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| A selection of homilies preached in S.Matthew's |
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Homily for the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary
‘Now a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman, adorned with the sun, standing on the moon, and with the twelve stars on her head for a crown.’ (Apoc. 12:1)
This vision, from the book of the Apocalypse or Revelation, which we heard in our first reading has long been said to be one of Mary, the Queen of Heaven. It seems a long way from the stable at Bethlehem or the simple home at Nazareth. And so it should be. The Assumption deals with the end of Mary’s life here on earth – her journey to heaven, with her earthly work completed. Pope Pius XII described the dogma carefully and clearly, in 1950 he wrote:
‘the immaculate Mother of God, the ever-Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory.’
Remember what Mary’s work on earth consisted of. She was chosen by God to bear his Son Jesus, in her womb. Throughout his early years she nourished her son and helped to prepare him for his work. During the ministry of Jesus Mary is revealed as the epitome of obedience and maternal devotion and care. At the cruel and shocking end of his life, she stood at the foot of his Cross and watched her Son and Saviour die. She shared in the wonder and joy of his Resurrection and was praying with the apostles as they received the gift of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.
Each of these episodes, many of which are remembered in the praying of the Holy Rosary, reveals the importance of the Mother of the Lord. And in the end we discover the Assumption which is the climax, and the predictable and just conclusion to the holy life of Mary.
But it is not just the words and deeds of Mary which reveal the glory and love of God. For with her own human body she also serves her Creator in complete submission and trust. By the power of the Holy Spirit the Messiah is conceived, she bears the Christ in her womb, gives birth to him, and nourishes him throughout his life. Therefore Mary uses her whole humanity – body and soul - at the service of the Godhead. And so it is equally fitting that both the body and soul of Mary are believed to have been assumed into heaven. Her destiny is to be in heaven with her Son.
What does this all mean for us? You might well ask. It is a natural and modern question. Centuries ago I suspect people would never have dreamed of asking such a question- the assumption of Mary was simply believed in as true and, as we have discovered, the fitting conclusion to her life and work on earth. But as we like to ask questions about what things mean for us now, let’s have a crack at providing an answer.
First of all we need to view the Assumption as a gift to Mary. Yes, it is the fitting end to her time on earth, but it can only come about due to the gracious and powerful love of God. Mary does not earn her Assumption; she does not collect points as she passes through life which, when added together assure her of a place in heaven.
It is a gift – recognition that she is the Mother of God – and the God whom she has loved and faithfully followed wishes to reward her for her life of grace. This is how God works – gracefully pouring out gifts of love upon his children, upon us. We need to be patient and open to God’s will as we follow Mary, our Mother, on the heavenly way. Look out for God’s gifts to you – and, like Our Lady, rejoice at what he is doing in your life. Even when things are difficult and confusing, there will be signs of God’s abundant grace in all of our lives.
And secondly, the Assumption is a supreme reminder that through the death and resurrection of Christ, sin and death have been defeated. What’s more we, along with all the saints share in the fruits of this victory. Returning to our first reading – that vision, we heard how there was a huge red dragon threatening the woman and ready to eat her child . This vision tells us of the struggle that had to be undertaken by Christ.
As Christians we should be aware of the battles we need to fight in the name of Jesus– for the faith and for the truth. There are forces which stand in opposition to the Gospel, for example - a secular agenda which sees no role for the divine (for God and for his Church) and affords no sanctity to human life and endeavour. Yes, we live in God’s creation, but we are surrounded by things which contradict the teachings of Our Lord. The Assumption of Our Lady assures us that in spite of this the ultimate victory belongs to Christ and to all those who are faithful. We are to be encouraged and inspired by this for death has been defeated, and Mary leads all her children into the kingdom of heaven.
Father D.Humphreys S.Matthew’s Willesden 15 August 2010
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Homily for the 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Year C
‘Ask, and it will be given to you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you.’ (Luke 11:10)
Never let it be said that Christianity or the Gospel is unrealistic, that it has nothing to do with real life. Take this morning’s Gospel reading for instance. Jesus, wanting to stress the capacity of his heavenly Father to hear and respond to our prayers, sets before us a nocturnal scene. A man approaches the house of a friend in the middle of the night. He needs three loaves of bread – and there are no 24 hour shops. He knocks on the door and asks his friend – who is in bed – to get up and give him the three loaves. The initial response is negative, but eventually persistence will win over the sleeping friend and make him get up and help. We can all imagine the scene, can’t we? We have gone to bed after a long day, we are ready for a good rest and to our consternation, and we are disturbed. How annoying – who can it be at this time?
