September 29^th  2019.  Twenty-sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time

GOSPEL   Luke 16, 19-31

Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini, broadcast on Vatican Radio

Don Fabio’s reflection follows the Gospel reading . . .

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GOSPEL   Luke 16,19-31

Jesus said to the Pharisees:
"There was a rich man who dressed in purple garments and fine linen
and dined sumptuously each day.
And lying at his door was a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores,
who would gladly have eaten his fill of the scraps
that fell from the rich man's table.
Dogs even used to come and lick his sores.
When the poor man died,
he was carried away by angels to the bosom of Abraham.
The rich man also died and was buried,
and from the netherworld, where he was in torment,
he raised his eyes and saw Abraham far off
and Lazarus at his side.
And he cried out, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me.
Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue,
for I am suffering torment in these flames.'
Abraham replied,
'My child, remember that you received
what was good during your lifetime
while Lazarus likewise received what was bad;
but now he is comforted here, whereas you are tormented.
Moreover, between us and you a great chasm is established
to prevent anyone from crossing who might wish to go
from our side to yours or from your side to ours.'
He said, 'Then I beg you, father,
send him to my father's house, for I have five brothers, so that he may warn them,
lest they too come to this place of torment.'
But Abraham replied, 'They have Moses and the prophets. Let them listen to them.'
He said, 'Oh no, father Abraham,
but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.'
Then Abraham said, 'If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets,
neither will they be persuaded if someone should rise from the dead.'"

The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ

Kieran’s summary . . . The Gospel on Sunday contains the parable of Lazarus and the rich man. The rich man is so pampered by his own self-indulgence that he does not even notice the plight of the suffering Lazarus. Isn’t this true of our world today? The technological advances of our age has meant that our younger generation has a massive input of images on a scale never seen in the history of humanity. This leads to a form of apathy and passivity. Like the rich man who is blind to the condition of Lazarus, our self-indulgence and constant self-pampering leads us to be blind, stupid and indifferent to what is true and meaningful. The word “imbecile” derives from the term “imbelle” which means “one who cannot fight”. The fact is that our over indulgence dims our senses to such an extent that we become limited in what we perceive and in how we react. Let us open our eyes to this situation! The basic foundation of discernment is to ask what are the consequences of any course of action. The consequence of our preoccupation with our own comfort and wellbeing is that we would fail to recognize the risen Christ if he stood among us, as the parable hints. God sends us crosses, sufferings and inconveniences so that we will open our eyes, begin to truly listen and return to ourselves. He does it so that we will see where we are in danger of ending up, and change course.

The comfort and the self-indulgence of our world can make us blind and deaf to what is true and meaningful

Our age is marked by great technological advances, with undoubted positive consequences, but also with serious human repercussions. Children who grow up attached to the screens of tablets or smartphones suffer - say the studies - the under-development of their own imaginations. Put simply: having such a massive input of images - as has never been the case before in human history - they do not imagine "on their own" but are conditioned by the images they receive. It is an example, among many others, of a form of passivity. This important theme is present in Sunday's Gospel, where there is a rich man, "who wore robes of purple and very fine linen, and dined lavishly every day" without realizing where this series of over-indulgences was taking him. We too, if we become over-satisfied, lose awareness of the consequences: comfort, pleasure and aesthetics can make us blind and deaf to what is really going on around us.

We have become lethargic, passive and foolish as a result of our self-indulgence and constant self-pampering

The story of Lazarus is that of a poor man who lives surrounded by people who do not see him, who do not even notice him. The detail regarding the dogs that go to lick his wounds is very revealing. The rich people are so distracted with their comforts and satisfactions that they have become less human. The dogs surpass them in sensitivity. We find something similar in the first reading of Sunday's liturgy. The passage from Amos speaks of those who are “complacent” in Israel. These people live lives of self-indulgence, but Amos warns them that they will be taken into exile. Once upon a time, in the Italian language, there was an unfortunate phrase which referred to people in an impaired mental condition as a result of war trauma – “fools of war”. Today we have "fools of peace", an army of people, mainly the young and very young, who have become passive and lethargic as a result of constant self-indulgence and excessive wellbeing. The word "imbecile" derives from the Latin term "imbelle", meaning the one who cannot fight.

