Gospel, Homily and Coffee

Jesus came so that we might have the fullness of life.  He states this in John 10.   Jesus came that we can be fully alive, fully human, be those persons God created us to be. This is the Good News!  This is Salvation.  This is the very heart of our faith. So are we truly alive??  Are we truly human? In our Gospel for Today, Jesus talks about the life of the world; he is the living bread from heaven to bring the life of the world. We Catholics will hear this and think of Communion, or the Eucharist.  Rightly so, because our Church is asking that especially of today. And unfortunately we have developed a tendency that it’s all about getting communion.  As long as we get the host and take a sip from the cup, it’s all good. Well, not quite.  It must be something more deeper. So let’s probe a bit into this Gospel. “Bread from heaven” is John’s code language for the law.   Manna, in John’s Gospel, meant the law...

This is the Gospel passage we see in used all the time at major events (Jn 3:16): “God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son...not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.” It’s Brilliant, profound, elegant.  The question is…”What does this mean and why is this relevant to our feast of the Holy Trinity?  And what exactly do we need saved from?” Last question first. We may think we need saved from some outside force, reality, organization, or whatever.  We could say ISIS, our own government, or even more obscure things, asteroids, comets and aliens. Ummm, no.  I do not think that is what the Gospel writer had in mind. What do we need saved from....really it is our own selves.  I am not talking about our sins either, because our sins are symptoms of something deeper inside that is broken. Let’s go back to Genesis and the whole Fall scene.   Adam and Eve eat the fruit, they disobey the one plea ...

There seems to be this tendency to associate the Spirit with this GREAT energy...and doing fantastic things.   Speaking in Tongues!  Seeing Futures!  Levitating!  Going to all parts of the world and doing truly awesome works! Probably because of that first reading from Acts. This is not wrong...but it is not quite accurate.   It can be kind of a trap of sorts, and rob us of really experiencing the Spirit. I want to break one of my rules for preaching, and talk about my own experience. 15 years ago when I was ordained, I was overcome, overwhelmed by the Holy Spirit.  I felt this incredible sense of being loved! I felt I was on fire, I was vibrating, I felt I was going to explode.  It was the most awesome experience I have ever had, so I thought. Coming down was hard.  It was one of the worst hangovers I have ever had. And I wanted more.  I sought for it.  I wanted a repeat performance, and part of my life as a pries...