Mass for the Preservation of Peace & Justice
In Thanksgiving for the Work of CRS, Catholic Charities, and the Society of St. Vincent de Paul
Cathedral of Mary Our Queen
June 11, 2025
My Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ:
We gather today in a spirit of deep gratitude and with no small amount of urgency.
We are grateful for the faithful and persevering work of Catholic Relief Services, Catholic Charities, & the Society of St. Vincent de Paul—organizations that don’t just provide aid, but witness to the love of Christ in the flesh. In shelters and refugee camps, food pantries and war zones, they serve as the Church’s outstretched hand to the poor, the displaced, the hungry, and the vulnerable.
We also gather with urgency, because that work is under threat. In recent months, the U.S. government abruptly suspended refugee resettlement funding and halted international humanitarian aid – forcing the Church and its agencies to lay off employees, terminate programs, and most painfully, turn away those most in need. These decisions have done more than disrupt logistics – they have frayed bonds of trust that are essential to our mission of mercy.
We have seen this erosion of trust not only in international aid decisions but here at home as well. Recent immigration raids have left many families shaken, not because they were hiding wrongdoing, but because the enforcement actions were carried out in ways that provoked fear and anxiety among ordinary, hard-working immigrants – our neighbors, our parishioners, our friends. While governments have the right to enforce laws, they must do so with humanity and prudence. It is never necessary to instill fear in order to ensure order. The peace we are called to build cannot be reconciled with tactics that sow division and dread in our communities.
And so, I find myself turning to the Gospel we just heard proclaimed, where the disciples are gathered behind locked doors, confused and afraid. It strikes me that in some ways, we too feel we are behind closed doors – hemmed in by decisions beyond our control, wondering how we go on. And into that room, Jesus enters. “Peace be with you,” He says. And again: “Peace be with you.” Then He breathes on them and says, “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.”
This is the first commission of the Church after the Resurrection. Jesus doesn’t give the disciples a strategic plan or a budget. He gives them His peace, and the Holy Spirit, and then sends them into the world – wounded, messy, and unjust as it may be – to be bearers of reconciliation, healing and hope.
That same Spirit has carried the Church’s mission through every century, and it must carry us now, especially when the work is harder, leaner, and more costly.
In my own life and ministry, I often draw strength from the words and witness of Cardinal James Hickey, former Abp. of Washington, who was not only a spiritual leader, but a friend and mentor. He gave me one of the most lasting images of the Church’s mission: a Church that never turns away from suffering but stands with Mary beneath the Cross.
During the Lenten retreat he preached to the Papal Household in 1988, Cardinal Hickey remarked:
“Through our poverty and our weakness in the face of massive human needs, the strength and power of the Cross are communicated. Through our inadequacy to address the tremendous social problems of hunger, disease, poverty, and oppression, the abundant life of Jesus can shine through to our world. The strength necessary for the Church to serve the needs of humanity comes from the Cross of Jesus.”
And the Cardinal went on to remind us that:
“Standing with Mary beneath the Cross of Jesus, the Church can bring to the destitute, the troubled, and the ill a tremendous love that understands the redemptive power of all suffering even as it seeks to alleviate that very suffering. The Church [he said] must never fall into the trap of thinking of itself as just another agency for providing human services… The care and concern the Church brings to those in need are different…
The Church must bring a redeeming love that seeks both the spiritual and the temporal welfare of all who suffer.”
That is the vision of charity we need, now more than ever. The Gospel does not promise us ease or clarity. But it does promise that the Holy Spirit is with us, and that Jesus will breathe peace into our chaos, and send us forward not by our own strength but by His.
Isaiah, in the first reading, spoke of a day when peace would be more than the absence of conflict – when it would flow from justice itself: “Then justice will dwell in the wilderness…The work of justice will be peace…My people will live in a peaceful country, in secure dwellings & quiet resting places”… This is the peace we work toward – a peace that flows not from politics, but from righteousness, solidarity, and grace.
St. Paul, in his letter to the Philippians, gives us the path forward when the work seems overwhelming; he says: “Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God. Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”
So, what do we do now?
We do what Christians have always done in difficult times: We renew our identity: We are not vendors. We are the Body of Christ, animated by the Spirit, driven by love.
We build anew: Even as relationships and programs change, we must find new partnerships, support local leaders, and invest in the grassroots energy of our parishes and communities.
We advocate without fear: Social media, bulletins, homilies, and action alerts – these are not optional endeavors; they are part of how we form consciences and uphold the dignity of the least among us.
We remain present: Even when we can’t serve in the same ways, we can still accompany, still stand beside, and still show up for those in need.
Above all, we remember that the Risen Jesus does not leave us behind locked doors. He enters, even now, with a word of peace and a command to go out. So let us go, not in despair, but with the strength of the Cross and the peace of Christ. Let us be bold in hope and let us be worthy of the trust the world has placed in us, not because we are powerful, but because we are faithful. Amen.