The cross that leads to full flourishing

 Homily: 22nd Sunday of Ordinary Time – Cycle A

Friends, today our readings give us another insight into Jesus’ teaching on the costs of discipleship.  Particularly, they speak to the often-paradoxical ways that following God’s call reveals to us the deepest meaning of our lives: that is, how deep meaning and fulfillment most often manifest themselves through distress and hardship.  This is a truly fundamental thing to understand and so it’s worth taking a deeper look at the readings so as to understand.

In our first reading, we heard the prophet Jeremiah lamenting the fact that he had allowed himself to be tricked (or “duped”) by God.  Very young when God first called him, Jeremiah tried to convince God to pick somebody else.  God, however, insisted on promises that he would be with him to deliver him from whoever would oppose him.  Jeremiah, however, wasn’t feeling the love.  Every time that he prophesied in the Lord’s name he was compelled to speak of God’s outrage at his chosen people for having disobeyed him for so long and of the violence that would come upon them if they didn’t change their ways.  Because of the seeming absurdity of his message—and, perhaps, because of his young age—Jeremiah was roundly mocked, derided, and at times assaulted for speaking such things.  Thus, he felt like God had tricked him into doing this with false promises of security and we hear him today “kicking himself” for allowing himself to be tricked.

In our Gospel reading, Peter seems to be feeling like he had been tricked also.  After having responded to divine inspiration to acknowledge Jesus as the Christ of God, and after having received such a glowing approval from Jesus (the one which we heard last week: “Blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah…), Peter is now confronted by Jesus’ proclamation that he must go to Jerusalem to suffer and be killed by the elders and to be raised on the third day.  Perhaps we could understand Peter’s strong reaction: “What?  No way will we ever let this happen to you!”  Peter was confident that he had found the Christ; and the Christ for whom he was waiting would be an all-conquering king.  Thus, he felt like he had been tricked when Christ revealed that his grim fate would be to suffer and to be killed at the hands of the elders.

Jesus, however, took this opportunity to teach his disciples an important lesson.  Discipleship would not lead one into honor and prestige in this world; rather it would lead to shame: the greatest shame known to man at the time, that of being crucified.  The shame would only be an earthly shame, however: for having lost their lives for his sake in this world, they would in turn find the eternal life that salvation would bring them.  And, as we would see years on from this event, Peter would eventually find the deepest meaning of his life in the cross that he had been “tricked” to carry.

Jeremiah, too, would find the deepest meaning in his life by carrying the cross that he felt he had been “tricked” to carry.  For when he says that he tried to keep himself from speaking the Lord’s words, those words would become like a fire burning within his heart that he could not contain, that he could not endure; as if trying to contain them was something unnatural to him, while their spilling forth from him brought relief, even as it brought forth the cross of ridicule and derision. ///

Most of you don’t know this, but I am not originally from Indiana.  I grew up in the Chicago area and originally pursued a career in engineering.  I wanted to work for one of the “big three” automakers and so, as I was finishing my studies to obtain my degree in mechanical engineering, I started to apply for jobs in the Detroit area.

Not too long after I graduated, one of the companies to which I applied contacted me to come out for an interview.  I was surprised (shocked, actually) that the interview was not for a job in the Detroit area, but rather in Indiana (Kokomo, in fact).  Reluctantly, I did the interview and equally reluctantly I accepted a job in Kokomo, moving to Indiana soon after, only with the hope that I could transfer to Detroit in the future.

Not long after moving here to Indiana, I was certain that I had been tricked and I started looking for other jobs so that I could move: either up to Detroit or back to my home area near Chicago.  I strove with no success, however; but rather found that, when I accepted what I felt I had been tricked to accept and decided to settle here in Indiana, God revealed the deepest meaning of my life to me—that is, that he had called me to be a priest in this very same place—and so here I am today. ///

My brothers and sisters, our lives are full of times when we feel like we’ve been tricked by someone into accepting something that turned out to be a much more difficult or unsatisfying experience than what that person promised it would be.  Perhaps, like the prophet Jeremiah, we even feel like God has been that other person.  Nevertheless, if we take some time to look deeper at the situation, perhaps we will see how God is mysteriously using these events to reveal to us the deepest meaning of our lives: that is, how through the cross he has “tricked” us to carry he is preparing us to live in the Father’s glory when Christ returns.

