This weekend I had a couple of conversations that stimulated the few brain cells that I have. One was a conversation about how other denominations are more steeped in Sacred Scripture and how their liturgies are so much more inspirational than ours. The other was about the biggest problem that the Church is facing these days.

 

            First, let’s talk about the liturgy, the Mass. Every action that takes place at Mass either comes directly from Sacred Scripture or is rooted in Scripture. Some of what we do as we gather in prayer is found in the Hebrew Scriptures, in the Gospel, or in the Epistles that were being shared by the leaders of the new church. We certainly know that the Eucharist is our participation in the last supper of Jesus and is the bloodless recounting of His self-emptying sacrifice on the cross.

 

            Not only that, but faithful attendance at Mass allows us to share a good portion of the Scripture. In a year, we read the whole of one of the Synoptic Gospels: Matthew, Mark, or Luke. During the Easter season we delve into the Gospel of John. Throughout the year we read the letters St. Paul wrote to the new Christian communities. In the first reading at Mass, we hear of the prophets who foretold the coming of the Messiah, and we see how repeatedly God’s patience with His recalcitrant people is displayed in mercy. So, when other churches talk about being “Biblically based” we need only respond, as are we.

 

            The second conversation, about the biggest problem facing the Church, causes me a whole lot of frustration. The reason for my frustration is that I have been lamenting this issue for many years. The biggest problem in our Church today is that we do not spend enough time talking about Jesus. We do not spend enough time helping one another grow our relationship with Jesus.

 

            In my nearly twenty-five years as a priest, I have seen the Church deal with a devastating and life-draining sex scandal. We have dealt with shortages of priests, have clustered parishes, raised money, and talked almost ad nauseam about social issues. The Church has rightly stood up for the protection of life, for the safety of immigrants, for the needs of the poor. The Church has challenged governments to tend to the marginalized, the poor, and the sick. The Church has worked tirelessly to bring peace to troubled lands and was even instrumental in the tearing down of the Iron Curtain. Reading the signs of the times, the Church has found a way to be relevant in a world that is less and less faithful. Unfortunately, this often leads people to see our church as just one more social institution trying to leave its imprint on the world.

 

            I have shared with you on more than one occasion that my mother would constantly remind me that Jesus was her best friend. She wanted to spend time with him, to talk to him, to love him, and to let him love her. She desired an intimate relationship with Jesus because she knew that he was an unchanging foundation on which she could build a happy and holy life. She knew that even in her pain, Jesus, her friend, was with her. She did not learn this by burying her head in theological tomes, she did not even learn this through the brilliant homilies of her son the priest. Instead, she learned this by being with Jesus, by talking to him, by allowing him to talk to her, by receiving Jesus into her very own body.

 

            So how does all this fit together? So many of us come to Mass because it is what we have always done or because it’s what is expected of us. Still others come to Mass because it makes them “feel” good. Some even come to Mass out of fear of hell. But the real reason that coming to Mass should be a priority is that at Mass we are in the immediate presence of Jesus Christ. When Mass begins, if we are attentive with the ears and eyes of our faith, if we participate, instead of seeing Mass as a spectator event, we will see and hear and experience heaven crashing into earth. We will see Jesus in the community gathered, in the words of the Scripture, and most especially in the Eucharist that we will take into our own bodies.

 

            While the Church does indeed need to be a voice calling each the world to holiness, and while living the lessons of Matthew 25 is certainly important, we need to always remember that Jesus says that what we do for the least ones we do for him. In other words, our desire to love others comes from Jesus and is returned to Jesus. Jesus is our inspiration, our foundation, and the object of our desire. Jesus is the reason we gather as community, Jesus is the reason we celebrate, Jesus is the reason we are grateful, Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. Because of this truth we should all be talking about Jesus more than we are now.