24th Sunday of the Year
Cycle B September 13, 2009
Isaiah 50:4-9
James 2:14-18
Mark 8:27-35
The gospel of Mark was written about 65 AD, for Christians in Rome, during a rather heavy persecution. One of the questions inevitably would be: “do we have to accept suffering to be a disciple of Jesus Christ?”
Throughout his gospel, Mark presents a very human Jesus who does not want to suffer, but comes to realize, that he is called to the cross. “The Son of Man must suffer greatly…and be killed.”
Peter rebukes Jesus. He does not think Jesus needs to suffer and die. In response, Jesus rebukes Peter: “whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.”
Everyone has to deal with suffering, evil and death. It is part of the human condition. Various religions have different ways of answering the question of “why suffering”. Today’s gospel is part of the basis for the Christian response.
In our Catholic tradition, we believe that by embracing suffering, finding meaning in it, we can come closer to the Lord. It does not mean we are masochists, and inflict ourselves with pain. No, life itself usually offers us plenty of opportunity.
Having said that, an important part of our tradition is that we do self-discipline ourselves. We do fast from food and some actions at times precisely to help grow in our ability to accept the sufferings that come our way. Jesus does ask of us to suffer a little in giving of our lives for the good of others. James, in the second reading today, does tie our sharing of material goods as THE indicator of the presence of faith.
In Catholic spiritually we talk about Sacrificial Giving, which is giving that actually requires a sacrifice on our part. It is not giving out of our bounty, out of our excess, or from what’s left over at the end of the month. It is giving that actually hurts us a little because we are being so generous. Remember our God put aside his divinity and became one of us, even to the point becoming our slave. Talk about generosity that hurts!
Sacrificial giving is different than tithing, i.e., giving away 10% of your income. The wealthy might give 50% of their income away, and it wouldn’t really hurt. The poor might hurt if they give only 2%. Sacrificial Giving is not about HOW MUCH I give, but how much of a sacrifice I make in giving.
The past 18 months have been economically difficult. Our parish experienced the same trend – people hold back from giving, perhaps because of fear. I will give when the economy is better and my financial position is more secure.
15 years ago, a small group of parishioners challenged me. I waited until the end of the month, and then gave to parish and charities out of what was left. They convinced me to risk giving at the beginning of the month, MORE than what I had been giving. They promised I would be spiritually better off. They were right. The more I trusted, the better things went in my life. Somehow, giving more, I still had everything I needed, although sometimes I had to sacrifice and not get or do what I wanted. But I was much happier, and my faith was much deeper.
I am thankful to them for helping me grow. Now I want to challenge you. Sacrificial Giving is a challenge, but also an opportunity to grow in faith and trust. I invite you to reflect on your personal situation. In some cases, people’s time might be the greater and more valuable sacrifice. For some of us, time is our most valuable financial resource.
However, I do believe that most of us are able to give more time to our faith family, while some need to look deeper into discretionary spending. One less meal out, one less pizza in, one less article of clothing, one less piece of jewelry, one less hundred-other-things; they add up, and many times add up to a significant amount.
If you are not giving, start now. Even if it is only a dollar a week. Adults, high school and college students – we are all in this together. We all have something to give from our time, talents and also our treasures.
To those who already share your financial gifts, may I ask that you give just a little more, trusting that God will supply. The Lord trusted and gave his life for us. Sacrificing what we can financially, is small in comparison to the sacrifice that Jesus Christ made in giving his life for us.
Preaching about money is never easy or fun for the pastor. And when its rotation time for Parish Council or Finance Commission members to have their turn up here, well, it’s difficult to get volunteers. We do invite you to reflect upon the many blessings God has bestowed upon us. I thank you for your commitment and your generosity to Saint Patrick parish. If we all do our part, God will continue to bless our community for years to come.
Rev. Everett Hemann
RevEv@saintpatrickcf.org
I thank those who helped write and edit this homily:
Tom Hoag
Mike Hulme
Rev. Ken Glaser