November 9, 2008 - Dedication of the Basilica of St. John Lateran in Rome - Fr. John Yonkovig
Any tourist to Rome will have heard about the Cathedral of St. John Lateran but most people might wonder why we who live in upstate New York or any other place outside of Rome, Italy, would be concerned about this church. Catholics around the world on this and every Nov. 9th celebrate the Dedication of St. John Lateran Basilica because it is the oldest church in Rome. We often think of St. Peter’s in Rome as the Pope’s church, but actually St. John Lateran is the mother church or the Cathedral of Rome. The first church structure was built on the site in the year 313. Today it is an enormous basilica - on the walls are representations of all the popes going back to St. Peter. It reminds us of our history and our roots. Our houses, our churches, our buildings are an expression of who we are. There is value in reflecting on the structures we build.

Every November as a parish we reflect on our life as a parish. This feast of the oldest church in Rome is an appropriate time to reflect on this 155 year old church and our stewardship. Our church building, thanks to your generosity, is well cared for and in very good repair. Recently the trim was scraped and painted, some protective glass replaced and sidewalks repaired. To save on consumption of electricity most of our lighting is now fluorescent. Our buildings and grounds are in very good shape. When we finished the construction of the Emmaus Room in December of 2005, we had a debt of $715,000 to the diocese. Today we owe $234,000 on this project - we have paid $480,000 on our debt in 3 years. I applaud your generosity, your sacrifices, your commitment. It is a wonderful addition to our parish and it is a reality only because of your support.

This past spring we had an increase offertory campaign - letters and speakers here in the church encouraging us to reflect on God’s gifts and our need to respond with generosity. Thank you for listening, praying and responding to this appeal. Your sacrifices make it possible for us as a parish to meet all of our financial responsibilities. Our parish is blessed by a staff of very dedicated people - 13 in total, including myself. Six are part time and 7 are full time. Wages and benefits for these 13 employees amounts to $283,000. We are financially the largest supporter of Seton Academy and Seton Catholic Central contributing $165,000 a year to these two very fine Catholic schools. We have a solid religious education program for our public school children and our youth ministry group is strong and growing. In addition to maintaining our own parish programs, we as a parish send nearly $100,000 a year to outside concerns - the Campaign for Human Development, Catholic Charities, the Bishop’s Fund. Our many programs that reach out to the community in love are made possible by your Sunday giving and your hard work. I think of the literally hundreds of parishioners who made last Sunday’s Harvest Dinner such a great success and those who make the June Festival happen. Thank you!

In the first reading from the prophet Ezekiel we have the vision of the temple with water flowing out of the temple. This is quite an image for desert people! The water starts with a trickle that becomes a flood of life-giving and healing waters. On this stewardship Sunday it is good for us to reflect not only on the temple, our church building, but the water flowing out of our temple. Today we celebrate those who visit the sick and elderly, who donate and work at the food shelf, who cook and serve over 3,000 meals every year at our Monday Soup Kitchen, those who care for the homeless, who travel with the mission of hope to Nicaragua, who minister to the divorced and separated, who make sure hundreds of the needy get at least on Christmas gift, those who helped the 58 grieving families this past year prepare funeral liturgies and those who provide post funeral lunches, those who volunteer to teach our young about God, our Knights of Columbus, our Altar and Rosary Society, our parish nurses, the many liturgical ministers and choir members, our respect life workers, those who prepared the parents of 75 infants for baptism and the pre-Cana couples who prepared 29 couples for marriage this past year, our many council members - the list is long and my gratitude - and the gratitude of so many in this community is just as long and deep.

Today’s feast of the Dedication of St. John Lateran in Rome is about a building but it is about so much more. Our second reading from St. Paul says it most powerfully: “Brothers and sisters: You are God’s building. You are the temple of God - the Spirit of God dwells in you.” As a parish we do well in maintaining our buildings but we also do very well in looking after one another. We are a large parish and that adds to the challenge. So I encourage you to be open and supportive of one another. Reach out in acceptance of one another. Get involved with one of our parish programs or ministries and if you see a need unmet, then let’s together address that need.

We are fortunate to have a very beautiful and functional church but we all know the real beauty of this temple is found in people. Look around - it is OK - just glance out of the corner of your eyes - take a look at the people around you - it is the holiness of the people we gather with that makes this a truly beautiful church.