What a message this is for us today, right?  We are living in a time in which the message of salvation could not be more important: namely, that there is an answer for all of the brokenness evident in the world.  Whether that brokenness be a flood that disrupts our community and causes great losses, or wars raging in different parts of the world that threaten to drag us in and cause an already unstable economy to be even more shaky, or the fraught state of politics in our country and all of the wrangling that public officials do trying to take advantage of these situations for political gain, the work that we Christians must do is to allow our minds to be transformed by God’s grace so that we might discern his mysterious movements within these distressful situations and proclaim that there is a definitive answer to them all: namely, to become disciples of Jesus, to live according to his teaching (which is God’s commandments), and therefore to prepare for the full coming of his kingdom when he returns.  Perhaps our doing so will put us at risk for rejection, suffering, and sorrow in this world; but as our readings today show us, Christians who suffer these things for the sake of God never suffer them without merit: for these crosses always bring forth the full flourishing of one’s vocation (and, thus, the full preparation for entering God’s kingdom).

My friends, this truth is never more evident than here in the Eucharist.  For through the cross that Jesus was compelled to bear came the fount of everlasting life: the sacrifice of his Body and Blood that we re-present here on this altar and the grace of redemption that we receive when we consume it.  And so, my brothers and sisters, let us boldly take up whatever cross our vocations or these turbulent times may have “tricked” us to carry because we are disciples of Christ: for there we will find Jesus, carrying the cross with us and leading us to our everlasting reward.

Given at St. Francis of Assisi Parish: Muncie, IN – August 30th, 2026

Una fe firme nos convierte en piedras

 Homilía: 21o Domingo en el Tiempo Ordinario – Ciclo A

Hermanos, las lecturas de hoy nos orientan hacia el establecimiento del papado y hacia la autoridad conferida a la Iglesia para gobernar al pueblo de Dios y emitir juicios en nombre de Dios. La lectura del libro de Isaías nos proporciona el contexto necesario para comprender cómo Jesús transmite a Pedro la autoridad del reino; pues, en dicho pasaje, la autoridad se retiraba a una persona y se otorgaba a otra basándose únicamente en la fidelidad del individuo para actuar como juez justo y buen administrador de los recursos del reino. Recordemos, no obstante, que era Dios quien realizaba este cambio, y no el rey terrenal. Más aún, Dios–por medio del profeta Isaías–promete que será Él mismo quien le confiera una autoridad firme gracias a su fidelidad. Es importante que tengamos presente este último punto al reflexionar sobre cómo Cristo instituyó el papado para su Iglesia.

Es importante porque, a primera vista, parece un tanto descabellado que Dios confiara su autoridad en la tierra a un hombre con graves defectos. Sabemos que Pedro era impetuoso e impulsivo; sabemos que era valiente, pero no siempre prudente. Hace apenas unas semanas recordábamos cómo, obedeciendo la orden de Jesús–quien permanecía milagrosamente de pie sobre la superficie del agua–Pedro salió valientemente de la barca y caminó sobre las aguas, pero pronto comenzó a hundirse al sentir miedo del mar agitado que lo rodeaba. Recordamos cómo Jesús lo reprendió diciéndole: ”Hombre de poca fe, ¿por qué dudaste?” Este es el mismo Pedro a quien Jesús confía la autoridad de su reino en el Evangelio de hoy. Conociendo lo que sabemos sobre Pedro, podemos–al menos en apariencia–cuestionar si esta fue la mejor decisión de Jesús.

