Please, thank you, and I love you.

Please

Let me tell you about a toddler who shall remain unnamed. If there is something this toddler wants from us, there is this cute little call-and-response we do with him. It goes like this. He‘ll say he wants something. We will say to him, “what do you say?” And he’ll respond, “please.” Then we’ll say, “and …” Then, he’ll respond, “thank you.” Then, we’ll say, “and …” And he’ll respond, “and I love you!”

As heart-warming as this is to hear, later, this same toddler will say something heart-breaking that makes me question whether he was being sincere when he previously told me he loves me. For example, I was painting his thumbnail with this fingernail polish that tastes bad to help him stop sucking his thumb so he doesn’t get sick from placing germs in his mouth and so he doesn’t mess up his teeth and this toddler said to me, “I don’t love you anymore, Dadda” or if he is really upset he will say the heart-piercing “I hate you, Dadda!” These are direct quotes folks.

Is this the way we are with Jesus? With Jesus, are we the spiritual equivalent of toddlers who say or do whatever it takes to get what we want in one moment, and after Jesus gives us what we want, we do or say something that breaks his heart? Are we the type of people whose prayers begin like this: “Jesus, I know you haven’t heard from me since my last crisis?” Friends, Jesus is not a genie in a bottle. Jesus is not a gumball machine where we give him some token lip service or a token amount of our time and in return, we feel entitled to get a gumball or some special treat we want.

Sometimes we lose sight of the fact that Jesus became a human just like us and that there are things we can do or say that is heart-warming for Jesus and there are also things we do or say that is heart-breaking for Jesus. In today’s Gospel, we heard the 10 men with leprosy say to Jesus, “’Jesus, Master! Have pity on us!’” They were saying all the right things to get what they wanted from Jesus. This sounds to me like it may be an adult version of a toddler saying “please … thank you … and I love you!”

They are calling Jesus their master and their plea has the appearance of being humble and sincere as they are asking Jesus to have pity on them. They are all saying the right things, but do they all actually mean it? Are they being sincere or insincere? Well, time will tell. Jesus sent these 10 men on their way and, as they departed from him, they were healed.

Nine of them realizing that they were healed and thinking that they used Jesus for all he was worth, they acted in a way as to say “I don’t love you anymore.” Their response, or lack thereof, to Jesus healing them, made it clear they didn’t truly view Jesus as their master, and their apparent humility when making their plea was an insincere façade. Their response made it clear to Jesus that they did not want anything to do with Jesus anymore by ghosting Jesus and cutting off all communication with him. These nine men gave Jesus a taste of the heartbreak that was to come from those for whom Jesus would do anything to give them life and to give it to them abundantly, but at the end of the day, would simply walk away from him for all eternity never to turn back around.

The tenth man who was healed of leprosy responds in the opposite way making it clear that he actually meant what he said when he called Jesus “master” and when he made his humble sincere plea for help.

Thank you

This 10^th man’s response to Jesus healing him was to return to Jesus glorifying God and saying thank you to Jesus. There was no additional request this leper had of Jesus. There was no hidden agenda this man was trying to butter Jesus up for in terms of a future request. This man wanted nothing more than to praise God, thank Jesus for his goodness, and simply be with Jesus. By doing so, this man lets Jesus know that Jesus is enough for him. In fact, Jesus is more than enough for him. All this man wants is to be with Jesus.

It may be tempting for us to view this story of leprosy as outdated and not relevant to the world we are living in today. While we may not have leprosy, we have all contracted the disease of original sin which we do not have the power to cure on our own. We have all done things that leave us feeling unclean and in need of healing. We may not say, “I don’t love you anymore, Jesus,” but we have all acted in a way that speaks this message louder than words to Jesus.

We all know someone in our life who is trying to use us or who only does something for us because they expect something from us in return. We all know this person, because all too often we are this person, with Jesus and with others. We hate most in others that which we most hate about ourselves.

Jesus wants what we all want deep down, for someone to love us and want to be with us just for us. Not because of a miracle we are going to work in their lives, not because of the alcohol or food we have for them, not because of the fancy car we drive or fancy clothes we wear, not because we are going to tell them what they want to hear, Jesus and each of us want others to be with us and love us just for us.

In Christianity, faith is to live as a person who has responded to what God has done for us in Jesus. Jesus healed 10 men of leprosy, but only one of them responded in a way that resulted in Jesus saying the words “your faith has saved you.” Our response to what Jesus has done for us matters. Our faith is out of a response to God’s love.

