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The readings from the Book of Joshua and from the gospel today seem to me to have a common theme and that is, making some very serious choices. Joshua succeeded Moses as the leader of the people. He was a great general. I am told that his name is in the Hall of Fame at West Point. He led the invasion and final conquest of the Land of Canaan. But now, in this scene, he is on his deathbed. And he is not recalling the great deeds of his life. But, rather, he is concerned about the future of his people, because he realizes the pressures that are on them from all the surrounding tribes and nations. He himself is quite clear he is going to choose Yahweh, the traditional God of Israel. And he is urging them to do the same. And finally he wins from them that commitment, that choice. They are going to serve the ancient God of Israel, Yahweh.

Forward now, to gospel times... People are being given a clear choice to accept or reject what seems to be the impossible, that Jesus is the Bread of Life. And so you find them saying, “This saying is hard. Who can accept it?” Or, we might put it in another way. They are asking, “Are you serious?” God is saying, “Yes.” But this question is one that many Catholics ask of the Church today. “Are you serious? Do you realize what you are asking us to accept? This saying is hard. It is not easy to accept this.”

Now, most of us never question the Creed, you know, the teaching about the Trinity: “God from God, Light from Light, True God from True God, begotten not made, one in being with the Father.” I doubt that we fully understand it. But we don’t find it so hard to say, “Well, OK. I accept that.” Now, that wasn’t always the case. Early centuries of the Church, they fought bitterly over these things. Excommunications were flying all over the place. They were asking, “Was Jesus truly God?.... Well, then, how could He be truly human? Was He just half God, half human?” and so on, so forth.

The Orthodox Churches actually broke away from Rome over one little phrase in the Creed. We say that the Holy Spirit “proceeds from the Father and the Son.” And they said, “Uh uh, that little phrase “...and the Son,” we don’t accept that.” And so, they broke away from Rome. So, controversy, and division and questioning are nothing new in our Church. Today Catholics may be bitterly divided over issues such as the death penalty, abortion, war, and so on. They are not core matters of faith, but they are matters that touch daily life. And they are issues that fall within the Ordinary teaching of our Church. So, we are still being asked to make choices. And many will say, “This is hard to endure. Who can accept this? Are you serious?” For example, our Pope and our bishops have very clearly and over and over again said that the death penalty can no longer be morally justified, that it can no longer be a good moral choice. Our Pope and our bishops said that the war in Iraq could not be morally justified, that it could not be a good moral choice. Our Pope and our bishops have said over and over again that abortion is an evil and that it could not be a good moral choice. And yet, in the United States, a majority of Catholics support the death penalty. A majority of Catholics support the war in Iraq, and many, many Catholics will at least tolerate abortion. They have made a choice. They’ve made a choice. The question is, “Can a person reject the teaching of the Pope and bishops in moral matters and still be considered a good Catholic?” It would seem that many, many, many would say, “Yes!” And perhaps, unknowingly, they are in line with the teaching of the Second Vatican Council. Strange?

The Second Vatican Council says very clearly that the ultimate judge of right and wrong must be a well-informed conscience. But then the further question comes up, “What is a well-informed conscience? How do I have a well-informed conscience? What is truth? Where do I find truth? How do I make a choice?” Well, I think the phrase speaks for itself: “well-informed.” We have to study. We have to look at things. We have to read. We have to listen. We have to listen particularly to the teachings of our religious leaders, our leaders in faith. And then we have to pray. We pray to the Holy Spirit for enlightenment, for understanding. And finally, I think, we have to say, “Lord, to whom shall we go? YOU have the words of eternal life.” So, the truth is to be found ultimately in Jesus. And the more that I can bring my actions, my thoughts, my opinions, the more I can bring all of this into line with His teaching, His spirit, His example, His actions, the closer to the truth I will be. Jesus is the Bread of Life. That’s what He claims. That’s what He is. So, He was always on the side of life. He was always compassionate, forgiving, embracing the fallen, making God’s love visible and tangible in the world. That’s what He came for, to reveal God to us, to reveal the love of the Father to us. That was His life, to make God’s love visible and tangible in the world. And I think this is how we are being asked to form our consciences also. First and foremost, to listen to our Church, to listen to its leadership, and then to ask, “Is this making God’s love visible and tangible in the world today?” Because this is what we are called to do.

Let me tell you a little story. It is about my grandnephew, Alex. I told you before some stories about Alex. Until he was four and a half years of age, Alex never spoke a single word, not a word. He is now six and a half. So, in the meantime, when he began to speak, his parents enrolled him in a special speech and drama class to encourage this. And just a few months ago, there was a competition, a very, very prestigious competition for speech and drama. And he was entered in it, in his own age group. There were about thirty to thirty-five competing in this age group. And he was reciting a poem. And he came third in his group. Afterwards, as he and his mother were leaving the hall, one of the women who had been a judge in the competition happened to bump into them, and she said, “Oh, Alex, you did very well. Congratulations! It was very, very good and I am sure next year you will do even better. And I’m sure now that when you go home your mom will have a very special treat for you.” He looked at her and he said, “Oh, I get that every day. It’s called ‘love.’”

Do we realize that we get a special treat every day, the love of God in Christ Jesus? We get the love of God in Christ Jesus every single day. And what we are called to do as Christians is to make that love known, to make it visible, to make it tangible in the world. I suggest that this is how we form our conscience, that we stay very, very close to that love of God. And, if we do, we will be very, very close to the truth. “To whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.” Amen.