Homily: Feast of St. Hilary

Feast of St. Hilary (Hebrews 4:1-5) “Rest Well”

We all want to enter the peace God offers. There can be no better feeling than to be at peace. Another way of translating the word for peace in the passage from Hebrews is to use the word rest. If we can rest with God what more could we want?

God’s rest can be perpetual. Biblical scholars like to remind us that, in the story of creation, after creating things each day the sun would go down and the day would come to a close. That was the way it was except for the seventh day. On the seventh day, it does not say that day drew to a close. It only says God rested. The implication was that God’s rest lasted forever. God would like us to join in that rest.

Another Biblical story influenced how the Jews looked at God’s rest. In the story of Exodus Joshua leads the people to the promised land, but the people are afraid to enter because some scouts tell them that there are people who are already living in the promised land that will fiercely defend it. Because the people of God hesitated, they were not allowed into their new country (they had to wait). And they never really were able to enjoy the peace of God. The Jews had a sense that they would never have such peace.

The author of Hebrews points out that God’s promises are not for only a brief period of time. No, God’s promises are without end. We should not believe that people in the past had opportunities that we will never enjoy. We have the possibility of enjoying God’s peace.

The key is that we must open our hearts to the wisdom of God. As long as we refrain from hardening our hearts, we have the hope of one day entering into God’s peace. We need not despair. Our fate does not depend on what other people have done in the past. Our relationship with God is something that we can explore and benefit from today. We are all beloved children of God.

Reflection Questions:

1.    Have I ever experienced God’s peace? When was that and what is that like?

2.    Does God’s peace have something to do with the sabbath. How might I keep the Lord’s Day in a better way?

 Dear Parishioners,

          A retreat is a way to enter God’s peace. The word is often misused. Secular institutions use the concept when they are having team building or planning sessions. But this is not what a retreat is. A retreat is taking time out (At least several days) to listen to God’s voice and to rest in the Lord. During that time, we can reflect on our lives and ask where God is calling us. This can be an important part of a vibrant spiritual life.

          There are various types of retreats. We have a preached retreat with a retreat master who gives several talks on the spiritual life. We have retreats that are highly social that depend on interaction with others. We also have silent retreats where we work one on one with a spiritual director.

          Next week I will be directing retreats so I will not be home from Sunday through Wednesday. Please pray for me and those I will be directing. Since I will be away, I will not be posting a reflection until a week from this Sunday. Thank you for your patience.

          May Our Lady of Peace lead us into the peace of Christ.

          Fr. Mark