Homilies – April 2025

HOMILY
ARCHBISHOP CHRISTOPHER PROWSE
CATHOLIC ARCHBISHOP OF CANBERRA AND GOULBURN
ST CHRISTOPHER’S CATHEDRAL
6^th APRIL 2025
FIFTH SUNDAY OF LENT (YEAR C)
AND MASS ONLINE

 Readings: Isaiah 43:16-21  Phil 3:8-14 Luke 8:1-11

It could be said that today’s Gospel is an example of Jesus multitasking!

He seems to be doing two things simultaneously.

First, Jesus is asked to give a moral assessment as a Rabbi, of a woman caught committing adultery.  This was a serious matter then.  It is a serious matter now.

Simultaneously, the Religious leaders are trying to incriminate Jesus – in other words to find something to use against him.  Recall, that we are only one week away from Holy Week.  The forces are building up against Jesus.  The Religious leaders are prepared to make this woman a scapegoat or “thing” for their malicious ends.  They are even prepared to humiliate her publicly.

In medieval artwork, this famous encounter of Jesus in today’s Gospel is the subject of many wonderful portraits.  Inevitably in most of them there is a lot of “finger wagging” coming mainly from the Religious leaders.  The woman in these paintings seem to be quite demure.  She is clearly not defensive.  She is acknowledging her guilt and waiting for whatever is going to happen next.  In these paintings, Jesus seems to be more worried about the hypocrisy of the Religious leaders than the guilt of this woman.

In summary, the approach of Jesus is straight forward.

He first indicates that all of us are part of a community of forgiven sinners.  Therefore, “he who is without sin is to cast the first stone.”

Then, strangely, he kneels down and writes in the dust.  The early Christian patristics, in meditating on this passage of the Gospel, indicate that perhaps he is writing down their sins.  It is an interesting thought.  We really don’t know what He is doing.

One by one the Religious leaders leave and He is alone with the woman.  There is eye to eye contact.  There is a dignified silence as Jesus, kneeling down, looks up at her.  This is a beautiful posture of humility on behalf of Jesus.

He then tells her, “Has no one condemned you?  Neither do I condemn you.”  He then says quite bluntly, “Go away, and don’t sin anymore.”  He gives her a fresh start and there is a promise of merciful hope.

In this week before Holy Week, we too aught think about celebrating the Sacrament of Reconciliation or Confession.  There certainly seems to be a type of Confession in today’s Gospel.

Finally, this scene is only recorded in John’s Gospel.  When only Jesus and the woman are present, the question arises – Who told the author, St John, about this?

Once again the Patristics seem to suggest that perhaps this woman eventually becomes a Christian.  She tells, as a forgiven sinner, the Early Church about her encounter with the Lord so full of mercy and hope.  Once again, it is an interesting thought.

Today we welcome, in a special way, many migrants and refugees from around the Archdiocese for our annual Multicultural Sunday Mass.  This time it is being celebrated during the Federal Election time.

Let’s hope in the weeks ahead, as we move towards the election date, that we never use migrant or refugee issues to scapegoat or humiliate migrants or refugees.  This so easily can happen.  It has happened so often in past Federal Elections.  Here there is a politicisation of a deeply human and global tragedy – the mass movement of people throughout the world looking for a new homeland.

Suffice to say, once again it gives me an opportunity to recognise the enormous gift that migrants and refugees are to Australia.

When you all have come to Australia, you come as people of faith.  You come with all your family and marital life.  You are open to having children in this new but ancient country.  You are also so grateful to Australia and very keen to tell us wonderful stories of your origins.  Like the Gospel, we look eye to eye and listen carefully to your stories.  They give us great hope in this Jubilee Year of Hope.  Thank you so much for bringing your great faith into our ancient but new country of Australia.

For our “Gospill” today, it seems St Paul, who truly understands what it is to be a forgiven sinner, gives us a great summary of the centrality of Jesus in all our conversion stories.  What he says in the beginning of the Second Reading today is forever true no matter our situation.  Let us pray this Scripture text often in the week ahead – “I believe nothing can happen that will outweigh the supreme advantage of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.”

