Jesus Christ is King of the Universe

/ Fr. Matt Schmitz / Leave a comment

Homily for Christ the King (Year A)
November 25-26, 2017
St. Francis of Assisi, Fisher – 5:00 PM
Sacred Heart, EGF – 7:30 AM; Holy Trinity, Tabor: 10:00 AM

Focus:              Jesus Christ is King of the Universe.
Function:        Crown him the King of your universe.

Christ on throne - Meinrad Chapter Room 1

Christ seated on his throne, ready to reward each who followed him faithfully.
Saint Meinrad Archabbey – Chapter Room
Ecce veni cito et merces mea mecum est reddere unicuique secundum opera sua. (Rev 22:12)
Behold I am coming soon. I bring with me the recompense I will give to each according to his deeds.

Inside every human heart, there is a kingdom.

This kingdom has great potential. It possesses unfathomable wealth.

This kingdom has an incredible intellect that can be used to accomplish marvelous things.

This kingdom has the power to dramatically influence the lives of others.

This kingdom can be at the service of others or it can be at the service of itself. It can be a wellspring of great good or a never-ending pit of evil.

It can be a kingdom of excellence or a kingdom of mediocrity.

Inside every human heart, there is a kingdom.
Inside every heart, a battle rages for this kingdom.

A battle rages for the kingship.

Every kingdom has a king.

Who will be the king of your kingdom?
Who sits upon the throne of your heart?

…

We’ve been hearing a lot about the Kingdom of God in these final days of Ordinary time.

The Kingdom of Heaven is like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom… (MT 25:1-13, Nov 12).

The Kingdom of Heaven will be as when a man going on a journey called his servants and entrusted his possessions to them…to one he gave five talents, to another, two, and to a third, one. (MT 25:14-20, Nov 19).

The Kingdom of God cannot be observed, and no one will announce “Look, here it is” or “Look, there it is.” For behold, the Kingdom of God is among you. (LK 17:20-25, Nov 16).

Brothers and sisters, the Kingdom of God is here and now.
The kingdom of God is among us.
It is here.

It is here because Jesus is here.
He is here in the Eucharist.
He is here in the Body of Christ which is the community of the Church.

The Kingdom of God is here even though it may be difficult to see it at times.

We have to learn to look for it.

A few summers ago, I participated in a hospital chaplaincy program in the cities. I went to the hospital every morning and visited patients, and I was on-call several nights and weekends during the summer.  For someone who likes to be in control and to know what’s coming, it was an anxiety-provoking experience.

I found my refuge each day in a nearby parish which offered adoration and daily Mass at a time that allowed me to attend before going to the hospital each day.

At the start of the summer, I was very aware of receiving the Lord in the Eucharist and then bringing him with me, in the pyx of my heart, into the hospital each day. I trusted that, through me, he was present to the patients I encountered throughout the day.

That was true.

But it wasn’t until mid-summer that I realized something else.

I realized that I was beginning to see differently.

It was as if time slowed down. As I walked by someone in the hallway, I began to see them as Jesus would see them.  I saw them as a son or daughter of the Father.  I became less focused on myself and how I could minister to them and became more focused on them.  I began to see Jesus in them.  Jesus was not only in my heart from receiving the Eucharist that day, he was also within the sick people I met each day.

That changed everything. It changed how I interacted with them.

The Kingdom of God is among us.
We have to learn to see it.

It is ready for us, but we must be ready for it.

We must decide.
Each of us must decide.
You must decide.

Inside every human heart, there is a kingdom.
Every kingdom has a king.
You must decide who will be the king of the kingdom within your heart.

Jesus Christ is the rightful king. He is the one who created you, who redeemed you, and who loves you.  He went to the Cross for you.  You are made to live with him eternally.  You are his.

Is he yours?
Is he your king?

Jesus Christ is the King of the Universe. That is certain.  That is what we celebrate today.  One day he will return again.  He will return and he will sit upon his glorious throne, and all the nations will be assembled before him. And he will separate them one from another…

He will separate them.

He will separate those who have enthroned him as the King of their Hearts from those who have enthroned someone else.

Those who have him seated on the throne of their hearts will inherit the kingdom that has been prepared for them from the foundation of the world.

Those who have themselves seated on the throne of their hearts, those who find themselves sitting on his throne when he returns, will go off into the eternal fire.

Who sits on the throne of your heart?
Who is the king of your heart?

Is it Jesus? Or is it you?
Are you wearing his crown? Are you sitting in his chair?
Or are you serving the needs of His Kingdom?

How do you know?

Brothers and sisters, we know.

We know where we compromise.
We know where we cut corners.
We know where we are stingy, where we are selfish, where we choose ourselves over others.

We know.

Matthew 25 confronts us face-to-face today.

If you want to know whether Jesus Christ is the King of your Heart, here’s the test.

For I was hungry and you gave me food.
I was thirsty and you gave me drink.
A stranger and you welcomed me.
Naked and you clothed me.
Ill and you cared for me.
In prison and you visited me. 

If Jesus Christ is the King of your heart, you see differently.

You see as he sees.
You see others as he sees them.
You see with tenderness.
You recognize others who have him as their king, and you serve him by serving them.
You recognize within others the battle raging for the kingdom…even if they don’t recognize it themselves.

The Kingdom of God is about changing how we see. It is about conversion of heart.  It is about changing from being “me-focused” to being God-focused, and since God cares for all, that leads us to care for all.

Jesus Christ is the King of the Universe.
Is he the King of your universe?

Chaplain’s Conference: Keep Death Daily Before Your Eyes

/ Fr. Matt Schmitz / 1 Comment

Chaplain’s Conference
Sacred Heart Catholic High School
November 15, 2017

Focus:          Keep Death Daily Before Your Eyes.
Function:    Repent.

stbenedictBack in September, I was vesting to concelebrate the morning Mass when my phone rang. A man had been brought to the ER.  It didn’t look good.  I took off my vestments and drove to the hospital.  As I entered the room with his family and approached the gurney, everything stopped.  Rich struggled to breathe, like a fish out of water.  I quickly anointed him, gave him the apostolic pardon, and told him his sins were forgiven.  The doctors and nurses resumed their activity.

