Depart From Me, Lord! For I Am A Sinful Man

Sermon by Rev. John Paul Shea

5th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Feb. 7, 2016

Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish, Tucson, AZ

Praised be Jesus Christ! 

Fr. John Paul Shea

As we begin this Mass of the Celebration of the Holy Eucharist I would like to introduce myself. My name is Father John Paul Shea. I was ordained two and one-half years ago. I have spent this time at Saints Peter and Paul Parish in Tucson, AZ. 

I am a convert to the Catholic Church. I was raised Mormon and left the Mormon Church at a young age and practiced no faith until our Blessed Mother called me to Her Son’s Church, the Catholic Church, several years later. I am very blessed to be Catholic, I am very blessed to be a priest, and I am happy and blessed to be here at Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton (also Tucson, Az). 

As we consider today’s readings for this 5th Sunday of Ordinary Time, let us reflect on the greatness of God and our need to humble ourselves before Him. 

All of today’s readings (Isaiah 6:1-8; 1 Cor 15:1-11; Luke 5:1-11) spotlight individuals who were called by God to serve Him.

We start with the prophet Isaiah. Isaiah had lived about 700-800 years before the birth of Our Lord Jesus. He lived during the fall of Israel. Judah alone remained, and Isaiah brought the message of God at a time when idolatry seemed to be taking hold of the land.

Isaiah is said to have found his calling as a prophet when he had a vision in the year of King Uzziah’s death. Overwhelmed by the

Angel puts a burning coal on Isaiah's lips
 to enable him to answer God's call

vision of the Lord, Isaiah said, "Woe is me, I am doomed! For I am a man of unclean lips, living among a people of unclean lips; yet my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!" 

From the  first letter to the Corinthians, St. Paul describes his call for to be an apostle. He was once a persecutor of the Church of God, but now God had now chosen him to preach the Gospel. 

In the Gospel, Our Lord Jesus calls Saint Peter to discipleship. As he is fishing, Our Lord tells him  to lower his nets for a great catch. When Peter was astonished by the

amount of fish they caught, Jesus said to Peter: “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.”

As we reflect on the call of God for Peter, Paul and Isaiah, we notice one similarity in each situation. All three of these individuals responded in humility. Each recognized their unworthiness. Each humbled themselves before God. 

The Prophet Isaiah response to God's call --  “Woe is me, I am doomed!" -- is similar to both Peter and Paul's response.

Saint Paul -- who before his encounter with Christ describes himself as arrogant -- but

Conversion of St. Paul
on the Road to Damascus

now he calls himself as one born abnormally, the last apostle called and the least. 

And finally after St. Peter's great catch of fish, what does he doe? He falls to his knees and says, “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.” 

My brothers and sisters, even though we may not have had a sort of radical conversion experience as did Isaiah, Peter or Paul, God wants us to experience His grace in our lives.

If we want to experience God’s grace and  become who He calls us to be, then we need to humble ourselves before Him. If we want to

St Peter: "Depart from me,
Lord, for I am a sinful man"

make progress in our spiritual lives, we must first acknowledge our sinfulness.

 

It is only when we recognize we are nothing without God that He will act in our lives. And He will! God can and will work many great things in the lives of those who humble themselves before Him.

In fact, along with the examples of the individuals we hear in today’s readings, many people became saints because they humbled themselves before God. Saint Therese of Lisieux, for example, who lived in the late 19th century, never did anything great. She became a saint and a doctor of the Church simply because she acknowledged her littleness and her need for God.

 Humility is the key to discipleship. Humility is the path to holiness. If we want to get anywhere in our spiritual life, than we must first humble ourselves before God!

Many in our time and culture of today do not strive for humility. We instead want to be king. We hear terms today in our society such as “pro-choice” or “marriage equality” or “gay pride.” All of these sorts of worldly terms are rooted in pride because they reflect not the will of God but the will of the self. We want to act and live as if our bodies and our lives are ours instead of treating ourselves and others as a gift given by God.

Many Catholics today do not follow God’s call because they ignore the teachings of the Church on contraception. When Catholics are disobedient to the teachings of the Church, this is an act of pride. Pride will get us

A big fat act of pride 

nowhere in our spiritual life or to heaven. Seek conversion. Open yourself to God's grace.  

