The people said of our Lord that he has done all things well,
and indeed in that very statement there is a recognition by the people
that this man is in some way unique and set aside from all the men.
And so we have reason this day to rejoice and to have confidence in the Lord and what he has done.
For if we were to ask what is the primary reason why mankind seems to get into trouble and to fall into sin,
it would be because of suffering, it would be because of trials and of tribulations
and the way we seek to escape them.
But we learn from today's reading that even our first parents,
created in the splendor of their original creation, were not exempt from trial.
For God, wishing to test his creatures, gave our first parents a trial,
and with their eyes fully opened, they failed that trial and fell into sin.
And so the Lord would promise that he would come in order to redeem us,
in order to win us back to God his Father, and so he has done so.
And this is precisely why the Lord works many of the miracles,
curing of diseases, curing of blindness, and all such things.
For before the fall of our first parents, these would not have been the lot of men.
And so God even permits these things in order to remind us by the pain they cause of our sinfulness,
for they are the effects of original sin.
Often our physical illnesses are not necessarily a result of our personal sins,
but many times they are also the result of our personal sins.
But the key is to understand how to overcome them and how to overcome death,
and that is in Jesus Christ.
For we know full well from human analogies how important it is to have a good captain to steer a ship.
For when the waves of trials and tribulation come over the ocean,
without a good captain, we know the ship will be cast into the cliffs,
into the rocks, and be shattered and destroyed.
And so it is with the human soul.
If it is not guided by the good captain,
then it too ultimately will be destroyed.
And so we must ask the question,
what is the good captain, or more precisely,
who is the good captain for the human soul?
It can be none other than Jesus Christ,
and most especially of his teachings.
Indeed, there is no hope for the human soul
outside of the teachings of Jesus Christ.
If he is not the captain of our ship,
that is of our soul,
then we are doomed to destruction,
and we are doomed to suffer the eternal fires of hell.
And so, we have much to rejoice,
for the Lord in working miracles proves emphatically
that he is different and unique amongst all the men's.
And so, we must not seek a Messiah outside of Jesus Christ.
For if we ask the simple question,
who amongst men has the power to cast out demons,
to cure illnesses,
the answer is always and emphatically,
no one save Jesus Christ.
And that is why St. Alphonsus de Liguori points out
that any miracle that is claimed to have been worked
outside of the Catholic Church
is only that,
a miracle by appearance,
and ultimately,
it is, as it were,
a deception of the serpent himself.
For St. Alphonsus points out
that Christ cannot witness to error,
and so he cannot work miracles
outside of the context of the mystical body.
And so, all those claims of miracles
that are claimed by those who are outside of the mystical bodies
are either human deceptions because of a vivid imagination
or preternatural machinations of Satan himself.
For Christ cannot in any way witness to error
because it would be ultimately an attempt to annihilate himself.
And we know that that is impossible with God,
just as we know it is impossible for God
to annihilate the human soul
once it has been created.
For that soul has been created
for the highest of all goods.
That is,
it has been created to worship God.
And God cannot,
by the annihilation of that soul,
declare that he had made a mistake.
For if Christ were to annihilate the human person,
then he would be admitting a mistake.
It is sin,
our own free will,
that causes us to lose our souls.
It is nothing that Christ does.
For Christ does everything
in order to win us back to God, his Father.
And that ultimately means
to win us back to union with him
for all eternity in heaven.
And so,
let us be truly rejoice for this day.
For the Lord,
in declaring Ephata,
that is,
be opened,
has declared to us
that he is the way,
he is the truth,
and he is the life,
and he is the only one
that can remove the blindness of our sin.
And so,
we have much to rejoice,
but we have much to be sad for.
For the majority of the modern world
not only does not follow Christ,
but is not even seeking Christ.
And so,
they must come to know him,
they must come to love him,
they must come to serve him,
by seeing him known,
loved,
and served
by the members of his mystical body,
that is,
the Catholic Church.
And so,
let us strive always and everywhere
to seek,
always and everywhere
to follow the authentic teachings
of Jesus Christ,
so that letting those teachings
guide us,
we are really letting the Lord himself
guide us.
