Sixth Sunday of Easter
(Let me preface the homily by saying that the stories I will share are not meant to put the people in them in a negative light. I respect each person and where they find themselves at a certain point in their life. I am sharing these stories with immense respect for them).
I am going to share two stories with you. The first story is about a patient at hospice I anointed last Sunday. He must have been about eighty years old. When I introduced myself to him, he seemed relieved. One of the very first things he said to me was, “Father, I am glad you are here. I have not been to church in thirty, fourty, fifty years. I have no reason for that. Just did not do it. I wish I had.” I tried to console him and let him know that God’s love is greater than our weaknesses. He believed that. But then, it is what he said afterwards that got my attention. He said, “When I get out of here, I am going to come and see you in church. I promise I will be in church every Sunday, if I can.” Of course, in my mind I was wondering if he knew he was at hospice. I really prayed that he might recover and at least be able to go to church at least once. The larger question in my mind was, did it have to come to this to realize what he should have always done? To face death with regrets – It is really not a good place to be at!
My second story is about one of the two young men I visited in jail last week. He has been incarcerated for about two months now and he is looking at a long prison sentence. I talked to him for a good half-hour. He is truly repentant of his actions. I found him sincerely trying to set himself on the road to healing. He said to me, “Father I am glad that I am in prison, because if I was not, I would be dead by now. Now that I am in, I am getting closer to God.” He said, “I am surrounded by all kinds of criminals. I cannot believe that took it took the jail to get me to God.” I had tried to help this young man earlier and so he said to me, “I wish I had listened to you, Father. But I have no regrets. I know that God has a plan for me. When I get out of jail, I really want to do good in the world.”
We can draw some very important lessons from the stories of these men. Based on these stories and today’s readings, let me offer three practical implications.
- Taking God for Granted? As I left both hospice and the jail, I became aware of one thing – that had another day to live; another day to be a free man. It made me aware of how easily I take God for granted. On Thursday, Delta flight 2028 from Fort Lauderdale to New York was diverted to Charleston because the cabin got filled with smoke from a faulty engine. One of the passengers on the flight said later, “I am not religious but I prayed, “Dear God please save me. From now on I will be a good boy.”” Today, if there one thing I want to suggest it is simply this – let us not take God or the life God has given us for granted. It does not have to take death or the jail, or a failing plane engine to realize what God means to us. I am also suggesting that we evaluate our relationship with God, our prayer time with God, our reflection of scripture, our works of mercy, and our worship. If today we were in a failing plane would we have any regrets?
- God is Love. It is easy for us to think of this dying man, the man in jail and the man in the failing plane, and say them, Duh!!! Faith, spirituality, worship – it is really that hard? Sometimes, I think, we make it hard. I am arguing that simplicity is the key. Today’s reading tells us “God is love.” And really, that is how simple it is. Jesus calls us friends. Jesus invitation is very simple, “Love another as I love you.” That is how simple it is. Simply said, religion is a celebration of God who is love. Prayer is breathing in God’s life-giving love. Charity is expressing ourselves with God’s love like a painter expresses with colors. Worship is the adoration of ‘Love’ indescribable. When we forget that faith is first and foremost about a person; when faith gets limited to doctrines and rituals; when we engage in religious activities more out of fear rather than love – that is when we lose the simplicity of our faith. If we can comprehend the utter simplicity of God and God’s love, then the practice of our faith becomes a privilege rather than a chore. It is really not that hard. Today’s scripture invite us to first discover the God of love and then to become instruments of that love. It is as simple as that.
- Today is mother’s day. Happy Mother’s Day to you. Let me tell you about my mother. She is barely 5 feet tall”. She did not attend collage and worked as a clerk in a government office for 35 years. She cooked three meals every day for my dad her two kids. She turned over her entire salary to my father and never asked about how it was spent. She had very few needs but she loved her sarees. She is the most caring mother I have even known. She loves freely, gives freely and cares freely. She is peace loving, humble and most of all simple. I love my mother because she is a simple woman. Simply said, I love and adore my mother. For me, my mother is God’s way of saying to me, “I love you.” In fact, I believe that my mother’s simplicity is a window into the simplicity of God. God made mother to let us know that God is love. To my mother and to all the mothers present here, Happy Mother’s Day.
May this Eucharist help us to experience God's love and in turn make God's love available to all. Amen.