Good morning, class of 2023. You have just heard two readings from the Bible and I am going to give a short reflection on them. The first reading was about God creating a new thing; the second about Jesus calling new disciples to follow Him. This year, you will be taking a theology class about the Bible and one idea that you will be hearing is this: the Bible is addressed to each of us here today, not just to the original audience two or three thousand years ago. So, when we hear God saying, “behold, I am making something new” in that first passage, what He is talking about is you! You are becoming something new today, with you choices and with God’s help. You are becoming a high school student and more specifically, a Mercy girl. You are beginning a new journey in your life and a process of becoming a new person. What is a Mercy girl? I suspect you have already begun to form an idea through your experiences here...
These posts are the collected homilies of Deacon Ned Berghausen, permanent deacon of the Catholic Archdiocese of Louisville, assigned to St. Agnes Catholic Church. The title "Foot Washer" refers to the Last Supper (John 13:1-20) in which Jesus washed the feet of the apostles and challenged them, "“Do you realize what I have done for you? If I, therefore, the master and teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash one another’s feet. I have given you a model to follow."