We’re saved by grace alone. We cannot work our way to heaven. We cannot save ourselves. But we have to respond to what Jesus has done for us. Our response shows Jesus that we want more than a one-and-done transactional relationship with him. Our response shows Jesus we desire to deepen our relationship with him.

It was Christ’s action on the cross that saved me, which I have to respond to. If Christ didn’t die on the cross, I have nothing to respond to. We’re responding to the goodness of God. When we have this understanding of faith as being inclusive of our response to what Jesus has done for us, we can say the same thing as our protestant brothers and sisters, “we are saved by faith alone.”

We come to Mass not so much because of what we want to give to Jesus. We come to Mass because of what Jesus wants to give to each of us, his very self. The Eucharist is his work, not mine. The Eucharist has the power of Christ’s death and resurrection in it.

Just as one of the ten men who were healed came and fell at the feet of Jesus, and just as there was only one of the 12 apostles came to be at the feet of Jesus as he hung upon the cross, so too today, only one out of 10 Americans goes to Mass every week bowing our heads so his body is above us before we receive him in the Eucharist.

I love you

How do we show Jesus our love for him? In Matthew Chapter 25, Jesus tells us when we feed the hungry, give a drink to the thirsty, and care for the sick, we do so for him. When the 10^th man came back to Jesus praising God and giving thanks, you may have noticed that Jesus responded in an unusual way. Jesus did not say to the man “good job for being grateful, you have crossed the finish line, you won the prize, and the work I want you to do for me is done.” Instead, Jesus said, “Ten were cleansed, were they not? Where are the other nine?” Jesus is asking this man to account for the other nine. Jesus is calling back to Genesis when God asked Cain “Where is your brother Abel?” Jesus reminds us that we are to be our brother’s keeper.

Initially, God tried the approach of taking the most qualified and expecting him to be his brother’s keeper, but that didn’t turn out so well with the oldest brother Cain killing his brother Abel. It’s as if Jesus is saying since taking the most qualified to do my important work didn’t turn out so well, instead, I am going to take the one who is least qualified and who actually showed up, and I am going to entrust that person to do my important work. This is what Jesus did while he was on the cross entrusting the least qualified apostle, the youngest apostle John, with the important work of taking care of his mother Mary. This is also the approach Jesus did in today’s Gospel reading. This is why Jesus points out that the only one of the 10 who was healed and came back was a Samaritan. Jesus says, “Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?” This is Jesus’ way of saying, you are the least qualified of the bunch, but you are the one who showed up, so I am going to entrust you to do my important work.

Then, next, notice what Jesus does not say. He does not just say, “your faith has saved you” as a pat on the back. No, the entirety of what Jesus says next is “Stand up and go; your faith has saved you.” This Jesus’ way of saying, “You can do way better. To be precise, you can do nine times better. I want you to play an important part of doing my work of saving the other nine. Stand up and go.”

While Jesus is the hero of every story, in the story of the 10 lepers, the tenth man is also the hero. But heroes aren’t just content with themselves being saved. Heroes, after all, want to save others. You and I are the least qualified who actually showed up and who Jesus is entrusting to do his important work. We all know the nine people in our lives who are not here to encounter Jesus today. Jesus commands the Samaritan and each of us here to “stand up and go” to share the blessing we have received with the other nine so they too may come to Jesus.

The hero of this story of being saved is not just a Samaritan who was cured of leprosy. The hero is every one of us sinners who respond to what Jesus has done for us with sincere hearts saying to him “please, thank you, and I love you.”

28th Sunday in Ordinary Time Cycle C – October 9, 2022
Mass Readings:
Reading 1: 2 Kgs 5:14-17
Psalm: Ps 98:1, 2-3, 3-4
Reading 2: 2 Tm 2:8-13
Gospel: Lk 17:11-19

Did you know it only takes two moments to make a lasting impression? For example, let’s say you take a trip to Cedar Point with some friends or family.

During your visit, every hour on the hour, I text you asking you to rate your experience at that moment on a scale of 1-10 with 1 being a terrible experience and 10 being an amazing experience. At 11 a.m., you just got off the Millennium Force roller coaster and you rate the moment a 10. At 1 p.m., you just paid $9 for a hot dog and you rate the moment a 3. At 5 p.m., you are waiting in a long line for a ride, so you rate the moment a 3. At 9 p.m., you just ended the day by riding the Maverick roller coaster and you rate the moment an 8.

