Knights of Columbus Memorial Mass
Feast of St. Dominic
Quebec, Canada
August 8, 2024
St. Dominic ‘On Mission’
The times were difficult. The Church stood in urgent need of reform. There was corruption in the ranks. The Church lacked evangelical vigor. It had become part of the woodwork. Many were being misled by false pastors and teachers who substituted their version of Christianity for the one Jesus Christ entrusted to his Church. What I’m referring to
here is not some contemporary critique. It’s how things were for the Church towards the end of the 12th century, just about the time that one Dominic Guzman was born in Spain. He would be among those God called to renew his Church.
And how did he do it?
Dominic laid aside earthly comforts and committed his whole life to the Gospel. He allowed the Word of God to be written, inscribed upon his heart, to penetrate his bones and marrow, reaching into the inmost depths of his mind, heart, and soul. It was said of him that he would only speak “to God and about God.” He allowed God’s Word to infame his heart with the fire of charity, with the fire of God’s love, a love that animated everything he said and did. As much as he valued study, he was so moved by the plight of those encountered, that he sold his books to give alms to the poor. And Dominic’s companions, those who were the first Dominicans, testified that no matter how great the sacrifice or how vexing the inconvenience, he remained a disciple who loved both God and neighbor through thick and thin, including the confreres with whom he lived and ministered.
And from his heart, wherein the Word of God had found a home, he preached. He would often ask, “What will become of sinners?” Who will preach to them?” “Who will bring them back to the faith?” He preached not in ornate pulpits or even in modest village churches. Actually, he began his ministry in a bar, staying up all night to evangelize a man who had strayed, bringing him home to the faith. After that, he became an itinerant, preaching on the highways and the byways. To turn a phrase, he was always “on mission”. And the witness of his life and preaching converted many to Christ whom he confessed with Peter as “the Son of the living God.” What’s more, he sent his brothers out on mission, often without food or money. To sum up, in Dominic, the Church found her voice again, the voice with which to proclaim convincingly ‘the only Name in heaven & on earth in which salvation is to be found.’ (AA 4:12).
Dominic and Us
Yet, how easy it would be to create for ourselves a starry-eyed image of St. Dominic’s ministry of preaching . . . so as to let ourselves off the hook. Oh, we might say to ourselves, those days were different from now, & besides, Dominic was one of those rare individuals God uses for his purposes. But St. John Henry Newman would tell us otherwise. He would tell us that God not only calls us to our specific vocations, but also that, within our vocations, he gives us some special work to do, a work, a mission he has entrusted to no one else – but us – each of us.
So while we cannot replicate St. Dominic’s life to a tee, we are called, as he was, to take the Gospel to heart, to allow the Word of God to penetrate our bones and marrow to allow the fire of divine love to be ignited in our hearts, and then to go “on mission” with Lord, bearing witness to him by word and example, opening the minds and hearts of those we encounter on our journey through life to the truth and beauty of Christ, the Son of the living God.
And for us as the family of the Knights of Columbus, what could it mean to “take the Gospel to heart?” Does that not sound like the Cor Initiative – for “cor” is the Latin word for ‘heart’. As Cor takes root within the Order, hundreds, and soon, thousands of our Councils will offer opportunities for their members and for other Catholic men to deepen their life of prayer, to develop their knowledge of Scripture, to grow as husbands and fathers, to be able to discuss with one another, in friendship, things that really matter. All this is more than a self-improvement program. It is rather a call to a living faith, to ardent discipleship, a call to mission, to a shared and robust living of our principles of charity, unity, and fraternity.
For this to happen, our lives, like Dominic’s, must be saturated with charity, for without charity, our gifts, our talents, our mission to evangelize – all these will fail to bear the good and lasting fruit of the Gospel. But when we constantly and consistently reflect the charity of Christ – whether at home, at work, at church, or in the wider community – the light and the love of Christ will shine through us and many will discover who Jesus is and what he has done to save us. In all these ways, we are called to replicate the life of St. Dominic in our day and in our cultures – so as to renew and build up the Body of Christ.
Our Beloved Dead
We build, of course, on the foundations of those who have gone before us – the saints and the blesseds of our Order, most especially our founder, Blessed Michael McGivney. But we build also on many others who have gone before us in faith – whether canonized or not – those whose friendship we have shared and those from whose good works we have benefitted. In so many ways, they have set the standard for the missionary discipleship and the lives of charity to which we aspire. So at this Mass, we remember them gratefully. As the names of those who died this past year are solemnly read, let us entrust each of those Knights and friends of the Order to God’s mercy. After all, they have given us so much in their lifetimes. Now, the gift we can give them is not only our private prayers but also this Eucharistic liturgy offered for them, a gift that transcends time and reaches into eternity.
For the bonds of our charity, unity, and fraternity are not broken by death. We are united with our beloved dead in the Communion of Saints. We are granted the grace of assisting them by the charity of our prayers and they, in turn, pray for us from their place in eternity. Let us commend these our beloved dead to the Lord with hearts aflame with the living Word of God, with hearts aflame with the charity that flows from the heart of the Christ who lives and reigns with the Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God forever and ever. Amen! Vivat Jesus!