Brothers and sisters: We do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses. We have one who is like us in all things but sin. Today, I’d like to share how Jesus desires to sympathize with us, how he came to this world to suffer, to be mocked, to be scourged, to be nailed to a crucifix, so that he could relate to us. So that we in our sufferings could understand that we have a God who has been through everything that we have been through. We have a God who is compassionate, a God who is loving. That is the part of Jesus that I would like to focus on today.
C.S. Lewis, who was one of the great writers of our time said, “Friendship is born at the moment when one person says to another, ‘What you too? I thought I was the only one.’” When we encounter someone else that has been through something that we have been through, it takes away the isolation. When we reach that moment where we discover a friend who can look us in the eyes and say, “Me too”, we will discover the compassion of Christ. We can also experience the compassion of Christ personally, that Jesus wants to relate to each and every one of us and have us share our sufferings with him. And he can say, ‘you know what, I’ve been through that too. I know what it’s like.’
We do not have a God who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses. Now, he does this primarily in the Sacraments. When we celebrate the Eucharist today, he’s gathering us all together, this body of Christ. And he’s giving us his very Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity so that we can carry him in us. He is with you no matter what you are going through in your life and in the world. As you leave these doors today, he’s present in this Body of Christ, this community of believers. And so, when we greet each other at the sign of peace we’re offering the peace of Jesus to each other. When we celebrate after mass, even if it’s donut Sunday and we spend time with each other, we’re being compassionate to one another. We’re sharing our lives with one another.
I think one of the most beautiful ways that he is present to us and compassionate with us is in the Sacrament of Confession. One of the things I love most about being a priest is being able to be there in the Sacrament to hear the struggles that people are going through, to hear the shame and to be able to look at them with great love and offer them the mercy and the compassion of God. Anointing of the sick is another Sacrament where we encounter him. As the priest lays hands on the person, anoints their forehead and the palms of their hands, Jesus is being with you in your weakness. He is the high priest who is without sin. I’m a low priest who is with sin. But because of that, it allows me to be compassionate, because I know what it’s like to struggle with sin. I know what it’s like to go to my own spiritual director and to lay out before him everything in my life. I know what it’s like to go to confession, to have that terror of bringing up that sin that you don’t want to bring up. And to experience nothing but unconditional love from the priest before you.
I hope I can be that priest for you, a priest that can relate to you. I hope I can be the priest for you always that you will find compassion every time that you come to confession. Every time as you’re leaving after mass, if you ever want to just share what’s going on in your life, if you ever want to make an appointment just to come and see me, I promise you that you will receive a compassionate ear. Another thing I really love about Priesthood is counseling, spiritual direction, with people one-on-one and just allowing you to realize the compassion of Christ through me, his lowly priest.
Another very serious Theologian in our day, Winnie the Pooh, has this to say: “A friend is someone who helps you up when you’re down. And if they can’t help you up, they lay down beside you and listen.” I don’t really talk about my father that often because he’s more of a private man. But I’m sure many of you know by now that he’s not doing well. He’s losing his ability to walk. My father growing up was such a figure of strength. He was an engineer and he knew how to do everything. He put additions on our house, he rebuilt cars with us. And because of that as I was growing up, I learned that I could do anything. I could just tear something apart and rebuild it. If it was broken and if I couldn’t put it back together, I could just say “Dad”. And he would come and he would help me put it back together.
And now it’s a complete reversal of roles, where he is weak, and he’s not able to do the things that he once did. I think my siblings and I are grieving that loss of who my father was. And then that quote from Winnie the Pooh, that if you can’t help someone you simply lie down and listen to them. I walked into the hospital room one day and one of my sisters was lying in the bed with my father holding his hand. And that’s all we can do right now is just hold his hand. I want to fix him and I’ve not been able to fix him. And it’s a difficult thing. But compassion is not fixing each other. Compassion is just being there with each other, taking each other by the hand and saying, “You too? I thought I was the only one”.
As we celebrate the Sacrament today and receive Jesus in the Eucharist, he desires to be with us. We hear in Psalm 23, ‘The Lord is my shepherd there is nothing I shall want. In verdant pastures he makes me lie down.’ And so, Jesus lies down with us in the pasture. He brings us rest. He brings us healing; he brings us comfort.
Everything that we do at the parish here too, all the different activities are all for each and every one of us to come to know each other, so that we can be compassionate friends on the journey. Our Tuesday night teachings are especially a time dedicated to some aspect of our faith. We can just come together throughout the week and share. Think about the James Taylor song: “You just call out my name and you know wherever I am, I’ll come running.” I want to be that priest for you. But here’s the interesting thing. I haven’t learned how to read minds yet. So, if you do want me to journey with you, all it takes is an invitation. Talk to me after Mass. The crowd after about 5 minutes, everybody’s gone. I’m free or you can message me. You can e-mail me. You can get me online. You could do social media.
Whatever you feel comfortable with as a way to let me know, if you need compassion just know that I would love to be that for you. Probably each and every one of us, in life, has experienced both sides of compassion. We probably all experience difficult times where someone else has been through something we’ve been through, and we relate to. And we’ve probably been on the other side as well, where somebody is struggling and suffering and because of what we’ve been through in life we’re able to be compassionate to them.
Realize that everybody in this church in their own way carries hurt. Everybody needs Jesus’ compassion. Everybody needs his healing. When we go out into the world, we become his love and his compassion for others. Sometimes it’s as simple as just listening. Sometimes it’s as simple as just giving somebody a big hug, whatever it may be, so that people know that they are loved, so that the people know that they have a compassionate high priest who is sympathetic with their weakness.
