Homily – St. Patrick Seminary – Nativity of B.V.M.
- September 08, 2009
In our second reading this morning, St. Paul describes God’s plan of salvation: “Those God predestined he likewise called; those he called he also justified; and those he justified he in turn glorified.” The apostle tells us that every moment and action of God’s saving plan is aimed at the final destiny of eternal glory for all who put their faith in Jesus Christ. It is God’s plan, initiated and carried out by him.
How easy it is to nod our agreement with these lovely thoughts, yet how greatly they are in conflict with what we might call the “American Way” of religion! In our country many people like to say that we can all try to find God in our own ways, we can embrace the religious faith that suits us, and we can choose the church community within which we feel most comfortable. This sounds as if we ourselves are definitely in charge; we take the initiative. And yet at the Last Supper Jesus said to his first followers (and to us): “You have not chosen me; I have chosen you.” God in Christ Jesus comes in search of us all of us. Of course we are free to respond to God’s grace, but his saving grace is offered to all. God sent his son to redeem us; we received the Gospel story, we didn’t make it up; the Good News awoke love and trust in our hearts. It is God’s doing. He gives us a share in the life of the risen Christ here and now, so that we may live it with him forever. That is the meaning of call, of vocation, for a Christian.
Mary the Mother of Jesus is the perfect sign of this saving plan of God for us. As spiritual writers have remarked, what we are now, Mary once was, answering God’s call here on earth; what Mary is now, we hope and pray to be, fully one with God forever. Her response to the angel, “Let it be done to me according to your word,” becomes our lifelong prayer.
This morning we celebrate the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God. The Catholic Church celebrates only three earthly birthdays with a liturgical feast: that of John the Baptist, of Mary, and of Jesus her Son. She who was conceived without sin was born to answer God’s call to be the Mother of his Son.
What a perfect feast for celebrating liturgically the opening of this school year at Saint Patrick’s Seminary and University, and the inauguration of a new Rector and President! As you seminarians respond to God’s call to you to serve the Church as priests, Mary is your mother and guide and model. Amid humble circumstances God called Mary. She was amazed at the call, unaware at first of the details and circumstances, certainly not knowing all that would follow in this vocation that was to lead her into misunderstanding by others, into danger, into exile, to the foot of the Cross, to Easter Resurrection and eternal glory. Still, Mary trusted, and entrusted herself to the One she trusted: “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done unto me according to your word.”
However, there is nothing weak or passive about Mary’s response to God’s call. Her Magnificat assures us of that: “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my savior . . .he has looked upon his handmaid’s lowliness . . . the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name . . . .”
That is another reason why Mary is the model and guide for priests and seminarians: the praise goes to God, while the gratitude is hers and ours. Mary is confident and faith-filled, but she is not proud. We, the ordained, are call to serve our sisters and brothers in the Church; we are not called to glory here on earth. Recall what Jesus said to the ambitious James and John: “The one who would be first among you must serve the rest.” And why? “Because the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
In today’s “me-centered” culture it is tempting to regard a special vocation within the Church as a personal honor or adornment, as a particular path to the “pursuit of happiness” assured us in the Declaration of Independence. But Jesus in the gospel teaches otherwise: “The one who wishes to save his life will lose it, while the one who loses his life for my sake and that of the gospel will save it.”
This warning against self-centered motives even makes sense in purely human terms. Imagine for a moment that your sister comes to tell you that a man she has been dating has proposed marriage to her. Your sister tells you that the fellow said this to her: “Mary Anne, I’ve decided to marry you because I’m convinced you’ll make me happy.” You could give your sister advice in three words: “Run, don’t walk!”
In and through his Catholic Church Jesus Christ the High Priest lovingly calls you to teach, guide and sanctify his people, to let him continue to do that through you. Doing priestly ministry lifelong is a joy and a privilege, but, like any vocation, it also demands sacrifice, discipline and faith. In our first reading we hear that the Messiah “shall be peace,” and so he is, for each of us and all of us, but not without the struggles and perseverance that characterized his own ministry as well.
What a beautiful year in which to be preparing for priestly service! The Year of the Priest! Last year we celebrated the Year of St. Paul. The Church meant this focus and emphasis to renew and deepen our appreciation of the great gift that St. Paul is to the Church, every day of every year. In like manner, in this Year of the Priest, the Church gives thanks to God that he alls men to be Christ the Priest for all the people, every day of every year. In a time when there is much misunderstanding and weakened appreciation for the life and ministry of priests, the Church, under the leadership of our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, expresses and emphasizes this gift in a more intense way, praying for and calling forth vocations to priesthood, praying for and encouraging you and your brothers around the world in formation for priesthood, and praying for and supporting the lives and work of priests everywhere.
In a special way this morning, at the beginning of this academic year, we ask the members of the Seminary faculty to join the new President and Rector, Father James McKearney in the Profession of Faith and Oath of Fidelity. Each of them has sought to follow Mary’s example and say, “I am the servant of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” Now, here, this morning, this word of the Lord and service to Him is specified for the Rector and the faculty in the daily work of priestly formation, in preparing seminarians to preside at the two-fold table of the Word and Eucharist. How fitting then that they publicly profess their faith in, and fidelity to, the teaching of the Church, whose proclaimers and teachers they are.
THANKS
