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HOMILIES

28. Homily - Sunday, June 21, 2020

Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A (Mt 10:26-33)

The Loneliness of Body, Heart and Mind

“What I say to you in the dark, tell it in the light.” What does Jesus say to us in the dark, and
what must we speak about in the light? And what does “in the dark” mean? It refers to what I
say to you when you find yourself in darkness, in the darkness of your life, in the darkness of
your existence.

There’s an element of darkness pervading everyday life, which we experience at certain
moments of our life and, perhaps, we are feeling some of that today. Certainly, this pandemic
is a form of darkness. Another form of darkness present throughout life and which every
person must confront is loneliness, which many are feeling probably more so during this pan-
demic. Loneliness confronts all of us, all human beings, each person in different ways.

There is a loneliness that affects the body. Human beings are meant to be with people; human
beings are meant to share with others, to develop relationships with them. The human person
exists as an individual in his/her own right, with an ego, free will, intelligence and emotions
that are unique to him or her. But at the same time, each person exists to be in relationship:
with God, with another, with other people. The loneliness that afflicts the body is somewhat
like the distance that can occur in a relationship. Distancing, even if only physical, has an
impact. When circumstances make it impossible for someone to accompany a sick loved one
and give him or her a hug, this is a form of loneliness affecting the body; it has an impact on
individuals. Because the body is never just a body. The body is a person! The body is the visible
manifestation of a person. The body is the expression of a person. When we touch a body, we
touch a human being. When we move away from a body, we move away from a human being.
That is a form of loneliness that affects the body.

There is also a loneliness that affects the heart, because human beings are made to be loved
and to love. Loneliness afflicts the heart when we have no one to love. When no one loves us.
We might experience loneliness only temporarily when we encounter difficult moments in
our relationships. Maybe we feel our heart has been deserted, that no one loves us, that there
is no one to love. That is one of the most difficult moments in life. It is one of the toughest
hardships to bear in life!

(cont’d)

Collection of texts by the Most Rev. Christian Lépine 197