Rich was no stranger to suffering: first a cancer diagnosis and then ALS. He died a couple of days later – the day before his 52nd birthday.  His family was crushed.  I visited with them again in the days that followed as we prepared for his funeral. They told stories of his life.

Rich had first been diagnosed with the cancer 10 years ago. It was a heavy cross. He suffered much. Yet, he refused to let it get him down. He chose to pick up his cross and carry it rather than allow it to crush him. Instead of lying in bed at home, he chose to sit in the bleachers for his kids’ sporting events and push through the pain. He chose to make jokes and keep his sense of humor with his family even though it would have been easy to focus on his own pain and suffering. His love for his family turned his suffering into a sacrifice – something offered up for the good of his family, and his sacrifice for them revealed the depth of his love. As I said, his family was crushed when he died. The depth of their grief – of their suffering – revealed the depth of their love for him.

The funeral reading they chose was from Book of Ecclesiastes: “God has made everything appropriate to its time.”

As I prepared the homily for Rich’s funeral, I realized that God had indeed made everything appropriate to its time for Rich. The Holy Spirit inspired me to look at the liturgical calendar for the day he died.  And there it was: the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross.  Rich, who knew the cross so well, died on the very day that reminds us that the suffering of the cross leads to the glory of the resurrection. Rich died on the day that reminds us that Jesus Christ triumphed over the suffering of the cross and transformed death from an impassable wall into a doorway – a doorway that leads to eternal life…if you are willing to walk through it…if you are willing to forsake the wide road that leads to destruction and instead walk the narrow path that leads to eternal life. Death is not the end – it leads to the glory of the resurrection – if you are willing to take up your cross and follow him.

Are you willing to do this?

…

October was respect life month. October reminded us of the incredible gift God has given us. He has given us life. And not only life, but eternal life. Eternal life with him in Heaven or eternal separation from Him in Hell.

November is the month of the dead.

On November 1, we celebrated All Saints Day. We celebrated the men and women of every time and place, saints known and unknown, saints like Peter and Paul but also saints like Rich, saints who loved greatly and now stand in the presence of God – God who is Love itself.

On November 2, we celebrated All Souls Day. We prayed in particular for those souls who are undergoing their time of purification in purgatory – souls who strove to love but had not yet been perfected in love when they died and needed some purification before they could be ready to receive the great gift of Heaven – to stand in the presence of the One who is Pure Love itself.

All throughout the month of November, we remember and pray for those who have gone before us: grandpas and grandmas, moms and dads, sisters and brothers, aunts and uncles and friends.

And we are also reminded of something that we often fail to consider. We come face to face with a reality that we don’t like to think about.

We remember that, one day, we will die.
I am going to die.
You are going to die.

…

Saint Benedict had a saying that he repeated often for his monks:

Keep death daily before your eyes.

Always remember that you are going to die and live in such a way as to be ready for death.

A friend of mine knew a priest who bought his own coffin. His coffin was handcrafted and made of wood. He stood it on its end in his office and installed some shelves so that it could be used for a bookcase. Every morning he’d walk into his office, stop, point to his coffin, and say “I’m coming for you!”

He kept death daily before his eyes.

Last week, the Church remembered Saint Martin of Tours. Saint Martin was a man who lived in the 300s. He was a monk and later became a bishop and was a good pastor for his people. He showed them how to live a godly life, and he cared for those in need. And he kept death daily before his eyes.

Martin knew long in advance the time of his death. When his time drew near, he told his brothers he was about to die. But first he had to make a visit to one of his parishes. The priests there were fighting among themselves, and he wanted to help them reconcile. Even though he knew he didn’t have much time left, he chose to undertake the journey for their sake. Love turned the suffering of the journey into a sacrifice for them.

He spent some time with them, and was able to help them forgive each other and reconcile with one another. He told them he was dying. They were saddened. “Why are you deserting us? Who will care for us when you are gone?” Martin wept and turned to the Lord in prayer, saying, “Lord, if your people still need me, I am ready for the task; your will be done.”

Here was a man that words could not describe. Death could not defeat him and he wasn’t afraid of hard work. He neither feared to die nor refused to live. He was lying on his back on his deathbed. Some of the priests suggested that he should turn over and give his body some relief. He answered by saying: “Allow me, my brothers, to look toward heaven rather than at the earth, so that my spirit may set on the right course when the time comes for me to go on my journey to the Lord.”[i]

 Martin kept death daily before his eyes.

Do you?

Are you living now so that you will be ready to face death?

Here’s the test. If you were to die today, what would other people say about you? What would be your legacy?

Would they say you are generous or would they say that you are stingy?

Would they say you are kind or would they call you a bully?

Would they say that you sacrificed for others or that you only looked out for yourself?

Would they say that they were a better person for having known you? Or would carry within their souls the wounds from their interactions with you?

Would they say that your example of holiness inspired them to pursue holiness themselves? Or would they say that your example of vice led them into sin?

Would they say that you were a man or woman who forgives? Or would they say that you were a man or woman who holds grudges?

Would you be known as a man or woman who loved greatly?

What would others say about you?

What would Christ say about you?

What would your FaceBook page, your Twitter feed, or your snapchats say about you?

Keep death daily before your eyes.

Rich was ready.
Martin of Tours was ready.

Are you?

 

[i] From the second reading in the Office of Readings for November 11, the Memorial of Saint Martin.

The Saints are Among Us

/ Fr. Matt Schmitz / Leave a comment

Homily for All Saints Day (Year A)
November 1, 2017
Good Samaritan, EGF – 10:00 AM
Holy Trinity, Tabor – 6:00 PM; St. Francis of Assisi, Fisher – 7:30 PM

Focus:              The saints are among us.
Function:         Today we celebrate them.

all saints

They are here. They are among us.
The saints.
They are living among us.
They are here.

St. Irenaeus once said that “the glory of God is man fully alive.” The saints were fully alive when they lived on earth and they are fully alive in Heaven.  If the glory of God is man fully alive, and the saints are fully alive, then the Glory of God is in his saints.

