October 27^th 2019. Thirtieth Sunday of the Year

GOSPEL: Luke 18, 9-14

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­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 18, 9-14

Jesus addressed this parable
to those who were convinced of their own righteousness
and despised everyone else.
"Two people went up to the temple area to pray;
one was a Pharisee and the other was a tax collector.
The Pharisee took up his position and spoke this prayer to himself,
'O God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity --
greedy, dishonest, adulterous -- or even like this tax collector.
I fast twice a week, and I pay tithes on my whole income.'
But the tax collector stood off at a distance
and would not even raise his eyes to heaven
but beat his breast and prayed,
'O God, be merciful to me a sinner.'
I tell you, the latter went home justified, not the former;
for whoever exalts himself will be humbled,
and the one who humbles himself will be exalted."

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

Kieran’s summary . . . In Sunday’s Gospel we hear of two men offering two kinds of prayers to God. The first man is a very upright and respectable man who exploits nobody, but his prayer is not heard! The second man is a terrible sinner who lives a life exploiting others, but his prayer is heard by God! What is happening here? The difference is that the publican has a correct viewpoint of his own sinfulness in comparison to the holiness of God, and as a result he begs for mercy. By contrast, the Pharisee focusses on his own holiness in comparison to the sinfulness of others! We like to compare ourselves to others, especially those who are struggling. That is why crime sells and why gossip is so popular. But when we place ourselves before the crucified and risen Christ, contemplate his holiness and consider our own sinfulness, then we realise with the publican that the only thing we can do is ask for mercy.

The prayer of the sinner is heard, whilst the prayer of the upright man is not heard. What is happening here?

"The prayer of the poor pierces the clouds, it does not stop until it reaches its goal", says the first reading this Sunday. In the Gospel, two types of prayer are contrasted: one that makes it to heaven and one that does not. One of the two characters is a publican, but it is necessary to correct the sweetened-up image of this profession: they exploited their own people by extracting all types of taxes on behalf of the Romans. The publican was a very shady figure. Yet his prayer is heard and he is justified - that is, he is made just in the eyes of God. The other is a very good person, a man of prayer, honest, just and faithful, observant of good rules and a regular practitioner of works of penance. He has only one problem: he despises others. Is this a minor issue, do you think? St Paul says: “If I knew all mysteries and had all knowledge, if I had enough faith to move mountains, but I did not have charity, I would be nothing. And even if I gave all my possessions and delivered my body to be burned, but had not love, I would be nothing" (1 Cor 13: 2-3). What a disappointment! To do a lot of good things and then discover that they are good for nothing!

What is the difference between these two types of prayer? In one, the publican places himself in a proper position before God: as a sinner in need of mercy in comparison to the holiness of God. In contrast, the Pharisee considers his own holiness in comparison to other people!

What is the real difference between the publican and the Pharisee? This Gospel, like last week’s, is dealing with prayer and the problem is right there: the publican prays in an authentic way, the other ... not really. The prayer of the Pharisee, technically, is a form of praise and therefore in itself would be a perfect prayer, but our Pharisee, standing and strutting, makes a mistake that the other does not: the tax collector, despite his faults, puts himself before the Lord and confronts himself with God’s holiness, instead of talking about his own!  He humbly trusts that God can redeem him. In essence, the publican has a correct impression of his status before God. He is a sinner and God can save him. The Pharisee, by contrast, measures himself with other men and is very pleased with the results! He comes first in the rankings compared to thieves, adulterers and, above all, the lousy publican. Prayer and fasting, if they are occasions for arrogance and self-edification, are worse than sins, said Saint Ambrose of Optina.

Does Jesus want us to live like the publican? No, but he wants us to imitate the publican in the way he places himself humbly before his merciful Lord

Does that mean it's better to live like the publican? No, it means that instead of living in envy, which is the instinct of the Pharisee, it is better to live by measuring oneself against the Lord. If I want to think well of myself, I will always find someone worse than me. As a result, we often compare ourselves to people we already despise. This is why crime news sells and why gossip is so widespread. When we place ourselves before the crucified and risen Christ, we cannot tell ourselves that we are perfect spouses, or perfect friends, or perfect priests. In the presence of the Lord we begin to pray, because we have so much to be forgiven.

October 20^th 2019. Twenty-Ninth Sunday of the Year

GOSPEL: Luke 18, 1-8

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­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 18, 1-8

Jesus told his disciples a parable
about the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary.
He said, "There was a judge in a certain town
who neither feared God nor respected any human being.
And a widow in that town used to come to him and say,
'Render a just decision for me against my adversary.'
For a long time the judge was unwilling, but eventually he thought,
'While it is true that I neither fear God nor respect any human being,
because this widow keeps bothering me
I shall deliver a just decision for her
lest she finally come and strike me.'"
The Lord said, "Pay attention to what the dishonest judge says.
Will not God then secure the rights of his chosen ones
who call out to him day and night?
Will he be slow to answer them?
I tell you, he will see to it that justice is done for them speedily.
But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?"

