Irish Archbishop: Our mission is to rekindle the flame of faith to spread joy hope & love

Archbishop Eamon Martin. Image CCO

Archbishop Eamon Martin gave this homily during open-air Mass today on the Hill of Slane, Meath, for the 'Light the Fire' faith event.

How special it is to gather here at the Hill of Slane to light again the fire of faith. Centuries ago Saint Patrick came to this place for the Easter Vigil, proclaiming: "Christ is risen. Christ is our hope!" He reassured our ancestors that the kingdom of God is very near, and he called them to repent, and believe the Good News.

Saint Patrick's Paschal fire, lit in defiance of the pagan King Laoghaire at Tara, was a beacon of Hope. The Light of Christ is here! Lumen Christi! Deo Gratias! Christ is at your right; Christ is at your left; He is behind and before you; He is beneath and above you. Christ, the Alpha and the Omega; Yesterday and today; the beginning and the end; all time and all seasons belonging to Him!

No wonder the druids advised King Laoghaire to beware. This new fire of Christianity, once lit among the people, would spread, and its flame would never go out!

Friends, in lighting the Easter fire, Patrick was announcing the victory of light over the darkness of evil, the triumph of hope over despair. Not only was Patrick confronting the druids and their superstitions, but at the same time he was challenging the people to conversion - he was urging them to leave their false and empty gods and to turn instead to Jesus who is the Way, the Truth and the Life. His message was 'Turn away from sin; believe in the Holy Trinity, the God of love, forgiveness and mercy.'

That story of Saint Patrick on the Hill of Slane reminds me of another "fire story" from chapter 18 of the first Book of the Kings - the biblical account of the prophet Elijah on Mount Carmel confronting the prophets of Baal. These false prophets had turned the heads of God's people away from the commandments of their loving God, to the shallow and empty promises of Baal. Elijah challenged the 450 prophets of Baal to a test, daring them to call on their so-called gods to light the fire for the sacrifice on the mountain.

They implored the name of Baal from morning till noon - but to no avail. "Baal, answer us!" they shouted. But there was no response; no one answered. No one paid any attention. Elijah taunted them. Shout louder! Perhaps your god is busy, or away somewhere or sleeping. But there was no response, no one answered; no one paid attention.

Then Elijah took his turn. He asked the people to prepare another altar for the sacrifice. But first, he invited them to reflect on the word of the Lord; he poured 12 large jars of water over the altar, and then, "he prayed: 'Answer me, Lord, answer me, so these people will know that you, Lord, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again.' And the fire of the Lord fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the soil, even licking up the water that had overflowed into the trench."

The Catechism (696) relates this biblical story to "the fire of the Holy Spirit, who transforms what he touches." And to John the Baptist who, "in the spirit and power of Elijah", told the people that Christ "will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire." When Jesus himself spoke of the Holy Spirit, He said, "I came to cast fire upon the earth; and would that it were already kindled!" And of course, on Pentecost Day that happened. The Holy Spirit came down upon the disciples in the form of tongues of fire, and set their hearts on fire for mission.

My dear friends, that mission is now our mission! We cannot allow the flame of the Holy Spirit to be quenched here in Ireland. Yes, we are living in challenging times for the faith. On this island of "saints and scholars" many people have drifted away from practising their faith, distracted in many cases by this frantic world of materialism and consumerism and its superficial promises of easy pleasure and success. We are told all that matters is personal autonomy and choice. With a sometimes aggressive secularism and moral relativism, people are duped into believing that happiness can be found, or bought, in this world alone. The lure of pleasure and possessions, of power, celebrity and influence suggests that you don't need God, or religion. It cramps your style!

But as today's first reading puts it, this is "Vanity of vanities! All this is vanity." And the greedy and self- absorbed man in today's Gospel reading similarly deceives himself: "My soul, you have plenty of good things laid by for many years to come; take things easy, eat, drink, have a good time." But God says to him, "Fool! This very night the demand will be made for your soul; and this hoard of yours, whose will it be then?"

Brothers and sisters, as in the days of Elijah, or in the time of Saint Patrick, we must be alert to the false gods that surround us, and their empty promises, stealing away life and happiness from our people through addictions to alcohol, drugs, gambling and gaming; destroying the hearts and minds of our children through unfiltered access to misinformation and harmful content online. Is it not time for Ireland to wake up and ask herself, what is happening our society? Why is relationship breakdown so rampant? Why is there such violence on our streets and shocking domestic violence, especially against women and children, in so many homes? Why are so many of our people struggling with emotional and mental health issues? Why are so many good people taking their own lives and leaving behind endless heartbreak for their loved ones? Why are those who want to shout "Stop", and proclaim instead the Gospel of life, faith and family, so often side-lined, or, as they say nowadays, "cancelled"?

Saint Paul tells the Colossians in today's second reading to avoid worshipping false gods. "Look for the things that are in heaven," he says, "where Christ is, sitting at God's right hand. Let your thoughts be on heavenly things, not on the things that are on the earth". Strip off your old behaviour with your old self; put on a new self which will progress towards true knowledge the more it is renewed in the image of its creator".

That, my dear friends was the message of the early apostles. It was also the message of Saint Patrick, and it is our message also. It is our mission to rekindle the flame of faith once more in the hearts of the people of Ireland and spread the joy, the hope and the love faith brings.

Our people need to hear from us that in Christ we bring Good News for our troubled world. We hold a precious treasure that is worth having and keeping. Christ is the answer. He brings that hope which does not disappoint.

And what better time to renew our mission than in this Jubilee Year of Hope, and in this anniversary year of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. 350 years ago Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque described her vision of the Sacred Heart of Jesus on fire with love. The flame of love was radiating out from the heart of Christ. She saw it as a call to conversion, an encouragement to burn away evil, darkness and despair and replace them with light, love, compassion, forgiveness, healing and reconciliation.

That fire at the heart of Jesus is the fire of the Holy Spirit! When we pray to, and with, the Sacred Heart, we are praying for the fire of the Holy Spirit to come alive in our hearts, our homes and in our country. Whenever we pray the prayer "Come Holy Spirit" we pray "fill the hearts of your faithful", and "enkindle in them the fire of your love".

So today, here at the Hill of Slane I ask Saint Patrick to "come to our aid". Make our hearts burn with the love of the Holy Trinity as his did, and give us courage to confront falsehood in our own lives, and wherever else it may have taken root. In the words of today's psalm 89 let us pray:

"Lord,
To your eyes a thousand years
are like yesterday, come and gone,
no more than a watch in the night.

Make us know the shortness of our life
that we may gain wisdom of heart.

In the morning, fill us with your love;
we shall exult and rejoice all our days.
Let the favour of the Lord be upon us:
give success to the work of our hands." Amen.

Archbishop Eamon Martin is Archbishop of Armagh, Apostolic Administrator of Dromore and Primate of All Ireland