Our Last Location

Understanding why the Church chooses great locations

09/19/2022

Lk 8:16-18 Jesus said to the crowd: "No one who lights a lamp conceals it with a vessel or sets it under a bed; rather, he places it on a lampstand so that those who enter may see the light. For there is nothing hidden that will not become visible, and nothing secret that will not be known and come to light. Take care, then, how you hear. To anyone who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he seems to have will be taken away."

What are the three most important things to remember when you are buying real estate? Everyone knows it’s location, location, location. Some people choose to live in certain areas of town because the rent is more affordable. Others choose another location because of who their neighbors will be. Still others buy property in order to invest and later sell it for a profit. Some people worry about their location in our columbarium. They say they don’t want a niche next to so-and-so for all eternity. Well, guess what: that is exactly the person they will be next to in purgatory.

Have you ever noticed how the Catholic Church also has an eye for location, location, location? Just think about the prominent location of our church of the Immaculate Conception, at the head of Garrison Avenue. Can you imagine what we could sell this property for today? Or think of the primo property where St. Scholastica is perched. The sisters could make a mint if they ever sold any of that real estate along Rogers Avenue. Or Subiaco Abbey’s lovely location, or St. Mary’s Church in Altus, both with commanding views of the countryside.

Why does the Catholic Church take pains to pick prime property? Well, we are not real estate investors trying to make a buck. Rather, we are following Jesus’ advice in the gospel today, where he taught this: “No one who lights a lamp conceals it with a vessel or sets it under a bed; rather, he places it on a lampstand so that those who enter may see the light.” In other words, the whole world is God’s house, and when we choose prime property for our churches, monasteries, and abbeys, we are looking for a lampstand in that house where we can shine the light of faith for the whole world to see. We worry about location, location, location so the light of faith can shine brightly and beautifully.

But there is another sense in which our concern for location has an ironic twist. That is, we are trying to tell people the really desirable location is not anywhere on earth but only in heaven. Heaven is the last location you want to end up, and really the only location where your heart should already be living. When St. Augustine’s mother, St. Monica, was dying, her two boys were debating where she should be buried (like people worry about who will be in the niche next to them in the columbarium). Monica scolded her two sons and said, “I don’t care if you bury my body in Italy or Africa, as long as you remember me at the altar during Mass.” In other words, the location, location, location that St. Monica desired most was at the altar at Mass. Why? Because there she felt she was already in heaven.

My friends, do you worry about the location where you will live? Some want to live by the beach so they can hear the sand and the surf. Others want to be secluded in the mountains and away from everyone. Still others desire the deep woods and the soft smells and sounds of nature. Yet others love the hustle and bustle of the big city and love its loudness. The city mouse is fascinated by the country, and the country mouse loves to vacation in the city. I love Fort Smith and hope I never leave, but others can’t wait to leave and shake the dust of this town from their sandals.

We all worry about where we will live and no one is quite one-hundred percent happy where they are. There is a reason for that restlessness. Heb 13:14 says: “For here we have no lasting city, but we seek a city which is to come.” In other words, the reason the Catholic Church worries about location, location, location is to try to teach people not to worry about where they will live here on earth. Why not? Because we will not be in any location here on earth for very long.

Praised be Jesus Christ!