Homily by Most Reverend Philip Boyce OCD ,

Bishop of Raphoe  

Dear Brothers in the Priesthood of Christ ,  

            Words read from the Book of Revelation echoed in our hearts a few moments ago: “Jesus Christ… loves us and has washed away our sins with his blood, and made us… priests to serve his God and Father” (Rev 1:5-6).  

            Holy Thursday is a very special day for us. It brings us back to the Upper Room. Although we all have our own personal anniversary day of Ordination, today is one common to all of us, priests of our God. We celebrate the common birthday of our priesthood. “Do this is memory of me” (Lk. 22:19 ). This sacred authority over his Body and Blood was given to every priest on the day of his Anointing. So was the power to bind and to loose, namely, the divine authority to forgive sins: “Receive the Holy Spirit: whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven: whose sins you shall retain, they are retained” (Jn 20:22 -23).  

            The blessing of chrism and of the holy oils of catechumens and of the sick, the presence of so many priests of the Diocese concelebrating with the Bishop in the Cathedral church, manifests in a very expressive manner the common purpose and the unity of the presbyterate in the service of Christ and of the people.  

            The occasion calls to mind our own vocation as a Priest of Christ. Our priesthood had its origin in a call by the Lord and Master of the vineyard. That call has its source in the love of the Heart of Christ. It was with each of us as it was with the man in the Gospel who ran up to Christ , who knelt down before him and asked what he must do to gain eternal life. “And Jesus looking upon him, loved him”, telling him to shake off the trappings and possessions of this world, and then, “Come, follow me” (Mk 10:21 ).  

            Out of love we were created, and love is our fundamental and innate vocation (CCC 1604). Our priesthood also stems from a glance of love cast on us by Christ Jesus . All we do is simply a response to that love, an acceptance of Christ ’s love in our lives and an invitation to others to share in God’s love.  

            As you know, Pope Benedict XVI ’s first solemn message to all the faithful of the world had for its theme this fundamental reality of God’s love for us and of our obligation to share that love with others. Deus Caritas est: “God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him” (1Jn. 4:16 ). Here we have expressed in a few short phrases, the heart of our Christian faith. This is what we believe. This is our Christian image of God.  

            The great Saint Augustine , commenting on these lines of St. John the Apostle, writes: “What more could he say, O brothers. If there were not in all this Epistle and in all the pages of the Scriptures, no praise of charity apart from this single word that we have heard from the mouth of the Spirit, that is that God is charity, we should not ask for more” (In Epist Joh. 7:4).  

            If this call by Pope Benedict is directed to all believers, it also applies to ordained ministers of the altar. We priests as well are asked to deepen our awareness of the God of love whom we serve. It is as if the Lord, through the Pope’s Encyclical, turns an interior glance to each of us his priests and asks: Do you love me? Do you love me with sincerity and affection? (cf. Jn 21:15-17).  

            Peter the Apostle, when he was made the Rock on which the Church was built, was asked to profess his faith and knowledge of the divine and revealed mysteries. Inspired by the Holy Spirit he eagerly said: “You are the Christ , the Son of the living God” (Mt. 16:16 ). But when he was made a Pastor of others (in his case, of all the others), he was asked to profess his love of Christ and his sincere attachment to his Master. At this moment, he thought of his weakness, unworthiness and denial of Christ was probably uppermost in his mind. But he did profess his love that, despite human frailty, was genuine: “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you” (Jn 21:17 ).  

            Every priest on this Holy Thursday would seem to hear the same question addressed to him. Jesus the Lord is calling him to a life of love, expressed in the prayer, the ministry, the sacramental celebrations, the proclamation of the Word of truth. He knows full well the weakness of the human heart, but he is urged to trust in Him who loves him and calls him. And with Pascal, he may be touched to say: “Yes it is the God of Abraham, the God of Jacob, not the God of philosophers and the learned… but the God of Jesus Christ”.  

            Of course, the promise that the way of purification and the Cross will make our love worthy of Him, will also sound in the background: “Another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish to go” (Jn 21:18). When younger we “walked where we would” with enthusiasm; later on, we shall be “carried” by a particular providence that will purify, mature and strengthen our love for our Master. To that love, we can also apply the words of Pope Benedict : “Love now becomes concern and care for others. No longer is it self-seeking… it becomes renunciation and it is ready, and even willing, for sacrifice” (Deus Caritas est, No. 6)  

The love of the heart of a priest will be expressed in his fidelity first of all to prayer and worship. This helps to overcome the temptation of arrogance or the temptation of just keeping busy and losing oneself in hectic activity. To be a good shepherd, one must not dictate and domineer, but be willing to serve and to renounce oneself. To sit at times at the feet of the Beloved, as Mary of Bethany did, listening to and assimilating the Master’s word, can be as beneficial as ceaseless activity. And all the activity of ministry and evangelisation has to be inspired and directed by love that comes from faith. All authority has to be an exercise of service, as St. Augustine says, an “amoris officium” (In Joh. Evangel. Tract. 123:5), an unselfish dedication for the good of the flock (9 Directory, no. 16).  

And you, dear brothers and sisters, present in the Cathedral with the priests this morning, I thank you for being with us at this solemn moment. You are sharers with us in the common priesthood of all the baptized. We all offer prayers and spiritual sacrifices to our God. We are all responsible for bearing witness to the Gospel and spreading its message by our Christian lives.  

            I thank you for your support and your prayers, for your cooperation with the priests of your parish. Do continue to support them. Do continue to pray for them and for a sufficient number of good and dedicated vocations to the priesthood and the religious life.  

            May we all together show forth the power of the Gospel, the beauty of the Church and the joy of being followers of Christ and servants of his work of salvation. Amen.