Daily Homily 4-3-2020
Friday of the 5th Week of Lent / Jeremiah: 20:10-13
“Are We Holy Fools?”
St. Philip Neri (1515-95) was an interesting character. He lived in Rome at the time of the Reformation. As a young man he did not know what he wanted to do with his life. He spent time doing corporal works of mercy around the city of Rome. He spent many hours in the hospital nursing the sick. One day in 1544 he was praying in the catacombs and he had a mystical experience and a ball of fire entered his mouth and dilated his heart. This affected him the rest of his life. An autopsy after his death revealed that he had broken ribs that allowed his heart to expand.
St. Philip was ordained a priest and started an order of priests called the Congregation of the Oratory. He was a popular religious figure around Rome, but this caused him to be criticized for vanity. He hated to be thought of in that way so he did anything he could to poke fun at himself.
He went to meetings with half of his hair cut or with half of his beard shaved. He would walk down the street in his cassock with a pillow tied to his head. He tried never to take himself too seriously. Over his office door he had a sign which read: “House of Christian Mirth.” He enjoyed playing practical jokes. He considered himself a holy fool. He believed faith often appears foolish to the unbeliever.
In the 1st reading today we read Jeremiah’s inner thoughts. He was a prophet of the Lord. He preached repentance, an unpopular topic. He was rejected and ridiculed by religious authorities. The section of Jeremiah is entitled, “Jeremiah’s Interior Crisis.” His prayer to God that we read from today starts in chapter 20 verse 7 with the words, “You duped me, O Lord, and I let myself be duped.”
Jeremiah questioned his vocation. He was being laughed at and he did not like it. None of us like to be laughed at because of our religion.
We might be questioning our Christian vocation right now. We might feel foolish for praying and trying to live a virtuous life as our world is falling apart around us. But if we feel like clowns, we walk in the footsteps of St. Philip and Jeremiah and Jesus. We care not what the world thinks. We care what God things. Our society will need many holy fools in the days ahead.
Dear Parishioners,
We all have heard the term “Easter Duty.” Perhaps that is on our mind this year. We are asked by the church to go to confession and communion during the Lenten-Easter cycle. If we are conscientious Catholics that is very much on our mind.
This year “Easter Duty is a problem because of the COVID 19 virus. I would offer two things to help those troubled by not being able to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation and Communion at this time.
First, the idea of the Easter Duty extends through the seven weeks of Easter which goes all the way to May 31st. Hopefully, we will be able to offer the sacraments at least by that time.
Second, according to the teaching of the church, if one cannot celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation with a priest, all sins are forgiven by making a sincere Act of Contrition while promising to make a confession at a later date. This teaching has been reiterated in recent weeks by Pope Francis, The National Council of Catholic Bishops and it is outlined in the Catechism of the Catholic Church (#1452).
Every Pastor must consider how and if the sacraments can be offered safely at this time. I have prayed over this and I do not feel comfortable having people leave their homes to come out to the church for reconciliation, even in an open-air setting and even if they remain n their cars. The virus we are dealing with is still not understood completely. I would hate to think that I would have people gather and that sickness might be transmitted. I may do that simply by breathing on someone. For that reason, Sacred Heart Parish will not be having people gather in groups of more that ten inside or outside until health officials say it is safe.
After it is deemed safe, we will have extended hours for confession. Perhaps, all afternoon on Saturdays for awhile for example.
I would also like to mention that Catholic Schools will not be in session before May 1st. For that reason, we will postpone Confirmation and First Communion until a later date (Hopefully, in May or June). We will need a month to pull this together once it is deemed safe to gather for worship.
All the things I just mentioned are done for the safety of all parishioners. I do not feel like I would be a good shepherd if I disregarded the suggestions of health officials and treated this pandemic too lightly.
Lastly, I remind everyone that we will be live-streaming Palm Sunday Mass tomorrow at 4 p.m. from the Lee Center. We are trying to come up with creative ways for you to participate at home.
I pray that all of you will remain safe. We are told that this crisis is going to get rougher. May the Angels and Saints watch over you today.
Fr. Mark