six::seven

(A Homily for the Celebration of the Eucharist)

The fear and the love of the Lord produce union. Fearing God focuses our intentions, our direction toward the will of the Lord. The love we have for God, a love empowered by the Holy Spirit, brings about union in our persons, choreographing a beautiful, improvised dance between our heart, soul, mind and strength. All of our parts are brought into harmony and wholeness. We then, like Tobias (though, certainly his cultural inheritance and practice appears odd to us), will learn to seek our direction not out of lust or pride or jealousy, but with noble purpose. We shall be wed to the Kingdom. We shall love our neighbor as ourself, seeing Christ in them, the same image of God that is in us.

At this table we learn fear and love. We see Christ's heart in his sacrifice, his commending of his spirit to the Father, his unity of will, and his broken strength. And we see him raised in glory. Here, again, the Holy Spirit comes among us, bringing us together in the likeness of the love experienced in the Trinity. We are made whole in ourselves, and even more whole as we are united with one another in the sharing of the body and blood of Christ. So, let us seek and pray to be brought further into the fear and love of God, to experience union in ourselves, with one another, and, above all, with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, One God forever and ever. Amen.

(Tobit 6:10-11, 7:1, 9-17, 8:4-9, Psalm 128, Mark 12:28-34)