Let’s say I text you about a month later and ask you to rate your overall experience at Cedar Point. Instead of just averaging the rating of all the moments throughout the day and giving your Cedar Point experience a rating of a 6, something peculiar happens. You text back saying your overall experience at Cedar Point was a 9.

Psychologists have discovered the explanation for this discrepancy. They call it the peak-end rule. When we look back on an experience, the peak-end rule says we disproportionally remember and emphasize the peak (this could be an extremely high point or an extremely low point) and the end of the experience. This means for our Cedar Point experience, we remember the peak moment of riding the Millennium Force and the end moment of riding the Maverick and we rate the overall experience a 9.

Now, what does all this have to do with the reading from the Gospel of John we just heard? I think we see the peak-end rule at play in this reading. The Gospel writer John had 33 years’ worth of Jesus’ life as content to write about. Yet, John dedicated five whole chapters or 25% of his Gospel to one evening of Jesus’ life. In today’s Gospel reading, we heard about this evening of the Last Supper on Holy Thursday.
Think of the peak moment. Here, John is the youngest guy at the table, about ready to break bread with the man John thinks the world of and worships, and what happens? Jesus bends down and serves John by washing John’s feet. I think John would have rated that moment a 10. So, that may be a peak moment for John.
What about the end? We tend to value someone’s last words or the words they speak at the end of their life. The last words of dying people are usually a pretty good indication of what’s in their hearts (final requests, final warnings, philosophies of life, etc.). In today’s Gospel, Jesus is speaking just a matter of hours before he is to die, what is essentially his last will and testament to his disciples. Jesus speaks of the things that are most important to him, the things he values that he wants to leave behind to those whom he cares about the most.

These are words of love. This is the capstone to the legacy of love Jesus has been building during his time with his disciples. He says, “I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another. This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”Jesus knows human psychology and human nature well. Jesus knew this was his last evening before dying. Jesus wanted John to remember and emphasize the legacy of love he left behind when he died. Jesus was a master of the moment, and he still is today.

We’ve seen how the peak-end rule impacted the Gospel of Jesus Christ According to John. Now, how will this peak-end rule impact the Gospel of You According to Jesus Christ? When it comes to the good news of each of our lives here on earth, what will Jesus focus on and emphasize? What will the Gospel of You According to Jesus Christ be? When Jesus looks at each of our own lives here on earth, what moments of our lives will have special meaning for him and what will be his particular manner of telling the story about our lives, and what significance will he find in our lives of how we’ve shared in his cross and resurrection? Jesus said the way we love others will be how it’s clear who his disciples really are. But, when we love others, we aren’t just loving others, of course, we are actually loving Jesus.

In Matthew 25, verse 35, Jesus begins telling us that when we feed others who are hungry, give drink to those who are thirsty, welcome the stranger, give clothing to those who are naked, care for the ill, and visit the imprisoned, we are doing so for him. I believe these moments in our lives where we have shown love for others and Jesus will be the peak moments of our lives for Jesus. In these moments, Jesus, who thinks the world of us, gets to experience us bowing down to serve him in the same way he has served us.

But what about those extremely low moments of our lives? How will Jesus remember those low moments of our lives? The good news is that we don’t need to spend a bunch of time worrying about the low moments of our lives being remembered or focused on in the end by Jesus. Pope Francis said God forgets our sins that we have been absolved of during Confession. These low moments of our lives that we tend to allow to occupy a lot of real estate in our minds, that we tend to ruminate on, and that we are tempted to let define us, once we’ve confessed them and we’ve been absolved of them, God has already forgotten them. Jesus wants our Gospel to be like his Gospel, free from any sight of sin. Jesus wants our Gospel to be like his Gospel, with us being moment makers who are building a legacy of love.



One way we can determine the type of legacy we are building is to take a look at what we are focused on in each moment and to ask ourselves if we are being more like Jesus or more like Judas. In any given moment, are we focused on being givers or being takers? We saw both of these roles played out on Holy Thursday evening in John’s Gospel. Jesus gave a foot washing. Judas took the foot washing. Jesus gave the food at the Last Supper. Judas took the food and took off to betray Jesus. Jesus prepared to give his life out of love for us. Judas took the money and betrayed Jesus. When Judas took off to go betray Jesus, Jesus says something odd. Did you catch that in today’s Gospel reading?

