by Rev. Richard D. Wilson

Homily – July 24, 2004 Merger Mass (St. James, St. Anne, St. Hedwig & Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe)

By Father Richard Wilson

"Whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave."

These words of Christ’s to James and John and the other apostles are words for us, too, beginning with myself. I do not wish to be "great" or "first" among you, but my commission to serve you as pastor requires that I truly try to live out these words, to find the way to be your servant so that Christ’s will for you, eternal salvation in Heaven, may be achieved.

This weekend, along with our merger, we celebrate the Solemnity of St. James. On Monday is the feast of St. Anne, and Father Nick will be preaching about her at the morning Mass and Father Ramon at the evening Spanish Mass (I have standby jury duty, which is why I did not wish to commit for a homily). In October we will celebrate St. Hedwig and in December Our Lady of Guadalupe. Tonight let us look at the life and death of St. James and see what it has to say to our own lives as Christians and as a Christian community.

The second reading, which was read in Spanish, discusses how "we hold this treasure in earthen vessels." That line became a popular Catholic song back in the early 1980s. I remember the Christmas that my parents received the record from Santa and we kept on listening to it over & over again. Often we when hear that song or read that line from St. Paul we think of the Eucharist and the vessels that carry the Body & Blood of Christ. It is important to be grateful for that incredible gift of Communion, but we need to remember that what St. Paul is speaking about directly is our own weaknesses & about how Christ nonetheless uses us, who were formed out of clay in the beginning of time (according to the story of Adam & Eve) so as to carry His power into the world.

St. James was a weak human being, just like the rest of us. As we heard in the Gospel, he and his brother & mother were ambitious people, looking to get ahead of the rest of the apostles. We also know that he was judgmental – we heard a few weeks back how he & John wanted Christ to destroy a town for refusing to listen to them. And we know that he was a coward – when Christ was arrested, he ran away, leaving only his brother John behind with Jesus.

And yet, and here is the hopeful part for us, that’s not the end of St. James’ story. After the Resurrection and after receiving the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, James grew into an apostle who was not afraid of the sacrifices he would have to make as a Christian. No longer was James looking to be served & honored – he now was looking to serve and give his own life for the spread of the Gospel, in imitation of Jesus.

In the Standard Times today I speak about the tradition that St. James visited Spain and built a church at the Blessed Mother’s request and about his martyrdom in Jerusalem at the hands of King Herod Agrippa. Now he no longer was cowardly – instead he was the first apostle to die for Christ. It is said that his quote "Courage and constancy of mind" while in his trial is what converted his accuser, who then was lead off to be executed with St. James. As they walked to where they would be killed, the man begged forgiveness from James, who then embraced him, said "Peace be with you" and kissed him. Then they were beheaded.

What a beautiful example of Christian forgiveness! We’ve seen such stories from the beginning when Christ forgive the good thief from the Cross & said about the people organizing the Crucifixion, "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do." Just yesterday one of our parishioners died, John Lester, shortly after having prayed for the Divine Mercy and 5 minutes after receiving Communion. Christ wants us all to be ready, to live out the prayer we say in the Our Father, "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us." St. James was admitted to heaven both because his earlier selfishnesses had be forgiven by Christ and because he forgave the man who arranged for his death. Something for us all to think about before it is too late.

St. Paul said at the end of the 2^nd reading, "Everything is for you, so that the grace bestowed in abundance on more & more people may cause the thanksgiving to overflow for the glory of God." St. James is probably responsible for more people coming to Christ through his intercession after his death than in the decade he served as an apostle. Countless people have made pilgrimages to his tomb at the city of Santiago de Compostela in Spain. Pope Alexander III declared Santiago to be a "holy town," among the likes of Jerusalem and Rome. When St. James feast falls on a Sunday, as it does this year, a Holy Year is declared and people can receive a plenary indulgence for making a pilgrimage there. Tonight there will be a big fireworks display in front of the Cathedral and tomorrow a gigantic incenser will swing through the church (originally this was used not just for religious purposes but also to cover up the smell of the people who had walked there for weeks without the benefit of deodorant).

