Sixteenth Sunday of the Year

Mass Celebrated by Archbishop Denis Hart
at Saint Patrick’s Cathedral, Melbourne,
on Sunday, 18th July, 2004, at 11.00am

Introduction

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

We gather on this the Lord’s day to live in God’s presence, to go forth to do justice. Here at Mass we are one with the suffering of Christ for the sake of the Church and it is the Risen Lord whom we receive in Holy Communion.

As we call to mind our sins, let us reflect upon the importance of prayer and work in our daily life, so that our service of God and of others may always be focussed on the way he has made us.

Homily

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Many of us are familiar with Jesus’ visit to the house of Martha and Mary. We remember Martha rebuked Jesus because Mary was attending to him while she had to do all the serving. It shows the tension that can come through in our lives with our many works and commitments, which can tend to crowd out the importance of Sunday as a day of focus for God and for others.

The third Commandment of God bids us to keep holy the Sabbath day. In a Christian dispensation this is to take part in the Mass, to move aside from our own regular work and to spend time for God and for others.

The Church has wisely understood the importance of prayer as focusing us on God and the precept which binds under pain of mortal sin to participate in the Mass on every Sunday and Holy Day reminds us that at the Eucharist we engage with the Word of God, with the worship which Christ gives to the Father, and we receive Our Lord in Holy Communion.

As creatures we recognise our God, we pray to him with prayer that carries the whole of the rest of our life. For our human wellbeing, relaxation, family life, are most important and this is why Sunday prescribes a stepping aside from work.

Indeed, Pope John Paul II in March asked the Australian Bishops to emphasise that Sunday Mass is essential for all Catholics. He said, “Sunday is the supreme day of faith, an indispensable day, the day of Christian hope. Any weakening in the Sunday observance of Holy Mass weakens Christian discipleship and dims the light of witness to Christ’s presence in our world. When Sunday loses its fundamental meaning and becomes subordinate to a secular concept of weekend, dominated by such things as entertainment and sport, people stay locked within a horizon so narrow that they can no longer see the heavens.” (Cf. Dies Domini IV)

He continues: “Rather than being truly satisfied or revitalised they remain trapped in a senseless pursuit of the novel and deprived of the perennial freshness of Christ’s living water.” (John 4.11)

“You can draw comfort from the faithfulness of the Lord himself, who continues to beckon his people with a love that challenges and calls.” (Cf. Ecclesia in Oceania 3)

Indeed, together, like Martha and Mary, we the people of God are pilgrims. We reach out for our God who comes to meet us powerfully in the Sunday Eucharist. I do urge you and those with whom you speak to remain always faithful to the Sunday Mass as the Letter to the Hebrews says, “Hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering … not neglecting to meet together … but encouraging one another.”

Finally, the Holy Father says, “As a remembrance of a past event and the celebration of the Living Presence of the Risen Lord amidst his people, Sunday also looks to the future glory of his return and the corners of Christian hope and joy.”

My dear brothers and sisters, we do have the Martha of our daily duties to perform. Let us remember the importance of the Mary of contemplating and walking with the Lord, so that we will be inspired to go forth, one with him in joy to announce his presence. We are deeply enriched by the beauty of the liturgy we participate in Sunday after Sunday. May it be an inspiration, reminding us of the love and care of our God, a foretaste of the glory of eternity and a challenge to witness to him in the every day.

+ Denis J. Hart,
Archbishop of Melbourne.