Fr Kevin Kilgore

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Gospel: John 12: 24-26

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Amen, amen, I say to you,
unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies,
it remains just a grain of wheat;
but if it dies, it produces much fruit.
Whoever loves his life loses it,
and whoever hates his life in this world
will preserve it for eternal life.
Whoever serves me must follow me,
and where I am, there also will my servant be.
The Father will honor whoever serves me.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Saint Ignatius of Antioch, whose feast day we celebrate today, was born two years after the death and resurrection of Christ. He lived during a period of both intense growth and persecution of the Church.

After being ordained a priest, he became the bishop of Antioch, located in modern-day Turkey. One of his greatest contributions to the Church was his pastoral letters, sent to different Christian communities.

In these letters, he makes various references to the Eucharist, teaching us that these early Christians not only celebrated Mass; they also believed in the Promised Presence of Christ in the Eucharist.

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In his Letter to the Romans, Ignatius writes, “I have no taste for corruptible food nor for the pleasures of this life. I desire the bread of God, which is the flesh of Jesus Christ… and for drink, I desire his blood.”

In his Letter to the Smyrnaeans, he says plainly, “The Eucharist is the flesh of our Savior Jesus Christ.”

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Ignatius gave his life for this belief, as he was mauled to death by lions in a stadium in Rome.

All for love of Christ and his Church.

It is because of Saints like him that Catholics have not only held onto the belief of Christ’s Promised Presence in the Eucharist; we also have the honor of receiving him.

May Ignatius intercede for us, that we’d never take such a precious gift for granted; rather, that we’d become what we receive.

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Image credits: (1) Catholic Answers (2) Martyrdom of Saint Ignatius of Antioch, Pier Leone Ghezzi (3) Trenton Monitor

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Gospel: Luke 11: 47-54

The Lord said:
“Woe to you who build the memorials of the prophets
whom your fathers killed.
Consequently, you bear witness and give consent
to the deeds of your ancestors,
for they killed them and you do the building.
Therefore, the wisdom of God said,
‘I will send to them prophets and Apostles;
some of them they will kill and persecute’
in order that this generation might be charged
with the blood of all the prophets
shed since the foundation of the world,
from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah
who died between the altar and the temple building.
Yes, I tell you, this generation will be charged with their blood!
Woe to you, scholars of the law!
You have taken away the key of knowledge.
You yourselves did not enter and you stopped those trying to enter.”
When Jesus left, the scribes and Pharisees
began to act with hostility toward him
and to interrogate him about many things,
for they were plotting to catch him at something he might say.

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Jesus stares at the religious leaders of his day and cries out, “Woe to you hypocrites!” It is scenes like this that inspire the authorities to plot Christ’s death. Jesus was not only questioning their character; but he was also challenging their spiritual authority.

The word “hypocrite”originally referred to someone who wore a mask, an actor on a stage. Although the scribes and Pharisees masquerade in religious attire, their hearts are filled with corruption.

These leaders have made several mistakes, which believers can still make today.

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First, we’ve all heard the old saying, “Practice what you preach.” 

It’s one thing for us to speak about Jesus. It’s another thing to live like him. Yet this is the standard which Christians are held accountable to – loving God with all of their heart and their neighbor as themselves.

As Mother Teresa once said, “Preach always. When necessary, use words.”

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Second, the scribes and Pharisees were cunning.

They imposed heavy legal and spiritual burdens on God’s people, but were experts in making loopholes for themselves. 

In a word, they lacked accountability, something which the Church has also struggled with over the centuries.

We should remember, God is always watching us – not with a judgmental eye, but with an interest in fairness. As the Lord says elsewhere, “Do to no one what you yourself dislike.” Rather, we should lead by example.

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After reading through the “woes” of Jesus this week, we can boil them down into two similar sayings:

Practice what you preach.  

And actions speak louder than words. 

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Image credits: (1) Adobe Stock (2) catholicsstrivingforholiness.org (3) Become Extraordinary, WordPress

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Gospel: Luke 11: 42-46

The Lord said:
“Woe to you Pharisees!
You pay tithes of mint and of rue and of every garden herb,
but you pay no attention to judgment and to love for God.
These you should have done, without overlooking the others.
Woe to you Pharisees!
You love the seat of honor in synagogues
and greetings in marketplaces.  
Woe to you!
You are like unseen graves over which people unknowingly walk.”

Then one of the scholars of the law said to him in reply,
“Teacher, by saying this you are insulting us too.”
And he said, “Woe also to you scholars of the law!
You impose on people burdens hard to carry,
but you yourselves do not lift one finger to touch them.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Often, when we hear about the lives of the Saints, we turn back to days gone by. We examine the lives of men and women, even children, who lived and died centuries ago. 

Given the change in time, culture, and place, we might wonder what they have to say to us today. Consider the life of Saint Teresa of Avila, whose feast day we celebrate. She lived in 16^th century Spain, spending most of her life in a Carmelite convent with other nuns.

What might her life and faith experience say to us?

Surprisingly, perhaps, a lot.

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Teresa lived during a time of significant change. The Protestant Reformation was well underway, as Martin Luther and others accused the Catholic Church of straying away from Christ and his call to holiness, falling into corrupt and scandalous practices, instead.

She felt a similar dynamic unfolding within her own religious order. So, she founded the Order of Discalced Carmelites, focusing on austerity of life, solitude, and prayer.

At the very heart of her reforms, she believed that laws without love, or God at the very center, led to competing interests, transactional relationships, and selfishness. 

Some might say we can see the fruit of that truth unfolding in our nation today. When God is no longer part of the public forum, when faith is hidden, discouraged, or even stomped out, then the self-interested side of humanity emerges.

We have no one else to worship.

People need a common cause – or, better, a common Person – to rally around. That’s not only true in a convent full of Spanish nuns, but it’s also true of nations.

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On this Feast of Saint Teresa, we ask for her intercession, that our society would return to the ideals under which it was founded: one nation, under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all.

Saint Teresa of Avila, pray for us.

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Image credits: (1) Diocese of Norwich (2) Word on Fire (3) Guideposts