Homily-Monday of the 19th Week
of Ord. Season Year B/Feast of St. Lawrence, Deacon and Martyr
v 2 Cor 9:6-10
v Ps 112:1-2,5-6,7-8,9
v John 12:24-26
Living a Life of Generosity and Lending to
the Needy (Ps 112:5)
Today we celebrate the feast and Martyrdom
of Saint, and Deacon Lawrence! Imitating Christ, Lawrence lived a life of
generosity, serving in particular, the poor and the needy. We are told Lawrence
was arrested, persecuted and burned to death alive rather than betray the
church, by delivering up the valuable property of the Church- that would serve
all, especially the poor- the treasures of the Church, as currently
re-emphasized by Pope Francis, since the begging of his papacy!
Scripture readings today( 2 Corinthian
9:6-10, Psalm 112 and John 12:24-26), are equally selected to fit the life
style of St. Lawrence: of sacrifice, of living ones’ comfort zone, for the sake
of others or making the values of Christ, and of the service to the needy his priority.
In the Gospel ( John 12:24-26), If I may
start from there, shortly before our familiar “Book of Glory” (John 13-20),
Jesus reminds his disciples of the need for selfless service, self-emptying,
self- denial, dying and hating oneself
for the good others, or call it simply, “a life of generosity”, “God and my
neighbor first.” In context, “While heading to the Cross, in Jerusalem to die
for them and us, Jesus emphatically, in this John 12 says, “Amen, I say to you,
unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grin of
wheat, but if it dies, it produces much fruit.” He repeats the same to his immediate
disciples in different nuances, in the next verses, that, “whoever loves his or
her life, loses it, and whoever hates his or her life in this world will
preserve it for eternal life.” John 12, today’s Gospel, passage is such an
important exhortation that almost all the Evangelists captured similar divine
points, in Mark 8:34-38; Matt 10:32-39 and Luke 9:23-26.
I want to believe that Christ disciples,
struggled with this--- to understand the sacrificial life of Christ. They were not alone. St. Paul, after his experience in Acts of the
Apostles chapter 9, lived and understood what Christ said to his disciples in
John 12. Paul, suffered and preached all through the eastern Mediterranean to
Rome, almost heading to Spain. He served in different and diverse communities.
In Corinth, one of the communities, he emphasized the need for generosity,
bearing persecution patiently, and reaching out to the poor and the needy. As a skillful speaker, Paul, appeals to his
audience, by quoting today’s Psalm 112, especially verse 9, that “He (God,
Christ, a righteous person, Lawrence) scatters abroad, he gives to the poor,
his righteousness endures forever.”
Like Christ and Paul, this is the life that
Saint Lawrence, lived. A life of generosity; a life of self- emptying; a life
of living one’s comfort zone to serve others; to speak good not ills of others,
and wish our neighbors well. Christ’s
life, and that of Paul, which Lawrence modeled challenges us today, especially
in this time of covid-19 to rethink how we can live our Christian life better,
and sacrificially for the benefit the church, of the community, especially of
the poor and the voiceless.
1.
Do you agree that apart
from Christ, Paul, Lawrence, and many other saints including Maximillian Kolbe,
Teresa of Calcutta, Oscar Romero, John Paul II—even Mandela, who sacrificed their
lives for others, especially the poor, are worthy of imitation?
2.
In what way have you
stepped out of your comfort zone to serve the poor and the needy?
3.
As a Christian what are
your priorities in life and how have you helped your neighbors in the light of
today’s feast and scriptures to reach out to the poor?
