Tag Archives: Violence

“Where Is The Love?” Homily For The Fifth Sunday of Easter

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“I give you a new commandment; love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another. This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”


“…all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”


I will be honest with you, when I look out at this commonwealth; this country, this world. I wonder how many would recognize individuals as disciples of Jesus. In some of our major cities, and in some of our smaller one’s, there is more violence in our streets than I seen in awhile. War, disease, gang violence, domestic violence, it is out there. We see it on our screens; the wars and the conflicts, the intensity of which really frightens me. And I see also a hate among all peoples, white, black, Hispanic, and Asian; It is hate I have never seen before; and that frightens me also. And what comes to my mind is a question, actually a demand, where is the love?


I have heard that question asked before, but I could not remember where; so I turned to that source of all knowledge, ….Wikipedia. There were two songs issued under the title,”Where is the Love?” one song was written by the rap group The Black Eye Peas, released in 2003; re-released in 2016. They felt the question still needed to be asked; where is the Love? …..(pointing to the Crucifix). There is the Love. For God so loved the world that He sent His Son, Jesus. Jesus Christ, loved us so much, that He was willing to suffer death, death on a cross, so that we might be saved from sin and death; that by His Resurrection, we are freed from death, and will have eternal life. He calls on us to share this Good News, not just by words, but by example. Within our own families; towards people we will meet on the street, in the office, the factories, the stores; if we treat both friends and strangers with real respect and charity, we are showing where God’s love is. If we stand with the poor, the infirm, the crippled, the refugee; meeting their needs, an arm around a shoulder, letting them know they not alone; that is showing where the love is. If in any discussions, or debates we might be a party to; if we recognize that the other person is a brother or sister in Christ; we respect that person, even if we cannot accept the positions they hold.


The world is out there, a wounded world, inflicted by hate, war, despair. How well we love one another, how well we respect and love our neighbors, our city, our country, will give the answer to the question; an answer that everyone longing for, “Where is the love?”

In the Face of All This Hate.

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Just after the violence of Charlottesville, after watching scenes of white supremacists, and neo-nazis, carrying torches, and chanting hate; I saw a tv trailer.  It was on PBS, and it was a scene from Ken Burns famous documentary, “The Civil War.”  The scene was of a new military cemetery, located on the battlefield of Gettysburg.  The actor, Sam Waterston, as Abraham Lincoln, was speaking the words of the Gettysburg Address.  Here is a portion:

“But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate-we can not consecrate-we can not hallow this ground.  The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract.  The world will little note, not long remember, what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far nobly advanced.  It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us-that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion-that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain-that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom-and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”

We are all “the people,”  descendants of those who sought to create “a more perfect union.”  The process has been messy, bloody, imperfect, and at the same time wonderous and life giving.  We cannot surrender the process to the haters, the greedy, the terrorists, and the self-serving.  We must work together, with respect, with dialogue, and with peace in our hearts.  This ideal must not “perish from the earth!”  So help us God!

2017 – A New Year

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2017-new-yearSo the year 2016 is past, the year 2017 has begun.  The world, our country has been afflicted by violence whether by state sponsored or terrorist sponsored attacks.  Many times the violence has been random.  The call of “Peace on Earth; Goodwill to all!” seems to ring hollow during this holiday season.

Our country has been through the most raucous presidential election season, since the early days of the Republic!  And it has revealed that there are deep divisions in our nation.  The concept of civil discourse and debate seems to have flown out of the window.  And we have elected a person as President that many do not respect; that others are a little concerned about his style of governance; and what it portends for the next four years

While engaged in Morning Prayer, I came across this verse from Psalm 42 “Why are you downcast my soul; why do you groan within me?  Wait for God, whom I shall praise again, my savior and my God.”  This will be verse I think will become my new mantra for this coming year.

On New Year’s Eve, I joined my wife at a worshipping community she goes to; and participated in a Burning Bowl ceremony.  We were invited to write down on a slip of flash paper, something negative we wanted God’s help in taking away from us.  We then placed the slips in a bowl that had a small fire; which consumed the petitions.  It was very moving.

The year of 2016 has been a year of some changes for me personally.  I finally found employment at a South Shore company; starting in January, 2016.  So I will be entering my second year of employment, and it has been good.  The commute is long, two hours to and back; using commuter train and subway.  I am always telling people that at least someone else is doing the driving.

In September of this year, I will be entering my fifth year as an ordained Deacon in the Roman Catholic Church.  I cannot believe that much time has passed.  I have been assigned to three Beverly, MA, parishes; where most of my work has been liturgical, assisting at 5 of Masses celebrated in two of three parishes.  It seems a lot; but I have experienced spiritual aid, that helps me perform my sacred duties well.  The Deacon has several ways of service he offers to the Church; a service of Worship, service of the Word, and a service of Charity.  I am still reflecting and discerning what that means in my daily life.  What role should daily prayer, daily reading, and meditating of Scripture should have.  I am not where I think I should be.  Maybe, this New Year, I will find some guidance; and perhaps some improvement.

A New Year begins, a year of fear, a year of anxiety, but also a year of hope, a year of change, and a year of trust in the Lord.

Yearar