God allows us to suffer pain and inconvenience so that our eyes will be open and our senses attuned to what is real and important

It is not a matter of re-introducing an absurd form of machismo, but of considering with attention the consequences of my actions. The basic foundation of the art of discernment is the question: if I do, think, or choose this, where will it lead me? If I live a life of complete self-indulgence then the consequence will be that my senses will become so dimmed that I would not recognize the risen Christ even if he were standing before me. "Please send Lazarus to my father's house, because I have five brothers. Admonish them severely, so that they too do not come to this place of torment," pleads the rich man. Abraham replies: "If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if one were to rise from the dead". It's a tragic answer: if the senses don't work, they just don't work. Not even if the risen Christ appears. In order for the senses to start working again, they must be used; they must be re-sensitized. God sends us crosses, sufferings and inconveniences so that we will open our eyes, resume listening and return to ourselves. He does it so that we will see where we are in danger of ending up, and change course.

 September 22^nd 2019.  Twenty-fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time

GOSPEL   Luke 16, 1-13

Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini, broadcast on Vatican Radio

Don Fabio’s reflection follows the Gospel reading . . .

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GOSPEL   Luke 16,1-13

Jesus said to his disciples,
"A rich man had a steward
who was reported to him for squandering his property.
He summoned him and said,
'What is this I hear about you?
Prepare a full account of your stewardship,
because you can no longer be my steward.'
The steward said to himself, 'What shall I do,
now that my master is taking the position of steward away from me?
I am not strong enough to dig and I am ashamed to beg.
I know what I shall do so that,
when I am removed from the stewardship,
they may welcome me into their homes.'
He called in his master's debtors one by one.
To the first he said,
'How much do you owe my master?'
He replied, 'One hundred measures of olive oil.'
He said to him, 'Here is your promissory note.
Sit down and quickly write one for fifty.'
Then to another the steward said, 'And you, how much do you owe?'
He replied, 'One hundred kors of wheat.'
The steward said to him, 'Here is your promissory note;
write one for eighty.'
And the master commended that dishonest steward for acting prudently.
"For the children of this world
are more prudent in dealing with their own generation
than are the children of light.
I tell you, make friends for yourselves with dishonest wealth,
so that when it fails, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.
The person who is trustworthy in very small matters
is also trustworthy in great ones;
and the person who is dishonest in very small matters
is also dishonest in great ones.
If, therefore, you are not trustworthy with dishonest wealth,
who will trust you with true wealth?
If you are not trustworthy with what belongs to another,
who will give you what is yours?
No servant can serve two masters.
He will either hate one and love the other,
or be devoted to one and despise the other.
You cannot serve both God and mammon."

The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ

Kieran’s summary . . . The Gospel parable is a paradigm of life. It tells of an administrator who has the task of administrating the goods of his master. We too have been given many blessings and our Father in heaven wishes us to use these goods and blessings responsibly. Are we honest? Do we use our goods, blessings and talents well? In the parable, however, something surprising happens. The administrator is dishonest, so the master decides to fire him. Before being dismissed, the servant decides to court favour with others by reducing the debts that they owe his master. When the master finds out, we would expect him to be angry, but instead he praises him. How are we to understand the parable? If this master represents God the Father, then why does he praise the dishonest servant? Surely God would not approve of dishonesty of any sort? We will continue to be perplexed by this until we realise that the master is not praising the servant for his dishonesty but for his mercy! Everything that God gives us - especially the Gift of gifts which is the Holy Spirit – finds its true function in love, in mercy, in the forgiving sins. The administrator is praised by the master, not for his dishonesty, but because he has finally used the master’s assets to reduce the debts of others; he has exercised mercy. And we too must use every gift and blessing that we possess in the exercise of love and mercy. If our love is to be true, then we must use the goods we have in the service of others. Money and possessions must be totally subjected to love.

