Fr Kevin Kilgore

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Gospel: Matthew 23: 27-32

Jesus said,
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites.
You are like whitewashed tombs, which appear beautiful on the outside,
but inside are full of dead men’s bones and every kind of filth.
Even so, on the outside you appear righteous,
but inside you are filled with hypocrisy and evildoing.

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites.
You build the tombs of the prophets
and adorn the memorials of the righteous, 
and you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our ancestors,
we would not have joined them in shedding the prophets’ blood.’
Thus you bear witness against yourselves
that you are the children of those who murdered the prophets;
now fill up what your ancestors measured out!”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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When I entered the seminary, one of the first books I read was a novel called, The Diary of a Country Priest, by Georges Bernanos. 

It’s about a young priest living in a small village in the French countryside. Most of the book is composed of his diary entries, documenting – among other things – the slow erosion of faith that happens in his parish.

Once zealous parishioners become lukewarm of heart. 

“Faith,” he writes, “is not something you lose like a set of keys.”

It slowly weakens over time. 

It can happen to anyone: life gets busy and we start missing Mass; prayer becomes routine or a prayer goes unanswered; a sudden shock or disappointment strikes; God becomes less involved in our daily decision making.

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I wonder if this what happened to some of the scribes and Pharisees whom Jesus criticizes in today’s Gospel.

Most of them were probably good, law-abiding men, whose faith slowly weakened over time; in fact, they became so blind that God was standing right in front of them and they didn’t even realize it!

What caused their loss of faith? 

Perhaps a slow, growing attachment to human praise, important titles, or the world. 

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What is my own spiritual life like? Do I feel my faith slowly slipping away or gradually getting stronger? 

Rarely, if ever, is it neutral.

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Faith is not something we lose like a set of keys.

It’s weakened – or strengthened – over time. May God give us all the grace to strengthen it today.

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Image credits: (1) Pastor Rick’s Daily Hope (2) Roger Ebert (3) Pinterest

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Gospel: Mark 6: 17-29

Herod was the one who had John arrested and bound in prison
on account of Herodias,
the wife of his brother Philip, whom he had married.
John had said to Herod,
“It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.”
Herodias harbored a grudge against him
and wanted to kill him but was unable to do so.
Herod feared John, knowing him to be a righteous and holy man,
and kept him in custody.
When he heard him speak he was very much perplexed,
yet he liked to listen to him.
Herodias had an opportunity one day when Herod, on his birthday,
gave a banquet for his courtiers, his military officers,
and the leading men of Galilee.
His own daughter came in and performed a dance
that delighted Herod and his guests.
The king said to the girl,
“Ask of me whatever you wish and I will grant it to you.”
He even swore many things to her,
“I will grant you whatever you ask of me,
even to half of my kingdom.”

She went out and said to her mother,
“What shall I ask for?”
Her mother replied, “The head of John the Baptist.”
The girl hurried back to the king’s presence and made her request,
“I want you to give me at once on a platter
the head of John the Baptist.”
The king was deeply distressed,
but because of his oaths and the guests
he did not wish to break his word to her.
So he promptly dispatched an executioner
with orders to bring back his head.
He went off and beheaded him in the prison.
He brought in the head on a platter
and gave it to the girl.
The girl in turn gave it to her mother.
When his disciples heard about it,
they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.

The Gospel of the Lord.

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King Herod was a ruthless, bloodthirsty man. 

We see evidence of this in today’s Gospel, as he orders the death of John the Baptist, a decision he made while he was drunk at a party.

But even after John’s death, Herod, “kept trying to see him.” While he was a ruthless killer, Herod was also intrigued by John. 

In fact, he used to call John into his chambers and listen to him speak. John stirred something inside of him; he tickled Herod’s curiosity about the divine.

Now after John’s death, he’s haunted by the fact that he’s killed an innocent man – and, in fact, a prophet.

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This back and forth battle between light and darkness, between the search for truth and the need for survival, reveals how deeply conflicted Herod was. 

He clung to power. Yet in his bedchamber at midnight wondered if there was more to life; even the possibility of rising from the dead. 

“Could it be,” he questions in today’s Gospel, “that John the Baptist has been raised from the dead?” And if so, then what might this mean for Herod?

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That to me is where so many people in our world are at today.

Though unlike Herod in his thirst for power, many still fluctuate between belief and unbelief; they’re searching, seeking, wondering what’s out there.

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Our invitation is to be like John the Baptist, sharing the truth with them, which is done most effectively by the way we live our lives. 

As Saint Francis of Assisi once said, “Preach always. Only when necessary use words.”

In what ways do I share my faith with others? and how might I do so today?

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Image credits: (1) Soul Searching, Warrior Mind Coach (2) National Trust, Penrhyn Castle (3) Daily Word For All, WordPress

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Gospel: Matthew 23: 13-22

Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples:
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites.
You lock the Kingdom of heaven before men.
You do not enter yourselves,
nor do you allow entrance to those trying to enter.

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites.
You traverse sea and land to make one convert,
and when that happens you make him a child of Gehenna
twice as much as yourselves.

“Woe to you, blind guides, who say,
‘If one swears by the temple, it means nothing,
but if one swears by the gold of the temple, one is obligated.’
Blind fools, which is greater, the gold,
or the temple that made the gold sacred?
And you say, ‘If one swears by the altar, it means nothing,
but if one swears by the gift on the altar, one is obligated.’
You blind ones, which is greater, the gift,
or the altar that makes the gift sacred?
One who swears by the altar swears by it and all that is upon it;
one who swears by the temple swears by it
and by him who dwells in it;
one who swears by heaven swears by the throne of God
and by him who is seated on it.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Today we celebrate one of the greatest intellects the Church has ever known: Saint Augustine.

While volumes have been written about his theology and spirituality, perhaps we can understand his life using a simple image:

A black and white cookie.

Maybe you’ve seen one in a local bakery. Half of the cookie is covered in dark icing, while the other half is covered in white icing.

That cookie symbolizes how Saint Augustine lived his life. 

The first half was lived in darkness, pursuing worldly pleasures. But after experiencing a dramatic conversion, the second half of his life was spent trying to live more and more like Christ.

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Augustine reminds us that moving from darkness into the light is much easier said than done. In one of his first prayers, he says:

“Lord, make me chaste. Just not yet.”

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Augustine felt the burden of faith. He wanted to change. But he also understood just how hard moving from the darkness into the light can be.

Haven’t we all experienced something similar?

Lord, make me chaste. Make me holy. Make me humble. Make me more prayerful…

Just not yet.

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There may be a little black and a lot of white inside all of us – areas where we need to grow in virtue, as well as areas where we are holy.

Augustine reminds us to keep striving for that light, because, he says, “Our hearts are restless until they rest in you, O Lord.”

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Image credits: (1) Black and white cookie, Wikipedia (2) Ibid. (3) Saint Augustine, The Conversation, Shutterstock