(The following homily was given by Arlington Bishop Paul S. Loverde at the Mass for the 19th Sunday in Ordinary time at the Cathedral of St. Thomas More in Arlington on August 8.)
An American riding on a train in Northern China found the behavior of a native vendor extremely interesting. There was nothing unusual about the man's appearance, but he seemed to be having an odd effect on the other passengers. He would try to sell his products, but he didn't make one sale. Despite that, he would ask each person some further questions and the answer invariably was a startled look on the face of each passenger.
Finally, the American's curiosity led him to call the vendor over and ask him what it was that upset the travelers. “Well,” the native explained, “I ask them: 'Where are you going?' and they usually answer, naming this city or that. But then, I tell them that isn't what I meant " that what I meant was 'where are you going when you die?' It seems to make everyone of them stop and think” (cf. James Keller, M.M., Three Minutes a Day, 1950, p. 161).
This question " where are you going when you die? " is certainly not asked often, but it is so timely and on target! Where are we going once our earthly journey has ended? Even more to the point, what is our destiny in God's plan? Does He not desire that we be with Him, forever, sharing eternal life? Of course He does! Remember what so many of us learned years ago: God made me to know, love and serve Him in this life and to be happy with Him forever in the next life. Or, as the Catechism of the Catholic Church states: “The desire for God is written in the human heart, because man is created by God and for God; and God never ceases to draw man to Himself. Only in God will he find the truth and happiness he never stops reaching for: 'The dignity of man rests above all on the fact that he is called to communion with God…'” (No. 27). Indeed, today's Opening Prayer reminds us of this truth: “…increase your Spirit within us and bring us to our promised inheritance.” So often, we refer to ourselves as pilgrims and to the Church as a Pilgrim Church on her journey to that fullness of eternal life which is the life of heaven.
So then, union with God is our destiny and our goal. He desires that we share His life now, from Baptism onwards, and then share it fully and forever, after we die, in heaven. Therefore, our treasure must be, first and foremost, union with God. In fact, the Father sent His only-begotten Son to be our Savior, to lead us back to our intended destiny and to achieve our eternal goal. If the Lord is our treasure, then our heart will be His, that is, our entire being will be united to Him. As Jesus tells us in today's gospel reading, “For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.”
Moreover, if the Lord is our treasure and if heaven is our destiny and goal, then we must be vigilant about the kind of life we are living. How we live our life here determines how we live hereafter. Jesus Himself tells us to be alert and vigilant. “Gird your loins and light your lamps and be like servants who await their master's return from a wedding, ready to open immediately when he comes and knocks. Blessed are those servants whom the master finds vigilant on his arrival…. You also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.”
We are alert and vigilant when we remain faithful to prayer " both personal and liturgical; when we strive each day to seek out God's will and follow it; and when we fulfill as best we can the duties and responsibilities of our individual vocations, whether as clergy, religious, married persons or single persons.
We will be alert and vigilant if daily we walk by faith. “Faith is a personal act " the free response of the human person to the initiative of God who reveals Himself,” so teaches the Catechism of the Catholic Church (No. 166). Faith enables us to hear God's word, to respond in obedience to His will, to use our talents and gifts for His glory and the welfare of others, to build up God's Kingdom and to persevere in our journey towards the Father's House, which is our destiny and goal. Today's second reading reminds us of how our ancestors in faith, like Abraham and Sarah, walked themselves by faith. They were alert and vigilant because of their faith and, therefore, so can we be.
The lesson of today's Scriptures is so clear and timely, posing that basic question “Where are you going?” These same Scriptures remind us that union with God is our destiny and goal and that, therefore, the Lord must be the treasure of our hearts. Let us then walk by faith, all the way home to heaven! And we will, provided that we ask Mary's unfailing help: “Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.”
