My Sisters and Brothers:
On November 17th, the Church celebrated Saint Elizabeth of Hungary, a great Franciscan saint! It seems like no coincidence to me that she is celebrated so close to the feast we celebrate on this Sunday, the Feast of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe.
On November 17th, the Church celebrated Saint Elizabeth of Hungary, a great Franciscan saint! It seems like no coincidence to me that she is celebrated so close to the feast we celebrate on this Sunday, the Feast of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe.
Saint Elizabeth lived eight-hundred years ago. As a wealthy woman with noble blood, and at the same time a Secular Franciscan, she enthusiastically used her power and influence in order to serve the needy. As a Christian, and as a spiritual daughter of Saint Francis, she built hospitals to care for the sick, she served people with leprosy, she gave bread to the poor, and she tirelessly worked for the good of outcasts and those around her who were weak and disadvantaged.
In today’s Gospel on this Feast of Christ the King, we are told that on the day of judgment “the Son of Man . . . will sit upon his glorious throne . . . and separate the sheep from the goats.” Jesus makes a clear distinction between those who place their lives in service to others and those who do not. On this feast we celebrate our Servant King, one who demands that we always reach out to those in need. He tells us very clearly that if we wish to follow him, we must feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, welcome the stranger, cloth the naked, care for the sick and visit those imprisoned (see Matthew 25:31-46).
Today, the warning to us is that those who fail to do these things in service to the needy will be punished. Ultimately, like the metaphorical goats in today’s Gospel, those who neglect to serve others will not be received by Jesus into heaven!
Our church’s history is full of examples of saints and holy people, who like St. Elizabeth of Hungary, understood the basic Christian call to service. They each understood that when they served the needy, they were actually serving Jesus himself. May we, like them, always place ourselves in service to the least of our sisters and brothers. And let us be confident that someday we too will be welcomed with them into heaven.
Rejoice my sisters and brothers, as we await that day when Jesus our King proclaims to us: “Come, you who are blessed by my Father,” there is a place for you among the saints in paradise!
Praise God! Friar Timothy
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