Jesus said: 

"I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing!"  This is one of those passages that can make us feel a bit uncomfortable. We know how powerful—and destructive—fire can be. The memory of last year's devastating fires in Los Angeles is still fresh. We've seen the heat, the smoke, the destruction. So, when Jesus says He came to set fire to the earth, we might instinctively recoil.

But I don't think Jesus is talking about a fire that destroys.                                             

I believe He's talking ... about the exact opposite.

The fire He came to bring is not meant to burn down, it's intended instead to burn within...  to burn within! It's the fire that stirs passion that sets a heart ablaze. He wants to set our hearts on fire... with love.

Think of the story told in scripture about the disciples on the road to Emmaus. On that first Easter, two disciples walked with the risen Jesus, not knowing it was Him. They thought He was gone forever. But after He revealed Himself and vanished, they turned to one another, and do you remember what they said:

"Were not our hearts burning within us while He talked with us?" "

"Were not our hearts burning within us?"

I believe that's the fire Jesus is talking about ... an inner flame that stirs up passion, love, and excitement for God.

We see it again at Pentecost, in the tongues of fire descending on the apostles. That fire—which is the Holy Spirit—transformed frightened men in hiding into bold witnesses who literally changed the world – with the fire of their faith.

This is the fire Jesus wants to kindle in each of us!                                                           

It's a fire that begins at our baptism and is rekindled whenever we gather for worship. 

It's a fire that is meant to spread far beyond these walls.

It's a fire that should burn so brightly it breaks through the "firewalls" of our fears, doubts, and divisions until every heart feels its warmth.

So the question each of us is being asked today is: 

How's your fire? Is it burning brightly?

There's a story about a priest in a little country church. On a bitter winter Sunday, he turned off the furnace's gas pilot light and the gas supply—but left the blower running. When the congregation arrived, they could hear the swish of the fan, but the church was ice cold. 

His sermon that day was titled:

"The Blower's Still Blowing, But the Fire's Gone Out."

Does that describe you? It does me ... often. That's a picture of far too many Christians. Going through the motions—attending church, singing hymns, even serving, but the flame is gone. Saint Catherine of Siena once said, "Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire." 

Jesus came to light a fire in you and me. We mustn't let it go out. We must tend it, feed it, let it grow until it consumes everything that is not of God. Because when your heart is on fire for Him, you'll find a deeper love, a stronger faith, and—yes—  a peace the world can't give and can't take away.                                                    

Let's go set the world on fire!

The Good Samaritan

Read Luke 10:25-37

“The one who treated him with mercy.”

That’s who Jesus said was the good neighbor. This parable invites us to examine our
own actions toward others, especially those in need. In the story of the Good Samaritan,
a man is robbed, beaten, and left for dead. A priest walks by and does nothing. A
Levite passes by and does nothing. Both are respected religious figures—yet neither
stops to help. Then comes a Samaritan – an outsider – someone marginalized by
Jewish society. He becomes the hero of the story. He is the good neighbor.

As I read this Gospel I could not help but think of the immigration challenges we face
today in the United States. In Jesus’ time the Jews viewed Samaritans much the way
some Americans view undocumented immigrants.

What if Jesus told this story now, in our context? What if this scene were 21st century
America. And the Samaritan was an undocumented migrant? What if the one moved
with compassion, the one who cared for the injured man, was someone without legal
status in our country?
Would we hear this parable differently?

Far too many today see nothing good in the immigrant—just as the Jews saw nothing
good in the Samaritan. But those who follow Jesus are asked to see this issue
differently. We are called to see suffering in our world, not with fear, but with mercy.

Another way to interpret this story is to see the immigrant not as the Samaritan, but as
the injured man. The road from Jerusalem to Jericho was dangerous. So too is the
journey many immigrants make today to get to our boarders. They walk
hundreds—even thousands—of miles, crossing deserts, rivers, and borders, sometimes
encountering walls. They so often do this not out of desire but out of
desperation—fleeing violence, poverty, persecution and the fear of death. They are
often robbed by traffickers, some are beaten, many suffer.

