JUNE 30 / JULY 1, 2018
5:00 PM (SAT), 8:00 AM (ST. HELENA)
5:30 PM (ST. APOLLINARIS) ORDINARY FORM (ENGLISH) MASSES
Merriam-Webster defines “victory” as:
the overcoming of an enemy or antagonist;or:
achievement of mastery or success in a struggle
Mythology and history warn us of Cadmean victories and Phyrric victories – where winning the battle might mean losing the war; or where winning may result ultimately in a situation worse than losing.
We have all experienced wins and losses … and in spite of the ups and downs of life, we have all made it this far … and hope to continue into the near, if not the distant future … whatever that might bring.
Today is the 13th Sunday in Ordinary Time. And we hear from the second half of the fifth chapter of St. Mark’s Gospel.
From the end of the fourth … and the entire fifth chapter of this Gospel cover four situations, all related to a struggle which ends in a victory.
Jesus calms a storm: showing His victory over danger.
Jesus cures a possessed man: showing His victory over demons.
Jesus cures a sick woman: showing His victory over disease.
Jesus raises Jairus’ daughter from the dead: showing His ultimate victory … even over death itself.
The first reading from the Wisdom of Solomon reminds us that much of what we experience in this life comes from the choices we make. And that a life of righteousness – that is a right relationship with God – prepares us for safety, peace, health, and life.
St. Paul in the Second Letter to the Corinthians admonishes us to imitate Jesus’s life through a generosity of spirit, and by living out our Baptism through Faith, Hope, and Love.
In sharing His Divine Life with us, God gives us the opportunity to honor His gift by generously conforming ourselves to Christ and cooperating with the grace and the power of the Holy Spirit.
Christ’s passion and death was not a Phyrric or Cadmean victory. Rather, His life – and especially His passion, death, and resurrection – show forth not only His obedience to the Father, but even more so, His enthusiastic, willing, and generous acceptance of His mission … doing whatever it might take … to come to the aid of sinful humanity and to repair the damage brought about by the folly of the devil.
Through His complete and total self-gift … and by His example … Christ Jesus attains the Victory for us … provided we are willing to choose Him … and Him alone … over everything else and anything else … that might distract us from God’s call on our lives.
Our generosity in our relationship with God in Christ is always rewarded by God’s generosity to us through the gifts and the fruits of the Holy Spirit. If we hold back, God is still generous – but we will suffer the consequences of our own bad choices … which limit the action of God’s grace to work through, with, and in us … and to transform us … to transform our lives … and to transform our world.
As we approach this altar to receive the Sacred Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ … let us pray that we might be “all in” for God. Let us make a firm choice to live our lives for Jesus Christ … through Him, with Him, and in Him. Knowing that whatever may come our way, the ultimate victory is our in Christ Jesus Our Lord.