GOOD FRIDAY
18^th APRIL 2025
PASSION OF THE LORD
HOMILY
ST CHRISTOPHER’S CATHEDRAL, CANBERRA
ARCHBISHOP CHRISTOPHER PROWSE
ARCHDIOCESE OF CANBERRA AND GOULBURN

READINGS: JOHN 18/1-19, 42

Over the last few days I have participated in Media interviews regarding Easter.

Recently, as I was waiting for the interview to begin, I listened to the news from the Radio station.  I was asking myself, at the same time, what news of great joy and hope I can provide to the listeners.  What I heard during the Radio news filled me with great hopelessness and a sense of disappointment.

It was a story about extending the parameters of the Voluntary Assisted Dying (VAD) legislation (Euthanasia – Legalised Suicide).

Absolutely no mention what so ever was given about Palliative care.  This would make VAD legislation totally unnecessary, but didn’t seem to be the way the conversation was going.

It does raise the questions…how are Australians today responding to suffering and death?  Particularly in regard to this vicious legislation.  How do we cope with terminal illness and suffering?

More or less, this same question was asked on the very day of the Passion and Death of Jesus Christ…the First Good Friday.

Let us not forget that Jesus died a disgusting death: Crucifixion.  It took the Christian Church almost 300 years to be able to adore the Crucifix and see it as a symbol of veneration.  Previously it was always associated with the “scandal” of the Cross.  In other words, why did Jesus need to suffer and die so terribly?  For ourselves, on this day particularly, how are we to respond to Jesus’ suffering and death?

The early Christians and others, before the Resurrection, responded in various ways.  Here are some examples.  First of all, one said, “Deny it!” this was St Peter.  He denied this was happening three times on the First Good Friday.

Another said, “Let’s gamble with it!” this was Pontius Pilate’s response.  Will we gamble on Jesus or Barabbas?

Another said, “Let’s make money from it!” the price for Jesus’ death was evaluated at 30 pieces of silver.  This was Judas Iscariot’s response to the Suffering and Death of Jesus.  Then there was the person who, quite literally, shared in the carrying of the Cross somewhat reluctantly.  This was Simon of Cyrene.

Others basically said, “Let’s join the shouting mob!”  They then shouted “Crucify Him, Crucify Him.”  This was the mob’s response.

Finally, there is those who are totally indifferent!  This perhaps approximates where the Australians find themselves on this Good Friday.  However, at the time of the First Good Friday, the Jerusalem populous was generally completely indifferent to the death of Jesus.  They were also indifferent to His birth 33 years prior in the hills of Bethlehem.  Now on the hill of Mount Calvary they went on with life as if this was a normal daily occurrence.

Well then, what was Jesus’ response?

The response of Jesus was basically, “Allow God to transform it!” – Transform hopelessness into hopefulness.

We see this in different moments of the last day of Jesus’ life.

We see it in the Garden of Gethsemane when He says, “Not my will but yours be done!”  There is a surrender to God’s will.  Then there is the silent endurance for the salvation of souls.  It is interesting to know that during Jesus’ scourging, torture and insults, He utters not a word.  He is suffering for us and for all souls.

Then on the Cross one of His last expressions was to forgive others.  We hear him say, “Father forgive them for they know not what they do!”

Then, in a last gesture of merciful love, we see Him interceding for the poor and the oppressed.  He promises the “good” thief “paradise today.”

So as we go on with this commemoration of the Lord’s Death, in this Jubilee Year of Pilgrims of Hope, let us allow Jesus to “capture us” away from hopelessness to hopefulness.  This is an expression St Paul uses.  It is not as if Jesus’ salvation of us is something low key or incidental.  He captures us like a mother would capture one of her young children as he or she moves towards a busy road.  We are captured dramatically in the Death and Resurrection of Jesus from the abyss of nothingness.

We think particularly about those who suffer from a Mental Illness.

Depression and loneliness abound in our community for all sorts of reasons.  Let us particularly stand alongside them and help them to place the mess of our humanity onto the Cross.

So in a moment we will have the veneration of the Cross.  Let us start afresh now.  Let us be transformed by uniting our suffering with the Suffering of Jesus.

Let us pause for a moment in silence and articulate in our minds and our hearts the sufferings we want to nail to the Suffering and Redemptive Cross of Jesus.

I leave you with a little “Gospill”, “Hope to the Hopeless gave, that they might hopeful be!”