Si examinamos la historia de los papas a lo largo de los siglos, no hará sino profundizar nuestro cuestionamiento sobre la decisión de Jesús de dejar la autoridad de la Iglesia en manos de hombres imperfectos. En esa historia encontramos figuras como el papa Esteban sexto, quien, movido por unos celos y un afán de venganza tan intensos hacia su predecesor, el papa Formoso, ordenó exhumar el cadáver de este, vestirlo con sus antiguas ropas papales y someterlo a juicio por todas las faltas que Esteban creía que había cometido. Tras aquella farsa de juicio, hizo mutilar el cuerpo de Formoso y arrojarlo al río Tíber (que atraviesa Roma). Sus acciones provocaron disturbios y agitación en toda la ciudad. ¿O qué decir del papa Alejandro sexto, quien utilizó su poder y autoridad para enriquecer a sus familiares, incluidos sus propios hijos (sí, ha oído bien)? Era conocido por recurrir a sobornos y a una manipulación política inmoral, además de incurrir en otros actos personales indecentes. Por desgracia, existen muchos más ejemplos de papas que actuaron de manera reprobable aún ostentando la plena autoridad de la Iglesia, transmitida originalmente a san Pedro.

Luego estaban aquellos que eran simplemente incompetentes. El papa Clemente séptimo fue un líder célebre por su incompetencia. Durante su pontificado, gestionó mal diversas alianzas políticas, lo que finalmente condujo a la invasión y conquista de Roma. Clemente también fue responsable de no lograr resolver la crisis con Enrique octavo de Inglaterra, la cual llevó a este último a separar la Iglesia de Inglaterra de la Iglesia romana. Cabe señalar que existen muchos otros ejemplos de papas que fueron simplemente incompetentes pero que, por ser sucesores de san Pedro, ejercían la plena autoridad de la Iglesia.

Llegados a este punto, tal vez se pregunten: “¿Acaso el padre intenta convencernos de que no debemos confiar en el Papa?”. Si es así, la respuesta es “¡NO!”. Simplemente trato de señalar que confiar la autoridad sobre la Iglesia–es decir, el sacramento mismo de salvación para todos los pueblos establecido por Dios–a un hombre imperfecto parece, a primera vista, algo descabellado. Lo señalo porque creo que, en el fondo, esa no es la cuestión principal. Más bien, considero que lo que estamos llamados a reconocer–la lección que Dios nos transmite–es que la Iglesia, con el papado, ha logrado sobrevivir a pesar de las numerosas imperfecciones de cada uno de sus papas. [REPEAT]

Los papas, como hemos visto, son personas complejas y con muchas aristas (Pedro no fue la excepción, ¿verdad?). Sin embargo, resulta que si aciertan en una sola cosa, logran sobrevivir. ¿Cuál es esa cosa? La profesión de fe. [REPEAT].

En la lectura del Evangelio, Jesús pregunta a sus discípulos qué dice la gente sobre él: “¿Quién dice la gente que es el Hijo del hombre?” Tras escuchar sus respuestas, les dirige la misma pregunta a ellos para ver si empiezan a comprender quién es él. Entonces, Pedro habla en nombre de todos (o tal vez no de todos, sino simplemente antes que los demás) y proclama su fe: "Tú eres el Mesías, el Hijo de Dios vivo". Jesús, el buen maestro, confirma la respuesta acertada de Pedro y responde con aquella famosa frase: “Y yo te digo a ti que tú eres Pedro y sobre esta piedra edificaré mi Iglesia…” y “te daré las llaves del Reino de los cielos…” Ahora bien, cuando Jesús dice “sobre esta piedra”, ¿se refiere a “Pedro, el hombre” o a “la profesión de fe de Pedro”? La respuesta, a mi parecer, es ambas cosas. Son ambas. Jesús se refiere a ambas.

Es cierto, en efecto, que las personas imperfectas constituyen un cimiento inestable sobre el cual edificar cualquier organización. Sin embargo, esas mismas personas que profesan con confianza (y humildad) su fe en la divinidad de Jesús–y en que Él es quien fue enviado al mundo para redimir a la humanidad–se convierten en piedra firme sobre la que puede edificarse la Iglesia de Dios. Todos aquellos papas imperfectos que mencioné (y los muchos otros que no cité), a pesar de las múltiples formas en que no estuvieron a la altura de la fe, profesaron no obstante esa misma fe y jamás enseñaron nada contrario a ella. Por haber sido fieles al profesar y custodiar la fe, Dios pudo proteger a la Iglesia e impedir que se derrumbara, haciendo efectiva la garantía divina que Él mismo proclamó ante Pedro en Cafarnaún, aquel día trascendental de hace casi dos mil años: “sobre esta piedra edificaré mi Iglesia. Los poderes del infierno no prevalecerán sobre ella”.

