There are probably a lot of things on our minds today: We remember the 4th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the U.S. which took the lives of thousands of innocent people; we are concerned about the ongoing war in Iraq, wondering if there is an end in sight when we can bring our troops home; we are mindful of the devastating hurricane that has left tens of thousands of people homeless and without the basic necessities of life and, in the midst of all of that, we have a Gospel today which challenges us to forgive more often than we do. Well, I may be able to forgive terrorists but I just won’t forgive those who are responsible for the cost of gas these days. Anyway, what I’m saying is that there is a lot to incorporate into one homily and a lot to digest. We certainly have enough reason to pray for peace, for healing, for strength and courage in these challenging times.
But I am going to digress from all that because there is something we can and should always do: to be thankful for the blessings we have. Think of all the blessings we enjoy: our health, our families and friends, our faith, our freedom, our work and our pay. We have the blessing of a roof over our heads, a bed to sleep in, food to eat and clothing to wear. We have schools and hospitals. We have green grass, water and shade trees to rest under. Even if one of these blessings seems to be missing from our lives, there is much more we can be grateful for. And when we are grateful, it is appropriate to say “thank you.”
I have lots of reasons for which to be thankful. My own family and friends, my ministry, my health and the many opportunities I have in life. And today, as we observe our own Welcome Sunday, I want to say “thank you” for all that this parish is for me and for the many ways that each of you have contributed to this healthy faith family.
You know, throughout time, God has chosen to utilize helpers— human helpers to build up God’s Kingdom of justice, love and peace. God calls people to live and work in the midst of the world with all its concerns. God wants the people who have been chosen to be effective witnesses to the truth of the Gospel which tells us that God is love and that all who love are of God. We proclaim that message most effectively when, as a family, we work together in a spirit of love and peace.
Are we doing this well? Are we, as a Catholic parish, effective witnesses to God’s love? Do we exercise the gifts or skills that God has shared with us to better the lives of each other and even those outside our faith family? Well, without sounding too proud, I think we are. Yes, there is always room for growth and we can only be as faithful as each member of our parish is faithful. You don’t need to be reminded that there are many churches that don’t do much because the members just don’t care or are simply fulfilling their own spiritual needs. Sometimes, their spiritual leaders are not healthy which can damage the faith family.
On this Welcome Sunday, it might be good to single out, without any particular order, some who have rendered service to God’s people through their ministries among us. These are the people for which we should be thankful.
Most apparent to us when we participate in Mass are the numbers of people who are our liturgical ministers. They participate in the work of worship. They are our musicians and singers, our ushers and greeters, our lectors and ministers of the Eucharist. They are the altar servers, the priests and deacon-- those who dress a little differently to emphasize their role in the liturgy. Together, these liturgical ministers give glory to God not simply by their presence here each Sunday but by the exercise of some ministry which facilitates the Eucharistic meal which the Church describes as the summit and source of its spiritual life. The numbers of people who assist at our worship is a sign of the healthy state of our worship. They share in the ministry of the Eucharist not for their own glory but for the glory of God— the God who is responsible for gathering us here in the first place. We are grateful to them.
Another important group found in every healthy parish are those who volunteer their time to teach the faith. WE are all familiar with the importance of religious education for children .Whether we went through the Baltimore Catechism or post-Vatican II CCD classes or even today’s Family Religious Education program, we understand how critical it is that our children learn what it means to be a healthy Catholic-Christian. We are blessed to have those men and women who take time to prepare lessons, spend time in the classroom with the youngest of our members and speak the Truth of the Gospel to them in ways they can readily understand. Sometimes we take their ministry for granted and sometimes the parents and students themselves don’t seem to appreciate their ministry, but they keep plugging on doing their best to lay a foundation for our future adult Catholics. We are grateful to them.
