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Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., gave the following homily June 29, 2023 during Mass for a vocations discernment event. It is a happy coincidence today, my brothers, that we gather to think about discerning God’s call on this solemn feast of Saints Peter and Paul, two ordinary, very different men who responded in extraordinary ways to God’s call to follow the Lord Jesus. 

In his annual meeting with the worlds’ Vatican diplomatic ambassadors on January 9 of this year, His Holiness Pope Francis spoke powerfully to the gathering representatives about “the defense of life,” threatened as he stated, “by the ‘alleged’ right to abortion.”

For most of us growing up in the Catholic Church, the “idea” of the “missions” was something that we thought about “at a distance.” Missionaries were priests, brother and sisters who were sent by their religious orders to far away places “to convert, to spread the Gospel and to minister to their populations in ‘missionary lands’.” Unless we felt “called” to this kind of missionary vocation, we never expected to meet or encounter the missions “up close and personal.” Regularly, missionaries come to our parishes, and we take up special collections “for the missions” and over the years, your prayers and contributions have sustained priests, religious and lay pastoral leaders in more than 1,100 mission dioceses in Asia, Africa, the Pacific Islands, and parts of Latin America and Europe as they proclaim the Gospel, build the Church, and serve the poor.

“What do you want to be when you grow up?”  When I was in Catholic school like you, people would ask me and my friends that question all the time.  We gave all kinds of answers, depending on our ages and different experiences.  We were influenced by our parents, families, and friends.  We took some ideas from books we read in Catholic school, by things we studied, our favorite subjects, from people on tv and in movies or athletes in sports we watched.  We would change our minds many times as we got older.  I wonder what you would say if I asked you right now, “what do you want to be when you grow up?”

The Holy Father gives a public audience every Wednesday in Rome. Thousands of pilgrims from all over the world attend to hear his message and receive his blessing. Perhaps some of you have had the occasion and opportunity to attend.

In a few days, the “10th World Meeting of Families” will take place in Rome. Such a gathering, called by the Vatican, has taken place every three years since 1994.  This meeting, originally scheduled for last year, was postponed until this year due to the pandemic.  Its theme, announced by Pope Francis, is “Family Love: A Vocation and a Path to Holiness.”  Although every diocese throughout the world cannot attend the events in Rome, every diocese has been asked to participate by hosting its own meeting.  And, so, we gather here to celebrate family life in the Diocese of Trenton.

A bishop in the Catholic Church is called a “successor of the apostle.”  To me, that is one of the most powerful and, yet, most humbling titles I can imagine.  Through the laying on of hands by other bishops and the prayer of consecration, the authority to teach, to govern and to sanctify as a bishop is handed on in an unbroken line of succession from the apostles themselves 2,000 years ago.

In his meeting with a few thousand members of the Cursillo Movement in Italy at the end of May, our Holy Father Pope Francis encouraged the group to move toward “communion and mission” in all their activities, two words, two directions that Pope Francis uses frequently in his talks and homilies to groups within the Church. 

Delivered during the Mass for the Reception of the Relic of Blessed Carlo Acutis, April 28, 2022 “What do you want to be when you grow up?” When I was in Catholic school like you, people would ask me and my friends that question all the time.  

The Chrism Mass has its historical roots in the second century, when the bishop blessed sacramental oils and consecrated sacramental Chrism during the Easter vigil. By the fifth century, this ritual was transferred to Holy Thursday in a morning Mass separate from the evening Mass of the Lord’s Supper due to the large crowds who gathered and the Church’s desire to commemorate the institution of the priesthood at the Last Supper. Eleven centuries later, Pope St. Paul VI established the ceremony now known as the Chrism Mass during Holy Week.

The word “peace” appears hundreds of times in the Bible – depending upon the version and translations consulted. In the Gospels, the Lord Jesus greeted his disciples, wishing them “peace” three times and then only after his Death and Resurrection. “Peace be with you,” he said once he had suffered, died and rose from the dead.

Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., delivered the following homily for the Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord, following his joining in the worldwide Consecration of Russia, Ukraine and all of humanity to the Immaculate Heart of Mary March 25 in St. Mary of Assumption Cathedral, Trenton.

There is a saying often attributed to the early 20th century Irish writer and poet James Joyce (1882-1936) that explains “Catholic means ‘here comes everybody’.”  I find that quote very insightful, beautiful really.  The word “Catholic,” drawn from its Greek roots, is translated “universal.”  We Catholics are a universal Church: universal in extent and scope; universal in faith; universal in embrace. 

I remember going shopping as a boy with my mother and grandmother – I guess, maybe 60 years ago – when I asked my Mom to buy me a toy. We had just finished having lunch at the W.T. Grant Department store restaurant counter – remember those? – and I pleaded with her, “please get me this.”  My grandmother interrupted, “June, you are spoiling that boy,” and my Mom accepted her observation telling me to put the toy back. As Mom continued her shopping, distracted from us, Grandmom took my hand and whispered, “Go get it, I’ll buy it for you.” So much for being “spoiled.”  

On the evening of Holy Saturday, Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., urged the faithful to remember that nothing was ever the same again after the dark hours of Jesus’ Death gave way to the light of his glorious Resurrection.

Some of you may remember seeing the classic romantic­comedy film from the early fifties, "The Quiet Man" starring screen legends John Wayne, Maureen O'Hara and Barry Fitzgerald. Some of you may not remember either the film or the actors but it took place in Ireland, where John Wayne had returned after a boxing career in the US to find some peace and quiet, hence the film's title "The Quiet Man." Ironically, he fell in love and found just the opposite.

After the Readings that we hear at Mass, the reader says, “The Word of the Lord, the Gospel of the Lord,” and we respond, “Thanks be to God, praise to you Lord Jesus Christ.” Although we might not think about it too much, that is a very important dialogue. We are expressing our belief as Catholics that the Scriptures we hear and read are THE WORD OF THE LORD. Pretty awesome, don’t you think?

Just a little over one month ago, all Catholics and Christians celebrated the Birth of Jesus in Bethlehem on Christmas Day. 

Today, as a Diocese and throughout our many parishes, we celebrate a “Mass of Giving Thanks to God for the Gift of Human Life.” One need not be a Catholic to express that intention of gratitude. But one cannot, however, be a Catholic without that sentiment rooted deep in our souls.  

Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., is the homilist for Mass on Sept. 11 at St. Mary, Middletown – part of a three-day, in-car revival titled “God, Country, Family” that is being hosted in the parish parking lot. Following is Bishop O’Connell’s homily for Sept. 11.