EASTER VIGIL – 19^th APRIL 2025
HOMILY
ARCHBISHOP CHRISTOPHER PROWSE
ST CHRISTOPHER’S CATHEDRAL, CANBERRA

READINGS: VARIOUS. GOSPEL: LUKE 24:1-12 

The Vigil Mass of the Lord’s Resurrection tonight is often described as the “Mother” of all our Liturgies.  Here we come close to the “heart beat” of the People of God, through Scripture and the strong symbols of the Resurrection.

First, we want to thank God for all He has given us, especially creation.  We heard this in the Readings tonight, when God makes something it is always “Good.”  Especially when He made Human Beings, He made us “in His own image and likeness.”

The politics of Ecology is all around us.  We tend to forget that before Ecology and care for the earth became a political issue, it was always a theological issue.

If God makes everything and it is good, we therefore must be good stewards of the creations He gives us and thank God for the blessings.  We also express the desire to ennoble that which God has given us and make sure grateful hearts respond with grateful hands.

Secondly, we acknowledge this night the pivotal importance of our Jewish brothers and sisters.

We Catholics never see the Jewish faith as some sort of separate Religion.  We always see it as part of our own.  Let us always remember that Jesus, Mary and Joseph were all Jews.  The Holy Family was a Jewish family.  We thank our Jewish brothers and sisters for the Old Testament and the way they have given us the image of God as loving kindness and merciful hope.  Through the Readings of tonight it also shows, although we have been unfaithful to God, God has always been faithful to us.  He comes after us even when we walk away from Him!

Thirdly, we focus on the New Testament and our Salvation History in the Death and Resurrection of Jesus.  This incredible Good News is not only spoken in words but also in rich symbols.

We have the Pascal Candle.  Set alight in a darken Church we say, “Christ our Light.”  It is a beautiful way of seeing Christ as our one true light in the midst of the darkness that enfolds us.

Then there is the Living Water for Baptism.  The re-birth in the waters of Baptism is something we renew tonight and for some, offer for the first time.  There are seven Sacraments of the Church, the Eucharist being the “mother” of all the Sacraments.  However, none of these Sacraments can be activated without Baptism, the “gateway” Sacrament of the Church.  Here we are born into Eternal life.  It is the only thing left when we leave this world for the world to come.

May I leave you with the greeting of our Eastern Christians who this year celebrate, Calendar wise, Easter at the same time as us.  Whereas you or I might say to each other, “Happy Easter” and we respond with “Happy Easter to you.”  In the East they say to each other, “Christ is Risen” and the response is, “He is truly Risen, Alleluia.”  So let us keep this in mind as a special memento for tonight, “He is truly Risen, Alleluia.”

EASTER SUNDAY YEAR C – 20^th APRIL 2025
HOMILY
ARCHBISHOP CHRISTOPHER PROWSE
ST CHRISTOPHER’S CATHEDRAL, CANBERRA

READINGS: ACTS 10/34, 37-43. COL.3/1-4. JOHN 20/1-9 

Like many Christian Churches throughout the world, last night and again today we will be baptising many into the Catholic Church.

Last night I formally accepted into the Catholic Church a number of young adults.  Afterwards, I asked the Bishop’s question:  Why did you become a Catholic?

A young man perhaps in his thirties answered as follows, “I have come to the certainty that the Catholic Church is the one true Church.”

That is quite an answer!  It comes out of the people of his age in Australia who look at life through a scientific paradigm.  The science has to “stack up” before an advancement can be made.

This is fine for us in the Catholic Church.  We are in no shape or form against reason.  Indeed, we talk about how reason and faith are the “two wings” that help the Christian fly!  Certainly in the Readings today we have some of that scientific paradigm coming in.  Basically it says, “All that is true is of God.”

An unlikely example of that is St Peter in today’s Gospel.  He comes from the University of fishing!  The science of fishing starts to kick in here.  When he arrives at the empty tomb he starts to look around at things in an almost scientific way.  The Scripture says, “Peter came up, went right into the tomb, saw the linen clothes on the ground, and also the cloth that had been over His head; this was not with the linen clothes but rolled up in a place by itself…”  How is that for a scientific approach to things!

