By Most Rev. Richard W. Smith, Archbishop of Edmonton

Monday, July 31, 2017

Baggage Handling


It’s a key part of the boarding adventure. Getting on a plane is by no means a breeze. We seem to be coming aboard loaded down with more and more stuff, packed in baggage presumably of a size that will fit under seats or in overhead bins, and expecting there to be enough room on the aircraft. I’ve seldom seen this unfold without some drama, involving no small amount of effort on the part of the crew to find space somewhere for everyone’s things. Sometimes people are told that there is no room on board, which elicits a variety of reactions, to put it mildly. I admire the patience of the crew as they deal with us passengers. If I were in their place, I’m sure I’d need to get to confession soon after landing.
 
In the Gospel we heard proclaimed on Sunday, Jesus gives a lesson in another - and far more important - type of 'baggage handling.' We tend to accumulate a lot of things. What is important? What not? On the basis of what principle do we make this discernment?
 
In the passage from St. Matthew (13:44-52), Jesus tells a number of parables to explain “the kingdom of heaven.” By this phrase he is speaking of the reign of God in our lives. It comes to us in the person of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. By encounter with Him and surrender to his person and teaching, we enter the joy of life in communion with God. There is no greater “treasure” than this, no “pearl” of greater price. By these parables, Jesus teaches that, like the farmer and the merchant, we should understand our relationship with Jesus Christ, and all that it entails, as far surpassing in worth anything we might possess, or that might be possessing us!
 
Easy to say. Sounds very good. Yet, of course, as with all the parables of Jesus, these, too, involve a serious challenge to his hearers. Both the farmer, who discovers the treasure in a field, and the merchant, who comes across the pearl of great price, divest themselves of everything in order to possess what they have found. Ah, there’s the rub. Divestment. Getting rid of things. Handling baggage is one thing. Doing away with stuff is an entirely different matter. We usually don’t like to let go of things to which we have become attached. Notice, though, that the figures in the parables let go joyfully! In comparison with the joy that is theirs in finding what is of surpassing value, all else is suddenly seen in its true light: unimportant, and, in fact, an obstacle to real joy.
 
This puts me in mind of a beautiful statement by St. Paul, who found the treasure when Christ found him: “I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.” (Phil 3:8)
 
So, how are we doing as baggage handlers? To be more precise, to what are we holding on that stands in the way of our relationship with Jesus Christ? This involves more than just physical possessions. We can also be attached to the baggage of pride, reputation, hurts, inability to forgive, and so on. There are times when it is good - indeed, necessary - to be told that there is no room “on board” for these things. That’s exactly what Jesus is teaching. So, let’s be ready to downsize, to divest, that we may live in the priceless joy of knowing Jesus Christ.
 
 

Monday, July 10, 2017

Called to the Office



In the early years of my episcopate, when I was learning how to be a Bishop (Who am I kidding? I’m still learning!), I would at times ask my secretary to call a priest and ask him to come to the office for a visit. In those days, I might neglect to give the reason why. I would only find out later that, by not indicating the reason for the call, I had more often than not caused great angst for the priest - What did I do? Why does he want to see me? Hmmm. Maybe I need to work on my charm and friendly manner. Anyway, invitations are now always accompanied by an explanation in order to minimize the likelihood of panic attack.
 
Archbishop Smith installed as bishop of Edmonton after his time as bishop of Pembroke.
Truth to tell, we can all think of various versions of the “summons” that can elicit a sense of foreboding: students called to the principal’s office, a summons to appear in court, or “the boss wants to see you.” There are others, though, that fill us with delight and the prospect of happiness. Think especially of what fills the hearts of children when they hear that they’ve been invited to Grandma’s house. As I think back, cookies and sweets come to mind. No foreboding there!

It is this latter sense of good that arises when we hear the “summons,” or invitation, which Jesus issues in the Gospel passage for Sunday (Matthew 11:25-30). It is an invitation to rest, a call to the peace that is ours when we entrust all of our cares and burdens to Him in the confidence that He, God who loves us, will care for us and guide us toward the good. The passage is a beautiful manifestation of the wondrous tenderness of our God. No need to be anxious about this call.

Of course, there are times in our lives when we are “called to the office” by the Lord and rebuked for our sinful ways. This, too, is encountered in Sacred Scripture. After all, the first summons spoken by the Lord on earth was to repentance and faith. This can cause what could be called a “holy foreboding”, holy because it is ultimately salutary, good for our salvation. Consequently, far from fearing this kind of summons, we should actually seek it so that the Lord, by His truth and mercy, can lead us in holiness.
Procession at Santa Maria Goretti this past Sunday.
The Lord consoles with His mercy; He challenges us with His truth. Whatever the summons, if it comes from the Lord Jesus, we know it is for our good, both earthly and eternal. Therefore, let us cast aside all foreboding and respond with joyful trust.

Tuesday, July 4, 2017

And Now … ?



Well, it was certainly a wonderful moment of grace. All across our land, on the Canada Day weekend, our country’s Bishops consecrated their respective Dioceses to the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In this way the whole of our country was entrusted to the maternal care and protection of the Mother of God.

Statue of Mary which Bishop Grandin knelt
to consecrate the Diocese of St Albert to Mary.
It was not the first time that this was done. A national consecration occurred during a Marian Congress in Ottawa in 1947. Here in the Edmonton area, our first Bishop, Most Rev. Vital Grandin, consecrated his new Diocese of St. Albert (which later became the Archdiocese of Edmonton) to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. (Incidentally, for the consecration this weekend at St Joseph’s Basilica we knelt at the same Marian statue before which Bishop Grandin offered his prayer of consecration in 1871.)

So, why the re-consecration? Like children do with their own mothers, we instinctively turn to our Heavenly Mother in times of need. As we mark 150 years of Confederation in Canada, we are conscious of great need among our people. Yes, we have many blessings here, for which we are grateful to Almighty God. In many ways, Canada is a wonderful place to live. At the same time, we are aware of troubling trends and worrisome patterns that demonstrate a collective drift from Christ and his teachings. For this reason, we have turned to Mary, asking for her intercession, that we will be brought back to her son Jesus, or, indeed, will be led to discover Him if He is not yet known. We have made this act of consecration, this act of entrustment to Mary’s maternal care, with great confidence that she will hear our prayers and answer. Thus we are certain that God, in response to Mary’s plea on our behalf, will pour many graces upon our land.

Grotto at Mission Hill in St Albert.
And now…? What more must we do? Mary herself shows us. In her response to the angel Gabriel, “Be it done unto me according to thy word,” she shows us that our response to the grace the Lord wills to give us must be that of complete surrender to the will of God. Concretely, this means staying close to Jesus: by listening daily to His Word in Sacred Scripture, we become attuned to God’s will; by regular participation in the sacraments we are strengthened by God’s mercy to live the holy lives to which he calls us. It also means staying close to Mary: by renewing the prayer of consecration and by praying the Rosary each day, we keep our hearts and minds directed towards her, who seeks always to lead us to her son, Jesus. Stay close to Jesus in faith; stay close to Mary in trust. In so doing, our hearts are disposed to receive, and be transformed by, the love and mercy of God. In so doing, we shall see the act of consecration we made this past weekend bear great fruit for the good of our country in the years ahead.

Holy Mary, Mother of God, Our Lady of Canada, pray for us!
 
St Mary's Cathedral, Calgary