Bl. Raymond Lull’s Missionary Life – Jun 30 – Homily – Fr John Lawrence

 

Fr. John Lawrence gives the homily at Bloomington, IN, on Jun 30, 2025, on the life of Bl. Raymond Lull, who dedicated his life to converting unbelievers, wrote extensively, established missionary language schools, and ultimately died as a martyr in 1315.

Father tells the story of Blessed Raymond Lull, born in 1232 in Mallorca, who, after a sinful youth, was transformed by five visions of Christ on the cross calling him to "Follow me," echoing Matthew 16:24. He abandoned worldly pursuits to serve Jesus Christ, as inspired by St. Francis, who also left wealth to follow God. Raymond devised a threefold plan: personally converting unbelievers, writing against errors of non-Christians, and founding monasteries to teach missionary languages like Arabic. He spent nine years in penance and study, developing a logical method to demonstrate the faith’s reasonableness, not to prove it, aligning with the Church’s teaching that faith transcends reason (Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraph 159). His missions took him to Tunisia, where he reasoned with Muslim intellectuals, though with little success, facing imprisonment. Father highlights Raymond’s persistence, writing over 200 works and securing approval for his teachings at the University of Paris and the Council of Vienne, which established language schools for missionaries. In his final mission at over 80, Raymond preached openly in Tunisia, was stoned, and died in 1315, embodying the call to take up one’s cross (Matthew 16:24). His life reflects the Church’s mission to evangelize with gentleness, as encouraged in 1 Peter 3:15.

For Further Reading

Matthew 16:24 - NAB - Jesus calls to take up the cross - https://bible.usccb.org/bible/matthew/16?24
1 Peter 3:15 - NAB - Be ready to explain your hope - https://bible.usccb.org/bible/1peter/3?15
Catechism of the Catholic Church #159 - Faith and Reason - http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc/p1s1c3a1.htm#159
Catechism of the Catholic Church #1814 - Faith as a virtue - http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc/p3s1c1a7.htm#1814
Catechism of the Catholic Church #2472 - Duty of Christians to evangelize - http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc/p3s2c2a8.htm#2472
Wikipedia - Blessed Ramon Llull - Biography of Ramon Llull - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramon_Llull
Catholic Encyclopedia - Ramon Lull - Historical account of his life - https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/12670c.htm