The Sunday Sermon Archive

Dear Friends in Christ,

We witness two miracles of Our Lord Jesus Christ in this Sunday's Gospel reading. The first is the cure of the Leper and the second is the cure of the Centurion's son. The Leper was required to go and show himself to the priests and make an offering. The Centurion was sent home with the assurance that his servant was cured.

These are both material or bodily cures, but not explicitly spiritual or affecting their souls or eternity. The Leper was an Israelite and therefore subject to the Law, and subsequent works were required of him in the reception of God's grace. The Centurion was not an Israelite and was not subject to the Law, so no work was required of him.

We might be tempted to think that the Centurion received a greater grace because it was received by faith alone, whereas the Leper, who had faith and worshiped Jesus, was still required to do some work. This idea is evident in our world today among many who want us to believe that all works are unnecessary or even an insult to the mercy of God. Or that works make us proud by inclining us to think that by our works we have earned the graces we have received, rather than to have received them as unmerited gifts.

There is a saying that to whom much is given, much is required. All those who were under the Law were required to do more. Those born outside the Law were not obliged to follow the Law. The same is true in the New Law as well. All those who have been baptized have been made subject to the New Law. The laws of the Church bind all those who have entered the Church.

The non-Catholic can eat meat on a Friday without any sin or guilt. The Catholic who eats meat on a Friday commits a grave sin because the Laws of the Church bind him, whereas those who are outside the Church are not bound to the Church's Laws. Again, we may be tempted to think that those outside the Church have it easier or are better off. Before we fall for this evil temptation and become envious or jealous of non-Catholics, we should consider what we have that those outside the Church do not have.

The blessings available to Catholics far outweigh all the works required. Non-Catholics do not have the Sacraments or the continual aid of Sacramental grace. Sacramental grace aids us in every stage of our lives here on earth. At the pinnacle of these graces stands the Sacrament of Holy Communion. Non-Catholics cannot welcome Jesus into their hearts and souls with the intimacy that is available to Catholics. They cannot taste the beauty, sweetness, and joy of this loving embrace of the creature with his Creator, Redeemer, Savior, Lord, and Love. Jesus is Life, and those who cannot receive Him do not have Life in them.

The Church's Laws concerning marriage are stricter and require much more than valid non-Catholic marriages. But all the Laws of the Church concerning the Sacrament of Matrimony are for the good of those receiving the Sacrament. Marriage is a problematic state of life, but with the grace of the Sacrament, the bitterness and difficulties of this state of life are made sweet and pleasurable.

But why does God bless those outside the Law? This is an easy question. God wishes to entice or draw them to Him and to the Church. Because all they can see or understand is physical, bodily, or material, God gives them the blessings that they can understand and desire. But, these blessings are meant to bring them to think of higher or better gifts — spiritual things rather than material ones. This small taste of God's goodness is meant to draw them to Him in the Catholic Church. Once they enter the Church, they can receive greater graces, both material and spiritual. These greater graces, as they are received, demand greater things on the part of those who receive them.

Just as more is required of adults than children, and more of children than infants, so it is in the Catholic Church or with the Sacraments and God's graces. More is required of priests than laity; more is required of religious than laity; more is required of married people than unmarried ones; more is required of those who have received the Sacrament of Confirmation, than those who have not; more is required of those who have received Jesus in Holy Communion than those who have not; more is required of those who have been baptized than those who have not.

However, we must not forget that adults have more than children, and children have more than infants. In the spiritual realm, priests and religious have more than the laity, and those who have received the various Sacraments have more than those who have not. It is true both materially and spiritually that to those who have been given much, much is required in return.

May the Immaculate Heart of Mary inspire, guide, and protect us!

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