1 Takeaway Homily from The Clergy Abuse Crisis…

Preface: I have never posted a personal homily on this blog. But I felt compelled to post one, updated version of it today. It was a struggle for me to compose a homily this past weekend, and much of the material for this homily (20th Week in Ordinary Time) came at the “11th hour” so to speak. Our good and gracious God always comes through “in the clutch,” and he provides in abundance too. Here is a careful distinction. My hope and intention is that I communicate this inspiration not from me, but rather from God’s standpoint in order to speak the truth with love at a critical time like this in our Church. For the first time in my priesthood, and through the advice of a well-seasoned, veteran and senior priest, I was recommended to ask the congregation to have them pray for me before I delivered the homily. I did, and glad I followed the wise tip of the retired priest, because it seemed that the grace of the Holy Spirit guided me smoothly all the way through. You may be familiar with the saying, “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.” On a similar vein, just as a homily/sermon is in the ear of the beholder, may this article be received well in the mind and heart of the beholder too. Here it is…

Life…July 25th marked the 50^th anniversary of Pope Paul VI’s Humanae Vitae (H.V.- Human Life), and it addressed the controversial and difficult topic of contraception along with the morality of it, namely, that it’s wrong. What is contraception and why is it wrong? While we recognize the good of marital union, contraception blocks the procreative aspect or openness to life, which goes against God’s design from the very beginning, “to be fruitful and multiply” (Gen. 1:28). 

Now back to our beloved, yet prophetic Blessed, Pope Paul VI, who will be canonized a saint in late October, a little over two months from now. Pope Paul VI not only found resistance outside of the Catholic Church through his letter on “Human Life,” but perhaps he may have even found as much, if not more resistance, from inside the Church through a special, Papal Commission that was formed during his papacy to advise him on what to include in his letter to the Church on “Human Life,” which was being prepared and being made ready to be released to the public in 1968. Read Dr. Janet Smith’s book, Humanae Vitae: A Generation Later for more details. This modern-day, papal prophet made four predictions on the consequences of contraception:

1). That there will be a general lowering of moral standards throughout society

2). A rise in marital infidelity

3). Lessening of respect for women by men – husbands view their wives as objects for selfish desires, and that

4). Contraception would become a dangerous tool in the hands of governments who cared little about the moral law.

Q: Have all four come true? Yes. Yes. Yes, and yes…

While these four prophecies may be perceived as negative, I would like to follow up and focus on five positive points: 

1). Though not easy to put into practice, there is freedom and peace in not practicing contraception. Just ask those to give a testimony who practice NFP…More about on what that is in a moment…

2). There is forgiveness and mercy through the Sacrament of Reconciliation for those who practice contraception.

3). We are encouraged to read this short, 31-pt. document, which is much shorter than many Church Documents which range in the high 100’s and 200’s. So the purpose is to be educated and informed on the topic.

4). The Catholic Church fully endorses love, marriage between husband and wife, the gift of sexuality, and family life through the blessing of children – all in that order, and

5). We also have two great treasures that support and complement H.V.:

1). St. John Paul II’s Theology of the Body – 129 Wednesday audiences he gave between 1979 – 1984), and

2). Natural Family Planning (NFP) in which many, even inside the Church, are not familiar with the practice. NFP is a recognition of a woman’s fertile cycle during the month (identified in multiple ways scientifically that the Church supports) and choosing to engage in marital union to achieve pregnancy, or for good reason(s), to avoid pregnancy.

While life is always a gift from the moment of conception to the moment of natural death, it can be abused too. The prime example that has been heavy on our minds and hearts of late is through the abuse of minors by priests, allegedly by a minimum of one cardinal, and gross negligence by some of our country’s bishops that spans decades. Many of us may recall back in 2002 (when I was first discerning the priesthood) the first wave of abuse accusations. Now a second wave has hit recently in Chile followed by Pennsylvania. These abuse charges are nothing short of shocking, disgusting, unacceptable, and a call for accountability. So what do we do with it all? Complain and rage in anger? You could. Leave the Church? No, that’s not an option. That would be very unwise, the opposite of what our first reading’s message communicates. Like any crisis in any family, you stick together, and in the Church it is no different as we unite under our Lord’s cross. The wisdom needed and heeded is to stay in the boat of the Catholic Church through this storm. Speaking of storms…

1). Church History – There have been numerous storms and dark times down through the ages of Church History like persecutions, for example; the first council of the Church in Nicea (modern-day Turkey) in 325 A.D. which addressed the heresy and denial of Jesus’ Divinity; the Schism of 1054 that split the Church in two:  Catholic and Orthodox, the Spanish Inquisition, and the Reformation in the 16^th century that split the Catholic Church into what is now 40,000 + Christian denominations, among other dark times.  As people of faith, we believe God allowed these events and times over the past two millennia to respect our free will and allow us to reap the consequences we sowed in order to purify his Church. But we also know that our patient, merciful, and loving God brings about about a greater good from any crisis, just like he will mysteriously do here in this clergy abuse crisis that we currently find ourselves in. Heb. 12:5-13 and Prv. 3:12 state that “God disciplines those he loves,” and he is doing that right now. In addition, St. Paul says in Rom. 5:20, “Where sin abounds, grace abounds all the more.” Grace abounds also through prayer, which is one important, practical, and powerful thing we can do.

2). Pray for all parties involved for healing, forgiveness, reconciliation, and that trust be restored. While there have been predators in the past like there has been in other churches and families, let us not downplay it. On the contrary, we thank God for the 90+% of priests/pastors who are good servers, and pray for more good and holy priests who will answer the priestly call to lead, and pray that families support and pray for their sons to be priests.

3). Meanwhile, we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus (Heb. 12:2) particularly in the Eucharist. Today Jesus tells his disciples and us in the Gospel to do something radical: eat his flesh and drink his blood, not as cannibalists, but while disposed in a state of grace, receive and consume Jesus, our Bread of Life with hearts of gratitude in an unbloodied matter so as to inherit eternal life. This is the true wisdom of our faith, the wisdom described in our first reading that points to the source and summit of our life of faith in Jesus’ True Presence in Holy Communion. 

Conclusion: Let us take to heart part of the dream that St. John Bosco once had in the 19th century, which is that we will conquer the storms of the world, the culture, and even through the storms of our own sinful and redeemed Church by staying in the bark of Peter – the boat of the Catholic Church. “You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it” (Mt. 16:18). We are to steer between the two pillars of wisdom: 1). Jesus, our Bread of Life in the Eucharist, and 2). Though the pillar of the Blessed Virgin Mary whose Assumption of body and soul into heaven we celebrated this past Wednesday. By aiming for and passing through both pillars of Jesus in the Eucharist and of his mother, our spiritual mother, Mary, we will arrive safely into the harbor of God’s Kingdom and joyfully and forever dock onto the shores of everlasting life. Amen.

Additional Resources:

1. 23rd Annual Peter Richard Kenrick Lecture, featuring guest speaker Dr. Mary Healy, a professor of Sacred Scripture at Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit, MI on the topic of healing from the abuse crisis.
2. Letter to A Suffering Church: A Bishop Speaks on The Sexual Abuse Crisis, by Bishop Robert Barron
3. Natural Family Planning (NFP) – USCCB and CCLI
4. Theology of the Body – USCCB and EWTN
5. “The PA Grand-Jury Report: Not What It Seems,” by Peter Steinfels