Homily – 17.07.2022
We gather around the table of the Eucharist, the table of communion and thanksgiving, to give praise and thanks to God for the manifold blessings we have received from Him. We thank the Lord for the gift of Dominican vocation, for the gift of being part of the family of St. Dominic, for the privilege to preach God’s Word to the world. We are gathered here in Tultenango, the place where the Order of Preachers was re-established here in Mexico, the place where the Province of Santiago established its novitiate when the province was refounded in 1961, after its suppression and eventual disappearance in 1894. In a sense, we stand on holy ground where dreams and hopes for the renewal of Dominican presence and preaching here in Mexico were nurtured. With the grace and inspiration of the Holy Spirit, the capitulars of the General Chapter and the brothers and sisters who will assist us will endeavor to build on the same dreams and hopes for the growth of the Order and the renewal of its mission, all over the world.
The three years after we celebrated the General Chapter in Bien Hoa were truly unprecedented, unexpected and unforgettable. Just seven months after the chapter, we faced unforeseen challenges, but we responded with creativity, courage and conviction that even in the time of pandemic we can continue our mission of preaching the Gospel.
The first time I attended a meeting of the Union of Superiors General in Rome, an old religious spoke about the coming “end” of religious life as we know it. He really looked sad and his talk was depressing! Thankfully, the speakers who came after him were vibrant young religious, one was a religious priest of Japanese and Spanish parents, the other was a young Indian sister. They told us how happy they are in their religious communities; that they do not care about how many they are in their congregations i.e., quantity, what is important for them is the quality of religious life they experience.
Brothers and sisters, we are called to live the present and embrace the future with hope, not optimism. Optimism comes from a careful assessment of future prospects vis-à-vis our own capabilities and resources. When we look at ourselves, we realize that our resources are not sufficient for us to meet the immense challenges of the future. So if someone were to ask me if I am optimistic about our Order, my ready answer would be: “I am not at all optimistic, but I am very hopeful!” Hope is grounded on a certainty that God will never abandon us. This is what Paul tells the Colossians in the second reading this Sunday: “Christ in you, our hope of glory”.
Last week, I signed decrees for the suppression of one convent and six houses. Do not be alarmed, these houses have been empty for some years. However, a few weeks ago, the Order established a new house dedicated to St. Dominic in Khmelnytskyi, Ukraine. Establishing a house within a country that is fighting for its survival —that is a clear sign of courage and Hope! That is what Br. Bruno calls the “audacity of the improbable”; that with a firm faith and hope, even the improbable becomes possible, with God’s grace.
We have brothers and sisters in Myanmar who continue to be signs of hope for their countrymen who suffer oppression. We have brothers and sisters in Africa, the Americas, Asia and Europe who, by their theological reflection or works of charity bring misericordia Veritatis, the mercy of Truth, to diverse situations of suffering and oppression. Some of them suffer death, like our young friar in Vietnam who was killed last January while hearing confession in a remote part of the country. Hope is grounded on the certainty that God will never abandon us, even in suffering and death. Hope is the assurance that God abides in the “mysteries of joy, sorrow, glory and light” of our lives. O Spem miram! God is the wonderful HOPE, promised by Dominic, as our constant Companion, in the holy endeavor of spreading and growing God’s WORD, over lands, across the sea, beyond the horizons of our vision. Christ among us, Christ within us, He is our hope of glory (Col 1:27).
How do we preach with faith, hope and love in our world today? The story of Martha and Mary in today’s Gospel invites us to rediscover the value of Dominican charism for the Church. Some saints were critical of Martha. St. Basil the Great wrote that “Our Lord did not commend Martha when busied about much serving.” Yet St. Augustine comes to Martha’s defense and said: if we were to blame Martha for her service, then “let men give up ministering to the needy.” Martha and Mary came to symbolize the opposition between action and contemplation. But a Dominican reading of the story of Martha and Mary is not about opposition but synthesis. St. Thomas writes, “For even as it is better to enlighten than merely to shine, so is it better to give to others the fruits of one’s contemplation than merely to contemplate.”
The story of Martha and Mary helps us recall what we said in the General Chapter in Biên Hòa: “The life-mission synergy is the road to strengthening Dominican identity. It is also the most efficient way to harmonize the contemplative and apostolic dimensions of the Order. The propositum vitae conceived of by St. Dominic was precisely to serve the salvation of souls through the ministry of preaching coming out of a life of prayer, study and fraternal fellowship”(ACG Biên Hòa, 60).
As we begin this General Chapter, let us pray that our journeying together will bring us closer to God and to one another, so that by our life and mission, we can help our people see more clearly the abiding presence of Christ, our hope of glory.
Brother Gerard Francisco Timoner III, OP
Master of the Order
Master of the Order
