Before I get into the subject of my homily, I need to comment on the Motu Proprio that Pope Francis issued on Friday (July 18, 2021) which seriously restricts the Traditional Latin Mass. This is going to be very hard for those Catholics who are even more traditional than us and who love the Latin Mass. If you know anyone in that group, please give them some support. I talked to a young man yesterday and simply asked how he was doing, and he told me later how much appreciated my concern. They are our brothers and sisters. They love the Church, and this will make them feel totally rejected by our Holy Father. So, reach out to them.

The theme coming from our OT reading and gospel today is shepherds. Bad shepherds and Jesus, the ultimate good shepherd. Many of us are struggling with the shepherds in our Church today so I want to share my heart on this matter.

First of all, we have been very blessed here. From Msgr. Hogan, then Msgr. Parry, and now Fr. Potts, we have been blessed with good shepherds. They are all very different but each one has and is giving his all to teach, govern, and sanctify us. That’s what they’re ordained for – teach, govern, and sanctify and we’ve been blessed. Thank you, Fr. Potts for all you do as our Priest.

Unfortunately, there have been many bad shepherds, especially in the hierarchy. The abuse scandal is the most obvious and is absolutely horrific. But what I want to talk about, coming from my heart, is the silence, the unwillingness to speak the truth on the hard issues.

There are 2 issues in particular: sexual morality, and our salvation. Cardinal Dolan was very open on the issue of sexual morality. I read this in an interview that he did when he was President of the USCCB. He said that when Humane Vitae was published in 1968, it created such a large firestorm in the Church that we all decided we can’t talk about sexual issues because it creates too much anger and too much controversy. Then in the mid 80’s John Paul II gave us his Theology of the Body, and by the late 80’s and early 90’s we started to get our voice back, and then the abuse crisis broke and we said how can we preach on these issues. So, for about 50 years, while our country has been going through a sexual revolution which is killing us, the Church has been silent.

The second issue is salvation – our need for salvation and the reality of heaven and hell. There are 2 sides to the gospel. There’s the good news – heaven, and then the bad news – hell. And if all we ever talk about is the good news, then pretty soon, the good news becomes no news, and our young people leave. Why should they stay? Some will be drawn to God, and his love, and his goodness, and thanks be to God; but many will not. You tell a young self-centered guy who loves this world and the pleasures of this world, that God loves him and has prepared a place for him in heaven, and he’s really not going to care. I know because I was that guy. It has taken me many years to see the bad news, in me, in order to appreciate the good news in Jesus, to repent and to experience His mercy. I knew about hell. I was taught. But what about the young guy who doesn’t know. Many people say that we should just focus on the positive, and the good things of God. I’m telling you a person in love with this world is not going to care. But you tell him about hell, and he will care about that. He may not be drawn to heaven, but he sure as heck is not going to want hell. It’s a start. There’s some hope for him. This is where my heart is – the young people who love this world and who have left the Lord, because they don’t know.

Jesus came to save sinners. We’ve heard this many times, and it’s good news. But, he didn’t come to accompany them, he came to lead them to repentance and salvation. When the disciples were sent out to preach, they preached repentance. That’s what save us. Some people love God from the time they’re children. And that’s the best, that’s the ideal, and praise God for that. They don’t need repentance. But sinners do. When Jesus came to Zacchaeus’ house, and Zacchaeus said, I give half my belongings to the poor, and if I have defrauded anyone, I pay him back fourfold. Jesus responded, Today, salvation has come to this house. Today, after Zacchaeus repented and changed.

The heresy of modernism, that man is the center of all things, is everywhere. It’s in the air we breathe, and it’s in the church. Much preaching today is centered on us and this world. Love Jesus because that will make you happy in this world, that will bring you fulfillment in this world. The same with your family. And that’s true, and those are good things, but if that’s all we talk about; if we don’t preach God as the center of all things, and about eternal consequences, then we are just another voice, just another talking head.

When our shepherds refuse to preach the hard truths, or worse, when they accommodate us in sin, and bend and twist God’s word so we can have God on our terms, they are, unwittingly to be sure, but in reality, accompanying us to hell.

Sister Faustina wrote a Diary on Divine Mercy. She is called the Apostle of Divine Mercy and the diary is all about the mercy of Jesus, that there is no sin beyond his mercy, and it’s truly good news. In paragraph 741 of her Diary on Mercy, she describes her visit to hell. She talks about all the types of sufferings, and then she ends with this:

I am writing this at the command of God, so that no soul may find an excuse by saying there is no hell, or that nobody has ever been there, and so no one can say what it is like.

The devils were full of hatred for me, but they had to obey me at the command of God. What I have written is but a pale shadow of the things I saw. But I noticed one thing: that most of the souls there are those who disbelieved that there is a hell.

We MUST speak!!!!

What to do?

First, pray for our Shepherds. Remember our first Pope. In Mt 16, he declared Jesus, the Christ, the Son of God, and Jesus responded, blessed are you Simon bar Jonah for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly father. Then, a few verses later when Jesus says he will be crucified, Peter responds, no, no, that can never happen to you, and Jesus responds, Get behind me Satan. You are an obstacle to me. You are thinking not as God does, but as man does. He goes from hearing God and being named Peter, to not hearing God and being called Satan. We must pray for them. My son, Fr. Chris, has said that one thing that he was told when he was in seminary that really struck him is that wherever a priest ends up, heaven or hell, he doesn’t go alone. We must pray.

Second, trust Jesus. He is at work, even in this time of difficulty. Keep our eyes on Jesus. Be formed by His word, not CNN or FOX or anyone else, but His word, given to us in Scripture and the teaching of the Church. We must grow more and more to see everything in Him and trust that He is doing good even now.

Christi Gaeng shared a story with me that she said I could share with you. When Caleb went into the seminary, the day he entered was right after the report on Cardinal Wuerl and his handling of the abuse crisis was released. Christi said when they got to the seminary, you could just feel the oppression and darkness and heaviness hanging over the place. Recently, they had Fr. Carter Griffin, the rector of the seminary, over for dinner, and he told them that if everyone stays on track as they are now, Caleb’s class, which is scheduled for ordination in 2024, will be the largest ordination class in the history of our diocese.

God is at work. Praise the Lord!

God bless you all.