Healed so as to serve

Saint Josephine Bakhita: Feast Day February 8

Homily: 5^th Sunday of Ordinary Time – Cycle B

          Saint Josephine Bakhita was born in the Darfur region of South Sudan in 1869.  When she was seven years old, she was kidnapped and sold into slavery.  In the ensuing years, she was sold and resold to different slave owners, suffering physical and psychological abuse everywhere she went.  Bakhita was the name given to her by her first slave owner.  The abuse she received over the years traumatized her so much that she actually forgot the name that her parents had given her.  Finally, she ended up in the hands of an Italian ambassador, Callisto Legnani.  With this family, however, there was no abuse and Bakhita’s long journey of healing could begin.

          Because of political tensions in Sudan, ambassador Legnani had to leave Africa to return to Italy and, per Bakhita’s request, he brought her along with his family.  Upon returning to Italy, the Michieli family, who were friends of the Legnanis, requested that Bakhita stay with them.  Mr. Legnani agreed and when the Michielis gave birth to a daughter, Bakhita became her babysitter and friend.  When the Michielis were forced to move back to Africa for business, Bakhita and their daughter were entrusted to the Canossian Sisters of the Institute of Catechumens in Venice.  It was there that Bakhita would come to know God.

          After several months of prayer and study in the catechumenate, Bakhita received the Sacraments of Initiation, taking the name Josephine.  Not long after, the Michielis returned, having established their business back in Africa, to take their daughter and Josephine to be with them.  Josephine refused to go back to Africa, however, requesting to stay with the Canossian Sisters, instead.  Because Italian law had abolished slavery, the Michielis could not force her to go and thus she was granted her wish.

          Josephine stayed with the sisters; eventually following the call to enter religious life herself.  Six years after she was baptized she made her solemn profession as a Canossian Sister.  For the next fifty years, she humbly and dutifully served her fellow sisters and those with whom she came in contact through the sisters’ apostolate.  All who knew her knew the joy that radiated from her in every encounter.  She was known to say “Be good, love the Lord, and pray for those who do not know him. What a great grace it is to know God!”  In her, we today find the inspiring story of a woman set free from oppression and slavery through Christian action who then turned to offer herself completely in service to God.

          In our Gospel reading today, we hear a story with a similar outcome.  Having taught in the synagogue in Capernaum (where he freed a man from an “unclean spirit”), Jesus returned to the house of Simon and Andrew.  Simon’s mother-in-law lay seriously ill with a fever.  When they told Jesus about her, he went to her and healed her.  Then the Gospel says that “she waited on them.”  Viewed in the light of St. Josephine’s story, we can make these correlations: Simon’s mother-in-law was “enslaved” by an illness; Jesus’ disciples, having seen him cast out the unclean spirit just hours before, “immediately” tell him about her; Jesus approaches her and sets her free; and she, in her freedom, then chooses to serve.  In other words, set free by Jesus whom they encountered through the actions of his disciples, these women then freely chose to subject themselves in service to others.

          Although slavery is almost universally abolished, millions of men and women throughout the world still suffer from it.  Every day men and women are forced into oppressive work or, worse yet, are bought and sold as sex slaves to feed humankind’s exponentially growing lust.  In our own state, and even in our own county, addiction to alcohol, heroin, and prescription pain killers has enslaved many of our own family members and friends.  For many of these persons, life looks a lot like Job describes in our First Reading today: a drudgery, with days like those of hard labor with no relief in sight, and in which hope of ever experiencing happiness again has disappeared.

          Therefore, more than ever, these men and women need help to be set free.  As Christians, our first recourse is always to prayer, in which we beg the Lord Jesus to come to them, to help them up, and set them free.  Our work never ends there, however; for then we must act in the world and draw close to them, like Saint Paul did, making himself a “slave to all”—that is, becoming “all things to all”—so that, through our Christian action, these brothers and sisters of ours might actually be set free.

          Set free, therefore, by our prayer and our action, these men and women can then choose to serve, like Simon’s mother-in-law did and like Saint Josephine did: for having been loved, most people will choose then to return love through service to others, because Jesus assures us that “there is no greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”

          My brothers and sisters, as a people set free by the love of Christ, who came close to us when he became one of us, and who remains close to us, especially here in this Eucharist, we must act to be his hands and his feet that draw close, in prayer and in action, to those still enslaved, so that they, too, might be set free and thus “know the freedom of the sons [and daughters] of God.”  Even as Saint Paul gave himself over freely (and free of charge) for the sake of the gospel, so that he might have a share in the blessings that come from it, so too we must bring this good news to those who are enslaved in our day; for we will only share in its blessings in proportion to the measure in which we have shared it with others.

