St. Dominic Catholic Church

Homilies

1/21/2018 Third Sunday in Ordinary Time

This past week I went with four students and two campus ministers from Occidental College to Mexicali, Mexico.

Thank you for the donations of toothbrushes, toothpaste, feminine products, soap, shampoo and other personal items.

We distributed them in a shelter for women and minors, a shelter for men, and the Hotel Migrante.

The last location is an abandoned hotel that a local businessman took over as a shelter for men, women and children who have been recently deported from the United States.

It’s not a nice place.

There are four beds to a room, and the toilets are down the hall. 

Blankets cover the entrances to the rooms to help keep out the cold and give a little privacy.

100 people can stay there more or less comfortably, but they have had as many as 500, with people sleeping on the roof and in a dark basement with no windows.

 

A professor from UABC, the local state university, gave us a talk on migration and the reasons so many people from central and southern Mexico, Central America and even Haiti are ending up in Mexicali.

They’re fleeing wars, narcos, gangs, and natural disasters.

They or members of their families have experienced kidnappings, beatings, extortion.

They have been victims of corrupt local politicians and police.

Domestic and international politics and economics destabilize the lives of millions and fuels migration that is often nearly as dangerous as staying home.

 

And all of this is occurring in countries in which the Catholic faith has been professed by the majority for centuries.

I’m sure colonization plays a role in this, but so, too, does a serious lack of conversion.

In our first reading, the prophet Jonah, is wildly successful in calling the evil citizens of Nineveh to repentance.

The story of Jonah was told to shame the Israelites, those favored by the Lord, who were not so quick to repent.

St. Paul tells the Christians in Corinth that this world is passing away, so do not become too comfortable in it.

And Jesus begins his ministry to repent, and believe in the Good News of God’s love and willingness to forgive.

The word repent in Greek is metanoia, and means a complete change of mind and heart.

It’s more than just accepting dogmas or following rules.

It means getting underneath the surface, underneath our spiritual routines and getting to the heart of the matter – our heart.

 

Jesus calls us to a basic change of heart and mind; to a major reshaping of our values, our perspective, and our attitude.

It is not just changing what we do, but changing who we are.

Words and actions are important, but more importantly, they are signs that point to what kind of people we are.

Am I basically selfish, self-centered and materialistic?

Am I governed by my pride and the anger that flows from an easily wounded ego?

It is people who are like this who fuel corruption and oppression.

People like this can make life so miserable and bleak for others that they get caught in a desperate fight for survival which turns them away from their neighbor.

 

Jesus proclaims the need for repentance, and then calls fishermen to follow him.

In order to follow him, they have to let go of their nets, leave their homes, and walk with Jesus.

I’m sure they felt vulnerable and scared – like the migrant who enters the treacherous journey north.

At the same time, I’m sure the goodness of Jesus and his promise of the fullness of life attracted them – like the pull of hope for safety and security keeps a migrant walking.

 

In a moment we will receive Jesus into our bodies; his soul, humanity and divinity.

May we be changed by Him and His grace, because we cannot change on our own.

Especially in a fallen world that works against conversion.

We need him, and the world needs us to be true Christians – disciples of Jesus.

He can change us for the better.

He can change us for good.