Article Published

Article_We are transformed by the Mercy of God

Homilies | Saturday, October 22, 2016

We are transformed by the Mercy of God

Homily by Archbishop Thomas Wenski at Mass during the 2016 Catechetical Conference

Archbishop Thomas Wenski preaches the homily at the opening Mass of the annual archdiocesan Catechetical Conference, held Oct. 22 at Msgr. Edward Pace High School in Miami Gardens.

Photographer: ANA RODRIGUEZ-SOTO | FC

Archbishop Thomas Wenski preaches the homily at the opening Mass of the annual archdiocesan Catechetical Conference, held Oct. 22 at Msgr. Edward Pace High School in Miami Gardens.

Homily by Archbishop Thomas Wenski at Mass during the 2016 Catechetical Conference at Monsignor Edward Pace High School. Saturday, Oct. 22, 2016.

Today, we celebrate the feast day of Saint Pope John Paul II. Many of you came of age during his long and fruitful pontificate. He led the Church into the third millennium – and he did so by telling us "Do not be afraid to open the doors wide to Christ." 

This message is no less urgent today. We live in anxious times; we live in a world of fragile peace and broken promises. The theme of today's conference is a hopeful one, one inspired by the Joy of the Gospel: transformed by God's mercy. The purpose of the gospel, and the Church exists to proclaim the gospel, is to transform us: we who were sinners are now through baptized, made into sons and daughters; we were estranged and now we are reconciled, lost and now found. This all because of God's infinite Mercy; his grace proves more powerful than our disgrace. Those of you who pray the chaplet of the Divine Mercy know that the mercy hour is three o'clock in the afternoon, the time when Jesus died on the cross.  

The moment of death’s seeming triumph over Jesus on the cross was in fact its defeat. It is in the light of faith – faith in Christ who conquers death by his death and his resurrection – that we today also remember in prayer all those affected by Hurricane Matthew. 

Hurricane Matthew has wrought unprecedented physical devastation and human misery in Haiti, in eastern Cuba and the Carolinas. The storm and its aftermath have created a world of pain – and just three weeks later the suffering continues for hundreds of thousands of people. Last week in the archdiocese – like many other places – most of our parishes took up a second collection to assist in the recovery. Throughout the world, Catholics and others have reached out in solidarity to those tried so sorely by this natural disaster, to meet both their immediate needs and to help them rebuild. In a few days, I will travel to Haiti – I work with the Haiti Church in efforts to rebuild after the earthquake six years ago. Things have gotten worse. 

When faced with our misfortunes or those of others, we can be tempted to ask ourselves: What did we do or what did these people do to deserve this? In today's Gospel reading, Jesus spoke of the Galileans whom Pilate had executed. And he spoke of those killed when the tower of Siloam collapsed. (Luke 13: 1-9) Jesus warns us not to see these events as somehow the wrath of an angry God. Evil came into the world not by God’s willing it; but through the devil and human sin. Jesus says in the Gospel: Don’t think that those Galileans were the biggest sinners around. Don’t think that those who died in the tower were guiltier than anyone else.       

Today – and, indeed, from the beginning of our exile from Eden — we experience this world as a “valley of tears.” We live in a fallen and thus imperfect world. And oftentimes the forces of nature – earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes and other natural disasters – can suggest that our planet itself is “in rebellion” against the original order of a loving Creator God. And that rebellion seen in nature – from the perspective of faith – can be said to mirror the rebellion of the human heart.  

Of course, many times, we do suffer because of our bad choices. The scriptures do say: the wages of sin is death. And, in one way, as sons and daughters of Adam and Eve who lost for themselves and for us the original blessings of Paradise, we experience that rebellion of nature because of their bad choice – their original sin of turning away from God which made all of creation “subject to futility” (Romans 8:20).  

But as followers of Jesus we cannot rush to blame victims for the evil visited upon them – nor can we blame God, whom Scripture reveals as all loving and all merciful. That doesn’t mean we will come to an easy understanding of why bad things happen to good people – most times we will have to wait with the patience of a Job to learn the answers to those questions – which God will tell us surely; but not necessarily on this side of heaven.  

Jesus however does give us an insight on how God deals with the tragedies that afflict us. God does not remain remote from or indifferent to the plight of his fallen creation. In Christ, the Word became Flesh. God became man. Rather than distancing himself from people and their tragedies, he draws close to them. From the Cross, he stands in solidarity with all the pain experienced by us in our fallenness. Despair, destruction, death will not have the last word: rather the transformative power of his resurrection will.   

When the earthquake hit Haiti, the parish church of the Sacred Heart collapsed in the tremor but a small shrine outside the church in which there was a concrete crucifix survived. When a journalist looking over the rubble asked, “Where was God?” an elderly woman pointed to the crucifix and said, “There he is.” Her faith told her that God had not abandoned his people – but he was there sharing in their pain and suffering. 

One of the most compelling scenes of the Gospel is that of Jesus being awakened in the boat by his frightened apostles in the midst of a storm (Matthew 8: 23-27). Jesus calms the storm by rebuking the rain and the wind; but, he also rebukes the disciples for their lack of faith.  

Yes, we rightly pray that God may spare us from nature’s fury. But, in the face of trial and tribulation, we also ask God to strengthen our faith by calming the storms of anxiety and fear that rage within our hearts.  

We know that God can bring good out of evil. Indeed, the many acts of solidarity – of neighbor helping neighbor – are eloquent witness to what God’s Providence inspires in the hearts of men and women of good will. Strengthened in faith, and transformed by God's mercy, we will not be overcome by any adversity but will overcome evil – whether physical or moral – with good. As St. John Paul II tells us: Be not afraid.

Powered by Parish Mate | E-system

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply