Fr. Roger J. Landry
Holy Innocents Church, Manhattan
Extraordinary Form of the Roman Missal
Memorial of St. Margaret, Queen of Scotland, Widow
June 10, 2016
1 Tim 5:3-10, Mt 13:44-52
To listen to an audio recording of today’s homily, please click below:
The following points were attempted in the homily:
- The saints, like St. Margaret Queen of Scotland whom the Church celebrates today, are those who lived today’s Gospel, choosing Christ as the treasure buried in the field or the pearl of great price. It’s that choice, in response to God’s grace, that gets them thrown into the bucket of the saved when the dragnet of the Church reaches the eternal shore. Like the widow St. Paul describes to St. Timothy, they set their hope in God and, even in ordinary life through their work, continue in prayerful supplications night and day. The don’t count how much they’ve had to sacrifice, but with joy count how much they’ve gained.
- We have the chance to make that wise investment every day with regard to choosing Christ, particularly in the Eucharist, and making sure that God isn’t merely a part of our life, but something worth more than everything else in our life combined.
The readings for this Mass were:
A reading from the First Epistle of St. Paul to St. Timothy
Honor widows who are truly widows. But if a widow has children or grandchildren, let these first learn to perform their religious duty to their own family and to make recompense to their parents, for this is pleasing to God. The real widow, who is all alone, has set her hope on God and continues in supplications and prayers night and day. But the one who is self-indulgent is dead while she lives. Command this, so that they may be irreproachable. And whoever does not provide for relatives and especially family members has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. Let a widow be enrolled if she is not less than sixty years old, married only once, with a reputation for good works, namely, that she has raised children, practiced hospitality, washed the feet of the holy ones, helped those in distress, involved herself in every good work.
A reading from the continuation of the Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew
Jesus said to his disciples, “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field, which a person finds and hides again, and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant searching for fine pearls. When he finds a pearl of great price, he goes and sells all that he has and buys it. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea, which collects fish of every kind. When it is full they haul it ashore and sit down to put what is good into buckets. What is bad they throw away. Thus it will be at the end of the age. The angels will go out and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth. “Do you understand all these things?” They answered, “Yes.” And he replied, “Then every scribe who has been instructed in the kingdom of heaven is like the head of a household who brings from his storeroom both the new and the old.”