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

Kieran’s summary . . . Sometimes we think that prayer is something detached from life. We think 

prayer takes place at set times and in special exclusive places. Prayer happens on the 

“mountain”, we surmise, whereas real life takes place down on the “plain”. Sometimes 

people challenge nuns in contemplative orders and say, “Why don’t you do something 

useful instead of just praying?” This question arises out of ignorance. Without these nuns 

the life of the Church would have no depth and would bear no fruit. In the same way, 

prayer must be at the heart of all my daily activity if my life is to be fruitful. How essential

 it is to be aware of the importance of prayer for authentic life! We must realize that we 

cannot do anything worthwhile unless we have a life of prayer. The parable of the poor 

widow and the lazy judge applies to each one of us personally. Within you and me, there

 is the poor and noble widow who seeks meaning and justice, and there is also the lazy 

judge who just wants to do the minimum. Our greatest enemy is mediocrity, a lazy 

tendency to live superficially. It is essential that we pray to the Lord continually, 

throughout the day, in everything that we do. When we pray, the noble spirit within

 us perseveres like the widow, and in time it will bear fruit, overcoming the mediocre

 and superficial judge within us.

Sometimes we think that prayer is something detached from life. Prayer takes place on the 

“mountain” whereas real life happens down on the “plain”. But prayer must be at the heart 

of all my daily activity if it is to be fruitful.

This Sunday's first reading tells of a battle involving the army of Israel down on the plains, 

while Moses prays up on the mountain. When Moses raises his arms in prayer, Israel wins, 

but as soon as his arms fall, Israel begins to lose. Often, we tend to think that prayer takes place

 on the "mountain", while life is played out down on the "plain". When we are preoccupied 

with life’s affairs, our relationship with God might seem distant, remote, useless. We feel that

 are too many other things to think about! People of prayer, like consecrated women in 

monasteries, are often asked questions such as: "Why are you here instead of doing useful 

things in the world?" These questions come from ignorance. If the Church did not have these

 sisters in prayer, it would be just one more NGO - as Pope Francis remarked years ago. 

Every visible act has an invisible heart. If my ministry is to proclaim the Gospel, then, for 

my ministry to be fruitful, I need a Church that is praying for me. It is this prayer that make

 my evangelization the fruit of a communion between the visible and the invisible, between

 prayer and works, between God and humanity. Without prayer, Christian acts lose their depth. 

We must remain aware of the importance of prayer for authentic life. We must realize 

that we cannot do anything worthwhile unless we have a life of prayer

In the same way, a married couple cannot live their daily life and its activity without the 

secret of intimacy, without an "enclosure", without their personal dialogue, their coming 

together, their acceptance of each other. If they neglect this hidden part of their relationship,

 they will lose everything else. But neither can the couple persevere in intimate relationship 

with each other if they lose sight of the bigger picture, the goal of their shared life together. 

Similarly we will not persevere in prayer if we do not see it as being essential for authentic 

life as a Christian. In the Gospel, the widow of the parable is tenacious: "Give me justice 

against my adversary!" This woman knows two things: that she deserves justice and that

 there is someone who opposes her right to justice. Prayer remains alive if we remember

 that it is our duty to live authentically, to possess the Holy Spirit. We remain true to prayer 

if we do not forget that we were born to have love in our hearts and do something worthwhile

 with our lives.

Within us there is the poor and noble widow who seeks meaning and justice, but there is 

also the lazy judge who just wants to get by. Our greatest enemy is mediocrity, a lazy tendency

 to live superficially. It is essential that we pray continually, so that the noble spirit within

 us can prevail over the mediocre.

On the night of World Youth Day 2000, St. John Paul II continued to repeat the phrase: "Don’t give up!” Don't give in to the banal. In fact, we have an enemy and its name is “mediocrity” – the art of surviving just to get by. The habit of not loving anyone. The story of the lazy judge and the persistent widow is the story of the interior struggle within each one of us. We are poor and vulnerable like the widow, but there is a noble spirit within us who knows that our existence is not a mistake, that we are profoundly significant. But we also have a superficial spirit, a lazy judge who just wants to get by. Within us there is a battle between the profound and the superficial, between the noble and the banal. We pray in order not to lose sight of our greatness. At the end of the Gospel passage, Jesus asks: "When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?" The Son of Man comes to visit us often, through graces and tribulations. When he comes, he will find faith in us if we do not yield to our true enemy, mediocrity. We were made for much more.

October 13th 2019.Twenty Eight Sunday of Ordinary Time

GOSPEL: Luke 17:11-19

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­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 17:11-19

As Jesus continued his journey to Jerusalem,
he travelled through Samaria and Galilee.
As he was entering a village, ten lepers met him.
They stood at a distance from him and raised their voices, saying,
“Jesus, Master! Have pity on us!”
And when he saw them, he said,
“Go show yourselves to the priests.”
As they were going they were cleansed. 
And one of them, realizing he had been healed,
returned, glorifying God in a loud voice;
and he fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked him. 
He was a Samaritan.
Jesus said in reply,
“Ten were cleansed, were they not?
Where are the other nine? 
Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?”
Then he said to him, “Stand up and go;
your faith has saved you.”

