I always have to be cautious when I say that there were many blessings that emerged from the COVID pandemic.  It was such an incredibly challenging time for all of us, and the effects still weigh heavily on many people, especially those who lost loved ones.  No doubt, all of us suffered in countless ways, and some are still trying to recover from that time of fear, uncertainty and struggle. By no means am I suggesting that it was a great period. However, God in His goodness did not abandon us, even when it may have felt that way. There were blessings available if we remained open to seeing, accepting, and utilizing them.

Thanks so much for stopping by to read this homily for the 31st Sunday in Ordinary Time – November 3, 2024.  I appreciate your sharing this on your social media posts and your feedback and comments…  I’m also grateful for all those who’ve asked for the audio version and share them as well at SOUNDCLOUD click HERE or from ITUNES as a podcast HERE.  May the Lord be glorified in your reading and sharing- Father Jim

One tremendous blessing came from the work of someone I consider a friend and brother priest, Father Mike Schmitz. In January 2021, he launched his “Bible in a Year” podcast.  Father Mike utilized the framework of another popular Catholic biblical scholar, Jeff Cavins, who organized the Bible in a unique way. Jeff created a timeline that allows people to follow scriptures not in the order of just picking the bible up and reading it from the beginning to the end.  Rather this timeline jumps out of sequence so you never lose the ongoing narrative starting at creation all the way through the life of the Early Church, helping to navigate the various literary styles found in the 73 books of the Bible.

Father Mike adopted this timeline as the order for his podcast and recorded himself reading the Bible in episodes lasting 20 to 30 minutes per day. Each episode includes his brief explanations and commentary. If you commit to just 20 to 30 minutes a day (or around 10 to 15 minutes if you listen at 2.0 speed), you can proudly say you’ve read the Bible cover to cover—or, to be precise, that you’ve had it read to you in a year.

To be clear, during my 25 years of priesthood and 8 years of theology studies in college and seminary, I had read the Bible before COVID-19. However, I must admit that I had never engaged with it in such an intentional way. Every day, I committed myself to hearing God’s story, which, as beloved creatures made in His divine image and likeness, is our story as well. Honestly, and with no disrespect to my professors and teachers over the years, I don’t think I’ve ever learned as much or felt the same level of reverence and appreciation for the scriptures as I did when I started listening in 2021. Which caused me to continue to keep on this journey every day for the three years since then, “reading” the bible in a year now for my fourth time in a row.

Fr. Mike’s goal was not to become one of the most popular podcasts, (even though he did) ranking number one across all genres and currently remaining in the top 50 shows in the nation—an impressive feat, especially considering these episodes are now repeats.  But his motivation was far more noble.

He shared that during the pandemic, he realized how much information, entertainment, and content we consume through our screens and earbuds. Particularly during COVID, this constant influx often heightened feelings of fear, dread, and anxiety among people.  Personally, I know this experience to be true; it’s surprisingly easy and subtle to go from checking something on Twitter to scrolling for hours (especially if your like me and have ADD). One minute, we start watching a show on TV or a clip on YouTube, and before we know it, we find ourselves frozen in place, unable to change the channel as the next news anchor repeats the same talking points we’ve just heard but now with new faces and voices. YouTube then suggests another clip we should check out, leading us further down the rabbit hole.  Recognizing that, Father Mike correctly assumed how much more beneficial it would be for all of us to have God’s word being spoken into our lives?  That we would be allowing the Lord to work in our ears, our minds and our hearts to recapture or establish for the first time, a biblical world view.                                         I can’t tell you how life changing this was for me.  And I just want to encourage everyone to consider it for yourselves and your families. You don’t have to wait until January 1st to start; just look up “Bible in a Year” wherever you get your podcasts. Find the one with the big smiling priest on the cover, subscribe, and begin with Day 1. This isn’t a commercial, and I’m not a paid influencer—I’m simply someone who has experienced the profound impact it has had on my own life and believes it’s essential for everyone.

That really comes to my mind and heart as we’re a few days away from another presidential election in a time that feels incredibly consequential. There’s a saying: “There are decades where nothing happens; and there are weeks where decades happen.” It certainly has felt like that for some time.   And I know, even mentioning this already is making people nervous.  Things have gotten so polarized, divisive – we’re overloaded with information that it’s tempting to just opt out of participating, which sadly too many are doing.

As Catholics, we have a moral obligation to do good and avoid evil; and part of our responsibilities as Catholics is to not just fulfill our civic duty to vote, but for it to be an informed vote. Our decision shouldn’t be based solely on emotions, talking points, or fleeting trends.  We need that Biblical world view to not just form our personal lives – our faith isn’t meant to be relegated to something we just try to squeeze in on a Sunday and feel like we’ve done a righteous action.  Our worship here has to impact the other 167 hours of the week.

Which is why these scriptures today seemed providential.  At first glance, the message may seem basic, somewhat familiar, and a bit repetitive. In both the first reading and the Gospel, we heard these words: “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength,” repeated three times.  Some misunderstand these words or reduce them to something pathetically sentimental.  When in reality these words represent some of the most significant teachings Moses left for the people of Israel.

Moses, who had seen the Lord God face to face and had been entrusted with leading God’s people out of Egyptian slavery through mighty signs and wonders, established a covenantal relationship between God and the Israelites. In this covenant, God promises that He will be their God and they will be His people, creating an intimate, eternal bond, with the Ten Commandments serving as the foundation of that relationship.

            In today’s reading, as Moses reaching the end of his earthly journey, we pick up at a pivotal moment— where he offers what is basically his farewell address that echoes through the ages. The book of Deuteronomy captures the essence of both his mission and the covenant he established with God’s people. Moses, imparts his divinely given insights and wisdom: an unwavering call to love the LORD with every fiber of our being.  These words are so revered by the Jewish people that they are pivotal to their daily prayer, in a prayer called the Shema, which is as important to the Jews as the “Our Father” is to us.

            So now when we arrive at this Gospel passage, it might seem somewhat anti-climactic. A scholar asks Jesus, “What is the first commandment?” Jesus replies with the Shema, and the scholar agrees. This young man was well-versed in the Torah, knowledgeable about the Law, and familiar with the prayers, so everything seems fine and agreeable in this interaction between him and Jesus.  Yet with all his understanding and agreement, we might overlook something important.

Consider what Jesus says at the end: “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” Meaning he’s not there yet.    Merely knowing the commandments, reciting prayers, even agreeing with them is not enough. For Jesus, there is always more.  But that’s because He holds nothing back in His part of the covenant relationship with us.  As we’ve reflected during Mass over the past few Sundays with stories like that of the Rich Young Man, who unable to let go of what he possessed in order to follow Jesus – walked away sad, and the formerly blind man Bartimaeus, who started sad to becoming a disciple who follows Him after their miraculous encounter.  Those stories along with this one today, there’s a common thread unites all these narratives: Jesus knows each of them personally. He knows their names, their stories, their fears, their trials, and their struggles. He sees them, He knows them, and He loves them. The Lord God of all creation reaches out not just to humanity as a whole, but to each individual — right down to you and me.  That fact is utterly amazing.

But we know the response is often times complicated.  There’s not a pre-determined outcome to any of these stories or interactions.  Just because people experienced a miracle didn’t mean they followed Jesus, or that they ever made it to the Kingdom of God.   Because for something to be done out of love, it has to be freely chosen.  God has given us the gift of freedom (no, our freedoms don’t come from congress men and women, senators, judges or Presidents).  God has given us the gift of freedom.  And the ultimate choice and decision isn’t about who you pull the lever for on Tuesday.  Every single one of those people on those ballots are broken, sinful, limited people like you and me.

The ultimate choice and decision is whether we are people of God’s covenant.  “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength”—are not mere repetitions; they are a rallying cry for our lives. They remind us that faith is not a passive experience but an active commitment to enter into relationship with God. It is a challenge to prioritize love, not only for God but for one another, especially in a time when division and strife can easily consume us.

If we are God’s people who strive to love Him in that way, one way that is manifested is by engaging the world around us – and sharing the blessings we’ve been gifted with to transform the world.  That’s why as hard as it can be at times, we have to enter into the tension of political debates.   It’s the devil that wants to drive us into deeper isolation and fear.  In a time marked by division and anxiety, our commitment to love must be visible in how we interact with one another, how we approach the responsibilities of citizenship, and how we embody our faith in everyday life.

Father Mike’s Bible in a Year podcast is more than just an exercise in reading; it is about transforming our minds and hearts. When we fill ourselves with God’s Word, we cultivate a biblical worldview that helps us navigate the complexities of our time. It equips us to make decisions grounded in God’s eternal love and truth, particularly as we try to make decisions that impact a very fast moving, ever changing, passing away world.  We need God’s love and truth at all times including as we approach an election that can shape the future of our communities. We cannot afford to remain passive spectators; our love for God must manifest in our choices and actions.

Moreover, as we engage in the political sphere, we are called to act out of a spirit of charity and respect. The command to love does not mean we will always agree, but it does require us to listen, to understand, and to treat each person as a beloved child of God. We are challenged to rise above the noise and seek the common good, fostering dialogue instead of discord.

Let us remember that our freedom to choose comes with a responsibility—to choose love, to choose hope, to choose community. In doing so, we not only grow closer to God but also become instruments of His peace in a world that desperately needs it.

As we leave this place today, let us carry the message of the Shema in our hearts: to love God wholeheartedly, and to reflect that love in how we treat others. This is how we become bearers of the Good News, not just in our words but in our actions, shaping a world that mirrors God’s kingdom—a kingdom built on love, justice, and mercy.