The Gospel parable is a paradigm of life. We are all administrators of the goods that we have been blessed with. Are we honest? Do we use the goods well?

The Gospel passage of this Sunday has tortured the imagination of many commentators over the centuries, resulting in a wide variety of interpretations. The parable tells of an administrator who misuses his master's assets. The master becomes aware of the servant’s dishonesty, summons him and informs him that his time of service has ended. This story is a paradigm of our existence: life is a call from God to receive so many gifts, to be blessed with talents and qualities, and the challenge to take care of the people who have been entrusted to us. All these things are riches that belong to God and we are only the custodians. One day we will be asked to report on how we managed the gifts that were bestowed on us. We may not have to answer for the whole world, but we certainly will have to answer for the things we have been given personally. In the presence of God the Father, though, how can we hope to bear scrutiny? De Profundis says: "If you consider our faults, Lord, who can survive?" (Ps 130, 3).

How are we to understand this parable? Why does the master praise the dishonest servant?

In the parable, the administrator recognizes that he does not have anything of his own to get him out of his dire situation. "I do not have the strength to work in the fields; I am too ashamed to beg”. Then a curious thing happens: he decides to manage the closing of accounts in a devious way and starts reducing the debts of others in order to court their favour. But the surprising thing is that the master praises him! How are we to understand this fact that the master praises the servant for being over generous and cancelling debts? We will continue to find this perplexing unless we focus on the fact that these goods - being of our Master, the Father of Jesus  - are administered well only in this way: by the forgiving of debts; by the cancellation of what is owed. As Jesus said to the apostles: “Receive the Holy Spirit. To those whose sins you shall forgive, they will be forgiven "(Jn 20: 22-23). All that divine providence gives us - especially the Gift of gifts which is the Holy Spirit – finds its true function in love, in being merciful, in forgiving sins. The administrator is praised by the master when he uses the master’s assets to reduce the debts of others, when he exercises mercy. Before that, in previous years, the administrator evidently did not exercise mercy in this way. Only the goods that we use for love are really used. If they are not used for love they are wasted.

If we are to love, then we must use the goods we have in the service of others. Money and possessions must be totally subjected to love.

Now we can understand the words of Jesus: "I say to you: make yourselves friends with dishonest wealth, for when it fails, you will be welcomed to eternal dwellings". We enter paradise when we have used what we possess according to the dictates of love. All the wealth that we have in reality is not ours, but belongs to God. The Catechism of the Catholic Church says: “The ownership of something good makes him who possesses it a manager of providence" (n. 2404). We have two choices: either we live as responsible administrators, using the goods of this world charitably, or we live as masters of things. Every single act of true charity requires self-giving, generosity. To love we must renounce possessiveness. "You cannot serve God and wealth". It is as simple as that. If to serve God is to love, then money must be submitted to love. This is good administration of the goods that have been bestowed upon us.

September 15^th 2019.  Twenty-fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time

GOSPEL   Luke 15, 1-32

Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini, broadcast on Vatican Radio

Don Fabio’s reflection follows the Gospel reading . . .

