SPEAKER_01: Hello, everyone, and welcome to Heart of the Homily Podcast.
SPEAKER_01: I'm Michelle Lopez, one of your hosts.
SPEAKER_01: I'm here with Father Rigoa, our pastor and host.
SPEAKER_01: Welcome, Father.
SPEAKER_00: How are you doing, Michelle?
SPEAKER_01: Good.
SPEAKER_01: Doing good.
SPEAKER_01: Good and busy week.
SPEAKER_00: Busy week.
SPEAKER_00: We're on a Wednesday.
SPEAKER_00: I don't think we've ever done it on Wednesday.
SPEAKER_00: I don't think so.
SPEAKER_00: It feels a little weird.
SPEAKER_00: It does feel weird.
SPEAKER_00: Um, but with my teaching schedule and all the craziness, uh, when this semester is over, we'll go back to Mondays.
SPEAKER_00: Uh, I think people like Mondays.
SPEAKER_00: I like Mondays.
SPEAKER_00: I don't know about you.
SPEAKER_01: I think Monday's great.
SPEAKER_01: It's it's still fresh.
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it's still fresh.
SPEAKER_01: Um so we'll see how we do today.
SPEAKER_01: Maybe it's gonna be like never again.
SPEAKER_01: It's gone.
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
SPEAKER_00: But I have to say, this homily this week resonated with a lot of people.
SPEAKER_01: It did.
SPEAKER_00: I got a lot of feedback and it was uh funny.
SPEAKER_00: Somebody after the noon mass was in in there in the pews and they said they they were like, yes, amen.
SPEAKER_00: And they wanted to applaud.
SPEAKER_00: They were like, but then nobody else applauded.
SPEAKER_00: Which I don't like.
SPEAKER_01: I don't like people were at your teaching mass, Father.
SPEAKER_01: Well, exactly.
SPEAKER_01: I tell them I don't like two weeks ago at that teaching mass, he mentioned not liking applaud.
SPEAKER_01: So everyone's probably like, shh.
SPEAKER_00: Exactly right.
SPEAKER_00: You didn't go to that teaching mass.
SPEAKER_00: You're not allowed, you're not allowed to applaud.
SPEAKER_00: But it did, it resonated with a lot of people.
SPEAKER_01: It did.
SPEAKER_00: Isn't that amazing?
SPEAKER_01: Praise God.
SPEAKER_01: Um, I think you really did a wonderful job of opening up the imagery of salt, light in a city on a mountain in like a new way.
SPEAKER_01: So and actually, before we get into it, let me go ahead and the gospel is short, so I'll I'll read.
SPEAKER_01: It's um from the Gospel of Matthew, chapter five, verses 13 to 16.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus said to his disciples, You are the salt of the earth, but if salt loses its taste, with what can it be seasoned?
SPEAKER_01: It is no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.
SPEAKER_01: You are the light of the world.
SPEAKER_01: A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden, nor do they light a lamp and put it under a bushel basket.
SPEAKER_01: It is set on a lampstand where it gives light to the whole house, just so your light must shine before others, that they may see our good deeds and glorify your heavenly father.
SPEAKER_01: So it's a very familiar passage.
SPEAKER_01: Um that you, you know, see them bumper stickers and shirts and stuff.
SPEAKER_01: But the way that you opened it up, Father, was really uh, I think striking.
SPEAKER_00: Well, you know, I think that in a world that's obsessed with uh constructing identity, a world that tells you, oh, go out and and discover yourself.
SPEAKER_00: I wanted to drive the point home where Jesus is speaking to his disciples directly, and in turn he's speaking to us, saying, You, you sitting here listening to me are salt of the earth.
SPEAKER_00: Not maybe one day you will be, or someday you can achieve this, or whatever it is.
SPEAKER_00: No, he's saying you are.
SPEAKER_00: And and then he's not saying, and if you work hard enough, or if you um perhaps one day you can be light.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and it's actually actually interesting because from where it is in the gospel, just in the story, um, you know, the the the disciples aren't doing much, you know, like they're not they're not doing what's um, you know, it's not after Pentecost, it's not it's during this ministry teaching of the church, which I think again that's very profound that they're not doing so much, it's about becoming who they are.
