6th Sunday of Ordinary Time - The Resurrection is a Bigger Event than the Superbowl

I can see many faces who are looking intently at me almost to say, “Father, I love Mass, but please don’t preach long today. I have people coming soon for a big event.” What can this big event be? Oh yeah! It’s Super Bowl Sunday! Of course that’s the big event. Or is it? There is a bigger event today. It is an event that abides. It is a greater comeback story than any football game and a greater glory story than even the most glorious of plays in the history of the NFL. And in this story, we win!

This glory story is the story of salvation history: the story of Jesus Christ, Mary, and the Apostles. The story of what Jesus Christ did for us to save us from sin and death. By his Passion, Death, and Resurrection, Jesus Christ has given humanity the greatest comeback story and the greatest glory story. And we know how the story ends for those who are in Jesus Christ: we win!

This is the glory story. God is glorious and has raised Jesus Christ from the dead. This is beyond super! God has raised Jesus Christ, and he will raise us too. This the bigger event that we celebrate not only this Sunday (which happens to be Superbowl Sunday), but every Sunday: every Lord’s day since that first Easter Sunday.

No doubt we have heard of this event (hopefully) or else we wouldn’t be here. But it is worth keeping the event of the Lord’s Resurrection in our minds and hearts, especially as we prepare to watch (or at least hear about) what many in our world today would call one of the greatest events of the year, if not the greatest: the Superbowl.

Now, far from being a homily that is focused on the Super Bowl, I want to keep our focus at Mass one Jesus’ Resurrection. As Catholic Christians, our focus needs to be on the greater event of the Lord’s Resurrection this Sunday and every Sunday. This isn’t to say that football is evil in some way. Can we honestly say in our hearts, that we are more in awe of Jesus Christ than the Championship NFL game?

Again, football isn’t bad, but the question for us to ask ourselves as Christians is: “Do I enjoy the game (or watching the game) for God’s glory or is my heart enamored by a glory that doesn’t need God and isn’t oriented to God?” In 1 Corinthians: 10:31, which we just heard, St. Paul reminds us that in whatever we do, we should do it for the glory of the Lord.

In whatever you do, whether you eat or drink, or watch football, do it for the Lord’s glory.

How does one do this?

What does it mean to do everything for the Lord’s glory? How do I do this when celebrating the Super Bowl? It’s to make Jesus first in one’s heart and mind. Because nothing and nobody is as glorious as Jesus Christ who reveals the glory of God in suffering for us, dying for us, and rising for us so that we will have eternal life in him. He gives us the greatest win: to rise from the dead and attain eternal life!

As Christians we are called to glorify the Lord in all that we do by putting God above all.

Now, I am not rooting for one team in the Superbowl or the other, but we do have a great witness to putting God above all, even football, in Harrison Butker. Harrison is the Cheifs’ Kicker. Again, I am not a Cheifs’ fan, but we can all learn something from our brother in Christ.

Harrison Butker had a conversion to the Catholic faith in College after a friend of his shared his encounter with Jesus in the Catholic Church.

Fast forward to the present and he is a faithful Catholic, a father and husband. He prays daily and altar serves at Mass. His goal is to be a saint.

In an interview, Butker was once asked if he asks God for the grace to win the super bowl. His answer may surprise you. Butker responded, “No, I don’t. I pray to be a good and faithful husband and father.” He was more focused on God’s glory. I should mention that the Chiefs did win that year, but that’s beside the point! Whether you win or lose, do all for the glory of the Lord. Harrison’s heart is set on a greater win: eternal life in Jesus Christ. Harrison knows

Harrison Butker believes that Jesus Christ’s resurrection is a bigger event than the Super Bowl. It is apparent in the way he lives. Harrison isn’t glorifying football. He chooses to glorify God. In all that you do, do it for the glory of God.

the grace and mercy Jesus Christ won for us on the cross. He knows the victory and triumph of Jesus Christ’s cross and resurrection. And he knows that the mystery of Jesus’ rising is greater than the rising of a new season in football. He knows that Easter Sunday is a bigger event than Superbowl Sunday.

So while you celebrate the Superbowl this Sunday, don’t forget to celebrate the greater event, Jesus’s Resurrection, an event that abides and that we celebrate every Sunday, but that never loses and will never lose it’s glory.

Invitation: Whether you eat or drink or watch the game, do it all for the Lord’s glory. Allow his glory to shine more brightly in your life, than the bright lights of the football field.