Homily: Twenty-ninth Friday of Ordinary Time

Homily: Twenty-ninth Friday of Ordinary Time “Good Enough”

Scrupulosity is a very difficult spiritual affliction. I have had people who have approached me who were scrupulous throughout the years. They have been in pain, and it is hard to listen to them. What are the symptoms of scrupulosity?

The scrupulous person is fixated on a vindictive God. They are terrified of God. God is demanding and is constantly evaluating their life. For a scrupulous Christian there is a fear going to hell.

When you ask such a person if they believe God forgives them, they will say that they do not. A spiritual guide can point out all the places in the scriptures where God forgives sinners and all the reassuring versus in the Bible that emphasize God’s mercy and they will say that that applies to everyone else but not to them.

A Catholic who is scrupulous will want to constantly celebrate reconciliation. Perhaps they will even go to several churches on the same day. The sense of relief that they feel when they receive absolution will only last a few moments until they have their next sinful thought.

St. Paul battled with scrupulosity. For a Jew was not to escape hell, but to be righteous. A scrupulous Jew would believe that if they were not keeping the law perfectly, they would experience misfortune. There would be a price to pay, and that price might be poverty, illness, family strife, etc. The thought among devout Jews, quite often, was that if misfortune came your way you must have done something sinful. Unfortunately, we have Christians who believe the same thing.

St. Paul overcame his scrupulosity. He came to believe that all that was necessary for spiritual wellbeing was a firm belief in the unending love of God. Jesus had come to redeem him. Jesus would protect him. Paul began to believe that he could rely on God’s grace. The all-important thing for the believer was not keeping the rules but maintaining a close relationship to Jesus Christ.

Reflection Questions:

1.    Have I ever felt that God did not love me? Did those feelings pass? How?

2.   What is the fallacy that the scrupulous person believes? How might I help such a person?

Dear Parishioner,

Offering Masses for those who have died is a traditional practice in the Catholic church. You will notice in our bulletin that next to the Mass times a name is usually listed. Usually, the name is of someone who has died. People can offer Masses for other intentions. For example, couples often want a priest to offer a Mass on the day of their anniversary.

          I would point out that the Mass intention in the bulletin is not an intention that the whole parish offers. Everyone can offer their own intentions at any Mass. We could say that there are dozens of intentions at every Mass. The intent is known by the person or persons who attend Mass. The Eucharist is the most perfect prayer we can offer. It is good for everyone to offer intentions when we attend Mass.

          The second thing I would point out is that All Souls Day is a day when we solicit Mass intentions. We pass out envelopes and people can offer a Mass for all the faithful departed or a specific individual. The faithful can include their name in the envelope. The usual offering is $10, and this money is given to the priest as part of his salary. The priest can only accept one Mass stipend per day.

May Our Lady Pray for us today,

Fr. Mark