This story from Jesus stings, because it reveals a hard truth: We are called to seek fair
conditions for all involved the migrant and the citizen. Mercy is the goal for everyone
involved. And mercy comes from good laws that are fair to all.
The final words of Jesus in the parable are these: “Go and do likewise.”
This is not a suggestion, it’s a call to action. We are called to embody mercy in real and
practical ways:

• By advocating for just immigration policies – that are fair to immigrant and citizen alike.
• By remembering that our people, too, were immigrants to this country.
• By recognizing that our spiritual ancestors— Abraham, Moses, Mary, and Joseph—were also migrants and refugee. Mary and Joseph were immigrants to Egypt fleeing a brutal leader who wanted to kill their child.

Yes, we are called to respect the law. But we are also called to follow – a higher law –
God’s law. The law of love—the law of mercy—calls us to care for our neighbors; and
our neighbor includes everyone. The Catholic Church teaches both the right of people
to migrate and the right of nations to regulate immigration.

This is an incredibly complex issue, but one thing is an overriding truth, that we are
called to view every person—documented or not—through the lens of human dignity
and compassion.

Many, if not most, of the people immigrating here are poor and vulnerable, who are
seeking safety and a chance to live a better life. Just like our own ancestors once did.
My family came to this country fleeing famine and unrest in Ireland. This nation received
them and gave them a fresh start.

We must not forget that our Declaration of Independence proclaims that all people “are
created equal” and “endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights: Life,
Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.

Catholic social teaching, the parable of the Good Samaritan and our country’s own
founding documents all call us to compassion and mercy.

If Jesus were here with us today and someone asked, “What does it mean to be a good
neighbor – in this moment?”

He would answer, 
“The good neighbor is the one who treats others with mercy.”

Let us go—and do likewise.

          

Luke 6:27-28 says: 

"But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you."

What Jesus is saying today might be best understood by recalling the Law of the Echo. The law of the echo says we get back from life exactly what we give to it. This law says that if you shout into an echo chamber a shout will return to you.  If you curse into an echo chamber a curse will return to you. And if you sing into an echo chamber a song will come back to you.  The “law of the echo’’ tells us you get back from life exactly what you give to life. Give abuse and you will get abuse back.  Give love and you will get love back. If you want more love in a relationship be more loving.

There is a story about Jesus that is not in the bible.  It’s a story that is attributed to a Muslim actually, and it goes:  

As Jesus and his disciples entered a village some of the villagers began to harass Jesus shouting unkind words and harsh accusations. But Jesus answered them by bowing down and offering words of blessing. A disciple said to him,  "aren’t you angry with them? How can you bless them?" Jesus answered, 'I can only give what I have in my purse.'” Here the purse is a metaphor for one’s heart.

Jesus is asking us today to take a good honest look at ourselves because we too can only give what we carry in our hearts, our purse.

Some of you may remember when President Ronald Reagan was shot. He had just finished speaking at a luncheon as he left the hotel a gunman fired six shots.  The president and three aides where hit. He was rushed to the hospital where they saved his life. 

In his biography Regan told what was going through his mind as the doctors worked on him.  The president said “I prayed and as I prayed I realized that I could not ask for God’s help while at the same time I felt hatred for the mixed-up young man who shot me.”  He went on “We are all God’s children and therefore equally loved by God. So, I began praying for the young man.” Regan said “then I could calmly ask God to help me which God did.” 

This brings us to today’s Gospel where Jesus says: “Love your enemies and pray for those who mistreat you.” The question we are all being asked today is, when we are hurt, attacked, or insulted how do we react?  Certainly, one way to react is with hatred. Jesus says today that is the wrong way to respond. Why? Why is that the wrong way to respond? There is an old saying that speaks to this, it says:

“Holding onto anger is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die.”

Jesus is saying the same thing to us today. He is telling us that the way to become the kind of person who lives with love is by becoming a person who always responds with love?                                          

Jesus said: 

“Be merciful just as your Father is merciful.                                                                                                  Stop judging and you will not be judged.                                                                                                      Stop condemning and you will not be condemned.                                                                                      Forgive and you will be forgiven.”

We must never forget, we get back from life exactly what we give to life.