August 7, 2011

Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Homily

Today we see Peter doing what Peter seems to do a lot. He is impulsive and inconsistent. I can relate to that because I see a lot of Peter in myself. If you remember last week, Jesus healed the sick and fed the 5000. Today's gospel starts after that with Jesus sending the apostles on, while he stays to pray. When the apostles had gotten a few miles out at sea, the weather became stormy. Then, Jesus came walking on the water. Even though Jesus assures the apostles, "It is I", they are scared. Peter decides that he will challenge "the ghost" to do something that only Jesus could do: enable him to walk on water. Peter gets out of the boat and starts to walk, but then he takes his eyes off Jesus and he starts to sink. As long as Peter kept his eyes on Jesus, he walked on water. When he looked at the menacing waves below, he began to sink. In a similar way, when we keep our focus on Jesus through the stormy temptations of life, Christ keeps us afloat. Jesus always is close to us in the storms of our lives asking us to come to Him, believe in Him and put our belief into action. It is clear from Jesus' words that he is disappointed in Peter: "Why did you doubt?", he asks. There are several places in the New Testament where Jesus is disappointed in Peter. In Thursday morning's Gospel, Jesus tells Peter to "Get behind me satan." As Jesus steps into the boat, calm is restored. Jesus wants to bring that same calm to our lives. Even when Jesus is disappointed in us, He steps into our boat. There is never a time when our sin is too great or His disappointment with us trumps his forgiveness for us. We see that Peter didn't learn about Christ's peace right away, but eventually he did learn. In 1 Peter 5:7, he says, "Cast all you anxieties on Christ, for he cares about you." The storms of our lives are not who we are. Our circumstances don't define who we are. There is nothing so dark and gloomy as fear, nothing so unsettling as being afraid. But when we are frightened by people, or scary circumstances, Jesus is there to reach out His hand to us. It is not said merely that the Lord gives light, but that He "is" light; nor that He gives salvation; He is salvation. God does not just help us discover a refuge, a place where we are safe; He is our safety. We do not ask Him to give us these things as though they are independent of God, but they

describe who our God is. So, how can we keep focused on the Lord. We can't look into Jesus' eyes as Peter did. We can't put our fingers into Jesus' wounds as Thomas did, but there are things we can do to stay focused on Him until we are joined with Him in the next life. The first I would like to mention is participating in the Eucharist. Each Saturday when I come, I stop by St. Joseph's in Beltsville, first. The communion I bring was consecrated at this morning's Mass. As Catholics, we believe that Jesus is truly present in the Eucharist. Even if you are not Catholic, the Eucharist is Jesus. This is not one thing for one person and another for another. Jesus says, "Eat my body, drink my blood." He invites us to walk past the waves of disbelief. After you have received, Jesus truly has come to live with you. Stop for a moment and give praise for this great gift. The second way we can find Jesus is through the Holy Scriptures, the Bible. When we read the Bible in faith, He reveals Himself to us. That's why they call it "revelation." We can find guidance through the Bible. It will help us find the way. I would like to caution you, although the Bible is divinely inspired, it is not magic. I've know of people who write a question on a piece of paper and then flip the bible to a random page and start reading. This is not revelation. It's not very different from reading tarot cards. God gives us free will for a good purpose. It is so we can have a real relationship with Him. He will not demand what we do, but He is in the boat with us. There really is only one Bible. The Catholic and protestant New Testaments are the same. The bible that protestants use leaves out 7 books of the Old Testament that Catholics consider to be real. That doesn't mean that the other 39 books are wrong. It just means that the protestant bible is missing a few books. Go to Bible study and learn. Lastly, look for Jesus in those around you. He is present in them. This is a stormy place, but that doesn't mean that those around you are overcome by the clouds of sin. Give your neighbors and the officers the benefit of the doubt. If everyone believed that the Holy Spirit lives in each of us and acted on that, this place would be a much better place. But we all make a difference. For every one of us who acts on that belief, this place will become that much better.