Homily for Saturday of the Twelfth Week of Ordinary Time, Year II

YEAR II First Reading: Lam 2:2, 10–14, 18–19

      Responsorial Psalm: Ps 74:1b–2, 3–5, 6–7, 20–21

YEARS I AND II Gospel: Mt 8:5–17

Seminarian Residence Chapel, Crowley, TX

The Book of Lamentations, from whence our first reading comes today, has been called “The Book of Tears” because it expresses the horror, the grief, the emptiness of the Jewish people over the destruction of Jerusalem and their Temple by the Babylonians. Their Holy of Holies was desecrated and their temple treasures plundered and carried away. To read Lamentations is to enter into the heart and soul of one whose way of life has been turned upside down, whose nation has fallen from grace, and for whom everything they believed in has been called into question.

          I see a parallel in Lamentations to what is happening lately. We have somehow progressed from protests, to rioting, to attacking syrup bottles, ice cream bars, and boxes of rice. Now our very faith is under attack. Statues of our beloved saints are being toppled and defaced. There are calls to remove crucifixes and images of Jesus Christ from our churches. Our Saving Lord is being called a white supremacist, of all things. In the last two weeks, three churches have been broken into, their tabernacles containing the Most Blessed Sacrament stolen by thieves. Outrage has turned to mob rule, and now to hysteria. Our nation has been flipped sideways while irrational speech and actions rule the day. Our temples have been desecrated and the holiest treasure inside has been plundered. Satan is hard at work. If this is not a time of horror and lamentation, I do not know what is. What can we do as Catholic Christians in the face of such evil? We do what we do best - we turn to our loving savior in prayer and ask for his healing help.

          The Gospel story today gives us a wonderful example of how we should approach Jesus in our time of need. In all the other healings in Gospel of Matthew, Jesus heals by touching the person. But in this case, the Roman Centurion tells Jesus he does not need him to come to his house. He has faith that Jesus can heal his servant from where he is. He does not tell Jesus how to solve his problem. He simply asks for help and leaves it up to the Lord to work as he wills. The centurion’s faith is so strong Matthew writes that Jesus is amazed. In the example of the centurion, we find a model of how to pray when the situation in life is chaotic and the needs are overwhelming. Prayer of petition is powerful indeed, but sometimes we need to just bring our needs before our Risen Lord without trying to tell him how he needs to fix it for us. We need to humble ourselves, be open to his will, and trust that Jesus will carry us through this trial and tribulation. He know us better than we know ourselves and he knows what is best for us. It is time to exercise FAITH – Forget About It – Trust Him.