And, brothers and sisters, the Glory of God is blinding today. It is a blinding light.

They are here.
They are all around us.

We are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses…
A cloud of intercessors.

We are surrounded by men and women who sought to love God with the totality of their being – with all they’ve got – with all they have and are.

We are surrounded by men and women who allowed their lives to be transformed, who allowed their hearts to be converted, by the grace of God and the light of the Gospel.

We are surrounded by them.
We are.
They are here.
They are among us.

We are surrounded by men and women whose example of life inspires us and spurs us on to pursue a more abundant life. A life lived not for ourselves but for others.  A life poured out in service.  A life lived for God.

Today we celebrate them. We celebrate all saints.

Saints both known and unknown.
Saints from every time and place.

kolbe

Saints like Maximilian Kolbe, a man who stepped forward and offered his life in exchange for the life of Franciszek Gajowniczek, who had been sentenced to death in a starvation bunker in Auschwitz during World War II, a man whose last dying act was to raise his hand in blessing over the man who gave him his lethal injection.

Today we celebrate them. We celebrate all saints.

frassatiSaints like Pier Giorgio Frassati, still a blessed and not yet recognized as a saint, an Italian man who loved the Eucharist even more than he loved mountain climbing and smoking cigars, a man who died much too young at the age of 24 by contracting polio from a sick person he ministered to, a man whose last act on his deathbed was to scribble out a note to a friend telling him that the medicine in his coat pocket was to be delivered to a poor man who was unable to afford the medicine he needed.

Today we celebrate them. We celebrate all saints.

Stanley_RotherSaints like Stanley Rother, a farm boy from Oklahoma who became a priest of the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City who worked in the Missions in Guatemala, a man who refused to leave during the civil war when it became dangerous, stating “The shepherd cannot run at the first sign of danger.” Fr. Rother was true to his word and it cost him his life. He was beatified 2 months ago and became the first American-born martyr.

Today we celebrate them. We celebrate all saints.

Saints known and unknown.
Saints famous and obscure.
Saints recognized and unrecognized.

Saints like our parents and grandparents who, in simple and humble ways, went about the tasks of their daily lives with a charity, a joy, and a zeal for others that lifted others’ spirits, that let others know they were cared for, that they were loved, that they mattered.

Today we celebrate them. We celebrate all saints.

Saints like our friend who suffered greatly from this or that cancer, but never complained and seized the moment of each day, saints who turned their suffering into a sacrifice for the sake of the ones they loved, saints who lived each day to the fullest, saints who could see God’s grace present to them in the midst of the Cross they carried.

Today we celebrate them. We celebrate all saints.

Saints like firemen who rush into burning buildings to save others’ lives at the cost of their own.

Today we celebrate them. We celebrate all saints.

Saints known and unknown.
Saints canonized and not canonized.
Saints famous and obscure.

And, brothers and sisters, saints in heaven but also those saints who still walk among us.

Saints like our children and grandchildren who struggle to balance work and family life, who strive to teach their children about the Love of God in a culture that so often has forgotten about God.

Saints like the neighbor who has suffered so much loss in her life and yet still she presses on with courage and joy because she hopes in the promises of her loving God and longs to see his face.

Saints who volunteer their time to come and sit with us, to listen to our stories, saints who visit those in the nursing homes and hospitals, saints who visit those who are confined to their homes, saints who comfort us in our sadness and bathe the wounds that come from living with the compassion from their hearts.

Today we celebrate them.
Today we celebrate the heroic men and women of every time and place.
Today we celebrate all saints.

Today we honor them.
Today we thank them.
Today we ask them to continue to pray for us, so that where they have gone, we may one day follow.

They are here.
They are all around us.

They are the Glory of God.
And, brothers and sisters, the Glory of God is indeed blinding today!

Love God and Light a Fire for the Sake of His People

/ Fr. Matt Schmitz / Leave a comment

Homily for 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)
October 29, 2017
Holy Trinity, Tabor – 8:00 AM; St. Francis of Assisi, Fisher – 10:00 AM

Focus:              God loves his people.
Function:         Love God and Light a Fire for the sake of his people.

Recently, I have been reading a very good book by Fr. Thomas Dubay. The book is called Deep Conversion Deep Prayer.  The book is about how a deeper prayer life leads to deeper conversion, and how deeper conversion leads to a deeper prayer life.

At the beginning of the book, Fr. Dubay introduces us to Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, a man who lived in the 1100s. St. Bernard is a saintly hero of mine – I greatly admire him for his preaching ability.  When he was 20 years old, he entered a monastery, which is remarkable in itself.  What is extraordinary is that he brought 20 other young men with him.

Eventually Bernard was elected as the abbot of his monastery. In one of his conferences to his monks, he said this:

There are more people converted from mortal sin to grace, than there are religious people converted from good to better.

Fr. Dubay echoes this point, but he goes on further to state that this is true of people in all states of life. It is true of priests, married people, religious people, and single people.  It is true of all of us.

There are more people converted from mortal sin to grace, than there are religious people converted from good to better.

In other words, there are more people who give up serious alienation from God then there are people who give up small wrongs or willed venial sins. And there are even fewer who grow in heroic virtue and live as saints live.[i]

There are more people who go from bad to good than there are people who go from good to better and better to best.

There are more people who repent and believe in the Gospel than there are people who seek to love God with their whole mind, heart, soul, and strength and their neighbor as themselves.

People will give up serious sin but they will stop at pursuing holiness. They will work to overcome vice but they will stop a pursuing virtue.

There are more people converted from mortal sin to grace, than there are religious people converted from good to better.

Of course, we are called to more than simply giving up sin. We are called to love.  Sin stands in the way of our ability to love so we must give up sin.  But to merely give up sin without progressing in love is to give up on the journey after we’ve packed the car and pulled out of the driveway.

Brothers and sisters, we are called to more. We are called to so much more.

We are called to love.

We are called to love with a heroic love.

We are called to love the One who first loved us with a love so strong that it called us into our very existence. We are called to love Him with all that we have and are because He first loved us.

Can we do it?

