R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Blessed are you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth;
you have revealed to little ones the mysteries of the kingdom.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets.
I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.
Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away,
not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter
will pass from the law,
until all things have taken place.
Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments
and teaches others to do so
will be called least in the kingdom of heaven.
But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments
will be called greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses
that of the scribes and Pharisees,
you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.”You have heard that it was said to your ancestors,
You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment.
But I say to you,
whoever is angry with his brother
will be liable to judgment;
and whoever says to his brother, ‘Raqa,’
will be answerable to the Sanhedrin;
and whoever says, ‘You fool,’
will be liable to fiery Gehenna.
Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar,
and there recall that your brother
has anything against you,
leave your gift there at the altar,
go first and be reconciled with your brother,
and then come and offer your gift.
Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court.
Otherwise your opponent will hand you over to the judge,
and the judge will hand you over to the guard,
and you will be thrown into prison.
Amen, I say to you,
you will not be released until you have paid the last penny.

“You have heard that it was said,
You shall not commit adultery.
But I say to you,
everyone who looks at a woman with lust
has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
If your right eye causes you to sin,
tear it out and throw it away.
It is better for you to lose one of your members
than to have your whole body thrown into Gehenna.
And if your right hand causes you to sin,
cut it off and throw it away.
It is better for you to lose one of your members
than to have your whole body go into Gehenna.

“It was also said,
Whoever divorces his wife must give her a bill of divorce.
But I say to you,
whoever divorces his wife –  unless the marriage is unlawful –
causes her to commit adultery,
and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

“Again you have heard that it was said to your ancestors,
Do not take a false oath,
but make good to the Lord all that you vow.
But I say to you, do not swear at all;
not by heaven, for it is God’s throne;
nor by the earth, for it is his footstool;
nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.
Do not swear by your head,
for you cannot make a single hair white or black.
Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No’ mean ‘No.’
Anything more is from the evil one.”

Homily for the Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Two sisters spent the day fighting.  By evening it was time for bed, and they both were still mad at each other. Their mother observed a similar scene as each sister knelt at the side of their beds to say night prayer: “God Bless daddy and mommy. Bless, O God, our cat, and bless our dog, too!”  

Their mother gently reminded each, “Did you not forget somebody?”

“Oh, yes!” “O God, also bless my ex-sister.”

These unforgiving sisters were not about to reconcile with one another that night!  They may be just children in this case, but each is acting against the words of our Lord today when he teaches us to forgive and to reconcile. The sisters did not apply our Lord’s Sermon on the Mount on forgiveness. Each little girl decided to remain mad, and being mad is, of course, toxic for both body and soul. It makes you sick and often brings more anger.  No!  Jesus says to leave the gift right where it is at the altar, and first go to your sister, reconcile, and then come to Me!

The Sermon on the Mount teaches that the Ten Commandment are practical in our daily lives … The first three are about our relationship with God: no worshiping false gods, holy is His Name, no cussing, Mass every Sunday because it is the Lord’s Day.  

The next seven commandments are about our relationship with others: giving our yes to genuine respect for parents, no to anger, no to adultery and to sexual immorality, no to lying, no to cheating, no to stealing, no to envy and no to jealousy.  The 10 Commandment are more than commandments because they reveal to us the key to a life that is fully human and whole before both God and one another.

The Sermon on the Mount also speaks to the sanctity of marriage.  Our Bishop reminds us in a letter today in the bulletin that if your marriage, your relationship, is not blessed before Christ and the Catholic Church, see your pastor, and do what it takes to have your marriage blessed before the altar of God in the Catholic Church.

So, say yes to the Sermon on Mount of Jesus — yes to forgiveness, yes to the Ten Commandments, yes to the sanctity of Marriage. Say yes to the Sermon on the Mount of Jesus. 

I thank you today for the wonderful response to our Valentine cards to the homebound and nursing-home-bound members of our parish family.  I thank the properly named “Visitation of Mary Society” for creating the heart.  They know and keep in touch with our infirm, and the Visitation of Mary is a distinguished society of the parish that is made up of at least a dozen lay persons of the parish, the two deacons, one Oblate Sister, and one priest. And we need your help, either as a full member or as a helper. See the bulletin presentation today on the Visitation of Mary Society, and add your yes.

The opening prayer of the Mass today asked that each of us be given the grace to be a person who is pleasing to God.  Say yes to forgiveness, to the 10 Commandment, to the sanctity of marriage. Let us now offer the Mass for this intention: that we may all be pleasing to God.

Monsignor Michael J. Cariglio, Jr., Pastor, Our Lady of Mount Carmel Basilica – Saint Anthony Parish

If you choose you can keep the commandments, they will save you;
if you trust in God, you too shall live;
he has set before you fire and water
to whichever you choose, stretch forth your hand.
Before man are life and death, good and evil,
whichever he chooses shall be given him.
Immense is the wisdom of the Lord;
he is mighty in power, and all-seeing.
The eyes of God are on those who fear him;
he understands man’s every deed.
No one does he command to act unjustly,
to none does he give license to sin.

R. (1b) Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
Blessed are they whose way is blameless,
who walk in the law of the LORD.
Blessed are they who observe his decrees,
who seek him with all their heart.
R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
You have commanded that your precepts
be diligently kept.
Oh, that I might be firm in the ways
of keeping your statutes!
R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
Be good to your servant, that I may live
and keep your words.
Open my eyes, that I may consider
the wonders of your law.
R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
Instruct me, O LORD, in the way of your statutes,
that I may exactly observe them.
Give me discernment, that I may observe your law
and keep it with all my heart.
R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!

Brothers and sisters:
We speak a wisdom to those who are mature,
not a wisdom of this age,
nor of the rulers of this age who are passing away.
Rather, we speak God’s wisdom, mysterious, hidden,
which God predetermined before the ages for our glory,
and which none of the rulers of this age knew;
for, if they had known it,
they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.
But as it is written:
What eye has not seen, and ear has not heard,
and what has not entered the human heart,
what God has prepared for those who love him,
this God has revealed to us through the Spirit.

For the Spirit scrutinizes everything, even the depths of God.

It has long been a Catholic understanding that when circumstances prevent one from receiving Holy Communion, it is possible to make an Act of Spiritual Communion, which is a source of grace. Spiritual Communion is an ardent desire to receive Jesus in the Most Holy Sacrament and lovingly embrace him at a time or in circumstances when one cannot receive Him in sacramental Communion. The most common reason for making an Act of Spiritual Communion is when a person cannot attend Mass. Acts of Spiritual Communion increase our desire to receive sacramental Communion and help us avoid the sins that would make us unable to receive Holy Communion worthily.

Spiritual Communion Prayer

My Jesus, I believe that you are present in the Most Holy Sacrament.

I love you above all things and I desire to receive you in my soul.

Since I cannot at this moment receive you sacramentally,

Come at least spiritually into my heart.

I embrace you as if you were already there

And unite myself wholly to you.

Never permit me to be separated from you.

Amen.