Am I Ready for Heaven?

(Seventh Sunday of Easter (C): This homily was given on June 1, 2025 at St. Pius X Church, Westerly, R.I. by Fr. Raymond Suriani.  Read Acts 7:54- 8:1.)

[For the audio version of this homily, click here: Seventh Sunday of Easter 2025]

Am I ready for Heaven?

A rather important question, I would say, since we all hope to get there at some point in the future.  Am I ready for Heaven?—which is not the same as asking “Is Heaven ready for me?”—that’s another issue entirely.  Some, for example, might be of the opinion that Heaven will never be ready for someone like Fr. Ray.  That may be true, but that will not be the subject of this homily!  “Am I ready for Heaven” means: “If I died today, would I be ready to enter God’s eternal kingdom immediately—like St. Stephen was?” 

Today’s first reading from Acts 7 tells the famous story of Stephen’s martyrdom.  Stephen had just professed his faith in Jesus before the Jewish Sanhedrin, when he suddenly saw a vision of Jesus standing at the right hand of God the Father.  Not surprisingly, when Stephen told them what he was seeing, the Jewish authorities immediately “freaked out.”  To them, this was blasphemous talk; which is why they quickly dragged Stephen out of the city and began to stone him.

At that point in his telling of the story St. Luke mentions the fact that one of those who took part in the execution was a man named Saul of Tarsus—the future St. Paul.  He stood guard over the cloaks of the people who threw the rocks at Stephen.  That, of course, made Saul a willing accomplice to the murder of the Church’s first martyr.

But what I’d like to focus your attention on this morning is the amazing reaction of Stephen himself.  Here was a man who—from a purely human perspective—had every reason to be angry and bitter.  He was being executed, although he was completely innocent.  And yet, Scripture tells us that as he was dying, he fell to his knees and cried out in a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.”

That, my brothers and sisters, is why Stephen was ready to enter God’s kingdom immediately after death: not only was his soul free of mortal sin—HIS HEART WAS ALSO FREE OF EVERY SINFUL ATTITUDE!  You see, if he had died with even a little bit of anger within him, he would NOT have been ready for Heaven.  If he had died with even a little bit of resentment or bitterness or unforgiveness or lust or pride or selfishness within him, he would NOT have been ready for Heaven.  But, from all external indications, his heart was free of those (and all other) sinful attitudes, so there was no need for even a brief stopover in purgatory.

This reminds us of an important truth: to be ready for Heaven, it’s not enough to be in the state of grace!  It’s necessary, but it’s not sufficient!  To be in the state of grace (of course) means to be free of mortal sin.  And yes, that’s a definite prerequisite for entering God’s eternal kingdom.  But, even if we’re in the state of grace, we also need to be free of every sinful attitude—like Stephen was.  Because there’s no room in Heaven for ANYTHING evil!  As the Book of Revelation tells us, “Nothing profane shall enter [Heaven].”  (Rev. 21: 27)  This is something that some people apparently are not aware of.  For example, I remember reading a newspaper article once about a woman whose husband had been murdered several years earlier.  The man who committed the crime apparently had died recently, and this woman was telling the reporter about all the terrible things she hoped her husband would do to his murderer in the afterlife.  Now, I’m sure that this woman hoped that her husband was in Heaven—and yet she also seemed to believe that her husband still had anger and hate in his heart!    Well, let’s be clear about it—that’s not the way it is in Heaven!  That’s the way it is in hell, but not in God’s eternal kingdom.

In the Letter to the Hebrews it says, “Strive for that holiness, without which no one can see the Lord.”  To be ready for Heaven, we must be in the state of grace—and we must be purified of all venial sin and all attachment to sin.  Here we see one of the biggest reasons why we should go to Confession on a regular basis.  The Church teaches that the only time we must go to Confession is when we have mortal sin on our soul.  But, if we’re really serious about reaching the level of holiness we need to reach in order to enter Heaven immediately after death, then we will certainly want to go more frequently than once a year.  Some people wonder why the great saints went to Confession so often: it’s because they not only wanted to avoid hell—they also wanted to avoid purgatory if possible.  They loved God so much that they didn’t want to be delayed in seeing him face to face after death.

