Above, you'll find the video of my homily for May 17, the Seventh Sunday in the Easter Season, and based on today's gospel. (If a video doesn't appear above, click here.) Below is the text of my homily
You
may have missed it, but a few days ago was Ascension Thursday, a holy day on
the church calendar.
Jesus rose from the dead on Easter Sunday - which you
probably didn't miss - and then for about six weeks after that, Jesus appeared
to his disciples over and over again: walking with them, speaking with them,
praying with them, eating with them.
Then on the 40th day after Easter, Ascension Thursday,
Jesus led his friends out to the Mount of Olives: he promised to send them the
Holy Spirit; he commissioned them to preach the gospel and to baptize. And then
before their very eyes, he ascended into heaven.
He ascended into heaven!
Have you ever
wondered... what's Jesus doing in heaven? Does he have a job? Does he have
chores to do? What keeps him busy now that he has gone home to heaven, to the
Father?
A very beautiful answer to those questions can be found in
a document from the Second Vatican Council. And I'm starting to realize that I
should explain the Second Vatican Council, because it was so long ago now - it's
part of my life, but not part of everybody else's life.
The Second Vatican Council was a worldwide meeting of
church leadership in Rome. It spanned over three years and took place when I
was in high school in the early 1960s. So here's what that document from the Second
Vatican Council tells us, and I quote:
Christ Jesus, high priest of the new and eternal covenant,
Christ Jesus taking human nature, introduced into this earthly exile, that
hymn, which is sung throughout all the ages in the halls of heaven. Jesus joins
the entire community of humankind to himself, associating us in his singing of
this canticle of divine praise.
So, what's Jesus been doing in heaven all this time? He's
been singing!
And praying: praying for you and for me. Praying for us to
join him in his prayer and his song.
He promised just that in the gospel we just heard. Remember?
"Father, I pray for them, for those you gave me.” You and I have been
given to Jesus, entrusted to Jesus by the Father of us all.
I'm pretty certain that we all understand that WE pray to JESUS.
But I wonder how often we remember - or even if we realize - that JESUS prays
for US, That he intercedes for us, that he's always putting in a good word
for us - for you, for me.
For instance...
• When I stand confused, threatened,
frightened, and worried about all the troubles and burdens I have, JESUS IS
ALREADY PRAYING FOR ME - For peace and calm to settle in my mind, in my heart,
and my soul.
• When I'm knocked down by illness, my own or others, and I
pray for healing, JESUS IS ALREADY PRAYING for an end to the suffering, to the
pain - praying for health to be restored in our minds and our bodies.
• When I'm on the verge of falling for some temptation - and
part of me really wants to go for it - JESUS IS ALREADY PRAYING FOR ME and
offering me the strength to walk away from whatever is trying to seduce me.
• When I find myself at odds with family members or friends,
and I pray for them to see that I'm right - JESUS IS ALREADY PRAYING for my eyes
to be opened. For my heart to turn around, impatience, and in humility.
• When I'm stressed, angry, and short tempered, and haven't
thought about praying at all, JESUS IS ALREADY PRAYING FOR ME to calm down and
ask for his help.
• When I'm carrying a grudge or a resentment, and secretly
hoping something bad will happen to somebody else - JESUS IS PRAYING FOR ME that
I will forgive the one who has offended me.
• When my prejudice and bias are blinding me to wisdom and
truth, and I can't clearly see between right and wrong, true and false - JESUS
IS PRAYING FOR ME to open up my mind and see what is true.
• When I'm about to stretch or manipulate the facts of
something - to make things easier for myself - JESUS IS PRAYING FOR ME to be
faithful to the truth that sets me free.
• When my heart is torn by loss and grief - and I think I
might never be happy again - JESUS IS ALREADY PRAYING FOR ME to let go, let my heart be open to being
healed.
• When I've screwed up big time, and I've made the worst
mistakes, and I'm afraid to acknowledge what I've done - JESUS IS ALREADY
PRAYING FOR ME to turn to him and to his mercy, his forgiveness, his pardon,
his peace.
• When I'm feeling hopeless, and I'm afraid God has forgotten
me - when I don't know IF or HOW I can go on - JESUS IS ALREADY PRAYING FOR ME that
I'll trust and know that he holds me in his arms.
• When I'm worried about the whole world and how messed up
everything is - JESUS IS ALREADY PRAYING
FOR US to do what's right and just, to be generous and welcoming the poor, to
surrender our greed and self-interest, to care for the whole of creation, to
make peace - and to make peace our highest priority and goal.
And if I haven't prayed for a long time, or haven't been to
church for a long time - but find myself here today, this morning - JESUS IS
ALREADY PRAYING FOR ME: Jesus in heaven - singing his canticle of praise - he's singing and praying for me - and for you – and for all of us - for the whole
world.
It's clear, then, that all of us are keeping Jesus mighty
busy while he's in heaven, giving him more than enough things to pray for as he
stands before his Father. So in those times, and on those days, and through
those long nights, when I'm not sure WHAT to pray or HOW to pray, I can always
turn to Jesus and say,
“Lord, I know you're already praying for me. And
since I know you only want the best for me, help me know what your praying for
me, so I can join you in that prayer.”
And when I'm not sure what to pray or how to pray for
people I'm worried about - I can do the same. I can ask,
“Jesus, I'm not
sure how to pray for, you know, who. So whatever you're praying for him or for
her, or for them - please, join my prayers with yours.”
Well, that's a lot about praying!
And now we're going to go to the altar - to pray. And when we
do, when we go there, we will find JESUS, ALREADY THERE, praying for us, and
not just praying for us, but feeding us, nourishing us, with his mercy
and his peace, with his Body and Blood, with his life - which he first offered
for us on the Cross - where he stretched out his his arms, between heaven
and earth - and prayed for us: for you, for me, and for the whole world.
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