From the Pastor

Welcome to today’s celebration of the Holy Mass on the Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time.

Why are we gathered here today?

It is because we are spiritually hungry for the Word of God; because we are spiritually hungry for Jesus’ Body and Blood in Holy Communion and His Teaching.

My Dear brothers and sisters

During today’s First Reading from the Book of Ezekiel, we learned that those who turn away from their wickedness by doing what is right, they will be saved. At the same time, those who were previously saved and who have turned away from their righteousness to commit sins, they will die for it. This is a very powerful message.

During today’s Second Reading, we heard that when we are of one mind, having the same love as Christ, there is encouragement in Christ. We find consolation during our tribulations. We share in the Spirit. We have compassion and sympathy for others. Our joy is complete in Christ.

During today’s reading from the Gospel of Matthew, we heard Jesus tell the story of the man who had two sons. The father asked one of his sons to go and work in the vineyard. His son said that he would not go but he changed his mind and he went. The second son said that he would go but he did not go. This holy reading from the Scriptures echoes the first reading. Some turn away from their righteousness to do evil while some turn from their evil ways to do righteousness.

The son who promised to go and work in the vineyard, but he did not go, he broke his promise. He was no different then God’s chosen people of the Old Testament who broke the Old Covenant. He was no different then the people within the Church today who break the new Covenant of God by turnings away from His righteous ways. He was no different then many Christians today who calling themselves Christian, but they have no relationship with God at all.

Jesus asked, “Which of the two did the will of his father?” Naturally, we all know that it is the one who obeyed. My friends we have to be men and women whose word is a good as a contract. Always we have to be righteous people, better Christians and put lot of effort to learn about the Will of God and His true Church. We have to literally take the Word of God.

My brothers and sisters, this week, let us take the time to reflect on all what has been mentioned. Let us ask ourselves, “Am I in complete obedience to the Will of God?”

In the parable of the laborers for the vineyard and also in the parable of the prodigal son, Jesus wants to stress the great Divine Mercy, so that we can take it as the model for our generosity and mercy.

My Dear brothers and sisters,

It is so easy to receive gifts, money, different things, and indeed we receive so much daily, in fact we have been receiving daily all of our life. But when it comes time to give, everyone becomes mean and possessive, and then generosity is given with restraint. This is not what Jesus teaches. He teaches all of us by His actions. He is the Giver of all gifts.

Jesus is teaching in the Gospel “give and you shall be given, be merciful and mercy will be shown to you;” so whatever you do for the least of my brothers will receive a reward. I assure you, you will always be rewarded for your generosity.

Whatever work we do in Jesus` kingdom will be repaid according to His mercy. Jesus forgave the thief on the cross who accepted Him as His savior and who asked Jesus to remember him when Jesus entered his kingdom. He received the great gift that virtuous men seek so eagerly and at such a cost with a simple act of faith and humility.

My friends, we should rejoice and be glad because of Jesus’ great mercy. He died on the cross to forgive everyone who comes to him with sincerity, asking pardon for their sins and with a desire to amend their lives. Jesus does not discriminate sinners. He died for them. He is the savior of the world. His job is to forgive and to save. He wants everyone to benefit from his mercy. He wants every one to be saved.

My Dear brothers and sisters the only condition for our salvation is humble repentance. Jesus is willing to save even those to whom the world condemns. He is the God of the outcast, the rejected, the poor, and the sinful who are desperately in need of conversion. For this reason Jesus calls everyone to be generous as He is generous, to help others as he helps everyone.

We have to share with others as much as we can, we have to pray for others especially people in need, our friends and enemies and for sinners who live far away from God and his commandments. We have to be good without measure, when we have to do something for someone remember that we are doing it for Jesus. When we see someone in need do not hesitate to help. Now we know that whatever we do for others, we are doing it for Jesus. We have to remember Jesus teaching: “love one another as I have loved you.”

My brothers and sisters in Christ,

Today we are entering a new Liturgical Season, one of penance and sacrifices. Together, we have gathered here to celebrate “Ash Wednesday,” the first of forty days of the Lenten Season that precedes Easter.

Today, on Ash Wednesday we start preparation for the joy of Easter that approaches.