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GOSPEL   Luke 15,  1-32

Tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus,
but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying,
“This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
So to them he addressed this parable.
“What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them
would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert
and go after the lost one until he finds it?
And when he does find it,
he sets it on his shoulders with great joy
and, upon his arrival home,
he calls together his friends and neighbours and says to them,
‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’
I tell you, in just the same way
there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents
than over ninety-nine righteous people
who have no need of repentance.
“Or what woman having ten coins and losing one
would not light a lamp and sweep the house,
searching carefully until she finds it?
And when she does find it,
she calls together her friends and neighbours
and says to them,
‘Rejoice with me because I have found the coin that I lost.’
In just the same way, I tell you,
there will be rejoicing among the angels of God
over one sinner who repents.”
Then he said, “A man had two sons, and the younger son said to his father,
‘Father give me the share of your estate that should come to me.’
So the father divided the property between them.
After a few days, the younger son collected all his belongings
and set off to a distant country
where he squandered his inheritance on a life of dissipation.
When he had freely spent everything,
a severe famine struck that country,
and he found himself in dire need.
So he hired himself out to one of the local citizens
who sent him to his farm to tend the swine.
And he longed to eat his fill of the pods on which the swine fed,
but nobody gave him any.
Coming to his senses he thought,
‘How many of my father’s hired workers
have more than enough food to eat,
but here am I, dying from hunger.
I shall get up and go to my father and I shall say to him,
“Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.
I no longer deserve to be called your son;
treat me as you would treat one of your hired workers.”’
So he got up and went back to his father.
While he was still a long way off,
his father caught sight of him,
and was filled with compassion.
He ran to his son, embraced him and kissed him.
His son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you;
I no longer deserve to be called your son.’
But his father ordered his servants,
‘Quickly bring the finest robe and put it on him;
put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.
Take the fattened calf and slaughter it.
Then let us celebrate with a feast,
because this son of mine was dead, and has come to life again;
he was lost, and has been found.’
Then the celebration began.
Now the older son had been out in the field
and, on his way back, as he neared the house,
he heard the sound of music and dancing.
He called one of the servants and asked what this might mean.
The servant said to him, ‘Your brother has returned
and your father has slaughtered the fattened calf
because he has him back safe and sound.’
He became angry, and when he refused to enter the house,
his father came out and pleaded with him.
He said to his father in reply,
‘Look, all these years I served you
and not once did I disobey your orders;
yet you never gave me even a young goat to feast on with my friends. But when your son returns, who swallowed up your property with prostitutes,
for him you slaughter the fattened calf.’
He said to him,
‘My son, you are here with me always; everything I have is yours.
But now we must celebrate and rejoice, because your brother was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.’”

The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ

Kieran’s summary . . . The parable of the merciful Father (the Prodigal Son) is told by Jesus in a specific situation: the Pharisees are complaining that Jesus welcomes sinners and eats with them. At the end of the parable, the elder son comes in from the field and complains to his father because he has welcomed back the sinful son and organised a banquet for him. The complaint of the Pharisees and the complaint of the elder son are identical! This parable must be applied to each one of us. At the time that Luke was writing his Gospel, the era of the scribes and Pharisees was already over. So how can we apply this parable to ourselves? The elder son has an image of sin that is identical to the false picture of sin given by the serpent to Adam and Eve in the garden. Satan creates the lie that sin brings enjoyment and fulfilment; he whispers to us that the Father is a taskmaster who wants us to live servile and miserable lives of sterile obedience. This is clearly the view of the elder son. When he sees the banquet going on, he is furious because, as he sees it, the younger son has had his fun whilst he (the older brother) has lived a life of tedious compliance. Is that our view of sin? As something enjoyable? The Father makes clear that sin is a form of death. It is humiliating and demeaning. Twice he says, “This brother was dead and has come to life: he was lost and is found”. This parable challenges us to stop looking on our heavenly Father in the way that the elder son looks upon him, and to stop looking on sin as a sort of forbidden fulfilment. That is the way that Satan wants us to view God: as a taskmaster who does not really want our happiness and completion. Instead we must learn to see our Father as one who considers us to be precious. Like the lost sheep, the lost coin and the lost son, we are of immeasurable value in the eyes of our father. He yearns for us to return to him for forgiveness.

The parable of the merciful father is directed at the Pharisees and scribes who complain about the merciful condescension of God

Often we approach the parable of the merciful father, forgetting that it is the third in a series of three parables that illuminate each other and arise in a specific circumstance: Jesus is surrounded by tax collectors and sinners, and they are complaining that, "He welcomes sinners and eats with them". In direct response to these complaints, Jesus begins the series of parables that includes the lost sheep, the lost coin and the lost son - and their finding. Jesus puts the complaints of the Pharisees and scribes in the mouth of the elder brother, who reproaches his father saying: "Now that this son of yours has returned, he has devoured your wealth with prostitutes, and for him you have killed the fat calf”. The anger of the older brother springs from envy: “He went to have fun, he spent everything, and now he is back, eating and drinking! And all the while, I have been serving you for so many years, never disobeying your command, and you never gave me a calf to have a party with my friends."

