The Hour of the Lord

Fr. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara CSsR

Homily on the Feast of St. Gerard Majella

St. Gerard Majella Church

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

October 16, 2011

Dearest beloved, today we celebrate the feast of our patron Saint, Gerard Majella.  Today’s gospel taken from John 12:23-32 begins with an amazing declaration by our Lord Jesus. Without any fear or anxiety, Jesus declares to his disciples, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.” This is Jesus’ moment! This is the Lord’s hour! This is the Lord’s most crucial time! It is the hour that he has been waiting for. It is the hour when the grain of wheat will be made to fall into the ground and allowed to die to bring forth other lives. It is the moment when Jesus would complete the work for which he came on earth. It is the hour when the Cross with Jesus hanging on it would be raised so that all people would be drawn to him. In John 12:32, Jesus says, “And when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw all people to myself.”

Sisters and brothers, the hour of Jesus is not the hour of eating and drinking. It is not the hour of political victory; it is not the hour of defeating an enemy. The hour of the Lord is not the hour of  winning a jackpot or lotto. It is the hour of offering his life for the ransom of many. The Lord’s conception of glory is different from ours. For us, to glorify someone is to honor someone. It is to give award; to praise an individual and to give the person some special titles. For Jesus, the hour of glory is the moment when he will offer his precious life for the redemption of many. The pinnacle of this hour was when Jesus said, “It’s finished!”

In the hour of the Lord, he warns the lovers of this life: “Those who love their life would loose it, and those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life.” In Matthew 10:39, he also says “Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it” Jesus cautions those who will horde theirs life instead of spending it for the service of others. He warns those who would do anything even immoral things to preserve their lives that they would loose it. He cautions his followers not to get too comfortable with this earthly life because it passes away. Do not be earth-bound, the Lord seems to be saying. Jesus invites us to reconsider the meaning of human life. The Penny Catechism Book asks the question, “Why did God create us?” It answers, “God created us to know him, to love him, to serve him in this world and to be happy with him for ever in the next.”   

To the Jews, the Son of Man was the undefeated conqueror sent by God. So when the Lord declared, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified” they hissed a sigh of relief thinking that the hour of victory march has come. They thought that the moment of trumpet call has finally arrived. But Jesus has a different meaning for the hour of glory. The hour of glory for the Jews is the hour when the subjected people would overcome their oppressors. But for Jesus, it is the moment of crucifixion. When Jesus mentioned the Son of Man, the Jews thought of the conquest of the armies of God; but the Lord meant the conquest of the Cross. 

The hour of the Lord is the victory that comes through death. The hour of the Lord is the victory that comes through the cross. Jesus does not see death as extinction but as the rebirth of life. He sees death as the best invention of life. This is why he says, “Very truly I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.” Of course, the death of Jesus Christ is the reason for our new life. His death has given birth to the grace, favor and the power we possess. Yes, the death of the Lord has given us our wonderful Patron Saint, Gerard Majella whom we celebrate today. 

As Jesus speaks about his hour, he also promises those who would serve him“Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there will my servant be also. Whoever serves me, the Father will honor.” Dearest beloved, one of those who served Jesus is Saint Gerard Majella, our patron Saint. One of those who is where the Lord is St. Gerard Majella. St. Gerard Majella served the Lord faithfully as a Redemptorist despite his ill-health. He was very sickly, but did not let the frailties and sickness to prevent him from giving his whole life to Jesus. He did not sit idly by blaming God for his ill-health. Instead, he used his sickness as a stepping stone to everlasting life. 

St. Gerard was not born in a rich home. His parents were not rich. His parents did not have much to offer him, but they did give him the best of all. They gave him God! From his parents, St. Gerard learned the virtues of love, prayer and sacrifice. From his parents, St. Gerard learned that God matters greatly. From his parents, he learned that falling in love with Jesus is the greatest of all romances. His deep love for Jesus Christ drove him to join the Redemptorists. As a Redemptorist brother, he worked with those overlooked by the society. Like Jesus, he was present to those battered by disease, and his presence was a sign of hope for them. Like Jesus, St. Gerard had deep compassion for the poor. Like Jesus, St. Gerard was falsely accused. Like Jesus, he did not panic. In the face of false accusations, he kept his eyes fixed on Lord. During his five years as a lay brother in the Redemptorist Congregation, “he was remarkable for his apostolic zeal, patient in sickness, love for the poor, deep humility in the face of false accusation, heroic obedience, spirit of penance and was constant in prayer.”

Today, we celebrate the glory of St. Gerard Majella given to him by Jesus. We ask for his intercession. We ask God to give us his spirit so that even in difficulty, we will keep our eyes on Jesus and on the prize. Heaven is our destination; heaven is our prize; heaven is our glory and glorification. Where Jesus and St. Gerard Majella are, we wish to be.