All Saints
SUNDAYS CYCLE A • Sermon • Submitted
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Jesus is Beatitude
Jesus is Beatitude
Jesus Is Beatitude
November 1, 2020 (readings)
Solemnity of All Saints Adopted from Fr. John Bullock, LC
Today we celebrate Heaven and all those (saints canonised as well as many more unrecognised) who are experiencing the perfect JOY and LOVE of the presence of God. In the first reading St. John attempted to describe this great gathering by symbolic language of: white robes; a sign of victory and a reminder of our baptism and blood, for us suggesting death; for Hebrews of the time it meant life which belongs to God. John XXIII ended JohnXXIII battle, said of himself; God knew I was going to be Pope but he still gave me a big nose. what a homourous popee? I want to remember one person whom I believe is among the saints of God today! At the beginning of my high school years a Marist Brother would welcome us to class and sing …. Joy in my heart …… smiling and clapping hands:
Bene – Good …….. Dictione – Saying = Beatitude
The Penny Catechism number two question is:
1. Why did God create us?
In His loving goodness, God created us to know, love, and serve Him in this life and to be happy with Him for all eternity.
References:
Scripture: John 17:3
Compendium: 1
CCC: 1–3
YouCat: 1–2
Archdiocese of Kansas City. (2014). 50 Things Every Catholic Should Know: Preparing for Confirmation (p. 1). Steubenville, OH: Emmaus Road Publishing.
Matthew 5:1-12
When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain, and after he had sat down, his disciples came to him. He began to teach them, saying:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they who mourn, for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the land.
Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied.
Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the clean of heart, for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me.
Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven.”
Opening Prayer: Dear Lord, I come before you today with the desire to grow in faith, hope, and love, which are at the very heart of my relationship with you. I desire the holiness to which you have called me, and which the saints, whom we celebrate today, have shown me is possible. Open my mind and heart so that I may receive the lights and graces you wish to share with me in this our time together.
Encountering Christ:
1. WHAT IS SAINTHOOD? IT IS ABOUT A PERSON Jesus Our Model: The beatitudes speak principally of Jesus himself (the measurement of Life). He is our model, the norm of the new law (see Catechism #459). In him we see a “poverty”Birth in Bethlehem that, although rich, emptied himself for our sake (see Philippians 2:7). Who is meek if not Jesus who said, “learn from me for I am meek and humble of heart” (Matthew 11:29)? He is merciful like no other, seeking out the lost sheep, which is humanity gone astray (see Matthew 18:12-14). As Christians, we follow the person of Jesus Christ. Dogmas are an effort to understand him; norms are an effort to follow him. As Our Lord’s self-portrait, the beatitudes become the Christian’s Magna Carta. They do not replace the Ten Commandments; they go beyond them. The former insists that we do not offend love; the latter insists we love as Jesus did.
2. THE DEFINITION OF A SAINT - The Saints Have Followed: Our Lord’s invitation to imitate him is daunting. However, Jesus has made it possible through the gift of the Holy Spirit, which we receive in baptism (see Catechism #1227). Then as children of God, we are able to cry out “Abba, Father!” (Galatians 4:6). All the saints, whom we celebrate today, have preceded us and shown us that sanctity is within our reach. Sanctity is simply allowing the grace God has planted in us through baptism to grow and develop. No situation or circumstance can prevent God’s grace from working powerfully in a docile soul. The saints, men and women from all ages and all walks of life, have modelled the way. Their example and their intercession are powerful aids on our own journey. We know we can make it to heaven because they have. They fortify in us the theological virtue of hope. At this point I just think, Sainthood; is only about doing, believing, living, demonstrating and witnessing ‘a few good things!’
3. THE SIGN OF A SAINT IS JOYFULNESS - An Invitation to Joy: In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus’s invitation to blessedness is an invitation to joy. However, Jesus’s joy sets the world’s joy on its head. We want to avoid discomfort and pain at all costs. Jesus says, “Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you… Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven.” However, the promise of heaven amidst suffering is not merely a promise of future joy, but of a joy already begun even while suffering. What a paradox; JOY BEGINS IN SUFFERING? HOW SHALL THAT BE? This joy amidst suffering was the “insanity” that only the saints understood. St. John Paull II said, “To know that God is not far but close… is reason for profound joy that different daily events cannot affect… An unmistakable characteristic of Christian joy is that it can coexist with suffering, because it is totally based on love.” The saint knows he or she is secure in God’s love amidst suffering. This experience of God’s love then moves the saint to give everything back to Christ and, in that self-sacrificing gift, to find deep joy.
Conversing with Christ: In Jesus, we have been offered his Joy by being concretely shown we should imitate his virtues, such as meekness, purity, and mercy. In addition to his grace, we have been given our elder brothers and sisters in the faith who are living icons of him. They inspire us with their lives and sustain us with their prayers. May our increased devotion to them augment our devotion to him. Let us embrace the joy of the cross and console his Sacred Heart.
Resolution: Today by the Lord’s grace we can read at least one brief article about the life of a saint. Then we can say a simple prayer to that saint asking for his or her intercession for our family and ourselves. Every saint has a past and every sinner has a future. Remember we do not need to do much; only some “good saying” or “benedictione”/ be ‘Beatitude’ as Jesus! “Rejoice in the Lord and again I say Rejoice” (Philippians 4:4)