          Therefore, my brothers and sisters, let us act so as to see the power of the Lord Jesus manifest: both throughout the world and right here in Cass County.  For when we do, we will begin to share in the blessings of the good news and, thus, when we return to this place, we will be inspired to sing, like the Psalmist in today’s Responsorial Psalm, “Praise the Lord, who heals the brokenhearted.”

Given at All Saints Parish: Logansport, IN – February 4^th, 2018

Faithfulness is what we owe to God.

Homily: 27^th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Cycle C

          I don’t know about you, but the example that Jesus uses in the Gospel today has always been kind of unsettling for me.  The idea that “servitude” could be a permanent way of life for someone is actually rather repugnant to me.  Perhaps this is because here, in the United States, we recognized that slavery, as we practiced it, was unjust and so we’ve worked to create a society that recognizes that all persons are created equal, with equal opportunities, and, thus, that there aren’t different “classes” of people in our society.  To see an example of this, just look at voting.  When I vote, my vote counts equally to President Obama's vote.  And the fact that both of us vote for who we want our next leaders to be is further evidence of the equality that we share: because a stratified society would probably only count President Obama’s vote, since he is a member of the “ruling class”, and not my vote because I am of a “lower class”.

          Thus, the idea of a society of “servants and masters" has become pretty foreign to us.  I mean, we get the idea that, when trying to accomplish a job, one is a boss and one is a worker, but ultimately we still recognize that we're "equal".  And so, Jesus' example in the Gospel can unsettle us.

          In the Gospel, Jesus seems to say that the master has every right to press on his servant for more work, even after he's been out working rigorously all day.  And it's true, he does have that right!  This is because, in that system, the "master" was considered to be different than the "servant": the master had his role and place as ruler over household and lands and the servant had his role and place as one who served the master as steward of his household and land.  It was unequal, for sure, but nonetheless complementary in its arrangement.

          Obviously, when it comes to the human society, our set up, it seems, is the better way to go.  As human persons, we are equals; and so, even though there is still the "worker" and "boss" setup, we acknowledge that these aren't different classes of people, but rather people from the same class working in different roles.

          When it comes to our relationship with God, however, we have to acknowledge that it doesn’t work in the same way.  This is because we aren't equals with God.  And so, the "master" and "servant" model actually does apply.  God, our "master", provides for us and our needs, while we, his "servants", take care of his household and his land so that he can continue to provide for us.  If my master is benevolent, then I can serve him without questioning because I trust that he will always provide for my needs; and I can acknowledge that my service can help him to extend his benevolence even more broadly.

          In a real way this is what it means to be a steward.  It recognizes that all of the good things that I have in this world have come from my "master".  And it recognizes that he gives them to me with the understanding that I will put them to use in the care of his household and his land.  My task, therefore, is to work as long and as hard as my master demands because I trust that he will never fail to provide for me.  And so you see, I hope, how this is different than slavery.  In slavery, as we think of it, the servant is treated as an object for use.  Thus, he often serves involuntarily.  A steward, however, serves voluntarily and is treated as a person with inherent dignity; but who, nonetheless, is of a different “class” of persons who have a particular role to fulfill.

          Thus, as a steward, my faithfulness to serving is simply what I owe to my benevolent master for taking care of me.  To ask for recompense beyond what has been provided for me is, thus, to insult my master and to say that I do not believe that his generosity is sufficient for me.  And so, in the Gospel, when the disciples ask for more faith, Jesus responds "Don't worry about how much faith you have.  Just a little faith goes a long way!  Worry, rather, about your faithfulness—that is, about doing those things that you've been given to do day in and day out—because that's where you'll find your true greatness!"

          My brothers and sisters, when we recognize ourselves as stewards—that is, as servants of God, our master—then we can respond in service, because we trust that our good God will not leave us wanting, but rather will provide everything for us as long as we remain faithful to him.  The proof?  It’s right here in the Eucharist: the sacrifice of God's Son, Jesus, which was made for us so that we no longer have to be concerned about our future, because now it is guaranteed in Christ.  And so, as we approach this altar today, let us renew our commitment to be faithful stewards of God's many gifts, pledging our trust in the life of peace and rest that has already been won for us by Christ our Lord by going forth from here to serve God faithfully in all that we do.

Given at All Saints Parish: Logansport, IN – October 1^st & 2^nd, 2016

Pray and Act to End Slavery

          Today (among other things) is the first annual day of prayer and awareness to end human trafficking.  Fitting that it falls on the liturgical feast day of Saint Josephine Bakhita, who herself was a victim of human trafficking.  Please go to the US Bishop's website for information on how you can become more aware of the problem of human trafficking and what you can do to help stop it (click on the "Become a SHEPHERD" link on that page).

