The Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time - September 1, 2024
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August 29, 2024
Dear Parishioners and Friends,
This Sunday we take up the gospel of St. Mark again after examining the sixth chapter of the gospel of St. John, where our Lord revealed that He is “the Bread of Life come down from heaven.” Clearly, the revolution Jesus leads is primarily an internal one, one that touches the depths of our hearts. His new Order is one of grace that transforms our souls by His Truth and in His sacraments, most especially the Holy Eucharist. After reading John Chapter six how can any catholic miss the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass on Sundays? Perhaps, it is because the Mass obligation is misinterpreted as just some sort of exterior or external observance, like the scrupulous, culinary practices of the Old Testament days that could be seen merely as legalisms. And there are other consequences of misinterpreting God’s laws in a superficial manner as just some rules laid down to restrict our behavior.
God’s law, fulfilled in Jesus Christ, does not restrict our human nature; but liberates us. Since God made us to be like Him, according to His image and likeness, He knows what best fulfills us, though we always have the ability to choose. If we choose to rebel against God, as Adam and Eve did, we bring about the corruption of ourselves. We become not free, as modernity falsely advertises, but we become slaves. Breaking God’s commandments and teaching others to do so, we only cause harm to ourselves and others. The disobedient distort the image of God in man. God has made us to come to Him, which we do when we keep His commandments and obey His Son Jesus Christ and His holy Bride the Catholic Church.
What is presented today as freedom is usually the opposite. Genuine freedom can only be the result of obedience to the laws and designs of the Creator God and the Redeemer God. All other plans are doomed to failure no matter how cleverly presented. The biggest deception of our time is to turn away from the faith and morals handed down to us and attempt a new, revised version. What St. Pius X called the heresy of Modernism has led many souls down the path of destruction. It is the duty of those who remain faithful to again present the authentic teachings of Christ and His Church, which remain forever young, forever new.
Let each of us do his part to bring about the renewal of all things in Christ.
Yours in the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Fr. Mark G. Mazza
