Advent reminds us that the One who has come into the world and is always coming into our lives in new ways is the source of our salvation. We don’t need novelty and “magic bullet” solutions to our concerns. We simply need to return again and again to the rock-solid foundation of our lives: God and God alone. The mystery of the Incarnation is that by entering into our time and into our world, Jesus can show us the way to the gift that is beyond all time.
We don’t know how to rest and relax anymore. Picture an overtired toddler fighting a much-needed nap. This is a good image for many of us as we push ourselves through days filled with too much activity and too much stress. Part of the problem is that too often the work we do takes place mostly in our brains and on our computers. We are mentally but not physically tired. People who work in physically demanding jobs perhaps have a better awareness of the body’s need for rest. I think my parents and grandparents were much better than I am at balancing work and rest. But this isn’t solely a twenty-first-century phenomenon. As far back as the beginning of the Hebrew Scriptures, God had to command one day of rest for the Chosen People. Left to ourselves, like toddlers we will keep going until we drop in our tracks. One of my favorite quotes from Isaiah talks about how quiet trust and rest will lead to salvation. It wasn’t until I found the quote in its full context that I understood how much we resist the very thing we most need: For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength. But you refused and said, “No! We will flee upon horses”— therefore you shall flee!—Isaiah 30:15–16 We rely a great deal—probably too much—on our own efforts. We become convinced that we’re indispensable and irreplaceable. We don’t realize that it’s OK to ask for help—or at least allow ourselves to take a day off and return to the task with renewed energy.
When the Significant Other says we are good, then we are good indeed. That’s what it means, psychologically speaking, to be liberated and loved by God. Anyone else can say it, but we will always doubt it, even though it temporarily feels good, and is the necessary “bottle opener.” Salvation is only secondarily assuring us of an eternal life. It is, first of all, giving us that life now, and saying, “If now, then also later,” which becomes our deep inner certitude. If God would accept us now, when we are clearly unworthy, then why would God change the policy later? We can then begin to rest, enjoy, and love life.
Gospel: Mark 12:38-44 The month of November can be classified as a study in Ecclesiology or Who the Church is. You can read about bishops referring to the Church as a “what.” But it’s a “Who.” “Father, why do you say that? How can you contradict a bishop?” I like contradicting bishops. . . it’s a hobby. When Paul was going around beating people up, Jesus said “Saul, why do you persecute Me?” He didn’t say, “Why are you persecuting My institution.” No. He said, “Why do you persecute Me.” The Church is a “Who.” It’s the body of Christ. There are aspects of a “what” but it’s a “Who.”
What brought the Church in to being? I’ll give you the answer by asking my second question. What brought you in to being? It wasn’t a “what” – it was a “Who.” God’s love. The first question in the Catechism is “Why did God make you?” Because He loved you. You were created out of love. You have always been in the mind of God for all eternity. We existed in the mind of God before we existed in the bodies of our mothers. God created us out of love and sustains us out of love. He calls us into His presence out of love. He calls us into His church out of love. This is His gift of love so that we can become one with the Body of Christ. . . His Bride. So, the Church is not a “what.” It’s a “Who.” It is the Bride of Christ.
Some people try to change the Church. If it’s an institution you can change it, but if it’s a “Who,” you can’t. The Church is a “Who.” That “Who” was formed out of love, sustained and created out of love, and exists only because of love. It’s a love of all people in the world and not just those here in Albemarle even though we love it here . . . it’s the best parish in the diocese. Don’t tell them that – they will get really upset. I almost get into fights with other priests when they tell me how great their parish is. Really? The whole Church is united by baptism. As Bishop Waters said, there are no hyphenated Catholics. We are united in love, and we come to express our love and our prayers for those who have gone before us. As we pass from this world, those left behind will pray for us, and the cycle of love will continue.
Our love of others gave us what we have. We didn’t build or pay for this church. The Church of the Annunciation in New York gave the money to build it. So, Yankees built this church. We are enjoying their gifts of love and the gifts of love by those in this parish who have gone on before us. The saints who have gone on before us pray for us. They give us that gift of love. They intercede for us to the Father so that we can attain what they have. Love is not fulfilled unless it is complete. No mother is happy unless she has her family around her. The saints want their spiritual family, the whole body of the Church, to be with them in Heaven. They always pray for us. We as the Church Militant, the Church working for our salvation, pick up our crosses each day and follow the good Lord. We pray for those who can’t. . .those who have gone before us and who are cleaning their baptismal robes so that they may come and dwell in the place of the Perfect. This is mentioned at every Mass. When we pass away, the Church will pray for us, maybe not by name, but they will always pray for us. You were given the gift of love not by your prayers but by this prayer. Because the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is what? You got me on that one. It’s not a “what.” It’s a “Who.”