We can, with God’s help. And what’s more, it’s what we’re called to.  It’s who we’re called to be.

You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and first commandment.  The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.  The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments.

Brothers and sisters, outside of the context of freeing us to love, the other commandments make no sense. We can fulfill the letter of the law when it comes to the other commandments but if our motivation is something other than to grow in our ability to love, then we are missing the mark.

In another place, Jesus said:

You have heard it said that You Shall Not Commit Adultery. But I say to you, whoever looks at another with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

If we merely fulfill the letter of the law but miss the spirit of the law, we are missing the point. If we look at another lustfully but stop short of committing the act of adultery, we are missing the point.

We are called to more. We are called to so much more.  We are called to love.

The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments. To love God with everything we have, and to love our neighbor as ourselves.

How are you doing?

Do you love God with all you’ve got?

Where do you compromise?

Where do you make excuses to sin?

There are more people converted from mortal sin to grace, than there are religious people converted from good to better.

Where do you stop short of conversion?

John Henry Newman was an Anglican priest who lived in the 1800s. He converted to Catholicism and later became a cardinal.  Fr. Dubay noted that Newman made this observation:

[L]arge groups of people, even large groups of religiously-minded people, do not light fires. Throughout the Church’s twenty centuries of history, it is individuals who ignite the blazes…Government bodies, town hall meetings, boards of directors on occasion promote worthy projects and programs…but these groups seldom, if ever, do anything that looks like [a huge fire].  If the group is blessed to have a saint in its midst, something great may happen–unless the group manages to thwart even a saint with majority mediocrity.  It is men and women like Augustine, Chrysostom, Benedict, Bernard, Francis, Dominic, Catherine, Thomas, Ignatius, Teresa of Avila, John of the Cross, John Vianney and Therese of Lisieux who light fires.  The evidence is convincing.

The glories of Church history are chiefly the works of individuals who, themselves bursting with love and intimacy with the Trinity, spark others to imitate their burning love, their [greatness of soul] and their heroicity in all the virtues. At the same time it is their deep love intimacy with the Lord that is the taproot of their ability to heal human hurts.[ii]

Brothers and sisters, the Lord came to cast a fire on the earth. He came to ignite a fire – the fire of charity.  The fire has been lit.  Will you catch fire and illumine the darkness so that others will catch fire from you?  Will you help spread it?

Become who you were meant to be and you will set the world on fire.
Put the law of love into practice and you will set the world on fire.

The two great commandments go together. They cannot be separated.  Love of God with all you’ve got will lead to love of neighbor, because you cannot love God with all you’ve got without loving what God loves with all you’ve got.  And God infinitely loves you and the person sitting next to you.

October is Respect Life Month.
Today is Life and Dignity Sunday.

Today provides you with a small opportunity to take a step toward conversion. To take a step toward loving God and loving your neighbor.  Today provides you with an opportunity to be converted from good to better.


MCCIn your pews are cards to sign up for the Catholic Advocacy Network. This network is run by the Minnesota Catholic Conference of Bishops.  It provides a way for you to stay informed of current legislation of interest to Catholics in Minnesota – legislation that has the potential to help or harm your brothers and sisters right here at home.

 

You may be tempted to say, “I don’t care. I don’t need another email.  I don’t want to be involved.”

I would remind you of this. God cares.  And for that reason, so should you.  God loves you infinitely.  He loves your children infinitely.  He loves your neighbor infinitely.  And he calls you to love them as you love yourself.  Love doesn’t stand idly by.

You shall love the Lord, your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and first commandment.  The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.  The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments.

Take a step toward deeper conversion today.
Take a step toward becoming a saint.
Take a step toward loving more deeply.
Take a step toward setting the world on fire.

[i] Fr. Thomas Dubay, Deep Conversion Deep Prayer, p. 12.
[ii] Ibid., p. 74.

You Belong to God

/ Fr. Matt Schmitz / Leave a comment

Homily for 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)
October 21-22, 2017
Sacred Heart, EGF – 5:00 PM
Holy Trinity, Tabor – 8:00 AM; St. Francis of Assisi, Fisher – 10:00 AM

Focus:               You Belong to God.
Function:         Give Yourself to God.

Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and repay to God what belongs to God.

What belonged to Caesar?

Matters of state.
Care for the population.
The taxes to be paid by the coin that bore his image.

What belongs to God?

Everything. All of creation.
Glory and Honor, according to the Psalm response for this Mass (Ps 96: “Give the Lord Glory and Honor”).
Most especially, the coin that bears his image.

What is this coin that bears the image of God?

You are.

In the beginning He created them, in the divine image he created them, male and female he created them.

You are made in the image and likeness of God.  Through your baptism, the likeness of God that had been lost through the original sin was restored to you.

You are made in the image and likeness of God.  You bear his image in the world.

Repay to God what belongs to God.

In other words, give yourself to him.

St. Irenaeus, an early Church Father, said this: The Glory of God is Man Fully Alive.
The responsorial psalm for this Mass exhorts us to Give the Lord Glory and Honor.
Jesus says to Repay to God what belongs to God.

So, if we are to repay to God what belongs to God, then we must become fully alive in Christ.  The disciple who is fully alive in Christ gives glory and honor to God.

The person who goes above and beyond,
who pursues excellence and virtue,
who pushes the limits of a charity which knows no limits,
who strives for greatness…
This person gives glory and honor to God.

The person who strives to love rather than to merely fulfill the requirements of the law,
to shoot for the stars rather than figure out the bare minimum to be done,
to sacrifice for the good of others instead of flying under the radar…
This person gives glory and honor to God.

The person who asks not “How hard do I have to work” but rather “What am I capable of?” This person gives glory and honor to God.

The person who seeks to love like Jesus loves,
setting their heart ablaze with the fire of a charity that cannot be contained more than they try to merely avoid sinning…
This person gives glory and honor to God.

We’ve all known people like this in our lives. We’ve experienced the Glory of God
in people who have inspired us, in disciples whose example, whose witness, whose often silent witness, calls and challenges us to be the best that we can be. They call the best out of us.  They inspire it out of us.