SPEAKER_00: Right.
SPEAKER_00: It's that whole formation period.
SPEAKER_00: And I I think, you know, he's uh he's sitting on the mountain, and last week we heard the Beatitudes, and I love it because it's that whole role of student teacher or uh rabbi and and disciple.
SPEAKER_00: It's I'm here listening to the master teach me for me.
SPEAKER_00: And you're right, it's they've been traveling with him, they're listening to him, they're paying attention to everything that he's doing and how he reacts and how he responds and how he's healing people.
SPEAKER_00: And so one of the things that I said in the homily was imagine for yourself that you're listening to this for the first time.
SPEAKER_00: Like just like those first listeners.
SPEAKER_00: Um because before we can talk about mission, uh, we have to talk about identity.
SPEAKER_00: Right.
SPEAKER_00: And that's something that you've talked about.
SPEAKER_00: I think you teach that in your OCIA class.
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
SPEAKER_00: We have to we have to really set that foundation of who are you?
SPEAKER_00: Who do you who do you how do you understand who you are?
SPEAKER_00: And it goes right back to our baptism.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and that posture of receptivity and being taught and having a teachable heart is is first and always.
SPEAKER_01: It doesn't go anywhere, but in order to live mission, like there has to be that that openness of being formed.
SPEAKER_00: Right.
SPEAKER_00: And because mission, uh mission without identity becomes activism.
SPEAKER_00: Right?
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
SPEAKER_00: And identity without mission becomes self-absorption, and which I think a lot I think we're good at that.
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
SPEAKER_00: Right?
SPEAKER_01: Our fallen nature definitely tends to that.
SPEAKER_01: That's true.
SPEAKER_00: Um but one of the things that I was uh trying to drive home too was, and which I had a dinner last night with some parishioners, and and the dad was saying that he loved and he actually went on and did a little bit of research, but talking about salt and the importance of salt in the ancient world and how salt was essential.
SPEAKER_00: It was they didn't have refrigerators or how to keep meat or food uh fresh and and people could get sick on you know, so it was very important.
SPEAKER_00: So without salt, without salt, meat would rot quickly and decay.
SPEAKER_00: So and and also too, that little piece of uh of historical fact that the word salary comes from salt, right?
SPEAKER_00: So so Roman soldiers would would sometimes be paid in salt because that's how important salt was to the ancient world.
SPEAKER_00: It was a commodity.
SPEAKER_00: You wanted to keep your food fresh, you wanted to preserve.
SPEAKER_00: Um, and so that understanding when Jesus is saying, you are salt, and they would listen to that and say, Wow, that's that's a huge statement you just made.
SPEAKER_01: Right.
SPEAKER_00: You're saying that about me.
SPEAKER_01: And I think you unpacking even just what you just shared is radically different than how we think about salt today.
SPEAKER_01: You know, it's kind of like, oh, you are the shalt salt shaker.
SPEAKER_01: You know, like it's kind of like tossed to the side.
SPEAKER_01: It's not, it's important, yes, but like not what you're saying of like the salary and um really livelihood and preserving what is good and necessary for growth and survival.
SPEAKER_01: And survival.
SPEAKER_00: Right.
SPEAKER_00: And so um, you know, salt prevents decay, and that's one of the things that I was trying to to outline there.
SPEAKER_00: And we we have to think about well, what what is what around us is decaying, or possibly or has the possibility of decaying truth, marriage, um, human dignity, the respect for life, uh, religious seriousness, all those little areas that could uh fall into decay.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and the thinking about we're meant to preserve what is good in the world and like to per to preserve truth.
SPEAKER_01: I think it it calls us to know ourselves, like you were saying, but then also that the action, being able to actively pursue truth and pursue to preserve and to you know uphold and show others what is good, true, and beautiful.
SPEAKER_00: Right.
SPEAKER_00: And and something that I think is true to to me, to you, to a lot of us is is this question of where is my faith bland?
SPEAKER_00: Or in the time different times of my life where faith has been bland, where where Jesus even saying, when that salt loses its taste, when it loses its purpose, it loses its its reason, it's not even good enough to to throw under your feet, right?
