We need to learn to help others to realize that the only way is to learn.. to encounter others with the right attitude, which is to accept and esteem them as companions along the way… Better yet, it means learning to  find Jesus in the faces of others, in their voices, in their pleas…There indeed we  find true healing, since the way to relate to others which truly heals instead of debilitating us, is a mystical fraternity, a contemplative fraternity. It is a fraternal love capable of seeing the sacred grandeur of our neighbor, of  finding God in every human being, of tolerating the nuisances of life in common by clinging to the love of God, of opening the heart to divine love and seeking the happiness of others just as their heavenly Father does. Here and now, especially where we are a ‘little flock’, the Lord’s disciples are called to live as a community which is the salt of the earth and the light of the world. We are called to bear witness to a constantly new way of living together in fidelity to the Gospel.  Let us not allow ourselves to be robbed of community.

In today’s Gospel Jesus asks: “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” There are a number of responses until Simon Peter says: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” This is a positive moment in Peter’s encounter with Jesus. There are other times when he is not so positive and affirming. Rather than be critical of Peter, we have to admit that sometimes we fluctuate in our living out of our faith commitment; sometimes we are strong and at other times we may vary. The challenges of our lives are what influence the strength of our commitment, but no matter what they may be, we still are committed to the Lord. What would we do without our faith!

Next weekend we welcome members of the Blessed Sacrament Father and Brothers who will be here as part of the Archdiocese’s Missionary Cooperative Plan. The second collection at all Masses will be taken for the support of their ministries.

Finally, I want to share with you the statement from the U.S. Franciscan Friars on the recent violence in Charlottesville, Virginia:

-Fr. Andrew Reitz, O.F.M.

But we are also horrified by the naked display of outright racism by the participants in the so-called “unite the right” rally. We condemn in the strongest terms this evil and sinful attitude that professes that one person or group of people is better than any other because of their race.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church rightfully condemns racism and racist attitudes in the strongest terms:

“The equality of human beings rests essentially on their dignity as persons and the rights that flow from it: ‘Every form of social or cultural discrimination in fundamental personal rights on the grounds of sex, race, color, social conditions, language, or religion must be curbed and eradicated as incompatible with God’s design.” (CCC 1935)

Racism is a sin that must be eradicated. This begins with examining our own hearts and minds to search ourselves for any racist attitudes, it then moves outwards to our families, and friends where we must have the courage and love to confront this sin, and then it moves outward in ever growing circles to our community and our society where we must work for peace and justice based on the equal dignity of all of God’s children.

Every human being is created in the image and likeness of God. Any attitude, philosophy, or ideology that seeks to deny this fundamental truth is antithetical to the Gospel and the Christian faith.

We pray for the victims tonight, but we also pray for our nation and for all people of good will, that we will all work for justice and for peace for the good of all.

The Christian ideal will always be a summons to overcome suspicion, habitual mistrust, fear of losing our privacy, all the defensive attitudes which today’s world imposes on us. Many try to escape from others and take comfort in their privacy or in a small circle of close friends, renouncing the social aspect of the Gospel.

For just as some people want a purely spiritual Christ, without esh and without the cross, they also want their interpersonal relationships provided by sophisticated equipment, by screens and systems which can be turned on and o on command. Meanwhile, the Gospel tells us constantly to run the risk of a face-to-face encounter with others, with their physical presence which challenges us, with their pain and their pleas, with their joy which infects us in our close and continuous interaction. True faith in the incarnate Son of God is inseparable from self- giving, from membership in the community, from service, from reconciliation with others. The Son of God, by becoming flesh, summoned us to the revolution of tenderness.

It’s amazing the number of people that approached Jesus during his time on earth. Today’s Gospel tells of a Canaanite woman who keeps following Jesus, pleading that he do something to help her daughter: “Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David. My daughter is tormented by a demon.” Even though he tells her that his mission is to the lost sheep of the Israel, it doesn’t stop her. In today’s second reading, Paul speaks to the Gentiles as the apostle to the Gentiles. Thus, we see that the mission of Jesus is for all people. Many had been excluded up to this point; many did not think they were worthy to approach Jesus. The truth that Jesus shows so clearly is that God’s love and concern is offered to all people – not just one group. No one is excluded if they are willing to open their heart to what is offered.

Next Saturday, two of our Friars will make their solemn profession of vows here at St. Francis at 11 AM. Br. Ramon Razon, who is here at St. Francis, and Br. Casey Cole have completed their years in formation and now vow to live the Franciscan way of life for the rest of their lives. Congratulations to Ramon and Casey and thank you!

I would like to welcome Fr. David McBriar to St. Francis Church. Fr. David has been ministering at St. Francis Chapel in Loudonville, NY recently, but previously he has been Pastor of St. Francis Church in Raleigh, NC and Pastor of Immaculate Conception Church in Durham, NC. He comes with much pastoral experience and we are happy to have him here at St. Francis.