Homily – Title Notes based on the gospel Reading Old Psalm New Gospel

23 Romans 8:1-11 Luke 13:1-9

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It was just about this time that some people arrived and told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with that of their sacrifices. At this he said to them, "Do you suppose these Galileans who suffered like that were greater sinners than any other Galileans? They were not, I tell you. No; but unless you repent you will all perish as they did. Or those eighteen on whom the tower at Siloam fell and killed them? Do you suppose that they were more guilty than all the other people living in Jerusalem? They were not, I tell you. No; but unless you repent you will all perish as they did." He told this parable: "A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came looking for fruit on it but found none. He Page 2 of 11

said to the man who looked after the vineyard, 'Look here, for three years now I have been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and finding none. Cut it down: why should it be taking up the ground?' 'Sir,' the man replied 'leave it one more year and give me time to dig round it and manure it: it may bear fruit next year; if not, then you can cut it down.'”

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Tomorrow you may die. It could happen in a car crash, you might trip on the stairs, you could just end up in the wrong place at the wrong time. You most probably will not die tomorrow, I hope and pray that you do not, but are you ready, if tomorrow is your day to die? Yesterday 2000 people died in this country, globally 300,000 died. Were these people greater sinners than us? No they were not. We are all flawed, we all do the wrong thing some times, we all say the wrong thing sometimes and we all don't do, or say, the right thing sometimes. Page 4 of 11

Jesus has offered us a gift, when he died on the cross two thousand years ago, he did so willingly, he did so for us, that we may be forgiven for, wrong things we have done, and the right things we failed to do. But it's not enough to be forgiven, if we don't want to be, if we don't acknowledged the fact we get it wrong, if we don't ask for forgiveness, if we don't try to do better next time. Last week I was sitting down, with my laptop open, trying to understand what the spirit was going to guide me to say to you today. I was finding it difficult to find the first words to say, so I turned the tele on for a couple of minutes distraction. Well I Page 5 of 11

turned on the tele right at the start of the England football match, 5 mins in when Crouchy scored I must admit I gave up on the homily for that evening and settled in to watch the game. Around 60mins in England were really beginning to struggle they just weren't playing well, and then David Beckham came on. The whole of Wembley cheered, the England game picked up, England scored from his first corner and David won the man of the match award for only playing 30mins. But sitting there after the game, the spirit reminded me of another game 11 years ago. England were playing Argentina in the world cup, and just after half time with the score was 2 all, and then Page 6 of 11

David was sent off for kicking Diego Simeone. Argentina went on to win the game and knock England out of the tournament. I think David was the most hated man in England right then. But he came home, appeared on all the big TV show and apologised, he never tried to justify the mistake, he then went back to Man United and played well, got reselected for England and played well. David is now looking to take part in his 4th world cup and has the second highest caps for England. Jesus didn't use football to make his point, fig trees were far more common in his time than football superstars, and his version is far deeper than my David Beckham story. Jesus talks about a about Page 7 of 11

the owner of a vine yard who has a fig tree not bearing fruit after three years. That fig tree could be me, it could be you, if we fail to bare fruit, The owner of the vine yard wants to cut down the tree and plant something more productive, but the man who looks after the vine yard intercedes for the tree as Jesus intercedes for us. He asks for another year, he provides care and nourishment, all that is needed for the tree to produce fruit. Jesus has given us all the nourishment we need. What we don't know, is just how far through our extra year, we are. In the next hour, next day, next week, are we going to bare the fruit asked of us. So how do we start, well, like David, we say sorry. And a very Page 8 of 11

good way to say sorry, happens at the start of Mass every week. The Penitential Rite, which we say directly after the greeting, has the potential to be a very powerful and heartfelt apology. “I confess to almighty God and to you my brothers and sisters, that I have sinned through my own fault ,in my thoughts and in my words, in what I have done and what I have failed to do; and I ask blessed Mary, ever virgin, all the angels and saints, and you my brothers and sisters, to pray for me to the Lord our God.” When we say these words are we just rushing in quietly because we were a little late, or are we turning the pages of the hymn Page 9 of 11

book to find the music for the gloria, are we worrying about the first reading we have to do next and when exactly we have to walk to the front of church to do it. Or are we calling to mind what we got wrong the last week, the fruit not produced, the goals not scored. When we confess to our brothers and sisters, do we look round the church at the faces of those we are confessing to. When we ask for prayer from Mary, the angles and the saints who have gone before us, do we know in our hearts what we are asking them to pray for. And when we ask our brothers and sisters for prayer do we also hear their request for our prayer? How do we react to the the words we hear in response? “May almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins, and Page 10 of 11

bring us to everlasting life.” Mercy and Forgiveness are great gifts, they put us in the right frame of mind to be dug around and fertilised. And during the mass we are fertilised in many ways, - by the word of God, the scripture we are about to hear, - by the body and blood of Christ we are about to eat and drink, - by the priest in the person of Christ, - and by the people standing around you as the body of Christ Allow Christ in this way to dig around you, allow him to fertilise you, and then go out and produce fruit, you may not be able to put the ball at Crouchy's feet with the perfect 50 yard pass, but as Christians we are called to do so much more, what is going to be your fruit, today? Page 11 of 11