By Archbishop Thomas Wenski - The Archdiocese of Miami
Archbishop Thomas Wenski preached this homily Nov. 17, 2024, at a Mass marking the 70th anniversary of St. Brendan Parish in Miami.
The Scripture readings today speak of the end of the world appropriately so, since we are near the end of another year, and in this month of November, when we recall the holy souls, we are reminded of the shortness of our lives, so that whenever the world ends, our world will surely end. We pray for those who have gone before us, especially those who through their time, talent, and treasure built this great parish and school. They surely join us today from heaven giving thanks to God for the many blessings received at St. Brendan’s over these past 70 years.
However, while Jesus speaks about the end of the world, it is not all doom and gloom. Jesus’ message is a message of hope. Heaven and earth will pass away; but his words will not pass away. Nor will his truth or his justice. His words of promise remain in full force and effect.
Setenta años tal vez no parezcan mucho tiempo para una Iglesia que tiene casi 2,000 años; pero aquí en esta Arquidiócesis todavía joven, una diócesis que sólo tiene 66 años, 70 años son ciertamente algo para celebrar. Yo recuerdo cuando se construyó este templo con ese vitral de San Brendan, un misionero y marinero irlandés que llego al territorio de América del Norte muchos años antes de Colón. Pues, San Brendan no era bien conocido por los hispanos e hice una sugerencia: que cambiara el nombre de la parroquia y en vez de llamarla por San Brendan, la llamáramos “San Mariel”, porque San Brendan en la balsa parece como un Marielito.
Hablando en serio, a lo largo de los años, aquí en esta parroquia, miles de personas han conocido a Cristo en Palabra y Sacramento. Durante 70 años, aquí en Saint Brendan, el Señor les ha alimentado y ha suplido sus necesidades.
Sin embargo, la historia de esta parroquia, como toda historia forjada por seres humanos caídos, está llena de luces y sombras. No debería sorprendernos que la Iglesia, que Cristo fundó para salvar a los pecadores, esté llena de pecadores. Comenzamos cada Misa reconociendo nuestros pecados; y antes de acercarnos a la Eucaristía oramos: Señor, no soy digno... pero di la palabra y mi alma será sanada.
The word, parish, is derived from the ancient Greek – pa-roi-ki-a -; the Spanish, parroquia, is much closer to the original Greek than its English equivalent. It meant a sojourn in a foreign land, or a community of sojourners. And so, when the Hebrew Scriptures were first translated into Greek, pa-roi-ki-a was used to describe the Israelites as they journeyed through the desert on their way to the Promised Land.
“Without God man neither knows which way to go, nor even understands who he is” (Deus Caritas Est #78). Our parish life is not therefore something merely incidental to us as we make our life journeys. Our parishes, ideally, should be schools of prayer and schools of communion; they are the places where our love of God and neighbor come together, where we encounter God and learn the way to go. We, Catholics, as members of the new People of God, the New Israel, established by Christ on the foundation of the twelve apostles, we know that here on this earth we have no lasting dwelling place, for our citizenship is in heaven, our true Promised Land.
For 70 years, Saint Brendan’s has welcomed God’s pilgrim people. Over the years, thousands of people have met Christ in Word and Sacrament. For 70 years, here at St. Brendan, the Lord has fed you and has met your needs. However, the history of this parish, like any history forged by fallen human beings, is full of lights and shadows. We should not be surprised that the Church which Christ founded to save sinners is well full of sinners.
You may remember the movie, and later TV series, MASH. Pope Francis has often referred to the Church as a “field hospital”, a MASH unit, set up to tend to those fallen or injured on the battlefields of life. Like the Good Samaritan brought the man who had fallen among robbers to the inn to convalesce, so to the grace of Christ has brought us into the Church: we are washed clean from the filth of our sins through the waters of Baptism and the Sacrament of Penance, healing oil is poured into our wounds by the Sacraments of Confirmation and the Anointing of the Sick, we are nourish by the Body and Blood of Christ. Yes, the Church is full of sinners. And so, we begin every Mass acknowledging our sins; and before we approach the Eucharist we pray: Lord, I am not worthy…but say the word and my soul will be healed.
Yet, the Church is holy, and she is holy not because of us but because of the Spirit that is given to her. Despite the shortcomings and foibles of her human members, the Church of God has continued to grow here in South Florida and here at St. Brendan.
Sin Dios el hombre no sabe qué camino tomar, ni siquiera comprende quién es” (Deus Caritas Est #78). Por lo tanto, nuestra vida parroquial no es algo meramente incidental para nosotros a medida que recorremos el camino de nuestra vida. Nuestras parroquias, idealmente, deberían ser escuelas de oración y escuelas de comunión; son los lugares donde nuestro amor a Dios y al prójimo se unen y, por lo tanto, las parroquias, como estaciones de paso a lo largo de nuestra estancia, nos impiden llegar a ser del mundo y nos permiten, mientras permanecemos en el mundo, estar siempre para el mundo, anunciando la buena nueva de Cristo que vino para salvar a los pecadores.
The mission of this parish and of every Catholic community is to bear witness in a world of fragile peace and broken promises to what a reconciled world looks like. You are called to be a reconciled and a reconciling community. In this way, you can be community, a community of faith, hope and love, a community where Christ is known, adored and encountered in the Most Blessed Sacrament.
Que no dejemos de proclamar de palabra y de obra los valores del Reino de Dios, asumiendo con fe las consecuencias de nuestro compromiso con la verdad.
Hermanos y hermanas, esta es nuestra principal tarea, en lo personal y como comunidad de fe, así que aprovecho la ocasión para animarlos en la misión que cada uno ha recibido en la vida, y agradecerles de corazón su entrega y probada fidelidad a Cristo y a su Iglesia. Que podamos sentir en nuestros corazones la llamada que nos hace Jesús para seguirle más de cerca, pues como Cristo nos dice en el Evangelio de hoy:” Podrán dejar de existir el cielo y la tierra, pero mis palabras no dejarán de cumplirse”.
So, as we celebrate this platinum jubilee today, may we remember the past with gratitude, live the present with enthusiasm, and look forward to the future with confidence.