But faith formation doesn’t end with CCD. Faith formation continues throughout the years of high school and young adulthood. Here at the Newman Center we are fortunate to have committed staff and volunteers who make ministry for young adults dynamic and enjoyable. We have a wonderful campus ministry which engages college students to think and act as followers of Christ in the world. It’s not simply about teaching the fundamentals of faith but to help young people connect with the Gospel while they learn to live in the context of a changing and often confusing world. This is also true of those staff who oversee continuing faith formation of adults. There are those who, at some point, had their formation interrupted. Some who simply stopped practicing their faith. Whatever the reason might be, we are blessed to be able to offer continuing faith formation for adults through Sacrament preparation, retreats, bible studies, seasonal parish missions, and even a ministry to welcome those who are returning to the Church. For some of those returning to the Church, the last Mass they attended was in Latin while looking at the back of the priest. While there are some who would like a return to those “good old days” we acknowledge the traditions of our faith while looking forward to what is most meaningful and engaging our members in healthy dialogue about how they can take ownership of their Catholic faith. To those who share faith with children and adults, we thank you.
Equally deserving of attention is our new Family Life Ministry. More and more we are recognizing that this is one area that our Church has not adequately addressed. Other Christian churches are light year ahead of us in offering support to families in every kind of life circumstance. So, we follow their lead in establishing ministries which will offer support to engaged couples, married couples, divorced and separated persons. We want to reach out increasingly to parents who need support and encouragement in the area of parenting. We also wish to address the issue of an aging population. The greying of our own parish gives rise to the need to have ministries to the aging and the infirm. And we continue to offer support to those who have lost loved ones. We are thankful that we have the resources to establish and sustain these ministries and I encourage all of you to take advantage of these ministries when they are offered.
And, unless I want to face some angry staff on Monday morning, I need to express thanks to those support staff who, by their talent and with patience, deal with the day-to-day workings of our faith family. What you see in terms of an active parish can only happen with the hard work of a great office manager, office staff, receptionists and facilities personnel and a host of volunteers. We don’t often think of them as ministries, but answering telephones, publishing a bulletin, making deposits, paying bills, cleaning restrooms, sweeping the chapel and stocking our supply of altar wine, organizing the kitchen and making lemonade are all essential to the life of God’s people who call this place home on Sundays and other days of the week. Lord Almighty, what church would be complete without coffee and donuts?? We are thankful to all those who make our parish run smoothly— both staff and volunteers.
There are, of course, numerous others who round out our parish life by facilitating ministries which are close to their heart: bible studies, women’s spirituality, a Catholic men’s fraternity, scouts, artists, and interfaith relations. To those who have taken the initiative in these ways, I say “thank you.”
But all that I’ve mentioned only scratches the surface of what makes a parish really healthy. We can boast of every kind of ministry and organization, but what does it matter if we don’t have all of you, our parish members, here? It is you who constitute the Church— not the pope alone or bishops, priests, deacons and religious— it is you, the married, single, divorced or widowed. It is you who spend your week doing your best to support a family, raise children and work a career. You’ve shown that you appreciate being part of a faith family not by being silent strangers but as a people who come to the table each Sunday with great devotion and energy. By your presence and support, you show your love for the Lord and give rise to the many ways that we minister to each other and to those outside our parish family. You are the heart of our parish and it is a heart that beats with a love of Christ— the one who has healed our hearts and made it possible for us to come together as a parish family. It is Christ who brings us together to worship and minister together in his name. He is the one who is the source of our ministries. So, I thank each of you for calling this place home. And I thank God for calling you to live out your faith as you have.
Let’s pray that, as we begin a new academic year of ministries we may all live the life of the Gospel and stay close to the Lord. May our faith, hope and love deepen as we minister together in his name. May we give witness to his presence by the way we teach, instruct, encourage, love, forgive and by the way we reach out to the poorest in our community.
So, yes, I am thankful— indeed we should ALL be thankful— for the privilege of belonging to such a faith family. As we celebrate this Eucharistic meal-- this thanksgiving meal— let us express our gratitude to the Lord for all he has done and continues to do for us.