of Israel, the only God.

If we join ourselves to His saving action, especially in the Mass.

It helps if the Christians offer a strong witness, but even if not, each of us can resolve not to lose our own faith.

I believe in Him even if I am the last one standing who still does.

It is Christ who saves, and it is with Him I will stay. It is good for us to be here!