HOMILY EASTER SEASON WEEK 07 04 – Year II
Unity in Christ:
Optional Memorial of Saints Marcellinus and Peter
(Acts 22:30; 23:6-11; Ps 16; Jn 17:20-26)
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“So that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me.”
That statement by Jesus, again in the context of the Farewell Discourse at the Last Supper, invites us into deeper faith in him, striving for unity and a ministry of reconciliation.
The gospel begins by mentioning the hour had come for Jesus to pass to the Father. That hour was first mentioned during his temptation in the desert, when Satan left him to return at his hour. It is next mentioned at the wedding feast at Cana, when Jesus told his mother his hour had not yet come.
That hour is his passion, death and resurrection. On the cross, Satan did return to tempt Jesus to come down from the cross, and at the foot of the Cross, Mary stood doing what Jesus was doing on the cross – forgiving those who were crucifying him. We are invited to take up our cross and follow Jesus to our own hour, to live the Paschal Mystery in our own lives.
The readings today suggest three ways we can do that – first, complete trust in Jesus as the Messiah, Son of God and Lord of all creation; second, striving for unity, and third, exercising a ministry of reconciliation.
In his prayer, Jesus prays not just for his apostles, but for us, those who believe in him “because of their word.” We believe in Jesus and who he is because of the written word of God, and the lived word of God, the tradition of the Church that carried the church for the first millennium. We are a people of the Word, of the Book, a people of tradition and faith.
The call to unity from Jesus as his hour approaches is striking and strong, and expressed as a prayer to the Father. Jesus sets the bar at the highest level – we are to be one as he and the Father are one, so completely one that we will witness to the very nature of the Father – three persons in one, an intimate, interpersonal exchange of divine love.
The Church is supposed to be one because its founder, Jesus, is one with the Father and the Holy Spirit. To believe in Jesus, then, is to believe in our Trinitarian God and the mission Jesus gave us to mirror that unity and oneness in our lives and ministry. Unfortunately, we are not doing a very good job of that. What so often marks our reality as families, churches and society is the opposite – division, suspicion and even hostility. We see that exploding in the first reading within the context of religion – as St. Paul uses the doctrinal divisions between the Pharisees and the Sadducees to save himself from their attempt to kill him because of his belief in Jesus as Risen Lord.
Down through the centuries, division has dogged the world and the church – nations warring against nations, the split between the Eastern and Western Church, the Protestant Reformation, factions within Islam, genocide between tribes in Africa, liberal versus conservative, etc. The Center for Study of Global Christianity estimates there are at least 40,000 different Christian denomination in the world. We have a long way to go to achieve Christian unity.
It is interesting that one name we use for the evil one is the devil, from the Greek diablos, which means to divide, to separate. As the evil one is known to be the ruler of this world, it is not surprising that there is always that all too human tendency to set ourselves over and against others, instead of striving for unity. That, indeed, is the call of the gospel today, and something to which we should commit ourselves. That can take the place of ecumenical work in collaborative projects, and inter-religious dialogue seeking common ground that unites, rather than focusing on what divides us.
There is implicit here a call to a ministry of reconciliation, of peace-making, of mediating, in whatever way we can, always striving to overcome barriers of prejudice, discrimination, stereotyping. As individuals, we are called to live out the Beatitude of Jesus – blessed are the peacemakers.
In Canada, one program that does that well is the Returning To Spirit process, developed to bring healing and reconciliation to former students of the Indian Residential Schools. It offers separate formation and healing workshops to Indigenous and non-Indigenous participants first, then brings the two groups together for two days of structured dialogue and sharing. Marvelous genuine and deep healing has been the result for many. The National Coalition Building Institute founded by Cherie Brown of New York is another initiative that uses creative exercises to break down barriers and lead to common understanding and common ground.
Communication is at the center of any ministry of reconciliation. Fr. Armand Nigro shares his experience of working with war veterans. Whenever couples were separated by war, an invisible spiritual wall began to grow between them. When they were re-united, that wall was still there, though they were physically present in the same house and bed. All the couples who tried to pretend nothing had happened and pick up where they left off, broke up, he stated. Only those couples who entered into a painful but loving process of communication, of sharing their stories with trust and forgiveness, not only survived, but ended up with an even stronger relationship than they had initially, because of all the love that was involved in the process of reconciliation.
Today the church invites us to honor Saints Marcellinus and Peter. Little is known about these two saints who lived in Rome during the time of the emperor Diocletian. Peter is said to have been an exorcist who ministered under Marcellinus, a priest. Put to death for their faith about the year 304, the two are commemorated in the canon of the Mass. Accounts exist of miracles which resulted when their remains were moved to a German monastery in 827.
The Eucharist is an act of profound faith in Jesus as the Son of God, Word Incarnate, Risen Lord and Bread of Life. It is an experience of deep reconciliation with God, as we receive God’s forgiveness and healing.
May our celebration of God’s Word today empower us to strive for greater unity in our lives, and to enter into a ministry of reconciliation wherever, whenever and however we can. And may God bless us all in this endeavor.