Let me close today by reading to you part of a meditation that was written many years ago by one of the canonized saints of the Church.  It gives us a little insight into the wonderful life we all hope to experience someday in Heaven, and it helps us to see why Stephen and Paul were both ready for Heaven when they left this life:

Now, at last, Paul rejoices with Stephen, with Stephen he delights in the glory of Christ, with Stephen he exults, with Stephen he reigns.  Stephen went first, slain by the stones thrown by Paul, but Paul followed after, helped by the prayer of Stephen.  This, surely, is the true life, my brothers [and sisters], a life in which Paul feels no shame because of Stephen’s death, and Stephen delights in Paul’s companionship, for love fills them both with joy.  It was Stephen’s love that prevailed over the cruelty of the mob, and it was Paul’s love that covered the multitude of his sins; it was love that won for both of them the kingdom of Heaven.  (St. Fulgentius of Ruspe, bishop)

Let’s pray today at this Mass that our love for Jesus Christ, expressed in a life of true holiness, will win the same prize for us.

 

Three Important Lessons We Learn from the Ascension of Jesus

(Ascension Thursday 2025: This homily was given on May 29, 2025 at St. Pius X Church, Westerly, R.I., by Fr. Raymond Suriani.  Read Acts 1: 1-14; Ephesians 1: 17-23; Matthew 28: 16-20.)

[For the audio version of this homily, click here: Ascension 2025]

I’ll share with you this afternoon three simple but important lessons that we learn from the event we commemorate today: the Ascension of Jesus Christ into heaven.

Lesson #1: God always gives us what we need, not what we want. 

The Apostles had been with Jesus for three years.  They ate with him, they travelled with him, they listened to him preach, they saw him work miracles.  He was everything to them.  He was at the center of their lives (as he should have been!).  And I’m sure they wanted that to continue!  I’m quite certain they wanted Jesus to remain with them on earth for the rest of their lives. 

And I think if we had been in their situation we would have wanted the very same thing.

But that’s not what they needed!  They didn’t need Jesus on the outside, they needed Jesus and his power on the inside (in their souls), so that they’d be able to live the life he was calling them to live, and fulfill their mission and purpose in the world.  That’s why Jesus told them at the Last Supper, “It is better for you if I go.  For if I do not go, the Advocate [that is to say, the Holy Spirit] will not come to you.  But if I go, I will send him to you.”

So that’s lesson #1: God always gives us what we need, not what we want. 

Lesson #2: Obey, even if you don’t fully understand. 

Jesus gave his Apostles a command just before he ascended.  As we were told in today’s first reading from Acts 1: “While meeting with them, [Jesus] enjoined them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for ‘the promise of the Father about which you have heard me speak’.”  Now I’m sure they didn’t fully understand what that promise was (or more properly “Who” that promise was), but they obeyed.  They stayed in Jerusalem, spending most of their time in the upper room (where the Last Supper had taken place)—which is where they were when the promise was fulfilled and they received the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.

Please note: if they had not obeyed the Lord by staying in the city, they would not have experienced that grace—that grace which changed their lives forever.

We may not always understand why God asks us to do certain things in this life—like love our enemies and forgive those who’ve hurt us—but the Ascension teaches us that it’s always better to obey the Lord in those situations, even when we don’t understand the why.

And finally, lesson #3: When it comes to prayer, never give up. 

When the Apostles went to the upper room after the Ascension of Jesus, they didn’t just sit there and reminisce about “the good old days”.  The Bible says they “devoted themselves with one accord to prayer, together with some women and Mary, the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.”  But their prayer was not answered instantaneously, was it?  Nine days passed without anything happening.  It was only on the tenth day that the prayer was finally answered and the Spirit descended on everyone who was there in the room.

