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Bishop's Homily for the Twenty-First Sunday of Ordinary Time

August 25, 2024

[St. Anthony Church, Wailuku]

I remember going out to dinner with some parishioners from Mexico.  The first man ordered a steak, and the waitress asked how he wanted it cooked.  She asked if he would like to have one of three sauces accompany the steak.  She asked if he wanted French fries, mashed potatoes, or a baked potato, and when he said, “Baked potato,” she asked if he wanted butter or sour cream, bacon bits and chives.  Then she asked if he wanted soup or salad, and when he chose salad, she asked what kind of dressing he wanted on the salad.  The others at the table found all of this very amusing, and after the waitress left, then began to laugh.  They said to me, “Father, in Mexico if you order a steak, you get a steak.  It is prepared the way the cook decides to prepare it, and the cook decides what will accompany it.  You don’t get all the choices that are available here!”

We live in a culture with many choices, and I think today’s Scripture readings speak of choices.

Of course, one of our choices is whether to be here at Mass on Sunday or not.  Obviously, all of us have chosen to be here.  We know there are many others who have chosen not to come to Mass.  For some, they make the choice not to be here sadly, because they are forced to work long hours, or they have a sickness or disability that makes it impossible to attend, or they are caring for a loved one and simply cannot break away from that compassionate duty.  For others the choice is more deliberate.  They do not believe in God or believe that worship is important.  Or they have been hurt by someone in the Church and find it difficult to be here.  Still others are not here because they have chosen golf, shopping, extra sleep or the beach over worship.

And even if we are here, we have a choice about our attitude toward the Mass.  We may be here begrudgingly, out of a sense of obligation; or we may be here primarily because we need something from God and want to ask for it.  Some are here because they fully believe that this is an encounter with the risen Lord Jesus that can change our lives and change the world.

Our hope is that all of us are here because we are in love with Jesus and know that he is in love with us, and that he wants to be physically present to us here in Word and sacrament to embrace us, challenge us to greater holiness, and strengthen us to meet all of life’s difficulties.  We may struggle with our belief at times, but we choose to stick around and continue the struggle, because we know it is worth it.

We see choices being presented in today’s Scriptures.  Joshua challenges the people of Israel to make a choice:  Are they going to follow the true and living God, who chose them as his beloved people; or are they going to choose their own gods according to their own preferences?  Paul speaks of choices married couples have:  Is each one going to think of him- or herself first, or are they going to put the other person first, and find the joy of self-giving love?  And the disciples of Jesus make a choice:  Some abandon him because they simply cannot believe the incredible things he is saying about offering his own Body and Blood as true food and drink for the life of the world; and some choose to stay with him because he has the words of eternal life.

It is important that we understand our choices.  Here we are offered the choice to be in the most intimate and holy communion with the Son of God himself.  Here, we are so bound to this troubled earth, can touch heaven by having the living Bread come down from heaven touch us.  Here we are given the most sublime privilege of eating the flesh and drinking the blood of the Son of God.  If we truly understood what is happening here, we would never want to absent ourselves from this sacred banquet, except for the most serious reasons – and then lamentably.

We also have the choice of keeping this great gift to ourselves, or sharing the joy and love with others we meet.  If we choose to develop the faith that Jesus is truly present here with us, and that his love can change our lives, we will want to share that good news with others.  We will not be satisfied with simply experiencing for ourselves this great gift, but will choose to invite others to experience it as well.  We invite them not just to come to Mass or to fulfill and obligation, but to make the most life-giving choice available to them, to be in intimate communion with Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Savior of the world.