Corpus Christi Blog

Called & Gifted - All Have a Part

04-10-2016HomiliesFr. Chad King

I am excited to preach at all the Masses to share a very important opportunity for you.  But before I share what it is, let me relate it to our Gospel today.

This story in our Gospel is the 3rd encounter that the disciples have with the Resurrected Jesus.  After fearfully locking themselves in the upper room, they decided they needed to do something, so they went back to what they knew, their previous job and lifestyle.  Simon Peter and the other disciples went fishing.  Remember it was at the Sea of Galilee where Jesus first encountered Simon and the sons of Zebedee, and after calling them to follow him, it is there that he prophesied that they would become fishers of men.  It is telling, therefore, that this encounter of the Lord, out on the sea, is the same place of their first encounter with Jesus.

Our Gospel says that after a long night of fishing but catching nothing, a man whom they did not recognize suggested throwing the net on the other side.  They caught such a great number of fish that they needed help, it took all the disciples, to pull the net to the shore.  John even makes known the specific # of fish, 153 large fish.  Especially in the Gospel of John, numbers mean something and are purposeful, they usually symbolize something important.  To specify that the disciples caught 153 large fish is very significant.  St. Jerome tells us that there was believed to be 153 nations and languages at this time.  So what John is reminding is that the disciples are indeed to be fishers of men, they are to bring the people of every nation and language to Jesus, and Jesus to every nation.  Thus Jesus’ great commission to his disciples rings true, “Go, and make disciples of every nation, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit”.

And so my brothers and sisters, this is an important moment in our history.  The Church, which Jesus started with his disciples, is meant to be a group of disciples that is sent to make disciples of every nation.  The Church exists to evangelize and bring into union with Christ every nation. That is why our Church is titled Catholic- which means universal.  Here I would like to remind you of the book that I encouraged the parish to read about a year ago- Forming Intentional Disciples.  If you weren’t part of the parish then, or if you did not have a chance to read it, I encourage you to get one in the gift shop, as the book helps to explain where the Church is at right now and remind the purpose of the Catholic Church, and thus the goal or vision of this parish. 

The exciting new opportunity that I will present to you will be a great help in reaching our goal to form intentional disciples.  But before I present the opportunity, let me again tie it in to our Gospel today.  Our Gospel begins by saying that Jesus revealed himself again to those disciples who went fishing, and then John names who the disciples were: Simon Peter, Thomas called Didymus, Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, Zebedee’s sons whom we know are James and John, and then two other unnamed disciples.  John names them for a reason, if one were to count them, there are 7 disciples who went fishing.  And once again, for John, the number 7 is significant.  Throughout the Bible, the # 7 symbolizes perfection or completion- thus there are 7 days of creation, there are 7 sacraments, and so on.  Thus John, by telling there were 7 disciples who went fishing this day- means that there were enough disciples to complete the task- there were enough to all haul in the 153 fish.  But notice this important fact, all the followers needed to bring in the catch, only a few disciples wasn’t sufficient to complete the task, everyone was needed. 

And so my brothers and sisters, for the Church to complete her mission which Christ gave: “Go and make disciples of every nation”, it takes the whole Church, it takes every member of the Church to begin to complete the task.  One of the things that Vatican II focused on was the role of the laity.  In fact, one of the priceless documents written at Vatican II, was just that- the role of the laity.  Pope Saint John Paul II, Pope Emeritus Benedict, and now Pope Francis has all said that the laity are co-responsible for the growth of the Church.  Who is the laity, well they are each non-ordained member of the Church.  Each of you is co-responsible, means having equal responsibility in building up the Church.  It is not only the job of the priests or clergy to build the Church, it is the mission of the entire Church- every member of the Church- clergy and lay people together.  Each and every member of the Church has a role, a responsibility, an obligation to build the Church and make the world a Christ-centered place.  This is a big responsibility, but is a mandate directly from Christ.  I know that some of you might feel a little apprehensive, thinking that you aren’t ready or smart enough, you aren’t qualified to do such an important task, but God has a role for everyone to play.  Jesus knows you, he knows your gifts and circumstances.  You don’t have to be someone that you aren’t, but you are called to use the Charisms or spiritual gifts God gave you at baptism to become the fullness you and I are meant to be.

And so the new opportunity I am presenting to you is a great way to help each of us do just that.  In just a couple of weeks, on April 22 and 23rd, there will be a workshop here at Corpus Christi titled Called and Gifted.  You hopefully have seen the flyers on the way into the Church and in the bulletin and website for weeks now.  The Called and Gifted workshop provides an opportunity to help you begin to know what the gifts you personally have been given by God from your baptism. 

Each of us, every baptized person, has been given certain gifts, called Charisms which God desires you to use to grow the Church and affect the world.  There are 24 common Charisms and each of us at least one or more often a combination of a few.  Charisms are different than talents that you and I have, and this workshop will help us know the difference.  Each and every baptized person has a specific mission given by God that only he or she can fulfill.  Each of us has been gifted with supernatural gifts to bear supernatural fruit so that we can help others to get to Heaven to spend all of eternity with the Lord.  In God's Kingdom, each of us has an important role in building the Kingdom that is unique to us.  No one else can fulfill the mission that you are given.  Unfortunately for God and the Church, many of these Charisms lie dormant, inactive or unidentified in a person’s life.  But for those of you who are ready and wanting to give of yourself to God in a fuller way, for the good of others and to grow the Church and the Kingdom, then I invite you to come and begin to get to know and use the Charisms you’ve been given at your baptism.

There will be hundreds of people here, hopefully many of you from Corpus Christi, but there will also be many from around the diocese.  The workshop is Friday evening April 22 from 7-9pm, and Saturday the 23rd from 9-3:30.  I hope that many of you can come and begin to discern your Charisms, but if you cannot come to the workshop, there will be other opportunities to learn what the Charisms are through the CD’s that we have.

The parish staff and I have gone through the workshop through CD’s, and one of the things that I love most about getting to know the Charisms is that it is clear that everyone is needed to accomplish a task or meet a goal.    For example, God might have given one person the Charism of leadership to communicate the vision, but it takes others with the Charism of helps, or administration, or Intercessory Prayer, or wisdom, etc to help to complete and reach the goal.  And when we use the Charisms God’s given us, it is God working in us so that we don’t get burned out. And we all grow in humility because we recognize that it isn’t just about us and what we do, but is truly what God has given and what He does through us. In addition also, we appreciate others and don’t compare ourselves to each other because we recognize everyone else’s contribution. Therefore, besides growing the Church and affecting the world, by knowing and using the Charisms we have been given, we grow in appreciation for God but also grow in appreciation for everyone else and their role in growing the Church.  We all are called to love God, love our neighbor and grow the Church, and Called and Gifted will help us personally do just that. Will you begin the journey of discovery?

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