“Read the Instructions”
Father Peter Fitzgibbons
May 10 – 11, 2025
Gospel: John 10: 27-30
Today is a wonderful day. The Sacrament of First Communion will be administered. Last night, I imposed the Sacrament of Confirmation on students. I want to thank the Faith Formation staff and especially the parents for their wonderful work in helping prepare for this day. This is a great gift because this gift is not just a gift with a lowercase “g.” It is a Gift with a capital “G.” This Gift is God, Himself, coming into your souls. It is the medicine of God.
Do you know why doctors give us medicine? If we are sick, it will make us healthy. Another reason for medicine is to keep us healthy. It is the same reason God gives us Himself in the Sacraments, to make us healthy and to keep us healthy. When we sin, the Sacrament of Penance makes us healthy. The other Sacraments help keep us healthy, which include Holy Communion that the young people will receive today, and the Sacrament of Confirmation, which keeps us strong for service to others.
Now, there may be restrictions that come with the medicine our physicians prescribe. The instructions on the bottle may say, “Do not take with grapefruit juice.” I love that one, and I wonder how that was determined. Did some poor shmuck take his medicine with grapefruit juice and go whoops! Other medications should be taken with food, and if you don’t, you quickly realize you made a big mistake. There may also be certain times to take medicine. So, there can be all sorts of restrictions so that the medicine can do its job. But we are always complaining about it: “Oh, poor me. I cannot eat this or that.” Oh, be quiet. At least you are old enough to enjoy the privilege. We must cooperate with the medicine we’ve been prescribed. It’s the same with God and the Sacraments. They are gifts from God, but we must cooperate by receiving the Sacraments in a State of Grace, which is attained by receiving the Sacrament of Penance. These gifts will not overpower us. They will not take us away from the temptation to sin. We must not make appointments to visit it or take it to lunch. You must work with the gift that God has given you.
Do you know what the biggest occasion of sin is? I don’t want to hear about cell phones, computers, or anything else. Computers have an off switch, and cell phones need to be charged. The biggest occasion for sin sits right on top of our shoulders. We are not responsible for our thoughts, but we are responsible for what we do with them. God’s medicine is not going to overpower our thoughts. Even though you may not feel His medicine working, it is. The pills I take are working, even though I don’t feel them working. I know my blood pressure pills are working because when I take my blood pressure, it’s fine. The pills are working. Do I feel it? No. If I stop taking the pills, will I feel it? No. But the damage will continue, and I will feel it one day when I take the big dirt nap a lot sooner than I should.
So, we must cooperate with God’s gifts. Just because you don’t feel them working, doesn’t mean they aren’t. They are. But we have to cooperate by doing what we need to do. These are God’s gifts to you. Use them by trying to live a holy life, coming to every weekend Mass, and going to Confession. I go to Confession too, and I’ve known these priests since they were ordained. I tell them everything, and they are still standing. But if we don’t cooperate with God, the Sacraments will not work. It is not easy. However, Saint Ambrose said, “The work of love is not hard; if there is any work involved, the work itself is love.”
God’s medicine is the gift of the Sacraments. He gives us the gift of His very Self so that we can carry our crosses, and if we fall, we can get back up and carry them again. God offers us His grace for our healing and to strengthen us so that we can carry all our crosses out of love for Him.
Father’s Reflections . . . . So, we have a new pope. Passed over again! People have asked me, “Father, how was your trip?” My trips are always interesting. I used to fly in my clerical clothes, my black suit and collar. On one of my flights, there were six priests on board. Once the plane was in flight, nobody talked, nobody moved, and nobody wanted anything. They all sat as quiet as a tomb. The crew brought me several Cokes and a shopping bag full of treats. Yeah baby! I like that. So, I was getting on the plane Sunday night at 10, and although I was flying in lay clothes, my seatmate looked up and said, “Hi Father. How are you?” Crap: I can forget about martinis!
How will you apply this message to your life? _________________________________________
You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to AnnunciationCatholicAlbemarle.com, clicking on “Blog,” then “Categories,” and then “Sermon Notes.” On a cell phone: click on “Blog” and then “Menu.” Scroll to the bottom and click on “Categories.” Sermon Notes are also available on the Church’s Facebook page at OLA.Catholic.Church. Click on “Groups” and then “Sermon Notes.
