May Jesus Christ be
praised and may his holy Mother pray for us.
Last week we heard that
God our loving Father is pleased to give us a kingdom. We receive the gift of the kingdom in
faith. We await the kingdom in
hope. And we prepare for the kingdom
through love. Each of us receives the
gift of the kingdom individually, in the waters of the Sacrament of
Baptism. However, we do not live in the
kingdom of the Father in isolation. The
Kingdom of God is awaited, celebrated, and lived in a community. Dear brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus,
the community of the Kingdom of God is the communion of the saints.
Throughout his
ministry, Pope Benedict reminded us that the believer in Jesus Christ is never
alone. The baptized child of God is
always a member of the community of the Church.
The character placed on our souls in baptism cannot ever be taken away
from us. Our souls will always bear the
seal of the Kingdom of Heaven. We may
feel, at times, like Jeremiah in our first reading. We may feel alone and abandoned in the mud,
and surrounded by those who reject us for our faith. We may feel separated from all of earthly
society.
In our reading from the
Gospel today, the Lord Jesus speaks about division. These words make us uncomfortable, because
the mission of the Savior is the mission of unity. Jesus Christ came into the world so that he
could unite us to himself. Then as we
are united to the person of Christ in the body of Christ, we are united to the
offering of Christ to the Father. The
Lord Jesus speaks to us about division, because in order for us to be fully
united to him, we must be divided from everything else. We cannot claim our citizenship in heaven if
the concerns of our earthly citizenship reign supreme in our hearts. We cannot fully embrace our relationship with
Christ, if any other relationship is held to be more precious. It is true that we must be concerned about our
earthly responsibilities. And our human
relationships are perfected and sanctified through our relationship with
Christ. We are called to be good
stewards of the gifts that God has given to us and of the work entrusted to our
care. Our gaze should be fixed, however,
on the things of heaven even as we care for the things of earth.
As we fix our eyes on
the Kingdom of Heaven, we are not alone.
We are surrounded by the great cloud of witnesses who have gone before
us into the Kingdom. With the example of
the saints before us, and with the intercession of the saints supporting us,
let us rid ourselves of every burden and every sin that divides us from the
Savior. Let us fix our eyes on Christ
and turn our hearts to the Lord, as we prepare to participate in the feast of
the Kingdom. Amen.
Preached
at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, Monroe, NC
