Homily of Twelfth Sunday in the Ordinary Time A
After we celebrated the Solemnity of Corpus Christi last Sunday, today we celebrate the Twelfth Sunday in the Ordinary Time, which also coincides with Father’s Day. Let us then honor all the “Fathers” of our communities and let’s pray for them. That God, our Father of heaven, bless them more and make them be the reflection of his divine love and paternal care on earth, especially in their families. So, to all of you who are Fathers, I wish a Happy and Blessed Father’s Day. In my homily today, I’ll focus on three main points.
1- My first point is an invitation to all of us to have the faith that conquers fear
Today’s First Reading shows us the image of prophet Jeremiah as a figurehead of faith that conquers fear. In his prophetic mission, Jeremiah faced conspiracy and plot. His enemies were planning to arrest him and kill him. They were planning to stop him proclaiming God’s message. As he says, “I hear the whisperings of many; terror on every side. All those who were my friends are on the watch for my downfall. But the Lord is with me, like a mighty champion. My persecutors will stumble, they will not triumph.” Through these words, prophet Jeremiah tells us of the hurt and pain he experienced in his life as a result of his prophetic mission. He reflects on the costs of being God’s faithful mouthpiece. He speaks of adversity and how to respond as believer to any attack, rejection and persecution. In face of any threat, in face of rage of his enemies, Jeremiah keeps faith in God. His faith is unconditional faith that remains firm in any circumstance, in joyful time and in time of tribulation. The truth of the matter is that there is always a price for authentic witness. We cannot take a countercultural and prophetic stance, like Jeremiah did, and avoid the cost of that stance. Jeremiah shows us that authentic faith makes us fearless and not fearful in the face of hardship and persecution. But authentic faith rather empowers us to live more generously, more trustfully, more bravely and boldly. Let us follow in the footsteps of prophet Jeremiah to keep the flame of our faith always lit in any situation, even when facing a desperate situation: health issue, unemployment issue, family crisis, coronavirus pandemic issue, social justice issue, etc. We have to believe that we’re not alone, and that every day and anytime, the Lord is with us. Like a mighty champion, he wins always. God is our protector, our stronghold, and our shield. As faith is a gift from the Holy Spirit, let us ask Him that faith able to conquer our fears.  As Saint Mother Teresa, in “The Joy in loving” said, “Faith is a gift of God. Without it, there would be no life. And our work, to be fruitful and beautiful, has to be built on faith. Love and faith go together. They complete each other.” 
2- My second point is an invitation to welcome the message of Hope Jesus gives us today when he says, “Do not be afraid.” 
Fear is a universal experience. Sometimes, fear of others or their disapprovals, leads us to act against our religious beliefs. As Fr Joe Robinson, in “Bead of Life” states, “Fear is built into us and we feel it when we feel threatened. If fear were not a part of our nature, we wouldn’t even exist today (…). Fear enables us to survive, to know when to fight, to know when to run. But sometimes it get out of control and takes over our life, whether that fear comes from a real threat or an imagined one. Faith is a big help to deal with fear, and sharing our fears with a trusted friend can be helpful. But sometimes fear is so controlling that counseling or medication is required.” In other words, we can say that everybody has a fear of something. For example, referring to myself, I already told you about my fear of snakes. It is what, in Greek, is called “Ophidiophobia,” which is the fear of snakes. I know how much I pray every day to not see one. In the morning, when I wake up, I pray to God to not see a snake (Rattle snake, King snake or queen snake, or whatever snake). And before going to bed in the evening, I thank God to have protected me. Praises be to God that so far I have seen none. So the question today is: and you, what is your fear or what are you afraid of? Whatever your fear is, the truth of the matter is that, in today’s Gospel, the Lord Jesus wants you to have an attitude of courage and bravery: ”Do not be afraid!” In this time when we’re all afraid of being contaminated by coronavirus, and we’re anxious to come back to Church in this pandemic time, or when we’re anxious to be together with families and friends, this message should reverberate in the hearts of each of us in Placerville and Georgetown to hear the Lord Jesus telling us, “Do not be afraid, you have there a model of Social Guidelines from the Health officials, the government and the Bishop, who recommend you to observe social distancing, washing and sanitizing your hands, wearing a face mask during mass and receiving communion only in the hand, etc. Follow these guidelines, observe them, and pray to my Father in my Name for the end of this covid-19, and everything will be fine. For prevention is better than healing”. Furthermore, according to Fr Joe Robinson, “when Jesus tells us not to fear, he’s not talking about the spontaneous reaction we feel when we are threatened, he’s telling us not to worry and to put our trust in him that things will come out alright in the end.” In our Christian life, we have to fear only God who is our Creator and have power to give us life and take it away; God who is the only one to have power to destroy both soul and body in Gehenna. Therefore, to not go into Gehenna, we are all called to avoid evil and sin as well, and, like Saint Therese of the Child Jesus did, “To live our life in doing good on earth”, in doing good around us.  
3- Today’s Gospel is also an invitation to give testimony in our life about Jesus
The Lord Jesus invites his apostles and us to take risks for him: “What I say to you in the darkness, speak in the light; what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops (…). Whoever acknowledges me before others, I will acknowledge before my heavenly Father. But whoever denies me before others, I will deny before my heavenly Father.” It’s a vibrant call to us to bear witness to Jesus and his Gospel. Let’s give a testimony of faith, to not be ashamed of our Christian identity. We don’t have to be afraid or ashamed of professing our catholic faith, but we have to be proud of being Christian, close friend and brother and sister of Christ. Let’s give a testimony of love, peace and joy, to show to others love in action, and to share with others the fruit of unconditional love coming from the Holy Spirit; to bring to others the divine peace coming from the Risen Lord and say to each other “Shalom”, “la Paix du Christ”, “Boboto;” finally, to bring the joy of the Gospel to those who have lost the joy of living: the homeless, the prisoners, the sick, all people suffering, who bear in their blood and suffering, the DNA of the Holy Cross and universal fraternity of Jesus-Christ. 
Rev. Fr Pepin W. F. DANDOU
Georgetown, CA June 20, 2020.