Homilies and Addresses 2007
Mass for the Australia Day Observance

Celebrated By Archbishop Denis Hart
at St Patrick's Cathedral, Melbourne
on Sunday, 28th January, 2007 at 11.00am

Introduction

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Today we gather to remember Jesus of Nazareth as the Saviour of the whole world, inviting us to love of God and neighbour.

As we celebrate our Australia Day Observance we remember the tremendous gifts that God has given to our country and our responsibility to use them in accordance with his plan, respecting the gift of human life from conception to natural death, the dignity of people and the lifestyle that we as Australians enjoy.  We are thankful for God’s many gifts.

Homily

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

The people in the synagogue recognised Jesus because of the gracious words that came from his lips, showing him as the Messiah and Lord.  Jesus at the beginning of his public life was not accepted by the people and yet he came to teach us about a new kingdom, a new hope and a life which would go forward to eternity.

The people were enraged because they did not accept him as the carpenter’s son.  We Christians accept him as the Lord God, made man among us, sent to bring Good News to the poor and freedom to prisoners.  Saint Paul reminds the Corinthians that the basic test is love of God and love of neighbour.

We live in an Australia, which has been immeasurably blessed by so many gifts of safety, of plentiful food, of economic prosperity, of freedom from the challenges and wars that have afflicted our world.  Even in the present challenges of lack of water, the Lord invites us to recognise how much we have received so that we will see that the gift of God’s nearness shown at Christmas is something that we carry into the world of today. 

A prophet is someone who speaks out of the wonders of God.  In the Old Testament prophets prepared the way for Jesus, who was the Great Prophet, who showed us God’s love in a way that we can understand.  In the baby of Bethlehem, grown to be the greatest teacher the world has known, we are reminded that God draws close to us and wants us to use the gifts of our person, our society and our country to promote all that he came to give us.  We live in a country, which is free, which has respect for people of many races and nations, which has unimaginable prosperity and despite a lack of rain, which is gifted beyond our recognition.

Australians show a remarkable tolerance and respect for each other, welcome peoples from many countries and as the recipients of so many gifts we realise that we have to act to be the agents of a new awareness of the fact that all we have is what we have received, that we as people of faith have to reach out to our community and inspire and challenge it about the dignity of life from conception to natural death, of the dignity of the human person and of a proper use of our resources.

Australia Day in 2007 is a challenge to us to look with clear vision at our responsibility, to make a contribution to the community, which has received so much, but which has need of all that we come to offer.  We must not confine Jesus to Nazareth or to the first century of our era.  His message is for all people of all times, to the whole world and to every age.  We, as Christians, must commit ourselves to bringing Jesus and his values of truth, the value of humanity and justice, to the communities in which we live.  That is the biggest challenge that we can be offered and it is the grace given to us by Our Lord, who will never desert us.

+ Denis J. Hart,
Archbishop of Melbourne.