Homily: Feast of St. Francis De Sales

Feast of St. Francis De Sales (Mk. 3:31-35) “How Holy Do I Want to Be?”

“The soul that aims at devotion must “put off the old self and put on the new” by forsaking sin. Then every impediment to the love of God must be removed by degrees. Some persons, by special and extraordinary grace, can do all this at once like Mary Magdalen and St. Paul. Ordinarily though, it takes time and may be painful.”

Introduction to the Devout Life (chapter two).

These words give me comfort as I try to become the person that God has created me to be. For me advancement in the spiritual life has never happened all at once. I seem to grow, but then fall back time after time. It seems like I know more than I knew when I started following Christ, but many times I feel like I have not moved at all.

St. Francis De Sales was a wonderful spiritual guide because he gently pushed people forward in their quest to follow Jesus. He did not believe that it was the privilege of a few to advance in the spiritual life, but he thought that it was a possibility for everyone. He believed in the universal call to holiness long before Vatican II happened.

He lived in the 16 century and was one of the great “Reformation Saints.” While he was alive, the church was being split apart by arguments and scandal. Many Catholics asked what the church had to offer. Does living a Roman Catholic life really lead us to a better place in life they asked? St. Francis De Sales argued that the church had a spiritual treasure chest that people could use. It was not a one size fits all philosophy, but everyone could have a personal relationship with Christ.

He had a wonderful way with images. One symbol he used was that of the honeybee. St. Francis said that just like there are many flowers in the world there all kinds of people. And just like a bee will go from flower to flower to pollinate them, Jesus will go from person to person to impart holiness. We just need to open ourselves to the Lord.

Reflection Questions:

1.    Do I believe that I am called to be holy? Why or why not?

2.   What is preventing me from moving forward? How might I address this today?

 Dear Parishioners,

           Two Sundays ago, we introduced the concept of the Eucharistic minute. This is like the Evangelization minute that we had before COVID. Greg and Kathy Schneider are leading the Eucharistic revival effort in our parish. This is an attempt by the American Catholic Bishops to reinvigorate the faithful’s enthusiasm for Mass.

          Greg shared with us in his Eucharistic minute on how important the Eucharist is for him in his spiritual life. One thing he did not share was that he is a daily communicant. He attends Mass several times a week. I have said to Greg and Kathy that our goal is not simply to educate people about the Eucharist, but our goal is to try to get people to participate in the Eucharist.

          I hope other parishioners will share their reasons for going to Mass. We live in a time when people’s desire for the Eucharist seems to be waning. Our faith tells us that this will change at some point. Hopefully, we can help bring that change about faster.

          May Our Lady pray for our troubled world today.

          Fr. Mark