Thank God they didn’t give up on the first day—or the second—or the third—or the fourth—or on any of the days between Ascension Thursday and Pentecost Sunday!  If they had, they would missed out on the incredible blessing that God wanted to give them.

And that would have been tragic for them—and literally for the whole world!

So there you have it … 

·         God always gives us what we need, not what we want 

·         Obey, even if you don’t fully understand

·         When it comes to prayer, never give up

Three important lessons from the Ascension of Jesus.  May God help us to know them, to believe them—and to live our lives accordingly.

 

Answering the ‘Big Questions’ of Life

 

(Sixth Sunday of Easter (C): This homily was given on May 25, 2025 at St. Pius X Church, Westerly, R.I., by Fr. Raymond Suriani.  Read Acts 15:1-29; Psalm 67:2-8; Revelation 21:10-14, 22-23; John 14: 23-29.)

[For the audio version of this homily, click here: Sixth Sunday of Easter 2025]

Where do you go for answers to the big questions of life?  I’m talking about questions like, “What’s the meaning of human existence?” “Why am I here?” “Is there a God?” “Is he good?—and if he is good, why is there evil and suffering in the world?”  “Does God have a will—and if he does, can I know what that will is?”  “What happens when we die? Is that the end of it all, or is there something after death? And if there is a life that we experience after death, what will that life be like?”

Those are just some of the big questions that we ponder in our lives.  And it’s good that we do!  Because if we don’t—if we do not try to find answers to the basic, fundamental questions of human existence—our lives will lack meaning and purpose.  They will also lack real joy, since there can be no real joy in a meaningless life.

Some people, of course, will look to the Bible for answers to the big questions, and that’s good—or at least it’s a good start.  The problem is the Bible needs an interpreter.  By quoting one or two verses from the Bible out of context you can pretty much justify anything!

Other people will look to science for the answers.  The problem is that science is incapable of providing the answer to every question—especially when the question concerns the purpose and meaning of life.   The other day I did a search about this on Google.  I asked the question, “Does science have all the answers?” And I got this AI response: “No, science cannot answer every question. Science is limited to questions that can be answered through empirical observation and testing, and it doesn't address questions related to values, ethics, or subjective experiences. For example, science can explain the mechanics of the universe, but it cannot explain why we value human life.” 

That’s a great response: very simple and very clear.  Our world tends to treat scientists as if they’re experts on everything—but, as that AI response reminds us, they’re not.

Personally, I choose to look for my answers to life’s big questions in the same place that the early Christians did.  And where, exactly, did they look?

They looked to the Church!  They looked to the one, true Church established by Jesus Christ, and to the apostles he had chosen to guide and shepherd that Church here on earth.

We see a great example of this in today’s first reading from Acts 15.  Here the early Christians were dealing with a question that is not very big to us in 2025 but was HUGE for them back in the first century! (Of course, the reason it’s not big to us today is because it was big to them back then—and they dealt with it.)

The question was: What about the gentiles?  What about those who are not Jews?  We know Jesus wants to save everybody—Jew and Gentile alike; he’s made that clear to Peter.  But do gentile converts to the faith need to observe the Mosaic Law as Christians?  Are they bound by all the Jewish ceremonial laws in the Torah (the first five books of the Bible)?  And do the men have to be circumcised?

Some Jewish converts were saying, “Yes, they do have to be circumcised and observe the Mosaic Law”—and that was causing a split in the Christian community.  As we heard in our first reading: “Some men came down to Antioch from Judea and began to teach the brothers: ‘Unless you are circumcised according to Mosaic practice, you cannot be saved.  This created dissension and much controversy between them and Paul and Barnabas.’”

It was a very contentious issue.