My brothers and sisters, we need humility. God is calling each one of us to discipleship. He is calling each one of us to eternal life. But, if we want to become who God calls us to be, than we must first acknowledge His greatness and our need to humble ourselves before Him. For if we humble ourselves before God, then His Divine Life will live in us and we will bear much fruit. May God bless us and help us! Amen!

Did you enjoy this homily? Perhaps you might also like to read Who is Fr. John Paul Shea? From Mormon to Catholic Priest

Euthanasia in Canada: "An Opportunity to Bear Witness to Christ." (Pro-LIfe Defender Mary Wagner)

On Feb. 6, 2015 the Supreme Court of  Canada legalized doctor-assisted suicide, but delayed the implementation for one year. Their  gruesome decision bears its wicked fruit next Saturday Feb. 6. People with grievous and irremediable medical conditions (in theory) will be able to ask their doctor to help them die. There's no guarantee that perfectly healthy people suffering from depression will not be able to enjoy the same deadly "succor."  

Canadian Pro-life Defender Mary Wagner sits in the maximum-security prison, Vanier Centre for Women in Milton, Ontario, outside Toronto, Canada. Her crime? Pleading gently with a mother awaiting an abortion to spare the life of her child. Now the gentle Prisoner of Conscience wants us to reflect on the consequences of the new law allowing euthanasia in Canada. 

My Dear Christian Sisters and Brothers,

Mary Wagner's trial is set for March 10, 2016
If she pleads guilty she will be sentenced to six months
in prison. If not, she will get 9 months.
Toronto Catholic Witness correctly identified this as persecution
because violent offenders and child molesters are
receiving sentences under 30 days.
Photo courtesy of Lifesitenews 

I recently had the blessing to speak with a wise Carmelite Mother. While sharing with her my concerns in the wake of the Feb. 6th, 2015 Supreme Court of Canada’s decision, she recalled that Archbishop Fulton Sheen used to exhort the faithful to rejoice in the gift of living in such difficult times, because they give us such an incredible opportunity to bear witness to Christ. 

Fr. Ibrahim spoke of a woman close to them who was bothered because the neighboring homes, which had belonged to the Christians who fled the terror, were being purchased or rented by Muslims: “She felt that something major had changed - the air of the streets, the eyes of the people - and it made her uneasy. I told her, ‘Couldn’t it be that God permitted the people and the environment around us to change so that the fragrance of Christ can reach them, too? Could it be a beautiful mission that the risen Lord is asking of us?’ If that’s the case, there’s no reason for uneasiness, but to think only of what our risen Master is asking of us, of how we can witness the faith to the people who come.'”

Here in Canada, as we face the reality that by decriminalizing physician-abetted suicide, the Supreme Court has set in motion “major change” in our country, Fr. Ibrahim reminds us that nothing is outside of God’s permission. We are not called, therefore, to dwell in complaint and lament. This is a

mission God is entrusting to us, to bring His “fragrance” - his Light and his Love - into this beautiful country that has forgotten the Source of its beauty and greatness.

How are we to understand this mission with which Our Lord has entrusted to us? Fr. Ibrahim, who considers his own

suffering “important and invaluable,” whose greater suffering is the sight of his neighbour’s suffering, offers us the following wisdom: “Through a profound posture of listening to

what the Lord says and to the cry of the innocent, we are able to understand how to respond. For those heavy crosses, we really have to learn from Jesus who, during his three-hour crucifixion, still knew how to think of others…”

Who are the “others” who most need our attention? The Supreme Court’s dictate to involve physicians in their patient’s request for suicide would strip vulnerable people of protection in their darkest hour. Those who come to the conclusion that their lives are no longer worth living now have the Court’s agreement, (just as does a mother who concludes that her child in the womb is not worth being given a chance to live). They have been deprived of justice from a judicial system founded on the supremacy of God and Judeo-Christian values. In the wake of this grave injustice, has not our duty to love and protect them become all the more necessary and urgent?

Of this point, doctor-abetted suicide has not become institutionalized, as has the brutal killing of countless of our most helpless and littlest brothers and sisters. Our society, generally, still views suicide as something terribly wrong, an act of despair. This could change completely.

