COMING  HOME:

THE IMPORTANCE OF PLACE

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this feast of Pentecost is, “Coming Home: The Importance of Place.”

If you ever have the money, the time and the opportunity, to get to Jerusalem, go.

And if you go to Jerusalem, as Christian, as Catholic, you’ll probably visit a site, a holy place,  called, “The Cenacle.”

I went to Israel once, January 2000, as a suitcase carrier.

One of our older priests, Leo Dunn, whom I had been stationed with in our retreat house in Tobyhanna, Pennsylvania, in the 1970’s,  was asked by our provincial, “Leo, you never get out, you never take trips, you never go on vacation, why don’t you take a trip to some place you’d love to go to?”

And he said, “No!”

And the provincial said, “Why not? Leo you love the scriptures, the Bible, wouldn’t you love to go to Israel?”

And he hesitated and then said, “I’d love to, but I’m too old for that now.”

So George, the Provincial said, “I’ll get Andy to carry your bags.”

After several more “no’s” and a lot more pushing, I got a phone call and ended up being Leo’s suitcase carrier to Israel for two weeks. Nice.

We first saw the north: Galilee, Nazareth, Capernaum, Cana, the Mount of the Transfiguration - where we had a spaghetti dinner - and many other places. We then traveled south - also by bus - to the Dead Sea, Jericho, Bethlehem, Bethany and Jerusalem.

If you ever get to Israel, you picture these places every time you hear them mentioned in the Bible readings for the rest of your life. Neat.

In Jerusalem you’ll go to the Garden of Olives, the Wailing Wall, the possible place of the crucifixion and the Cenacle - or Upper Room.

It’s 2017. A lot of things have happened in Israel in the past two thousand years. Jerusalem has been destroyed a few times. Buildings have been leveled  - and different places are claimed to be the places for this and that.

Our tour guide, a Franciscan priest, Stephen Doyle told us history, possibilities, and legends of each place.

Whatever….

TODAY’S READINGS

I think of the Cenacle, the room of the Last Supper, the place of waiting for what’s next, after Jesus was killed, the place where the disciples were hiding behind locked doors,  the place of the coming of the Holy Spirit, whenever I hear today’s  first reading and today’s gospel.

 As I stood there I thought of what took place in the Upper Room, the Cenacle.  Father Stephen Doyle read out loud today’s first reading and possibly today’s gospel.

TITLE OF MY HOMILY

The title of my homily is, “Coming Home: The Importance of Place.”

We all have our places.

Father John Harrison grew up just down the road from here.  I’m sure when he drove home to St. Mary’s - after saying Mass here at St. John Neumann’s,  different things hit him - than hit any of us who are from somewhere else.

Last weekend I was up in Danvers, Massachusetts for a family wedding. I had never been there before - but I was with lots of family members whom I had not seen in a while. Neat.

I was feeling down a bit - because the wedding had no Catholic stuff in it - and being priest, of course that hit me. But it was good to be there to be with family. Life has it’s pluses and misuses - half full and half empty moments.

I wore my black suit and priest black shirt and collar and did a reading - but that was the only mention of God. At the meal, it didn’t look like they were going to say a public prayer before the meal, so I sort of pushed my way into doing that.

Many parents and grandparents speak to priests about their feelings at a time like that. Other than that, it was a good wedding in a beautiful place - and it was great to see another member of the family  marrying into another family. And it was a nice moment in a sacred place - a field with a nice big pond to our right - down a hill.

Gary, the husband of my niece Mary, told me that the day before, since they were in Massachusetts for the wedding, they took a side trip to the place where they had their first apartment after they got married. He told me that they always went there whenever they were in that area and their two sons made fun of their parents for doing this. Boring…. Boring…. Boring…. Just stopping a car on a strange street - getting out and walking around. This time they saw a “For Sale” sign and they were without their sons and they were able to get into a similar apartment to one they had lived in years ago. Neat.

The title of my homily is, “Coming Home: The Importance of Place.”

Both their sons will someday know the importance of coming home to their first home in Pennsylvania and their first homes - now that they are married - Brian in Austin, Texas and Sean in Jacksonville, Florida.

THE IMPORTANCE OF PLACE

Where we went to school…. where we got engaged …. where we went on our honeymoon …. where we were blessed …. where we were cursed ….

This week for homework: If you doodle on your computer or if you use pad and pen - write out the top ten places on the planet that are important to you - that are sacred to you.

Where are the places that formed and informed you - where you became who you have become: jobs, homes, parks, playing fields, stage….

Are there any places that are no longer there?

The street I grew up on - is still there - 62^nd Street, between 3^rd and 4^th Avenue, Brooklyn, N. Y. is still there, but our home - 326 -  was torn down to make way for an extension of the Gowanus Parkway - coming off the Verrazano Bridge. Bummer….

But that house is still in my memory and still in my mind - and it’s still in our black and white pictures.

Sort out your pictures and in good time, show your grandkids where you come from - the importance of place - or take them there - and let them see it - even if it is boring, boring, boring to them - but it brings tears to you - and in time - hopefully, they will learn the importance of place.

CHURCH

Just as Israel contains Jerusalem and various shrines of our Christian roots, so too each person has in their mind and memory, churches - places where they were baptized, made first communion, confirmation, were married - and celebrated funerals.

Church places are important…. Today’s a good day to think about all this.

I was up in New Jersey last week for a common retreat for about 60 Redemptorists - at our retreat house. I was stationed there for 7 years of my life. 

Two times - during the retreat - I went into the chapel - when I could be all alone - and I    sat in different places and remembered talking with someone down the corridor in a counseling room  - about a family problem or a marriage problem and I said, “Let’s go down to the chapel and say a prayer over this.”  And I had my favorite places of prayer.

I remembered another retreat house where I spent another 7 years of a my life and I remember a former pro football player whose name is well known. He  came up to me once and said, “I guess you wonder why I only sit in the back seat - over in the ride hand - side aisle corner?” 

I remained silent - and nodded my head. I never had problems where people sit in church - because I have heard some wonderful stories why people sit where they sit in church - including urinary problems - and the need to shoot out to the bathroom. I remember one lady said she always sits under the 4^th station - because she wants Mary the Mother of Jesus to be with her in the ways of the cross in her life.

Speaking of urinary problems, I remember once going back to our childhood church - OLPH - in Brooklyn - and I noticed men on one side of the confession boxes and women on the other side. I didn’t remember that, but then I remembered as a little boy, I thought they were bathrooms.

Well, in a way, they are….. Smile.

Well this former pro football player said he sits where he sits - because that’s where his mother sat in their local church for over 20 years - praying for him to come back to the faith.

And he said, “I finally did, thanks to my mother’s prayers.”

CONCLUSION

This place here - St. Mary’s Church downtown Annapolis - the churches of your life - especially your childhood - the places of the stories of your life - are all important - and the beauty of being a human being is - you can return to them in reality or imagination - and visit and pray in any place we want. Amen.