Sunday, January 15, 2012

Keep the Faith, but Don't Keep it to Yourself!

Homily for the 2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B)

READINGS:

First Reading: 1 Samuel 3:3b-10, 19
Responsorial Psalm: Ps. 40:2, 4, 7-8, 8-9, 10
Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 6:13c-15a, 17-20
Gospel: John 1:35-42


FOCUS: Being a disciple of Jesus means following Him and helping others to do the same.
FUNCTION: Invite a friend to come with you to Church; share your faith about Jesus. 

          Operation Andrew is a program here in the Archdiocese of Dubuque aimed at helping young men answer God’s call to discern a vocation to the priesthood.  What usually happens is a priest picks out a young man or two from the local community who he thinks could make a good priest and then invites him (or them) to the Operation Andrew dinner.  Priests and candidates then eat and pray together as well as discuss questions the candidates might have about the vocation to the priesthood.  It’s a chance for young men to get an “inside view” of the priesthood directly from parish priests themselves and gain a glimpse into the dynamics of priestly life and ministry.

          The program takes its name from the Gospel we just heard, especially the part where it said, “Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, was one of the two who heard John and followed Jesus.  He first found his own brother Simon and told him, ‘We have found the Messiah’ – which is translated Christ.  Then he brought him to Jesus.”  The goal, then, of the Operation Andrew program is that a priest acts like Andrew in helping a young man to meet Christ. 

          Personally, I am very thankful that a priest also invited me to attend the Operation Andrew dinner so that I could gain some insight into priestly life and ministry.  That experience, among others, helped me say “yes” to God and begin my seminary discernment about a vocation to the priesthood.  If it weren’t for that “Andrew-like” priest and others like him, I might not be here today.  I am very thankful that they brought me to the Lord, so that I could say “yes” to this beautiful vocation to the priesthood. 

          Sometimes it’s the invitation that makes all the difference.  Think about it.  You probably know a few “Andrews” in your own life.  These are the people who, because they introduced you to someone or something, have made a positive impact on your life.  You would not be who you are today if it were not for them having introduced you to this person or thing that made such a difference.  It’s probably pretty rewarding for them to know how much they impacted your life.  Now consider how rewarding it’d be for you if you did the same for someone else.  And the good news is you can!

          In fact, it’s what Jesus told us to do.  At the end of Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus said, “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me.  Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.  And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age” (Matthew 28:18b-20).  As members of His Church, Jesus gives us that as our mission in the world. 

          As disciples of Christ the Lord, we’ve been called to go out into the world and make more disciples.  And although we don’t always live it very well, we are a missionary Church.  That means that we’re called to go out and help bring other people to Christ, just as Andrew brought his brother Simon to Christ.  We must not shrink away from such a mission in fear!  And why not?  Because we want people to be saved, to come to the knowledge and love of God, and ultimately, to enter the joy of heaven through faith in Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior!  God wills that all people be saved, but He wants to use us to reach out to them.

          This is sometimes a tough pill to swallow, especially for us as Catholics.  Here in America, we have been socialized to think that religion is a private matter.  You know the two things we’re told not to talk about with others: politics and religion.  But actually, politics and religion (and religion especially!) are among the most necessary things to talk about. 

          In some sense, yes, religion is a private matter.  And no one should ever be forced to believe in something or to belong to a certain religion against their will; that’s clearly contrary to the spirit of the Gospel.  But I think we need to get over this tendency to think of religion as a private matter insofar as we’re told it shouldn’t be talked about.  It should be talked about and shared.  There’s a great quote I noticed recently on the bottom of an e-mail; it said, “Keep the faith, but don’t keep it to yourself.  What a great motto!  Our Christian faith (and the message of our Christian faith) is meant to be shared, to be given away and proclaimed joyfully to others, so that others around us might also experience the joy of knowing Christ.

          So what does that mean in practice?  Well, it means reaching out to people around you who are fallen-away Catholics and inviting them to join you for Sunday Mass; it means not being afraid to talk about your faith with people who ask you why you’re Catholic.  It means sharing your faith with your children and friends and family; it means living according to the spirit of the Gospel and being loving and forgiving toward others (especially the difficult people around you). 

          It means witnessing to your friends when they engage in gossip that’s malicious and hurtful; it means helping your children to make faith a priority by coming to Mass on Sunday morning instead of going to the soccer game.  It means standing up for what’s true and right in matters of faith and morals; it means witnessing to friends about how certain behaviors might not be the best for them, for instance,  when they drink too much or want to live together before marriage.  And it means acting like a Christian....like Christ….to others who so urgently need to hear the good news of the Gospel.

          Keep the faith, but don’t keep it to yourself!”  St. Andrew the Apostle gives us such a good example of this in the Gospel.  Dear friends, there are many people in today’s world who are desperately looking for Jesus the Messiah, for fulfillment, peace, and hope.  If we have found Him….and we have found Him….here in this Mass….here in the Eucharist….we should reach out to others who are still searching for him (and who maybe don’t even know they’re searching for Him) and bring them to Jesus.  They’d be so grateful to us, just as I’m so grateful to those priests who reached out to me and invited me to consider a vocation to the priesthood.  What a beautiful gift we could give to others if they came to faith in Christ because of our invitation, because of our witness!

          Dear friends, it is our destiny….indeed, it is our mission….to be like Andrew to the people around us.  God is calling us to make a difference in the lives of others by introducing them and bringing them to Christ!  So many lives could be changed if we reached out to those around us.  Through our efforts as Christians, so many people around us could find faith in place of disbelief, hope in place of despair, and love in place of selfishness….all because of an encounter with Christ.  And all we have to do is bring them to Jesus.                                                                 

               

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