Beckman Baccaluareate - Called and Sent

Location: Beckman Catholic High School (Dyersville, IA) – 9 a.m. Baccalaureate Mass

Date: Saturday May 3^rd, 2014 (Feast of the Apostles Philip and James)

READINGS:

1^st Reading: 1 Corinthians 15:1-8

Resp. Psalm: Ps. 19:2-3, 4-5

Gospel: John 14:6-14

FOCUS: Like the Apostles, we are sent out to make a difference in the world around us. 

FUNCTION: Look to the future with confidence; be a trailblazer in name and action. 

          Seniors, family members, teachers and faculty, administrators, supporters, and friends of Beckman Catholic: the road ahead looks bright.  The education our graduating seniors have received here at Beckman has laid a good foundation for what’s still to come.  The end of the year is near, and since we’re not far away from graduation, we celebrate this Baccalaureate Mass for all of you here today, but particularly our seniors.  A Baccalaureate Mass is the occasion to do a couple of things: it’s a time to look back at what has been and to give thanks to God for His blessings, to celebrate graduation, and to look forward to what’s still to come – the aspirations we all have for the future.

          That’s how our faith works: we remember the past, we celebrate in the present moment, and we look forward to the future.  At every Mass, we remember how the Lord gave us His Body and Blood first in the Holy Eucharist and then upon the cross; we make that memory a present reality in the Eucharistic prayer; and we look forward to His coming again in glory.  And that’s what today is all about: we remember, we celebrate, and we look forward.

         

          Today, we also remember the example of two men who were closest to the Lord, the Apostles Philip and James; today is their Feast day.  They were chosen by the Lord to proclaim the good news of the Gospel throughout the whole world.  They weren’t perfect: when Jesus was arrested, they fled out of fear; they weren’t present at the Lord’s crucifixion; and after Jesus’ death they hid in the upper room.  But after they saw the risen Lord, they were empowered by the Holy Spirit to proclaim the Gospel to the ends of the earth.  And now we remember them as men of courage and zeal who initiated the Church’s all-important work of building the kingdom of God in the world. 

          To be an apostle literally means “to be sent.”  Jesus was sent by the Father, and He in turn sent His disciples into the world.  The same is true for us – we, too, are sent out.  This will be even more real at the graduation ceremony, often known as commencement, which means “to start or begin.” 

         

          Like the first apostles, we are sent forth; we are beginning something new; we are on the cusp of new opportunities.  Today we stand on the threshold of a new beginning, a new adventure, a new experience.  In the Gospel we just heard, Jesus told His disciples, “Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes in me will do the works that I do, and will do greater ones than these….”  These words help us realize that God has not made us for mediocrity, but for greatness; our task is to begin new journeys, and to accomplish new wonders.

          Sometimes, though, it takes a while.  We might be tempted to act like the apostles did before the risen Lord appeared to them – we might be tempted to run away because we’re afraid, to avoid getting involved in certain things because they seem hard or challenging, or to hide for fear that we’ll be asked to take on more than we think is possible. 

          The apostles weren’t perfect, and neither are our seniors.  There have been days and weeks and perhaps even months where they’ve been lazy, not motivated, fearful, ignorant and maybe a little arrogant, stubborn, impulsive, irresponsible, uncooperative, rude, mean, and selfish; let’s be honest – they have been all those things and possibly more.  But those days are hopefully behind us; and now something new lies ahead of us.  The education our seniors have received here has prepared them for this new path.

          We must become who and what we claim to be: we must become trailblazers – people who lead the way, perhaps through uncharted territory; we must become men and women of heroic virtue, in imitation of the Church’s two newest Saints, John Paul II and John XXIII; we must become true leaders – visionaries – in a world that’s become all too accustomed to following.

          Outside the walls of this school, there is a mission field – it is there that we find our apostolate; there are plenty of men and women living in our area who do not yet know the love of God; many people who have been raised in the faith have fallen away; and maybe some of us here today haven’t been living up to our goal of regularly living and practicing our Catholic faith. 

          The past is what it is.  We can’t change the way things have been, but we can change the future, and it doesn’t have to look like the past.  It can be different, better, brighter; we can be different, better, brighter.  The future will be what we make of it.  But in order to make the future the bright place we all want it to be, we have to start right now, in the present moment.  We have to remember our foundation of faith, and we have to start making the future a present reality, here and now.  We must be the change we want to see in the world around us.

          I’d like to offer two quotes for us to think about today, and these quotes should be pretty familiar to us.  The first one is written on the wall behind me, from Ralph Waldo Emerson: “Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.”  A good philosophy!  Do we want to be trailblazers?  It’s time to be innovative, to be daring, to blaze new trails toward the kingdom of God.  The Saints knew how to do this; they often acted in unexpected and surprising ways.  St. John Paul II thought he could do a lot of good by staying in his native Poland; little did he realize that by being elected Pope he would be instrumental in bringing down communism in Europe; St. John XXIII was elected to be a kind of “caretaker” or “transitional” pope – no one thought he would convene the Second Vatican Council.  St. Catherine of Sienna also offers us some wisdom with the quote written on the front of our worship aid today: “If you are what you should be, you will set the world ablaze.”

          Dear friends, this is our mission: let’s be who we should be; let’s set the world around us on fire with the power of the Holy Spirit; let’s refuse to follow well-worn paths and start blazing new trails, like the apostles and the Saints. 

          We may not know what the future holds, but we know who holds the future, and we know that He is faithful.  So let’s be true trailblazers, all for the honor and glory of God, and the salvation of souls.