Homily

Every time we come to Liturgy, we recite this phrase of St. Paul when we prepare for Holy Communion, confessing our belief in Christ, when we say that He came into the world to save sinners of whom I am the first. There have been so many times in our lives when we have wished that we would be the one chosen, the one picked, the winner, the first above all others, at the top of the list, most outstanding, at the head of the line and on top of the heap. Many times, I may have wished that to be so, but it is true at every Eucharist when I say that among all the sinners Jesus came to save, I am the first. And so are you.

Now obviously it does not mean that you or I are the worst sinners in the world. That title probably belongs to someone else, at least I hope so. So, it's not a confession that I am literally the worst of all sinners. It is a confession that I am, indeed, a sinner, that I do need to be saved from my sins and not only my sins but from the bad and harmful effects I brought down on myself because of my sins. Not to mention the effects my sins have had on other people, either directly or indirectly. St. Paul went through countless and extreme hardships and suffering, both physical and emotional, in his work of spreading the gospel and yet we see him writing to his pupil Timothy that he is the first of all sinners. How can that be?

Of all the people I am responsible for, I am responsible first of all for myself. Of all the sinners in the world, the only one I can answer for is myself. Of all the evil that is done in the world, the evil I am responsible for is the evil that I have done. So in this case, in these ways I am the first of sinners, and although my Christian life and witness could not even begin to come close to that of St. Paul's, I stand together with him to say I am the first of sinners.

We live in a time where sin is not a word that describes moral failings. We live in a time where it has become a dirty word. In fact, it is a sin to use the word "sin." People will agree there is great evil in the world; it's just that they don't feel responsible for any of it. In fact it's really hard for them to pin down what is evil or bad behavior because if I am the one doing it, and I am a good person, how bad can it really be? And who is to say what is right and what is wrong? Everybody has their own ideas about what is right and wrong. But there is one thing that most people believe is right, and that is that they rarely do anything wrong. Right? Most people tend to believe that, and today especially that message is constantly preached to the young. I remember a poll that was taken about 10 years ago when young adults were asked how often they think they do something that is morally wrong. One college student admitted that he had sinned about a year ago but couldn't think of anything since then. Don’t you wish he was your son?

Dr. George Barna, is the founder of The Barna Group, a market research firm specializing in studying the religious beliefs and behavior of Americans, after completing a national survey, had this to say:

“If you step back and look at the big picture painted by all of the outcomes in this research project it seems to suggest that people are in an ‘anything goes’ mindset when it comes to faith, morals, values, and lifestyle. Americans appear to be creating unique, highly customized worldviews based on feelings, experiences and opportunities rather than working within the boundaries of a comprehensive, time-tested, consistent worldview.”

And, again, in our modern culture what are the thoughts of many TV and film scriptwriters when it comes to sin? Here is their idea of confession and repentance (and I know you've heard this line): "I have done things I'm not proud of." Well, if the character in the movie has murdered three innocent people, perhaps it’s more than a matter of what you are proud of.

Jesus didn't come to help us avoid moments we are not proud of. He came to bring us freedom from sin, freedom from offensive and defensive wrongdoing, freedom from the burden of sins committed, freedom to fill those gaps in our lives with grace, freedom from our selfishness and deadly desires that threaten our very happiness (not to mention the happiness of other people), freedom from trying to save ourselves, which we simply cannot do. Saving ourselves is the worst of all possible vocations because it is doomed to failure every single time. Only one can save. He came not to save the self-righteous, but to save sinners. I try to dabble in saving myself until I remember, once again, again and again, how pointless it is to keep on trying. And yet, I keep trying, especially when I do not stop to recognize my sins, and I do not ask for pardon.

Today, when we say the prayer before Communion, let’s stop to intentionally recognize the truth that we are sinners, and then, as the prayer directs us, let us ask the Lord for the remission of our sins, and for life everlasting.