Archbishop Broglio’s Homily at the Convocation Mass of the Holy Spirit

“Use Your Talents to Create a Masterpiece for God”

by the Most Rev. Timothy P. Broglio, J.C.D.
Archbishop for the Military Services, U.S.A.
President, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
Mass of the Holy Spirit
Convocation 2024
Thomas Aquinas College, California

It is said that Michelangelo could look at a block of marble and see the sculpture within it. His David would be a good example — it came from a damaged block of marble with a cut so deep that other artists rejected it. Indeed, the placement of the magnificent David in the Piazza della Signoria, the central square of Florence, marked time. Things happened either before or after the David was unveiled.

At the beginning of an academic year, there are many artists, and all see potential. Mentors, upperclassmen, professors, administrators, staff, and you, yourselves, perceive the masterpiece in the rough marble of beginnings. There will be mistakes, successes, lessons to be learned, opportunities for growth, and the newness of a fresh chapter. The work on the masterpiece is always progressing.

The powerful Word of God that has just been proclaimed speaks to us, among other themes, about mission, the pursuit of wisdom, and love.

“Almighty God not only sees the masterpiece within you, but offers all the tools to bring it out of the raw marble.”

Excerpts from the first song of the Suffering Servant in the prophet Isaiah (42:1-3) began this banquet of the Liturgy of the Word. This, Isaiah wrote just as the exile in Babylon was ending, and we easily apply this figure of the Suffering Servant to Christ. The Servant is fulfilling his historical mission of restoration in the new dimensions of the experience. The Servant’s manner is characterized by humility and kindness: He does not extinguish any positive gesture; He does not carry out the death sentence; He has courage in the trials and sufferings; and His weapons are those of peace. The servant is presented with the prerogatives of a king, priest, and prophet.

As a king, He proclaims what is right and just with firmness and establishes justice, which means the salvation that comes from God. As priest, He makes himself a covenant of the people. As prophet, He communicates the will of God and is a light for the nations. His mission will free the human person from all evil in the very depths of His being.

Through baptism you and I share in the mission of priest, prophet, and king. With St. Paul, I can say that I have heard of your faith and good works. The mission obliges us not to be conformed to the expectations of the world or society. We are challenged to magis, something more.

I remember reflecting on this passage for the faithful gathered in Holy Family Church in Gaza on the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord in 2020. It seemed challenging to talk to them about magis in the midst of their tense situation. How much more would it be now?

At the beginning of this academic year, remember that the baptismal invitation is to soar, to realize our potential as daughters and sons of a loving Father, and to invite others into our experience of the Lord. Use every opportunity in the coming academic year to grow in your relationship with Jesus Christ and to share Him with others, as the Latin American Bishops reminded us in Aparecida.

When St. Paul speaks to the Ephesians and us about the pursuit of wisdom (1:3a,4a,13-9a), he has a specific starting point. It is that we are sons and daughters of God and, consequently, enjoy a relationship and a dignity that no one can take away. Keep that in mind as you move forward and grow in knowledge.

We gather this morning to ask for the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so as to deepen our understanding of God’s plan in us. As Paul told the Romans: “Do not conform yourselves to this age, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may discern what is the will of God, what is good, and pleasing and perfect” (Rom. 12:2).

Indeed, Almighty God not only sees the masterpiece within you, but offers all the tools to bring it out of the raw marble. It depends on our ability to trust in Him, invoke His assistance, and use our talents and the resources offered to move forward. The whole of this mission, however, moves forward in love.

Inviting us to a profound intimacy with Him, the Lord Jesus speaks to us in the Gospel about love. There are few words so misused in common parlance. We use the word to describe our favorite foods, a beautiful spring day, a magnificent work of art, a favorite sport, a city, and so forth. In talking about love, the Lord means much more than that.

Love is creative, but it is also anchored firmly in actions that evidence its reality. The love of God is expressed in fidelity to the commandments: not some vague sentimental expression, but a concrete putting the word into practice. Love is a radical commitment to Jesus lived out in visible ways.[1] It is an imitation of God’s love for us.

In defining love very clearly around the table at the Last Supper, the setting for this Gospel passage (Jn.14:23-6), the Lord was inviting the Apostles and us to clarify and purify our motives for discipleship: Love must be at the top (not fear, not rote, not mere altruism). Love of God is expressed by a manner of living. The one who believes and lives his or her days in fidelity to that belief, becomes the dwelling place of God and experiences communion with Father and Son in the Spirit.

“We invoke the Holy Spirit to inspire our actions throughout this academic year. We ask that He reveal the potential hidden in stone.”

The gift of peace is bestowed by the Lord: not merely the absence of violence, but serenity and justice. Four ways: with God, with self, with others, and with created world. We continue to open ourselves to that peace and justice. Peace offered by Jesus is a person, eternal life, love. Jesus lives in our hearts to make us capable of loving. Loving, the human person opens himself or herself evermore to God and becomes with Him a cooperator of salvation, irradiation of peace, and prophesy from heaven.

We invoke the Holy Spirit to inspire our actions throughout this academic year. We ask that He reveal the potential hidden in stone. We beg for the grace to collaborate with all of the opportunities that will cross our paths in the coming months. We do not want to be disillusioned in the face of challenges. Remember, Michelangelo was undaunted by the severe gash in the block of marble from which would emerge the David.

In a certain sense, we are all artists with potential. The first Nuncio with whom I served in Africa once gave me a book on one of the art collections in the Vatican Museums, and he inscribed it, “Use your talents to create a masterpiece for God.”

May that be the mission for all of us to accomplish in wisdom and love during our lifetime.