Attract the Nations

The proclamation of God through the psalmist that “I will give you all the nations for you heritage” is a promise which poses difficulties as we seek to understand how it will be realized. The salvation history of Israel shows the journey of a people called to be light to the nations and attract people to hear of God and paradoxically, at the same time, to live a tradition of separation from practices considered pagan. The political power of this people has moved up and down over the centuries again both attracting interest and persecution.  The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today offer some insight into Jesus method of attraction. The battle against “anti-Christ” in the First Letter of John is waged with language which is very dualistic. The views of a heretical sect, known as Docitism, were that Jesus did not have a material existence. Friar Jude Winkler comments on the impact of this idea on the author of the text. The community is reminded that the general Augustinian view that we can love God and do what we want is a challenge for people. We are more successful when we have some boundaries to remind us of the behaviour which Judeo-Christian tradition draws from the Commandments. Our spiritual journey is an encounter with the Divine wherein paradox, ambiguity and tension between extremes are tools to open our being to possibilities for peace and joy which transcends human experience. The Gospel of Matthew is written by a Jew for a Jewish audience. The Promise in the Book of Isaiah of the Messiah as the light to the nations is brought to our attention as the Evangelist tells of Jesus gathering the people from the Gentile regions of the Decapolis by the attractiveness of the experience of a personal encounter with Him. The disagreements which arise from tradition and practice are not settled before we draw people by the Light of Christ. The means whereby these “issues” will be addressed can be left to the guidance of the Spirit. We Love in His Name and attraction to the Way is the fruit.