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Fr. Gerry Creedon's homily delivered at St. Charles on April 14, 2002
[first words lost on tape recording]...the two disciples on the road to Emaus reacted in shock, disbelief and sadness. They were downcast. Confronted by the violence of the cross their hope was destroyed.
Jerusalem Violence: Reliving the Crucifixion
What are the things that are happening in Jerusalem these days? Violence. Many crucifixions. Even the Church of the Nativity has not been spared. What kind of reaction does it cause? Conflict, confusion and partisan division. To me the violence that afflicts the lands where Jesus walked provides a demonstration to our world of the futility of violence. For months now we've seen an ever-intensifying cycle of violence--tit for tat.
Do we make distinctions between kinds of violence? Is the violence of a homemade bombs or the violence of a tank that we paid for different types of violence? Is one justifiable, the other not? There needs to be a recognition that all of the forms of violence, whether it is in Palestinian villages or Jerusalem itself, are no answer. Violence is violence whether Israelis are killed or Palestinians. It's the cross, the reliving of crucifixion for individuals, for families for communities. We need to learn alternatives to violence to solve problems of injustice. Let's hope and pray that the conversations and consultations that occur this week may open a path. Our presidents were able to meet with the leaders of Russia and of China, traditional evil empires, and open up a détente. Let us pray for the miracle of negotiation and reconciliation.
Sexual Abuse is a Form of Psychological and Physical Violence
The abuse of children and minors within our church is the other news story. Sexual abuse is a form of psychological and physical violence. People of faith who live beneath the shadow of the cross need to join with those two disciples on the road to Emaus and reflect deeply on all of these things that are happening in Jerusalem and in our own country.
The Mystery of the Cross: Then, and Now
Let us reflect on in the company of the stranger, who is with us even when we do not know. The season of Easter is a time for us to ponder the mystery of the cross, then and now. In that pondering we need to follow the same path as the disciples. They placed "these things that have come to pass" in the light of the scriptures. As the stranger interpreted for the two disciples, their hearts were transformed by the Word. Confusion, despair, sadness and anger were dispelled. Their hearts burned as they heard anew the story that gave meaning and life and hope. Yet, it was only when He broke bread with them that their eyes were truly opened. They recognized the stranger as the one who would indeed redeem Israel in ways they had never dreamt.
And so we come out of our violent world, out of our church that struggles and we place ourselves under the Word. Then we come to the altar, to the table of the Lord, to find a bread that will sustain our hope. For we are a people who are nourished by the Word and are renewed in the bread of life. There is no other who will redeem us, just the stranger, Jesus. Let us ask him to stay with us.
* * *
or 2002
Homilies
Revised/reviewed April 30, 2002