(Thirty-second Sunday of the Year (C): This homily was
given on November 6, 2016 at St. Pius X Church, Westerly, R.I., by Fr. Raymond
Suriani. Read 2 Maccabees 7: 1-2, 9-14;
2 Thessalonians 2:6-3:5; Luke 20: 27-38.)
Some people believe that God is like a clockmaker. That is to say, he’s distant from his creation. A
clockmaker builds the clock and winds it up (nowadays he puts a battery in
it). But then he goes on his merry way,
allowing it to run on its own.
As Catholic Christians, we don’t believe in that kind of God.
As Catholics we believe—as did our Jewish spiritual ancestors—in a God who
is very close to us, a God who is intimately involved in human history (as well
as in our individual lives).
Therefore it should not surprise us in the least that our
three Scripture readings today were what they were! There’s an election coming up in two days
here in the United States of America (just in case you weren’t aware of that),
and these readings are perfect to prepare us for that very important event in
our nation’s history.
But that’s
exactly what we should expect from a God who’s deeply involved in our lives,
and who consequently knows exactly what we need to hear!
Take this first reading from the second book of
Maccabees. It’s about what eventually
happens when a civil government does not believe in religious freedom—which is
why freedom of religion needs to be a major issue for Catholics (and for
Protestants, Jews, Muslims and all other believers) in this election.
Here we have seven sons and their mother brutally murdered
by Antiochus IV Epiphanes, the Greek king who was ruling over Israel at the
time.
A little historical background is needed in this regard:
Alexander the Great, you will recall, had conquered much of
the known world in the 4th century before Christ. After his death, his generals divided up his
empire. One of those generals was named
Seleucus. He began what historians refer
to as the Seleucid Empire, which eventually included Israel. Antiochus IV Epiphanes was a descendant of
Seleucus, who became king in 175 B.C.
Seven years later, in 168 B.C., Antiochus invaded Jerusalem, desecrated
the Temple, and instituted laws that prevented the Jews from practicing their
religion freely.
Those who violated those laws and who tried to remain
faithful to their Judaism were immediately put to death—like those 7 brothers
we heard about in today’s first reading.
And, by the way, what you heard this morning was the “PG, Readers’
Digest version” of the story. If you
want the full version with all the blood and gore read all of 2 Maccabees 7
sometime. Just don’t do it after a meal.
Our situation in the United States right now is not as bad
as the situation was in Israel at the time of the Maccabees—at least not
yet.
But it’s definitely moving in that direction—and faster
than you might realize! I’ll give you
one example of what I mean. In September
of this year, the chairman of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights (appointed by
President Obama in 2011) wrote in a government report that religious liberty is
a “code word” for discrimination and a host of other evils. Here’s the exact quote: “The phrases
‘religious liberty’ and ‘religious freedom’ will stand for nothing except
hypocrisy so long as they remain code words for discrimination, intolerance,
racism, sexism, homophobia, Islamophobia, Christian supremacy or any form of
intolerance.”
Translated that means: If you believe in the Gospel message
of Jesus Christ, you’re a bigot who must be silenced!
I hope you realize, my brothers and sisters, that it’s a
very short step from an attitude like that to the kind of open persecution that
King Antiochus engaged in.
Obviously, then, we need to know where our candidates stand
on this very important issue. And do not
be fooled by those who say that they support freedom of worship. That’s not
enough! Freedom of religion is what our Constitution guarantees; consequently, THAT’S
what we need to demand from our civil government. Freedom of religion, you see, is much more
than freedom of worship. Freedom of
religion means that you can live your private life—and your public life—
according to the dictates of your faith.
Freedom of worship means, “You Christians can pray however you like
within the four walls of your church building, but outside in the real world
you had better think and act and live like the rest of us—or else!”
Which brings us to the Gospel reading, where the Sadducees
express their confusion to Jesus concerning matters related to marriage.
Apparently ours is not the only age in which people have
been confused about this issue!
Well, as Catholics, we should not be confused. We should be crystal clear about the fact
that a true marriage can only take place between two people who have the
natural potential to procreate (i.e. a man and a woman)—because children are
one of the intrinsic “goods” of marriage.
I don’t think it’s asking too much to expect our civil
leaders to be clear on this issue as well.
Satan is working very hard to destroy the traditional nuclear family,
and we need people governing us who will resist those destructive
trends—because as the family goes, so too a society goes. Most of our social problems begin as family
problems.
Do you know where the people for whom you intend to vote
stand on the marriage issue?
You should.
You should also know where they stand on the other issues
that the people at Catholic Answers have described as “non-negotiable” for good
Catholics, namely abortion, euthanasia, embryonic stem cell research and human
cloning. Those issues are referred to as
“non-negotiable” because they’re intrinsically evil and involve direct attacks
on innocent human life.
This means, for example, that any candidate who supports
Planned Parenthood—an organization that has sold the body parts of babies for
profit—does not deserve a Catholic’s vote (or anyone else’s vote for that
matter!).
The words of St. Paul in our second reading today are
important in this regard. I’m talking
about the line where he prays (and here I quote) “that we may be delivered from
perverse and wicked people.”
I told you God gave us perfect readings this weekend!
That’s a great prayer to say OFTEN during the next few
days: “O Lord, deliver us from perverse and wicked people!”
Now you might say, “But Fr. Ray, what about other issues
like the economy and immigration?”
Here I think it would be good for me to quote from Catholic
Answers’ Voter’s Guide for Serious
Catholics. There it says this: “Some
issues allow for a diversity of opinion, and Catholics are permitted leeway in
endorsing or opposing particular policies.
This is the case with the questions of when to go to war and when to
apply the death penalty. Though the
Church urges caution regarding both of these issues, it acknowledges that the
state has the right to employ them in some circumstances (Cf. CCC 2309, 2267).
. . . [As Pope Emeritus Benedict said,
back in the days when he was still Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger:] ‘There may be a
legitimate diversity of opinion even among Catholics about waging war and
applying the death penalty, but not however with regard to abortion and
euthanasia.’”
The guide goes on to say, “The same is true of many other
issues that are the subject of political debate: the best way to help the poor,
to manage the economy, to protect the environment, to handle immigration, and
to provide education, health care, and retirement security. While the underlying principles (such as
solidarity with the poor) are non-negotiable, the specific applications being
debated politically admit of many options, and so are not ‘non-negotiable’ in
the sense that this guide uses the term.”
Practically speaking, this means there is no official
Catholic Church teaching on how to deal with our economic and immigration
problems, or on how to reduce our dependency on foreign oil, or on how to get
rid of poverty in our country. In good
conscience, Catholics can hold very different views on policies involving these
and similar subjects.
But the non-negotiables are always non-negotiable. Always!
At least they are for all good, serious Catholics.
For those who may still have some difficulty understanding and
accepting all this, let me leave you with this question:
If an elected official cannot be counted on to show respect
for the most innocent and vulnerable among us (the unborn, the sick, the
elderly), how can we trust that person to do the right thing in other
situations? How can we trust that person
to do what’s best for us and for our country?
Think about that.