SPEAKER_00: Um and so that's the danger that we all have to ask ourselves where where and at what times in my life or even right now as we're speaking, is my faith just bland.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and I think about how does how do you get rid of salt?
SPEAKER_01: It's by watering, like kind of watering it down.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
SPEAKER_01: You know, like it loses its um power.
SPEAKER_01: And I think when we think about our faith, um, sometimes we can water things down to the point of like who it is, like we don't even remember who it is that we're following or compromise, right?
SPEAKER_01: Or compromise, absolutely.
SPEAKER_01: Um, and I think that's the exciting thing of the invitation of like our faith is made to be dynamic, something that grows as it's given away.
SPEAKER_01: And if we're settling for a boring life of faith, then like it's definitely not the right Jesus that we're following, you know.
SPEAKER_00: Like exactly, and you're not gonna inspire anyone.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
SPEAKER_01: And I think it's a great um truth to be able to say, like, okay, well, if it's meant to be thriving and dynamic, I shouldn't settle for anything less.
SPEAKER_01: And so I need to pursue truth, pursue goodness, and really be able to look at an an honest look at my life to see like the areas that need that salt to come back.
SPEAKER_00: Right.
SPEAKER_00: And then I think that that's where the transition is, where um salt preserves, but light reveals.
SPEAKER_00: And again, there's Jesus saying, you are light of the world.
SPEAKER_00: And at that time when uh in the ancient times, darkness was real.
SPEAKER_00: I don't know if you've ever been to somewhere where I've been to a couple places where maybe the light is out or and it's very, very dark, and maybe you want to go out for a walk.
SPEAKER_00: I know when I was living in Rome, there was like this one street that was like the light above wasn't on.
SPEAKER_00: And so I was like, um, I'm not gonna walk down that street.
SPEAKER_00: I'm gonna walk down this other street, right?
SPEAKER_00: So darkness is scary.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
SPEAKER_00: And it's real and it's total.
SPEAKER_00: And imagine living in an ancient world where there's no artificial light.
SPEAKER_00: No street posters, there's uh you can't just turn the light switch on at your house.
SPEAKER_00: I mean, it's when it's dark, it's dark, no ambient glow.
SPEAKER_00: Um and so it could be very scary.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I remember um I went to Mammoth Cave, which is like you go underground in the caves, and at one point they shut off the lights for you to experience how profound.
SPEAKER_00: Or you can't even see your hand in front of your face.
SPEAKER_01: Yes, and it's like, oh my gosh, it's it's very scary, very scary, and it's disorienting, like you kind of get a you can get lost.
SPEAKER_00: It's vulnerability, it's fear, it's disorienting.
SPEAKER_00: Darkness can be scary.
SPEAKER_00: Um, but when the light does come on, and one of the in one of the masses I said, uh, I didn't say it at the one that was taped, but I said, Have you ever hit the light switch on and cockroaches scattered?
SPEAKER_01: Um, yes, yeah.
SPEAKER_01: Miami all the time.
SPEAKER_00: Right, you know, palmetto bugs, I should have said.
SPEAKER_00: But um that's the whole thing.
SPEAKER_00: Light reveals, light is able to uh scatter the darkness.
SPEAKER_00: Um and light should guide us, it should reveal beauty, it um exposes corruption.
SPEAKER_00: And and I think that many times that's why light is resisted.
SPEAKER_00: It's uh it light can be uncomfortable to a lot of people.
SPEAKER_01: And I think with that too, when I think um, you know, Jesus' light, it can be like shockingly bright, but it's with mercy.
SPEAKER_01: And I I always like to remember that because it's like, you know, no one lants a spotlight on like their sin.
SPEAKER_01: You know, like but it's with it's and I think that's where the fear is is um because I remember really growing in this and I remember being able in my own like journey of faith asking the Lord, like, Lord, should like shine light in the areas of my heart that I need to grow.
SPEAKER_01: And that first I remember hearing people pray that and being like, I don't want to see anymore.
SPEAKER_01: You know, like wait a minute, don't show your light.
SPEAKER_01: Like, I've seen enough.
SPEAKER_01: But then like getting to a place of just a a great trust in what the light actually is.
