FOR WHAT IT IS WORTH, MY HOMILY FOR THE FIFTH SUNDAY OF EASTER, YEAR C

From my mouth to your ears, or from your computer to your eyes--for what it is worth, my Sunday homily for the Fifth Sunday of Easter, Year C, Ordinary Form.

Introduction: If you have never attended the Great Easter Vigil, you’ve missed a great deal in our Liturgical customs during Easter. One of the prominent features of the Easter Vigil is the blessing of the Easter Fire outside, the blessing of the Easter candle and lighting it from the blessed fire. Then everyone holding their own candle lights it from the blessed fire and all process into our darkened Church with the Easter Candle leading the way. By the time all the people have entered with this little light of theirs, our darkened Church is illuminated with the soft light of blessed fire showing forth Jesus Christ, the Risen Lord who is the light of the world often cast in the darkness of sin and death. There is a warmth, security and vision that this one blessed Easter fire light gives to this Church even in the midst of the most profound darkness. It represents our Risen Lord Jesus who is our light in our darkest hours.

Topic Statement: Jesus calls his followers show forth His light by loving each other as He loves us.

1. When we are in the midst of darkness created by others or by ourselves, the love of the Lord can truly overcome the darkness.

A. In my first parish assignment there was a terrible accident, a woman was speeding in a residential neighborhood and struck a child as he rode his bicycle. The mother of this child was absolutely devastated by the death of her child and the circumstances of his death. There was some anger and bitterness at the carelessness of the driver. The night of the visitation and wake, I had gone to the funeral home for the vigil and rosary. After the rosary, the family was greeting those who had come to console them. In the midst of this, the woman who had struck the child entered the funeral home. She went to the child’s mother and sobbing knelt before her and begged forgiveness. The mother lifted the woman to her feet and the two embraced for a long period of time. It was almost like a scene from a dramatic movie, but it was real. In the midst of the darkness and tragedy of this accident, the light of Christ came from this mother. The light of forgiveness. I was most grateful to that grieving mother that night. The light of Christ shined and His love shined through her. She could have cursed that woman up one side and down the other and ordered her out of her sight. But rather than wallow in the darkness of this tragedy, she brought the light of Christ to that situation and to all of us who witnessed it.

B. Today’s Gospel passage is preceded by Judas who departs Jesus in order to set into motion the darkness of his betrayal of our Lord and Jesus subsequent arrest and the passion which follows. Just as Judas leaves, there is an appeal by Jesus Christ for the Church that He founded to be known as His followers by the love they show to one another. St. Francis of Assisi use to tell his followers to preach about the love of God and sometimes use words. He knew that our lives should show forth the love of God, especially how we live our lives. The love that Jesus has for us is not a fleeting warm fuzzy feeling. The love that Jesus has is the love that enables Him to lay down His life in the cruelest experience of His passion and death. He tells His apostles to do this just after Judas had betrayed Him. Love for Jesus is commitment. Love for Jesus is loyalty. Love for Jesus is laying down our lives for each other.

2. To love one another as Jesus commands us means that we must practice authentic spirituality that we must be in communion with the Lord.

A. For the last several weeks, we have been meeting with our new Catholics received into the Church at the Great Easter Vigil to prepare them to live their Catholic faith through thick and thin. One of our concerns is that when they don’t have to come to the RCIA classes anymore, that they may start to flounder. People in the world may challenge them for becoming Catholic and they’ll need to be able to defend the faith. Troubles at home or even in the Church may put pressure on them to revert to their old ways of doing things. But the most important thing about our Catholic faith is that it holds to the truth, a truth that the world will not like or appreciate. Our Catholic faith is counter-cultural today, and more so today than in our recent past in American history. There are great sociological changes occurring in our society. Many main line Protestant Churches have thrown in the towel and accepted our culture’s position on abortion, divorce, homosexual marriage and a variety of other things and thus the world accepts them with open arms. But not so with the Catholic Church, we are a thorn in the side of what liberal progressivists want for the world and the only way to deal with the Catholic Church is to undermine it, ridicule it and highlight the sins and crimes of her members especially the clergy’s. But they won’t be successful, but they will lead many away from us to a post-modern way of living that has nothing to do with the Church or the love of Jesus Christ.

B. The only way that any new or seasoned Catholic can survive in our current cultural upheavals is through our Catholic Spirituality is founded upon the Mass. When the priest approaches the altar, he reverences it with a bow and kisses it. The altar represents Jesus Christ and our life with him. It represents the Book of Revelation’s proclamation that God is with us. His dwelling is with the human race. Our participation in the Church, her sacraments and going forth as committed followers of the Lord to love Him and each other is our high calling which must be nourished and sustained not only by the Mass but also by confession, the Sacrament of Reconciliation and the truth of all the Church’s divinely revealed teachings.

Conclusion: Jesus Christ is the light of the world. As we experience His one Sacrifice in a bloodless way and share in the Holy Eucharist, may we share the light of Christ’s love with others we will meet and live with this week.