Then in the Second Reading today we hear from the great Apostle of the Resurrection, St Paul.  We know him to be an Academic of a high dimension, looking at things scientifically and logically would be part of his way of life.  In this letter to the Colossians he summarises it all in the following way, “But when Christ is revealed – and he is your life – you too will be revealed in all your glory with him.”  The Academic finds the fullness of truth in the Death and Resurrection of Jesus.

Apart from the truth of the fundamental Christian claim that He is Risen, there is also another dimension at play.

This is the sheer goodness of the first witnesses of the Resurrection.  Just by their goodness they have given us so much hope in our pilgrimage of life.

There is a wonderful example there in today’s Gospel of St Mary Magdalen.  She is often described in our Catholic Tradition as “Apostola Apostolorum”, this means the Apostle of the Apostles.  There is so much goodness in her.  There she was with Mary the Mother of Jesus and other women at the foot of the Cross.  She shadows Jesus in His last hours like nobody else.  Then when she goes to the empty tomb she then runs back to the Apostles to say, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb’ and we don’t know where they have put Him.”  This is a two edged comment first of all.  Has the tomb of Jesus been robbed? Is there the hint that He has risen from the dead?

The other personality of tremendous goodness is St John.  When he goes to the empty tomb his goodness make him wait for St Peter to arrive.  The elderly fisherman instructs the young adults, the twelve Apostles!  His approach is so different from St Peter when he goes into the empty tomb.  It is simply recorded that, “He saw and he believed.”

All that is good is also of God.

Not only all that is true and all that is good is of God, but also all that is beautiful is of God.

We see this again hinted in the Gospel of today.  Geography and the time of the day is very important at the Resurrection.  The Scripture say, “It was very early on the first day of the week and still dark…”  Our liturgy speaks of the Easter Candle and its light.  The Living Water of the Baptism Font is offered as indeed Jesus as our Bread of Life.

This beauty of creation is even seen on this lovely autumn day in Canberra.  It was a beautiful dawn this morning.  The trees are all turning beautiful autumn colours.  It is simply beautiful.

Let us see the Author of such beauty in creation.  This is something we could do today as we slow down and move out of our normal routines.

So now let us move on to our important Easter Liturgy.  There will be the Easter Baptismal Water sprinkled on all of you.  It is to renew your Baptismal vows where you became re-born into Eternal life through the Living Waters of Baptism.

This is all celebrated in a Jubilee Year of Pilgrims of Hope.  We recall the remissions of sins in the Jubilee Year, the task to repair broken bridges in our lives, and time to make a refreshed start.  Using “computer language” it is time to make a “reset” of our lives.

Let’s do this with all our hearts now and keep in mind the Easter Church’s Easter Greeting, “Christ is Risen!…Truly Christ is Risen, Alleluia!”

HOMILY
ARCHBISHOP CHRISTOPHER PROWSE
CATHOLIC ARCHBISHOP OF CANBERRA AND GOULBURN
ST CHRISTOPHER’S CATHEDRAL
27^th APRIL 2025
DIVINE MERCY SUNDAY (YEAR C)
AND MASS ONLINE

 Readings:  Acts 5:12-16  Revelation 1:9-13, 17-19  John 20:19-31  

The conversion of St Thomas is well known.  In a sense the encounter in today’s Gospel on Divine Mercy Sunday, is not really about St Thomas.  It is about the Risen Jesus, “Divine Mercy” itself.

It is like Luke 15 and the parable of the Prodigal Son.  You may recall a few weeks ago when we meditated upon this we noticed it wasn’t so much about the prodigal or reckless son, it was more about the prodigal or reckless father.  He was reckless in his forgiving of the son.

With this Biblical perspective we have now the face to face encounter, the eyes to eyes encounter, of the Risen Lord with the Apostles and especially St Thomas.

I suppose St Thomas is a bit like us in Australia today.  Whether we know it or not, we are animated by a scientific principle whereby if we are to believe in anything “the facts have got to stack up” scientifically.

This is the rather arrogant and misguided strategy of St Thomas.

He missed out on seeing the Risen Lord with the other Disciples.  When they related this encounter to him, he became quite scientific in his response.  He said, “Unless I see the holes that the nails made in his hands and can put my finger into the holes they made…I refuse to believe.”