SPEAKER_01: It's not to condemn, it's to save.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
SPEAKER_01: And then being able to be like, okay, well, that's that is what I want.
SPEAKER_01: I want more light in these areas that are darkness in my heart so that it can I can be healed.
SPEAKER_01: You know, you can't exactly right.
SPEAKER_01: And then I think about like, you know, going to the dentist or a surgery, you know, the light is essential to be able to highlight the areas that are decaying in the mouth, or for a surgery, like to be able to see what is actually um that needs the healing and that needs the the medicine.
SPEAKER_01: So light is a scary thing, but it's also a necessary thing if you are gonna be free.
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and there's so many aspects to that and so many ways to, like you said, really shine on those areas of your life that need attention, or um there's a little bit of darkness.
SPEAKER_00: But also, too, is how are you light to other people?
SPEAKER_00: And how is your presence, the your disposition, the way you treat others, the way you respond to something, where someone can say, wow, that's a beautiful person.
SPEAKER_00: Um, a lot of times we're so wrapped up in who we are, in our situations, our work, and it it we we think it's so important and that our job that sometimes we will mistreat other people, right?
SPEAKER_00: And uh, and they'll say something like, Wow, that that's a miserable person, or who do they think they are, or whatever it is.
SPEAKER_00: And these are just examples because I think all of us have fallen into that.
SPEAKER_00: And and to be able to say, Does my light shine on another person in a good way, or is it just not good light?
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, that's true.
SPEAKER_01: Because light, light's attractive and it's it's um and light is beautiful, like it brings beauty.
SPEAKER_01: And I think that's, you know, are we being able to follow Jesus in a way that people see the light of Christ like within us?
SPEAKER_01: Right.
SPEAKER_00: And that's the third one, or that's the another component too.
SPEAKER_00: Is my light, is my faith visible?
SPEAKER_00: Right.
SPEAKER_00: Um, where it is a physic intentionality that I'm being intentional about we're out at a restaurant, I'm gonna pray.
SPEAKER_00: I'm gonna say, okay, in the name of the Father, Son, grab our family members' hands, or there, I don't care if I'm in a restaurant, I'm gonna pray and give thanks to Almighty God.
SPEAKER_00: Um, is your faith visible?
SPEAKER_00: Right.
SPEAKER_00: And uh so it's all these different areas or all these area, all these uh uh ways of looking how we can be light or how light can help to dispel some of the darkness in our lives.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and you were mentioning also in your homily that um that light also reveals darkness, but also lessens evil's ability.
SPEAKER_00: Right, you know, and like I Yeah, because right, yeah, I agree with that because darkness doesn't negotiate with light.
SPEAKER_00: Right, light comes on.
SPEAKER_00: It loses right darkness will lose every time because uh light comes on and it retreats and it's attacked, right?
SPEAKER_00: And so and light prevails.
SPEAKER_00: Um and so I think that that that's important to understand how light works.
SPEAKER_00: And when you give your life to the Lord or when you commit to a more of a discipleship or or uh a faith life, that is where it really becomes super important.
SPEAKER_00: Because I think that on some level you're more conscious of being light, using light, shining light, spotting light on different areas in your life, whether it be through an examination of conscience where you're asking for more clarity, um, or in the sacrament of reconciliation, but light becomes very important, just like salt does, where salt is preserving and helping not to um extend corruption or um the decay that happens with even in our my our own family or in in society or whatever it is, but then light is essential when you're beginning to walk in the ways of the Lord in all those different aspects, like show me, Lord.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
SPEAKER_01: And even I think about like the Easter Vigil.
SPEAKER_01: I know we're going into Lent soon, but you know, the Easter vigil, um, the use of light being showing us that Christ's victory is just like that.
SPEAKER_01: Great analogy.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
SPEAKER_01: That it wins over darkness.
SPEAKER_01: And I think like we're supposed to live in a way that we shine light um to dispel the darkness, but also to like reveal again, like what is beautiful and true.
SPEAKER_01: And light also gives life.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
SPEAKER_00: Um and the third, so one of how I tried to uh spell it out in homily was so salt, light, and then a city on a hill.
