6th Sunday of Easter
Installation of Father Godwin
St. Veronica Parish, Baltimore
May 25, 2025
How Shall We Proceed?
I’m very happy to be with you today here at St. Veronica’s to offer Sunday Mass with you and for you and to celebrate the installation of your pastor, Fr. Godwin. I take this occasion to thank Fr. Godwin and the Josephites for their service to your parish and to the wider community of Cherry Hill. On this day also we remember those who have died defending our country, especially those among our family and friends: may they rest in peace and may we be citizens who are worthy of their great sacrifices.
The installation of your pastor marks a new beginning in the life of this parish. You have been through the Seek the City to Come process – I know it was not easy and I thank you for your participation and patience. Yet, this process is not finished; in fact it is only beginning. For now, the task and challenge of parish renewal lies before us as you work with your pastor to ensure that St. Veronica’s will always be a vital missionary center here in Cherry Hill. So, it is appropriate to ask, “How shall we proceed? How will we go forward?”
Our response to that question must be this: “Our hearts are set in one direction; the only direction for our intellect, will, & heart is towards Christ the Redeemer, towards Christ the Redeemer of Man” (RH, 7) Christ is the future of this parish and the future of each one of us. Christ is our Shepherd, our hope, our way forward and our guide along the way. At the heart of every prayer, every liturgy, ever homily is Christ. At the heart of pastoral planning, outreach, and every project is Christ. It is Christ who, in the Spirit, gives us the courage and energy for mission. Let us seek and find him in today’s Scripture readings.
Let Not Your Hearts Be Troubled
Today’s Gospel comes from Jesus’ farewell discourse to his disciples. They are words Jesus spoke to his closest friends on the night before he died. Opening his heart to them, he urged them to remain true to his Word so that they would share in his relationship of love with his heavenly Father.
Jesus also promised that the Father would send the Holy Spirit to remind them of all he had taught them.
Yet, as Jesus spoke of his death & resurrection & his returning to the Father, the disciples were troubled because they sensed his was slipping away. Jesus, in bestowing his peace upon them, said: “Let not your hearts be troubled or afraid.” At the time, the disciples did not understand what Jesus was trying to tell them. Later they did, and through their teaching and the power of the Holy Spirit, we also understand that Jesus remains with us, powerfully and lovingly, in his Word and Sacraments, most especially Eucharist and Reconciliation. Through the ministry of your pastor, his saving words & deeds touch our souls. The Lord lives among you as a worshipping community and you encounter the Lord as you form young people in the faith, reach out to the poor, and welcome the stranger and the estranged alike. Nothing should deter us or cause us to veer off course. Our hearts are set in one direction: towards Christ whose love conquers all.
Patient Dialog
In the reading from the Acts of the Apostles, the early Church is at a crossroads. A new situation had arisen and a decision had to be made. Through the preaching of Paul and Barnabas, the Gospel went beyond Jewish converts and was extended to the Gentiles. But a question kept coming up, again and again: Were Gentile converts obliged to follow the Mosaic Law like Jewish converts?
To answer this question (which was thornier than we might think), the Apostles convened what we call the Council of Jerusalem, the first of many local and ecumenical councils and synods. Opening their hearts to the Holy Spirit, the Apostles and Elders patiently dialogued and reached a wise decision on how best to welcome the new Gentile converts. In doing this, they were faithful to mandate of the Risen Lord gave them: to bring the Gospel to all nations and baptize them in the name of the Trinity.
As you begin a new chapter of parish life, you also face new and challenging situations and decisions. And some of these may be more difficult than we might wish. Yet, as the Church’s experience teaches, to make those decisions wisely we must open our hearts to the Spirit, listen to the Word of God, and engage in patient dialogue, in contrast to the world around us. Be confident that the Risen Lord who remains with his Church will guide us. Therefore, our hearts set in one direction: towards Christ our Redeemer.
Future Glory
The second reading from the Book of Revelation is like a window on heaven where Christ is seated at the right hand of the Father. It is a place of immense beauty and overflowing joy, where the history of Israel and the apostolic foundations of the Church are enshrined in glory. At the heart of it all is the Lamb who was slain, whose glory illuminates the heavens and fills our hearts with hope.
The true beauty of this parish is that it participates in the beauty of that heavenly Temple towards which we journey as pilgrims. With our eyes fixed on that destination, we face the future with confidence, not mere optimism, but an invincible hope that does not disappoint. In that spirit of hope, we plant seeds of faith and water them. We strive to become living stones in the Body of Christ, the Church. We continue the work of building St. Veronica’s into a vibrant community of faith, worship, and service. As the future of this parish unfolds, our hearts are set in one direction: towards Christ, the Lamb once slain who lives forever.
Our Hearts Are Set in One Direction
I conclude these reflections by renewing my heartfelt thanks – to Father Godwin and also to all of you for your support and participation in the mission of this parish. This includes not only what you donate but most of all your gift of self, your personal witness to Christ and your participation in the life of the parish. I thank you, because your heart is set in one direction – towards the Christ who lives and reigns with God the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God forever and ever. Amen!