(This homily was given by Arlington Bishop Paul S. Loverde during the Respect Life Mass at St. James Church in Falls Church, Virginia on May 15.)
The Church is the community of Christ's disciples. As He hung on the cross, Christ gave to the Church in the person of John the Apostle His Beloved Mother to be the Mother of the Church. Mary is the model of the Church. In Mary, we see the maternal role of the Church. (1) Mary gave birth to Jesus Christ, true God and true Man as the Church gives birth to many sons and daughters of God by water and the Holy Spirit at Baptism. (2) Mary received the Holy Spirit again at Pentecost as the baptized received the Holy Spirit in a deeper way at Confirmation. (3) The Body and Blood of the Lord Jesus, received from Mary, is the same Body and Blood received by us in the Eucharist.
Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist " these Sacraments of Initiation, so prominent in the Easter Season, are the life-giving strength of the Church's members. When we live out our Baptismal consecration, our Confirmation commitment and our Eucharistic oneness with Christ, we are faithful, authentic and fruitful members of the Church.
Our Mother Mary assists us by her prayers and example. We run to her, seeking light and life.
Mary is the Fountain of Light. She brought forth into our midst the Light of
Truth " He who is “Veritatis Splendor.” We need to see and to evaluate every facet and aspect of life through the Light of Truth, especially in these challenging times when complex issues confront and attempt to confuse us. Jesus Himself tells us clearly today: “I came into the world as light so that everyone who believes in me may not remain in darkness.” In our Psalm refrain we prayed, “Look to the Lord, and be filled with light.” Mary leads us to the Lord, who fills us with the light of His truth.
Truth, rooted in God's Word in Scripture and in the Living Tradition of the Church and further proclaimed and clarified by the Magisterium of the Church, demands our careful attention and prayerful reflection, confronted as we are by mediocrity and pragmatism, I invite us all " rather, I urge us all " from those who exercise positions of trust, e.g., legislators, judges, lawyers, lectors, extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion, to those who make up the wider and more ordinary spectrum of our ecclesiastical community, to see the issues of the day through the Light of Truth, especially in the arenas of life, marriage, family, justice and peace. The congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith offers us solid guidance: “In the face of fundamental and inalienable ethical demands, Christians must recognize that what is at stake is the essence of the moral law, which concerns the integral good of the human person. This is the case with laws concerning abortion and euthanasia (not to be confused with the decision to forgo extraordinary treatment, which is morally legitimate). Such laws must defend the basic right to life from conception to natural death. In the same way, it is necessary to recall the duty to respect and protect the rights of the human embryo. Analogously, the family needs to be safeguarded and protected, based on a monogamous marriage between a man and a woman, and protected in its unity and stability in the face of modern laws on divorce: in no way can other forms of cohabitation be placed on the same level as marriage, nor can they receive legal recognition as such. The same is true for the freedom of parents regarding the education of their children; it is an inalienable right recognized also by the Universal Declaration on Human Rights. In the same way one must consider society's protection of minors and freedom from modern forms of slavery (drug abuse and prostitution, for example). In addition, there is the right to religious freedom and the development of an economy that is at the service of the human person and the common good." Finally, the question of peace must be mentioned"” (“Doctrinal Note on Some Questions Regarding the Participation of Catholics in Political Life”, No. 4).
Mary is the Fountain of Life. “The Church draws her life from the Eucharist” (Ecclesia de Eucharistia, No. 1). Mary points us to Jesus, the One to Whom she gave flesh, so that in turn, He might feed us with His very Body and Blood in the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist.
In a very real sense, no one of us is worthy to receive the Lord Jesus in the Eucharist. However, our very unworthiness, our need to be fed and nourished and given life, is the reason why we do receive Jesus, the source of Mercy and Life. As He tells us, “I have come to call, not the self-righteous, but sinners” (Mt 9:13) and “If you do not eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you (Jn 6:53). Nonetheless, while we are called by Jesus to Communion, we must be properly disposed. So, we must examine our conduct. Can we worthily receive Jesus if we consciously and willingly persist in action and conduct which are contrary to the faith and to the moral law?
Again, I invite us all " rather, I urge us all " from those who exercise positions of trust, e.g., legislators, judges, lawyers, lectors, extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion, to those who make up the wider and more ordinary spectrum of our ecclesial community, to ponder the implications of Saint Paul's words to the Corinthians: “whoever eats the bread and drinks the cup of the Lord unworthily sins against the body and blood of the Lord. A man should examine himself first, only then should he eat of the bread and drink of the cup” (1 Cor 11:27-28).
This is why speaking the truth in love is so key in our times as well as ongoing dialogue and education about the issue of life seen in the Light of Truth. Such ongoing dialogue and education, linked with prayer and penance, can lead to contrition, conversion and a new commitment. We must go to Mary, seeking her help for our own conversion and commitment and for the conversion and commitment of those who currently see no contradiction between upholding and choosing positions contrary to the moral law and the Church's teaching and yet proclaiming themselves as faithful practicing Catholics.
May Mary, the Fountain of Light and Life, draw us to Jesus, who is the Light of Truth and the Life of the World, and may she strengthen us to be always, in word and witness, heralds of the Gospel of Life.