Today we call upon the mercy of the Lord Jesus, asking Him for His blessings, forgiveness and best preparation during Lent for Easter.

During Lent, through the grace of God and the power of the Holy Spirit, we are going to prepare ourselves to celebrate the death and glorious Resurrection of Jesus Christ our Savior.

My dear brothers and sisters

As we heard during today’s First Reading from the Book of Joel, the Lord God calls upon us to return to Him with all our hearts, with fasting, weeping and mourning. To practice sincere repentance, the Lord God tells us to change our hearts. We are called to examine our most inner self, those evil ways that we have to let go, once and for always.

During today’s Second Reading from the Second Letter to the Corinthians, we heard St. Paul appealing to us on behalf of Jesus to be reconciled to God. God the Father sent His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to die for us on the cross. He who was without sin took our place and was treated as a sinner, so we might become righteous in the eyes of God. Now is the time for us to show our appreciation to the Lord God by walking in His righteousness so we may inherit the salvation that we have asked of Him and which He is granting to us through His infinite love and mercy.

How do we walk in righteousness?

Jesus answered that question during today’s Reading from the Gospel of Matthew.

It is not by continuing in our worldly ways. It is by embracing a spiritual mind so we may mature in Christ by the grace of God the Father and the power of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus warns us against hypocrisy, our piety must manifest private time between the Lord God and ourselves. We must walk with Christ in our lives every minute of the day, from the time we rise in the morning until the time we go to bed at night.

My friends

The church asks us today, at the beginning of Lent to renew our own lives in the great spiritual works of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving and listen to the advice of Jesus in today’s gospel. Today we try to begin and we receive the ashes as a sign that we are willing to undertake the gospel way of life. When we receive the ashes we hear again the first words of Jesus in Mathew’s gospel: Repent and be faithful to the gospel. So let us begin our lent.

In today’s Gospel Jesus said to his disciples: “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.”

My brothers and sisters in Christ, there is a contrast given to us today between the person who takes the word of God into his heart and soul and acts on it and the person who simply speaks the word of God but does not live it.

Those who take the word of God into their heart and soul and walk in the way of the Lord, they will receive God’s blessings and will inherit His Heavenly Kingdom. Those who only speak the word of God but do not live it; will not inherit God’s Kingdom. God’s warning is as clear as black and white, there are no grey areas.

Today’s First Reading from the Book of Deuteronomy reminds us that today is the day to make a final decision.

I set before you here, this day, a blessing and a curse: a blessing for obeying the commandments of the Lord, your God, which I enjoin on you today; a curse if you do not obey the commandments of the Lord, your God, but turn aside from the way I ordain for you today, to follow other gods, whom you have not known.

Today, we must decide if we will walk with God according to His Commandments or against God, contrary to His Commandments. This means that we must be living models of the Christian faith, practicing what we learn from Jesus’ preaching in the Gospel. In Christ, there is one life, one way and one truth.

The Letter to the Romans, from which comes our second reading, puts its focus on faith: we consider that a person is justified by faith apart from the works of the law. We could ask a question very similar to one that Jesus poses elsewhere: who has faith? The one who does the works of faith or the one who only speaks about it?

The Gospel of Matthew today is about belief and faith. Jesus said, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many deeds of power in your name?’” The Gospel tells us that doing great work is not enough. Even doing great work in the name of the Lord is not enough. We must believe from our hearts and souls.

So today we are invited to become followers of Christ in a totally committed way, both believing and doing. Doing, by itself, is not good enough. Believing without acting on the belief is not belief. Let us believe as well as practice faith by our actions and deeds in our every day life!

My dear sisters and brothers,

All the readings for today’s Sunday are about trusting our Heavenly Father. Trust in the Lord! That is the strong message of the readings that we have heard today.

In God’s few words from the Book of Isaiah we learn of His Fatherhood. “I will not forget you” says the Lord God.

We have a heavenly Father. Not only is He our Creator, but He also wants to be our Father. While we struggle here on earth, awaiting the day when we will be united with the Heavenly Father, we are told in different words that God is watching over us. He has not forgotten us. If we think that He has forgotten us, it is all in our minds.

