Feast of St. Matthias
49th Anniversary of Priestly Ordination and 75th Birthday
Basilica of the Assumption
May 14, 2026
A Dual Celebration
Warmest thanks for your presence here this evening. You came here, of course, to celebrate my 75th birthday, but it also happens to be the 49th anniversary of my priestly ordination. Nearly half a century ago, I was ordained with seven others in the Cathedral of St. Matthew in Washington, D.C., by William Cardinal Baum, then the Archbishop of Washington. As you’d expect, my Mom and Dad were there, my brother Joe, aunts and uncles, cousins, classmates, and friends.
Cardinal Baum preached a brilliant homily, weaving together the call of St. Matthias to become an apostle with our calling to serve the Church as priests. Too bad, I didn’t take notes. Precisely how he developed that theme is lost to history. So let me offer you three brief points of my own . . .
The Qualifications of a Successor Apostle
. . . beginning with the qualifications of the apostle who would take the place of Judas Iscariot, the betrayer. Peter took the lead in this important matter by calling the assembly together and setting forth the qualifications of a successor apostle. He had to have been a companion and friend of Jesus, one who was with Jesus from the beginning of his ministry until the day he ascended into heaven, that is, he was to be both a disciple and a friend of Jesus. As Jesus himself says in today’s Gospel, “You are my friends if you do what I command you.”
Peter put forth a second qualification for the successor apostle: Along with the remaining eleven apostles, he had to be himself a witness to the Resurrection. Old as I am, I can’t claim to have witnessed the Resurrection, but I embrace & celebrate this mystery as the foundation of my life & ministry, even as I pray to deepen my friendship with Jesus whom I represent as a priest.
The Manner of Choosing
A second point is how Matthias was chosen. There were two excellent candidates: Justus and Matthias but only one slot. Peter could have made the choice himself, but didn’t. The assembly could have made the choice by voting, but didn’t. Instead they cast lots. Contrary to what some may think, this is not the origin of the Church’s affinity for games of chance like Bingo. Rather, casting lots was a way of expressing confidence that God himself was involved in making the choice. After all, did not the Lord say, “It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you”?
As seminarians, we may have sometimes thought that the seminary authorities decided who would be ordained by casting lots. But even then, the process was more complex than that. Underneath that process, however, the reality was the same. It was not I who chose to become a priest, but the Lord who chose me, in spite of my unworthiness. Pope Francis’ motto, “Miserando atque eligendo” applies: it links God’s mercy to God’s choosing. No priest can live his calling faithfully unless surrounded by God’s mercy.
The Outcome
A third and final point is this: the expected outcome of Matthias’ election. Once elected, Matthias joined the other Apostles in proclaiming the name of Christ far and wide. With them and like them, he ministered in the midst of persecution, ultimately at the cost of his life. In the 3rd century, Tertullian would write: “The blood of martyrs is the seed of the Church.” Martyrs are the grain of wheat that was buried in the earth, whose deaths bring forth the good and lasting fruit of the Gospel.
If a priest gives of himself with generosity and love, many things will clamor for his attention – including finances, administration, keeping up old buildings, you name it. But a priest, who is truly a friend of the Risen Lord and his witness in the world, will focus primarily on the people who clamor for his attention, and his overriding concern will be to produce in them a harvest of holiness, the good and lasting fruit of which Jesus speaks in the Gospel.
No priest who strives to live his calling ever sits back on his laurels and says, “There, I’ve done it! I’ve done enough. And I’ve done it perfectly.” A priest is a work in progress until his dying day. What he does is never enough and never perfect. That is why he entrusts his life and ministry to the Lord day by day, and relies heavily on the friendship, collaboration, support, and prayers of those he serves and of those with whom he serves. This is precisely where I find myself after 49 years of priesthood – as I thank you from the bottom of my heart for your friendship, your collaboration, your support, and your prayers. St. Matthias, pray for us!