The world can be a conniving place; everyone looking out for their own interests, never looking forward to the final end but always looking at the here and now.

As followers of Jesus, our ultimate goal is heaven. Nothing else matters. To depend on this passing world is fruitless unless it leads us directly to our goal. The Gospels will always remind us of what is really important; that we see the face of Jesus in others. And, sometimes, when we start again to believe only in ourselves and our own self-interests, Jesus will stun us back to the reality of what it means to live our life in God.

Continue reading “Our only goal in life is Heaven” →

Homily – Deacon Mark Dillon – 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Today’s readings focus on choice – or more specifically, on making a wise choice.  It’s important to recognize that every choice we make has consequences that directly affect some aspect of our life:  sometimes good…other not so good.  So it’s important to choose wisely.

If you remember the movie, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, you may recall a scene that requires Dr. Jones to make a difficult choice, similar to what today’s readings speak about.  His choice was focused on obtaining “The Holy Grail” or chalice that held the Blood of Jesus Christ.  Using an ancient map that led him to a cliff-side Temple, Indiana enters a dangerous pathway leading to a chamber that holds the Grail.  But there’s a catch:  the Grail chamber is guarded by a knight who stands vigil over the sacred chalice, which is hidden among dozens of false grails.  Choosing the true chalice of Jesus would take careful thought and considerable wisdom.

Continue reading ““Choose Wisely”” →

The readings from today’s Mass challenge us to be prepared; to be in a state of vigilance. This passage can be seen in two ways. The first is to be prepared for the Second Coming of Christ. The second refers to the time when God enters our life. It is in this sense that we face reality as God created it not as we pretend it to be.

For this we must acknowledge the reality of another life; a life beyond what we know with our senses. Abraham is challenged to sacrifice his son Isaac to the Lord. His faith brought him to point of total submission and thus he was the fulfillment of the promise to be the Father of many nations. Saint Paul in the Hebrews says, “Faith is the realization of what is hoped for and evidence of the things not seen…”

Continue reading “Don’t put off till tomorrow what should be accomplished today!” →

The Lord sternly warns us again about storing up treasure for ourselves when we are not ‘rich in the sight of God.’ Ecclesiastes asks, ‘What does a man gain for all his toil,’ except that he has labored much? ‘God turns us all back to dust.’

To those who have an abundance, Jesus holds up a mirror.  There is a story about a schoolboy being asked what kind of words are ‘me, my and mine,’ the schoolboy responds that they are aggressive pronouns. In other words, the rich man was aggressively self-absorbed. He went out of his way not to share his wealth with anyone. He lived in a little world, surrounded on the north, south east and west by himself.

Continue reading “Do you play well in the sandbox?” →