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

Kieran’s summary . . . Ten lepers were cured but only one was grateful. Gratitude is a sign that the leper was not only healed in the body but was also saved in the spirit. Good things can happen to us in life. Our physical lives or bodily health can benefit from these things. But salvation involves a transition that goes far beyond physical healing. The person who is on the road to salvation is someone who places himself before life with an attitude of gratitude. The heart of Jesus before his Father is a heart that is essentially grateful. We too become children of God by placing ourselves before life with an attitude of thankfulness for all the blessings that have been bestowed upon us. God has loved us, but if we don’t take time to contemplate the things that he has done for us then we will not even notice that we have been loved! Gratitude for the blessings that we have been given opens the road for us to love in return. There are many obstacles to gratitude in our world. The publicity of consumerist society tries to make us feel inadequate and poorly endowed. We feel that we are insufficient and have to go out and buy certain products in order to be complete. To counteract this, it is a good exercise to contemplate God’s abundant blessings every evening before going to sleep. We should count at least three beautiful things that the heavenly Father, in his providence, has blessed us with today.

The theme of the Gospel is gratitude and its link to salvation

This Sunday’s Gospel recounts the story of the healing of the ten lepers, only one of whom returns to give thanks to the Lord. The theme of the Gospel is reflected in the first reading from the Book of Kings. Here we are told how Naaman, the Syrian, is healed of his leprosy by Elisha. This story has two aspects. The first concerns obedience. Namann is given a strange instruction in order to be cured of his affliction. He is to bathe seven times in the Jordan. Though he is reluctant, Naaman is eventually obedient and he is cured. This theme of obedience - the relation between the one who makes a request and the one who responds in conformity to the request – is NOT actually emphasized in this Sunday’s liturgy. Instead, we read what happens after Naaman bathes in the water and is healed; the aspect that is emphasized here is gratitude. Naaman responds with spontaneous and exuberant gratitude to the effects wrought in him by the action of God.

Gratitude is a sign that the person has been transformed by the good things that have happened to him in life. Gratitude is the attitude of one who accepts salvation

This is a fitting prelude to the theme of the Gospel. Jesus encounters ten lepers, one of which is a Samaritan. Jesus gives them a curious instruction: they must go and present themselves to a priest. The lepers obey the instruction and they are healed. Only one of them, however, returns to give thanks. Jesus said in reply, “Ten were cleansed, were they not? Where are the other nine? Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?” It is true that those who live in a house often take things for granted, whilst the guest – at least for the first few days – is grateful for everything. But here Jesus is talking about nothing less than the transition from healing to salvation. He says to the leper, “Stand up and go; your faith has saved you.” The other nine have only been purified, but this one has been saved. It is possible to be healed in the body but not be saved in the spirit. Problems can be resolved in a practical way without any authentic interior growth. Gratitude is the sign of salvation. It is the attitude of placing oneself in front of existence with the outlook of one who has received much, who considers life to be a generous gift. This is not something unconnected or trivial. The heart of Jesus, the only begotten son of the Father, is a grateful heart. Gratitude always goes hand in hand with salvation. We would have difficulty believing a person to be saved if they were constantly complaining, if they tended to see only what is negative, if they focussed on that which was lacking instead of that which was present. Such an attitude is an indicator that the heart has not been renewed. No matter how high your position in the church or society, if your heart is not filled with gratitude then you have not truly passed from the old to the new. You do not have a proper sense of reality. Gratitude encompasses a proper perspective on reality. We often find gratitude in the hearts of people who are very sick, attitudes of peace and super abundance in people who have grave disabilities. On the other hand we find people who are constantly dissatisfied. Publicity tries to make us feel dissatisfied, insufficient, incomplete, poorly endowed, so that we will go out and buy things. We are prompted to be anxious, to crave the wrong sort of completion. But the grateful heart is a heart that is serene before all of this clamour. It is a heart that rejoices in all that it possesses already.

It is essential that we cultivate our hearts so that they become grateful recipients of salvation

It is absolutely fundamental that we engage in a “cure” that involves the contemplation of the gifts that have been bestowed upon us, a listing of all of our blessings. We cannot arrive at love if we do not first have gratitude. Love is something that we receive from the Lord, but if we do not mediate on the way that we have been loved, on the blessings that have been poured upon us, then we will not be aware that we have been loved at all. Sometimes we look back in life and see all of the people who have been kind to us, who have been patient with us, who have taken care of us. It is only later that we realize who much we have been loved. At the time we did not register it at all. This Sunday we are presented with an urgent challenge: let us not behave like people who have been shortchanged by life; instead let us have the outlook of people who have been showered with blessings. A good exercise to perform every evening is to count at least three beautiful things received from Providence that day. It is an exercise that does us much benefit, to count at least three good things that life, Providence, our heavenly Father has gifted us with today. In this way we cultivate hearts worthy of God’s children.