At daily mass yesterday, Father Secora gave a wonderful homily about the foolishness of the cross vs. the wisdom of the world.
Father said that the message of the cross is essentially this: pouring out our lives for others out of love.
He contrasted two stories from the previous day’s headlines:
The first story reported how the EpiPen – a life-saving prescription for people with known life-threatening allergies – has gone from a cost of $57 in 2007 to almost $700 today. Many low-income people are unable to afford it, though the failure to have one on hand in an emergency could be fatal. The CEO of the company that makes the EpiPen earns over $19 million a year.
The second story was about two nuns found murdered in Mississippi. Nurse practitioners, they provided medical care to people who could not pay for it in some of the poorest communities in this country. Their medical training would have enabled them to “earn a good living” but instead they dedicated their lives to serving others.
It’s easy to see the application of these two stories to Father’s definition of “the message of the cross.”
The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing,
but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
For it is written:I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
and the learning of the learned I will set aside.Where is the wise one?
Where is the scribe?
Where is the debater of this age?
Has not God made the wisdom of the world foolish? (From 1 Cor:1)
Coffee with God 