Homily -
Religious Persecution talk follows Homily
THIRTY-THIRD SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME (Year A)
I. Introduction
If you’re a football fan, like
me, and do penance for that weakness by following the
Detroit Lions, you know they’re on the verge of a
historic season: they have an excellent chance of
losing every single game this year—something that’s
never been done before in the National Football League.
Moreover, that will be after having won all four
of their preseason games—so in this year of 2008,
they’re likely to set a record that will never be
equaled. I was two years old when the Lions last won a
championship, and I began following them as a fan when I
was in high school, in 1970. That was a good year to
begin, for in 1970 the Detroit Lions were a very good
team, going 10 – 4 and making it to the playoffs after
winning their last five games. Naturally, being the
Lions, they lost in the first round of the playoffs to
Dallas in a game they could have won—but the loss many
fans will always remember occurred in the middle of the
season, down in New Orleans. To this day, I can
remember watching the end of this game on TV. Detroit
was trailing, 16 – 14, with under a minute to go, but
they moved into field goal range, and their quarterback
called timeout with about 16 seconds to go. He should
have let the clock run down even farther. The Lions
kicked a field goal to take a 17 - 16 lead, and
seemingly had the game won—but, of course, this was the
Detroit Lions we’re talking about. The New Orleans
Saints got the ball back and returned it to Detroit’s 45
yard line with only two seconds left, apparently much
too far away to attempt a field goal—but that’s what the
Saints did. The New Orleans coach told kicker Tom
Dempsey, “Go out there and give it your best shot!” The
holder set the ball down eight yards behind the line of
scrimmage, instead of the normal seven, to give Dempsey
a split second more to get off the kick—making it a
field goal attempt of 63 yards, seven yards longer than
the NFL record. Neither I nor anyone else watching the
game thought there was a chance he’d make it—but the
kick was good, giving New Orleans a 19 – 17 victory as
time expired.
What many people at the time
didn’t know, or have since forgotten, was that Tom
Dempsey was physically handicapped; he was born without
a right hand and only half a right foot, forcing him to
wear a special shoe only half the normal length. He did
not allow these disadvantages to discourage him; he
tried out for his high school football team and made it,
and then played for a junior college in California,
where he became the team’s kicker. Dempsey was so good
at kicking a football that he was eventually signed by
the New Orleans Saints (Link, Illustrated Sunday
Homilies, Year A, Series I, p. 121). Tom Dempsey’s
name will always be in the NFL record book, and many of
us still vividly remember his 63 yard kick, but the
truly important thing in God’s eyes is that he made good
use of his limited talents and abilities. Whether in
football, or any other aspect of life, the same thing
must be true of us. The Lord has entrusted each one of
us with a certain number of talents, abilities, and
opportunities, and one day He will demand an
accounting. Those who waste their lives, or fritter
away what they’ve been given, or refuse even to try,
will face a severe judgment—but those who make an honest
effort to do what they can in serving God, and persevere
in spite of difficulties and discouragement, will share
their Master’s joy for all eternity.
II. Development
Today’s readings tell us that
true followers of Christ cannot be indifferent, lazy, or
passive. Rather, like a worthy wife who labors with
love on behalf of her family, they must use the
opportunities they’re given to be of service to God and
neighbor; as the 1st Reading says, the value of such
persons “is far beyond pearls.” St. Paul tells us in
the 2nd Reading not to be overly concerned with attempts
to predict the future; interesting as such speculation
may be, it’s far more important to live in the here and
now as children of the light, staying alert and
sober—which means, among other things, fulfilling our
God-given responsibilities. This is also the point of
Our Lord’s parable in the Gospel. Three servants were
entrusted with varying amounts of talents, or money, and
each was judged not in comparison with the others, but
on the basis of his own degree of effort. If, instead
of burying his talent in the ground, the third servant
had tried to use it but ended up failing, his master
would still have rewarded him for making an honest
attempt. It’s because he didn’t even try that his
master condemned him as a “wicked, lazy servant,” and
ordered him thrown outside into the darkness—in other
words, cast into hell and excluded from the Kingdom of
God.
III. Conclusion
We can focus on the terrible
fate of the lazy servant, and doing so is good if it
gives us a healthy fear of divine judgment and a timely
reminder of the need to put our faith into practice;
however, there may be even more benefit in reflecting
upon the reward given to the two faithful servants.
