 It's sort of obligatory for a Texan. But it is good to be here at Franciscan University to welcome all of you as we enter into this St. John Bosco Conference. Hopefully your travels were fairly smooth. Obviously you made it here in one piece, and we're grateful for that. And as always, we have the wonder of God's Word laid before us as we prepare to come to the altar of Christ to once again celebrate His sacrifice of love. As we celebrate this votive mass of St. Joseph, quite appropriately, we hear of Joseph at the very beginning of this last portion of his life. After he's died, he's mentioned, of course, a different Joseph. But Joseph of old, of the Hebrew story, has elements of his journey that echo and are echoed in the life of St. Joseph, the husband of Mary, St. Joseph the worker, St. Joseph the adoptive father of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. I love this reading from Exodus as it alludes to a whole story that will unfold. As in these daily masses, we've been hearing from the book of Genesis, from the very beginning, with Abram, who becomes Abraham, and then the whole story of Joseph, how he's betrayed by his brothers. But then all of that is redeemed by the grace of God. And now we enter into this very beginning of the book of Exodus. Soon Moses will come on the scene. He's very much alluded to in the last line of this reading from the book of Exodus, chapter one. Throw into the river every boy that is born to the Hebrews, but you may let all the girls live. That death of the Hebrew boys opens the door for Moses to be saved from that death and to become a figure of savior for the people of Israel. In their exodus, they are freed from real slavery in the country of Egypt. That familiar line, as they endure the whole cruel fate of slaves, hopefully reminds us that we too have been freed from slavery by Jesus Christ. As we will enter into that story of Moses in the coming days in these days of ordinary time, I hope all of us who are able to continue this journey in the daily masses will treasure that wondrous story of redemption for the people of Israel that is a foreshadowing of the tremendous and great redemption that Jesus Christ offers. Not just a freedom from slavery in Egypt, which is so significant, but a freedom from slavery to death and sin that is offered to the whole world through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. A sacrifice that we will once again celebrate on this Eucharistic altar in just a few moments. Hopefully as we embrace the Word of God, and as we reflect on the two Josephs, it's a reminder to us of the wonder of our faith, the joy that comes in Christ, the good news that we are called to live throughout our days. I think it's worth noting that this is simply ordinary time, the fifteenth week, Monday of the fifteenth week of ordinary time, yet always the Word of God is marvelous. I like to bless the congregation with the book of the gospels because it reminds us how precious is the Word of God. Christ is present in all of these writings of the Old and New Testament, the great mystery of the Word, and we know that Christ is the Word incarnate. So let us turn for a moment to what the Christ Jesus has to say to his apostles in this passage from the tenth chapter of the Gospel according to Matthew. It reminds us that we are all called to be apostolic. I know that this university seeks to live that apostolic call to bring the good news of the Gospel to all the world, and so let us listen closely to what it is that Jesus says to his apostles as in this section of Matthew, he continues to instruct them about their business, about what they are to do, what they are to be about as apostles of Jesus the Christ. Let us rejoice in the truth that we live this ever-ancient, ever-new faith, stretching back to Joseph of old and Moses and to the time of the apostles, and right here to the twenty-first century, this ever-ancient, ever-new church is never outdated. The Word of God is never old. It is always new and to be pondered afresh. Jesus offers us very challenging words in today's Gospel as he speaks to the apostles. Do not think that I have come to bring peace upon the earth. I have come to bring not peace but the sword. Brothers and sisters, let us have the strength, the tenacity of faith that allows us to embrace that challenging message from Jesus Christ in today's Gospel. In our time, too often, the message of Jesus is soft-pedaled. We don't hear much about not peace but the sword, and certainly at different times in our church's history over two thousand years, possibly people in their zeal for evangelizing have gotten too caught up in the power of the sword, but it's always that balance of Christ not bringing peace but the sword, not bringing complacency, but a willingness to face the challenges of the day. And there are challenges in every day throughout the history of the church. But to face those challenges in the power of the Word and the power of the sacraments as we will reflect especially on St. Joseph, the adoptive father of Jesus, who inherits the Hebrew story, who is faithful to the people of Israel, who comes from a royal house of David, St. Joseph is one who knew the words of his son that are spoken to his apostles. I have come not to bring peace but the sword. Peace in this world is too often a leaving out of the powerful message of truth. The peace that Christ wishes to bring is a piece that goes through the sword, through the divisions to the real unity that always challenges us to live the truth. I think it's worth noting in that first reading as well, the mention of power. A new king has come to power in Egypt and as the story of Moses will unfold, we'll see how devastating that power can be. Jesus in a sense speaks of power also in this gospel passage. But we need to remember that he is the Lord to whom all power in heaven and on earth has been granted. He is the Lord of power, the Lord of grace and strength, the Lord of love and mercy. Let us embrace him as St. Joseph did. The gospel goes on to mention whoever receives a righteous man because he is righteous will receive a righteous man's reward. To me that brings to mind once again St. Joseph who is often referred to as the righteous man. He models for all of us men and women that we are called to the righteousness that is Jesus Christ, not a peace in this world but a necessary a sword that separates us from all that is false, all that is evil, all that is darkness to be righteous men and women. I pray that during this week focusing on the wonderful St. John Bosco in his ministry and with the theme of St. Joseph that it may be a time for each of us to grow in righteousness trusting that the mercy of the Lord when we fail, when I fail is always available to us. Let us be joyful in embracing the challenges of living Christ and look to St. Joseph the patron of the universal church. The theme of this year of faith in our Catholic community throughout the world may St. Joseph inspire us to embrace the peace of Christ that always brings life and fullness of good news, joy in the light of the gospel.