And the problem was not only theological, it was also very practical.  Let me put it to you this way …

Imagine that you’re a 40 or 50 year-old gentile man living in the city of Antioch at this time.  You hear Paul and Barnabas preach about Jesus on several occasions and you’re intrigued!  In fact, you’re more than intrigued—you’re actually thinking of getting baptized and becoming a Christian.  But then you meet some of these Jewish Christians from Judea and they say to you, “Friend, it’s wonderful that you’re thinking of becoming a follower of Jesus.  We’re overjoyed!  But remember—becoming a Christian also means that you must observe all the ritual laws of Moses: all the dietary laws, all the purification rituals, all the laws of animal sacrifice.  And it means, first and foremost, that you must be CIRCUMCISED—as soon as possible!” 

That would definitely get me to think twice!  That would definitely tone down my excitement at the thought of converting to Christianity!  And I’m sure most if not all of the guys here this morning would feel the same way.

Anesthesia in the first century, remember, was not what it is today.

So what did they do with this question?  What did Paul and Barnabas and the others do to get this big question about the gentiles answered (since Jesus had not directly addressed the issue in his ministry)?

Very simply, they took it to the pope and the bishops who were in union with him!  That is to say they took the issue to Peter and the other apostles—who happened to be in Jerusalem at the time.

They met in council, prayed, talked, reflected on the matter, and finally reached a decision: a decision that they and the whole community believed was from God.  That’s why in their final decree they said, “It is the decision of the Holy Spirit and of us …”

In other words, “This is not just our opinion on the matter; this is what Jesus Christ—who has given us the charism to faithfully interpret his words—would say if he were physically present with us right now.”

This is why I would maintain that the two most important books every Catholic should own are the Bible and the Catechism of the Catholic Church. 

The Bible is the word of God, but, as I said earlier, the word of God needs an interpreter—always!  Otherwise it can be misinterpreted and misused to say whatever a person wants it to say.

So whenever we face a big question in this life, we should look to those two books before we look anywhere else.  We should look to the Bible, yes—but we should also read what the Catechism says about the matter in question, because the Catechism faithfully interprets what the Bible says.

If we do those two things, my brothers and sisters, then the good news is we will be well on our way to finding the answer that we’re looking for.

 

Hearing the voice of the Good Shepherd is not always a pleasant experience!

 

Pope Leo XIV

(Fourth Sunday of Easter (C): This homily was given on May 11, 2025 at St. Pius X Church, Westerly, R.I., by Fr. Raymond Suriani.  Read Acts 13:14, 43-52; John 10:27-30.)

[For the audio version of this homily, click here: Fourth Sunday of Easter 2025]

Hearing the voice of the Good Shepherd is not always a pleasant experience!

Every Christian—every human person—needs to understand that.

Jesus said to us in today’s gospel reading from John 10, “My sheep hear my voice.”

That, of course, is true.  But Jesus could have added the line, “However, it’s not always a pleasant experience for them when they hear my voice”—and the statement would still have been true.

It’s providential that this gospel is being read in Catholic churches today, which, of course, is Mother’s Day.  Many of us, I’m sure, were blessed with good mothers who taught us the spiritual and moral truths of the gospel in our formative years—whether we liked it or not!  And some of us, probably, did not.  In that we were much like St. Augustine prior to his conversion at the age of 33.  For the first 3 decades of his life, Augustine lived a very hedonistic, materialistic lifestyle.  His prayer during those years was, “Oh Lord, make me chaste—but not yet!”

Needless to say, he gave his mother, Monica, fits!  But she never stopped praying for her son (as all good mothers never stop praying for their children); nor did she stop telling him the truth—whether he wanted to hear it or not (and most of the time, as you might imagine, he did not want to hear any of it!).  For the young and hedonistic Augustine, Monica was the voice of the Good Shepherd; but until he was ready to open his heart to Christ, Augustine usually had a very unpleasant experience when he heard the Good Shepherd’s voice through his mom!   We can discern that from these words which he wrote many years after his conversion: “I remember my mother warned me in private not to commit fornication, and especially not to defile another man’s wife.  These seemed to me womanish advices, which I should blush to obey.  But they were yours, O God, and I knew it not.”

