Please read the passage before the homily.
My sisters and brothers,
The woman was wanting to be freed of her affliction. The daughter of the synagogue official wanted to live. Jose Gonzalez wants to follow Christ more deeply. The woman touched the cloak of Jesus; the girl obeyed the words of Jesus; Jose heard the voice of St Francis to learn more deeply how to live as the Lord did.
The faith of the woman, the faith of the girl’s parents, and Jose’s faith draws them to Christ. The voice of the Lord heals them, but not in same way: the woman after 12 years; the girl after her death; Jose after some 28 months of prayer and formation.
Why does Jose want to be a Franciscan? Does he want to be cured like the woman in the Gospel? Does he want to be alive like the girl in the Gospel? He has come to know that St Francis is a legitimate guide to Jesus. For this reason, Jose is knocking on our doors today.
Is this something on the spur of the moment? No. For three years Jose has been wanting to be a Franciscan. He learned to be a Franciscan by following Christ as St Francis followed him. If we have welcomed Jose’s desire to be a Franciscan in our life as someone who is making permanent profession, without formation in our life and practices, we would be doing him a great disservice. We cannot allow him to make a permanent profession before he has learned our way of life.
Through his formation, Jose has come to know St Francis as a disciple. Despite the failing of Christians, many have become Christians, likewise despite our faults as Franciscans, Jose wants to become, as we are, Franciscans.
Today Jose is knocking at our door, touching our cloak and hearing the words of Christ who has destroyed death. Today we answer Jose, “Do not be afraid, only have faith.”