Living as we do in an urban environment we know what it is to be disturbed at night. I have grown used to hearing strange sounds in the night since I moved back to London. In fact when I am away from town and there is an eerie silence at night – that is when I feel uncomfortable. But to receive an unexpected knock on the front door at night would be something which would cause us anxiety – the police perhaps, or polite and yet cheeky thieves - our first response would surely be to stay inside and wait for them to go away.
And we would think twice about bothering a friend at night, no matter how many loaves of bread we needed. There is a social etiquette, an unwritten rule which dictates what is an acceptable time and what is an unacceptable time to call on others in their homes.
The point of the story is all about what God is like and how he surprises or even contradicts the norms of human behaviour. We remember that Jesus told Pilate that his kingdom ‘was not of this world.’ This is the kind of thing he meant – God ways are not our ways.
When we approach our heavenly Father in prayer our word and thoughts will be heard, no matter when we ask them, or what they are. Where God is concerned there is no question of closed doors, the surgery is open all hours and there is no inconvenient time. And we can be certain that generosity and grace will typify our Father’s response to our contact. On our part we need to be brave and full of confidence. In our first reading we heard the discussion between Abraham and the Lord. It was to do with the men of Sodom and how they had incurred God’s anger. Abraham was aware that some of them had not sinned and so did not deserve to be included in the punishment. As a faithful man – our father in faith – he is aware of the love and mercy which is the very nature of God and so, bravely and with a degree of persistence he appeals to this side of the divine nature. He is successful – we need to learn the lesson and speak with Our Father honestly, regularly, and with real hope in our hearts.
As we heard in the psalm ‘on the day I called, you answered; you increased the strength of my soul.’ The Lord always answers our prayers and through his grace we are strengthened and renewed.
And so we come to the answer to prayer. We cannot second guess what God requires of us or indeed, what he intends for us. Too often Christian prayer (and that of other religions for all I know) is offered in manner which resembles a shopping list or even Christmas present list. This cannot be the right way to pray. It is presumptuous and lacking in trust. We need to wait upon the Lord and to become alert to the signs of his will for us.
Jesus concludes with a reminder of the gracious nature of his Father, whom he compares with others. Earthly parents (including the parents of Rayniece – whom we welcome amongst us this morning) know that they must give their children what they need – food, shelter, love, and a good example from which to learn. If earthly fathers can do this, how much more will the heavenly Father give his children (you and me) what we need, when we need it most of all? Chiefly, he gives us the Holy Spirit to govern and direct our hearts in the ways of peace, joy, hope, and love. The Spirit will lead us into all truth, he will enable us to become the people God wants us to be, spiritually mature, people with the potential to excel in the Christian way of life. But, first things first – remember to say your prayers regularly. There is no substitute.
Fr Daniel Humphreys S.Matthew, Willesden 25 July 2010
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Homily for the 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Year C
‘I am sending you out like lambs among wolves.’
The seventy-two others are a somewhat mysterious bunch. We do not know very much about them, no names, no CVs. We are told by S.Luke that the Lord sent them out ahead of him in pairs to all the towns and places he was going to visit. So they are to prepare the way, to be the warm up act before the main attraction. They are going into dangerous territory, that of Samaritans – foreign parts. This is why they are described as lambs among wolves, and it is why they are told not to salute people on the road. They are to prepare themselves for rejection. And, strangely, they are to travel light – no purse, no haversack, and no sandals.
I wonder if you, like me, have ever stood in one of those queues at the ‘check-in’ desk at the airport and marvelled at the amount of luggage some people take with them on their journey. Huge cases packed with clothes to suit every possible climate, gifts for family and friends, enough guidebooks to stock a medium sized library, lotions and potions galore. It would seem that travelling light is not an option for many travellers today.
One airline, hardly the most popular, but surely the cheapest, has reacted to this by charging passengers for each item of luggage, and it also imposes serious fines if your baggage is even slightly over the agreed weight. Now, it is even rumoured that they want to charge us a pound to spend a penny. And only last week I heard that they were considering introducing an area where standing passengers will be strapped in, like some frightening fairground ride. Where will it end?
It is very different for the 72 missionaries selected and sent out by Jesus. They carry with them the peace of God, and the succinct message that the kingdom of God has come. What would ‘Ryanair’ make of that I wonder?
The seventy two prepare the way of the Lord and in a very real sense the Church today must see its role as precisely that. We sometimes struggle with our identity and our vocation. Are we to be just a social agency, providing care and compassion? In one sense, yes - we are to provide love and care, but there must be more. We exist to bring Christ to others. And it is a high and demanding call that we have been given. At the heart of the Gospel passage set for this Sunday there is an urgency which will not allow for time wasting and dejection. Jesus says that if a town does not welcome his ambassadors then they are to shake the dust from their feet and move on quickly.