The second Reading from the First Letter to the Corinthians concerns the ministry of the Apostles. We heard the author say, “Brothers and sisters: ‘Think of us in this way, as servants of Christ and stewards of God’s mysteries. Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found trustworthy.’”

In today’s Gospel Jesus said, to His disciples “No one can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” Disciples, followers of Christ, cannot have a divided loyalty.

Changing the subject, Jesus said in today’s Gospel, “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things; and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today’s trouble is enough for today.”

Today, Jesus reminds us who follow Him that we are more important than flowers, than the grass, than swallows. His promise to us is that He will take care of us even more than He does of the plants and birds. This teaching of Jesus reminds us that we are called to a distinct way of life, not a worldly way but a spiritual way. We are called to trust in God who knows what we need and to believe that God will give it to us. Blessed is he who places his trust in the Lord Jesus!

We are called can pray for a deeper commitment to God for ourselves and for others. This week my brothers and sisters in Christ let us pray for each other, that we may receive the gift of faith that is necessary to trust in our Heavenly Father so we may not worry about tomorrow.

My sisters and brothers in Christ,

Today we celebrate 7th Sunday of Ordinary time.

If we remember last passages from the gospels, they concern Jesus` evocation to be a good person, a good disciple. He never said to us it will be easy but He said it is possible. He invites us to make a choice.

To be His disciple required follow Him and realize in our life His teaching.

Jesus invites us to follow Him in a very radical kind of way. Today’s first reading from the Book of Leviticus invites us to be holy as God is holy. The LORD said to Moses, “Speak to the whole Israelite community and tell them: Be holy, for I, the LORD, your God, am holy.

An invitation from the Lord needs to be taken seriously. We humans often take our time responding to God, even when we have the best of will. For example St Francis of Assisi and many Saints respond to God in right way made their lives holy and has taken it seriously. Most of us say yes to God and then take our time giving our whole self. We give in bit by bit. Perhaps that is why Jesus in today’s Gospel presents His teaching so simply. He does not want us to misunderstand what it means to follow Him.

We must be willing to give up everything.
We are called to be holy and called to be perfect.
When we pray to God every day –- we follow Him.
When we help our neighbors –- we are His disciples.
And when we work honestly –- we also are heavenly Father’s children. Because, because Jesus says to us:” Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your heavenly Father, for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust”.

Holiness is simply living for God in every aspect of our lives.

My dear brothers and sisters

The First Letter to the Corinthians, from which we get today’s second reading, is really clear that all that is good in us comes from the Lord. It is really clear if we are to be wise, it can only be as God is wise.

Let us give thanks to God today that we have been given the gift of faith. Let us ask that our faith may be lively and draw us deeper and deeper into the mysteries of God. Let us become radical in our living and gentle in our loving.

Today we celebrate the last Sunday of the year 2010. The first Sunday after Christmas in Polish National Catholic Church we celebrate the Solemnity of Humble Shepherds. In our liturgy for this Sunday we remember those who visited first newborn child in Bethlehem.

My Dear brothers and sisters

Many generations had been waiting for the coming of the Messiah, but only a few humble shepherds were worthy to be told of the great event that was taking place.

The angel of the Lord appeared to a few humble shepherds and the glory of God shone above them. They were terrified, but the angel said to them, ”do not be afraid; for see – I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people; to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord.”

When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger.

When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.

This was the beginning of the good news of Jesus’ coming into the world; the shepherds went to the manger and presented their respect worshipping the newborn savior of the world.

They left praising God for the great fortune of humanity and they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child.

Brothers and sisters, we have to do the same! We have to be like shepherds the first witnesses of Incarnation. No matter what you do in life — whether you are a student, a worker, a housewife, a parent, or retire — your job is to speak about Jesus and to spread the word concerning him. And it is your job to do that all the time. Not just when you are in church, but also outside, on the job, at home, everywhere you are. Parents and grandparents you are the first spiritual teachers for your children and grandchildren about Jesus — and not just by bringing kids to baptism and to Sunday school, but also by reading them, Bible stories and teaching about Jesus at home. It’s our job to spread word of Jesus — and not just to those who are already Christians, but also to those who live without Jesus.