SPEAKER_00: Because I think that Jesus says that you are that city on the hill.
SPEAKER_00: That's what you're meant to be.
SPEAKER_00: You're supposed to point people to God.
SPEAKER_00: Your life should be a beacon, it should be a pointer to you see my life, I love my life.
SPEAKER_00: I'm trying to admit my best to live a good life.
SPEAKER_00: I'm trying to do good, I'm trying to, and so it should say, well, why?
SPEAKER_00: Well, why is because I love Jesus and I love the Lord, I love the faith.
SPEAKER_00: And so people should be interested in that or see in you your Christian life and say, I want that, or I want to know this Jesus.
SPEAKER_00: And so that's where I think the city on a hill, because we we've been to different places and you see in those medieval towns or uh where they build a city up on a hill.
SPEAKER_00: Even Jerusalem.
SPEAKER_00: We were we were in Israel, right?
SPEAKER_00: And so when you're coming into Jerusalem, you see um the city up on a hill, um where it's a beacon.
SPEAKER_00: You know where you are, you can see it and say, okay, that's the direction I want to go to.
SPEAKER_00: And and that was before GPS, before maps and everything.
SPEAKER_00: You would look for a landmark that kind of can center you and get you where you needed to go.
SPEAKER_00: And um, so I love that where Jesus is saying, you are a city on a hill.
SPEAKER_00: And um, after this, I don't remember what mass it was, but a young student, I would say maybe in high school, asked me, how I didn't understand how I'm a city on a hill.
SPEAKER_00: Isn't that cool though?
SPEAKER_01: That's great.
SPEAKER_01: So honestly, to ask.
SPEAKER_00: But I I think that it's to be able to point people to God, your life should be able to point someone to God.
SPEAKER_01: And I I mean, being in uh Jerusalem and in the Holy Land, I remember thinking of that, but also with what we were saying about darkness and stuff too.
SPEAKER_01: Like back then, like that was I mean, that light stood out in an incredible way.
SPEAKER_01: And also could, again, reorient you into like the direction that you need to head and know kind of where you are and where you need to go.
SPEAKER_00: And be visible.
SPEAKER_01: And be visible.
SPEAKER_01: And I think that's looking at our Christian life, like how are we living in a way that people can see our life and see the direction that we're heading and could also like reorient them themselves to follow.
SPEAKER_00: You make a good point.
SPEAKER_00: I it it brings me to um if you think about the early church, you think of uh the martyrs, you think of monasticism, um, even how these monasteries would be built up on a hill.
SPEAKER_00: Um yeah, I think that that there's a lot of truth to that.
SPEAKER_00: How a hill or a monastery would shape civil civilization just by the way they the rule of life and how they live their life.
SPEAKER_00: Um, and so being visible is a very big part of how all that just comes together.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and from your humble, you were also mentioning how um Jesus is kind of telling us that our life is supposed to tell the world what is goodness, what is truth.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
SPEAKER_01: Like where is hope and where we're at.
SPEAKER_01: And I think that's again a huge invitation to um like that.
SPEAKER_01: We can s speak the gospel by the way that we live our life and it can draw people to know what is goodness, what truth is, what it means to hope.
SPEAKER_01: And I think about we've talked about a lot of times of just even like redemptive suffering, like that they can look to our life and know that we suffer even differently, you know, like we um we embrace trials differently, especially.
SPEAKER_00: Um 100%.
SPEAKER_00: And I and I what happens, I think, is that we are told constantly that faith is personal, keep it to yourself.
SPEAKER_00: You don't need to really share that with anyone, that that's yours.
SPEAKER_00: If you like it, cool, you know, go to your house or whatever.
SPEAKER_00: And that in in in in turn, religion is private, or that you don't really need to um impose your beliefs on anyone, which is wrong.
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, that's not what Christians do.
SPEAKER_00: That's not Jesus didn't climb the mountain to sit there and talk to his disciples to bring them in, to teach them, to form them, to inspire them privately.
SPEAKER_00: Right?
SPEAKER_00: You think about it, he's like, okay, let's do this, but um, this is just for you.
SPEAKER_00: And no, no, he's saying he's commissioning them to be public witnesses.