So, when Jesus does catch up with them again He goes straight to St Thomas.  Here we have the quintessential Christian encounter.  It is always heart to heart, eyes to eyes, face to face.  We are a “face to face” Religion.  On this Divine Mercy Sunday, St Thomas encounters the mercy of Jesus and sees how foolish his conditional response has been.  He is just like us and we are so grateful for the repentant and beautiful short prayer that he prays, “My Lord and my God.”  Let us reflect a little more about this.

This eye to eye, face to face characteristic of the Risen Lord is very much like the Pontificate of Pope Francis over the last 12 years.  It really was a Pontificate of merciful hope, filled images of him meeting people face to face.

It is almost as if he wanted to smile at faces and offer an image rather than an articulation of God’s mercy.

Secondly, the Lord’s particular love for the outsider was also reflected in Pope Francis’ Pontificate.  When Jesus appears the second time He makes a direct line for the “outsider” – St Thomas.  Jesus speaks to Thomas as if he is the only one in the room.

This certainly is a hallmark of the Pontificate of Pope Francis whose Funeral Mass was celebrated yesterday.  It was a Pontificate directed to the peripheries.  Even at his funeral there were people from the “peripheries” who would not otherwise have attended without receiving the particular invitation of the Vatican representing the wishes of Pope Francis.

Thirdly, the glance of “Divine Mercy” ignites fresh hope.

In St Thomas’ case his merciful encounter with the Lord opened up an enormous energy of hope which prompted him to go out, to the known world of his time, as a Missionary Disciple of the Resurrection.

Our Tradition suggests that St Thomas went along the sea routes involved with trading in antiquity.  There seems firm belief that he travelled as far down as the West Coast of India, the Malabar Coast.  Even today you will be able to meet people in the Southern part of India named Kerela who describe themselves as St Thomas Christians.

There are undoubtedly people in the congregation here today who would describe themselves in such a way.  St Thomas appears to have been the first evangeliser of that part of the world.  Two thousand years later Kerela is the hub of Christianity and Catholicism in particular in India.

Let us recall that it was Pope Francis that initiated our Jubilee Year of Pilgrims of Hope.  We pray that his merciful Pontificate will give rise to renewed hopeful energies in us all over these days so that we can continue evangelisation which is part of the great commission to make God’s message known and loved to the ends of the earth.

Let us now pray, as we go on with the Mass, for a worthy successor to Pope Francis in the weeks ahead.

I always find it irritating when the media insists on picking out candidates who might become the next Pope.  It is almost like a Melbourne Cup sweep in fact!

But, before we look at candidates we should look at the principal role of the Pope.

Pope Francis emphasised, more than other recent Popes, that the Pope is the Bishop of Rome.

This may not mean a great deal to Australians but the first Bishop of Rome was St Peter.  Now we are praying for the Holy Spirit to indicate to us who will be the worthy 267^th successor of St Peter as the Bishop of Rome.  Over early centuries the Bishop of Rome became known as the Bishop of the Universal Church and the one who leads us in charity in Word and Sacrament.

Another beautiful title of the Pope was articulated by Pope St Gregory VI in the 6^th century.  He described the Pope as “the servant of the servants of God.”

Even looking at the humble coffin of Pope Francis at his Funeral Mass yesterday we could see the simplicity of the coffin, the open Gospels and the pages which tended to flutter in the gentle breeze.  Like us all, let us recall that the Pope is a Baptised member of the Catholic faith and like us all he is to see his role as a servant of the Gospels.

With these two principal roles of the Pope, let us pray in these days that the Holy Spirit will raise up one of the Cardinals to lead us in the years ahead.

May I leave you with a beautiful quote from a poem that was beloved of Pope Francis.  In his recently published autobiography, towards the later part of the book, he quotes from a favourite poet Nâzim Hikmet.  He prefaces the poetry by referring to the “Divine Mercy” that engenders great hope in us for a future that is yet foreseen but looked forward to.

Let us remember Pope Francis in these poetic words that he loved so much.

“The most beautiful sea hasn’t been crossed yet.  The most beautiful child hasn’t grown up yet.  Our most beautiful days we haven’t seen yet.  And the most beautiful words I wanted to tell you, I haven’t said yet…”   Pope Francis leaves us in hope.  Let us leave each other in hope as we immerse ourselves on this Divine Mercy Sunday.

Let us use for our “Gospill” the prayer of St Thomas… “My Lord and my God.”