They don’t take the easy way out.
They challenge themselves.
They surround themselves with others whose witness challenges them.
They are willing to challenge others to be the best that they can be.
They live the truth of the Gospel without compromise.
They don’t complain.
They are joyful.
They don’t look to their own interests but look to the interests of others.
They love.

And the image of God can be seen clearly in them.

The image of God in them isn’t obscured by selfishness, covered over by negativity, or buried in the mire of vices and sins. Not that they don’t have sins and vices, but they constantly work to overcome them, picking themselves out of the gutter when they find themselves there and returning to the Lord in prayer and the sacraments so that he can polish them, making them shine as they bear his image ever more clearly to a world in need.

In a word, they give glory to God because they pursue one thing: holiness. They strive to be holy.  They abandon themselves to the God whose love is a living flame, and they allow his love to burn away the sins and vices that cover his image in them.  They look to Christ whose image they are to bear and they strive to conform their wills to His, to become an icon, an image, of Jesus Christ in the world.  They die to themselves and allow themselves to be transformed by Christ, to be transformed into another Christ.

CS Lewis described these people in his book Mere Christianity:

Already the new men are dotted here and there all over the earth. Some, as I have admitted, are still hardly recognizable: but others can be recognized. Every now and then one meets them. Their very voices and faces are different from ours: stronger, quieter, happier, more radiant. They begin where most of us leave off. They are, I say, recognizable; but you must know what to look for. They will not be very like the idea of ‘religious people’ which you have formed from your general reading. They do not draw attention to themselves. You tend to think that you are being kind to them when they are really being kind to you. They love you more than other men do, but they need you less. They will usually seem to have a lot of time: you will wonder where it comes from. When you have recognized one of them, you will recognize the next one much more easily. And I strongly suspect that they recognize one another immediately and infallibly, across every barrier of color, sex, class, age, and even of creeds. In that way, to become holy is rather like joining a secret society. To put it at the very lowest, it must be great fun.

Brothers and sisters, you are made in the image and likeness of God.
You bear his image.
You belong to him.

The Glory of God is man fully alive.

Become what you were meant to be.
Become fully alive in the Spirit and give yourself to Him.
Become fully alive in the Spirit by giving yourself to Him.

Give Him glory and honor.

Repay to God what belongs to God.

And at the end, on that day when Jesus looks at you and says “Show me the coin”, all will know to whom you belong because they will clearly see Whose Image you bear.

The Feast is Ready

/ Fr. Matt Schmitz / Leave a comment

Homily for 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)
October 15, 2017
Sacred Heart, EGF – 7:30 AM; 9:00 AM; 10:30 AM

Focus:               The Feast is Ready.
Function:          Come Hungry.

Thanksgiving dinner.jpgWhen I was in high school, I worked for a Kmart store. All of us were expected to work on Thanksgiving Day since it was such a big shopping day, but they would always try to schedule the shifts in such a way as to allow as many of us as possible to enjoy Thanksgiving Dinner with our families.

Still, no one cares for working on Thanksgiving. To make it more enjoyable and to create some excitement, the store always catered in an early Thanksgiving lunch.  Turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, corn, cranberry…

When it was my turn for a break, I went back to the lounge and got a plate. I had been up early and was hungry.  It smelled so good!  I enjoyed lunch with some of my friends and then went back to work for another hour to finish my shift.

When I got home, the yard was filled with cars. I walked in the house and was greeted by my mom and dad, aunts, uncles and cousins.  They had been waiting for me.  We prayed and everyone started going through the line.  I hung toward the back.

“Matt, grab a plate!” my mom said.

This wasn’t going to go over well…

I had so filled myself with the catered meal at work that I had no appetite for the home-cooked feast that my mom had prepared…I’ll never forget how her face fell as she exclaimed: “I can’t believe you did that!”

Brothers and sisters, today’s readings remind us that the Lord has prepared a feast for us…an abundant feast of rich foods and choice wines. We are called to the supper of the Lamb.  Yet, so often, we fill ourselves with other foods and kill our appetite for the feast that the Lord has prepared.

We fill ourselves with the fast food of pleasure and instant gratification so that we no longer hunger for the banquet of Christ’s love.

But Christ calls us to something more.

Christ calls us to the Banquet.

And he calls us to go into the main roads and invite to the feast whomever we find. Bring them in so that they may feed on banquet that will satisfy every hunger of the human heart.

Some declined the invitation to the Wedding Feast. They declined it because weren’t hungry for it.  They had filled themselves with other things, things that seemed to satisfy but in the end would only leave them hungry again.

Others jumped at the invitation to the Feast and gladly accepted, but they took it for granted. They came to the Feast but they spurned the King by coming in unprepared.

They came to the feast but did not robe themselves with repentance.

They came to the feast but failed to clothe themselves with the garment of gratitude, the clothes of conversion, preferring instead the soiled clothes of an unmoved heart. They treated the special wedding feast as if it were a quick lunch break at a fast food restaurant, and they offended the king.

Brothers and sisters, the feast is ready.

The fatted calf has been killed.
Everything is ready.

Come to the feast.

Come to the feast and receive the food that satisfies the hungers of the heart.

Come to the feast and receive the Living Bread come down from Heaven – the bread that is the flesh for the life of the world.

Come to the feast and taste a wine that is rich and full-bodied, a foretaste and sample of the good wine we all hope to experience one day at the Wedding Feast of Heaven, a sober intoxication of the Spirit of God himself.

Come to the feast.

Come hungry.

This is why the Church requires us to fast an hour before receiving the Eucharist. We fast from the food that doesn’t satisfy in order to increase our desire for the food that ultimately satisfies…

The Bread of Life and the Chalice of Salvation…
A Body broken and Blood outpoured…

Come to the feast.

Come with your wedding garment, come clothed in the white garment that was given to you by the King at your baptism, the white garment that is the outward sign of your Christian dignity, the garment that you were urged to bring unstained into the wedding feast, a garment that so often gets soiled by the sin of our daily living but thanks be to God the garment that is also able to be washed white again by the Blood of the Lamb in the confessional.

