June 15, 2026
Paulist Fr. Rich Andre preached this homily on the 11th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A) on June 14, 2026 at Old St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Chicago, IL. This homily is based on the day’s readings: Exodus 19:2-6a; Psalm 100; Romans 5:6-11; and Matthew 9:36 – 10:8.
Today’s scriptures challenge us to think of how we are similar to God, not how we are different from God. Moses climbs up Mt. Sinai to converse with God. As people of God’s flock, God is our constant companion who knows us intimately. Paul explains how Christ came down to suffer and die for us so that we might be raised with him. Jesus sends out the apostles as his co-workers, before beginning his great discourse on what it means to be a missionary.
In a similar vein, these readings challenge all of us to see ourselves as ministers of the Church. God calls the Israelites a kingdom of priests, not a kingdom containing some priests. All of us our members of the same flock. We have all been reconciled by Christ. We are all called to labor for God’s harvest.
We are destined for the perfection of heaven. Let us acknowledge that God’s mercy allows us to cross the divide already, in this present age.
Lord Jesus, you are the Word through with God created the universe. Lord have mercy…
Christ Jesus, you accompanied the disciples on their journeys of faith. Christ have mercy…
Lord Jesus, you call us to labor with you in God’s vineyard. Lord have mercy…
In the first half of the 20th century, there were three things that lay people were expected to do for the Church: to pray, pay, and obey. Lay people, according to many bishops and theologians, were not to take on leadership roles; that’s what the nuns and the priests were for. Lay people were not expected to learn the finer point of the faith. Don’t ask questions, just obey.
Then came Vatican II in the 1960s. It was, by far, the most important ecumenical council in last 4-and-a-half centuries. Probably the most important document of Vatican II was Lumen Gentium, which spoke about the people of God. It recovered an older, more fundamental theology of the early Church, understanding that the Church is not just made up of clergy. The Church is comprised of all the people of God. The fundamental sacrament that makes us part of the Church is baptism, not ordination.
You might notice some subtle changes I make in the standard prayers of the Church. When the Missal speaks about the people of God, I don’t say “they.” When the Missal speaks about the Church as an entity, I don’t say “she.” I think that the correct pronouns for the people of God and the Church are “we” and “us.”
Our readings today emphasize this idea of the priesthood of the baptized. God says that Israel will be a nation of priests. From the context, it’s clear that he’s not just talking about the men in the tribe of Levi who serve as priests for the religious rituals. Psalm 100 says that we are the people of God’s flock. It doesn’t say only some people are members of the flock, or that some people belong more to the flock than others. Paul says that Jesus died for us while we were still sinful, which means that all of us sinners are equally empowered by God’s mercy. Jesus declares that the twelve can proclaim the kingdom, cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, and drive out demons. There are no special qualifications required!
But this theology still isn’t as widely accepted as it should be. A lot of clergy still want to be in charge of everything, and a lot of lay people are content to simply pray, pay, and obey. This is a sin called clericalism, and it leads to sick, self-centered church. Clergy don’t have all the skills necessary to run a church. And likewise, lay people must step up to offer leadership in the church, too. The clergy abuse scandal was due to clergy having unchecked power, but it probably would not have been as extensive or as long-lived if lay people had felt empowered to speak up when they saw suspicious behavior.
Something remarkable happened 13 years ago with the election of Pope Francis. He ushered in more consultative processes, and in the last years of his pontificate, he issued regulations that require the Church to be more consultative. Pope Leo has continued this legacy, which is really a deeper fulfillment of Lumen Gentium issued 62 years ago, which in turn is a return to a vision of the Church of the late 1st century through the early 4th century, where every member of the Church community belonged to a ministry group, such as the order of presbyters, the order of widows, the order of gravediggers, or the order of catechumens. Back then, there was a much more palpable sense of the Church being comprised of people who were interdependent on one another to make the whole thing work.
For the past 10 months, ending on Wednesday this week, the Paulist Fathers have engaged in the most consultative election process in our history. I think this has been made possible by Popes Francis and Leo, because people no longer question if it’s appropriate for we Paulists to consult as much as we do with our collaborators and friends. An important new document on Paulist charism, mission, and spirituality was approved on Wednesday. Granted, the Paulists have continually debated our charism, mission, and spirituality since the first meeting of the first 5 Paulists in 1858. Nevertheless, this document feels different to me, because it has been shaped by voices outside of our community who have boldly explained their misunderstandings about our mission in recent years.
Likewise, in these past two years at Old St. Mary’s, we’ve celebrated and empowered the priesthood of the baptized, but there is so much more for us to do. In April, we sent out a survey to some staff and more than 20 key volunteers, asking them to evaluate our successes and our challenges in the present moment. One concern voiced over and over again is that several staff members and key volunteers are in danger of reaching the point of burnout. We need to find ways to spread these responsibilities over a wider range of people. Yes, we hope to hire a few more people, but we need to distribute more responsibilities over a wider range of volunteers, too. For example, we need to find volunteers who can be co-responsible in the running and administration of Sunday faith formation activities, co-responsible for livestreaming, co-responsible that all liturgical functions have been filled several days before Mass, especially the 4 pm Mass, and co-responsible for hospitality after the 11 am Mass.
I don’t exactly know where we’re heading as a community, but I am thrilled that 18 of us will be spending 6-and-a-half hours together on Tuesday to dream about the future of the community. This includes the 4 full-time pastoral staff, 1 parish administrator, 4 full-time school administration staff, 2 part-time staff, 2 members each of the Parish Pastoral Council, Finance Council, and School Advisory Board, plus a Paulist student bringing fresh eyes to our community. Please pray for us as we begin dreaming about who we want the Old St. Mary’s community to be in 3 years. I promise that we’ll be inviting you into the process in various ways along the way!
Everyone baptized person hearing this homily has been invited by Jesus to labor in the vineyard of the Lord. I’m excited what the Holy Spirit has in store for Old St. Mary’s, the Paulist world, and the universal Church as we continue to dream and labor together!
We are God’s people, the sheep of God’s flock!