April 6, 2018 at 1:53 p.m.
LOCAL MASS
Homily for John Paul's beatification
• Primarily, we continue to bask in the joy and hope contained in the Easter message;
• we celebrate Divine Mercy Sunday, a feast officially instituted by Pope John Paul II; and
• we honor the man, born as Karol Wotyla - known since his October 1978 election to the papacy, the first non-Italian pope since 1523 - as John Paul II.
Beatified by his successor, Pope Benedict XVI, this day in Rome, he joins the 280 Poles who have received the title "Blessed."
The Apostles and disciples of Jesus, through their preaching, through their table fellowship and through their prayers, passed on to others their faith and trust in God's plan of salvation.
The Scripture readings today indicate that, like the disciples, as we live charitably and selflessly we, too, can enter the kingdom of heaven.
Central to this way of life are faith and trust. Was it not difficult for the Apostle Thomas to believe in a resurrected Christ without seeing Him, without touching Him? It may be difficult for us, at times, to believe in heaven or in the plan of salvation.
It was the same for the early Christians as it is for us in our day. Faith, that precious gift of God, requires on our part that we believe in God in a spirit of trust.
I hold that today - which also marks Holocaust Remembrance Day - is by no mere coincidence the beatification day of John Paul II. Did he not witness that painful reality? Did he not personally endure the "forgotten holocaust" of the Polish nation?
If we lose the trust of which I speak, what are we left with but sadness and hopelessness? Our Scriptures today urge us to be a generous people - a people who exude love and joy, demonstrating our faith and trust in God.
There are a myriad of reflections I could offer on John Paul's life and teaching, including reconciliation, solidarity, evangelization, Marian devotion and prayer.
He taught that our sin divides us from God and each other - and, in a broader sense, pointed to economic and political structures of our world that exploit the poor and needy.
A champion of ecumenism, likewise he sought a closer relationship with the Jewish people. He was the first Pope to visit a synagogue. He brought together the major faiths of the world to pray for peace at Assisi.
What more vivid image of reconciliation do we require as we recall how he met with and forgave the man who tried to assassinate him?
Solidarity reflected in his ability to relate to people from all walks of life. For him, everything centered on his belief that we are all connected to each other as children of God. All bear responsibility for one another.
This was the basis for his promotion of family life, his speaking out against abortion, euthanasia, the death penalty and human trafficking. Solidarity calls us, according to John Paul - in a world that tends to favor the strong and the wealthy - to look after the needs of the weak and vulnerable among us: the poor, the elderly, the unborn, the inform and the marginalized.
To reconciliation and solidarity, I would add evangelization - stressing that John Paul saw this not as the work of a few, but "the primary service which the Church can render to every individual and to all humanity."
He lived this even to old age and illness, becoming the most-travelled pope in history while consistently reminding us that we can all make Christ present to those around us.
For John Paul II, Marian devotion was something much deeper than the sentimental piety of a devout person or a strong reflection of his Polish spirituality. He wrote of Mary as the ideal disciple of the Lord because of her wholehearted acceptance of God's will: She is a model for the Church, an example of faith, trust and love.
Finally, everything John Paul II did was saturated with prayer. He spoke of it, lived it and died as he had lived: In prayer, with friends gathered round, he whispered, "Let me go to the Father's house."
Each of these aspects - reconciliation, solidarity, evangelization, Marian devotion and prayer - necessitate much more elaboration.
Winston Churchill wrote in his 1948 book, "The Gathering Storm," about a 1935 proposal to Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin suggesting that the Soviet Union should not suppress Catholicism, but should rather encourage it in order to gain favor with the Pope.
Stalin responded with the now-famous words: "The Pope? How many divisions has he got?"
Ironically, that conversation took place on May 13, 1935 - 46 years to the day before, as we now know, the Soviet Union attempted to kill Pope John Paul II, whom they viewed as the most-feared man in all of Europe.
The Pope survived!
Stalin's successors in the Soviet Union learned the answer to his question far too late for their own survival.
The golden thread that binds together the tapestry of John Paul II's life and ministry can be found in words he spoke at the formal Mass which began his tenure in the chair of Peter on October 22, 1978.
"Be not afraid!" he proclaimed. "Open wide the doors to Christ! To His saving power open up the boundaries of the state, economic and political systems, and the vast fields of culture, civilization and development. Be not afraid."
His words were reiterated and lived throughout his long reign as the 263rd successor to the Apostle Peter, lasting nearly 27 years.
His love for young people brought him to establish the World Youth Day. I share with you words he spoke at the Fourth World Youth Day in August 1989 at Santiago de Compostela: "If you really wish to serve your brothers and sisters, let Christ reign in your hearts. Let Him strengthen you in virtue and fill you above all with his charity. Let Him guide you along the path that leads to holiness."
My friends, I hope we will heed those challenging words with which he concluded his address: "Do not be afraid to be saints!"
Do not be afraid. Nie le kajcie sie. Do not be afraid. Amen.
Father Urban, a retired priest of the Albany Diocese, delivered this homily during a May 1 Mass at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Albany celebrating the beatification of Blessed Pope John Paul II.[[In-content Ad]]
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