As we were gathering for our joyful 9 a.m. Mass two Sundays ago another group of Catholics gathered for Mass as well. In their corner of the world it was 6 p.m. It would be the last hour of their lives as the Church of Our Lady of Salvation, a Catholic Church in the suburbs of Bagdad, Iraq, was attacked by terrorists, killing over 50 faithful and two of the Priests. Their crime: belief in Jesus Christ and fidelity to the Catholic Church; in a place that is decidedly not Catholic.
And as we were celebrating Mass last winter, perhaps pre-occupied by the Super Bowl run of our New Orleans Saints, an earthquake was devastating Haiti, destroying stone by stone the beautiful cathedral of this poor country and dozens upon dozens of other Catholic churches and schools. The bishop was killed, crushed under the weight of falling debris and the country lost both priests and seminarians in the aftermath.
Do we take for granted our ability to worship in relative peace and security? We may not be able to relate in our community to the incident in Iraq but maybe the Haiti example resonates with us after Hurricane Katrina. We remember all the beautiful childhood churches of our youth, and for some, our present, flooded to the roof line. Why was it so important to get these churches back up and ready for worship? Why were some of the most uplifting moment’s post-Katrina when a parish community reopened their Catholic Church?
As people of faith, what is really important? Do we focus too much on the externals? Do we know that Jesus guides us in all our days?
Today we reach the end of Sunday’s in Ordinary Time for our current cycle. Following St. Luke’s Gospel, we have journeyed with Jesus on his travels from and back to Jerusalem. Today, we are hearing the Gospel right before the stories of Jesus at the Last Supper, His arrest and crucifixion, His death on the Cross and the glorious Resurrection on Easter. Obviously we will not hear these Gospel stories in the weeks to come. Next week we celebrate Christ the King and after that we start all over again with Advent. But we will hear the Passion and the Resurrection in the spring.
Jesus foretells the destruction of the Temple; and the Temple indeed was destroyed in 70 A.D. The faithful would never believe this to be real but by the time Luke actually wrote this Gospel, it had occurred. And we know today, nearly 2,000 years later, all that remains of that splendid Temple is the western wall. Jesus tells his followers, and that means us, that these are externals. Yes, we need places of worship and yes we are called to worship in community; the Mass. But Jesus tells us to persevere in our faith, in our belief in Him and our fidelity to the Church, even during wars, terrorism, earthquakes, fires, floods and even hurricanes.
Not a hair on our heads will be lost he tells us. Even though Jesus promises us that we will be betrayed, that even friends and family may turn on us, he more forcefully promises that He will be our defense. He will be our safety, he will be our stronghold.
What does this mean for us today? Quite frankly we are being challenged to worship in good times and bad. The Christians in Iraq are promising to persevere. Others are moving; giving up other important aspects of life to make worship the important aspect of life. In Haiti the faithful walked through and over debris to pray outside the destroyed cathedral and churches. And today, after cholera and a hurricane they promise to persevere. The Catholic Churches in and of New Orleans continue to be communities of worship because we promised to persevere. Many of our parishes here on the Northshore are more active and vibrant, in part, because many came here and started anew and to give witness to the faith.
As we close the Church year over these next few days, focus on what is truly important. Search deeply for the internals. Ask ourselves, will we persevere. What can we challenge ourselves to do in the coming weeks? Can we deepen our prayer life? Can we return to reconciliation? Can we continue to support our Thanksgiving food drive? Can we persevere, can we endure?
With Iraq and Haiti and our own faith community as examples and Jesus’ promises as our guide, we most definitely can.
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