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Closing of 150th Anniversary Year: Meditation on our Future as a Parish
Homily
When a soul journeys to Detroit down Gratiot, he witnesses closed shops, dilapidated buildings, homeless beggars, unkempt fields where edifices once stood, and the signs of hope are elusive to those who do not know how to perceive them. Then suddenly a massive steeple, now ninety-five years old, brings his eyes heavenward, and the toll of the bells invites all to come worship the Father through the Eucharistic sacrifice of his eternal Son. The onlooker cracks open the door to see what’s inside, and is overwhelmed by choirs of hymns, statues of beauty, stained glass of faith, and a temple worthy for the adoration of the Holy Trinity. And this is St. Joseph’s parish, the celebration of whose 150th year today draw to an official close. And our hearts swell with gratitude and joy. Yet there are some who are obsessed with dark and shadow-filled thoughts, and all they can say is that St. Joseph Parish is crashing upon hard times like ocean tides upon cliff rocks. They are full of excuses, blame, pessimism, suspicion of others, lack of faith, anger and fear. These are the ones who proffer a vision of St. Joseph Parish which I prefer to call the “apocalypse version,” full of unjustified doom and gloom. I don’t buy it. Let me tell you why. It was in 1856, 150 years ago, when Redemptorist Fr. Edward Franz von Campanhaut bought a piece of ground at the corner of Gratiot and Orleans Street from a Mr. Groll for $3,500. By February 2, he build the first Church building of St. Joseph’s parish. The more elaborate Victorian Gothic Revival building we now enjoy was not erected until some 17 years later. Since then, who has come to our doors? Who has entered, who has left? We all know the answer: thousands upon thousands of souls. Some great, some small. Some rich, some poor. Some intelligent, others less so. Saints and sinners. The contrite of heart, and the hardened of heart. The sincere and the hypocrites. The young and the old. Parents and children. Doctors, artists, mechanics, nurses, salesmen, mothers, fathers, athletes, hobbyists. Europeans, Americans, Africans, Asians and Latinos. The healthy, the sick. The joyful, the sorrowful, the passionate, the anxious, the peaceful, the weak, the strong. These are the ones who have come, and gone, and stayed, and we all know it. All of whom wrote the history of this parish for 150 years in God’s books, and both brilliant victories and lamentable catastrophes have happened in the hearts of all these people. And now we keep on writing that history. May God guide our hand. I don’t buy the “apocalypse version” of St. Joseph parish. We have weathered many storms for 150 years, and we are not about to throw in the towel now with the wimpy complaint that things are just too hard! That’s right, I don’t buy the “apocalypse vision” for a pile of reasons. And each of my reasons seriously refute the propagator of doom and gloom. My first refutation is to those who see everything in terms of money. It is like an obsession for them, and their obsession makes it impossible for them to see in a more perfect way. Like a person wearing red-lensed glasses, who can’t understand why people disagree with him, when he says everything is red. These people sometimes see how the Archdiocesan offices apparently close parishes based on money; and so they get all concerned about money, and forget the real source of salvation which is not money, but Jesus Christ! Since when has the spiritual health of a parish ever been correctly diagnosed from its financial statements? Money does not equal grace! Yes, at St. Joseph’s, we do have a modest budget, but we have no debt and resilient, hard-working and creative parishioners have kept this parish going even through the depression and the devastation of the neighborhood which came with the urban renewal program. This parish is not on the chopping block of closures, we are not one of the fifty or so made known by the Archdiocesan offices in their “five year plan.” I insist that the following is true: The recent and current parish closings in the Archdiocese do not stem from any financial difficulty whatsoever. They stem from a crisis of faith, from a love of sin, and from an abandonment of God – not necessarily attributed to the good parishioners, often innocent victims, whose parishes were closed caused by the spiritual negligence of others. Do you doubt what I say is true? Then watch the Archdiocesan offices exhaust themselves looking for money, yet while the closures continue; when they begin to pursue grace and the Gospel and conversion from sin with as much energy, only then will this abominable trend end, mark my words. I have a second reason for not accepting the “apocalypse version” of St. Joseph Parish. And it’s this. Do you think the Catholic Church, either in general, or in this parish, has no experience in weathering hard times? Oh, she has experience all right, and the Church doesn’t flinch before difficulties. Since the earliest centuries, we have endured persecutions, exterminations, expulsions, extreme poverty, mission territories, corrupt Popes and clergy, lax laity, heresy and philosophical atheism, and many enemies of the Church inside and out. The Catholic Church has had many enemies who swore to destroy her. Yet century after century, the Catholic Church continues to bury her enemies, and she will do so until the end of time. We are followers of the Crucified, and our method is the cross. Let me offer a third reason, if you still won’t let yourself be persuaded to think we have a great future ahead of us. This third reason are the parishioners. Most of those who attend St. Joseph parish devote themselves with huge energy and self sacrifice, with piles of talents I could not even begin to count or worthily appreciate, and they do so with enthusiasm and selflessness. They know how to work together, to form groups and societies, and get hard work done. They are as strong city gates, against which the armies of Satan crash and storm, but ever to no avail, for these gates are filled with the powerful Spirit of God. Do you need a fourth reason? Try the angels present not only in so many images around the Church, but who all attend and fill this holy place in countless number when the Eucharist is sacrificed and adored. Today I call upon the angels, to protect this parish with their powerful wings from the assaults of the devil and of the world, and to aid us in all our needs and work. I know they will answer my prayers and yours. Let me add one last reason, even if many more and even stronger ones could follow, and it is that St. Joseph is our patron. I know from personal experience, often amazing experiences, of the power of St. Joseph’s intercession. It is second to no