Hermanos, todos podemos ser–y estamos llamados a ser–piedras sobre las cuales Cristo edifica su Iglesia. Sin embargo, al igual que Pedro y todos los papas que le sucedieron, no tenemos por qué ser perfectos. ¡De hecho, es mejor si no lo somos! Más bien, en lugar de esforzarnos en exceso por alcanzar la perfección mediante nuestro propio ingenio, deberíamos procurar fortalecer nuestra profesión de fe y, con ello, nuestra confianza en que, si vivimos conforme a ella, el Reino de Dios seguirá surgiendo y creciendo a nuestro alrededor (¡e incluso a pesar de nosotros!).

¿En qué consiste vivir esta profesión–es decir, vivir confiando en el poder de Dios para edificar a través de nosotros? Consiste en adorar a Dios, tanto en la Misa como en la oración diaria; en vivir según sus mandamientos, ¡todos ellos!; en amar a nuestros seres más cercanos–principalmente en nuestras familias y en nuestra comunidad; y en no desesperar jamás ante nuestras propias faltas ni las de quienes nos rodean, sino en confiar en Dios y en su providencia en todo momento. Por último, cuando fallamos en cualquiera de estos aspectos, vivir esta profesión de fe significa volver al Padre con fe para pedir perdón y recibir la fortaleza necesaria para comenzar de nuevo. Esta, hermanos y hermanas, es la piedra sobre la que se edifica la Iglesia; y cada uno de nosotros está llamado–y recibe toda gracia–a hacer firme esta piedra.

Al unir hoy nuestras oraciones por nuestro papa actual, el Papa León, para que su fe se mantenga siempre firme mientras guía a la Iglesia de Dios, renovemos nuestra propia profesión de fe–y nuestro compromiso de vivir conforme a ella–a fin de que la Iglesia de Dios siga creciendo y nosotros continuemos acercándonos a nuestra recompensa eterna en el cielo.

Dado en la parroquia de San Patricio: Kokomo, IN – 23 de agosto, 2026

Strong faith makes us rocks

 Homily: 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time – Cycle A

Friends, today’s readings all point us to the establishment of the papacy and to the authority given to the Church to govern God’s people and to make judgments in the name of God.  The reading from the book of Isaiah gives us the context from which we are to understand Jesus’ handing on the authority of the kingdom to Peter.  For in Isaiah, the authority was taken from one and given to another solely based on the individual’s faithfulness to being a just judge and a good steward of the resources of the kingdom.  Remember, though, that it was God who was making this change, not the earthly king.  Still further, God (through Isaiah, the prophet) makes the promise that it is he himself that will make him a sturdy authority because of his faithfulness.  This last point is one that is important for us to remember as we think about Christ establishing the papacy for his Church.

Important because, on the surface, it seems a little bit crazy that God would entrust his authority on earth to a deeply flawed man.  We know Peter to be brash and impulsive; we know him to be someone who is brave, but not always prudent.  Just a couple of weeks ago, we recalled how he bravely stepped out of the boat onto the water at the command of Jesus (who himself was standing miraculously on the surface of the water), but then quickly sank as he became fearful of the stormy seas around him.  We recalled how Jesus admonished him: saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”  This is the same Peter to whom Jesus entrusts the authority of his kingdom in today’s Gospel reading.  Knowing what we know about Peter, we can–on the surface, at least–question whether this was Jesus’ best decision.

Then, when we look at the history of the popes throughout the centuries, our questioning of Jesus’ decision to leave the authority of the Church in the hands of flawed men will only deepen.  There, in the history, we find popes like Pope Stephen the sixth, who was so jealous and vengeful of his predecessor, Pope Formosus, that he had his body dug up from its grave, dressed in his former papal robes, and put on trial for all the wrongs that Pope Stephen thought he had committed.  After this mockery of a trial, he had Formosus’ body mutilated and thrown in the Tiber river (which runs through Rome).  His actions caused riots and unrest throughout Rome.  Or how about Pope Alexander the sixth, who used his power and authority to enrich his family members–even his children (yes, you heard that right).  He was known to deal in bribes and immoral political manipulation, along with other indecent personal acts.  Unfortunately, there are many more examples of popes who behaved badly while still holding the full authority of the Church, first handed on to Saint Peter.

