0:07
Reading from the book of Exodus. On the
0:10
third month after their departure from
0:11
Egypt, Israel arrived in the Sinai
0:14
desert. They set out from Refiddom and
0:17
arrived in the Sinai desert where they
0:19
camped. Israel pitched their tents there
0:22
facing the mountain. And the Lord said
0:25
to Moses, "I will come to you in a thick
0:27
cloud so that the people may hear when I
0:29
speak to you and may believe you
0:31
forever." When Moses had conveyed the
0:34
people's words to the Lord, the Lord
0:36
said to him, "Go to the people and
0:38
sanctify them today and tomorrow. They
0:40
must wash their clothes and be ready for
0:42
the third day. For on that day the Lord
0:45
will descend on Mount Si before all the
0:47
people." When the third day arrived, at
0:50
dawn, there were thunders and
0:52
lightnings. A thick cloud covered the
0:55
mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast
0:57
was heard. In the camp, the people began
1:00
to tremble. Moses led the people out of
1:03
the camp to meet God, and they stood at
1:06
the foot of the mountain. Mount Si was
1:08
all in smoke because the Lord had
1:11
descended upon it in fire. Smoke rose
1:14
like smoke from a furnace and the whole
1:16
mountain shook violently. The sound of
1:19
the trumpet grew louder and louder.
1:21
Moses spoke and the Lord answered him
1:24
with thunder. The Lord came down on
1:26
Mount Si and called Moses to the top of
1:29
the mountain and Moses went up. Word of
1:32
the Lord. Thanks be to God.
1:44
Proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus
1:46
Christ according to St. Matthew. Glory
1:49
to you, Lord. At that time the disciples
1:52
came and said to Jesus, "Why do you
1:54
speak to the people in parables?"
1:57
Jesus answered, "For to you it has been
1:59
given the knowledge of the mysteries of
2:01
the kingdom of heaven, but to them it
2:03
has not been given. For to the one who
2:06
has even more will be given and he will
2:08
have abundance. But from the one who
2:11
does not have even what he has will be
2:13
taken away. That is why I speak to them
2:16
in parables because looking they do not
2:18
see and hearing they do not hear nor do
2:22
they understand. In this way the
2:24
prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled in them.
2:27
You will hear but not understand. You
2:29
will look but not see. For this people's
2:32
heart has become callous. They have
2:35
heard with difficulty and have closed
2:36
their eyes so that they might not see
2:38
with their eyes nor hear with their ears
2:41
nor understand with their heart so that
2:43
they might turn and I might heal them.
2:46
Blessed are you because your eyes see
2:48
and your ears hear. Truly I tell you,
2:51
many prophets and righteous people long
2:53
to see what you see and did not see it.
2:56
They long to hear what you hear and did
2:59
Word of salvation. Glory to you, Lord.
3:11
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
3:14
imagine yourself on a towering mountain
3:16
during a nighttime storm. Thunder echoes
3:19
like heavenly cannons. Lightning tears
3:22
through the dark sky like flaming
3:23
swords. And the entire mountain trembles
3:26
beneath your feet. Would you feel fear
3:30
or perhaps an overwhelming mixture of
3:32
both? This image is not far from the
3:35
experience the people of Israel had on
3:37
Mount Si and it invites us to reflect on
3:39
how God reveals himself to us and how we
3:42
respond to that revelation. In the book
3:44
of Exodus, we encounter one of the most
3:46
dramatic and majestic scenes in all of
3:49
scripture. God is about to meet with his
3:51
people in a completely new way. But note
3:54
the preparations he demands. Go to the
3:57
people and sanctify them today and
3:58
tomorrow. Let them wash their clothes
4:00
and be ready for the third day. What
4:03
meticulous preparation. God is not
4:06
simply showing up casually. This
4:09
encounter requires sanctification,
4:12
purification, a preparation of heart and
4:14
mind. The washed clothes are not just a
4:17
matter of physical cleanliness but a
4:19
symbol of the inner purity necessary to
4:21
be in the presence of the holy of
4:23
holies. And then on the third day, the
4:26
divine manifestation is absolutely
4:28
stunning. There were thunders and
4:30
lightnings and a thick cloud upon the
4:32
mountain and a very loud trumpet blast.