other saint’s, in power and love and efficacy with God, except to his Virgin wife, Mary the Mother of God. There is nothing Jesus will deny his adoptive father on earth. Well, then, if our future is not doom and gloom, what it is? Is it a future of riches, of wealth, of fame, of numbers? We need to be careful, for indeed these things mean nothing to God Almighty. I think we need to look at our future in different terms, superior terms, terms such as these: Grace, the Holy Eucharist, Adoration, Confessions, Catechesis, Baptisms, Weddings, Funerals, worthy choral praise of the Trinity, conversions of sinners, incorporations into full union with the Church, the salvation of souls, the glorification of God on earth. If you think that the salvation of souls and the glory of God are not worth it, that you have better things to do with your time, that eternity doesn’t really matter much, that the souls of this time and of this place are essentially worthless, then go ahead, turn your back on St. Joseph Parish, like the rich young man who turned his back on Christ and went away sad. However, if you think that the salvation of souls and the glory of God justifies the titanic labor such an enterprise demands, then don your armor as true soldiers of Christ, hone your weapons and fall into battle array, for Christ the King marches to battle, the Great Battle which procures salvation and divine glory. Following such a great King into spiritual battle, be warned, is not for the faint hearted. For if you do so, I don’t promise any of you praise for your volunteer work, nor iceberg sized memorials with your name on it for your friends to see, nor warm fuzzy feelings on your insides, nor fame, nor recognition, nor admiration, nor appreciation except in the eyes of God, of the angels and of the saints. But I can promise you that those who didn’t care and walked away will look back and see you. Yes, you will be covered with the sweat, blood and filth of spiritual combat; but you will be also covered in light. For God’s gaze will be upon us, humble workers of the vineyard of the Lord, to quote our dear German Pope Benedict XVI. God will find us laboring with a spirit of brotherly love, of union and peace, of deep happiness, of the joy of service. He will find us working with a clear focus on our goal: save souls, glorify God. He will find us working for God and neighbor and not for ourselves or our own private profit. And those of us who stayed to join in this spiritual battle on the front lines will find our hearts white hot with God’s love and with zeal. We will be found speaking well of one another and encouraging one another. We will be found not lamenting what’s wrong but rather doing what’s right. We will be found in penance and prayer, in song and in silence, serving Jesus Christ truly present in the Eucharist, loving Mary as our own mother, turning to St. Joseph with trust in all our needs. And the grace of God will never fail us, as the Scriptures say, “Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees.”[1] Once we really understand the fork in the road, and once we see so many of our fellow parishioners shouldering the labor of St. Joseph Parish, we can begin to profile what the future of our parish will look like. What will it look like? I’d love to cry out in answer, “magnificent,” and so woo your hearts. But what’s in our future is not a given; it is a choice, it is your choice. St. Joseph parish will be nothing more and nothing less than what you want it to be. God’s grace is sitting there, ready and at your disposal, but you are the one who has do decide whether to collaborate with it, and how. How much prayer and penance are you willing to give for this parish? How much are you willing to contribute in time and skills and funds? What will you make of St. Joseph Parish? It’s really up to you. Let me then make a few suggestions of what you can make of this parish. And I first invite you to think big. How often I am mortified as a priest by so many “good” souls who sit around and do nothing, or their efforts are so tiny while the efforts of the enemies of the Church are monumental. Or by so many who immediately begin to complain as soon as a good idea is brought forward, and show off how many insurmountable difficulties their imagination can come up with, cloaking it all in a guise of “realism.” My second suggestion of what you can make this parish is your source of holiness. Come here to pray, to participate in Mass, to go to confession, to marry, to baptize your babies, to pray for the dead, to receive the sacraments. “Search first for the Kingdom of God, and everything else will be added unto you.” No holiness, no parish, it’s you’re choice. Third is that you make it your base of apostolate. Let’s just admit it, brothers and sisters, Detroit is a mission territory. You don’t have to get on a plane and fly to the jungles of the Amazon or of Tanzania, for in every direction around the point where you are seated you find a mission territory. Spread the faith, convert souls, convince your neighbor of Christ and of Catholicism, launch works of charity, and give hope to souls who know no hope. And in the process this sacred place will fill with more and more souls, as diverse and varied as the previous 150 years has delivered. A fourth suggestion. Build up formation programs so that all who pass by are enriched spiritually, culturally and intellectually, and do so using your own well thought out spirit of initiative. A fifth and final suggestion. Form groups and work together with love for God and affection for one another. I think of the Knights of Columbus, who are here for their corporate communion, filling us with joy for their good example. I think of the Holy Name Society, the Purgatorial Society, the Legion of Mary, the altar servers, the magnificent parish choir, the piles of volunteers who help in so many services of manual labor, the Altar Society, the nascent e-letter team, and the promised pro-life squad who hope to have up and running soon, and so many other groups. You can do much when you work alone, you can do exponentially more when you work with others. So meet, discuss, plan, and do so fighting any temptation to gossip or slander or cliques or intrigue, all sins which are like a snake who devours its very own body tail first. But rather, gather forces with your friends here in the parish, and do great things for God. So what’s your answer? Me, I’m in. Today we praise God for our past, we serve him in the present, and we prepare for a future full of salvation for souls. These thoughts should make our hearts swell on this closing Mass of our 150th anniversary celebrations. In all things let us turn to our loving and Almighty Father, and call upon him. For “Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made of heaven and earth.”[2] Amen. |