”The one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world”

Today the Universal Church honors St Andre Bessette….Andre was born into a large Catholic family that was very poor in the region around Montreal Canada….He was orphaned at the age of 12 and lived for roughly 13 years doing various jobs around Montreal and northern New York State…Andre eventually entered the Congregation of the the Holy Cross as a religious brother….He had no formal education and as a result did humble tasks, mainly worked as the doorman at the College of Notre Dame in Montreal….What Andre did know how to do very well is listen to people….He gave his undivided attention to people when they entered the door of the college and as a result many people came to him…..As time went on, Andre through his prayers to St Joseph interceded for the sick…And thousands of physical healings began to take place all across Montreal….When people tried to give Andre the credit for the healings, he always said it was not him, but St Joseph who healed them….Over time, Andre Bessette became a famous man, and at his funeral in Montreal in 1937 over one million people came to pay him respect…The “little man” who opened the door shook the foundations of the world!….Not to mention, because of all his fame, he raised funds to build the largest Shrine to St Joseph in the entire world that stands to this very day in the city Montreal…..My family and I have visited this Shrine many times…..What can we learn from Andre Bessette? - A man who had very few earthly gifts - He was not educated, He was physically very small, He was born poor - What can such a man do?…..The answer - Shake the foundations of the world! - And that is what this man did…How? - He completely surrendered his will to God and God used him in amazing ways?…..Don’t believe me?……When was the last time one million people came to a funeral for a person you know?…Well, that is what happened when Brother Andre died - He shook the foundations of the world!….And so can you if you follow his example

“We receive from him whatever we ask, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him”

Today in the Gospel from Mass, St Matthew tells us…..”He went around all of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom, and curing every disease and illness among the people. His fame spread to all of Syria, and they brought to him all who were sick with various diseases and racked with pain, those who were possessed, lunatics, and paralytics, and he cured them”……Like Jesus, St Andre Bessette was a great physical healer….After hearing the story of St Andre, one can say that did not really happen or one can say, that can’t happen to me.......What I would say to any skeptics out there who read this reflection is, healings take place each and every day in Catholic Churches all over the world in the Sacrament of Reconciliation……Speaking personally, I go to confession two times a month…In fact, I just went to confession this past Saturday…And each time I go, I leave the Church feeling so good…..And I thank God for the gift of his mercy…I also thank God I am Catholic to receive this gift…..There is great power in being freed from sin, which only happens in and through the Sacrament of Reconciliation….The world looks for all kinds of ways to expel the pain and guilt from sin….But only Jesus, the divine physician through his Church can perform this great miracle……We should all take full advantage of its use…….Why is it so hard to say, “I am sorry”…....Or…”I was wrong”…..At the root of it, its pride…Maybe we feel ashamed by what we have done…Maybe we think we can not stop doing something we keep doing…Those thoughts come from the devil, who wants to hold you back!……..We forget that Jesus is God and this is the reason why he came and walked the earth, to forgive sins……Watching a person transform from one “chapter of life” to the next is truly something amazing to watch….At my wedding one of the readers at the Mass was one of those people I am speaking of…Phillip was a drug addict and lived a horrible life…As a result of his lifestyle, living in Las Vegas, he acquired HIV and came to live in New York because of the social services the State of New York provides to people with HIV…I met Philip at the AIDS hospice run by the Missionaries of Charity…While he lived there I watched him change and embrace the work of Mother Teresa’s nuns and in time he requested to be Baptized…The sisters asked me to teach him about the Catholic faith, which I did. When Philip was Baptized, I was his Godfather…..I watched him change from a drug addict to a functioning citizen….All by and through God’s grace…..Philip was “sick” and he became well…..We are ALL one Sacramental Confession away from healing so many of our wounds caused by sin…..If Phillip can do it, so can you!…Trust me, if you saw Phillip before he was Baptized you would have never in a million years thought such a person could change, but he did…God is still at work in the world and miracles happen every day

The LORD said to me, "You are my Son; this day I have begotten you. Ask of me and I will give you the nations for an inheritance and the ends of the earth for your possession."

Jesus today in the Gospel of St Matthew repeated the words of John the Baptist……”From that time on, Jesus began to preach and say, "Repent, for the Kingdom of heaven is at hand.”……..Sometimes I think we as Catholics forget these words…Let’s face it, we are all sinners….And if we want to become the people we all want to be, we need grace…However, our sins are an impediment to God’s grace…So lets get ride of them!…We are one Sacramental Confession way from doing just that…Like little St Andre Bessette, who was able to heal thousands, the Catholic Church heals people each and every day…My friend Phillip experienced this miracle, and he was a drug addict living on the street…”Jesus said to them, “Amen, I say to you, tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you. When John came to you in the way of righteousness, you did not believe him; but tax collectors and prostitutes did. Yet even when you saw that, you did not later change your minds and believe him”……..If Phillip can do it, why can’t you?……..”The one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world”