Archbishop Rodrigues: Church of ‘joy’, like at Cana, for our archdiocese
The new archbishop of the Indian metropolis delivered the homely at the Mass of thanksgiving with which he began his ministry this evening. “How often at the bedside of the sick we learn to hope,” he said. “We bring to the Lord, all our activities, our plans, our selves, our families, our parishes, our institutions”.
Mumbai (AsiaNews) – On the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes, which for the Church is also the World Day of the Sick, the Archdiocese of Bombay celebrated with a Thanksgiving Mass its new pastor, Mgr John Rodrigues, who replaced Card Oswald Gracias, after Pope Francis appointed him on 28 January. We publish below the homily Archbishop Rodrigues delivered, starting from the texts of the liturgy, with which he outlined the Church's mission in India today.
The Readings today on this memorial of Our Lady of Lourdes and also as I celebrate this Eucharist, as you welcome me as the Archbishop.
The Readings present to us a beautiful picture of the Church. Firstly, Isiah spoke of Jerusalem as a Mother who cares tenderly for the child and nourishes her child and is concerned about the growth of the child. The church, the new Jerusalem is our Mother. She nourishes us with the Scriptures, with the teachings of the church, and like a mother, she keeps us together in unity. She shows us the path that we are to go.
A mother's love lifts us up when we are tired, a mother's love heals our wounds and hurts, a mother's love holds all the children together in unity. May the Church, our mother, keep us always united.
As Church, we are called to reflect the newness and joy that Christ brings. This is the second aspect that we see of the Church. Jesus says that his hour has not yet come and yet he acts, and his action will anticipate what he will do through the many other signs, this one at Canna being the first, and what he will do at his Hour, when it comes - The Hour of his Glory, when he is lifted up on the cross and will save the whole of humanity. And this sign therefore points to that newness that Christ will do for all of us and for the whole of humanity.
Jesus replaces all the old laws and gives them a new law no; of Love. He gives them the assurance that those who accept this message will experience that newness and renewal within and will be filled with joy.
We encounter the Lord in the Church in a very special way through the sacraments. The Ordained ministers have a special role in this; in letting each of the sacraments be a Joyful celebration, even the Sacrament of Penance - we rejoice that the Lord renews our life and even when we fall, He lifts us up by his Grace and love and fills us with joy.
The newness and joy is not only for ourselves as members of the church, but for all of humanity. And so the church must go out to the world and bring this joy to people - the joy of the Lord.
The Jubilee Year that we are celebrating is a reminder of this - we celebrate our faith; we rejoice in the Lord. The Jubilee logo has very bright colors, when I look at it, I feel happy, it somehow brings joy to my heart. When I see those figures all moving towards Christ, once more we experience that joy that Christ brings. Lifted on the cross, he draws all peoples to himself, to experience Salvation, Renewal and Joy. The Lord is with us, the church rejoices in His presence.
Thirdly, the theme chosen by Pope Francis for this years 'World Day of Sick' is, 'Hope does not disappoint', Romans 5:5 and he goes on to say - Hope strengthens us in times of trial. In times of illness we sense our human frailty, yet we also experience the closeness and compassion of our God. When Jesus shared our human suffering, God does not abandon us and God often amazes us by granting us strength that we never expected and would never have found on our own. Pope Francis goes on to say that places of suffering are very often places of sharing and mutual enrichment.
How often at the bedside of the sick we learn to hope. How often by the closeness to those who suffer, we learn to have Faith. How often when we care for those in need, we discover Love.
I have experienced this often. I may have gone to a person who is homebound or sick and visited that person, prayed for that person, that person felt blessed. But I realised as I left, my heart was filled with gratitude. The patience that I saw in that person enduring suffering, uniting his or her suffering to the suffering of Christ. The care that the people of that family was giving to that person, a sign of selfless service. As the Church ministers to the sick- the sick in turn minister to us.
Fourthly; the second of the first signs that Jesus worked in John's gospel at Cana is in a wedding feast. Our thoughts go to couples and families. You are called to be the sacrament of Christ's love in the world. Your love, your commitment, your dedication is a sign of Christ's love for all of us and in so many ways you, dear couples and families, continue to let the light of Christ shine. to fight challenges and difficulties despite economic difficulties that you face, despite the pressures of society inviting you to take the easy way out, you stand firm in faith in the light of Christ shines through you. You are witnesses of the Church wherever the Lord sends you. May you continue to radiate the love of Christ. We pray also for couples and families who are struggling and going through a crisis. May the self-sacrificing love of Christ and the guidance of the Holy spirit, help them and heal them.
Fifthly, we acknowledge our imperfection and our need for the Lord. We are told that the jars were of stone- solid strong material and very large capacity- 20 or 30 gallons. But still these stone jars with large capacity are imperfect. Six is one short of seven- the number of perfection in the Bible. We are to do our best - to strive with all our effort with excellence in our ministry, in our place of work, in our responsibilities, in our jobs, in our service to society. We are called to grow, to deepen our love, to deepen our relationships, to be more caring for others and we do our best. But our best still needs the Lord's Blessing, without that it will be incomplete.
We bring to the Lord, all our activities, our plans, our selves, our families, our parishes, our institutions and the Archdiocese. We ask the Lord to Bless them and make them complete.
Mary is the image of the church and all that we've said of the church, these five Points, are also applicable to Mary. All that I have said of the Church is true of Mary.
* Archbishop of Bombay
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