Now is the Time

Homily for Wednesday of the 14th Week in Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Benedict

It is time to seek the Lord, Hosea told the Israelites.

The kingdom of heaven is at hand, Jesus said, sending forth his disciples to proclaim the same.

“Now is the hour for us to rise from sleep,” St. Benedict wrote in his Rule for leading a holy life.

Each of these appeals displays a sense of immediacy even though they were delivered centuries apart from each other. They convey a message that doesn’t change over time. That means it is a message for us today as well.

The Israelites were distracted by prosperity and superficial pleasures leading them to turn their backs on God. Jesus sends his apostles to these “lost sheep,” to bring them the Good News of the Gospel. They were to proclaim that God’s Kingdom was at hand.

St. Benedict recognized his hour, his time. He abandoned the comforts and advantages of wealth and searched for a simpler way of life. His search developed into the monastic form of consecrated life. While we are not called to be monks or to be anchorites, we are called to recognize that this is our time to recognize God’s Kingdom in our midst and conform our lives to God’s will in order to become holy as God is holy.

If we wish to live in God’s Kingdom, then we must make room for God in our lives. We must devote ourselves to the pursuit of holiness, recognizing that whatever our state of life, this is our call.

Fr. Lawrence Jagdfeld, O.F.M., Administrator