“God Loves All Of Us, And Evil Will Not Prevail!”

May 11, 2025: Alleluia! Christ is risen!

Welcome to Good Shepherd Sunday, always the fourth Sunday of Easter, when we hear the gospel message of Jesus as our shepherd, whose voice we hear and whom we follow.

It is also Mother’s Day in the secular world. I hope to get lots of licks and meows from my dog Lexi and my two cats Katie & Lauren when I get home later today. But as I note every year, this is also a difficult day, or one that brings about mixed feelings for many – those whose mother’s have died, or those whose mothers are absent – in whatever way that may mean – or those mothers who have lost a child, or those women who could not have one – for them Mother’s Day can be troubling, awkward, or even painful. And if that is you, know that we, your parish family, are holding you in prayer.

And so, as I also say each year, that is that is why I like to think of today as less about Mothers specifically, and more about women – mothers, sisters, daughters, wives, nieces, aunts, and friends. Women who have been a part of our lives – nurturing, mentoring, loving, caring. That is what we really celebrate today – the journey of women – us, if we are women, and those women who have been a part of our lives.

Which is why this passage from the Acts of the Apostles we heard this morning is such a powerful text for us today. It is the story of a disciple of Jesus. No, not Peter, though he is a part of it. This is the story of Tabitha, her name in Aramaic, also known to her community as Dorcas, her name in Greek.

The first thing we hear about her is in the opening of the text. It says “Now in Joppa there was a disciple whose name was Tabitha, which in Greek is Dorcas. She was devoted to good works and acts of charity.” Let me just repeat this part “there was a disciple whose name was Tabitha.” This is the only time in the bible where a woman is named a disciple, or μαθήτρια in the original Greek. Now, we know that Dorcas isn’t the only female disciple, but she must have really stood out to not only be named as such, but really – to be named at all! So many women, powerful women, are not named in our bible, or quite frankly, are the hidden figures of our society even to today. This is a perfect text to hear about on a day in which we celebrate the women in our lives.

For widows in the time of Dorcas, articles of clothing would be more valuable than gold – for they were without means of support. It wasn’t like you could just go to the store and buy a tunic off the rack either. That is why Jesus calls us to care for the widows and the orphans, for they were, and are, the least of these in which we are to see the face of Jesus. Dorcas saw them, and took care of them out of her means, by her own hand – making them garments, which they wept over in her time of death. She was a true disciple of Christ – one who loved the least of these, as he loved us.

Of course today, Jesus is still calling us to care for widows and orphans – the least of these – the ones no one sees, or wants, or cares about. Today they are the homeless, the poor, the marginalized, and yes, actual widows and orphans. They are also, especially now, the migrants – those immigrants and refugees being unlawfully persecuted by our government.

Except today, it has become a crime to protest the unjust acts against our neighbors. This past Friday, during a protest outside a privately run Federal detention center, the Mayor of Newark, Ras Baraka, was arrested. He was there with members of congress, who are, by law, to be admitted to any of these facilities for unannouced inspections. Not being a member of congress, the Mayor was turned away. He returned to the public side of the gate, and according to the Associated Press, video showed him speaking through the gate to a man in a suit, who said: “They’re talking about coming back to arrest you.” “I’m not on their property. They can’t come out on the street and arrest me,” Baraka replied.

Minutes later several ICE agents, some wearing face coverings, surrounded him and others on the public side, and dragged him back through the gate in handcuffs. This on the heels of the arrest of pastors praying last week in the Capitol building. These people are being arrested for doing what Jesus calls us to do – caring for the least of these – for the stranger in our midst.

But wait, there’s more… an Episcopal Church in Toms River wanted to open a homeless shelter on their expansive property. The town not only fought it, but the Town Council decided to begin proceedings to take all the church property by eminent domain, so they could build a park with pickleball courts and other amenities. If this is allowed to stand, and believe me, they chose the wrong denomination to fight, it means that any house of worship is in danger of having their property seized by the local community – not just Christian churches. Don’t want Jews or Muslims in your neighborhood? Then take their synagogue or mosque by eminent domain.

That is where we are here in the US.

It is dangerous to be the kind of follower of Jesus, who not only goes to church, or wears a big gold cross in public, but who actually hears his gospel call to serve the poor and the outcast, the imprisoned and the sick, the widow and the orphan and does something about it. In fact, it appears you can’t even be the Pope and not get attacked.

Which brings us to other news this week – the conclave (not just a movie) and the election of a new pope to lead that other part of the larger catholic church, our Roman sisters and brothers around the world. And here is why it never pays to place bets on things….everyone said that even though there were a few Cardinals in the US that could be considered, especially one Robert Prevost from Chicago, everyone also said “Nah, they won’t ever choose someone from the US.” Ooops.

We had white smoke, the seagulls on the roof of the Sistine chapel rejoiced, and then we all discovered that it was indeed Robert Prevost who was selected. So, Chicago not only has now Da Bears and Da Bulls, but also lays claim to Da Pope! Sadly, it took only an hour or so for the attacks to appear on social media from the far right, calling him: a woke, anti-MAGA, globalist, Marxist, because apparently he advocated for the poor and the outcast. Seriously, you can’t make this stuff up.