This is why we are to confess any serious sins, any mortal sins, before we receive Holy Communion, so that we may enter the feast clothed in our wedding garment, so that we may partake of the banquet with hearts contrite and spirits humble.

God provides all that we need.

God is the one who provides the banquet.
God is the one who prepares the feast.
God is the one who provides the garment.

God is the one who has invited us, called us, chosen us.

Blessed are those who are called to the supper of the Lamb.

Brothers and sisters, everything is ready.
The invitation has been extended:
“Come to the feast.”
“Come hungry.”

Bear Fruit That Will Remain

/ Fr. Matt Schmitz / Leave a comment

Homily for 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)
October 7-8, 2017
Sacred Heart, EGF – 5:00 PM
Holy Trinity, Tabor – 8:00 AM; St. Francis of Assisi, Fisher – 10:00 AM

Focus:             He has chosen you to bear fruit.
Function:       Bear fruit that will remain.

vineyard

We’ve been hearing a lot about vineyards over the past couple of weeks.

Two weeks ago, we heard the story of the landowner who went out at various hours of the day to hire laborers to work in his vineyard. He went out at 6:00, 9:00, noon, 3:00, and 5:00 and hired laborers to work in his vineyard. “Go into my vineyard”, he told them. He gave them what, in his eyes, was just, although the laborers who were hired early in the day did not feel it was fair, even though most of them received more than they could have hoped for.

Last week, we heard the story of the Father who told his two sons: “Go and work in my vineyard today.” One said “I will not” but changed his mind and went. The other said “Yes, sir” but did not go.

This week, we hear about more vineyards.

The first reading speaks of how the Lord worked hard to cultivate a vineyard that would bear abundant fruit, but despite all of his efforts, despite all of the grace that he poured upon it, it would not bear fruit. The only thing to be done was to tear it down. This vineyard was compared to the Israelite people – the people whom God had chosen, called out of slavery in Egypt, brought into the Promised Land, and worked countless signs and wonders in their presence so that they would trust Him. They didn’t. They constantly rebelled, they sinned, and they bore bad fruit.

The Gospel, like the first reading, speaks of how the Lord worked hard to cultivate a vineyard that would bear abundant fruit. This time, it does bear fruit, but the tenants in charge of it are greedy and won’t give the landowner the fruit. They work against the landowner. They rebel against him and even kill his son. They wouldn’t share the fruit that the vineyard bore. So the landowner took it away from them.

Brothers and sisters, throughout the pages of history, this story of the vineyard has repeated itself time and time again. The book is now opened to our page. We are given everything we need to bear abundant fruit. Christ calls us to bear abundant fruit.

I have chosen you from the world, says the Lord, to go and bear fruit that will remain.

He has chosen us to bear fruit, and he has equipped us to do so. He equips us with his grace. He gives us the gift of His Spirit, which we receive in Baptism and Confirmation. He calls us to use the gifts of the Holy Spirit to bear fruit.

Saint Paul’s letter to the Galatians tells us that the fruits of the Holy Spirit are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

If we are responding to the grace that God is pouring upon us at every moment, we will see these fruits abound in our lives. If we aren’t seeing these fruits, perhaps something in our spiritual lives needs to change.

Jesus said, By your fruits you will know them…Every sound tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears evil fruit… (MT 7:15-20).

Are you bearing good fruit?

Are you bearing the fruit of love,
love that is more than a feeling,
love that pours itself out in service to others?
If you aren’t experiencing this fruit, consider finding a way to serve others, to make a gift of yourself to others. Don’t just think about it, do it.  You say you don’t have time.  I say that if you make time you will find time, and you will find more than time, you will find love, joy, peace, and happiness…

Are you bearing the fruit of joy,
a joy that abides even amid the stresses that are part of daily living,
a joy that comes from knowing that you are a beloved son or daughter of the Father,
a joy that comes from knowing that your eternal inheritance is in Heaven?
If you aren’t experiencing this fruit, I encourage you to take up the practice of counting your blessings each day. See the gifts that God has given you and your heart will be filled with joy.

Are you bearing the fruit of peace,
a deep peace that is unshakeable even amid the waters of the most turbulent storm,
a peace that comes from spending time in the presence of the Lord?
If you lack peace in your life, consider spending one hour per week in Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. Come any day during the week and sit before the Tabernacle, or come on Tuesday and gaze upon the Lord while he is enthroned upon this altar – the Lord who said to his apostles “Peace I leave you, my peace I give you.” I promise you it will bear the fruit of peace.

Are you bearing the fruit of patience, a willingness to bear the burdens of another, to put up with another’s foolishness because they are willing to put up with yours?

Is your life marked by the fruits of kindness and gentleness, fruits that grow in lives secure in the strength of their identity as one created, redeemed, and loved by God?

Is your life bearing the fruit of generosity? Would others say you are a generous person? If you want to grow in generosity, take a leap of faith a give heroically of your time, talent, or treasures. Commit to something even if you don’t feel you have the time or money to do so. Ask the Lord to provide for you. He will teach you dependence on him and your generosity will bear abundant fruit.

Is your life marked by the fruit of faithfulness? Do you keep your commitments to God and to the people in your life? If you want to grow in faithfulness, pick a target – an area where you want to be faithful – and ask someone to hold you accountable, to check-in from time to time and ask how you’re doing.

Is your life a life of self-control? Are you a man or woman of temperance, of moderation? If you want to grow in self-control in an area of your life, whether it be anger, food, drink, or sexuality, consider the practice of fasting from something. We have one will – when we deny ourselves in one area of our lives, that strengthens our will to be temperate in other areas of our life. Practice fasting in some area and you will find yourself bearing the fruit of self-control.

I have chosen you from the world, says the Lord, to go and bear fruit that will remain.

He has chosen you to bear fruit that will remain.
By your fruits, you will be known.

Are you bearing good fruit? Or do you need to make a change in your spiritual life?

He gives you all you need.
You are not alone in this.

He gives you the fruit of his very Body and Blood from this altar to strengthen you so that your life can bear abundant fruit.

Blessed are those who are called to the supper of the Lamb.

Today is the Day. Seize the Day.

