Preached August 25/26 at Blessed Kateri at St. Margaret Mary site -

(Readings Joshua 24, Ephesians 5, John 6)

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear,
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same

            Robert Frost wrote these words nearly 100 years ago, in his famous poem The Road Not Taken – maybe you recall, as I do, reading this poem in Junior High or High School.  This poem describes something you and I confront each and every day – making decisions, making choices. Sometimes small decisions, sometimes big ones.  Sometimes lifetime decisions.  What road to follow for the rest of our lives.  Sometimes eternal life decisions!  Faced with two or more ways to go, we must decide, and not knowing the future for certain, and we either reap the rewards or suffer the consequences.

            Choosing, making decisions, seems to be a common theme today – for we find folks confronted with life decisions in all three readings.

            In the first reading we see the twelve tribes gathered at Shechem, the place where God had established the Covenant with Abraham.  The tribes are now gathered at the completion of their forty years of wandering in the wilderness, on the cusp of their being settled in the promised land, of becoming a nation.  And the question arises – are the Israelites to worship the gods of the lands they are inheriting, the peoples they have vanquished, or are they going to follow the Lord?  Joshua presents them this critical choice, and he exhorts them to serve the Lord, concluding with his great statement of faith:  “As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord!”  (Probably one of my two favorite verses in all of scripture!)  Notice however that he leaves the decision to the people – God doesn’t force the people to serve Him, nor does Joshua.

            In our Ephesians reading, we who are married are presented with choices as well.  St. Paul exhorts us to “Be subordinate to one another out of reverence to Christ” and live in love, as Christ loved us.  He is not speaking of a feeling of love here, but rather a decision, a choice, to love our spouse, to subordinate our own wants and desires to those of our spouse.  To serve our spouse, to put him or her first.  And why?  Because as married couples, we are to mirror the relationship of Christ and the Church.  Our married covenant love is to be a sign to the world of the Covenant love of Christ and the Church.  And how does Christ love the Church?  <point to crucifix> That’s right – He gave his life in complete sacrifice on the Cross!

            And we see the ultimate decision in the Gospel I just read.  This week marks the conclusion of our five-week tour of John’s sixth chapter.  And today’s passage marks the culmination of that chapter, the climax of Jesus’ Bread of Life discourse.  Last week we saw the Jews quarreling and questioning Jesus, yet rather than backing down, Jesus said that UNLESS you eat my flesh – real food - and drink my blood – real drink – you shall not have life within you.  He is presenting his listeners, both the Jews and his disciples, with a life-changing decision. 

            What are we to make of this passage?  What do we believe?  What is our decision?  As we know, this passage represents perhaps the greatest dividing line among Christians over the past two thousand years.  For most of our non-Catholic sisters and brothers believe that Jesus was speaking figuratively here, symbolically.  No way could Jesus mean His real flesh and real blood.  No way.

            But for Catholic Christians, the verses we read in today’s Gospel are the clincher!

            “This saying is hard” they said – “hard” meaning offensive, likely even disgusting.  And many returned to their old lives.  They up and left.  Disciples who had witnessed Jesus feeding the multitude, who had seen Him walk on water, could not accept what He was saying – eat my flesh, drink my blood – too hard, so they left.  Certainly if they were misreading Jesus, if He just meant something symbolic, He could have clarified His teaching and said, “Wait, come back, don’t go!  I was just speaking figuratively!”  But He didn’t say that.  Like Joshua, Jesus let them decide.  He left it up to them stay or leave.  And many left.  They could not bring themselves to believe.  And Jesus turned to the twelve and said “do you also want to leave?”  To which Peter, speaking on behalf of the twelve, answered in faith “Master, to whom shall we go?  You have the words of eternal life.  We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God.”  My other favorite verse.

            These questions present us with decisions that are critical in our own day.  Do we take Jesus at His Word?  Do we believe that He is really and truly present in the Eucharist we celebrate this afternoon/morning?  When Jesus said that He would be with us always, until the end of the age, did He not mean that He would be with us tangibly, Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity, in the Eucharist?  And even if we do not understand it exactly, do we choose to believe?  For I am sure that the twelve couldn’t possibly have yet understood it, not yet, not until the last supper, and Jesus’ passion, death and resurrection.  But they chose to believe!

            One look around our own St. Margaret Mary site, we see the empty seats – many which used to be filled by folks who no longer accompany Him here in the Eucharist.   Some who’ve chosen to leave, some who’ve simply stopped coming.  Some who’ve chosen not to believe in the real presence, a belief Christians have held since the beginning!

            But my sisters and brothers, let us not despair!  For you and I can do something about it! 

            First, we can ask God to renew our own devotion to the Blessed Sacrament.

            We can choose to approach the altar in reverence and with clean consciences. 

            Every time we approach the altar and we are confronted with the decision - “the Body of Christ” - with God’s grace may we firmly and with conviction answer “Amen.”

            And after Communion, rather than run for the exits, we can tell the Lord how thankful we are for this most amazing gift.

            Most of all, we can go forth and LIVE Eucharistic, thankful lives, passionate about the wondrous, amazing gift we have in the Lord’s presence here in the Eucharist!    Renewed and strengthened, comforted and healed by Our Lord’s Body and Blood, we go forth to be His presence to the world, including those who’ve chosen to leave, and those who’ve stopped coming. 

            And by God’s grace, through our visible love and passion for the Lord in the Eucharist, may Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ guide them home.