Go in Peace, Glorifying the Lord by your Life

Deacon Kevin Gingras

March 15, 2026

4th Sunday in Lent

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/031526.cfm

1 Samuel 16:1b, 6-7, 10-13a   Psalm 23: 1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6

Ephesians 5:8-14    John 8:12

How is Lent going for you?  Are you encountering Christ more deeply this Lent? If not, then thank God that we still have time! There have been a lot of “encounters with Christ” lately in the Gospels.  The women at the well, the man born blind, next week we will hear about the raising of Lazarus (sorry, spoiler alert).  This week, the encounter includes the symbolism of water and light.  Water and light are so important that they were at the very beginning of creation, and we cannot live without them.  As Fr. Matt said last week, 3 days without water and you are soon to be a goner!  Light gives us vitamin D, regulates our sleep, and without it, all plant life, and all life for that matter, would perish.

 Today, Jesus uses water as he spits on the ground, yeah, gross, but there is the water, perhaps that’s all he had available, and he makes clay with it and anoints this man’s eyes.  He further instructs him to go wash in the pool of Siloam.  The gospel tells us Siloam means “sent”.   When he does, he is cured and can now see the light!

Just like the woman at the well was sent back to town to “evangelize,” this man is now being sent to evangelize, thus fulfilling why Jesus said he was born blind:

It is so that the works of God might be made visible through him. 

These encounters with Jesus changed them, for good!  The women at the well evangelized about Christ, and those in that town began to believe. In the blind man's encounter, he is “anointed” with clay made from water and dirt, and his sight is restored to him; this healing shows the works of God.  In our baptism, we are anointed with chrism, which probably smells much better than clay!  Because of our baptism, we are inherently changed.  

The Catechism tells us that:

Baptism not only purifies from all sins, but also makes the neophyte "a new creature," an adopted son of God, who has become a "partaker of the divine nature, member of Christ and coheir with him, and a temple of the Holy Spirit”.

Our sacraments include not just spiritual elements but physical ones also, like water, oil, and chrism.  All our sacraments are also encounters with Christ.

The elect are now preparing for baptism, the first of these encounters.  The scrutinies help them to turn away from sin and toward the light of Christ. While specifically for the Elect, they offer all parishioners a time for reflection on their own baptismal commitment.  Saint Paul gives a great summary of that change that baptism brings:

Brothers and sisters: You were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light,  for light produces every kind of goodness and righteousness and truth.

Before our baptism, we were spiritually blind, and afterwards we were given sight, spiritual sight.  We have great examples from the Gospel to live up to.  The women at the well went into town, no longer afraid and ashamed but bold in proclaim she things she has found the Messiah!  The man born blind stands up to the Pharisees and tells them:

This is what is so amazing: you do not know where he is from, yet he opened my eyes. We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if one is devout and does his will, he listens to him.It is unheard of that anyone ever opened the eyes of a person born blind. If this man were not from God, he would not be able to do anything.

In anger, the Parisees throw him out.  We need to show courage like them. The Church calls us to do so as the Catechism further speaks on baptism:

We are "a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's own people, that we may declare the wonderful deeds of him who called us out of darkness into his marvelous light." … Reborn as sons of God, [the baptized] must profess before men the faith they have received from God through the Church, and participate in the apostolic and missionary activity of the People of God

We cannot be ashamed of our faith, of our God, of our Savior, once we leave the safety of this church today.  We must go forth and glorify the Lord by our lives, our deeds, and our words.

Saint Catherine of Siena gives us great advice to sprint towards the finish line this Lent:

Start being brave about everything, driving out darkness and spreading light as well. Don’t look at your weakness, but realize that in Christ crucified you can do everything.

Our citizenship is in Heaven

 

Deacon Kevin Gingras

March 16, 2025

Second Sunday of Lent

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/031625.cfm

Genesis 15:5-12, 17-18    Psalm 27:1, 7-8, 8-9, 13-14

Philippians 3:17—4:1    Luke 9:28b-36

St. Paul, in his first letter to those Roman folks living in northeastern Greece in the city of Philippi, says exactly what I want to get across today:

Our citizenship is in heaven, and from it, we also await a savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. He will change our lowly body to conform with his glorified body.

Paul is emphasizing the second and final return of Christ that we today still wait patiently and prayerfully for when we will be joined to our glorified bodies that Christ portrays in today’s Gospel:

While Jesus was praying, his face changed in appearance, and his clothing became dazzling white.

So not only will our bodies be glorified but our clothes will be quite clean to boot!  Today’s Gospel really juxtaposes Jesus's physical and spiritual nature quite nicely.  Last week, we heard of Jesus out in the desert for forty days without food.  He then was tempted by Satan.  Jesus, in his humanity, was hungry, but he won that battle with Satan. As a sidenote, yes, you can live without food for forty days. I Google it:

In extreme cases, some people have survived for over 60 days without food

Now, on to us, how do we fare during temptations from Satan or hardships that our physical nature must endure? Which one calls us harder, the physical or spiritual?  It is truly an ongoing battle with Satan!  We must win!

The Transfiguration illustrates to us what we were designed to be; we are designed for glorified bodies in Heaven.  Unfortunately, for a brief span of time, we are stuck here on earth, and we are not designed to be of this earth. Earthly bodies have negative emotions and pain, both physical and mental.  Earthly bodies require maintenance, exercise, water, food, and diet.  When it comes to trying to diet or fast, a piece of pie always draws me in! I almost always respond more to the physical. 