This sounds hard and makes us ask what price perseverance, but it also reminds us that there will always be new opportunities where God is concerned. Preparing the way of the Lord today means exactly the same as it meant two thousand years ago; presenting to others a way of life which is liberated from anxiety and greed, which rejoices in the gifts of God – life, hope, peace, joy – those gifts which are beyond price and which cannot be weighed or measured in human terms.
The first reading and the psalm provide some beautiful words to inspire us on our journey. From the prophet Isaiah – the peace that the Lord gives is ‘like a river, like a stream in spate the glory of the nations.’ And in psalm 65 we are encouraged to tell others about the goodness of the Lord:
‘Come and hear, all who fear God, I will tell what he did for my soul. Blessed be God who did not reject my prayer nor withhold his love from me.’ Words to meditate on this week.
The return of the seventy-two is a touching scene. They come back rejoicing, excited at the results of their mission ‘ even the devils submit to us when we use your name’ they cry. This is a reminder to us about who it is we carry with us each day – Christ himself. People sometimes make the cardinal error of talking about ‘my’ Church, and ‘our’ Church as if it were our possession to do with as we wish. That is so, wrong for it is Christ who is the Lord or head of the Church and we belong to him just as the seventy-two did. We are under his authority and we possess his mandate.
He reminds them that he has given them the success they have had – as one commentator has put it:
‘the disciples are not self-serving magicians or sorcerers – they are participants in the ministry of Jesus.’ So, let us humbly pray that the Church hears this message loud and clear today.
Finally the Lord tells his friends to rejoice because their names are written in heaven. This is a striking image. Think of the books in which your name is already written here on earth – the baptism register, the Confirmation register, the list of members of this Church and parish, to name a few. Now ask yourself whether or not your name is written in heaven – how can we know? The answer is simple, look at the Gospel – those who love and proclaim Christ Jesus in both word and action will find that their names are written in heaven.
Father D.Humphreys S.Matthew, Willesden 4 July 2010
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Homily for the 12th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Year C
Jesus said ‘If anyone wants to be a follower of mine, let him renounce himself and take up his cross every day and follow me’.
There is no doubting which team most people are following. The flags, attached to cars and house declare a clear level of support for the English football team. So far, things are not going as well as had been hoped. People are complaining about tactics, team selection, and a seeming lack of pride. But it is too late to change anything significantly – and even those of us who have only a passing interest in the goings on in South Africa must admit that we have to keep faith with the national team.
Loyalty, be it of football players or supporters is important. And when thought about for a few moments we realise how central loyalty is to our existence as human beings in community or fellowship with others. We are called to be loyal to our families, our friends, and our religion. I slip in that last category deliberately, as you might expect. And it leads us neatly to the Gospel reading. As we heard, Jesus spoke to his disciples (those whom he had called to be his loyal band of followers – his closest friends and confidantes) about how he was to suffer and die and rise from the dead. This was to be his destiny. He was to be loyal to that calling, his vocation, if you like. And the disciples, if that’s what they wanted to be, were to mirror this loyalty in their own lives.
At the heart of the character or charism of Jesus of Nazareth we discover a denial of self and a gracious acceptance of the will of the Father. Therefore, he is able to speak openly about what is going to happen to him in Jerusalem – that is the work he has been sent to perform. The disciples, who had already given up their homes, families and livelihoods, now have more asked of them. They are to imitate Christ, their Master. The loyalty of those who call themselves disciples of Christ is to be absolute and life changing.
Back in the fifteenth century a German called Thomas a Kempis wrote a book which became a spiritual classic. He called it ‘The Imitation of Christ’. It became immensely popular throughout Europe, and it remains so today, although some of its language is rather old-fashioned. He begins with the following statement:
‘He that follows me shall not walk in darkness, says the Lord. These are the words of Christ, by which we are admonished, how we ought to imitate his life and manners, if we will be truly enlightened, and be delivered from all blindness of heart. Let our chief endeavour be to meditate upon the life of Jesus Christ.’
These words are helpful to us, both experienced and inexperienced Christians, as we seek to be loyal to Christ and to the promises made at our baptism. We are to imitate Christ in the way we act and speak. As Thomas a Kempis points out in his little book, this is no simple task. We do not just wear the team colours and chant the right songs as a football supporter might do.
It must not be so amongst us. Those who would be loyal to the Lord are challenged to imitate him. And the only way we can even attempt to do this by first getting to know him - we are to meditate on his life. Look carefully at the one who was pierced for our sins.
May God give each one of us the grace and the humility to do this each day. Let the Cross we carry be that of Jesus Christ, who loyally obeyed his Father’s will and humbled himself and accepted death on a Cross. Look to Christ, the one who was pierced, the fountain of life from whom flows forgiveness and peace for all people. We belong to him, and he loves us more than we can ever imagine; let us try to resemble him more fully in all we do and say.
O holy Jesus, most merciful redeemer, friend and brother, may we know thee more clearly, love thee more dearly, and follow thee more nearly, day by day. Amen.
Fr D.Humphreys S.Matthew, Willesden – Sunday 20 June 2010
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Homily for Corpus Christi 2010
+ “At about three o’clock, Jeremy announced his intention of going to church. Evelyn was dimly aware that he did have this side to his life, but she thought it very odd that he should express his intention of going to a Catholic service. He said it was a waste, living just behind the Oratory, and not going to Benediction.
“She accompanied him. It was a strange sort of service, quite unlike the ones she sometimes went to with her parents in the village church at home…..The climax of the ceremony appeared to be when, amid clouds of incense the priest held up what looked like a rather elaborate mantelpiece clock and everyone, who was kneeling already, bent over even further. Jeremy just gazed at the object, in a rather soupy way she thought. It was all remarkably pagan and strange.
“Jeremy was quite still for a few moments after the service, but he cheered up when she suggested skipping tea and going straight on to the drinks.” (From A.N.Wilson’s “The Sweets of Pimlico”)
Today we are celebrating Corpus Christi – the Body and Blood of Christ. Our thoughts are to be fixed on the Blessed Sacrament – the Eucharist, the bread of life. As that quotation suggested there is often some confusion where religious ritual is concerned.
Evelyn doesn’t have a clue what is going on in Church and she isn’t given much help. And it’s not only in fiction where this can occur. I well remember my first visit to this Church, some years before I became your parish priest. There was a coffin standing over there in the transept. Confused, due to my low Church upbringing, I asked my friend - ‘who’s in there’? The answer, as you may know was ‘nobody’. It was November, the month of All Souls and the Catafalque had been brought in to represent the dead.
So it can happen to any of us. I wonder whether we need to explain ourselves more clearly. Don’t be afraid of asking me or Father Derek or others, why something is being done or said or sung in Church. We are happy to answer any questions, really.
In that spirit, let’s use the Procession and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, with which we shall end this Mass, as a means of learning more about our faith. A sacrament, you may remember, is a means by which God’s grace is revealed in the life of the Church. Each of the Sacraments – Penance, Marriage, Baptism, Confirmation, Unction, Ordination, and the Holy Eucharist, brings to us a share in the life of heaven. As Christians, we believe that God works within his Church and in the world through the sacraments – bringing blessing and protection – in and through them God transmits his grace to us.
As we give thanks for the Mass today, and particularly for the honour of receiving Holy Communion we should contemplate what it really means. Our second reading is helpful. It is one of the earliest accounts of what happened at the Last Supper on the night Jesus was betrayed. Paul tells us that he is passing on the tradition he has received. That is to say, there is a direct line back from Paul to Christ himself. And the teaching is clear – when we take the bread and wine and repeat the words of Jesus over them we are proclaiming his death. So, at each and every Mass the sacrifice of Christ is remembered and celebrated – there is a link between what is offered and received and what Christ has done for us. This is no ordinary meal. It is a taste of heaven. Christ is indeed with us.
And so the Church in its wisdom instigated this lovely Feast – of the Body and Blood of Christ – as a means of drawing particular attention to the Sacrament of the Altar. There can be a danger, hopefully not in this Church, of approaching the Holy Communion with a flippant, even nonchalant attitude. We know that this won’t do because this sacrament is a priceless gift from God. ‘Lord, I am not worthy to receive you’ we say, and we mean.
The Corpus Christi Procession sums up all that we would want to say about the sacrament of the Altar. We are rightly proud of what Christ has done for us – his death is our joy and our salvation.
By carrying the Sacrament in procession and singing the praises of our Lord (who is truly present remember) we are both expressing our firm belief and also honouring his real presence. So lets process with joy and faith. When we process we are also admitting the transitory nature of our lives – we are on a journey, one that will lead to heaven we pray. We are strangers and pilgrims here. And thank God, Christ is with us - before us in fact, leading us through thick and thin, and blessing us always. The Benediction with which we conclude today makes that final point most clearly of all – we are blessed with the Host, by the Body of Christ. We honour and love the Lord Jesus, and, as he promised, he is with us and will never desert us.
From the sequence for Corpus Christi
Come then, Good Shepherd, bread divine,
Still show to us thy mercy sign;
Oh feed us still, still keep us thine;
So may we see thy glories shine
In fields of immortality;
O thou the wisest, mightiest, best,
Our present food, our future rest,
Come make us each thy chosen guest,
Co-heirs of thine, and comrades blest
With saints whose dwelling is with thee.
S.Matthew, Willesden 6 June 2010
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