Saint Boniface

Sermon Preacher on Saint Boniface Day, Monday, June 5, 2006
Year 2, Proper 4, Monday, Mass: Psalm 91:1-7; 2 Peter 1:2-7; Mark 12:1-12

Today we celebrate the feast day of Saint Boniface. Boniface lived about 1300 years ago. He was a monk in England who wanted to do missionary work. He went to the area now known as the Netherlands and was not very successful. After a trip to Rome, he was sent to Germany. There he was a fantastic missionary. He built up communities and churches. He was so successful, that he was made bishop and eventually archbishop and finally was given a permanaent see in Mainze. As great a missionary as he was, he was an even better Bishop and the work he did for the church as a Bishop helped set the course of Christian history for hundreds of years. After he retired he returned to the area now known as the Netherlands to continue mission work. There he was martyred by pagans.

Sometimes, the Spirit calls us to do things that we might not expect to do or even things that we don't really want to do. Boniface always wanted to be a missionary in the Netherlands, but the Spirit called him to Germany. The Spirit even called him to be a bishop instead of a travelling missioner.

The Spirit calls each of us in different ways. Sometimes it calls us to do things that are unexpected. Listen to the Spirit and open your heart to his guidance. Often when we are doing God's work in the world it is not what we expected to be doing. What is the Spirit calling you to do?