St. Dorothy Catholic Community Orlando/Winter Park, Florida
Fr. Jim's Corner will consist of pictures, homilies and thoughts from Fr. James F. Profirio-Bond, B.S.Ed, M.Ed, C.A.G.S., Parochial Vicar at St. Dorothy's. He was ordained to the transitional deaconate on January 23, 2010, by Most. Rev. Lionel J. White, OSB in Ft. Lauderdale, FL and ordained to the Priesthood on January 15, 2011 in Winter Park. Fr. Jim has been involed in Church life since the age of 7 as an altar boy; in 1969 he started his ministry as Director of Music & Liturgy for several parishes in New England,. He has conducted many choirs, bands and orchestras in the liturgical setting. He has also been Principal of several Catholic and public Schools across the country and was the founding Principal of Ave Maria Catholic School in Parker, Colorado. He was professed as a Third Order Franciscan in 1969 at St. Anthony's Shrine in Boston, MA. He began his journey to Priesthood in 1972..
Readings
Job 7:1-4, 6-7
Psalms 147:1-2, 3-4, 5-6
First Corinthians 9:16-19, 22-23
Mark 1:29-39
5th Sunday of Ordinary Time
Christ is a man for others. Simon Peter and the other disciples come to him the morning after a day like none they had ever known before. Christ's popularity was at its height. His preaching was a huge success. He dramatically expelled a demon right in the middle of the synagogue. And he had spent the entire evening of the Sabbath working miraculous cures and amazing exorcisms. The next morning, his disciples must have been wild with excitement.
They may have even thought that Jesus would claim the Messianic kingship right away and gather an army to cast off the despicable Roman occupiers. And so, when they awoke to find him gone from the house, and a growing crowd of townspeople clamoring to see him, they were confused. They frantically organized a search party and scour the area. But when they find him, alone in prayer on the mountaintop, and they tell him that everyone is looking for him, Christ's answer is surprising.
He tells them it's time to move on, that his mission isn't to maximize his popularity, to be a one man hospital or that His mission was to be a Doctor Without Borders, but to preach the gospel to all of Israel - this is what his Father sent him to do, and no opportunity for mere personal glory will distract him from it. This was the first installment of a lesson that Jesus would teach over and over, by words and actions: he is not a political figure looking to climb the ladder of success; he is a servant and a messenger, a man for others.
In a world that tends to idolize "success" and "achievement," where great souls are withered by the rat race of petty promotions and dim rewards, the noble, magnificent purpose of a man entirely focused on fulfilling someone else's plan is like a bright star shining in the darkness. This self-giving (as opposed to self-seeking) attitude of Christ is vividly present in his encounter with St Peter's mother-in-law.
In the first place, like all his miracles this one is not performed to impress people, but to help people. The devil had tempted Jesus to use his miraculous powers to impress the crowds when he invited him to cast himself off the pinnacle of the temple, but Jesus refused. He always uses his healing powers to benefit those in need.
It is a lesson for us too - the gifts and talents we have received through God's providence are not meant to foster self-satisfaction, but self-giving. And in the second place, notice the manner in which Jesus performs this miracle; it is supremely personal, gentle, and kind. Simon's mother-in-law is sick in bed with a fever. In the ancient world, fevers posed greater threats than they do today. If the fever was the result of an infection, it could indicate an impending death, since they had no antibiotics. This explains the Apostles' concern.
Jesus could have snapped his fingers and cured her from the other side of the house, like something out of a Harry Potter movie. But that's not his style. Instead, he follows Simon Peter over to the bed where his mother-in-law lay, listening as they tell him the history of her sickness. Then he bends down beside her, grasps her sweaty, feverish hand in his own firm, gentle grip, and looks into her face. It is with that personal touch that he relieves her sickness, and then, St Mark points out, he even helped her up!
In Jesus Christ, God comes to meet us in the reality of our humanity, bringing the warmth of his divine light into its most mundane nooks and crannies. This truth of our faith, this fact of Christ's being a man for others, has a direct impact on our personal relationship with him. It means that Christ is "for" each one of us. It means that he is always thinking of us, always guiding us, always walking with us, always at our side. As beautiful as this truth is, it can also be hard for us to accept.
Our society today is built on individualism, the idea that each person is self-sufficient, able to achieve happiness and fulfillment through their own efforts. Because of this idea, depending on others, is often seen as a sign of weakness. This individualistic attitude is embedded in our TV shows, movies, music, advertisements - we are bombarded by it at every turn. And as a result, it seeps into our relationship with Christ too. We sometimes think that we should be able to make ourselves perfect and holy, and then we will present ourselves to Christ to earn a reward.
But if that were the case, Jesus would never have come to earth in the first place. He wouldn't have given us the Church and the sacraments. He wouldn't have died on a cross to show us the limitlessness of his love. Christ is a man for others, because he knows that all of us need a Savior. It is not a sign of weakness or failure to let ourselves be loved and guided by God - it is the surest sign of wisdom. Today, as Jesus gives himself to us again in this holy Mass, let's thank him for wanting to stay so close to us, and let's let him touch even the most hidden corners of our hearts, because they are the ones that need his light the most.
