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Knights
of Columbus My dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ: We are very blessed to have members of the Knights of Columbus participate in our Mass tonight. The Oklahoma state Knights are holding their semi-annual meeting today. Therefore, I wish to acknowledge their presence because I consider the Knights to be a very effective and helpful organization of our Catholic faith. At this present moment in history, there are many people and organizations that are actively striving to push our society and our culture towards godless secularism. The Knights of Columbus serve as a stabilizing entity. They believe in God and in His rightful place in our daily lives. Our own Knights in Oklahoma have long championed the pro-life movement, the recruitment and support for priestly vocations and the Church’s expression of Catholic social teachings and issues of peace and justice. The Knights are faithful to the authentic teachings of the Church and manifest strong support for families and family life. I am truly grateful for the vibrant and enthusiastic presence of the Knights of Columbus in our Archdiocese. As the Knights join us here at this Mass, we begin the celebration of the Second Week of the Advent season. We heard Saint Paul speak to us tonight. In the second reading, he was encouraging the Christians of Rome to be filled with hope. He reminded them that everything written in the Scriptures is there for instruction. Yes, we must remember that the Scriptures are not simply telling us the stories of the past – the history of salvation – but most importantly, giving us instruction and encouragement. Therefore, when we hear the account of Saint John the Baptist, we must be aware that it is a very personal challenge to each of us. Yes, we can picture John, a very charismatic person, standing there on the banks of the Jordan River and crying out “Reform your lives. The reign of God is at hand.” And we can appreciate the words of the prophet saying of John: “A herald’s voice in the desert. Prepare the way of the Lord and make straight his paths for the reign of God is at hand.” When we apply these words to us as Catholic people, they give clear and accurate guidance. Everyone of us has sinned. We are all sinners. Therefore, we all need to reform our lives. This means overcoming sin. Sin is disobedience to God. Have we not all disobeyed some, if not all of the ten commandments of God? Did we not on occasion reject authentic Church teaching when it went against our opinion? Sin is turning away from God. It is relegating His plan to second place and putting our own petty tastes and fallible plans first. Sin is failure to fulfill our obligation of life as parents, as workers, as citizens, as neighbors. In a world where there is much violence and injustice, terrorism and fear, we are surrounded by sin and tempted frequently. Yes, we must reform our lives, yet we know from experience that we cannot do it alone. We need God’s help. We need His grace, His mercy and His forgiveness. God knows our weakness and so, as He sent John the Baptist to call people to reform, He continues to call us through the Church to reform. For that reason, Jesus instituted the sacrament of Penance for the forgiveness of sins. He commissioned the Church in His Name: “Whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven them. Whose sins you retain, they are retained.” The Church teaches us officially that the ordinary way for a Catholic to receive forgiveness of mortal sin is through the sacrament of Penance. Confession is necessary for us when we commit mortal sin. It is the way for reconciliation. Confession is a wonderful gift that we should all practice regularly even if we haven’t committed serious sins. This sacrament is a great blessing and a source of grace to strengthen us and help us in our spiritual development. When the Church selected the particular readings from the Scriptures that you heard proclaimed tonight for the Second Week of Advent, it had a very good reason. The Church wants you and me to reform during this Advent season. The Church wants us to be ready to celebrate Christmas devoutly and to turn to our good and merciful God Who loves us so much. Life is a beautiful gift from God and He wants us to have the fullness of life. During the Advent season, our churches are offering us the sacrament of Penance at the usual regularly scheduled times. In addition, almost every parish celebrates an Advent Penance Rite for your benefit. There is no better way for us to observe Advent and prepare for Christmas than to make a good confession and receive sacramental absolution. I hope you and every Catholic person of this Archdiocese will avail yourselves of the sacrament during Advent. Remember the teaching of today’s Gospel: “Reform your lives! The reign of God is at hand.” Most
Reverend Eusebius J. Beltran |