HOMILY
10th Annual Men’s Conference Mass – October 4, 2025
27th Sunday in Ordinary Time
In setting the stage for this 10th Annual “Be a Catholic Man Conference” here in the Diocese of Scranton, the website that you created offers these words, at once compelling yet challenging. Rooted in Pope Pius XI’s institution of the Feast of Christ the King one hundred years ago in response to growing secularism and atheism in our world, you acknowledged that attempts to “thrust Jesus Christ and his holy law” out of public life would have disastrous consequences for us as Christians and for our world. Recall what you affirmed, “Today, as our Catholic faith becomes increasingly marginalized by society, we publicly acclaim that Jesus Christ is King of our hearts, our homes, our work, and our public actions. Viva Cristo Rey!”
Brothers, we come together today at a time and in an era within our world and land that is fraught with division and upheaval. Yet, we gather in hope because of the same Christ who has called us as his disciples to walk with him, to proclaim his gospel through the words we profess and the lives we lead, and to work with him in the mission of building the Kingdom of God in this time and place.
Providentially, as we participate in this conference and celebrate this closing Mass, we do so on the very weekend when the Catholic church in the United States celebrates Respect Life Sunday, as it has done for over five decades. I doubt that there is another day in the Church calendar that speaks more profoundly to what you have been about this day. For sadly, at the heart of your assertion that our faith is being increasingly marginalized – which it is – is a diminishment and, I dare say, an ever increasing disavowal of our responsibility to respect and reverence life as made in the very image and likeness of God. All the concerns that prompted you to acclaim your allegiance to Christ our King in these turbulent times emerge from a growing disrespect for human life – the very lives for which Jesus gave his own on the cross of our salvation.
Sadly, despite the hope that was generated with the overturning of Roe v. Wade three years ago, the challenge to protect human life has not diminished. Because our world is so often hostile to the truth of the Gospel of Life that we affirm this day, proclaiming the sanctity of human life can be challenging, can’t it? In many arenas, defense of unborn lives, the lives of those who are disabled or dying, or the lives of any vulnerable human population is met with resistance. Proclaiming the Church’s teaching on topics like abortion, assisted suicide, and the death penalty can provoke challenging and emotional responses from those who disagree. And often, we may find ourselves reluctant to speak up about these issues in our families, among our coworkers, or with students in our school community. We may fear disagreement, judgement, confrontation, or misunderstanding. But as our Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV, encourages us, “How important it is that each and every baptized person feel himself or herself called by God to be a sign of hope in the world today.”
In response to the division that we experience throughout our land, it is incumbent upon us, as men of faith, to not merely point fingers of derision at those who fail to embrace the teaching of the gospel regarding the value of human life. To the contrary, as disciples of Jesus, we are called to be light in the midst of darkness – a leaven to transform our misguided world. As such, it is our responsibility to witness to our beliefs by caring for life – from life in the womb to every life, particularly those that are most vulnerable and susceptible to the ravages of the increasingly secularized society in which we live.
As Catholics, we too often allow voices contrary to gospel values to control the narrative about the good work that our Church – through all of you – continues to accomplish. We rarely hear in the public forum of our Church’s long history of service to those who are most vulnerable. Few are even aware of the fact that the Catholic Church remains the largest private provider of social services in the United States to this day.
In today’s gospel from Saint Luke, Jesus quite providentially speaks to the reason we gather this day by offering a series of pronouncements. Two are spoken of in the passage proclaimed today. Two others are found in the verses immediately preceding today’s gospel. … Jesus warns against causing scandal. … He demands forgiveness. … Jesus proclaims that if we have faith the size of mustard seed, incredible things can happen. … And Jesus teaches a lesson from the relationship between a master and a slave. When we do what Jesus commands us to do, we don’t become heroes for a cause, nor should we expect adulation or praise. In doing what Jesus commands, we simply do what the Gospel asserts and demands of its adherents.
These words of Jesus regarding scandal, forgiveness, faith and so much more don’t point to heroic living but reflect the minimum for a life open to the Kingdom of God. They challenge all of us who seek to embrace the teachings of the Gospel – to avoid the self-justifying posture of the Pharisees and embrace Jesus’ call for mercy, forgiveness and love.
Simply put, brothers, if we desire to live our lives as Christians with authenticity, we have no choice. We cannot merely speak of our respect for human life or self-righteously criticize those whose beliefs may be different from our own. We must enliven our words with action. We must both choose and serve life – life in the womb, life that is found on the margins of our world and even life that struggles to respect and reverence others.
The challenge to defend the lives for whom Jesus died cannot be side stepped to create a false peace or sense of harmony. We must be fearless in our defense of the unborn – but also mothers in need, the elderly, the sick, the poor, those with disabilities – and yes – even prisoners, immigrants and all whose lives are in jeopardy. And if you are uncertain about the extent to which respect for life needs to go, recall Jesus’ willingness on the cross to forgive the repentant thief who hung next to him!
While the work before us can be daunting, particularly in a land that at times seems so bereft of an ethic that supports human life and the values of the gospel for which Jesus gave his own life, the words of the Prophet Habakkuk in our first reading this afternoon give us hope – a hope rooted in God’s vision for humanity. “The vision still has its time, presses on to fulfillment, and will not disappoint; if it delays, wait for it, it will surely come!” … God’s vision, brothers, will indeed come to pass when we claim the vision as our own!
Shortly after his election, Pope Leo shared these words to diplomats from countries around the world. “It is the responsibility of world leaders to work to build harmonious and peaceful civil societies.” Then he went on to share a message that speaks to every one of us. “No one is exempted from striving to ensure respect for the dignity of every person, especially the most frail and vulnerable, from the unborn to the elderly, from the sick to the unemployed, citizens and immigrants alike.”
Recall once again, brothers, words that you affirmed in announcing this 10th Annual “Be a Catholic Man Conference.” “Today, as our Catholic faith becomes increasingly marginalized by society, we publicly acclaim that Jesus Christ is King of our hearts, our homes, our work, and our public actions. Viva Cristo Rey!”
Despite the challenges posed by a world that has become far too secularized and opposed to the values of our Catholic faith, Christ our King will reign and the vision of his Gospel of life and salvation will continue to be a source of hope for our world when you and I discover and accept our responsibility as Christian men to live, to love, to forgive and to serve as Christ.
Therein, brothers, we discover our true and lasting hope!