          Most of all, pray!  Make known to Jesus the sufferings of these people and he will draw close to them to set them free.

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Homily: 5^th Sunday of Ordinary Time – Cycle B

          Saint Josephine Bakhita was born in the Darfur region of South Sudan in 1869.  When she was seven years old, she was kidnapped and sold into slavery.  In the ensuing years, she was sold and resold to different slave owners, suffering physical and psychological abuse everywhere she went.  Bakhita was the name given to her by her first slave owner.  The abuse she received over the years traumatized her so much that she actually forgot the name that her parents had given her.  Finally, she ended up in the hands of an Italian ambassador, Callisto Legnani.  With this family, however, there was no abuse and Bakhita’s long journey of healing could begin.

          Because of political tensions in Sudan, ambassador Legnani had to leave Africa to return to Italy and, per her request, he brought Bakhita along with his family.  Upon returning to Italy, the Michieli family, who were friends of the Legnanis, requested that Bakhita stay with them.  Mr. Legnani agreed and when the Michielis gave birth to a daughter, Bakhita became her babysitter and friend.  When the Michielis were forced to move back to Africa for business, Bakhita and their daughter were entrusted to the Canossian Sisters of the Institute of Catechumens in Venice.  It was there that Bakhita would come to know God.

          After several months of prayer and study in the catechumenate, Bakhita received the Sacraments of Initiation, taking the name Josephine.  Not long after, the Michielis returned, having established their business back in Africa, to take their daughter and Josephine to be with them.  Josephine refused to go back to Africa, however, requesting to stay with the Canossian Sisters, instead.  Because Italian law had abolished slavery, the Michielis could not force her to go and thus she was granted her wish.

          Josephine stayed with the sisters; eventually following the call to enter religious life herself.  Six years after she was baptized she made her solemn profession as a Canossian Sister.  For the next fifty years, she humbly and dutifully served her fellow sisters and those with whom she came in contact through the sisters’ apostolate.  All who knew her knew the joy that radiated from her in every encounter.  She was known to say “Be good, love the Lord, and pray for those who do not know him. What a great grace it is to know God!”  In her, we today find the inspiring story of a woman set free from oppression and slavery through Christian action who then turned to offer herself completely in service to God.

          In our Gospel reading today, we hear a story with a similar outcome.  Having taught in the synagogue in Capernaum (where he freed a man from an “unclean spirit”), Jesus returned to the house of Simon and Andrew.  Simon’s mother-in-law lay seriously ill with a fever.  When they told Jesus about her, he went to her and healed her.  Then the Gospel says that “she waited on them.”  Viewed in the light of St. Josephine’s story, we can make these correlations: Simon’s mother-in-law was “enslaved” by an illness; Jesus’ disciples, having seen him cast out the unclean spirit just hours before, “immediately” tell him about her; Jesus approaches her and sets her free; and she, in her freedom, then chooses to serve.  In other words, set free by Jesus whom they encountered through the actions of his disciples, these women then freely chose to subject themselves in service to others.

          Although slavery is almost universally abolished, millions of men and women throughout the world still suffer from it.  Every day men and women are forced into oppressive work or, worse yet, are bought and sold as sex slaves to feed humankind’s exponentially growing lust.  More than ever, these men and women need help to be set free.  As Christians, our first recourse is always to prayer, in which we beg the Lord Jesus to approach them and set them free.  Our work never ends there, however; for then we must act in the world and draw close to them, as Jesus would, so that, through our Christian action, they might actually be set free.

          Set free, therefore, by our prayer and our action, these men and women can then choose to serve, like Simon’s mother-in-law did and like Saint Josephine did: for having been loved, most people will choose then to return love through service to others, because Jesus assures us that “there is no greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”

          My brothers and sisters, as a people set free by the love of Christ, who came close to us when he became one of us, and who remains close to us, especially here in this Eucharist, we must act to be his hands and his feet that draw close, in prayer and in action, to those still enslaved, so that they, too, might be set free and thus “know the freedom of the sons [and daughters] of God.”  Even as Saint Paul gave himself over freely (and free of charge) for the sake of the gospel, so that he might have a share in the blessings that come from it, so too we must bring this good news to those who are enslaved in our day; for we will only share in its blessings in proportion to the measure in which we have shared it with others.

          Therefore, my brothers and sisters, let us act so as to see the power of the Lord Jesus manifest: both throughout the world and right here in Cass County.  For when we do, we will begin to share in the blessings of the good news and, thus, when we return to this place, we will be inspired to sing, like the Psalmist in today’s Responsorial Psalm, “Praise the Lord, who heals the brokenhearted.”

Given at All Saints Parish: Logansport, IN – February 7^th & 8^th, 2015