20th Sunday in Ordinary Time 2022

Fr. Rick’s Two Minute Homily for 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time 08-07-2022
20th Sunday in Ordinary Time 2022
Luke 12:32-48 https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/080722.cfm

FRIENDSHIPS TAKE A LIFETIME TO BUILD.

“We make money the old-fashioned way; we earn it.” Smith Barney is famous for this saying. If we grow up and everything is handed to us, it’s hard to appreciate the value and worth of anything. My mom and dad knew this and taught us this value early on. If I wanted money, I had to earn it. I had a number of jobs before I was 16.

Our faith is a gift from God, but it’s a seed planted in us, and we must work at it, cultivating and weeding, so it grows into something beautiful that others want and need. In last week’s gospel, Jesus told us, “When someone has had a great deal given them, a great deal will be demanded of them; when someone has a great deal given them on trust, even when more will be expected of them.”

Our faith has been given to us on trust. We can’t continue on Jesus’ dole. The clock is ticking. So, what is it that makes us faithful stewards who produce tremendous fruit in other people’s lives? The saying goes, “You can’t give what you ain’t got.”

When we fall in love with Jesus, our best friend, we are happy to give up anything and everything that would keep us from Him. We are pleased to give up our time and effort to grow to know Him more. It’s more than just learning about Jesus and the Catholic faith. It is growing in our experience of Him throughout our day.

Why has our Catholic faith grown worldwide for 2000 years, beginning in Palestine, and still growing in other parts of the world? Because God’s good people didn’t keep the faith to themselves. Before we can expand and grow, welcoming others to our faith, they must know how much we love each other in Jesus, what we are willing to sacrifice for Him.

This is why are so many of our Catholic brothers and sisters leave us and attend Protestant churches? They welcome people into a family and do more than go to church on Sunday. They create activities to become friends and stay friends. People need family bonds today. According to Gallop study, the breakdown of family has led to a breakdown of faith.

We do have wonderful ministries where friendships are growing and serve others and Jesus. For them, the church is a community. So, I challenge these ministries to start reaching out to other members and non-members to welcome them into our parish family. If you are not involved as much, think about where your passions lie. Call the office. We will get you connected.

We must get busy and start working on our relationship with the Lord and our relationship with each other if we don’t want to lose a whole generation of Catholics.

It’s more than going to Mass on the weekend. 50% of Catholics don’t believe in the Real Presence of Jesus on the altar after the consecration. We must give them milk, not solid food, as St. Paul teaches us. That is, we must meet them where they are, not where we think they should be.

The onus is on us, not them. Jesus and the apostles didn’t sit in the synagogue, waiting for people to come to them. They were constantly on the move. So must we follow their pattern of evangelism.

I am praying and discerning with our staff on expanding our vision of Igniting the Fire. I pray Jesus ignite His Fire in every one of our hearts. We must reverse people leaving the Catholic Church and bring in more new members. Reading that 50% of Catholics don’t believe in the Real Presence of Jesus really concerns me. I hope you at Blessed Sacrament do not feel this way. If so, please setup some time with me. I would love to talk.

I ask every one of you to pray and work with us in the coming years building friendships that will get us and many others to heaven. I am committed to see this to the end, my friends. Please stay tuned.

Fr. Rick Pilger, I.C.

Pastor

www.bscchurch.com

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