Catholic Social Ministry Gathering 2021
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Most Reverend José H. Gomez
Archbishop of Los Angeles,
President, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels
February 6, 2021
(On Feb. 6, Archbishop Gomez delivered the closing remarks to the Catholic Social Ministry Gathering, an annual event organized by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Department of Justice, Peace and Human Development. The remarks delivered to a virtual gathering)My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,1
In the first reading tonight, from the Book of Job, we hear the cry of the poor:
“Is not man’s life on earth a drudgery? … He is a slave who longs for the shade. … My days … come to an end without hope … I shall not see happiness again.”
These are sad and lonely words. And we know that there are many people in our society who feel exactly like Job. They have been wounded by poverty and injustice.
These are the people we are called to serve in our ministries, in our advocacy.
The Church is the conscience of every society, in every time and place. And our duty in our country at this time is to help our leaders and our neighbors to hear the cry of the poor — to understand that we belong to one another, to feel our responsibility for the vulnerable and weak.
What you do, my brothers and sisters — your witness to our society and to our elected officials — is essential to the Church’s mission and it is vital for the common good of our society.
Catholic social teaching is not a political or economic program, as we know. It reflects the vision that Jesus Christ gives us for the kingdom of God — a vision of a society that recognizes and serves the sanctity and dignity of human life, from conception to natural death.
As we hear tonight in the Gospel, Jesus came into our world as a preacher and a healer. And we can never separate his words from his works. Jesus preaches by his works of healing, and he heals through the words of his preaching.
Tonight, our Lord Jesus Christ enters into his disciples’ home and he finds Simon-Peter’s mother-in-law very sick. And the Gospel tells us: “He approached, grasped her hand, and helped her up.”
This is quite a beautiful scene. We can feel our Lord’s love, his care, his human touch and contact.
My brothers and sisters, we see this so often in the pages of the Gospels. Our Lord’s love is personal, he is always deeply involved in the lives of the people he comes to serve.
Jesus does not only preach about our duty to love our neighbors — he shows us how to do it!
And his healings are more than physical. The miracles he works are always “signs” that reveal the truth of his preaching. Through his healing works, he shows us the great dignity of the human person. He shows us how precious we are — every one of us — in the eyes of God.
Jesus tonight heals Simon-Peter’s mother-in-law. But that’s not the end of the story. The very next line in the Gospel says this: “Then the fever left her and she waited on them.”
Brothers and sisters, we need to understand that we are this woman in the Gospel.
Each of us in our lives has experienced the salvation of Jesus, his healing touch. That is the meaning of our Baptism. That is why we are gathered tonight to worship him in this holy Eucharist.
Jesus has set us free from sin by his life and his death for us on the Cross. His love for each one of us is personal. He died for you, and he died for me. He binds our wounds, he calls us by our names. And by his sufferings we are healed.2
Like this woman tonight in the Gospel, Jesus has raised us up and made it possible for us to live in a totally new way. In freedom. Not for ourselves, but for others, and for God. The healing that Jesus brings is a liberation from the bondage of our own selfishness, our isolation, our indifference to others.
My brothers and sisters, like this woman tonight in the Gospel, we have been healed and we are now called to serve.
In the Gospel, Jesus says to his disciples: “Let us go … that I may preach.”
He is speaking tonight to us. Our lives are joined now to Christ, we share now in his mission.
Jesus calls us to go with him, to walk in his footsteps. Jesus wants to continue his mission of preaching and healing — through us. Through our words. Through our works of love. Through our lives.
St. Paul says tonight in the second reading: “All this I do for the sake of the Gospel.”
My brothers and sisters, this is how Jesus wants us to live as his disciples. All for the sake of the Gospel! All for the sake of helping others to find him — so that they might know his healing in their lives.
This is what makes the Catholic Church unique in our American public life. We are not social workers or activists or lobbyists. We are witnesses and disciples.
The Church is the Body of Christ and the family of God. We are brothers and sisters, children of our Father in heaven.
And each one of us is here to proclaim Christ, and to build his Kingdom. Each in our own way, in our own lives.
Our mission as the Church and our duty as disciples is bigger than politics and economics. Like Jesus, our purpose is to heal and to preach.
We are called to change this world, to make our society a place where it is easier to love and to be loved, where every life is cherished and welcomed. We are called to create a culture of compassion and care.
And we are called to do this — as Jesus did. Personally. By our love. By how we serve our neighbors, by how we care for one another, especially the weak and vulnerable.
So, brothers and sisters, let us go with Jesus. Let us ask him tonight for the grace and strength to preach and heal in his name. To do everything for the sake of his Gospel.
Let’s keep praying for our country and let’s keep doing everything we can to help America live up to its sacred promises.
And let us entrust ourselves to the Immaculate Heart of our Blessed Mother Mary, who is the Queen of Peace and the Mirror of Justice.
May she help us to be healers and to bring hope.
1. Readings: Job 7:1-4, 6-7; Ps. 147:1-6; 1 Cor. 9:16-19, 22-23; Mark 1:29-39.
2. Isa. 53:5.