We have to take example from the shepherds. St. Luke in the Gospel said about them: They hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. Brothers and sisters like the shepherds we have to find Jesus in our lives and tell everybody about Him. Tell that He is our salvation and He came to this world to save and sanctify all the people.

Our mission is testifying about good news that in the Bethlehem a Savior, our Messiah and Lord was born.

While working on his famous painting “The Last Supper,” Leonardo DaVinci had an argument with a certain man. He lashed out against the fellow with bitter words and threatening gestures. When the argument was over DaVinci went back to his studio, where he was working on the face of Jesus. He could not make one stroke. At last he realized what the trouble was. He put down his brush, found the man he had offended, and asked his forgiveness. He returned to his studio and calmly continued painting the face of Jesus.

Like DaVinci we are trying to put Christ into the masterpiece called Christmas. We want Jesus to be in the center of our Christmas celebration.

In today’s Gospel we heard John: Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

John challenged people to reform their lives, to repent of their sins and undergo a baptism of purification in the Jordan. He warns the Pharisees and Sadducees that being descendants of Abraham would count for nothing, if good deeds were not evident in their lives.

The call of John to repent is an urgent invitation for us to prepare a way for the Lord to come into our hearts. Preparing to celebrate Christmas means renewing our lives by acknowledging our need for Christ.

Just as DaVinci could not work on the face of Jesus while he was guilty of having offended another man, so you and I cannot work at putting Christ into the Christmas picture, as long as we are not sorry for having disobeyed God. John warns all of us, that being Christian would count for nothing if good deeds were not evident in our lives.

Each Advent is an opportunity for us to come closer to Christ and deepen our relationship with him through prayer and repentance. His power is at work in our lives when we make peace with the family member we have rejected, the relations we do not speak to, and the poor we have no time for. Breaking down these barriers will open the way for Christ to come to our studios — that is our hearts. In this way we will be able like DaVinci, to paint Jesus in our hearts, and in the hearts of those who are around us.

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, from now on a merited crown awaits me.

All the time most of us are amazed by good athletes like: Michael Jordan, the Williams Sisters, Aggasi, Nadal, and many others. We are amazed by what they achieved, and some of us wish to be as good as they are. But I do not think that many times we realize how many hours they have to spend in practice in order to have those good results.

A couple years ago there was interview with Andre Agasi, who at that time was number one in the world. The year before he was number 120 in the world. One of the question was: What happened that you fell so much in the ranking. Agasi said that he thought that the talent which he has will be enough, that he does not have to put too much effort toward his training. When he started go lower and lower with his ranking he blamed everybody around but not himself. He blamed his coach. But one day he realized what his coach said long time ago: “TALENT ISTSELF IS NOT ENOUGH AND IF HE WANTS TO BE A BETTER PLAYER, HAS TO PRACTICE MORE OFTEN.”

We can change this sentence and put it into our life: “IF I WANT TO BE A GOOD CHRISTIAN I HAVE TO LISTEN TO MY COACH, I HAVE TO PRACTICE MORE OFTEN.”

But who is my coach?

Jesus Christ is our coach, good religious books can be our coach, the Bible is our coach, and Holy Sprit is our coach. Many times our coach is very tough on us because he wants us to exercise every day, and we would claim that we do not have time for this, or we do not want to have time for the SPIRITUAL EXERCISE. We would rather spend our time with our friends, next to TV, or other ways.

Parents are supposed to be the good example of good Christian life to their children, youth to their friends, and we as Christians to the world. In order to be a good Christian we have to have knowledge about our faith, about Jesus Christ. To have up-to-date knowledge we have to read the Bible, and good religious books. To be good Christians we have to exercise our faith. Even the best athlete without exercise will very soon become one of the worst, will be the outsider. The same can happen to us.

Ghandi, the great leader of India said that: Christianity is the most beautiful religion that he ever saw. But when he was asked why he did not convert to Christianity, if Christianity is such a good religion, Ghandi Answered: “I have never met a Christian who spends life according to Christian’s rules.”

It is sad, but maybe Ghandi met only those Christians who never practiced or stopped to practice their religion, maybe he met only outsiders.

So let us start to exercise more seriously our religion, our faith, than we will be able to repeat after St. Paul: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, from now on a merited crown awaits me.” Amen.