Only faith can guarantee the blessings we hope for

Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (C)

We have gathered today in this chapel to celebrate Sunday Mass. We are doing what Christians have done for two millennia. We are doing what is being done in hundreds of thousands of Catholic churches across the world on this Sunday. We are aware also that Christians of many denominations are meeting to celebrate their faith on this Sunday.

Here in Guilford Young College chapel we are just a small part of a larger chorus of praise and worship which is being lifted up to God on this Sunday.

For Christians Sunday is the Lord’s Day. It is set aside for the worship of God. And it is to be a day of rest. Our society, having deep Christian roots, still treats Sunday different than every other day, even if attention to God has been lost.

We are also very conscious that in certain parts of the world the numbers of Catholics faithful to attending Sunday Mass is declining, like here in Tasmania for example. We also know that in many places Catholics gather under the shadow of persecution and possible violence, as in Nigeria or the Middle East.

For so many of our brethren in the faith being Christian today means becoming part of a minority which is subject to persecution in various forms. It may be as simple as a hostility towards our beliefs or it may threaten actual violence. Christians in most places of the world now are a minority, and subject to opposition which can take various forms.

However, as Christians we have at the heart of our lives a love of God and a love of our faith. It is this faith in a God who loves us and has offered His own Son as our Saviour that spurs us on in our Christian way of life.

In the Gospel today the Lord said, “There is no need to be afraid little flock, for it has pleased the Father to give you the Kingdom”. These are very comforting words. The Lord describes us as ‘little flock’. In many places, as I have said, this is what we have become. In many places we still have our impressive institutions, like our schools and hospitals. We still have large welfare organisations doing great work. But the body of actual faithful believers participating in the sacramental life of the Church is diminishing.

We are becoming a ‘little flock’. This is most likely to be our experience as a Church in places like Tasmania for some time to come.

The Lord goes on to offer quite a challenge when he says, “Sell your possessions and give alms. Get yourselves purses that do not wear out, treasure that will not fail you”.

Let us consider these words for a moment. They are a challenge to us. Essentially, they urge us not to embrace a materialistic view of life. We are being urged by these words not to find comfort in consumerism and on a focus on enjoying the good things of this life. They are a call to live simply and to give generously to those in need.

The Lord explains this very clearly when he adds, “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also”. This is so true. If we are caught up in the pursuit of material comfort then we are in fact making things, material things, the desire for personal pleasure, the focus of our lives. We are investing in this life and not in the next life. We are reducing the influence of God in our life and raising up the influence of the world upon us. In this we are allowing our spirits to be dulled, and our relationship with God to be minimalised.

The devoted Christian will always have an unease in living for the things of this world alone. The devoted Christian will struggle to avoid being lured into self-satisfaction, rather than seeking the things of God. And it is a struggle that each of us must accept as we endeavour to live out our faith authentically.

We know, as St Peter declared to the Lord, “You have the words of everlasting life” (Jn 6:68). St Peter then added, “We believe that you are the Holy One of God”. We believe absolutely in Jesus Christ, as Son of God and saviour of the world. We entrust ourselves completely to him. He, and He alone, has the words of everlasting life.

In the teaching that follows Jesus speaks of servants of a master who fail to remain faithful to what is expected of them. While he is away they live self-centred lives. They think that it doesn’t matter. But the Master will return and Jesus says that he will judge them on their performance in his absence.

The Christian life is a life of seeking daily fidelity to Christ. It is not a Sunday only affair. It is not sporadic or occasional. It is daily. It is steady faithful discipleship. 

We live by faith as we are reminded in the second reading today. We have the great witnesses to the faith to inspire us to be consistent and loyal to our faith, even when, as the reading says, we only see things off in the far distance. We may, or may not, see our faith rewarded here in this present life. We may, or may not, receive blessings and answers to all our hopes. But we will remain faithful.

Blessed are they who steadily and faithfully do what the Lord expects of them, no matter what the external difficulties and challenges that they encounter. As the second reading declared: “Only faith can guarantee the blessings we hope for”.

Archbishop Julian Porteous

Sunday, 7 August 2022