Homily for Installation of Relic of St Gerard Majella – St Gerard Majella Church, Carlingford – 16 October 2024

I am very happy to share that I am a Gerard Majella child.  His picture hung in the boys’ bedroom in my family home growing up in Launceston, Tasmania and I was mindful of him on a daily basis.  I can still picture the image of him and its location near our wardrobe. In the 1950s in Australia his veneration was especially strong, promoted by the Redemptorist Fathers especially during their famous parish missions. He was the patron saint of expectant mothers who prayed his intercession for the safe delivery of their babies.  Indeed, the picture that adorned the wall of our bedroom replicated the story how, during a visit to a family, Gerard accidentally dropped his handkerchief. A young girl ran to return it, but Gerard told her to keep it, saying she might need it one day. Years later, as an adult and mother, that same woman faced a life-threatening childbirth. Remembering Gerard’s handkerchief, she placed it on herself and prayed for his intercession. Both she and her baby survived the difficult delivery, and from that time on, Gerard became known as a protector of mothers and children.  The Redemptorist Fathers even had, at the time, a magazine called the Magellan which was published to help expectant mothers in their pregnancy. My own mother was a subscriber, and I still recall the magazine at our home.

What many may not realise, however, is that his designation with this patronal cause came about in the most challenging and ironic of circumstances

Born on April 6, 1726, in Muro Lucano, Italy, to a poor but devout family, Gerard’s faither father, a tailor, died when Gerard was only 12, leaving the family in hardship. Gerard attempted to support his mother and siblings by working as an apprentice. At the age of 23, after initially being refused because of his frail health, Gerard was finally accepted into the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, commonly known as the Redemptorists, founded by St. Alphonsus Liguori. He entered as a lay brother. He was given simple tasks such as serving as a tailor and gardener, but his extraordinary piety and humility caught the attention of the community.

Then, the unexpected, and a development of extraordinary irony. A young woman accuses Gerard of fathering a child.  He was banished to the margins of the community. Throughout, he did not defend himself, trusting that God would reveal the truth. He remained silent in the face of the accusations, and instead continued to reach out to others, particularly to those in hospital. Eventually, the woman, on her deathbed, did retract her accusation, and Gerard’s innocence was publicly acknowledged. In the end, the truth was revealed and people remembered how Gerard had refused to put down the person who said something bad about him. Notwithstanding, he himself contracted tuberculosis at a young age and died at just 29, on 16 October, 1755.  

We gather this evening to install his relic in the church that bears his name.  By welcoming this relic into our parish, we acknowledge the deep connection we share with the communion of saints. This relic is not merely a historical artifact or a symbol of the past; it is a living reminder that St. Gerard is with us, praying for us and interceding for our needs. His relic invites us into deeper communion with him, urging us to grow in faith and trust, to seek his intercession, and to follow his example of quiet holiness.

As we venerate this relic of St. Gerard, let us take a moment to consider how we can follow in his footsteps. How can we, in our own lives, embody the humility and trust that marked his life? 

We remember him because of the choices that he made in his life.  It wasn’t that Gerard was very different from ourselves.  He had no special abilities. In fact, he was a rather unremarkable person to begin with so that people around him didn’t expect any great things from him.

But the choices Gerard made in his life showed what was most important for him.  And what was most important for Gerard?  What was most important for Gerard was the story of Jesus and the needs of other people.  Gerard was always thinking about other people rather than himself.  He would try and see the good in other people even when they were harming him.  There were a couple of periods in is life when people treated Gerard very, very badly, and on one occasion someone said something very bad about him that was completely untrue.  But because Gerard knew in his heart it was untrue, he stayed silent rather than try and put the other person down.  

When someone hurts us, we most often want to strike back and hurt the other person in return.  We think we will feel stronger when the other person has been paid back for what they have done to us.  But this is not the way Jesus wants us to live with one another.  Jesus wants us to always look for the way in which we can be friends with one another.  Gerard Majella knew this, and in his life, he sought to put this lesson into practice.  He chose to put this lesson into practice.  That is why we remember him 300 years later.  In 300 years’ time, hopefully it might be that people will remember us – not for any ability that we might have, but for the choices that we have made in our life.  This is the way for all the great people we remember in history.

As we install this relic, we entrust ourselves to the intercession of St. Gerard Majella. We pray that through his prayers, we may be filled with the grace to live lives of humility, trust, and love, just as he did. May he intercede for all of us, especially for families, mothers, and children, and may his presence in our parish inspire us to walk more closely with Christ every day.

St. Gerard Majella,
Patron of mothers and protector of children,
Pray for us.
Guide us in humility and trust,
Help us to serve others with love and compassion,
And intercede for all families and expectant parents,
That they may know the peace and protection of God’s love.

Amen