SPEAKER_00: And it wasn't to inspire them, it was to, I am, I am giving you um love, I'm giving you life, I'm giving you the roadmap, I'm giving you what you need to do in this world.
SPEAKER_00: And um, and I think that that's something to meditate on.
SPEAKER_00: What did Jesus come for?
SPEAKER_00: Not for you to have a Jesus in me spirituality.
SPEAKER_00: He He came, he's like talking this uh in out in that open field.
SPEAKER_00: Remember, we celebrated Mass there on the Sermon on the Mount, and it looks the same as when Jesus was there 2,000 years ago.
SPEAKER_00: They're they haven't built anything on that.
SPEAKER_00: And um, and and you could just imagine the thousands of people just sitting there listening to him and saying, Yeah, my faith can't be private.
SPEAKER_00: I need to be able to bring more people to know this truth.
SPEAKER_01: And it's the truth that is the best way to live.
SPEAKER_01: And I think that's the best way to live.
SPEAKER_01: Like what's being talked about to be salt, to be light, to be a city meant for others, like you know, what's being the invitation is to abundant life.
SPEAKER_00: Abundant life.
SPEAKER_01: And I think that's um I love the imagery because it's also saying like Jesus can only say that if that's us fully alive.
SPEAKER_01: You know, if what he's inviting us into is something that uh makes us fully human, makes us um yeah, that light pervades from you know, through us and for others.
SPEAKER_00: For others, think about it.
SPEAKER_00: It um something like a grassroots.
SPEAKER_00: You're sitting there in the grass.
SPEAKER_00: Maybe that's where it comes from, but this grassroots effort to um to go out because Christianity should never be just some background noise.
SPEAKER_00: It's gotta be Yeah.
SPEAKER_01: And it's gotta be lived in a way that it doesn't look like everyone else.
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and this is not national politics.
SPEAKER_00: We're not talking about politics here.
SPEAKER_00: We're talking about life, goodness, truth.
SPEAKER_01: And pursuing those things and not falling into comfort.
SPEAKER_01: Because I think that's the um the other part of this is it's calling us to be transformed, but then to go out, and it's it's not comfortable, you know, to it's not comfortable, but it it's it's it's about sharing some very hard truths.
SPEAKER_00: And we do this in marriage prep, and it's it's asking those hard questions.
SPEAKER_00: Well, how are you gonna raise your child?
SPEAKER_00: How are you gonna raise your children?
SPEAKER_00: How do you run your business?
SPEAKER_00: Right?
SPEAKER_00: How how do you give witness at your work or in um the people who you associate with, or how do you treat your employees?
SPEAKER_00: All of these things are are based on the teachings of Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: And what we do matters, which is a lot of uh also what you said in your homely that was I think really impactful is rec recognizing like the choices, the prayers that we do, what we do with our day in, day out, like every everything matters.
SPEAKER_01: Everything's wrapped up into this story of salvation that changes the world, you know.
SPEAKER_01: Right.
SPEAKER_01: And I think we live in a culture where it's like nothing matters.
SPEAKER_01: You do whatever you want because ultimately, like it doesn't matter what you do.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
SPEAKER_01: And it's such a lie that I think a lot of people like sometimes you don't even realize you struggle with it, but what I do matters.
SPEAKER_01: Like my choosing of vice or virtue actually impacts like the story.
SPEAKER_01: It impacts not just me, but the people around me, the world, the church.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
SPEAKER_00: It matters because every little thing that you do, you may not recognize it, you may not think so, but every little thing that you do, whether you're going to daily mass, whether you're saying a rosary, whether you're praying for someone, whether you're doing an act of love for someone, whether you're going to visit someone in the hospital, all those small small acts of love are pushing darkness away, right?
SPEAKER_00: So, like we talked about earlier, it's like the light comes on, it defeats darkness.
SPEAKER_00: It's not like, oh, light comes on.
SPEAKER_00: There's a little bit of darkness.
SPEAKER_00: No, there's not gonna be any darkness, right?
SPEAKER_00: Um, and so all those little small acts of love are going to, they're gonna de push darkness away.
SPEAKER_00: And I think that that's an important component when you begin to really want to um live discipleship.