When it comes to pain, I respond to its physical earthly nature very quickly.  Fr. David’s homily struck me last week when he talked about banging your head.  That very Saturday morning, I was working on the bottom of my garage door, so I had it mostly up but not all the way.   Three times, I turned quickly and banged my head against the door.  On the third time, I actually told God to send the garage door to the abode of Satan!  I quickly realized the garage door did nothing to me.  I’m the one who put it at that height; I’m the one who turned quickly to get something and hit my head against it.  I laughed a bit and said a quick Hail Mary, asking for more patience and forgiveness for my sin!  

We see the physical, we feel the physical, just ask my head!  Unfortunately, humans rarely see or feel the spiritual.  I came across an article that said that the boundaries of human vision are not exact and may vary between individuals.  The visible light range is a small portion of the electromagnetic spectrum, making up only about 0.0035% of it.  We only see 0.0035% of what’s out there!  Imagine if we could see more of it, even 2% of it!  Abram experienced the spiritual, which is visually represented in the first reading.  Cutting up animals and walking between them was a way to ratify contracts in those days and was common.  What God did with Abram was ratify a covenant.  God was the smoking fire pot and flaming torch that passed between the animal halves ratifying his covenant with Abram.

Now imagine what we would see if we could when Heaven and Earth meet during the Eucharistic Prayer and consecration!  Imagine how strong our spiritual life would become then!  It might even beat the physical life!

Most of us have probably experienced some physical hunger on Ash Wednesday a few weeks ago. What about spiritual hunger?  That should be stronger. Imagine if you couldn't get to church to receive the Eucharist for a period of time. It was almost five years ago that we had just such an experience during the COVID lockdown. Please, God, may we never experience that again!  During that time, did you feel a spiritual hunger?  Did you hunger for Mass and the Eucharist? 

As this Lent progresses on, ask the Holy Spirit to give you a hunger for Mass, a hunger for the Eucharist, a hunger for the sacrament of Confession, and a hunger to spend time with our Lord and Savior in Adoration.  Ask the Holy Spirit to give you that desire so that your soul may be nourished as we approach Holy Week.  Pray to Saint Michael, asking him to defend us in battle.  Remember that our bodies are only here on earth for a short span of time and that “our citizenship is in Heaven” and that time is eternity!

Saint Augustine reminds us to:

Take care of your body as if you were going to live forever; and take care of your soul as if you were going to die tomorrow.

Faith in Adversity

March 22, 4th Sunday in Lent - Year A http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/032220.cfm

Today, especially since we cannot gather together for mass in most places, please take the time to read the readings ahead of time.  Gather the family, do it together prayerfully.  Let's all keep holy the Sabbath as best we can!

If you wish you can watch a VLOG of this instead by clicking HERE!


Now onto the homily...

"I wish it need not have happened in my time," said Frodo.
"So do I," said Gandalf, "and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.” - J.R.R Tolkien - The Fellowship of the Ring.

I’ve had this quote on my desk at work for many years.  Recently I’ve seen it crop up a lot on social media.  It’s very timely and an excellent quote to ponder now.

What will we do with this time that has been given to us?  Will we stress and argue over the minute things because of this crisis we are all facing or will we spend it with the ones we love and grow closer?  Will we compile a mass of food and paper products we couldn’t use in a normal lifetime or will we instead look for ways to assist our neighbors?

In the first reading, Samuel anointed young King David, the youngest of Jesse’s children who wasn’t even presented because Jesse assumed there was no way he would be the one chosen, he was too young.  I love this line from 1 Samuel:

“Do not judge from his appearance or from his lofty stature, because I have rejected him. Not as man sees does God see, because man sees the appearance but the LORD looks into the heart.”

King David faced many trials in his career as King and even failed miserably in some of those trials.  Just read 2 Samuel 11 to see one of his biggest failures!

All of us are facing adversity right now with what is going on worldwide because of the Coronavirus.  Some have this adversity added to others that they have already been dealing with. Some far more difficult than others.  We are all having one very interesting Lent indeed, that’s for sure.  All of our fasts have become so much more extreme than expected!  It’s hard but we must try to remember Matthew 6:16-18:

“When you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites. They neglect their appearance, so that they may appear to others to be fasting. Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that you may not appear to others to be fasting, except to your Father who is hidden. And your Father who sees what is hidden will repay you.

If you can live in such a way now, to still be filled with such joy, that's more of a proclamation of who Jesus Christ is than any homily given of who you have put your trust in!

Our psalm today says:

He guides me in right paths for his name’s sake. Even though I walk in the dark valley I fear no evil; for you are at my side With your rod and your staff that give me courage.

I have seen this faith in our own incredible parish of Holy Family.  We have had “drive-in adoration” via a window at the rectory, live streams of adoration and benediction, the rosary as well as Stations of the Cross.  Our worship hasn’t ended, it’s just been modified for the time being until this current crisis has run its course.  Once it does run its course we will come out on the other side that much stronger!

If you are one of the baptized then you too have been anointed like King David.  The Catechism of the Catholic Church states:

The anointing with sacred chrism, perfumed oil consecrated by the bishop, signifies the gift of the Holy Spirit to the newly baptized, who has become a Christian, that is, one "anointed" by the Holy Spirit, incorporated into Christ who is anointed priest, prophet, and king.

We have been incorporated into Christ with our anointing and baptism.  No amount of sheltering in place can take that away from us as we are all being forced to give up so much more this Lent than we ever could have imagined.  As the practice of “Social Distancing” should be growing let us please pray that our practice of “Spiritual Distancing” is shrinking.  May this be a time we all grow closer to Christ as we face this adversity together. Even if we cannot physically attend Mass or other church services, we are still grafted onto the vine that is Jesus Christ.

“Pain and suffering have come into your life, but remember pain, sorrow, suffering are but the kiss of Jesus — a sign that you have come so close to Him that He can kiss you.” St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta