Homily – Saturday Daily Mass - 2014/06/21 Memorial of Aloysius Gonzaga, Religious - Matthew 6:24-34

Homily – Saturday Daily Mass

2014/06/21 Memorial of Aloysius Gonzaga, Religious

Matthew 6:24-34
Deacon David Lewis
Saint Charles Catholic Church, Imperial Beach/San Diego, CA

I have seen many posts on the internet about the Church hoarding its riches. The reality of it is that you are not going to get rich working for the Church. Associate Pastors in San Diego have a set base pay of just under $20,000 a year and get promoted to Pastor and make an extra $50 a month. As a deacon, we receive no compensation from the church, only our day job. Youth ministers, parish secretaries, school secretaries, teachers, employees of the Churches various non-profit ministries, typically make far less than their secular civilian counter-parts.

My point is that most if not all of the church staff, are not in it for the money, they are not milking the church of its vast treasure. They are serving God, not Mammon.  Outside of payroll, and building maintenance, charitable giving takes most of what’s left, with a little being sent to the diocese for supporting the regional needs of the church and missions.

The employees of the church are here to serve God and his people through faith with charity. We only need to look at Jesus overturning the tables at the temple to see how Jesus feels about it when it is the other way around. Jesus gets upset when he sees his Fathers house turned into a marketplace. He realizes that to serve God one cannot be serving the material world.  One of the refreshing habits of Pope Francis is his love for the poor, and his desire to live humbly, driving an old-beater, riding public transportation, and giving up the more luxurious Papal apartment for a more basic residence. He lives a life serving only God, putting aside the desire of the material.

But beside the material world what else keeps us from serving God?

Perhaps Jesus could have said: “

You cannot serve God and an addiction

You cannot serve God and a desire to rule over his people

You cannot devote yourself to your children and your work

You cannot serve God and break his commandments.

But while God may have said those things, perhaps instead, he may also have said:

         Serve God’s people...

Serve with great humility

Serve with patience

Serve with kindness

Serve with truth

Serve with light

Serve with love

Serve unconditionally

Serve as Jesus served

Because you cannot serve both God and Mammon