SPEAKER_00: That those small, it does, because a lot of times people think that you gotta be doing all these heroic acts.
SPEAKER_00: The way to affect change or the way to really dispel darkness is it has to be on a grand scale.
SPEAKER_00: No, we're not talking about that.
SPEAKER_00: We're talking about small acts of love.
SPEAKER_00: And like you just said, it matters.
SPEAKER_00: Your behavior matters, how you live your life matters, how you raise your children, how you uh conduct your business, treat your employees, treat your spouse, uh, whatever it is, all of that matters.
SPEAKER_00: And we have to be good about it.
SPEAKER_00: Like I I said to I said in the homily, and actually someone wrote me this beautiful text message saying, you know, my heart um hurt for you when you said that you accuse yourself as well.
SPEAKER_00: And I do.
SPEAKER_00: I I we're talking about the world, but I have to, I have to look at my own life too, and and in in in the times that I haven't had the courage to talk truth, or where maybe my mistakes or my behavior, whatever, has contributed to darkness.
SPEAKER_00: And there have been times, right?
SPEAKER_00: And um, or the ugliness of this or that, um, or or just whatever it is that wasn't what Jesus is calling me to.
SPEAKER_00: So I recognize it in my own life, and I'm telling you that I see it.
SPEAKER_00: And so hopefully, a homily like this is um to really think about your day-to-day, your strengths, your weaknesses, how you uh perhaps some of the things that you do cause decay in your relationships and your life, and um, in the different aspects of your world.
SPEAKER_00: But everyone matters and and and what you do matters, and it affects all of us.
SPEAKER_00: It's not, we don't live in a vacuum.
SPEAKER_00: It's little small acts can start to dispel some of this darkness.
SPEAKER_01: And I think that was a powerful thing that you did share in your humbly father of just like bringing it down to like we we're all in the same boat, you know, like um that you and I both, right?
SPEAKER_01: And everyone that's listening, like we we're all um we all need to be striving.
SPEAKER_01: And that um, but the good news is that even this invitation is not to shame us, um, but to to save us.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
SPEAKER_01: And, you know, Jesus' demands and invitation is not to crush us, but to um to ignite us.
SPEAKER_01: And I like that you were kind of highlighting that.
SPEAKER_01: Um, because Jesus isn't, you know, telling us to be like, can you just uh try harder and like figure this out?
SPEAKER_01: Like figure crap out, you know?
SPEAKER_00: I'm saying you are, and and and that's the whole that's the good news.
SPEAKER_00: That's the good news of Jesus Christ, where it's it's to be able to say, no, no, he he's igniting me to be better, lighting that fire under me to be better.
SPEAKER_00: Um so I would just say and I challenged everyone.
SPEAKER_00: I said, This is your challenge for this week, and it's um to be salt.
SPEAKER_00: How do we, how are we salt?
SPEAKER_00: What does that mean?
SPEAKER_00: Right?
SPEAKER_00: Stop gossiping.
SPEAKER_00: Your salt right there.
SPEAKER_00: Protect your marriage, make it a priority, speak, be nicer in the way you speak to your spouse, do nice things, small acts of love.
SPEAKER_00: That's salt.
SPEAKER_00: Um defend those who are vulnerable, those who don't have a voice, those who are whatever it is, say no, you know, say something nice.
SPEAKER_00: And also, too, I think that being salt is is being a good steward of what God has given you financially, talent, time, being a good steward.
SPEAKER_00: I think that is salt.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, the preserving of goodness.
SPEAKER_00: Preserving of goodness.
SPEAKER_00: There you go, right there.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and being able to preserve it to be able to give it and to bless.
SPEAKER_00: Um and then I think light is speak truth gently but clearly.
SPEAKER_00: Engage people in conversation.
SPEAKER_00: A lot of families don't even talk anymore because it's all uh they're all at odds with each other.
SPEAKER_00: And I think that's bad.
SPEAKER_00: I think that we should engage each other, but not with a fire hose in your hand.
SPEAKER_00: Speak truth, what you feel in your heart.
SPEAKER_00: Say, this is what I feel in my heart, this is wow, but with gentleness, but with clarity.
