Homily for August 2

Dear Friends:

Why do we Americans have such a difficult time being alone? Our gravitational pull is naturally towards others; but there is an even deeper force that tugs at us. This is the natural human longing for that which is supernatural. When we gaze out into the wilderness, this desire can at the same time excite us and scare us. We often distract ourselves from this fundamental desire by things that not only do not satisfy but genuinely frustrate us.

he Good News that we continually hear from the Sacred Scriptures is that God desires an encounter with us. In fact, God is the one who initiates these experiences. One such event that made a profound impression upon the collective memory of early Christianity is the story told by all four gospels of the multiplication of the loaves and the fishes. The details of the account are significant. After having learned of the death of John the Baptist, Jesus sought to be alone in a deserted place. Notice that alone-ness with God is solitude, not loneliness! Those brief moments fuel us for the crises we inevitably must face. The response of the disciples to the crisis of hungry people and little food was vastly different than that of Jesus. They wanted to disperse the crowds so that they could go to towns and purchase food. The Greek word to divide is the same as the word for the Evil One – diabolos! Jesus had them gather and share what resources they possessed.

This miracle is obviously a symbol for the Eucharist – the real presence of our Savior for whom we long! The forced isolation of these months of pandemic have served both to reinforce this longing for many and to lead us to more creative ways of experiencing – though at a distance – this precious gift. We rejoice that at long last we have begun to gather in small numbers for the celebration of Mass. Although many have been able to participate through the computer with livestreamed liturgies, there are people who do not possess the means to access these programs. One of our greatest challenges as Church is to break the barriers of self-imposed isolation – some of which is caused by our own pride and hurt. The context of St. Paul’s “Letter to the Romans” is the suffering that threatens to keep us apart. His words ought to echo in our hearts when loneliness and fear threaten: “What will separate us from the love of Christ?”
 
Yours in Christ,
Fr. Bill Foley