Each of them made good use of what he was given, and
neither compared himself to the other. The one who had
five talents didn’t say to himself, “Well, even if I put
out only a slight effort, I’ll still have more to show
in the end than the other guy, so a 50% effort is good
enough,” and the one who was given only two talents
didn’t complain, “It’s not fair—I don’t have as much to
work with as he does.” Each servant did his best;
that’s what the master was looking for, and that’s what
God asks of us.
Sometimes we’re more aware of
our limitations than our abilities; often it’s easier to
make excuses than to make up our minds that we’re going
to do what we can, regardless of the circumstances.
There will always be other people who are smarter,
richer, holier, more talented, or more blessed, than we
are. That doesn’t matter, because we won’t be judged on
that basis. Instead, the Lord will ask us, “Did you
try? Did you share your gifts with others? Did you
lend a helping hand when the opportunity arose? Did you
show concern for those around you who were suffering?
Did you fulfill your daily and religious duties
faithfully? Did you offer encouragement, prayers, and
support to your brothers and sisters? Did you help
build up My Church by being a generous, involved,
committed Christian?” The Lord won’t be looking to see
whether our names are in any record books, as is Tom
Dempsey’s, but whether we genuinely tried to make a
return on all that He has given us. If we can truly
answer “yes” to His questions, then—even if we’re as
unsuccessful in life as the Detroit Lions are in
football—we can be sure a glorious reward awaits us.
RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION IN THE UNITED
STATES?
It Happened in Pittsburgh
“The police . . . brought in a double-decker bus, complete
with tinted windows (thus it was impossible to see what was
going on inside the bus. . .) Brutality started on the
bus. Angela was dragged onto the bus by her hair. People
were billy-clubbed, kicked, and punched. Police dragged
women in the bus by pulling up skirts and bras over their
heads, exposing them in so doing. . . . The men were denied
food for thirty hours. . . . Upon arrival at the . . . jail
there were over thirty police . . . lined up along five or
six flights of stairs. . . . Women were then dragged up the
steps, some by the hair and others by the neck. You could
hear the sounds of heads smacking against the steps. The
warden was at the bottom of the first flight of stairs, and
he kicked [the people] as they were dragged by. . . .
During this entire procedure there was foul language,
obscenities, and threats of putting women . . . in rooms
with male prisoners to be sodomized and raped. . . . They
were asked to strip in front of male guards and male
prisoners. All refused. They were then forcibly stripped
by both male and female guards, kicked, and punched. Women
. . . were fondled, verbally abused, and threatened”—the
experience of Christians protesting outside an abortion
clinic on March 11, 1989 (from How to Prepare for the
Coming Persecution, by Larry Poland: Here’s Life
Publishers, San Bernardino, 1990).
Parallels Between Germany in the 1930s and
Contemporary America:
--
an obsession with death (especially abortion
and euthanasia)
--
an emphasis on environmentalism and
animal rights
--
thousands of laws and regulations (giving the
government the potential to arrest innocent,
unknowing civilians)
--
an occultic or New Age dimension
--
judges and government officials ignoring the
Constitution whenever they wish
--
gun control laws (with U.S. laws almost
identical to German laws of 1928 & 1938)
--
rejection of traditional heroes and the
nation’s Christian heritage
Reasons for a Persecution of
the Church
The first widespread
persecution of Christian-ity in the Roman Empire occurred
under the Emperor Decius in 250. St. Cyprian, Bishop of
Carthage, later identified three reasons God allowed it to
occur: (1) Christians had been unable to maintain their
spiritual fervor in the face of extended peace and
prosperity; (2) Christians in every level of the Church fell
into materialism and worldly concerns; and (3) because of
materialism, they lost their zeal for the Faith. Does
this describe
America today?
Recognizing a Coming
Persecution
Experts agree that five
stages of a coming persecution can be identified. (1) The
targeted group is stigmatized; its reputation is attacked,
possibly by mocking it and rejecting its values. (2) Then
the group is marginalized, or pushed out of the mainstream
of society, with deliberate efforts to limit and undo its
influence. (3) The third stage is to vilify the group,
viciously attacking it and blaming it for many of society’s
problems. (4) Next, the group is criminalized, with
increasing restrictions placed on its activi-ties and
eventually even its existence. (5) The final stage is one
of outright persecution.
Many commentators believe the United States is now in
stage three, and moving into stage four.
Scripture Passages on
Persecution
Ps. 142:6-7; Mt. 5:11; Mt.
5:44-45; Mt. 13:20-21; Mk. 10:29-30; Mk. 13:9-13; Jn.
15:18-21; Jn. 16:1-2; Acts 5:41; Rm. 8:35; Rm. 12:14; 2 Cor.