Consider a scenario in which you or I come across someone about to jump off a bridge: Who would not want to do everything they could to help that person- (not to end their life!)- to overcome their despair and receive the love and support they need to find their life worth living?

If this scenario illustrates our clear awareness that every life is worth fighting for, what would make us think differently when a suicidal person asks for “help” from a physician? Does our conviction that life is sacred change due to these circumstances? Does our responsibility for our neighbour diminish under the dictates of an abuse of power? Surely, they do not. The Court's attempt to bully Canadians into accepting suicide under certain conditions in no way justifies suicide, or any form of co-operation with its process. Again, as our government tramples on justice, are we not called, in our dialogue and encounters with others to reaffirm that every human life is sacred, not counting the cost to ourselves but trusting in God and listening to him?

Having read “The Proposal” to the Canadian Medical Association (offered by the Christian Medical and Dental Society and with the support of the Canadian Federation of Catholic Physicians Societies and Canadian Physicians for Life), I fear that these associations, despite their earnest desire to resist doctor-abetted suicide, have succumbed to defeatism. “The Proposal” expresses a willingness to engage in what I understand to be formal co-operation with a patient’s request for abetted suicide:

Mary writes from prison, the Vanier Centre for Women

“The Proposal” states that “physicians have a duty to provide complete information on all options and advise on how to access a separate, central information, counselling, and referral service.” Further, the assertion is made that one’s autonomy includes the right to take one’s life: (“The Proposal”) “respects the autonomy of the patient to access all legal services while at the same time protecting physicians’ conscience rights.” (Let us recall the normal human response to someone on the verge of jumping off a bridge and compare the difference).

In addition, the language employed feeds into the push to accept doctor-abetted suicide. Language matters. Not only in “The Proposal,” but also in Christian/Catholic media, doctor-abetted suicide has been replaced with such terms as “physician-assisted death,” “assisted death,” and “medical aid in dying.” Such language obscures the truth and will contribute to the acceptance of this evil. As Mother Teresa said, “words that do not bear the Light of Christ only increase the darkness.”

We are Christians. We know that God will not abandon us, even in death. No matter the circumstance, we are called to witness to the risen Lord with our lives. Our Brothers and Sisters are suffering terrible persecution elsewhere in the world, and Fr. Ibrahim says, “We don’t know when it will end… but it doesn’t matter when it ends; the important thing is not knowing how to save ourselves but to witness to Jesus Christ. We also need to think of a political solution - an action plan - but our first duty is to be witnesses of the Christian life, carrying the cross with love, forgiving, and thinking of the salvation of others as well…”

Our Lord gives us the grace to carry out the mission entrusted to us. He does not call us to defeatism, moral compromise nor to the dismal task of saving ourselves. He is calling us to live the truth with love, which includes resisting the push of abetted suicide; such resistance is an affirmation that every human life is sacred. Every person of goodwill can join us in this necessary struggle for justice, for the dignity of the human person.

As Christians, however, we have received more than the hope of justice. We have the treasure of a Love unsatisfied with the fulfillment of duty alone. Christ, who laid down his life for us, calls each of us to share in his limitless gratuity: “Love

Angel of Death passes over the reverant Jewish home on Passover
where the blood of the sacrificed lamb marks the doorframe   

one another as I love you.” (Jn. 15:12)

Our suffering brothers and sisters in Syria, led by their shepherd, Fr. Ibrahim, are an incredible witness to a waiting world that love is stronger than death. Here in Canada, as we fight the darkness of death under other forms, let us ask the Holy Spirit to help us entrust ourselves, wholly and humbly, to the Light of Life, who alone can scatter the darkness. Let us pray for each other.


God bless…


Mary Wagner      January 23, 2016

Mary Wagner in better days in Poland with her signature white roses.

Would you like to read more about Mary Wagner's mission to live the Gospel of Life as taught by Pope Saint John Paul II?

Canada's Shame: Peaceful Pro-lifers get Prison, While Canadians are Killed Seconds Before Natural Birth

Listen Attentively To The Word of God

Sermon by Rev. John Paul Shea

3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Jan. 24, 2016

Saints Peter and Paul Parish, Tucson, AZ

 As we come together today to celebrate the Holy Eucharist this day, let us reflect on our need to listen to the Word of God.

