{"id":2053,"date":"2017-02-26T09:33:20","date_gmt":"2017-02-26T14:33:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.renewaloffaith.org\/blog\/?p=2053"},"modified":"2017-02-26T09:33:20","modified_gmt":"2017-02-26T14:33:20","slug":"8th-sunday-in-ordinary-time-year-a-homily","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.renewaloffaith.org\/blog\/8th-sunday-in-ordinary-time-year-a-homily\/","title":{"rendered":"8th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A – Homily"},"content":{"rendered":"

8th<\/sup> Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A<\/a>
\nIsaiah 49:14-15
\nPsalm 62:2-3, 6-7, 8-9
\n1 Corinthians 4:1-5
\nMatthew 6:24-34
\nFebruary 26, 2017<\/p>\n

\u201cNo one can serve two masters.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n

These are Jesus\u2019 words to us.\u00a0 As we hear them our first thought might be that we don\u2019t want any master.\u00a0 We want to be free.<\/p>\n

What does it mean to call God our master?\u00a0 What does it mean to say \u201cmammon\u201d is our master?<\/p>\n

As Jesus uses the word \u201cmaster\u201d, to call someone or something our \u201cmaster\u201d is to say it is what is most important to us.\u00a0 To make \u201cmammon\u201d our master is to make things like money and power the most important things to us.\u00a0 If we do that, then we will do anything for money and we become slaves to our love for money.\u00a0 What benefit is that to us?<\/p>\n

If we make God our master, yes we need to follow his commandments but they are good for us and we maintain our freedom to choose to follow him.<\/p>\n

Can money be useful?\u00a0 Of course, it is necessary to buy food, clothing, and pay the rent.\u00a0 These are important but they shouldn\u2019t control our lives.\u00a0 That\u2019s part of why those of us who are able need to help people who don\u2019t have enough food, clothing, or shelter.<\/p>\n

If they don\u2019t have enough, then they \u201cworry\u201d and what good does the worry do?\u00a0 It cannot \u201cadd a single moment to your life span.<\/em>\u201d\u00a0 We need to help those in need so their worry doesn\u2019t control their lives.<\/p>\n

I want to take the idea of mammon as our master and take it out a little broader.\u00a0 Jesus asks, \u201cWhy are you anxious about clothes?<\/em>\u201d\u00a0 We need to have clothes to wear but how many different clothes do we really need?\u00a0 What type of clothes do we need<\/em><\/strong> versus what do we want<\/em><\/strong>?\u00a0 Sometimes we want more clothes or fancier clothes to make ourselves look special (pride, a sin) or because of \u201cpeer pressure\u201d.\u00a0 Then we become slaves to our pride and\/or the peer pressure and for what gain?<\/p>\n

Again, we need to think about our genuine need<\/em><\/strong> for food, clothing, and shelter.\u00a0 For example, we need a place to live but how big or fancy? We each need to reflect on our own circumstances. For instance, for me without children it is different from for those with children at home or in college.\u00a0 Even if we can afford more, what effect does it have on others?\u00a0 If I overconsume (and I do with food anyway), what effect does that have on others?\u00a0 Does it drive the price up and make it even harder for the poor to have what they need?<\/p>\n

I\u2019m not begrudging anyone having a nice car or home.\u00a0 I buy a new car every few years.\u00a0 I hope that is not a sin but I make sure the money I spend on the car comes after<\/em><\/strong> my charity to others.<\/p>\n

When we learn to limit, even let go of, our wants<\/em><\/strong>, we can become more able to help the less fortunate, to help those who feel forsaken and find our lives more free.<\/p>\n

In Isaiah today we hear how Zion said, \u201cThe LORD has forsaken me, my Lord has forgotten me.<\/em>\u201d\u00a0 Zion felt this way because of their defeat by Babylon and the fall of Jerusalem.\u00a0 Today people can feel forsaken when they do not have enough food, clothing, or shelter.\u00a0 God has not forsaken them.\u00a0 Have we?<\/p>\n

We need to show we care.\u00a0 In earthly terms, it can be helping people to have enough food, clothing, and shelter but feeling forsaken is not just a matter of material need.<\/p>\n

People are looking for something more.\u00a0 Whether they know it or not, it is God they seek.\u00a0 As our psalm says, \u201cOnly in God is my soul at rest, from him comes my salvation.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n

How attentive to spiritual needs are we?\u00a0 The fact that we are here in church would indicate some awareness of our need but what about others\u2019 spiritual and emotional needs?<\/p>\n

Look around you.\u00a0 Do you know the people around you beyond those you came with? \u00a0Do you know their aches and pains, their joys and hopes?<\/p>\n

If you see an unfamiliar face in church, do you consider them a visitor?\u00a0 Do you wonder why they are sitting in your pew?\u00a0 Are they really a visitor or just coming to a different Mass?\u00a0 Either way, they are our brothers and sisters in Christ.\u00a0 We need to help each not just in our physical need but spiritually and emotionally.\u00a0 That means helping them to feel welcome and appreciated.<\/p>\n

When someone doesn\u2019t have enough food, clothing, or even a place to sleep, they may feel like the mountains may fall.\u00a0 If they feel alone and forgotten, that no one cares about them, they can feel forsaken.\u00a0 May our own Lenten journeys that starts Wednesday help us to put our own lives into perspective to know what is truly important, that we find \u201crest in God alone<\/em>\u201d and know that God never forsakes those who call on his name.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

8th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A Isaiah 49:14-15 Psalm 62:2-3, 6-7, 8-9 1 Corinthians 4:1-5 Matthew 6:24-34 February 26, 2017 \u201cNo one can serve two masters.\u201d These are Jesus\u2019 words to us.\u00a0 As we hear them our first thought might be that we don\u2019t want any master.\u00a0 We want to be free. What does …<\/p>\n

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