4:8-10, 2 Cor. 12:10; 1 Th. 1:6-7; 2 Tm. 3:12; Heb.
10:32-39; 1 Pt. 4:12-19; Rev. 6:9-11.
Pope John Paul II on
Persecution
“We must be prepared to
undergo great trials in the not-too-distant future; trials
that will require us to give up even our lives, and a total
gift of self to Christ and for Christ. . . . it is only in
this way that the Church can be effectively renewed. How
many times, indeed, has the renewal of the Church been
effected in blood? This time, again, it will not be
otherwise.”
(from an informal statement
given in 1980)
A Model for Prayer in Times
of Danger or Persecution
(from Acts 4:23-31, NAB)
After their release [Peter
and John] went back to their own people and reported what
the chief priests and elders had told them. And when they
heard it, they raised their voices to God with one accord
and said, “Sovereign Lord, maker of heaven and earth and the
sea and all that is in them, You said by the Holy Spirit
through the mouth of our father David, Your servant: Why
did the Gentiles rage and the peoples entertain folly? The
kings of the earth took their stand and the princes gathered
together against the Lord and His anointed. Indeed they
gathered in this city against Your holy servant Jesus Whom
You anointed, Herod and Pontius Pilate, together with the
Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do what Your hand and
will had long ago planned to take place. And now, Lord,
take note of their threats, and enable Your servants to
speak Your word with all boldness, as You stretch forth Your
hand to heal, and signs and wonders are done through the
Name of Your holy servant Jesus.” As they prayed, the place
where they were gathered shook, and they were all filled
with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God
with boldness.
Recommended Reading
Storm Warning: The Coming
Persecution of Christians and Traditionalists in America,
by Donald McAlvany
(Hearthstone Publishing, 1999). 350 pp.
Persecution: How Liberals
Are Waging War Against Christianity,
by David Limbaugh (Regnery
Publishing, 2003). 352 pp; $27.95.
The Criminalization of
Christianity, by
Janet L. Folger (Multnomah Publishers, 2005). 252 pp.;
$19.99.
The Marketing of Evil: How
Radicals, Elitists, and Pseudo-Experts Sell Us Corruption
Disguised as Freedom,
by David Kupelian (WND
Books—an imprint of Cumberland House Publishing, 2005).
240 pp.; $24.95.
The Great Chastisement:
Books I – IV, by
Stephen C. Mahowald (MMR Publishing; P.O. Box 37348, Omaha,
NE 68137).
Book I: An Introduction;
Book II: Practical Matters;
Book III: Teaching the
Children; Book IV: Strategy and Tactics.
Groups to Consider Joining
The Catholic League for Religious and Civil
Rights: 450
Seventh Avenue, New York,
NY 10123.
(212) 371-3191; website:
www.catholicleague.org.
The American Family Association:
P. O.
Drawer 2440,
Tupelo, MS 38803.
Website:
www.afa.net.
Preparing for a Persecution: Steps to Take
(ideas in part from the book Storm Warning):
1. Realize that persecution is normal; many believers
throughout most of Christian history have experienced it
(including millions around the world today). If they can
persevere with God’s help, so can we. Our attitude should
be one of trust and acceptance, not guilt or fear.
2. Keep a proper perspective. Christians are persecuted
not because we’re losing, but because we’re winning. The
gates of hell will not prevail against the Church (Mt.
16:18); Satan’s fury reflects the truth that his time is
limited and his kingdom is crumbling.
3. Remember that persecution may come not only from the
Church’s enemies, but also from fellow Christians who betray
others out of fear or weakness (cf. Mk. 13:12, 1 Jn. 2:19).
We must as shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves (Mt.
10:16), trusting others only after careful prayer and
discernment. We must also resolve any quarrels with fellow
believers.
4. Refuse to give into fear. If we suffer for our faith,
the Holy Spirit will take away our anxiety and give us the
words to say at the proper moment (Mk. 13:11).
5. Maintain links with other believers. “If the believer,
because of fear, cuts himself off from all contact with
other Christians, Satan will have won. A Christian cannot
survive victoriously for long if he is spiritually cut off
from fellow-ship, worship and teaching” – Brother Andrew of
Open Doors Ministry.
6. Pray—for all who are persecuted, for our fellow
believers, for those who persecute us and those who betray
us. We must also pray for strength, courage, and
discernment.
7. Remember that God loves us, is with us always, knows our
limits better than we do, and will give us all the resources
we need to remain firm in our faith and to emerge victorious
from our trials.
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