/ Fr. Matt Schmitz / Leave a comment

Homily for 26th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)
September 30 and October 1, 2017
Sacred Heart, EGF – 5:00 PM
Holy Trinity, Tabor – 8:00 AM; St. Francis of Assisi, Fisher: 10:00 AM

Focus:               Today is the day.
Function:         Seize the day!

cats in the cradle

Two sons.
One call.

Two answers.
Two responses.

Son, go out and work in my vineyard today.

“I don’t want to.”
“I do enough already.”
“I’m scared.”
“I have other things to do.”
“I’m too busy.”
“I don’t want to work that hard.”
“Someone else can do it, it’s not my job.”
“Other people can take care of it.”

Son, go out and work in my vineyard today.
I will not.

Two sons.
One call.

Two answers.
Two responses.

Son, go out and work in my vineyard today.

“Sure, Dad, right after this TV show is done.”
“I will Mom, just give me a minute.”
“I will as soon as things slow down at work.”

Son, go out and work in my vineyard today.
Yes, sir.

…

Brothers and sisters, like the two sons in today’s Gospel, we given the invitation every day to work in the vineyard. What is our response?

Is it the response of the first son, who said “No” but then changed his mind and went?
Or is it the response of the second son, who said “Yes” but never went?

The Lord gives us the invitation to follow him every day. The Lord cares about what we do with today’s invitation.  He’s not interested in what we did with yesterday’s invitation.  He’s interested in what we will do with today’s invitation.

When someone turns away from virtue to commit iniquity, and dies, it is because of the iniquity he committed that he must die.

It is because he gave up his opportunity today. He had the freedom that virtue gives – he had the good habits that he needed and he freely chose to turn away from them to sin.  He failed to seize the day.

But if he turns from the wickedness he has committed, he does what is right and just, he shall preserve his life; since he has turned away from all the sins he has committed.

It is because he worked to overcome his enslavement to sin. His freedom was lacking because of the vice that had him enslaved, and he freely chose to turn away from that sin.  He seized the day.

The Lord extends his invitation every day. He’s not interested in how we’ve responded to the invitation in the past.  He cares about today.

Today is the day.

Today is the day to pray.
Today is the day to serve.
Today is the day to turn off the TV and spend time with your family.
Today is the day to examine your conscience and make a decision to confess your sins if you’ve been putting it off.
Today is the day to make a decision to combat the vice you struggle with by cultivating the opposite virtue.
Today is the day to make a gift of yourself to others.
Today is the day to repent, to turn around, to make a radical change in your life.
Today is the day to not give in, to not give up. Today is the day to continue to seek His grace in times of temptation, to persevere in your pursuit of virtue.

Today is the day you’ve been given.

Today is the day.

Seize the day.

Do not put off until tomorrow what you can do today.
Delay not your conversion to the Lord, put it not off from day to day.

Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow is not yet here.
The only time we have is today. Make the most of it.

…

I’m reminded of the famous song by Harry Chapin:

My child arrived just the other day
He came to the world in the usual way
But there were planes to catch, and bills to pay
He learned to walk while I was away
And he was talking ‘fore I knew it, and as he grew
He’d say, I’m gonna be like you, dad
You know I’m gonna be like you

And the cat’s in the cradle and the silver spoon
Little boy blue and the man in the moon
When you coming home, dad?
I don’t know when
But we’ll get together then
You know we’ll have a good time then

My son turned ten just the other day
He said, thanks for the ball, dad, come on let’s play
Can you teach me to throw, I said, not today
I got a lot to do, he said, that’s okay
And he walked away, but his smile never dimmed
Said, I’m gonna be like him, yeah
You know I’m gonna be like him

Well, he came from college just the other day
So much like a man I just had to say
Son, I’m proud of you
Can you sit for a while?
He shook his head, and he said with a smile
What I’d really like, dad, is to borrow the car keys
See you later
Can I have them please?

I’ve long since retired and my son’s moved away
I called him up just the other day
I said, I’d like to see you if you don’t mind
He said, I’d love to, dad, if I could find the time
You see, my new job’s a hassle, and the kid’s got the flu
But it’s sure nice talking to you, dad
It’s been sure nice talking to you

And the cat’s in the cradle and the silver spoon
Little boy blue and the man in the moon
When you coming home, son?
I don’t know when
But we’ll get together then
You know we’ll have a good time then

…

The Lord continually calls us, he invites us, he urges us.

Go and work in my vineyard today.

TODAY, brothers and sisters, today.

Can you hear his call?

Today is the day.

Seize the day.

You Have to Know His Mercy to Show His Mercy

/ Fr. Matt Schmitz / Leave a comment

Homily for 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)
September 17, 2017
St. Francis of Assisi, Fisher – 8:00 AM; Holy Trinity, Tabor – 10:00 AM

Focus:              You have to know His mercy to show His mercy.
Function:        Know His mercy.

pope francis confession

To the servant, mercy was shown.
But by him, it was not known.
And because it was not known
To another, it could not be shown.
And because it could not be shown
In the end, the only thing to be known
Was pain and torture, which was shown

The debt he owed was massive.

In the time of Jesus, the main currency was the denarii. A denarii was a day’s wage. If one worked six days a week and rested on the Sabbath, there would be 312 working days in a year, so a person could earn 312 denarii per year.

A talent was six thousand denarii. If one worked 312 days per year, every year, it would take him 19 years to bring in one talent. A working man of that time would bring in his first talent after working for half of his lifetime.

This servant owed a “myriad of talents.”

A myriad was ten thousand.

Sixty million days’ wages.

It would take him 5,000 lifetimes to earn the amount needed to cover his debt. And that was before he provided for the needs of his family.

He owed a massive debt that he had absolutely no hope of paying.

And payment day came.

Payment day came, and he pleaded with the Master, “Please, give me some time! Be patient with me and I will pay you back in full!”

Be patient with me?!

Five thousand lifetimes! The servant owed ten thousand talents. The most he could hope to pay back was two!

Yet, the master did something incredible. He forgave the entire debt.

To the servant, mercy was shown.
But by him, it was not known.

