FrNikola

29th Week in Ordinary Time, Friday, Year II

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In today’s First Reading Paul encourages the Ephesians to practice the virtues that will ensure their unity in serving the Lord, in the faith, and in baptism: humility, gentleness, patience, and love. Christians have not always lived these virtues and it has not only undermined our unity, but also undermined our mission. We still all share one Lord and one baptism: every Christian through Baptism is incorporated into the Mystical Body of Christ, but through historical disagreements in East and West we no longer agree on the fullness of faith and how it should be lived and put into practice. We don’t all share the same articles of faith, worship, or governance; those three elements all stem from our faith in how Our Lord has handed on the faith to the Apostles and to us through the centuries.

Paul’s exhortation today is a call to duty to all Christians today. We must be one. To strengthen and full restore Christian unity we must come together in humility, gentleness, patience, and love, just as Paul teaches us, and we will overcome our differences and disagreements because the mission demands it and it is not just Paul’s desire, but Our Lord’s as well. Let’s pray and work that one day we’ll once again profess one faith, celebrated on Eucharist, and be united under the same pastoral guidance.

Ecumenism involves discussion and frank dialogue, but it starts with virtue. Ask Our Lord to help you practice some “virtuous” ecumenism today. Every bit helps rebuild unity.

Readings: Ephesians 4:1–6; Psalm 24:1–4b, 5–6; Luke 12:54–59. See also 29th Week in Ordinary Time, Friday.

29th Week in Ordinary Time, Thursday, Year II

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Paul in today’s First Reading kneels before God the Father in order to thank him not only for the communion of saints, a communion shared by believers on Heaven and on Earth, but a communion with God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit that makes every participant a member of the family of God. Our fellow believers are our brothers and sisters, and we have them here and in eternity, cheering us on, encouraging us and interceding for us, filled with the hope that some day, by the grace of God, we’ll all be together in Heaven.

The Holy Trinity wishes to pour life and love into our hearts, and this is the fire that Our Lord wants to kindle in today’s Gospel. If divisions occur, even among those we love, it is because on one side or the other the love is not strong enough for both sides to “catch fire.” We have to be on fire for love of Our Lord and hope that our blood relations also “catch fire” and become part of the family of faith as well. Our Lord died on the cross to make that flame of love burn bright, so we should not be afraid of laying down our lives, spiritually or otherwise, in order to help others catch fire.

As believers the way we should treat our family and others is simple: with the love of a family. Let’s ask the Holy Spirit to keep the fire of that love kindled in us and to prepare the hearts of others to catch fire as well.

Readings: Ephesians 3:14–21; Psalm 33:1–2, 4–5, 11–12, 18–19; Luke 12:49–53. See also 20th Week in Ordinary Time, Sunday, Cycle C, 15th Week in Ordinary Time, Monday, Year II, 29th Week in Ordinary Time, Thursday, and 15th Week in Ordinary Time, Monday.

29th Week in Ordinary Time, Wednesday, Year II

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At the Basilica of St. Paul’s Outside the Walls in Rome there is a statue of St. Paul in the courtyard with the inscription in Latin that, translated, means “teacher to the nations.” Paul in today’s First Reading is marveling at how much bigger his mission is than he would have imagined when he was a zealous Jew persecuting “heretical” Christians who’d corrupted the Jewish faith. It’s ironic that after being so dedicated to the Jewish faith and consumed with zeal to punish and imprison Jewish “heretics” the Lord would reveal to him that his mission was among the non-Jewish nations and he would spend much of his mission refuting those who tried to Judaize Christianity.

Throughout salvation history the Lord revealed his saving plan gradually. In one moment it seemed the people of Israel were to be the only ones blessed and chosen by God, but even in their time the Lord hinted at their conversion being part of something much bigger. In the end the people of Israel were just one stage of the preparation to save all the nations, and the apostles, especially Paul, saw that the truth of the Gospel went beyond the Jews to the whole world.

Paul was one of the faithful servants to which Our Lord alludes in today’s Gospel. He had received the grace of a special and important mission in the early Church and beyond. Yet he didn’t see it as a burden; he saw it as a gift. Ask Our Lord today to help you see what gift he wants you to receive for the benefit of others. There are still many people who’d be shocked to hear that the Lord wants to bless and choose them too. Be the bearer of that good news in their lives.

Readings: Ephesians 3:2–12; Isaiah 12:2–3; Luke 12:39–48. See also 19th Week in Ordinary Time, Sunday, Cycle C, 29th Week in Ordinary Time, Wednesday, and 21st Week in Ordinary Time, Thursday.

St. Luke, Evangelist

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In Luke’s Gospel, alongside the account of the Twelve being sent out, he speaks of Seventy-Two being sent out by Our Lord with a very similar mandate. Luke probably identified with the Seventy-Two; the needs of the Gospel were expanding and more help was needed. As today’s First Reading reminds us, Luke accompanied the apostle Paul in some of his missionary work. In the Acts of the Apostles, written by St. Luke, the narrative switches from speaking about Paul to speaking about where “we” were and what “we” did. Luke never imagined the special collaboration he would have with the Apostles: he was not just a co-worker, he was an evangelist.

He was probably a second or third generation Christian, so while he lived at the same time as the Apostles, he also knew the Church would continue after their passing. In addition to recalling the life of Our Lord in his Gospel he left us the Acts of the Apostles to see how the Apostles carried on Our Lord’s mission after his Ascension, spurred on by the Holy Spirit. He was well aware that soon his generation would carry on the mission, just as the Apostles had done.

Luke reminds us on his feast day that just because we’ve come after the first generations of Christians doesn’t mean we should be less engaged in continuing Our Lord’s mission. Luke was not an optional evangelist, and he even went beyond the evangelist mandate by giving us the Acts of the Apostles. Let’s ask him to help us see how we can bring the Church’s work of evangelization forward.

Readings: 2 Timothy 4:10–17b; Psalm 145:10–13, 17–18; Luke 10:1–9.

29th Week in Ordinary Time, Monday, Year II

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In today’s First Reading Paul describes the spiritually dead as following the “ruler of the power of the air.” How many ways can we interpret that expression today? Power over the air can be understood as having power over nothing, or something ethereal. The airwaves today are full of unsubstantial noise as the media seeks to entertain and allure for ratings and profit, and the virtual “airwaves” are often not better. In one corner of the world, sometimes one corner of society, people follow superficial pursuits, while in the other people are living tragedy, just trying to make ends meet and eke out their existence. If St. John Paul II spoke of solidarity, the power of the air could be branded unsolidarity as each pursues their desires indifferently to or at the expense of their neighbor. The Gospel reminds us today that all the things we strive for in this world, if we just seek a cozy and comfortable retirement, will vanish into thin air when we die.

Yet Paul reminds us that thanks to faith and grace we have been promised a share in the Resurrection and Ascension of Our Lord. Believing in him, we become one with him and, just as he did, we will suffer, but we will also be restored to new life and one day take our place in the heavenly Father’s presence. Through Christ we have gone from being children of wrath to being children of God. Through our good works we work for something of substance, not just for ourselves, but for others. The power of the air is just that: hot air. The power of Christ is eternal.

What life do you want? A life of hot air, or a life in Christ?

Readings: Ephesians 2:1–10; Psalm 100:1b–5; Luke 12:13–21. See also 18th Week in Ordinary Time, Sunday, Cycle C and 29th Week in Ordinary Time, Monday.