Just as St. James led many to the faith, so are we called by Christ to have more & more people joining with us to worship God. That is not a reference merely to the 4 groups of people becoming one here today – it is a command from God for us to find the other 70 to 80 percent of Catholics who do not go to church, to seek out other Christians and non-Christians to join us. This, of course, is a commandment for all baptized people to accomplish, but we ask our Lord to help us together to more effectively evangelize our neighborhood, following the example of St. James, spreading peace and forgiveness throughout New Bedford and vicinity.

Hoy es la fiesta de Santiago. Es interesante ver como Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe y Santa Eduviges han venido aquí en peregrinación. Tiene precedente en las tradiciones de la Iglesia, que dicen que Maria apareció a Santiago cuando él estaba evangelizando el noreste de España y ella pidió que él construyera una iglesia en honor a ella, usando un pilar que ella trajo. Así se constuyó la basilica de Nuestra Señora del Pilar, quien honramos el 12 de octubre, el Dia de la Raza. Colón, cuando llegó a San Salvador ese dia, pensaba que era un signo divino que encontró tierra ese dia y es por eso que Nuestra Señora del Pilar es la patrona de la Hispanidad, mientras Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe es la patrona de la America.

El Lunes Padre Ramón hablará en la Misa hispana de Santa Ana. En octubre celebraremos a Santa Eduviges y en diciembre tendremos la fiesta de la Guadalupe aquí. Hoy quiero hablar de Santiago y como su vida y muerte son ejemplos para nosotros.

La primera lectura habló del sueño que tuvo Jacob de una escalera que iba hacia el cielo. No era la escalera que tenemos en la puerta principal de esta iglesia, aunque es como subir una montaña entrar por esa puerta. Hay una conexión entre Jacob y Santiago – tienen el mismo nombre. Claro, la Biblia no fue escrita ni en ingles ni en español, sino en hebreo y griego. La palabra en griego para Santiago es "IAKWBOS (Jacobus)," que es lo mismo para Jacob en el Antiguo Testamento.

Bien, ese Jacob en el Antiguo Testamento escuchó a Dios diciendole como tendría descendientes en todas las tierras del mundo. ¿Se cumplió esta promesa? A ver – los hijos de Jacob segun la carne son los judios, y ellos todavía son un grupito muy pequeño, que no está en todos los paises del mundo. Pero cuando pensamos en los hijos de Jacob segun la fe, los cristianos, se ve como estamos en todos los paises, en todos los continentes del mundo. Decimos que toda esta gente está dentro de la Iglesia. Esto no quiere decir que hay un gran techo sobre la tierra, con murallas, suelo, sotano y todo. La Iglesia es el conjunto de todos nosotros Catolicos, por dondequiera que estamos. Tenemos que venir a templos para juntarnos a celebrar la Eucaristia, para alimentarnos, pero seguimos siendo en la Iglesia aun cuando salimos del templo despues de la Misa (hasta que pecamos – volvemos a entrar no por la puerta de atras sino por la puerta del confesionario).

Santiago entendía esto e iba por el Mediteraneo tratando de convencer a la gente de la verdad de la fe cristiana en Cristo resuscitado. La ultima persona que convirtió era el malo quien le entregó a Herodes para sufrir la muerte. Ese señor, viendo como Santiago aceptaba todo lo del juicio con calma, se hizo cristiano y también recibió la pena de muerte. Encontró a Santiago en el camino hacia en lugar donde iba a degollarles y le pidió perdon. Santiago le perdonó, le dijo, "La Paz esté contigo," y le abrazó. Así Santiago conquistó un alma mas antes de morir.

Nosotros tambien tenemos que conquistar almas para Cristo antes de morir, empezando con nosotros mismos y continuando con toda la gente a nuestro alrededor. Tenemos que sembrar la semilla de la fe en sus corazones no tanto con nuestras palabras, sino comenzando con nuestro amor puro para ellos. Despues de sentir nuestro cariño podrán escuchar lo que Dios quiere decir por medio de nuestras bocas.