The Stakes are High

[Homily given at the opening of Baltimore's High School Leadership Institute (High-LI) - 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time]

Dear Mr. Potter,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find

enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.

Terms begin on September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31.

Yours sincerely,

Minerva McGonagall

Deputy Headmistress

Ah, remember how all that began? Harry could not be kept from receiving that letter that forever changed his destiny. It seems that from that fateful moment when You-Know-Who zapped him, giving him his trademark scar, he was destined to be the “chosen one.” When Hagrid delivered that acceptance letter, he was merely adding the formal finishing touches to the calling of “The Boy Who Lived.”

Now, think back to some time several months ago. Maybe your youth minister called you or asked to talk to you about this wild program in the summer called High-LI. If it were a letter, maybe it would look like this:

Dear Miss Doe,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at the High School Leadership Institute. Please find enclosed a list of necessities, like pens, fans, music, fans, thumb drives, and fans.

The term begins July 24. We await your owl no later than April 15.

Yours sincerely,

Youth Minister

Your selection to be here is no accident. People see in you much potential and the qualities of a good Christian leader. These qualities will be developed further here. But your presence here is only a part of a great adventure that began long ago – when you were baptized. God chose you first! St. Paul talks about this in our Second Reading: “Those he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son. … And those he predestined he also called; and those he called he also justified; and those he justified he also glorified.”

This adventure is our Christian life. God has called each of you – each of us – to a unique vocation of service to His People the Church, and the reason you are here is to further discover and develop that calling. Just as Harry Potter learned his potential, his gifts and his power in his time at Hogwarts, so you will find out just what you are capable of with the help of God’s grace.

And when you do discover that, you will come to a deeper understanding of what God is calling you to be. Do not be afraid of that. This week will test you and try you, but it will not break you unless you let it. Joyfully discover your roles in the Church and embrace them generously, like the person who discovers the treasure in a field or the pearl of great price. There is nothing more valuable than discovering God and His purpose for you!

Why does Jesus give us these two “mini parables” in the midst of all the others that talk about sowing and gathering and reaping? These two talk about the dramatic lengths to which someone will go to possess that Kingdom of God. For them, it’s all or nothing.

I was always struck by the drastic nature of the action in those Harry Potter stories, too. These are young people – like you – and they are battling evil, and dying for that battle. Why?

I’d guess that it is similar to the reasons someone would give up all they had in order to buy a field or a pearl – why someone would sacrifice all for the Kingdom of God.

The stakes are that high, friends. Do not settle for mediocrity. You are better than that – because God has made you so! If the Lord asks something of you, you are capable of it. All it takes is trust and prayer – just like young Solomon in the first reading, who prays for the wisdom to do what he is called to do.

The invitation has been sent, my young friends. And you have accepted. Now, with God’s help, you embark on an adventure that will lead you to discover the great things that you can do.

"This is Living"...your Faith

This commercial for Toyota is one of the most clever ones I have seen in a long time.

The girl's attitude reflects a common one today - that our "lives" are somehow enriched by being "connected." Her parents, in her eyes, are somehow missing something because they are not connected like she is. However, we see the parents' wisdom in that they are actually living life, while the daughter remains tied to her laptop, reveling in all her "friends."

Facebook is a wonderful tool. It has revolutionized how we connect and share. However, it remains just that: a tool. In that regard, we need to treat it as such, and step away to actually live.

Two years ago, the Archdiocese of Baltimore published regulations or policies to guide our use of cyber and digital technology. The underlying premise of these policies was that if you are Catholic or Christian, then you are Catholic or Christian online as well. The reverse of that is also important to recognize: that if you are Catholic online, then you are nevertheless required to live and witness as Catholic in real life as well. Posting nice quotes from saints and Scripture is nice, but if you aren't willing to share that from your own mouth in person the words can ring hollow.

So get up - get out - unplug and share your faith in real time too. The 3-D experience of life and faith is always much, much better.

Hang in There

I am a Baltimore Orioles fan. I always have been, and I probably will always be (You can send me your condolences later!). When I have the opportunity, I enjoy will watch the O’s play on TV. I especially enjoy doing that on a Sunday with my dad. I will even go to the ballpark when I get the chance. And when I do go to the park, I am almost always there until the end of the game.