The younger son has the same false image of sin as that given to Adam and Eve by the serpent. Sin is portrayed as something enjoyable and fulfilling, when in actual fact it is destructive and negative

But what is sin, really? Is it "enjoyment"? No. The experience of the younger brother is tragic, devastating, humiliating, degenerating. The father in fact defines what sin is, and the text repeats twice this existential prophecy: "Your brother had died and come back to life, he was lost and is found".  Sin is death and deprivation, it is an experience of the loss of oneself. But since the time of the serpent in the book of Genesis, sin has instead been falsely portrayed as a better experience of life, of acquisition and of growth. Where do we find the "mentality" of the snake? Precisely in the words of the elder brother, which are really the words of the Pharisees and scribes. The serpent has infected our vision of religion. He has invented the lie that the reason for obeying the heavenly Father is not life and salvation, but frustrated duty and sterile renunciation, the search for one's own ethical correctness. This makes faith a place of self-denial without love.

What is worse? To be a sinner who errs and looks for forgiveness? Or with bitterness to consider myself righteous before a taskmaster God?

Who should you be afraid of the most? Of the younger sibling who errs and comes to his senses? Or of the older sibling who stands just one millimeter from Grace with a distorted vision of the Father who “obliges” him to be a servile subject and not a true son? It is worth pointing out that at the time Luke wrote this chapter, the Pharisees and the scribes already belonged to the past, but their mentality can persist among Christians of all ages. This is the moralistic attitude that forgets that a sinner is a lost sheep in need of forgiveness. A person immersed in sin is a lost coin, something of great value that is not to be lost. It is worth lighting the lamp, sweeping the house and searching carefully until we discover this truth of the heart, this truth about ourselves and others. And Heaven will celebrate every rediscovered sinner.

September 8^th 2019.  Twenty-third Sunday of Ordinary Time

GOSPEL   Luke 14:25-33

Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini, broadcast on Vatican Radio

Don Fabio’s reflection follows the Gospel reading . . .

(Check us out on Facebook – Sunday Gospel Reflection)

GOSPEL   Luke 14:25-33

Great crowds were travelling with Jesus,
and he turned and addressed them,
“If anyone comes to me without hating his father and mother,
wife and children, brothers and sisters,
and even his own life,
he cannot be my disciple.
Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me
cannot be my disciple.
Which of you wishing to construct a tower
does not first sit down and calculate the cost
to see if there is enough for its completion?
Otherwise, after laying the foundation
and finding himself unable to finish the work
the onlookers should laugh at him and say,
‘This one began to build but did not have the resources to finish.’
Or what king marching into battle would not first sit down
and decide whether with ten thousand troops
he can successfully oppose another king
advancing upon him with twenty thousand troops?
But if not, while he is still far away,
he will send a delegation to ask for peace terms.
In the same way, anyone of you who does not renounce all his possessions
cannot be my disciple.”

