Homily for June 23rd, 2002

Jesus tells us today in Matthew’s gospel to “tell it in the light” and “proclaim it from the rooftops!”  There it is again, as World Youth day rapidly approaches and as we celebrate today all of those who have committed their involvement - the theme of light and salt, it’s there in our scriptures.  It is interesting to note that starting today and continuing over the next several weeks Jesus begins to give instructions in the Gospel to all of his disciples.  The people of Jesus' time are beginning to discover, and the people of our time are being reminded, of what is truly involved in being a Christian. 

We have been focusing in our scripture readings for the past few weeks on the fun part of being a Christian, the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, the celebration of the gift of the body and blood of Jesus on the Sunday of Corpus Christi, the calling of the disciples as Jesus' band of followers grows and the witness of all the wonderful miracles which Jesus performed.  Curing people, feeding thousands - Boy, is it great stuff to be a Christian and follow this Jesus guy, because look at all the wonderful things that you get.  Free food, great medical plan!

Today we begin to hear about what is really required.  We can't simply listen to Jesus and store his words in our heart, we have to go out and tell them to the world.  It is not enough to have his light shining within us, unless we take that light and let the world see Him shining through us.  It is not enough to realize that Jesus provides the flavor and the salt for our own lives.  We must go out into the world and share that salt with others whose lives are flat and tasteless because they have not come to know Jesus, our Lord. 

I am reminded today when we think about light and salt, of the story of a traveling salesman who came to a small country town.  Now before you get worried it's not one of those kind of traveling salesman jokes - this is church after all.  But it seems that one day a traveling salesman came into a small town, you know the kind of place, with a general store, a gas station and three small houses.  Really, just a bump in the road.  The salesman stopped for gas and wandered over to the general store and he noticed as he approached, that all round the building right up to the windows and roof there were bags of salt piled up.  The bags of salt formed a little corridor to the front door, and as he walked through it and opened the screen door to the store, the bell rang out back announcing him as a potential customer. 

While he waited for the storekeeper to come in from the back room he looked around the store and noticed more bags of salt.  All the shelves which held the other provisions were simple wooden planks held up by two or three bags of salt on either side from floor to ceiling.  The tables in the middle of the store that held the cash register, the classic cracker barrel and jar of pickles were just large wooden boards placed on a foundation made up of bags of salt. 

He heard a sound behind him and as he turned around he saw the curtain to the back room being pulled aside as the old storekeeper came out.  Peeking into the store-room, he noticed again that all the stores were piled up on top of more bags of salt.  The storekeeper looked at him and smiled, and the traveling salesman, in an attempt to start a conversation rolling, smiled as well and said, "Well, you must sell all lot of salt!"

The storekeeper shook his head and said, "No, no, as a matter-of-fact I don't sell very much salt at all.  But there is a young salt salesman who comes around here, and boy, does he sell a lot of salt! "

This is what we are called to be, we need to be eager young salt salespeople, the ones who take the Word of the Lord and let it shine from us in light and proclaim it to the whole world. 

The people we acknowledged at our special commissioning mass yesterday, those who answered the call to be delegates, hosts, and volunteers, are going to do their best as the World turns its eyes on us, to let them see the light of Christ shining forth from us. 

Let me say that when I looked out at all of those shining faces, I believe we have made a great start.  Many of us would have hoped that there would be enough volunteers and hosts and delegates at this time with only four weeks to go, but the truth is there are not.  At the same time we celebrate the participation of all those who were commissioned last night, we must go back to the words of Jesus and remind everyone else of the call which is there for all of us. 

I once heard it said that there are three kinds of people, first there are the people who are in the parade, there are those who are watching the parade, and there are those who don't even know that there is a parade going on.  None of us who call ourselves Christian can afford to be that third type of person.  We know the Gospel.  We know the message of Jesus.  We know what we are called to do, and that is - to get involved. 

We are like those in the early Church; we are now realizing the effort that has to be made to pull off something like World Youth Day.  Up till now what is just been like the early Christians, a wonderful idea, won't it be exciting to have all these people from around the world, won't it be nice to feel proud about Toronto and the archdiocese. 

