From Archbishop Donoghue

Mass for the School Children
April 24, 1995
Immaculate Heart of Mary
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My dear friends, young and old,

I am very happy to be here this morning, and to be able to visit with all the young people from Immaculate Heart of Mary School. I want to thank you for the invitation, and especially Father Richard and your principal, Mrs. Wolke, and all the people who have made it possible for us to be together for this Mass, and to visit later on.

It is especially nice to be here during the Springtime and the Easter Season. The Spring is such a beautiful time of the year - all the flowers are blooming and the trees are turning green - the warm air makes it nice to be outside, and when its Spring, we know that Summer vacation is not far away. On a whole I would say that just about everything at this time of year is as nice as you could want it to be.

And this feeling is made even better when we think about the fact that all of this new life we see around us has a special meaning because of what we believe. For this is the time of year that Jesus, our Lord, chose to end His life and to begin it again. I truly believe that when God created the world and all the things that exist in the world, He made things come alive the way they do in the Spiring, to teach us that we don't need to be afraid of the future. He means to tell us that if all the things that exist in nature can be renewed from year to year, then so can we. And what is even more important, if God could make His Son, who had died on the cross, come back to life on a beautiful Spring morning, then He will do the same for us when the time comes.

Remember when Jesus said, "I have come that you may have life, and that you may have it to the fullest,"? This is what He meant - that if we study His life, and if we try to make our lives like His, then we will come to have life at its highest level - and this means, life with God, and with all the people who love Him, forever and ever.

Now as we grow older, and as we come into contact with more and more of life's adventures, there are often people who will say to us "I know the answer to how you can have life and how you can enjoy it better. Just do this, or think this, or take this, and you will feel better than you ever have before." Sometimes these people might know what they are talking about, but sometimes they don't. Sometimes they just want to get you in their control for one reason or the other, but what ever their reason, it won't necessarily end up being good for you. This is just the truth of living, whether you are 5 years old, or whether you are 65 years old - you meet up with things, and situations, and people, where you have to make a choice about what you're going to do.

And how can you know what to choose - how can you know whether a thing is good or bad, and whether it will be good or bad for you, whether it will help you have life to the fullest, as Jesus promised?

Well, I have always found that the best way to find out whether a thing is good or bad is to do what Jesus advises us in the Gospel (that we have just heard). Ask yourself, "Is this thing that I want to do something that I can ask for from God, something that I can pray for in Jesus name, because He has promised me that if I want anything, all I have to do is ask for it, from God, and in Jesus' name. Or is this something that I will be ashamed about."

Ask yourself that question - if you are near the Church, then go inside, kneel down, and in your prayers, put your question to God - or if you're somewhere else, just close your eyes, and imagine that Jesus is right there in front of you, and ask Him. And I would bet, that if you do, right away you will know in your heart whether the thing is good or bad, and whether you should do it or not. Because I believe that each one of you, no matter who you are or where you come from, or how old you are - I believe that each one of you would never want to ask God for something that was bad, or to do something that you know Jesus would never have done, or to say something you know He would never have said.

Now this usually works for me, and as I said, I think it will probably work for you. But if it doesn't, then the next thing to do is ask someone for advice. I do this, and practically everyone I know does too. If you are in doubt about something you have heard, something you have seen, or something you are thinking about doing, then ask your mother or father, ask one of the priests or one of your teachers - get some input, as they say.

Now some of you may be thinking, He just said that Christ came so that we may have life to the fullest, and now he's telling us ways to not do things, and how not to think about certain things - and you're right.

Jesus didn't say, I have come so that you can do everything, or so that you can have everything. He said, "I have come that you may have life to the fullest" - and this means life full of good things:

- things like the love and support of your families and friends,

- or like a clear mind and heart, so that you can see and understand what is good in the world,

- or like hope and optimism, so that life never gets you down, but only makes you want to do more and better things.

My friends, Christ died and rose at Eastertime to teach us two things especially - that we should not waste our lives by being depressed or sad or uncertain, but instead, take our lesson from all the beautiful things we see around us in nature, especially now in the Spring, and realize that life is full of hope, of promise, and of the chances to start and to start over again; and second, Christ died and rose to show us that if we pay attention to what He has taught us, that if we pay attention to the good advice and counseling of our Church, the Catholic Church, that if we pay attention to our parents, and to the priests and teachers who want to help us, then we too can live a life like His, and at the end, He will come and take us to heaven, a place that has all the good things of life, but even better, a place that has all the good things of life forever.

Let us think about these things now as we continue with our Mass, and when we receive Holy Communion today, let us remember to thank God for the love He shows us, and that if we love Him in return, He will take care of us and show us what to do - and whatever we might ask God for, let us always remember to ask for it in Jesus' name, and then He will certainly make it ours. Amen.

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