SPEAKER_00: And then the way that we're light also is live sacramentally, celebrate the sacraments, let the world know that the sacraments are your life.
SPEAKER_00: It's it's who you are, it's the foundation of everything that you do.
SPEAKER_00: And that's light.
SPEAKER_00: And then I would say another aspect of this, how you can be light, is pray publicly without being embarrassed.
SPEAKER_00: Pray with your spouse together at night without being embarrassed.
SPEAKER_00: Bring your children and gather them and say a prayer without being embarrassed.
SPEAKER_00: Really be bold, and that is like shining a light on goodness.
SPEAKER_00: Right?
SPEAKER_00: So you said it that salt preserves goodness, light shines on goodness.
SPEAKER_00: I want to, I want to show the world goodness, what goodness looks like, what be goodness in the sense of my behavior looks like.
SPEAKER_00: And then the last thing I would just say is how how can we be a city?
SPEAKER_00: And and just going back to that young kid who asked me that, which I was so proud of, and we we talked a little bit after mass, but to be part of a Catholic community.
SPEAKER_00: To be intentional about um Sunday Mass, be intentional about perhaps maybe doing something for Lent.
SPEAKER_00: Um and then support Catholic institutions.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and I like I like the community part because it makes sense when you think about a city.
SPEAKER_01: It's a city on a hill, not a a light.
SPEAKER_01: Right.
SPEAKER_01: Like many lights, you know, and so it shines brighter, it's easier to see, and then also to be able to know where to go.
SPEAKER_01: Um and so, Father, any last thoughts as we kind of wrap up our conversation um for today?
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I would just say that um I would say that the world needs more faithful Christians, and we have enough opinions, we have enough secret service Catholics, we have enough comfortable Christians, um, it needs luminous ones.
SPEAKER_00: Those Christians who and you've seen it, I've seen it.
SPEAKER_00: You see someone who is just in love with the Lord, who who is in love with goodness and wants to do the right thing and uh is generous and beautiful, there's a light that comes out from that person.
SPEAKER_00: I'm telling you, I've seen it a hundred times.
SPEAKER_00: But when you bring in your own self-absorbed life into any conversation, any gathering, people see that it's a darkness that's there, that it's it's obvious.
SPEAKER_00: You're so self-consumed, you're so in in this navel gazing that it doesn't allow you to shine.
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
SPEAKER_00: Right.
SPEAKER_00: And um, and to speak like we were talking about to speak truth.
SPEAKER_00: Uh, salt sometimes stinks, you know.
unknown: Yeah.
SPEAKER_00: Um and then a city needs to be visible where our community needs to be visible.
SPEAKER_00: And it's not enough just to come to Mass on Sundays.
SPEAKER_00: It's it's it's a call for you to be more involved.
SPEAKER_00: There's lots to do, there's lots of opportunities to be involved at St.
SPEAKER_00: A's.
SPEAKER_00: Um, and even on your own with the different apps we're we're we're partnering with the Halo app now and uh so many, so many opportunities.
SPEAKER_00: I had um uh a young couple that I'll be marrying soon.
SPEAKER_00: They're they're living in New York and uh they're from Miami, and they said, we signed up for the Halo app for Lent.
SPEAKER_00: Can you tell us a little bit about uh about the Halo app?
SPEAKER_00: I said, Well, go slow.
SPEAKER_00: There's actually an introductory kind of uh component to the Halo app, but do the Lenten challenge, which is very cool.
SPEAKER_02: So good.
SPEAKER_00: But that's it, that's part of it.
SPEAKER_00: Why?
SPEAKER_00: Because Jesus believes in you and He dies and He desires you to be who you already are salt, light, a city on a hill.
SPEAKER_01: I love that.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus believes in us, he believes in you, believes in me.
SPEAKER_01: And I think that's something when we hear those words, he's um speaking truth over identity.
SPEAKER_01: And it's just become what is who you are, become what's already within you.
SPEAKER_00: This is who you are.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
SPEAKER_01: So we'll end on that.
SPEAKER_01: Thank you all for joining us.
SPEAKER_01: And um, we hope you have a wonderful week.
SPEAKER_00: We'll see you next week.
SPEAKER_00: God bless.