HOMILY
6th Sunday of Easter – May 10, 2026
Mother’s Day Adoption Mass
Today’s gospel takes place during the last supper as Jesus prepares to face his death. He knows that the end is near. His disciples sense from his words and gestures that storm clouds are gathering for their friend and mentor as well as for themselves. So, in anticipation of the events that were soon to unfold, Jesus reassures his disciples that they would not be left alone but that the Father would give them another Advocate – the Spirit of Truth – who would remain with them and within them forever. “I will not leave you orphans. … In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me, because I live and you will live.”
Jesus assures his disciples that his suffering and death – far from being the end of his story – would set the stage for God to perform his greatest act in raising Jesus to life and in pouring forth the Spirit upon the followers of his Son – thereby giving them – and all of us – a way forward in life with hope – despite the struggles, pain and suffering of this world.
But the Word of God also reminds us that the hope given to us through the Easter miracle is not a gift meant to be preserved solely for ourselves. No, it miraculously grows when we extend it to others.
In just a few days we’ll celebrate the Lord’s ascension into heaven, and we will hear the final words of Jesus spoken to his disciples in St. Matthew’s gospel. “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations.” God’s gift of life and salvation is received by the followers of Jesus only to be given away.
As Christians, then, we exist for a purpose: to proclaim the good news of Jesus! … We exist to proclaim love, not war and division. … We exist to nurture respect for all of creation – especially that part made in the image and likeness of God. … We exist to feed, clothe and heal the wounded and broken. … We exist to love, to forgive and to work for peace – in our families – among our friends – and, yes, in the world that God has given to us – even and especially during these unsettling days of conflict, pain and suffering.
Caryll Houselander, a Roman Catholic artist and spiritual writer wrote of this unique reality of God’s love as it both sustains us and serves as a pattern for our lives. “The ultimate miracle of divine love is this, that the life the risen Lord is given to us to give to one another. It is given to us through our own human loves. It is not violation of our simple human nature. It is not something which must be cultivated through a lofty spirituality that only few could attain; it does not demand a way of life that few could attain. … It is to be lived at home, at work, in any place, any circumstances. It is to be lived through our natural human relationships, through the people we know, the neighbors we see. … It is the love of human lovers, of man and wife, of parent and child, of friend and friend.”
Today, throughout our country and in this assembly, we celebrate and give thanks for the same love of God that has been shared with us through the women we honor this day: our mothers. … Mothers, who have given us life – mothers, who, though unable to care for the lives they bore, for love of God and life itself, entrusted those precious gifts to the care of others – mothers who opened their hearts to children desperately in need of a loving and nurturing home – grandmothers – foster mothers – and all who have nurtured and cared for life as only a mother can do.
It is a common truth that we learn how to love from being loved and from seeing love in action. It’s as simple and profound as that. And that’s why it’s so important for us to recognize that underneath all the commercialism that can easily attach to this day, there lies a deeper, sacred reality: we honor mothers because our first encounter with love comes from our mother. That love is hardly a sentimental love – but rather, a sacred love – a selfless, sacrificial, forgiving love that mirrors the very love of Jesus himself. … And in those mothers who have said yes to life and then have chosen to give their child the opportunity to grow and flourish in a family other than their own, we see a love comparable to that found in the very heart of Jesus himself – loving for the pure sake of another, selflessly and sacrificially.
We give thanks, then, today for the promise of Jesus in today’s gospel – a blessing rooted in God’s love for creation and his pledge to remain within us always – a blessing that has been so generously given to each of us through the lives of our mothers. By their example, they teach us that it is possible to love as Jesus commands – generously and selflessly. They also remind us that they – and we – become vehicles for God’s very presence in the world when we open our lives to his love and make it our own.