But just as Jesus says today in the Gospel, you must acknowledge me or pay the price and as he says next week you must love me above all even though it means suffering, you must love me more than your own families, and he goes on for the next several weeks discussing the real commitment that it means to be Christian.  There is no question that some of our involvement in World Youth Day will be very inconvenient by modern standards.  (Just ask Michelle). 

We will probably be stuck in some bad traffic, we may miss some of our favorite television programs, we may even get physically tired or hot working, as we do some of the things which are involved.  But we will be alive in a way that our “convenient” lives will never let us experience. 

If you feel it might be inconvenient to have strangers in your basement for a week, remember that at least these are young joyful Christian strangers who are actually part of your family and Christ's family.  For if our basements are empty for that week, then it would be sad if it meant that perhaps our hearts will be empty of the joy of sharing.  As Jesus promises at the end of the Gospel today, by denying him in front of others and shutting out the Pilgrims, we could be letting ourselves in for a very long and lonely and inconvenient afterlife. 

Our Holy Father the Pope is 82 years old, he is suffering from Parkinson's disease, he suffers from the pain of all the lesions inside his body where the surgeons sewed up the holes made by the assassin's bullets, and he is bone tired from many years of trying to lead this very difficult group of Christians on earth.

But he will fly from six time zones away, endure jet lag, strange beds, scary bumpy uncomfortable helicopter rides, an awful busy schedule when he would rather be resting in the summer, and he will do it to show the young of the world that the most important thing that any of us can do is to let our light shine for others and share the salt of the flavor of our faith.  If he can endure these things, how much more can we endure a few days of visitors and trips and sharing. 

I was at a meeting of World Youth Day volunteers at the Downsview Airport site where the papal Mass will be held, last Thursday night.  Thousands of young people - their faces full of joy - and when they sang the World Youth Day theme song, I picked up my program and began to sing along with them. 

As my voice joined with theirs, tears of joy began to stream from my eyes and I felt the Holy Spirit move through that building and my heart was touched.  What an awakening experience, and this was only a status meeting to discuss the progress of plans!  I felt like the Holy Spirit was knocking on my head, kind of like that movie "Back to the Future" when the bully knocks on the head of the hero and says "McFly, McFly, wake up McFly!"  Only with me it was a powerful joyful experience, more like “Deacon Steve, Deacon Steve, wake up, wake up!” and now I am awake to how much there is inside of me to be moved if I just get involved   

The Pope and his committee didn’t just choose Toronto.  They prayed and they prayed first.  World Youth Day is happening in Toronto because God wants it to happen in Toronto.  World Youth Day is happening here because God knows we need to have it here.  Because God knows that we need to hear our wake-up call and understand that really living means that we are living as a greater part of God's world-wide family. 

The announcer at the World Youth Day meeting said that we are still short of volunteers, but that if only each volunteer who has already registered would ask one more person to get involved then we would have enough and if each could ask two more people then we would be overflowing with help.  I'm cheating this morning because I am asking hundreds of people - all of you who aren't already, to get involved.  It's not too late and there’s lots to do, we need people to answer the phone, people to make calls, simple things like people to stand in one spot and tell other people where to go  (I know some of you would like that!), we even need people to help cut the grass at the airport in the week before the mass so people can sit down, there’s something for everyone.   Just check out our parish website, www.starofsea.com , or pick up the flyer at the doors on the way out.

I can guarantee some frustrations, and so can Michelle our WYD coordinator.  The truth is that many of the very spirit filled people associated with this World Youth Day are lousy organizers, and even our own patient enthusiastic and sainted pastor, Father Keith, has expressed some exasperation but in the end, so what?

With the Holy Spirit behind us we can't fail as long as we all have patience and move ahead.  Where each one of us has volunteered to do one job, if we each concentrate on doing that one job well, instead of looking around and criticizing others who may not be doing their job well, then this will be the best World Youth Day ever. 

In Paris in 1997 fewer than 10 percent of the final number were registered with only 10 days to go and yet that day was a fantastic success.  Just the same, I’m not asking you to wait until 10 days to go, I'm asking you to get involved now.  Let your light shine, shout from the rooftops, acknowledge the Lord before the world.  There really is no alternative.