The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ

Kieran’s summary . . . This week’s Gospel is the most radical in all of the Bible. If we are to be disciples of Christ, then we must “hate” our own lives. What can this shocking phrase mean? Is Jesus giving a list of things that must be done in order to be a disciple? Is he saying that if we do not make these renunciations, then we are not wanted as disciples? No, he is saying that attachments are overwhelming obstacles to following him. If we try to follow Jesus whilst remaining attached to these material things, then we are like the builder who begins to construct a tower without at first calculating what was required for its completion. The Christian life is not about ethical actions, or doing “good” things. It is about having the life of heaven in us! And how can we have the life of heaven in us if we love the mediocre and infantile things of this world? If I draw life from petty entertainment, empty pleasures, workplace rivalries, the superficial affections of others, possessions, etc., then I am not drawing life from Christ! The Greek language has different terms for “life”. There is the biological-psychological life I receive from my parents, and then there is the fullness of life that only God can give. If am to possess this second kind of life, then I must “hate” the first. It is very clear. The life I lead is either one sort or the other. That is why St Paul could say. “I no longer live, but Christ lives in me" (Gal 2:20). The first kind of life – biological life - is given to me as a gift without my consent. I did not choose to be born. But the second kind of life – the life of God - requires my consent. Today, you and I are being called to have this life flowing through our veins. God cannot impose this kind of life on me because it requires freedom to live it. We can have a church filled with decent people of good will, but they will not be true followers of Christ until they “lose” their own lives based on infantile things and abandon themselves in freedom to the life offered by Christ. How often our Christianity has failed and our evangelisation has borne no fruit because we put our own projects, our own interests, our own affections, in first place instead of abandoning the governance of our lives into the hands of Jesus. It is not a question of being strong and competent, but of being weak, entrusting ourselves to the power of God.

There are two types of life: the biological-psychological life that we receive from our parents, and the life of heaven which Christ gives to us

This week's Gospel is one of the most radical of all Bible literature. If we take it as an ethical demand, or as a "good work" to be accomplished, it just doesn’t lead us anywhere. We need to start from another perspective. Even if we “sweeten” up the translation, it is still difficult to understand this most absurd of demands: "If anyone loves me no more than he loves his own life, he cannot be my disciple." What does it mean to love Christ more than one's life? The original text speaks of "hating" one’s own life. What exactly does Jesus mean? The word "life" in this text translates the Greek term psyché. This expression indicates human life, with its sophisticated consciousness. It is not just simple bios, which is life in the biological sense. But it is also different from zoé, that in the Gospels is used to indicate the fullness of life, the life that only God can give. And this is the point. There is not only biological-psychological life, which is the one we receive from our parents; there is also life according to Heaven, which is eternal life. In Greek, “eternal” does not mean "very long" but "without limits" – it refers to the fullness of life that Christ gives us.

We desire this fullness of life, but it cannot be achieved with our human efforts. It must be received from God. And this is where our contribution finally comes into play. The Lord does not impose but offers us life, and we must freely accept it.

Paradoxically, this life that we ​​desire so deeply is not something that we can obtain for ourselves. It is an existence that is received, not achieved with human efforts. Nevertheless, we are created in order to receive it, but this requires that we lose our life in order to have the life of Christ. So much so that St. Paul says: "I no longer live, but Christ lives in me" (Gal 2:20). In fact, Baptism represents the passage from the biological-psychological life to that of the life of the children of God, which is altogether new. On God's part, this gift is offered, not imposed. We were born into human life without anyone asking for our permission, but the fullness of life does not come to us without our authentic consent.

While we remain satisfied with the mediocrity of this life, we will never be true followers of Jesus. If we draw “life” from the esteem of others and possessions, then we cannot draw life from Christ. It is not about doing good actions, it is about abandoning ourselves to Jesus and drawing life from him.

In the Church, there is always the risk that we have plenty of members who are people of good will, but who have never “lost their lives”. In order for us to want to lose this life, it must start to bore us. We must become nauseated by the insufficiencies of what we call “life”. We need to become disillusioned with its affective compensations and its reassuring possessions. We must get tired of living on petty things, infantile amusements, work rivalries, empty “victories”. The trouble is, if we remain satisfied with the mediocrity and the certainties of this world, we might well find Christ interesting or moving, but we do not follow him.  If we are drawing “life” from the affections of others and objects, then it will be very difficult for us to lose the esteem of others or those possessions that have such a hold on me. It is not a question of being good or bad, but of being content with mediocrity or wanting something more. Do I want to open up to something that is truly worthwhile and leads me to follow Christ, or do I want to continue to live as if survival is all that matters? Christianity is not for the superficial. In reality, nobody is superficial, but so many people make their existence into a superficial thing.