We heard the following verse in today’s Gospel reading: “When Judas had left them, Jesus said, “Now is the Son of Man glorified.” Most theologians interpret this to mean that the decisive act has been done. Now, that Judas has left the last supper, everything has been set into motion for Jesus’ betrayal, mock trial, beating, crucifixion, resurrection, and his glorious coronation in heaven.

But I think there is something more to this. Now, that Judas has left, the only disciples who were left surrounding Jesus were disciples who ultimately were givers; people who ultimately were prepared to give their lives out of love for Jesus. These are all people who would glorify Jesus with their lives.

When we disciples today, like those disciples at the Last Supper, receive the food of Jesus’ body in the Eucharist, we have the master of the moment, the one who John tells us is love, residing within us. So, all we have to do is share with others the love which we have received. To love means to give, not only something material but also something of oneself: one’s own time, one’s friendship, one’s abilities. Jesus is interested in doing something still here today and he is inviting us to be a part of it. Jesus knows that we too are moment makers. In the ordinary moments of our day, we have the opportunity to help make heaven and earth come a little bit closer for us and others.

When someone walks away from an interaction with us, do they have something they didn’t have before their encounter with us? Jesus wants others to walk away from us with a smile, a little more joy, a greater sense of peace, and more strength to endure their suffering than they had before. Jesus wants us to give to others a lifelong gift, a love that transcends this world.

This is how we build a legacy of love: one moment at a time. And about those two moments from your life that will make a lasting legacy, who knows, maybe you could make one of these moments today.

5th Sunday of Easter Cycle C – May 15, 2022
Mass Readings:
Reading 1: Acts 14:21-27
Psalm: Ps 145:8-9, 10-11, 12-13
Reading 2: Rev 21:1-5a
Gospel: Jn 13:31-33a, 34-35

Jesus said, “Woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation.” (Doing the sign of the cross and looking up to heaven) Whoa, Jesus, do I seriously have to preach on this? There are people here looking at me who are rich. Could you please help me out here with what to say to them? Amen.

Jesus said, “Woe to you who are filled now, for you will be hungry.” (Doing the sign of the cross and looking up to heaven) Um, Jesus. It’s me again. There are people here who had a big meal before coming here and are filled now. Are you sure woe to them is the message you want them to hear? Amen.

Jesus said, “Woe to you who laugh now, for you will grieve and weep.” (Doing the sign of the cross and looking up to heaven) Jesus, this is getting really awkward here. There are people here who have been laughing at comedies on Netflix and funny videos on YouTube this weekend. Any help you could provide me on what to say to them would be great. Amen.

And Jesus said, “Woe to you when all speak well of you, for their ancestors treated the false prophets in this way.” (Doing the sign of the cross and looking to heaven) Jesus, there are many here who people speak well of and who are well respected. What should I say to them? Amen.

Whenever there are teachings of Jesus and his church like these woes from today’s Gospel that are tough for us to hear because they make us uncomfortable with the way we are living our lives, or that we are frustrated by, or that we simply don’t understand, it is tempting to ignore them, call them ridiculous, or be dismissive of them in some other way. These woes are pointing out four areas that Jesus thinks can be spiritually dangerous. Instead of being dismissive of these tough teachings, Jesus wants us to wrestle with them, to try to understand them from his perspective, and to see them through his eyes.

With this being World Marriage Week, with World Marriage Day being today, and St. Valentine’s Day being just a day away, let’s try looking at these woes Jesus spoke of through the lens of love and from the perspective of the one who is love.

When I say through the lens of love, I want to be more specific. By a show of hands, has anyone ever heard of the book The Five Love Languages by Dr. Gary Chapman? Okay, some of you have heard of it and some have not. For those of you who have not heard of it, let me provide a quick description that may also serve as a refresher for those of us who read the book a long time ago. The author says that there are five main love languages or ways we feel loved and can show our love to others.

The first love language is physical touch such as a handshake, hug, or kiss.

The second love language is words of affirmation such as telling someone you like their haircut or telling them they did a good job.

The third love language is gifts such as giving someone flowers or a box of chocolates.

The fourth love language is acts of service such as washing the dishes for someone or making a meal for them.

The fifth love language is quality time such as talking with someone and giving them your undivided attention.

