Mass for the Anniversary of Death of Saint Josemaria Escrivá, Founder of Opus Dei

Celebrated By Archbishop Denis Hart
at Saint Mary's Church, West Melbourne,
on Monday, 26th June, 2006

Introduction

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Today just thirty-one years after his death we come to honour Saint Josemaría Escrivá de Balaguer.

He has been variously described as the saint of ordinary people because we know that his reputation for holiness has spread all over the world, accompanied by many spiritual and material favours.

As we call to mind our sins, let us ask that through his intercession we may learn the secret of his spiritual genius to devote ourselves to the work God gives us as our contribution to the building of the kingdom.

Homily

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

We gather as disciples of Saint Josemaria to honour a very modern saint of eminent holiness nearly 104 and half years after his birth on the 9th January 1902.

Josemaria’s work as a priest in country parishes and poorer districts after his ordination on 28th March 1925 was a clear indication that in his own personal life his dedication to Jesus Christ was paramount.

Opus Dei, as you know, was founded on 2nd October 1928 and by the 28th November 1982 it had become a Personal Prelature spread over six continents with more than sixty thousand members of eighty nationalities.

In addition to his great learning with a Doctorate in Law from the University of Madrid and in Theology from the Lateran University in Rome, he had been Superior of the Seminary, Lecturer in Journalism and Canon Law, a Consultor of the Congregation for Seminaries and Universities and to the Pontifical Commission for the Interpretation of the Code of Canon Law.

It is by turning to his own personal life and reputation for holiness, however, that we come to see the shining example he gives us of faithfulness to the work of holiness through Mass, sacramental life, prayer, examination of personal life and a direct personal following of Christ.

The titles of his books, The Way, The Holy Rosary, Christ is Passing By, Friends of God, The Way of the Cross and In Love with the Church, give us a clue of the very personal relationship he had with Jesus Christ, which he sought to forge in the hearts of his followers.

By 19th February 1981 his cause of canonisation was presented in Rome and letters from sixty-nine cardinals and nearly thirteen hundred bishops urged the Pope to proceed with the process of beatification and canonisation.

Saint Josemaria’s genius is to point out to Christians that sanctity is not something for the privileged few; all the paths of the earth can become divine paths. Opus Dei provided a channel for ordinary men and women living in the world to seek sanctity in carrying out apostolate with a genuine and fully secular dedication.

The aim of Opus Dei and the reason why I am pleased to have your witness here in Melbourne is that it seeks to spread in all spheres of society a deep awareness of the universal call to holiness and the apostolate in the fulfilment of one’s own ordinary profession or work.

Two constant features of Saint Josemaria are his supernatural outlook and yet his engaging human warmth. Whether speaking to young people or to members of Opus Dei he showed in his conversations that he loved freedom; while he defended his convictions with great strength he had an inexhaustible capacity for understanding and for living in harmony with people who might differ from him.

The invitation, which he gives, is in his own words, “I don’t think that there can be such a thing as truly Christian obedience unless that obedience is voluntary and responsible. The children of God are not made of stone. Nor are they corpses. They are intelligent and free beings. They all have been raised to the same supernatural order as those who hold authority. But no one can use his intelligence and freedom properly, whether it be to obey or to give an opinion, unless he has acquired an adequate Christian education. The problem of necessary public opinion in the Church is fundamentally the same as the problem of the doctrinal training of the faithful.”

His own challenge about your vocation is put in these words, “The vocation to Opus Dei confirms one of the essential signs is a determination to remain in the world and to do a job as perfectly as possible, taking into account one’s personal imperfections, both from the human and the supernatural point of view. This means that it must be a job which contributes effectively towards both the building up of the earthly city and therefore it must be done competently and in a spirit of service; and to the consecration of the world and in this regard it must both sanctify and be sanctified.”

As we celebrate the death anniversary of a remarkable saint who engages us where we are, we know that his inspiration to use our freedom responsibly and our gifts in the service of God and the Church is a challenge which will bring great blessings upon our lives and families and upon the work we do because it is all part of the kingdom. Saint Josemaria, pray for us.

+ Denis J. Hart,
Archbishop of Melbourne.