Today’s first reading was from  the Book of Nehemiah 8: 2-4a, 5-6, 8-10, which was written about 500 years before the birth of Jesus and after the Babylonian exile.

The Jews had turned away from God’s laws, and as a result, they were exiled. Now, that they have returned, the Israelite priest  Ezra reminds the people that the most important thing for them to do -- as a nation -- is to adhere to the laws of God. 

Ezra brings the law before the assembly of the people, and reads out of the book from daybreak until midday. All the people listened attentively while bowing down and prostrating themselves before the Lord. 

Fr John Paul Shea

My brothers and sisters, this reverent scene of the People of God listening attentively to the Word of God is intended for us today!

As the Israelites strayed from God’s word and His plan, they experienced many hardships and difficulties. So it is today. 

The hardships we suffer in our world today occur because we have turned away from God’s revelation of His plan! 

In fact, we live in a nation that was founded on God’s laws! But prayer was removed from the public schools. The Ten Commandments Monument was ripped from the Alabama Judicial Building! Abortion was legalized in 1973, and since then 58 million Americans have been killed in the womb. We can see the effects of our disregard for God’s laws in the violence in our cities and the broken homes of the lost children across the nation.

We hear so much today about our need to fix the world problems through methods such as fighting the war on terror or by combating so-called global warming, but the reality is that will do us little good if we do not first acknowledge and  adhere to God’s plan for our lives!

If the world does not follow God’s laws and His will for humanity by acknowledging His Self-Revelation, then nothing we do will save us from the ills we have brought upon ourselves. 

We can cut down on carbon dioxide in the atmosphere all we want, but if we do not follow God’s laws, everything else we do is done in vain! 

Number of Abortions since 1973 are equal to the population of these U.S. states

Just consider the number of children who are legally aborted in our societies today. This alone will bring judgment upon our nations unless we as a whole society make drastic changes to stop destroying God’s gift of life!

Consider the fact that our country now outwardly encourages sexual relationships between people of the same sex, calling  

such a relationship "marriage." This is more than enough to force God to intervene in our world for the wellbeing of humanity.  And He will intervene! 

We hear Catholics  who say that the Church should not focus exclusively on issues such as abortion or same sex "marriage." Yes, the Church needs to serve the poor. But, sins of the flesh are destroying more souls and disrupting families, creating more poor single households. Our Lady of Fatima told the children, “More souls go to Hell because of sins of the flesh than for any other reason!”

God has revealed Himself to us! He has taught us His laws. His Word doesn’t change.

In the past, peoples encountered hardship  because they turned away from God’s laws. So will our peoples today suffer many troubles if we do not place God in the center of our hearts.

We must call on the name of our Lord Jesus! He is the fulfillment of God’s revelation. He is the fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah as we hear in today’s Gospel where it is written that 

“[God] has anointed [Him] to bring glad tidings to the poor… to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.” (Isaiah 61:1)

My brothers and sisters, today’s readings emphasize to us that God has visited His people. He has given us His Word. He has given us His commandments! And, He has sent us His Son to free us from sin and heal us of the burdens we place upon ourselves. 

We must follow God’s teachings! We must listen to God’s Word. We must share God’s Word with others. This is our job as Christians!

In today’s reading, Ezra read plainly from the book of the law of God, interpreting it so that all could understand. This is what our Church needs today! 

People need to hear plainly the Truth! Yes! God is against homosexuality! Yes, God is against same sex "marriage." Yes, God is against divorce and remarriage.

This is the Year of Mercy! God is merciful. But if we fail to grasp that mercy and listen to God, the Scriptures are full of the stories of the struggles the people of God faced when they hardened their hearts. 

The godless society of today will falter, but if we stay close to Our Lord, we shall hold firm. As the Israelites in today’s first reading prostrated themselves  before the Word of God, so too we must humble ourselves ourselves before God!

 

 As we reflect on the message today and think about the serious offenses that are taking place in our time against God’s plan, let us learn the Word of God and live it. 

Let us hold onto the truths of our faith. And let us prepare our hearts for the coming of Our Lord Jesus who is coming soon to fulfill the establishment of His Kingdom and who will judge the living and the dead. Amen.

Did you enjoy this homily? There are more!

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