4:35
Imagine the scene. Mount Si itself was
4:38
smoking because the Lord descended upon
4:41
it in fire and its smoke ascended like
4:43
the smoke of a furnace and the whole
4:46
mountain quak greatly. This is not a
4:48
discreet or silent revelation. It is a
4:51
theophony that involves all the senses,
4:54
visual, auditory, even tactile, with a
4:57
mountain shaking. God is revealing
5:00
himself in a way that no one can ignore
5:02
or deny. It is a manifestation of power
5:05
that simultaneously inspires awe and
5:08
fear. But here lies a fascinating
5:10
paradox. Although God reveals himself so
5:13
powerfully and dramatically, not
5:15
everyone perceives or understands him in
5:17
the same way. And it is precisely this
5:20
paradox that Jesus addresses in our
5:22
gospel reading today. The disciples
5:25
approached Jesus with a question that
5:26
echoes through the centuries. Why do you
5:29
speak to them in parables? It is a
5:32
profound question that touches the heart
5:34
of divine communication. If Jesus wants
5:37
people to understand, why doesn't he
5:39
speak more directly and clearly? Jesus
5:42
answer is surprising and even
5:43
disconcerting. For to you it has been
5:45
given to know the mysteries of the
5:47
kingdom of heaven, but to them it has
5:49
not been given. This is not an answer we
5:52
would expect from someone who came to
5:54
save the whole world. How can we
5:56
reconcile this with God's universal
5:58
love? Jesus gives us a clue when he
6:01
quotes the prophet Isaiah. Hearing you
6:03
will hear but will not understand and
6:06
seeing you will see but will not
6:07
perceive. The problem is not the clarity
6:10
of divine revelation, but the
6:12
willingness of the heart to receive that
6:14
revelation. Consider this. On Mount Si,
6:18
the entire nation of Israel experienced
6:20
the same dramatic manifestation of God.
6:23
They all saw the lightning, heard the
6:26
thunder, and felt the mountain shake.
6:28
However, we know from the rest of the
6:30
biblical story that not everyone
6:32
responded with lasting faith. Some soon
6:36
after this incredible experience turned
6:38
to the worship of the golden calf.
6:41
Similarly, Jesus spoke the same parables
6:43
to everyone. Pharisees, scribes, crowds,
6:48
disciples. The words were the same, but
6:51
the reception was drastically different.
6:54
Some heard and understood, others heard,
6:56
but remained spiritually blind and deaf.
6:59
This is a profound truth about the
7:01
nature of divine revelation. God
7:04
constantly reveals himself, but our
7:06
ability to perceive and understand this
7:08
revelation depends on the condition of
7:10
our hearts. It's like a radio station
7:12
that broadcasts continuously. The
7:14
quality of reception depends on how we
7:17
tune our receiver. Jesus explains, "For
7:20
whoever has, more will be given and they
7:22
will have abundance. But whoever does
7:25
not have from him will be taken away
7:27
even what they have."
7:29
This is not a statement about divine
7:31
favoritism but about the nature of
7:33
spiritual perception. The more we open
7:36
our hearts to God, the more we are able
7:38
to perceive his presence and his voice.
7:41
The more we close our hearts, the more
7:44
spiritually blind and deaf we become. My
7:47
dear brothers and sisters, this truth
7:49
has profound implications for our lives
7:52
today. How often is God revealing
7:54
himself to us? But we fail to perceive
7:56
it because our hearts are not prepared,
7:59
not sanctified like the people on Mount
8:01
Si. God continues to reveal himself
8:04
today. Perhaps not with dramatic thunder
8:06
and lightning, but through his creation,
8:09
through his word, through the
8:10
sacraments, through the people around
8:12
us, through the circumstances of our
8:14
lives. The question is not whether God
8:17
is speaking, but whether we are
8:19
listening. How can we develop eyes to
8:21
see and ears to hear?