Out of these five love languages, the author says that each of us humans has a primary love language, meaning that one of these love languages is the primary way that we feel most loved. The author goes on to say that whatever our primary love language is, that is the default love language that we use when trying to express our love to someone else. This can cause some frustration and misunderstanding in a relationship. For example, when a newlywed husband is focused completely on physical touch and his wife is thinking to herself, “would this guy just do the dishes?” Alright, enough about me and my life.

What do you think Jesus’ primary love language is? … Any guesses? As I was reflecting on today’s Gospel reading and trying to understand the woes Jesus talks about, I think I discovered the answer. I think Jesus’ primary love language is acts of service (pointing to the crucifix).

In the Gospel of John, Jesus says, “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus says, “the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as ransom for many.” To try to understand the woes Jesus is talking about, let us look at them the way someone who has the primary love language of acts of service might look at them.

“Woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation.” Okay, here’s how much Jesus valued money: He entrusted the money bag that was to take care of the financial needs of Jesus and the apostles … to a thief. It’s not so much what you’ve been given as it is what you do with it. In the verse that immediately proceeds today’s Gospel reading, we are told that Judas was selected as an apostle. Judas was there and when Jesus said “woe to you who are rich,” Judas heard these words, but he didn’t listen to them. This is the same Judas who was probably the richest apostle. The way he got the riches and maintained this status of being rich was by stealing and selling out Jesus for 30 pieces of silver. If you took $30 and you bought a University of Toledo hoodie and you gave it to someone you see at a street corner asking for help, the reality is this makes you $30 less rich. This sacrifice to clothe someone in need of clothing delights Jesus, the one who was stripped of his clothing and hung upon the cross naked.

“Woe to you who are filled now, for you will be hungry.” Bishop Fulton Sheen said there are two philosophies of life. The pagan philosophy of first the feast, then the fast. Then there’s the Christian philosophy of first the fast, then the feast. It’s when we’re hungry that we most appreciate food. As Jesus hung upon the cross, he was not filled, yet over the last 2,000 years, Jesus has made a meal for millions. The more empty space we create for him, the more Jesus can fill it.

Jesus said, “Woe to you who laugh now, for you will grieve and weep.” Here, I am thinking of a King who has his court jester making him laugh while he is oblivious to the suffering of his people right outside the walls. Or bringing it a little closer to home, I am thinking of the person who is laughing at a funny show on Netflix or a funny video on YouTube, instead of tending to the emotional needs of a loved one who is sad, depressed, or suffering possibly near death in a hospital or nursing home or right within their own home. When we pause the laughing and hit the play button on tending to the emotional needs of those we love and care for, that makes Jesus happy. Remember, many of those who loved and cared for Jesus weren’t there for him during his darkest hour. As he hung upon the cross, the vast majority of the apostles were someplace else they presumably deemed way less sad.

Jesus said, “Woe to you when all speak well of you, for their ancestors treated the false prophets in this way.” Having our reputation and people speaking well of us as our primary focus for our decision-making is very dangerous spiritually. There are all kinds of ungodliness we do for the sake of people speaking well of us. There are times when we are faced with a decision of either telling people the truth or telling them what they want to hear. If people speak well of us because we tell them the lie they want to hear, woe to us. There are times when the popular thing to do at the table is not to give thanks to God for the food in front of us. There are times when the popular thing to do is to go to the sporting event and skip Mass. When we sacrifice what makes us popular for doing what is right, Jesus delights in these acts of service.

If you want a picture of the most blessed person who has ever walked the earth, this is it (pointing to Jesus on the cross). As Jesus hung upon the cross, he was not rich in the world’s eyes as he had no money. As Jesus hung upon the cross, he was not filled as he was hungry. As Jesus hung upon the cross, he was not laughing. As Jesus hung upon the cross, they were not speaking well of him, they jeered at him and reviled him.

Why? Because this great act of service is how Jesus shows his love for you. Friends, today, Jesus says these words to each one of us: “I have shown you how much I love you with the ultimate act of service (pointing to Jesus on the cross). Love me and one another the way I have loved you.” Now, how will you respond to this love that has been given to you?

6th Sunday in Ordinary Time Cycle C – February 13, 2022
Mass Readings:
Reading 1: Jer 17:5-8
Psalm: Ps 1:1-2, 3, 4 and 6
Reading 2: 1 Cor 15:12, 16-20
Gospel: Lk 6:17, 20-26