15th Sunday in Ordinary Time


Fr. Ben Riley

This past weekend, our youth group had the amazing experience of attending a Steubenville Youth Conference. These conferences are organized by the Franciscan University in Steubenville, Ohio but are held all over the country. There are a few in Steubenville; there is one in Denver, there is one in Arizona, and two are scheduled every Summer at Missouri State University in Springfield, MO. That’s where we went. The main thing I really appreciate about these conferences is that they are centered around the sacraments. Mass is held each day, confessions are available throughout the whole weekend, and the Eucharistic Adoration and procession that is held on Saturday night is one of the most beautiful I have ever seen. Oh, and did I mention that there were 5000 kids at this conference? I cannot begin to explain to you how inspiring it was to see 5000 young people praising God, worshipping him, singing loudly, expressing their faith, opening their hearts to the Holy Spirit and coming into a deeper relationship with Christ. It was amazing. I probably heard close to 200 confessions, and there was a lot of healing and acceptance of God’s mercy that took place.

Another incredible part of these conferences are the talks. Throughout the weekend there are talks on a variety of spiritual topics. Some of the talks are for the whole group, but for one of the talks they split up the boys and the girls. There were some truly inspiring speakers: a hilarious religious sister named, Josephine, a fun-loving guy named D.J.. And we had the great opportunity to have Father Mike Schmitz there last weekend as well. Father Mike is, of course, the host of the Bible in a Year podcast, and the Catechism in a Year podcast, as well as a contributor for Ascension Press. So, needless to say, Father Mike is a truly gifted communicator. I have to admit, I’m a little jealous. In fact, last weekend he gave one of the best homilies I have ever heard. And so today, without plagiarizing too much, I would like to share with you his message. It’s something we should all hear.

Let me start, the same way he did. Let me see a show of hands. How many of y’all have been to a shopping mall, a mall in Branson, maybe Fayetteville? Okay, most of y’all have been to a mall in your lifetime. That’s good. In every mall, at least every mall I’ve been to, there are maps all over the place: maps of the stores, the concession area, where the bathrooms are, and so forth. And on those maps, there is always a dot, usually it’s a little red or yellow dot that says, “you are here.” And this is so great. It helps orient you, helps you see where you are in the mall, because it is really hard to figure out where you are going if you don’t first know where you are.

So transitioning from malls, to being here in this church on a Sunday morning. If there was a map of your life, with a little red dot that says, “you are here”, that dot right now would be at Mary Mother of God Catholic Church. You are here, and it is good that you are here. Let me explain why, with a little story.

In the third year of seminary studies there is a summer semester called CPE. It stands for Clinical Pastoral Education, and this is a summer between the 3rd and 4th year of seminary spent in a hospital. The seminarians are the chaplains all summer long, for three months in a hospital. I did my CPE summer at Baptist Hospital in Little Rock, and it was one of the most challenging, and best summers of my life.

About three weeks into the summer I got a call on my beeper. (We had beepers. I didn’t even know they still made beepers.) And my beeper said emergency department room 207. This wasn’t my first call to the emergency room. I had been called there two or three times before, so I figured no big deal, somebody has probably had an accident, maybe they are injured, and they want the chaplain to come down to pray with them. Fantastic. So, I walked down there, and right after I walk in the emergency department I see a tall man standing in a white lab coat, he’s the doctor. He walks up to me and says, “Hello, my name is doctor so and so, I can’t remember, and I was the one who paged you. There is a family in our private waiting room. It’s a Mom and her four kids, and her husband has just died. I’m about to go into the room and tell them what’s happened and I want you to be in there with them for support.” No pressure right? I didn’t know what to say, I didn’t know what to do, what could I say to a woman who had just lost her husband, to children who had just lost their father. There are no words. And so, I did about the only thing I could do. I told them how sorry I am for their loss, and I asked if they wanted to pray. We spent the next three hours praying together and it was one of the most beautiful experiences of ministry I’ve ever had. The Holy Spirit was in that room.

You see, love is often just showing up. Love is often just about being present. Even if you don’t know what to say, even if you don’t know what to do, even if you feel uncomfortable, love is about being there. And this is the amazing thing that we get to experience at every Mass. What does John chapter 3 verse 16 say? Say it with me. “God so loved the world that He sent his only son.” Excellent, one more time. “God so loved the world that He sent his only son.” God’s son, Jesus Christ, the incarnate word, showed up 2000 years ago on this earth. Why, to save us. But it gets even better than that, on Holy Thursday at the last supper he said, “Take this, all of you, and eat of it. This is my body, given up for you.” Basically, at every Mass what does God do for us? He shows up, and he says, “I love you, and I’m here”. In the midst of the storms of our lives, in the midst of the trials and tribulations, in the midst of the heartache, in the midst of telling a family their father has just died, God shows up. I told you the Holy Spirit was present in that room.

Would any of us trade that for anything? Here He is, truly present on this altar in about 15 minutes. The love of God that is so powerful, the love of God that is so profound, the love of God that is so unstoppable, that at every Mass God shows up to nourish us. Why would we ever trade that for anything? But, the sad truth is that a lot of us would trade that for something, and we do it all the time.

“I should probably go to Mass on Sunday, but gosh that morning Mass is just too early. I should probably go to Mass on Sunday, but the football game is on. I should probably go to Mass on Sunday, but that church down the street has a rock band. Mass is so boring. I should probably go to confession, but it’s so embarrassing, I don’t need to, God knows I’m sorry.” All these things and so many more. God shows up, he knocks on the door, and we decide we aren’t home, it’s an inconvenient time.

It is good that you are here. If there were a map of your life, and a little red dot, right now, it would be over this church. Are you here because you are a perfect Catholic? No. Are you here because you never make mistakes? No. God’s love is not determined by your worthiness, because love, true love must be unconditional. Even in the midst of our heartache, even in the midst of our confusion, even in the midst of our doubt, even in the midst of our sin, God shows up on this altar because He loves you. And we show up to worship Him, because love is often just showing up.