March 20, 2019

THE  CHALICE

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily and thoughts for this 2nd Wednesday in Lent is,  "The Chalice."

PROPS

[Holding a chalice]  As you know Father Tizio and now Father Luyen Dau like to use props to help their sermons be more clear.

A prop is something visible - to help us to see the invisible.

So here is a golden chalice.  What do you see when you see a chalice?

What do you see when a best man and a maid of honor or the father or mother of the bride or bridegroom hold up a glass chalice or goblet at a wedding or any occasion and they toast someone?

They are trying to make the invisible - their inner hopes for the future - visible.

A STORY

[Holding a chalice] I was once giving a retreat to some priests - perhaps in Richmond, Virginia. For a evening prayer I held a gold chalice like this one in my hand and said, "Here is a chalice. We see the outside of the cup, but we can't see what's inside."

Inside of each of us is the Good, the Bad and the Ugly.

Inside of us is our story. Our life. Our inner stuff.

I suggest you sit here in this chapel after this night prayer is over. Just sit here and look into the chalice called you - and see everything. 

See the mistakes and the moments of ecstasy.

See everything.

Then when you have some time this evening go up the chalice on the altar and stand where you stand for Mass and the consecration. Lift up the chalice.  Look into the cup - then offer your whole life up to God Our Father with Christ.

Well I did that and left the priests in that chapel to do what they wanted to do next.

I went to bed.

Around 1 PM I heard a knock on my door that woke me up.

It was one of the priests on the retreat. 

For the next hour and a half - he told me what was in his chalice - in his life - and how profound a moment it was this evening when he lifted up his chalice - and lifted his life - the Good. the Bad and the Ugly.

WHAT'S IN YOUR WALLET? CHALICE?

We all know the Capital One slogan? What's in your wallet?

In today's gospel  from Matthew 20: 17-28 -we have the story about what was in the chalice of the mother of the two sons of Zebedee.  She wanted her boys to be # 1 and # 2 in Jesus' Kingdom.

Can you hear those boys saying, "Mom!"

We can hear the anger in the other disciple's chalices/

Jesus says to them, "Can you drink of my chalice?"

They boldly answer, "We can!"

Then Jesus tells them what's going to be in their chalices and what ought to be in them: service. And there also will be blood.

CONCLUSION

One more prop.

Whenever I do baptisms here or at St. John Neumann I ask the mom and dad to take their baby and stand as priest at the altar.

I have had well over 1000 babies on this altar.

I ask them to put their hand on their baby and to say after me, holding - the chalice of their child. "This is my body. This is my blood. We're giving our life to you.

I conclude: "This is the sacrifice of the Mass."