”Follow me, and let the dead bury their dead”

 Today at Holy Mass we hear in the first reading read from the Book of Acts how Peter and John are once again in trouble with the Jewish religious leaders….A miracle took place and the people were amazed by it….The religious leaders also acknowledge the miracle but look past it…..They were more concerned with their position and power….”Observing the boldness of Peter and John and perceiving them to be uneducated, ordinary men, the leaders, elders, and scribes were amazed, and they recognized them as the companions of Jesus. Then when they saw the man who had been cured standing there with them, they could say nothing in reply. So they ordered them to leave the Sanhedrin, and conferred with one another, saying, “What are we to do with these men? Everyone living in Jerusalem knows that a remarkable sign was done through them, and we cannot deny it”…Any objective honest person would have been convinced that Peter and John were apart of something “special”….But the Sanhedrin ignored what frankly could not be ignored!….And they payed a heavy price……The life and death of Jesus brought about a change, this is undeniable….God had made a covenant with the Jewish people and he fulfilled that convent right before their eyes…Keep in mind - Jesus was a Jew - Jospeh was a Jew - Mary was a Jew….All the earlier disciples of Jesus were for the most part Jews…Yet ironically, the Jewish elite, the educated religious class were not interested in how God manifested himself in the fulfillment of the Davidic Covenant…One would think the Sanhedrin would be the first ones “on board”….But as we know that was not the case….Today’s reading gives us a look into the hearts of men - How men can portray themselves to be “religious” but in actuality, their hearts were far from God………God is not interested in our “outward appearances”…..God weighs the human heart  - This is how we will be judged……….“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You pay tithes* of mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier things of the law: judgment and mercy and fidelity. [But] these you should have done, without neglecting the others. Blind guides, who strain out the gnat and swallow the camel! “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You cleanse the outside of cup and dish, but inside they are full of plunder and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee, cleanse first the inside of the cup, so that the outside also may be clean. “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You are like whitewashed tombs, which appear beautiful on the outside, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and every kind of filth. Even so, on the outside you appear righteous, but inside you are filled with hypocrisy and evildoing. “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the memorials of the righteous, and you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our ancestors, we would not have joined them in shedding the prophets’ blood”…….As Catholics, we must always be aware of our interior disposition - We can say “all the right things” and still not be “right” with God….Its not what we do that matters as much as how we do it…..Is love at the center of what we do? - Do we embrace Truth, when it is convenient or inconvenient? - Do we see God in our neighbor and as a result love our neighbor?……Today we hear about the Sanhedrin, who were highly educated, which means they should have known better!….The Sanhedrin saw the miracle performed by Peter and John and dismissed it……The Sanhedrin “talked a good game” but their hearts were far from God…….How about us?…..Do we simply just talk? - Say all the right things - Are our hearts far from God?

“Open to me the gates of justice; I will enter them and give thanks to the LORD. This is the gate of the LORD; the just shall enter it”

How do we assess authentic faith?…..The Catholic church possess the fullness of the Truth - There is no debate about that…But do we as Catholics utilize everything that was given to us?…I have been Catholic my enter life…In that time I have encountered the “lukewarm” as well as those who were “on fire” with their faith….How can we tell the difference?……How can we separate the “sheep” from the “goats”?……..It all comes down to the Cross…..To be Catholic means you not only accept the reality of the Cross but you carry it as well…..When a deeply sacrificial lifestyle is observed - Whether it is a priest, a married couple or a non-married person - There authentic faith is found! - It is found in those who embrace their Cross and live sacrificially for others - Its there that we will find authentic Catholicism and no where else….Let’s take a moment and ponder the Church at its very beginning - When we do this we find  Jesus, Mary and Joseph - These were simple and humble people….The Holy family lived for God, each other and others - They lived sacrificially - Putting God first above all things…..This is how we know we found the “real deal”, both two thousand years ago and today as well……Are we as Catholics willing to be uncomfortable? - Are we as Catholics willing to forego the “things of this world” for the Kingdom of God?…..And when the unbelieving world “sees” with its own two eyes a sacrificial people - Trust Me!!! - They are suddenly “struck by lightning” and “miraculously” the unbelieving world is “all ears” - They begin to “hear” what is spoken from the pulpits of our Churches….But that will not happen, unless we as Catholics live sacrificially and put God above all things and in turn love our neighbor as ourself….That is how the world discerns the “real deal”

“My strength and my courage is the LORD, and he has been my savior. The joyful shout of victory in the tents of the just”

Today in the Book of Acts, we heard at Mass when confronted with persecution, Peter and John were not concerned….They spoke the Truth and placed the Truth above comfort - Above social status - Above even their personal safety…How about us?……”So they called them back and ordered them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. Peter and John, however, said to them in reply, “Whether it is right in the sight of God for us to obey you rather than God, you be the judges. It is impossible for us not to speak about what we have seen and heard”……Have we as Catholics become like everyone else? - Part of the “status-quo”….Do we “go along to get along”?…..Comfort is the enemy of the Cross!……The power of our Catholic witness is not in what we say - The power of our Catholic witness rests in our Cross and how we carry it…..People believe what they see - “Nice words” will never convince an unbelieving world to suddenly change, never mind sacrifice comfort for a Church that claims to posses the fullness of Truth - If we say we believe in God and possess the fullness of Truth, which by the way we do! - Then we have to show it by the way we live - And we show it as Catholics by living sacrificially….“Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head” - What is good for the master is good for his servants!…………………….”Follow me, and let the dead bury their dead”……..JMJ