By John Rohlf, The Message assistant editor
Earlier this month, Bishop Joseph M. Siegel celebrated Mass to kick off Encounter Hope, an event put on by the Diocese of Evansville.
Bishop Siegel celebrated Mass Dec. 6 at St. Benedict Cathedral in Evansville as part of Encounter Hope. Later that day, Bishop Siegel also celebrated Mass at St. Benedict Cathedral as part of Encuentro de Esperanza. The English and Spanish gatherings were dedicated to building Christ-centered families and were set as a capstone of the diocesan observance of the Jubilee Year of Hope.
At the beginning of Mass, Bishop Siegel welcomed all to St. Benedict Cathedral as they gathered for the Eucharist and for the Encounter Hope event in the Jubilee Year of Hope as they looked to form Christ-centered families. We look to the intercession of Mary and Joseph, asking for their prayer that we may be more formed in the image of Jesus, Bishop Siegel said.
During his homily, Bishop Siegel said it was the sacred vocation to marriage and family life that they raised up at the Mass and at the Encounter Hope conference. He said this Jubilee Year has been a special year of grace, dedicated to the theological virtue of hope. Bishop Siegel said in this holy year, we look to the witness of the Holy Family of Nazareth, celebrating the wondrous mystery that God not only assumed our humanity, but was also part of a family, the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. If ever there were parents that hoped and trusted in God, it was surely Mary and Joseph, he said.
Bishop Siegel said their holiness was not an absence of problems, but a testament to how they navigated these trials with faith, love and unwavering trust in God. He noted they were a family that did not just talk about God. They lived their faith, being obedient to Jewish laws and customs, including presenting Jesus in the temple and participating in a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. They created a home in Nazareth that was the sanctuary of quiet work, love and prayer where Jesus grew and became strong, filled with wisdom in the favor of God who was upon him, Bishop Siegel said.
Bishop Siegel said this hidden life teaches us that holiness is often found not in grand public displays but in the everyday faithfulness of our homes. He said the church holds up the Holy Family not as an ideal, but as a model and a patron for our own families. It is in the family, the domestic church, that we first learn how to love and be loved, he said.
Bishop Siegel said Mary and Joseph set the pattern not only for his own parents but for all parents. The pattern of trusting in God’s promises and hoping against hope in whatever circumstances, including those that defy our understanding.
Bishop Siegel continued in his homily that as Catholics, we are here today because we know through the virtue of hope placed in our hearts by God, that the struggles of life are not the end. He said St. Paul is adamant that hope does not disappoint or deceive. It does not assure us that all will be well and turn out just as we wish. Bishop Siegel said hope means catching sight of the glimmer of God’s glory and our calling to reflect that glory in some particular way. It means that in our pilgrimage through life, amid its joys and sufferings, we are confident that we are being brought not merely to a better place but to the very heart of God himself, for whose love and friendship we were created in the first place, he said.
Bishop Siegel said hope then means picking up our cross and following the savior not only to Calvary but all the way to the new eternal Jerusalem. This holy year has been an opportunity to see ourselves, our families and loved ones as pilgrims of hope, he said.
Bishop Siegel said may this day of encountering hope be a time of spiritual renewal for all those present and for all those in your homes, especially as we complete this holy year. He said let us ask for the grace to make our families a place where faith is alive, forgiveness is freely given and love flourishes. Through the prayers of Mary the mother of God and St. Joseph, may Christ grant us the grace to continue to walk as pilgrims of hope each and every day, living and sharing our faith with joy in our homes and beyond, he said.