Homily for Thursday of the 24th Week in Ordinary Time - Andrew Kim Taegon and Paul Chong Hasang and their companions, martyrs

For daily readings, see http://www.usccb.org/nab/092007.shtml

I had the benefit of going to seminary with classmates from the diocese of Busan, Korea. Since getting to know them I look forward to this celebration of the Korean martyrs. Many of the Korean martyrs were priests and seminarians who died trying to establish the Church in Korea, and the Church has grown immensely on the ground made fertile by the blood of these great martyrs. As we learn in today’s Gospel, it is the forgiveness of sins that make people suspicious of Jesus’ identity, and that leads to his crucifixion. The Korean martyrs died trying to bring this same forgiveness to the people of Korea.
Today’s Gospel from the 7th chapter of Luke is one of my favorite Gospel stories, and Luke 7:47 is the scripture verse that I chose to place on the back of my holy card that was distributed at my priestly ordination. ‘The one to whom little is forgiven, loves little!’ I remember a priest telling me that I shouldn’t have placed that scripture saying on the card, for people might think that I had a secret life and was guilty of great sins. The reality is that I didn’t care what people thought, as long as they realized that it is because I had been shown great mercy that I had any chance to imitate Christ’s love as a priest. The Gospel story today teaches us that the one whom Jesus loves is not the one who considers himself Jesus’ equal in righteousness, but the one to whom much has been forgiven. Instead of trying to earn the love of Jesus, we should strive to know more closely the meaning of the words that we say immediately before receiving holy communion – Lord, I am not worthy to receive you, but only say the word, and I shall be healed! In Latin, the words are more precisely – Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and I shall be healed!