It doesn’t matter if we are winning or losing; I am there. I know that many people will get up and head for the parking lots early if we are getting pummeled by the Rangers or Indians or Sox (Red or White), but I will stay. I guess I still believe in that old “Orioles Magic” of the late 70’s and early 80’s. In any given game, miracles do happen.

In today’s gospel, the slaves ask the master if he wants them to go into the field and yank up the weeds that have been sown among the good wheat. With the master, they see the effects of the enemy’s work, and they want to fix it. But the master has a different approach: “Let them grow together until the harvest.” Otherwise, he notes, they might pull out the good with the bad.

The servants, in effect, wanted to take care of evil on their own terms – tear out the bad effects of sin and death. They knew that the harvest was coming and that the master had no need of weeds. So why not just uproot them now?

Thinking like that, however, is like leaving the ballgame halfway through. It’s not over. Sure, our pitching seems to have tanked, and we can’t get a guy around second to save our lives, but there remain innings to play. We know this.

There is still time for miracles; there is still time for grace.

That’s Jesus’ point in the gospel. When we feel that it is a lost cause, after looking at our lives and seeing how many times we mess up, we might be tempted to just quit. “What use is it,” we may ask, “to live according to the Gospel? I just screw it up anyway.”

Again, this sort of thinking forgets the primary and central role of God. Paul knows this. He describes the action of the Holy Spirit on our behalf: “The Spirit comes to the aid of our weakness, for we do not know how to pray as we ought.”

And how “ought” we to pray? We must start by letting go of our desire to control everything. The harvest belongs to the Master; we are simply servants. We must take our cue from God first. This means listening to God before we act. After all, we believe that He knows best.

In opening ourselves to the will of God by listening to Him, we enter into that beautiful conversation that is a life of prayer. Our lives begin to unfold in a way that can only be described as an adventure. This is the nature of our vocations – whatever they may be. But it has to start with our listening to God – even before we ask God for anything. Like St. Paul, we must let the Spirit “groan” within us and share with God the needs and dreams of our hearts.

Then, God opens up His heart – the heart of His Son Jesus – and pours forth all that He is for us. It is from the beautiful fount of life that the mercy of God is shed upon us. This is the same mercy that gives the wicked time to repent and the sinner time to get up again after falling.

In listening to God’s call, we learn how to be truly happy, and we learn of the depth of God’s love for us – and all people.

We cannot let the difficulties of these “middle innings” discourage us. We are with sticking it out until the end. There is always time for some “magic”; there is always time for miracles. Jesus wants to bring these about in our lives and in the lives of those around us. May we open our hearts to listen and hear that wonderful will of God.

Recharging in Faith

A couple weeks ago, I blogged about my visit to see the "Green Lantern" film. It was not the greatest movie of the year, but, as I said, I enjoyed seeing one of my childhood favorites brought to celluloid life. Plus, there was a little bit of Catholic gold to be mined there after all.

The powers of the Green Lantern are derived from his ring, which is able to actualize (bring to reality) the will of the ring-wearer. In other words, you think or will it, and it happens - in cool green awesomeness. The ring, however, needs to be recharged from time to time, and this is done through the actual lantern that each hero possesses as well. It seems that just a touch of the ring to the lantern is enough to juice it up.

We have just such a power available to us in the Eucharist. Blessed with free will, we have the ability to accomplish just about anything - good and bad. Most of the time, we do good. However, the good that we do is truly the result of God's grace within us. We don't live our faith on our own. Sometimes, we can "run out of juice" or feel like there is no point to the faith that we live. We need to recharge.

The practice of Eucharistic adoration can be like that recharging of the ring for the Green

Lantern. In "touching base" or checking in with the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, we are

strengthened to continue that life of faith to which we are all called. In doing so - in remaining connected with our Eucharistic Lord, and regularly receiving Him in Communion - we are charged with the power of our faith, which is the power of God.

With this power, we can all be heroes - strengthened by our true Hero.