But back to this new pope for a moment. Like so many scripturally who have a name change when going through a spiritual transformation, the Cardinal elected Pope also chooses a new name.

You know, Juliet of Shakespeare’s play, once pondered “What’s in a name?” as she wondered if a name really mattered, or was what was inside, or inherent within a person, that defined someone. In the case of the one chosen by a new pope, the name itself refects the heart of the person. It is a statement on their sense of their calling, either because of the saint chosen, like Francis, or who last held the name. So, when we heard that His Eminence, Cardinal Prevost, would now be His Holiness, Leo the XIV, it was significant, because of Pope Leo the XIII.

Pope Leo the XIII was a proponent of the social gospel – which really is just the gospel of Jesus Christ – where we care for the poor and marginalized. His May 1891 encyclical (or letter to the church), “Rerum Novarum,” or “Revolutionary Change,” addresses “the misery and wretchedness pressing so unjustly on the majority of the working class.”

At a time of the rising industrial revolution, Pope Leo XIII called the church to be mindful of the poor, and show compassion. He advocated for the working class, calling for the formation of labor unions and the use of collective bargaining. It was not a perfect document when looking back with our 21^st century lens, but it inspired others to action. One of those was another woman disciple who would be remembered long after her death for her good works. Her name was Dorothy Day.

Dorothy Day became a part of the Roman Catholic church after the birth of her child. After meeting Peter Maurin, a French immigrant and former De La Salle Christian Brother, she was introduced to the Church’s social teaching, including that of Pope Leo XIII, and his Rerum Novarum.

“On May 1, 1933, during the depths of the Great Depression, Maurin and Day launched the Catholic Worker newspaper. Within only a few years, the paper’s circulation soared and dozens of Catholic Worker houses sprang up across the country. The movement’s members embraced a simple lifestyle (“voluntary poverty”) and cared for poor and homeless people.”[1] Dorothy Day, like Dorcas, served her community, most especially the least among them, as disciples of Christ are called to do.

In the case of Leo IVX, the story is yet to be told, but based upon Cardinal Prevost’s long history of working among the needy, and his closeness to Pope Francis, I suspect Leo XIII and Francis will smile down upon him. But what does all this have to do with us? We are catholic, but split from the Roman church long ago. What does this have to do with us now?

Well, let’s look at his first address, after being announced as Pope Leo IVX. This is often a pivotal moment, and like the choice of name, reflects what we might expect from his papacy.

The new pope came out on the balcony and said “La pace sia con tutti voi.” “Peace be with all of you!” And continuing, in Italian, then Spanish, he said:

“Dearest brothers and sisters, this is the first greeting of the Risen Christ, the good shepherd who gave his life for God’s flock. I too would like this greeting of peace to enter your heart, to reach your families, to all people, wherever they are, to all peoples, to the whole earth. Peace be with you! This is the peace of the Risen Christ, an unarmed and disarming peace, humble and persevering. It comes from God, God who loves us all unconditionally. We still have in our ears that weak but always courageous voice of Pope Francis who blessed Rome! The pope who blessed Rome gave his blessing to the world, to the entire world, that Easter morning.

Allow me to follow up on that same blessing: [and then he quotes Pope Francis] “God cares for us, God loves all of us, and evil will not prevail! We are all in God’s hands.” [continuing, he Pope Leo added] Therefore, without fear, united hand in hand with God and among ourselves, let us move forward. We are disciples of Christ. Christ goes before us. The world needs His light. Humanity needs Him as the bridge to reach God and His love.”

“God loves all of us, and evil will not prevail!”

In this time of chaos, where hate and anger against those who would love and serve the least of these is everywhere, when governmental authorities will arrest you for speaking for the voiceless, or praying on their behalf, when people live in fear because of the color of their skin, who they love, or what gender they claim, remember: “God loves all of us, and evil will not prevail.”

That is the good news of Easter – that evil will not prevail – God’s loves all of us and God’s love always will triumph. That is the gospel we proclaim. And we are called to spread this message to all the world – that is the revolutionary change we are called to bring about in his name.

It doesn’t only come about in grand acts of courageous mission, but often through the silent small stitches of love and grace woven into the world – like Dorcas.

It is manifested by the willingness to see those others refuse to see – the poor laborer, the homeless, the lost, and the forgotten – and then work tirelessly to not only help them, but change the conditions that led to their suffering – like Dorothy Day.

It is proclaimed not just in words of encyclicals, but in what those words do – shining a light on those who are left behind as the rich grow richer – as the world heard from Leo XIII, and with hope in his successor, Leo IVX.

And this good news of Easter – that evil will not prevail – God loves everyone and God’s love always will triumph – is spread by you – for you are a disciple of Christ, Christ goes before you. The world needs His light shining through you.

“Therefore, without fear, united hand in hand with God and among ourselves, let us move forward.”

Let us move forward with the love of God that defeats hate.

Let us move forward with the peace of our Good Shepherd, Jesus, that defeats violence.

Let us move forward to proclaim “God loves all of us, and evil will not prevail.”

Our names might never be changed, but the world most definitely will be.

Amen.

[1] https://www.dorothydayguild.org/dorothy-day7ce4a03b

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