8:24
First, like the people at Mount Si, we
8:27
need to prepare ourselves. This means
8:29
dedicating time to purifying our hearts
8:32
through prayer, repentance, and
8:34
meditation on God's word. It means
8:37
washing our robes, cleansing our lives
8:40
of everything that might obscure our
8:42
spiritual vision. Second, we need to
8:45
cultivate an attitude of humility and
8:47
openness. The scribes and Pharisees
8:50
often failed to understand Jesus because
8:52
they came with closed hearts filled with
8:54
their own preconceived ideas. We need to
8:57
come to God as children willing to learn
9:00
to be surprised to have our expectations
9:02
exceeded. Third, we need to develop a
9:05
spiritual sensitivity through regular
9:08
practice. Just as a musician develops
9:10
their ear through constant practice, we
9:12
develop our ability to perceive God's
9:15
voice through regular communion with
9:16
him. Fourth, we must be willing to obey
9:19
what we perceive. Jesus said, "If anyone
9:23
desires to do God's will, he will know
9:25
whether the teaching is from God." There
9:28
is an intimate connection between
9:30
obedience and revelation. The more we
9:33
obey what we already know, the more God
9:36
reveals to us. Jesus concludes his
9:38
explanation to the disciples with words
9:40
of incredible encouragement. But blessed
9:43
are your eyes, for they see, and your
9:45
ears, for they hear. For truly I tell
9:48
you, many prophets and righteous men
9:50
long to see what you see and did not see
9:53
it, and to hear what you hear and did
9:55
not hear it. What an extraordinary
9:58
privilege we have. We live in the age of
10:01
God's full revelation in Jesus Christ.
10:04
We have access to the complete word of
10:06
God. We have the continual presence of
10:09
the Holy Spirit. We have the sacraments,
10:12
the community of faith and the tradition
10:14
of the saints who preceded us. But with
10:17
this privilege also comes a
10:19
responsibility. As Jesus said elsewhere,
10:22
to whom much is given, much will be
10:25
required. We are called not only to see
10:28
and hear, but to share this revelation
10:30
with others. Imagine if each of us lived
10:33
fully aware of God's continual presence,
10:36
attuned to his voice, sensitive to his
10:38
movements in our lives and in the world
10:40
around us. How would this transform our
10:42
way of living, loving, and serving? My
10:45
dear brothers and sisters, today we are
10:48
invited to climb our own spiritual
10:50
mountain to prepare ourselves for a
10:52
renewed encounter with the living God.
10:54
Not with fear, but with reverence, not
10:57
with closed hearts, but open to receive
11:00
all that he wishes to reveal to us. May
11:03
we be like the disciples, with eyes that
11:06
see and ears that hear. May we perceive
11:09
God's presence in the ordinary and the
11:10
extraordinary, in silence and thunder,
11:14
in gentleness and power. And may we,
11:16
having seen and heard, share this
11:18
revelation with a world that so
11:20
desperately needs to know the love,
11:22
grace, and truth of God revealed in
11:24
Jesus Christ. May the Lord open our eyes
11:27
to see his glory, our ears to hear his
11:30
voice, and our hearts to receive his
11:32
transformative revelation today,
11:35
tomorrow, and always. Amen.
11:47
St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in
11:49
battle. Be our protection against the
11:52
wickedness and snares of the devil. May
11:54
God rebuke him, we humbly pray. And do
11:58
thou, O prince of the heavenly host by
12:01
the power of God, cast into hell Satan
12:04
and all the evil spirits who prowl
12:06
throughout the world seeking the ruin of
