Menu
Today, 27th of September, we celebrate
Saint Vincent of Paul
1 Cor 4:9-15
has exhibited us apostles as last of all, as though sentenced to death, because we have become a spectacle to the world, to angels and to mortals. We are fools for the sake of Christ, but you are wise in Christ. We are weak, but you are strong. You are held in honor, but we in disrepute. To the present hour we are hungry and thirsty, we are poorly clothed and beaten and homeless, and we grow weary from the work of our own hands. When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure; when slandered, we speak kindly. We have become like the rubbish of the world, the dregs of all things, to this very day. I am not writing this to make you ashamed, but to admonish you as my beloved children. For though you might have ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers. Indeed, in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel.
Psalm 145:17-18, 19-20, 21
R. The Lord is near to all who call him.
The LORD is righteous in all his ways
and faithful in all he does.
The LORD is near to all who call on him,
to all who call on him in truth.
R. The Lord is near to all who call him.
He fulfills the desires of those who fear him;
he hears their cry and saves them.
The LORD watches over all who love him,
but all the wicked he will destroy.
R. The Lord is near to all who call him.
My mouth will speak in praise of the LORD.
Let every creature praise his holy name for ever and ever.
R. The Lord is near to all who call him.
Lk 6:1-5
And it came to pass on the second sabbath after the first, that Jesus went through the corn fields; and his disciples plucked the ears of corn, and did eat, rubbing them in their hands. And certain of the Pharisees said unto them, Why do ye that which is not lawful to do on the sabbath days? And Jesus answering them said, Have ye not read so much as this, what David did, when himself was an hungred, and they which were with him; How he went into the house of God, and did take and eat the shewbread, and gave also to them that were with him; which it is not lawful to eat but for the priests alone? And he said unto them, That the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath.
Who is the Strongest?
Competing to see who is the strongest, both militarily and even mentally or religiously, has always been a human trait. Those who believe they are the best criticize or openly persecute those who don’t do things like them or don’t think the same way. Today’s first reading almost makes a catalog of ways of persecution and superiority. And in the Gospel, we see the disciples criticized for breaking a Sabbath rule.
In the face of persecution and criticism, it’s very possible, and very human, to “cave in.” Bloody or physical persecution is the extreme, but the “what will they say” is the most insidious and sometimes the most harmful. It attacks a person’s dignity by forcing them to feel inferior for being different in the face of widespread opinion or single-mindedness. There have always been persecutions, but perhaps we thought that in a Western civilization, supposedly of Christian inspiration, it would be impossible. But we’re seeing it constantly around us; if not bloody persecution, then the persecution of insults, defamation, criticism, ridicule… Without going any further, the Opening Ceremony of the Paris Olympic Games, the expulsions of religious people from Nicaragua, or the tearing down of crosses all over Europe.
Today we are invited to a difficult and somewhat dangerous freedom. Affirming that only Jesus is Lord can put us in complicated situations even with those closest to us. We can end up being like those described by Saint Paul: insulted, ridiculed, humiliated, persecuted… Or, at the very least, criticized. And yet, the serene affirmation of Christ’s sovereignty gives us that strength that Paul had; ridiculed, we bless; persecuted, we endure… Since only Christ is Lord, all that strength has been given to us, not by our merits or our personal strength, but by divine sovereignty. And we don’t need to compete or compare ourselves. Only God is God. Fashion is not God, nor is the norm established by the powers that be, nor single-mindedness, nor prevailing trends. Jesus is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. And because of that, we can be free.
Cármen AguinacoPaul criticizes his Corinthians in an ironic way for their pretenses, but he says he does so because he loves them. What do they have that they have not received?
A frequent sign of their own insecurity is that people seek security in laws and traditions. The more they insist on these, the more they try to bend people to these, the greater their insecurity. Laws are supposed to be in the service of the community, not vice versa. They may never become a block or a screen between people. They are not absolutes but servants of people.
Lord our God,
Jesus your Son came not to abolish the law
but to fill it with the dimensions of love.
Do not allow commandments and rules
to stand between you and us nor between people,
but let them lead us gently,
as good educators, to you and to our neighbor
and teach us to go beyond the law
in generosity and serving love.
Make us free with the freedom brought us
by your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
– That Christians may regard the commandments as doors to freedom from sin and evil and ways to serve God and people, we pray:
– That lawmakers everywhere make laws that are humane and serve the good of all in the community, we pray:
– That we may seek security in love of God and the service of people, we pray:
God our Father,
in these signs, your gifts to us
and the fruit of our work,
we make ourselves available to you.
Do not allow us to seek false security
in observing the letter of the law
but help us to seek the insecurity and risk
of committing ourselves to you and people,
as Jesus did, your Son,
who lives with you and with us
now, and we hope and pray, for ever.
Lord our God,
in this eucharist we have celebrated
the memorial of your Son’s death and rising.
He followed the law of the heart
and made love the heart of all laws.
Let the bread of life of your Son
make our love inventive and creative
in the service of people
and help us to follow the directives
of our hearts and consciences,
in the Spirit of Jesus Christ,
your Son and our Lord for ever.
Christ has made us free. Let us not give up that freedom by slavishly sticking to practices and traditions that do not reflect the gospel. May almighty God bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
