Twenty
Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time A.
October 16, 2005, OLG all Masses. Isaiah 45:1, 4-6. I
Thessalonians 1: 1-5b. Matthew 22: 15-21.
God’s will and purpose is revealed in three ways in our lives.
The first is through the inspired words of the Bible which is God’s revelation
to us in a very special way. The second way that God’s purpose is
revealed to us is through the teaching of the Church as the Church instructs
and guides us in understanding God’s revelation in both Scripture and
tradition. The third way that God guides us is through the personal
wisdom that comes to us through our experience of Christ in our daily lives and
through personal and community prayer. The Catechism of the Catholic
Church says, “Jesus prays before the decisive moments of his mission: before
his baptism and transfiguration, and before his own fulfillment of the
Father’s plan of love by his passion (and death). He (Jesus) prays before the
decisive moments involving the mission of his apostles: at his choice and call
of the Twelve… Jesus’ prayer before the events of salvation that the Father has
asked him to fulfill is a humble and trusting commitment of his human will to
the loving will of the Father.” (2600) Jesus often sought out a silent place
for prayer, often spending the whole night in prayer.
Prayer is an essential component of the teaching of
Jesus. We may know the Bible perfectly and the teaching of the Church
well, but without prayer we will not understand the concrete and specific way
that God’s revelation applies to our lives. A Christian life without
prayer is like a pilot trying to fly an airplane with the instruction manual in
his hands, but with his eyes closed so that he does not see how the instruction
book applies to what is happening outside of the airplane. A
Christian who knows his or her faith but doesn’t have a rich life of prayer is
flying blind. Without prayer we may crash with the Bible in our hands and
the teaching of the Church in our heads, but without the sure guidance of the
Holy Spirit in our hearts.
Let me give you an example. A group of the religious
superstars of Jesus day tried to trap Jesus, using the teaching of the Bible
and tradition about the morality of paying taxes to pagan rulers. Jesus
responded to their challenge with what appears to be a riddle or a puzzle, “Give
to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.” We
know that the image on the coin used to pay the taxes belonged to the
emperor. Was Jesus saying that the emperor gets all the money in the
country and all that money can buy besides? Or was Jesus saying
that everyone knows that everything belongs to God, and nothing really belongs
to the emperor? Or was Jesus saying that some things belong to God and
some things belong to the emperor, so there should be a separation of church
and state? Does the fact that it says on our American money “In
God we trust” mean that our government is more on God’s side than other
governments?
Life is full of puzzles. We must all apply the
teachings of our faith to the challenges of daily life. Because there is
no book, even the Bible or the Catechism, that tells us exactly what we are to
do, how do we know what to do? Without prayer we will not be able
to apply the teachings of Jesus to daily life. Prayer helps us to know
the mind and heart of Jesus. It helps us answer the question, “What would
Jesus do?” Prayer also helps us sense the grace and wisdom of God
in our own hearts. Without prayer we would be lost.
Our world has gone almost insane with busyness and running
around. Many of us are flying blind. Prayer is the place where we
see God and ourselves as we are and take the time to make decisions from the
stillness and quiet of our relationship with God. For the health of our
lives and our souls I invite you and me to an hour of quiet prayer a week in
our Adoration Chapel. An essential part of following Jesus is finding a
quiet place where we can bring our souls into the presence of God.
Eucharistic Adoration is a great gift to this parish community. Our
Adoration Chapel is a haven of sanity and deep prayer. I invite you to
give yourself the gift of one hour a week in the quiet of silence and prayer
over and above Sunday
Introduce Mary Hodgdon.
Introduce Paul Hering or
We will be moving to 24 hour a day Eucharistic Adoration on
the Feast of Christ the King. Please join us in slowing down and listening to
the voice of God in our lives. Commitment tables are available in the
commons after Mass. Trust me in this – make room for an hour a week of silent
adoration and refection in our Adoration Chapel – I am confident that you will
not be sorry.