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The 20th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Added Aug 21, 2017 •

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August 21, 2017 Fr. Chad VanHoose

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every young man that enter Seminary receives a spiritual director and this person is supposed to be a guy someone who would guide the Seminary and a long and his life of prayer and life of Grace and for my 6 years and Seminary my spiritual director father Jeff Huard  by the looks of some of your faces you remember when father heward was an associate here so years ago and I'm not sure what he was like when he was here somewhat newly-ordained but at the st. Paul Seminary father Huard what's this Persona of Yogi Berra  he's like the Yogi Berra of the Seminary he's got these great one-liners when the seminarians we love to remember them quote them and we even call them Hubert isms as you know an homage to our dearly beloved priest so if Yogi Berra where to say it ain't over till it's over what would father humans say what are some of these huge ism's I got some of the best ones for you father Huard would say if you stop start again some wise advice from a good pastor  he'd also say some of us have heard of or experience stage right well father Huard would say some people have stage joy and I might be guilty of that sometimes while I'm up here how to hear word of also say pray as you can not as you can't good simple advice but my favorite heward is in my think is this we need divine power for divine effects human power can never produce Divine effects and brothers and sisters in our world today I think we all can recognize we need some Divine effects we need some Divine assistance because the news everyday tells us whether we need the reminder or not that there's division in the world division in our own country there's the political left and there's the political right there are different races religions different groups that are often at odds with one another divided even on a small scale we have our sports teams that are divided who is competing against one another this week I'm sure we'll hear a lot of news about the Floyd Mayweather Conor McGregor boxing match on Saturday this division all throughout the world and we hear it about it today in our readings you see in the in the reading of st. Paul to the Romans St Paul is writing to a ethnically divided community in the Christian church in home there are two groups there the Jewish converts to Christianity and they're the Gentile convert to Christianity and these when Gentile convert don't see eye-to-eye they're not always getting along so what do we here at the end of the reading today from St.Paul he challenges both of them he challenges them and says Jesus is Mercy is for everybody Jew Gentile convert alike and then we get to the gospel this really sticky gospel Jesus what are you saying here we have Jesus in the disciples coming up to this Canaanite woman again division you have the disciples and Jesus representing Israel the Jews and you have this Canaanite woman representing the Gentiles we got another show down here and what did the disciples say to the Canaanite woman or rather say to Jesus Lord send her away we want to have nothing to do with her she's not one of us go Lord tell her to go do her own thing but hear this then comes bagging  begging Jesus to save to heal her daughter  so how does Jesus respond it's a little awkward isn't it he says this line it is not right to take the food from the children and give it to the dogs what's Jesus saying here is he just buying the Jew line that they were the chosen race everything is only for them or something deeper here is Jesus being a racist is Jesus being a bigot who just likes his own group and is rejecting this woman  no no on all of them accounts I think we know that Jesus wouldn't be racist here but what exactly is he saying I think that he's repeating a line that he's probably heard the disciples say and that he's probably heard some good juice say it is not right to take the food of the children and give it to the dogs and in delivering this line Jesus is turning it upside down and calling into question he's questioning the disciples questioning their exclusion questioning this era are aura of superiority that they have  and he's also giving the Canaanite woman and not tunity for grace and opportunity to make a proclamation of faith and this is exactly what the woman does the woman comes begging and has that great line of humility Lord even the dogs get the scrap Jesus wanted the disciples to hear This Woman's response  that he wanted them to hear her great Act of Faith to realize they had it wrong that this insular thinking of Israel was wrong and that a Canaanite woman a gentile could speak with greater Faith than all of the of Israel  Jesus in this move open salvation up for the world he has come to fulfill that prophecy we here and Isaiah today that God's house of prayer is a house for All Peoples no exclusions no one is left out Jesus points out that gods ocean from Israel was particular but not to say this one not that one God's election of Israel was to say this one Israel the Jews for the sake of all others you seen Jesus came through Judaism Jesus came through the chosen people of Israel not because they were great quite the contrary because they were small insignificant and that God's power would shine through Israel that Israel would be play to the nation's we need divine power for divine effects this is our great prison for the day and brothers and sisters we see a lot of division Among Us division in our world division in our country plane in our neighborhoods are relationships what can heal this division one thing rather one send Jesus Christ  divine power is the only thing that can heal the divisions of our world human power will not be enough human power can never create Divine effects it won't is there some leader it won't come through some policy it will only come through the person of Jesus and Jesus invites us into this reality today who are we but men and women from different nations who the Lord has called through these doors into his sanctuary of the the church is the body of Christ that welcomes All Nations All Peoples no one is excluded and we celebrate hear the Eucharist the sacrament of unity the sacrament of unity that pulls all nations into Jesus and what is the Eucharist but many grains of wheat crushed many grapes crushed so that we have one loaf and one cup  brothers and sisters as we come forward for the Eucharist today of us Catholics from different nations we receive the food that God wants for his children you don't receive it in this exclusive way of we're going to hoard it for ourselves we have to protect it we receive it and pray for here Unity we pray that the Eucharist would be that light to the Nations that drawls All Peoples through these doors All Peoples into the Church the house of God his House of Prayer  so we pray for that Unity today we asked the Lord send us your Define power that Divine effects may be abundant in our world through the powerful name of Jesus

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