Then there were those who were just incompetent.  Pope Clement the seventh was a famously incompetent leader.  During his papacy, he mismanaged a number of political alliances which led ultimately to Rome being invaded and conquered.  Clement was also responsible for being unable to resolve the crisis with Henry the eighth in England that led him to separate the Church in England from the Roman Church.  Again, there are many other examples of popes who were simply incompetent, but yet who, because they were the successor of Peter, wielded the full authority of the Church.

At this point, you might be thinking to yourselves, is Father trying to convince us that we shouldn’t trust the Pope?  If so, the answer is “NO”!  I am simply trying to point out that entrusting authority over the Church–that is, the very sacrament of salvation for all peoples that God established–to a flawed man seems, on the surface, to be a little bit crazy.  I point this out because I believe that, ultimately, this is not the point.  Rather, I believe that the point we are called to recognize–the lesson that God is imparting to us–is that the Church with the papacy has survived nonetheless in spite of the abundant flaws of each of its popes [REPEAT].

Popes, as we have seen, are messy, complicated people (Peter no exception, right?).  As it turns out, however, if they get one thing right they will survive.  What is that one thing?  It’s the profession of faith [REPEAT].

In the Gospel reading, Jesus inquires among his disciples to learn from them what other people are saying about him.  “Who do they say that I am?”  After they share their answers, he turns the question on them to see whether they are starting to understand who he is.  Here, Peter speaks for everyone (or maybe not for everyone, but just before everyone) and declares his faith: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”  Jesus, the good teacher, affirms Peter’s correct answer and then responds with that famous phrase: “And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church…” and “I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven…”  Now, when Jesus says, “on this rock”, does he mean “Peter, the man,” or does he mean “Peter’s profession of faith?”  The answer, I argue, is both.  It’s both.  Jesus means both.

It’s true, you see, that flawed persons are a shaky foundation on which to build any organization.  The same persons, however, who confidently (and with humility) profess faith in the divinity of Jesus, and that he is the one sent into the world to redeem mankind, become solid rocks on which God’s Church can be built.  All of those flawed popes that I mentioned (and the many others that I didn’t mention), in spite of the multitude of ways that they failed to live up to the faith, nonetheless professed the same faith and never taught anything against it.  Because they were faithful in professing and safeguarding the faith, God was able to protect the Church and keep it from collapsing: realizing the divine guarantee that he professed to Peter in Capernaum on that fateful day nearly two thousand years ago: “upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.”

Friends, we all can be–and we are called to be–rocks on which Christ builds his Church.  Like Peter and all the popes after him, however, we don’t have to be perfect.  Better, in fact, if we aren’t!  Rather, instead of striving too hard for perfection by our own ingenuity, we should strive to bolster our profession of faith–and, thus, our trust that , if we live from this profession, God’s kingdom will continue to emerge and grow around us (and even in spite of us!).

What does living from this profession–that is, living in this trust in God’s power to build through us–look like?  It looks like worshiping God–both at Mass and in daily prayer; it looks like living by his commandments–all of them!; it looks like loving those closest to us–that is, in our families, primarily, and in our community; and it looks like never despairing because of our faults and the faults of those around us, but trusting in God and in his providence at every turn.  Finally, when we fail at doing any one of these things, living from this profession of faith looks like turning back to the Father in faith to seek forgiveness and to receive strength to begin again.  This, my brothers and sisters, is the rock on which the Church is built; and we are each called–and given every grace–to make this rock firm.

As we unite our prayers today for our current pope, Pope Leo, that his faith will remain ever firm as he leads God’s Church, let us renew our own profession of faith–and our commitment to live from it–so that God’s Church may continue to grow, and we will continue to draw closer to our eternal reward in heaven.

Given in Spanish at St. Patrick Parish: Kokomo, IN – August 23rd, 2026