By Archbishop Thomas Wenski - The Archdiocese of Miami
Archbishop Thomas Wenski preached this homily during a Mass at Redemptoris Mater Seminary in Hialeah where he installed two seminarians as acolytes. The Mass was celebrated March 21, 2024.
In this gospel reading, Jesus is kind of saying: If you want to see God, look at me! The fact that his hearers picked up stones to throw at him shows that they understood very well what he was saying. In the gospel according to St. John, those famous “I AM” sayings of Jesus – and this is one of them – identify Jesus with God, with Yahweh. Jesus was the Word that God spoke to Moses in the burning bush. In that movie series, The Chosen, Jesus replies to someone who accuses him of going against the TORAH by saying: I am the TORAH. (And Benedict XVI in his book, Jesus of Nazareth, points this out as well.
Every Sunday, we proclaim in the Nicene Creed, that Jesus is “Light from Light, true God from true God. Because Jesus who he says he is, “One in being with the Father”, he can tell us: Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever keeps my word will never see death.” He also assures us he is the “bread of life” and that those who eat his flesh and drink his blood will never hunger, and whoever believes in him will never thirst.
Jesus’ special relationship to the Father is the basis of our relationship to the Father. And, with baptism which is already a participation in Jesus’ death and resurrection, eternal life has already begun for us. For if we hear his word and believe we have “passed from death to life.”
The Gospel is the good news that God is restoring our broken lives through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
That passing from death to life is “re-presented” in the Paschal Meal of the New Covenant, that is, the Holy Mass. For our communion in the Body and Blood of the Lord is already a foretaste of heaven. Therefore, the Church teaches that the Eucharist is the source and summit of her life. The Eucharist builds up the Christian community and makes it grow.
Of course, I am here to install two new acolytes. This is a significant step towards ordination to the priesthood. Those sharing in the ministry of acolyte have a special role in the celebration of the Eucharist.
You assist priests and deacons in their ministry and as special ministers give Holy Communion to the faithful at Mass and to the sick.
In performing your ministry, bear in mind that, as you share the one bread with your brothers and sisters, you form one body with them. Show a sincere love for Christ's Mystical Body, God's holy people, and especially for the weak and the sick. Bear with people’s faults patiently — be a reconciled and reconciling presence in the communities in which you serve. Be obedient to the commandment which the Lord gave to his apostles at the Last Supper: "Love one another as I also have loved you."