In some churches, they announce that “the liturgy will be celebrated…” That’s a Greek word meaning a public act. Big deal. They think they are really hip. The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is Christ offering Himself to the Father. And Christ, in that offering, is made present on the altar. He asks not for our participation. This is where the catechetics of the Mass have gotten really weird over the years. The terms we use when referring to the Mass are often blasphemous. “We go to church.” Yeah. You walk in and walk back out. Big deal. “I attend church.” Well, I attend a play. “I actively participate.” You know, I have a degree in Philosophy, believe it or not, and I have paperwork to prove it. But I have no idea what that phrase means. It was made up in the last forty years, and it means absolutely nothing. So, when I say Mass in hospitals and nursing homes for people who are barely conscious and heavily medicated, they aren’t actively participating? During my 13-minute Mass in the field, when the natives were restless, we didn’t sing, but we prayed a lot. Are you kidding me? They were trying to kill Blanch and John’s little boy. You do not actively participate. You do not go to Mass. You do not attend Mass. Take what I’m about to tell you and commit it to memory. You are called, when you come here, to become part of Christ’s sacrifice. Whether we sing or not and whether we take up a collection or not has nothing to do with it. You are called to become part of the sacrifice of Christ. The Romans participated in the crucifixion, but they didn’t actually suffer with Christ, did they? You take the place of the Blessed Mother whose human nature Christ took and suffered with on the Cross and redeemed us with. You take the place of Saint John the Apostle, the Beloved, who suffered with Christ out of love. You take the place of Mary Cleophas. You are suffering with Christ. You unite your sufferings and human nature with the suffering of Christ. In the offertory, the priest, acting in the person of Christ, takes your human natures and makes them one with Christ in that animation of love on the altar that is always present to the Following. You become part of Christ’s sacrifice. That is why this place is so special. Not only is there the Real Presence of our Lord in the Most Blessed Sacrament, but you are also standing at the foot of the Cross. And very shortly you will become part of Christ’s sacrifice. At Mass, you will receive the grace of offering yourself. You may offer that grace to one of your departed brethren. The grace of receiving Holy Communion is another one. Even if you are not able to receive the Most Precious Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, you can offer that sense of deprivation to someone else.
This month, we pray for those who have gone before us. The Church always prays for the departed. . . always. The Protestants, with their so-called reformation say, “We don’t pray for the dead.” Yeah, well we do. It’s a part of the Church. The Catacombs are filled with inscribed prayers in Latin. What do they say? “Pray for me.” Since the earliest days of the Church, for over 2,000 years, we have prayed for them. This is what we do. When our loved ones are all in Heaven, with mine it may take a little work, but when they are all in Heaven, then our prayers go to someone else who needs them. Remember that old Italian saying: “I remember your name.” The saints all know who to pray for because when they get to Heaven, they are enlightened by the transfiguration. They know who helped them, and they will mention you by name to the ear of Christ.
Father’s Afterthoughts:
Veterans Day is this week. There are a lot of people who served, but just because they served doesn’t make them heroes. In my day, people served because they didn’t want to go to jail or to go to Canada and learn to speak French. I wouldn’t want to share a foxhole with them. They might get me killed. But there are a lot of unknown heroes. I hear a lot of stories from veterans at the VA Hospital, and I’m going to tell you about two heroes. One of the vets asked me if I served in Vietnam, and I told him “No.” This vet told me that his older brother volunteered for Vietnam so he wouldn’t have to go. His brother was a hero. Another veteran, who is 99 years old and in Hospice, has all his faculties. . . he just can’t see very well. This veteran was in the Armored Division during World War II and had a job nobody wanted. . . Radio Telephone Operator or RTO. They were the ones the enemy was told to take out first. Your lifespan as an RTO wasn’t that great. To make matters worse, you carried a big antenna which let everybody know exactly where you were. Thank you! The good side of being the RTO is that he got to ride in a half-track and didn’t have to walk all the way to Berlin. His unit liberated Dachau; the first concentration camp established in Germany. Those are the veterans you should pray for and honor.
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.” They can also be found on Facebook by searching for “Our Lady of the Annunciation Albemarle”
“You are asking for something that would be harmful to your salvation if you had it—so by not getting what you’ve asked, you really are getting what you want.” — St. Catherine of Siena
When the Significant Other says we are good, then we are good indeed. That’s what it means, psychologically speaking, to be liberated and loved by God. Anyone else can say it, but we will always doubt it, even though it temporarily feels good, and is the necessary “bottle opener.” Salvation is only secondarily assuring us of an eternal life. It is, first of all, giving us that life now, and saying, “If now, then also later,” which becomes our deep inner certitude. If God would accept us now, when we are clearly unworthy, then why would God change the policy later? We can then begin to rest, enjoy, and love life.
“Indeed, Jesus affirms that the true bread of salvation, which transmits eternal life, is His very flesh; that to enter into communion with God, before observing the laws or satisfying religious precepts, it is necessary to live out a real and concrete relationship with Him… This means that one must not pursue God in dreams and in images of grandeur and power, but He must be recognised in the humanity of Jesus and, as a consequence, in that of the brothers and sisters we meet on the path of life.” Pope Francis
“How do I live? In the fear that if I do not do this, I will go to hell? Or do I live with that hope too, with that joy of the gratuitousness of salvation in Jesus Christ? It is a good question. And also the second: do I disregard the Commandments? No. I observe them, but not as absolutes, because I know that it is Jesus Christ who justifies me.” Pope Francis
Just as the Bible takes us through many stages of consciousness and salvation history, it takes us individually a long time to move beyond our need to be dualistic, judgmental, accusatory, fearful, blaming, egocentric, and earning-oriented. Isn’t it a consolation to know that life is not a straight line? Many of us wish it were—and have been told that it should be, but I haven’t encountered a life yet that’s a straight line to God, including Mother Teresa’s! It’s always getting the point and missing the point. It’s God entering our lives and then us fighting it, avoiding it, running from it. There is the moment of divine communion or intimacy, and then the pullback that says, “That’s too good to be true. I must be making it up.” Fortunately, God works with all of it, and that mercy, or steadfast love.