But they were yours, O God, and I knew it not.  In other words, “You were speaking to me through my mother, but I didn’t listen.”  Thankfully, of course, Augustine eventually did listen, which is something that our new pope, Leo XIV, is very happy about, since he is an Augustinian—he’s a member of the religious order that follows Jesus according to the teachings of Augustine.

In today’s first reading from Acts 13, Paul and Barnabas preach the gospel message to the people of Antioch in Pisidia.  Through these two apostles, the people of that city were blessed to hear in a very clear and powerful way the voice of Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd.

But not all of them were thrilled by what they heard, were they?  Quite oppositely, many of them were apoplectic!  They were enraged!  That led some of them to verbally abuse Paul and Barnabas while the two men were trying to preach God’s word to the crowd; and shortly thereafter it led others to start a persecution of Paul and Barnabas that finally resulted in the two apostles getting kicked out of town!

Hearing the voice of the Good Shepherd was definitely not a pleasant experience for the hard-hearted men and women of Antioch in Pisidia.

So, I ask you, my brothers and sisters, why should we expect things to be any different in our world today?  If the Catholic Church is what she claims to be—in other words, if the Catholic Church in her official teaching really speaks with the voice of the Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ—then shouldn’t we expect to hear a challenging message from time to time?  Shouldn’t we expect to hear from the Church the same kind of message that Augustine heard from his mother; the same kind of message that the people of Antioch in Pisidia heard from Paul and Barnabas?

I laugh when people in the media criticize the Catholic Church for its stance on issues like abortion, or euthanasia, or embryonic stem cell research or so-called gay marriage—as if her teachings on these issues are negotiable and subject to change.

The Bible says that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever!  So if Jesus doesn’t change, how can we possibly expect his Church to change on these and other fundamental moral matters?

Is it always pleasant to hear the teaching of the Church?  No, it is not!  But remember, hearing the voice of the Good Shepherd is not always a pleasant experience!  This, by the way, is something that our new Holy Father will have to deal with constantly in his papal ministry, when the Good Shephard speaks to the world through him—which is why we need to pray for him often.

And yet it can always be a healing experience!  It can be a healing experience if we respond to the Good Shepherd’s challenging message in a positive way.

Let me conclude my homily now by sharing with you an example of this from the writings of Archbishop Fulton Sheen.  Sheen, as many of you know, preached on the Seven Last Words of Jesus on many Good Fridays at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City.  That’s the context of this particular story.  Sheen wrote:

After I had been preaching on Good Friday at St. Patrick’s one year, a woman came to the back of the main altar, her hair disheveled, a haunted look on her face, and [she] cursed me violently.  I said, “Why did you come in here?”

She said, “To steal purses.”

I said, “Did you get any?”

“No,” she said, “that second word of yours got me—the word to the good thief.”  Then she said, “Why am I talking to you, you blankety-blank?  You’ll just tell the cops.”

I said, “Why do the cops want you?”  She pulled out clippings from the Los Angeles Times and FBI folders.  Three of her confreres were in San Quentin, and the FBI was looking for her.  I asked her if she had ever been a Catholic, and she said yes, she had, up until the age of fourteen.  So I heard her confession, and she became a daily communicant.  But she was unable to work.  I supported her for about twenty years until she died.  Well, I was harboring a criminal, so after some time I said to her, “I must make known to the FBI that I know about you.”  She agreed, and I told the FBI.  I said, “You’re looking for a woman.”

“Do we want her badly?” they said.

I said, “Oh yes.  Her name is so-and-so.  She’s a daily communicant at St. Patrick’s.”

They said, “You have done far more for her than we or the prisons could have done, so we’re letting her go.”

That woman heard the voice of the Good Shepherd speaking to her through Bishop Sheen on that Good Friday many years ago—and it was a very unpleasant experience!  She literally hated what she heard—until she let the message change her heart and her life!

Then she experienced forgiveness, and mercy, and healing—and she got on the narrow road that leads to eternal life.

So did Augustine, eventually—which is why we now refer to him as “St. Augustine.”

May each and every one of us respond to the challenging voice of the Good Shepherd in the same positive way whenever we hear it.