From the Deacon's Desk

I will be delivering the following homily at all Masses at St. Pius X Parish this weekend:

I think many, if not all of us, are challenged to know how to respond to some of the tension and divisiveness taking place in our country.

At the Saturday morning session of our annual deacon retreat last weekend, our presenter said something that resonated with me. He said, “When situations are challenging, it is wise to view them carefully through the lens of our faith.”

That was helpful to me and gave me much upon which to reflect.

While on my computer afterwards, I noticed that Archbishop Thompson had released a statement he titled, An Appeal for Civility Rooted in Humility and Empathy.

Because the statement fits in so well with our first reading from Isaiah, I will be using the entirety of the Archbishop’s statement as my homily:

Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ:

The recent shootings of protesters, attacks on government officials, and continued indiscriminate deportations of so many of our neighbors have sparked outrage and grave concern about the integrity of our nation.  Have we lost our moral compass?  Have we sacrificed our sense of human decency for unbridled freedom without obligations or restrictions?  Whatever the concern, as the saying goes, the end does not justify the means.  Violence is not the answer to tension and disagreement.  If you have not already done so, I implore you to read the special pastoral message issued by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops in November 2025.   The path to lasting peace and unity, Pope Leo XIV reminds us, is predicated on the building of bridges rather than walls.

“There but for the grace of God go I.”  While the origin of this quote remains uncertain, this famous idiom is often attributed to John Bradford, a 16th century English reformer and martyr, as he witnessed criminals being led to execution.  Regardless of where it originated, the phrase is meant as an expression of humble awareness of oneself as well as empathy for others.  During his historic address to the U.S. Congress in 2015, the late Pope Francis expressed concern for several respect life issues within the context of the so-called ancient Golden Rule; namely, “Do unto others as you would have done to you.”

Given the escalating violence of both rhetoric and brutality in our society, it seems that both humility and empathy are gravely lacking among us as the growing lack of civility continues to spiral out of control.  Rather than recognizing one another as brothers and sisters, members of the same human race or family, the extremes of polarization are causing us to hold one another in suspicion as some type of threat or enemy.  There was a time when a person was innocent until proven guilty.  We are increasingly witnessing, however, quite the opposite.  With little or no sense of regard for dignity of persons or the sacredness of life, we tend to judge, arrest, shoot, and/or condemn before asking the right questions about others and ourselves.  Truth has been sacrificed for the sake of ego, ideology, and partisan agenda.  If we are to achieve the proper reforms of immigration, politics, and economics, we must allow ourselves to be transformed in mind and heart by the Golden Rule.

Regardless of one’s religion or politics, empathy and humility are integral to what it means to be human.  What sets us apart from animals is our ability to think, reason, feel, dialogue, and respond rather than react.  While there are those among us who are criminal, even evil, we should not label an entire class or group of people in a single category.  We live in a very complex society that requires more than simple answers or short-sighted solutions.  We must rise above the pettiness of pride, vanity, and self-centeredness to realize our better selves.

Far too often we are quick to label people as problems to be solved or eliminated rather than as persons possessing inherent dignity even in their wounds and brokenness.  This is true for the unborn, the homeless, the addict, the victim of human trafficking, the sick, the elderly, the prisoner, the migrant and refugee.  Abortion, mass deportation, euthanasia, indiscriminate shootings, and so-called justifiable self-preservation are ways to solve or eliminate problems, inhumanity against humanity, rather than humanely treating those struggling with great challenges that plague our human condition.  When we lose our sense of meaning and belonging as a human family, it is the poor and vulnerable who are most impacted, but we all suffer.  Perhaps few understand what it means to be a part of a family, something greater than oneself, with values and principles that foster interpersonal relationships of mutual trust and respect.  There but for the grace of God go I…any of us. 
           
Sincerely yours in Christ,

Most Reverend Charles C. Thompson
Archbishop of Indianapolis

The passage from Isaiah I mentioned prior to reading this statement is this:   

Share your bread with the hungry,
shelter the oppressed and the homeless;
clothe the naked when you see them,
and do not turn your back on your own.
If you remove from your midst
oppression, false accusation and malicious speech;
if you bestow your bread on the hungry
and satisfy the afflicted;
then light shall rise for you in the darkness,

I will end with a brief portion of the “Special Pastoral Message” of the USCCB Archbishop Thompson mentioned in his statement:

“Catholic teaching exhorts nations to recognize the fundamental dignity of all persons, including immigrants. We bishops advocate for a meaningful reform of our nation’s immigration laws and procedures. Human dignity and national security are not in conflict. Both are possible if people of good will work together.”