HOMILY WEEK 01 03 – Year II
Doing the Will of God:
Memorial of St. Marguerite Bourgeoys
(1 Sam 3:1-20; Ps 40; Mk 1:29-39)
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There are many Markan characteristics in this gospel: Jesus goes out of the synagogue; he takes four disciples with him; he goes into a home; he heals Peter’s mother-in-law; he exercises power over evil spirits, then he moves on and does not stay there.
The first part of Mark’s gospel is like a prologue – it indicates what is to follow in the rest of the gospel.
What Jesus is doing is the will of the Father, which builds on the first reading in which Samuel is ready to do the will of God. Jesus does not do the expected; he does not stay where he is popular and doing great work, but rather moves on into the unexpected and unknown, all part of doing the will of the Father.
What is the will of God? For us it won’t be hearing the voice of God as Samuel did. In fact, the will of God is not so much doing certain actions, as it is an attitude and an orientation.
It is an attitude of discernment. Discernment is not so much making a decision, as having a discerning attitude towards the future. We take a step now towards trusting in the fidelity of God in the future. Doing the will of God is trusting in God and acting on that trust that God will be faithful to us always. Jesus did the will of God by trusting in the Father’s love.
The calling of Samuel reminds us that we aren’t alone in our efforts to understand God’s call. God give us brothers and sisters in Christ who can use their different gifts to help us hear and accept it. That means that none of us indivually needs to try and discern God’s will for our lives onour own. God has united us as a body of believers, some of whomare meant ot accompany and guide us on our faith jrouen, The Lord works through these friends and spiritual dirfectors, and ocnfessors to “see” so that we can know and follow his will for every season of our lives. I know that I partially owe my vocation to priesthood and the episcopacy to a French professor at the university who, out of the blue, point-blank asked me after one class if I had ever thought of being a priest! That told me God was still calling me, only now in a more audible way.
Doing the will of God is also to be revelatory. Love is always revelatory. We are to be images of God here on earth; members of Jesus’ Body, revealing the Father’s love to all. To do the will of God is to be humble, loving, Christ-like in all we think, say and do. Jesus moved from mystery to history; we in a sense move from history into mystery, the mystery of God’s love for us that we are to manifest to the world.
Today the Church celebrates the memorial of St. Marguerite Bourgeoys. Marguerite is often referred to as the “Mother of the Colony” for her contributions to the establishment of Ville-Marie, the place we know today as Montreal. Born in France in 1620, Marguerite crossed the Atlantic in 1653 to join in the colonizing efforts begun by Monsieur de Maisonneuve. Her mandate was to develop educational opportunities for Indigenous children and for the families of the French settlers in Ville-Marie. Marguerite received the help of Jeanne Mance, found of the Hôtel=Dieu Hospital. Other women joined her and the group formed an institute of uncloistered sisters, the Congregation of Notre-Dame. Marguerite and her companions took on many roles, including teaching, introducing vocational courses for youth and assisting couples preparing for marriage. She resisted Church pressure to change her community to a cloistered one and lived to see her order’s rule confirmed in 1698. Marguerite was well loved. She died in 1700 at the age of 80 and was declared a saint on October 31, 1982. In 1997, archaeologists uncovered the foundation of the chapel Marguerite built in Ville Marie 325 years earlier. Marguerite is a patron saint of poor people.
The Eucharist is a ritual that is truly doing the will of God – listening to God’s Word like Samuel; discerning God’s presence in humble gifts that reveal God’s love for us and share that love with us, and then missioning us to go out and reveal that love of God to the world.