It was not known because he did not accept the forgiveness of the debt. The Master looked upon him with pity, but like so many of us, he didn’t want pity. He wanted to pay back what he owed even though it was impossible. He wanted to pull himself up by his bootstraps. He accepted not mercy but an extension on an unpayable loan.

Rather than looking with amazement and profound gratitude on the incredible gift he has just been given, he runs to the couch and digs through the cushions, looking for enough change to make the next payment on his mansion.

He spurns the gift of the Master.

He chokes the servant who owes him 100 denarii – a debt that can be repaid within the year – and demands that it be paid back in full immediately.

To the servant, mercy was shown.
But by him, it was not known
And because it was not known
To another, it could not be shown.
And because it could not be shown
In the end, the only thing to be known
Was pain and torture, which was shown

Brothers and sisters, like that servant, you and I owe a massive debt. It is a debt that we have no hope of repaying.

God has given us everything we have. He has given us life. He has given us our family and friends. He has given us our health. He has given us our skills, talents, food, water, and freedom. We can never repay him for what we have been given. All we have is gift.

In the words of Psalm 49:
For no man can buy his own ransom,
Or pay a price to God for his life.
The ransom of his soul is beyond him.
He cannot buy life without end,
Nor avoid coming to the grave.

In spite of the gift we have been given, we added to the debt we already owed God. We sinned against him. We spurned the gifts we’ve been given. With the first sin, death entered the world.

Paul tells us in the Letter to the Romans that:
The wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23a).

Death entered the world, and we owed a debt that could not be paid. But God himself paid it for us. He sent his Son in to the world to pay the debt that we ourselves could not pay. That’s the Good News of the Gospel!  Yes, the wages of sin is death, but that’s only the first half of the sentence.  The verse from Romans continues:

The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 6:23).

Christ has set us free. Christ has paid the debt. It is a double gift. First, the gift of life and everything we have and are. Second, redemption of the gift which we spurned with our sins.

Do we accept the gift we’ve been given?

Do we accept the mercy offered by God every day?

Or, like the servant in today’s Gospel, do we spurn the gift, foolishly trying to pay back a debt that we are unable to repay, frantically trying to take care of it ourselves rather than accepting the gift we’ve been given?

All that God asks of us is to be merciful with each other as he has been merciful to us. But until we know the mercy that he has shown us, we will not be able to show it to others.

You have to know His mercy to show His mercy.

Do you know His mercy?

How long has it been since you’ve been to Confession?

You have to know His mercy to show His mercy.

Realize the magnitude of the gift that is offered to you, and accept it. Accept it, and you will be amazed how easy it becomes to forgive others their faults, when you realize how much you yourself have been forgiven.

To you, his servant, mercy is shown.
If by you, it could only be known…
To another, how easily it could be shown!
And if it could be shown
In the end, the only thing to be known
Is the gift of eternal life, which will be shown.

 

You Need a Watchman

/ Fr. Matt Schmitz / Leave a comment

Homily for 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)
September 9-10, 2017
Sacred Heart, EGF – 5:30 PM
St. Francis of Assisi, Fisher – 8:00 AM; Holy Trinity, Tabor – 10:00 AM

Focus:              You need a watchman.
Function:        Who’s your watchman?

spiritual-watchman

I have appointed you watchman for the house of Israel; when you hear me say anything, you shall warn them for me.

The watchman had a heavy responsibility. He was stationed on the highest part of a city to warn the citizens of an approaching enemy.  From his perspective, the watchman had a clearer view than others.  He could see what they could not see, and so it was his job to warn them of the danger that they could not see coming.

The capital sin is pride. Pride was the original sin that led Adam and Eve to eat the forbidden fruit.  They thought they could be like God himself.  They were wrong.  Pride is a blinding sin.  It causes us to fail to see the faults in ourselves – faults that others can clearly see.  And so, like the house of Israel, we need a watchman.

You need a watchman.

You need a watchman who will sound the alarm when he sees you walking into danger.

You need a watchman who will warn you when you veer off of the narrow path that leads to eternal life and begin to walk down the wide road that leads to destruction.

You need a watchman with the courage and the clarity of Paul Revere, a watchman who will not remain enclosed in the fortress of his own self-preservation, a watchman who will ride through the darkened streets of your conscience, shining the lantern of truth to enlighten your mind and heart to the approaching of the enemy that you cannot see.

Brothers and sisters, you need a watchman.

You need a watchman who will hold you accountable to living the Christian life.

You need a watchman with the courage to challenge you when you need to be challenged.

You need a watchman…in other words, you need a good friend. St. Basil the Great said it well: For in this way especially does a friend differ from a flatterer: the flatterer speaks to give pleasure, but the friend refrains from nothing, even that which causes pain.

You need a watchman.

Who is your watchman?

Do you have one?

Do you listen to him? Do you heed his warning?  Or do you deafen the ears of your heart to the cry of his voice?

In the Gospel, Jesus gives us the way in which we are to sound the alarm. He gives us the teaching on fraternal correction, on how to correct a brother or sister.  He shows us how to be a good watchman.

If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have won over your brother.

Being a watchman takes courage. If you really want to grow in the Christian life, choose someone you trust and share your heart with them.  Let them in on your struggles.  Ask them to hold you accountable.  Appoint him as your watchman, and watch your friendship deepen as you grown in holiness together.

Be a watchman for others. But know your motivation.  Your only motivation must be love. Love does no evil to the neighbor, hence, love is the fulfillment of the law. There is an easy way to check your motivation.  If you enjoy being a watchman for others and pointing out their faults, then your motivation is not love – it is pride – and you are not the right person to be their watchman.  If it pains you to think about telling another person about the danger you see them in, but it weighs heavily on your heart, then you are probably the right person to tell them.  Perhaps the Lord is appointing you as their watchman.  Tell them with love.  We always tell the truth with love.  Love wills the good of the other and requires sacrifice of us.  Tell them with love and leave the decision to them.  The watchman sounded the alarm but it was up to the citizens to act.

Brothers and sisters, you need a watchman. We are called to be watchmen for each other.

Who is your watchman?

Who are you watching out for?