30 July 2017
17th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A
Every now and then we step back and evaluate our life. Some of us do that when our birthday comes
around, or maybe it’s an anniversary. Maybe
it’s when someone we know passes away.
Or sometimes it’s just when we can “feel it in our bones” that something
in life has to change. Whenever it happens,
and however it happens, it’s just something that we do: we step back and see if
our life is on track.
And that usually involves some sort of reflection on our
priorities—you know: What’s important in life?
What are our guiding principles?
What do we believe is ultimately important for eternity and for everyday
life? Here, as a people of faith it
seems like a good idea to reflect on this at this particular time of year, with
our new council members starting soon, parish planning and discussions
happening, with our youth coming back from the Steubenville Conference in St.
Louis and all “on fire” with their faith.
This seems like a good time of the year to step back and see
where our priorities are: Is our life of faith on track? And it just so happens that the idea of “priorities”
is also a common thread in all our Scripture readings today.
We hear that Solomon’s priorities were focused on God:
relying on God, asking for wisdom and understanding so that he could be a genuine
instrument of God to his people. And
then the parables of Jesus these past three weeks have been trying to steer our
priorities toward the “kingdom of heaven.”
He’s interested in helping us to buy into the idea that the kingdom of
God is a priority. Of course, we already do—otherwise we wouldn’t
be here.
The psalm talks about the “commands of God,” and how they
bring light and understanding. People
who can really sing that psalm—in their hearts, anyway—see God’s leadership and
his being the Good Shepherd as a priority.
And then there’s St. Paul’s letter to the Romans, where he says that “all
things work for the good for those who love God.” In other words, he’s saying: “Keep God as a
priority, and all of life—even the challenges—can be a source for good.”
So I could make this homily really, really short today as
just say what we already know: God is important, faith is important, they need
to be a priority if we’re interested in living a good life. And we can always—myself included—we can always
be better about keeping God more front and center in life.
So I could end there.
You know, we already know that God should be a priority. After all, he’s God. And that’s why the Church exists: We’re a
people who value God as the beginning and fulfillment of our life. We know that.
We put our faith into practice; we love God. But the question is: How can we do it more, how can we do it better?
And that’s a question of making our priorities real and not theoretical; letting God actually change us and guide us—always for the better, always into
a deeper experience of life.
And this challenge of making our priorities actual is at the
heart of all our discussions in the parish about where we’re going. It’s behind the question of our
buildings. It’s behind the questions
about money and finances. It’s behind
our questions about what it means to be “united.” When it comes to vocations, it’s a question
of priorities. We changed the name of
our faith formation program from “Religious Education” to “Discipleship
Formation” because it’s a matter of priorities; we’re not just teaching kids
facts about God and faith—we’re hopefully leading them to encounter the living
God as the priority in their life, and to be his disciples.
Everything we do as a people of faith is a question of
priorities: What are they, and are they in a good order?
This past week I got an email from someone who was passing
along what she had heard from someone else—that Father listens a lot, but he
doesn’t hear. Let me translate that for
you: “Father listens a lot, but he’s doing what we want him to do.” The only
reason I can translate that is because I have that mindset, too,
sometimes. I say to myself: “It’d be so
much easier if people would do what I want…And
if they don’t do it, then they’re not listening to me.” Right?
I imagine a good number of us have that thought go through our head
sometimes.
It’s a question of priorities. I’m here to do God’s will, and to help
restore right relationship between God and his people. That’s my priority. Of course, sometimes—too many times—other things
take priorities. There are lots of
things in the parish to distract us from doing God’s work. It’s kind of ironic, actually.
Or there’s the question of what it means to be “united.” I’ve heard that: In order for us to be united
we all have to be at one altar, not three different ones. Now, on the one hand, it’s true. The altar is a symbol of Christ, and there’s
only one Christ. And, really, that’s
what we hope for in heaven: the entire community of the angels, saints, and
holy ones gathered around (and within) the one God, enjoying an eternal feast
of divine love and life. So there’s
something to the idea of the “one altar” being that which unites us.
But, of course, that’s the vision of heaven. And God hasn’t ushered in that reality yet. Instead, he’s given us his only Son, our Lord
Jesus Christ. He is our point of unity—the
living Son of God. And he is present in
every place, all around the world, at this very moment. What makes us “united” is the Spirit of
Christ within us, the “living stones” in the Temple of his Body.
And God has inspired Christians for the past two thousand
years to built altars here, there, and everywhere, so that Christ can come to
his people here, there, and everywhere.
Christ himself is the Unifer, not matter where in the world we are. Over in Kaukauna they have altars. Down in Oshkosh they have altars, too. In California there are altars, in Mexico, in
Africa, in Rome there are altars.
Millions of altars all around the world.
But it’s the same Christ who is present at each one. He is the Unifer; the golden thread that
keeps them all together. Again, it’s a
matter of priorities: Is the living Spirit of Christ the priority, or is the physical
symbol of Christ, the altar, the priority?
Everything we do as a people of faith is a question of
priorities: What are they, and are they in good order?
Take the sports field for example. Good sportsmanship is a priority. Athletic ability and determination are
priorities. Being a supportive teammate
is a priority. Respecting the rules of
the game is a priority. And they all
reflect, to one degree or another, the greater priority of doing what is
right. Sports are an opportunity to
practice those Godly virtues of: justice, patience, charity, goodwill. They’re an opportunity to keep physically and
mentally fit, intentionally respecting God’s gift of the body and mind.
There are several priorities in sports. But they’re grounded in that deeper priority
of being a disciple of what’s right and just.
Or say you’re out in the work force. Well, commitment to the task is a
priority. Having skills and honing those
skills is a priority. Doing quality work
is a priority, and not taking a paycheck for shoddy effort. Investing your time and energy into the work
is a priority. Again, they’re all a
reflection of that deeper priority within us to love God and “love his
commands,” as the psalm says today.
If we’re struggling with something at home, in the parish, at
school, at work, out in the fields…it’s always an admirable thing to stop and
pray: “God, what am I doing? I have no
idea what I’m doing, Lord, so help me.”
Just like Solomon prayed: “Lord, I don’t know how to lead these
people. You have to help me.” (That’s the basic prayer of any parish
priest.) And then get on with life, and
let God do his thing—in his time and in his way.
In our minds, we know that God is a priority for us. We know that faith and Church are priorities
for us. The challenge is to make it
real; to let the Holy Spirit actually
change us and guide us. And that’s not
easy. In fact, it’s the hardest (and
most deeply joyful) work we human beings will ever do—to rediscover God as “the
one thing necessary” in life, and to let the Spirit and the priorities of God
influence our spirit and our priorities.
So I could’ve ended the homily earlier, but not really. That’s because it’s one thing to know that
God is our light and our salvation. It’s
another thing, however, to live our priorities; and to stop every now and then
and ask: Are my priorities where they should be? Do I really “love the commands of the Lord,”
as we sang today, or are they just words?
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