Homily for the Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

Our permanent deacon, Deacon Pat Conlen, is preaching at the Masses that I am celebrating this weekend. Nevertheless, I will post a few thoughts and points of reflection on this weekend's readings.

1. It's important to see the context of last weekend's miracle of the feeding of the five-thousand. St. Matthew uses a "chiasm" or a bookend structure that centers the multiplication of the loaves in between moments of prayer. Prayer -- union with the Father -- is always at the center of Jesus' life and ministry. Does prayer drive our apostolate? Does silent prayer, particularly in front of the Real Presence of our Lord in the Eucharist, give us the strength to overcome temptation and to love God and neighbor?
2. The fourth watch of the night is the last watch; the apostles were exhausted from the storm, and most likely were prepared to give up hope. Jesus takes the initiative and walks to them on the water. Our Lord still takes the initiative and comes to us in the midst of trials and distress. Are we prepared to wait through the darkest period of the night, however, before we experience the calm of grace? Jesus teaches us perseverance and patience.
3. Peter only falters when he perceives the strength of the storm and takes his gaze off of Jesus. When we are confident in our Lord's power and strength, the culture around us cannot dissuade us from following Christ. We need to be aware of a culture that constantly attacks our Faith -- but not afraid of it. Christ calls us to transform the culture and keep our eyes firmly fixed on Him.

Certainly there are many more points for discussion; dig through the other scripture passages from this weekend's Masses, and talk about them during mealtime or as a portion of your family's prayer. Remember as St. Jerome teaches, "ignorace of the Scriptures is ignorance of Christ."