For the teachings of Christ,
for to follow his teachings,
are to be guided by him.
For there can be no separation
from Christ and his truth.
They are one in the same.
And so,
if we follow the Lord's teachings,
then we are truly being guided
by the good captain
in this veil of tears,
in this ocean of trials and tribulations.
And we are certain
of finding our salvations,
for he and he alone
can guide the ship of our souls
to the shores of eternity.
And so,
while we must suffer trials
and tribulations,
pains and sufferings
in this life,
if we do so in accord
with the teaching of Jesus Christ,
then we have nothing to fear.
For Christ has overcome death,
and indeed,
he has annihilated death
for those who follow him earnestly.
He has made death
a very entrance
into eternal life.
And so,
let us seek not
to please the men of this world.
Let us not seek
to please
those who set themselves up
as messiahs,
no matter who they may be,
no matter how nice
they may appear to be,
according to human standards.
But let us always strive
to judge things
according to the standards of God,
according to the truth
that Christ taught.
For he has taught us
very clearly
that he and he alone,
by his miracles,
can cure our physical ailments.
But most importantly,
he has taught us
in almost all his comfort
confrontations
with human sinners
that he is the one
who can declare
those most special words
to the human soul.
Go,
your sins have been forgiven
and sin no more.
And we cannot see,
we cannot,
as it were,
find forgiveness
for our sins
outside of Jesus Christ.
Indeed,
St. Alphonsus
de Liguori
points out
that if an adult
were to fall
into mortal sin
outside of the mystical
body of Christ,
that while theoretically
he could save his soul
by a perfect act
of contrition,
St. Alphonsus
points out
even a practicing member
of the mystical
body of Christ
can't be certain
of gaining that grace,
so how much more rare
it would be
outside of the mystical
body.
St. Alphonsus
says that soul
must at some point
in its life
be united
to the Catholic Church
and have their sins
truly forgiven.
for the forgiveness
of our sins
is not a matter
of our feelings
and emotions,
it is a matter
of Christ declaring
in the sacrament
of confession
that our sins
have been forgiven.
And so,
we who possess
these greatest
of God's gifts
have much to rejoice,
but we have much
to be sad for,
for we see very clearly
that there are not
many souls
flocking to the
sacramental life
of Christ
by which the soul
truly is uplifted,
but there are many souls
who are indeed
not only not flocking
to the sacramental life,
but are fleeing from it.
And so,
let us strive
to cooperate
with the mission
of Christ
and his most holy mother
so that souls
may turn
from their way of sin
into the life of grace
so that we may turn
from our sins
and always and everywhere
seek forgiveness
through the grace of God
in the sacramental life
that we have been
so blessed to receive.
And so,
let us always strive
like the saints
to recognize ourselves
as the greatest
among sinners
and as St. Francis
Assisi would say
of himself,
if God had given
to other more noble souls
the graces
that he gave
to this poor sinner,
they would have
exceeded him
in holiness
by leaps and bounds.
And so,
St. Francis recognized
how dependent he was
upon the works
of Jesus Christ,
upon the love
of Jesus Christ,
and upon the grace
of Jesus Christ.
let us always also
recognize that
by recognizing
that we are the greatest
among sinners
and so,
we have nothing
as it were
to hold over
our first parents
Adam and Eve
or over any other souls
for we too
have offended God
as all human beings
have offended God
save the blessed
Virgin Mary.
And so,
let us stay close
to her
who alone
can teach us
of the ways
of her son,
who alone
can give us
the grace
that she has
been entrusted
to give
to the entire
human race
so that all souls
may die
as children
of Mary.
For to not die
as a child
of Mary
is to sin
against the Holy Spirit
and ultimately
to lose the soul.
And so,
let us help
that mother
that she may
fulfill her
universal role
to become
the mother
of all mankind,
of all the redeemed,
of all sinners
in every pot
and in every nook
and cranny
of the land
that is
in the white houses
of all nations
and in the barrios
of all nations.
Wherever a soul
dwells,
let us pray
that the mother's
presence is there
so that that soul
may safely find
its way
to its eternal home
in heaven.
Amen.
Sous-titrage Société Radio-Canada
Sous-titrage Société Radio-Canada