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Making Room at Our Table

This is a summary of a Fr. Gerry Creedon homily delivered at St. Charles on August 22, 2004

TODAY'S HEADLINES REPORT A MILLION and a half people displaced in Sudan, 50, 000 people killed in genocidal violence, over a thousand Americans dead in Iraq and uncountable Iraqis. Yet the banner headlines report the presidential campaign's concern about what the president and his opponent did or did not do in Vietnam 30 years ago. Only our ailing pontiff raises the ethical questions about our planet's pain and priorities.

The Gospel by contrast promises a world where "people come from east and west from north and south and will recline at table in the kingdom of God. For behold, some are last will be first, and some are first who will be last." Isaiah writes, "I come to gather the nations of every language. They shall come and see my glory."

The vision and the reality are far apart. In the gap the Church continues to give signs of the promised kingdom.

One of my nightmares over the past years has been that we would build a Parish Community center for $5 million and not use it! I was delighted to see a reception after a funeral for a Latin American family on Friday and another reception for a Filipino style wedding party on Saturday. When the variety of God's people come together at the Community Center, we experience the presence of the kingdom, just as surely as we feel the presence of the lord at the altar table.

No Boundaries

Like the organization Médicins sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders), we are a parish that knows no boundary. When I was leaving Ireland last week, my sister Teresa handed me a check for 200 Euros. I wondered how many Masses she needed said, when she clarified, "This is for my Haiti Godchild." She had visited St. Charles a few years ago and found herself linked to a child in Cavaillon, Haiti, whom she may never see. Today we invite others to join us in strengthening and expanding our effort to sponsor education for needy children.

To set this program in a context, I ask you to recall the recent news about a boatload of refugees from the Dominican Republic who never reached Puerto Rico. They were fleeing form the island of Hispaniola, which they share with Haiti. The price of rice has doubled as inflation causes distress. Their engine broke down. The captain went off in another boat promising to rescue them. He never returned. About half of these Dominicans survived to tell the tale. A lactating mother nourished 12 people before she died. One wonders what desperation drives people to risk their lives on these yolas. The Dominican Republic has a much stronger economy than Haiti. One can only imagine what the situation is like for Haiti's children.

Over 300 children receive an education and a daily meal thanks to the families of St Charles. This year we want to support 400 children.

As a parish we cannot solve the political and economic problems of an anguished world, but we can make a difference in Gros Marin and Cavaillon.

We work for the day when all of God's children will have a place at the table.

  or  2004 Homilies