Homily for the
30th Sunday of Ordinary Time
Oct. 29, 2023
Ex 22: 20-26
Matt 22: 34-40
Villa Maria, Bronx
Assumption, Bronx
St. Francis Xavier, Bronx
“You
shall not molest or oppress an alien, for you were once aliens yourselves in
the land of Egypt” (Ex 22: 20).
So the Lord commands Israel as part of his covenant with them at Mt. Sinai. He commands them further to be just to widows and orphans, and compassionate toward the poor. In other words, he wishes his people, the people he redeemed from slavery in Egypt and made his very own favorite people, to be as compassionate toward their neighbors as he is compassionate toward his people.
That’s
the heritage by which Jesus can command us to love our neighbors as we love
ourselves.
When
Pope Francis speaks up for migrants—the aliens among us—or for those afflicted
by violence, poverty, or any kind of discrimination—sometimes he’s accused of
being political. It was that way also
for St. John XXIII, St. Paul VI, and St. John Paul II. But this is the politics of the God’s
covenant with Israel, the politics of the Gospel, the politics of Jesus. We are to be concerned for the welfare of
everyone, not just our fellow citizens, not just people who are like us;
concerned not only as individuals but as a society, by our laws and policies.
Lord
knows, the wealthy and the powerful take care of themselves very well and don’t
need our help. Our prayers, yes—that’s a
form of compassion we can show the wealthy and powerful, lest they go to hell
like the rich man in Jesus’ parable who had ignored the beggar at his gate
(Luke 16:19-31). Their souls may need
our prayers more than the poor, the homeless, the immigrant, and the refugee
need us to intercede with God for them.
In
today’s collect we asked God, “Increase our faith, hope, and charity and make
us love what you command.” Our faith is
in Jesus Christ, who saves us; our charity leads us to be compassionate as he
is toward sinners and toward the poor, the sick, the abandoned, the
desperate. We can carry out Jesus’
teaching about love of God and of neighbor by praying for those whose stories
in the news of suffering strike us—victims of war, natural disaster, economic
hardship, domestic violence, or crime—and by involving ourselves in our parish
outreach services to the needy and by contributing to Catholic Charities
according to our means.
If we love God with all our heart, soul, and mind (Matt 22:37), we have to love all God’s children too.
Most
of you remember Lucy Van Pelt, one of Charlie Brown’s friends (loosely
speaking). She’s known for proclaiming,
“I love mankind; it’s people I can’t stand.”
She has a hard time turning mankind in general into the particular
people in her life. It’s important that we
apply our charity to particular people.
Charity begins at home. The 1st
people to know our compassion must be those in our own household and our own
relatives—our patience, understanding, gentleness, assistance, and forgiveness.
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