The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today invite us to prayerfully seek discernment of our role in the healing work of Christ.
Our healing mission
The reading from the Letter to the Colossians declares the fullness of Life in Christ.
* [2:4–23] In face of the threat posed by false teachers (Col 2:4), the Colossians are admonished to adhere to the gospel as it was first preached to them (Col 2:6), steeping themselves in it with grateful hearts (Col 2:7). They must reject religious teachings originating in any source except the gospel (Col 2:8) because in Christ alone will they have access to God, the deity (Col 2:9). So fully has Christ enlightened them that they need no other source of religious knowledge or virtue (Col 2:10). They do not require circumcision (Col 2:11), for in baptism their whole being has been affected by Christ (Col 2:12) through forgiveness of sin and resurrection to a new life (Col 2:13; cf. Col 3:1 and Rom 6:1–11). On the cross Christ canceled the record of the debt that stood against us with all its claims (Col 2:14), i.e., he eliminated the law (cf. Eph 2:15) that human beings could not observe—and that could not save them. He forgave sins against the law (Col 2:14) and exposed as false and misleading (Col 2:15) all other powers (cf. Col 1:16) that purport to offer salvation. Therefore, the Colossians are not to accept judgments from such teachers on food and drink or to keep certain religious festivals or engage in certain cultic practices (Col 2:16), for the Colossians would thereby risk severing themselves from Christ (Col 2:19). If, when they accepted the gospel, they believed in Christ as their savior, they must be convinced that their salvation cannot be achieved by appeasing ruling spirits through dietary practices or through a wisdom gained simply by means of harsh asceticism (Col 2:20–23).1
Psalm 145 praises the Greatness and the Goodness of God.
* [Psalm 145] A hymn in acrostic form; every verse begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Acrostic poems usually do not develop ideas but consist rather of loosely connected statements. The singer invites all to praise God (Ps 145:1–3, 21). The “works of God” make God present and invite human praise (Ps 145:4–7); they climax in a confession (Ps 145:8–9). God’s mighty acts show forth divine kingship (Ps 145:10–20), a major theme in the literature of early Judaism and in Christianity.2
In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus chooses the Twelve Apostles and teaches and heals.
* [6:13] He chose Twelve: the identification of this group as the Twelve is a part of early Christian tradition (see 1 Cor 15:5), and in Matthew and Luke, the Twelve are associated with the twelve tribes of Israel (Lk 22:29–30; Mt 19:28). After the fall of Judas from his position among the Twelve, the need is felt on the part of the early community to reconstitute this group before the Christian mission begins at Pentecost (Acts 1:15–26). From Luke’s perspective, they are an important group who because of their association with Jesus from the time of his baptism to his ascension (Acts 1:21–22) provide the continuity between the historical Jesus and the church of Luke’s day and who as the original eyewitnesses guarantee the fidelity of the church’s beliefs and practices to the teachings of Jesus (Lk 1:1–4). Whom he also named apostles: only Luke among the gospel writers attributes to Jesus the bestowal of the name apostles upon the Twelve. See note on Mt 10:2–4. “Apostle” becomes a technical term in early Christianity for a missionary sent out to preach the word of God. Although Luke seems to want to restrict the title to the Twelve (only in Acts 4:4, 14 are Paul and Barnabas termed apostles), other places in the New Testament show an awareness that the term was more widely applied (1 Cor 15:5–7; Gal 1:19; 1 Cor 1:1; 9:1; Rom 16:7).3
Joan Blandin Howard reflects on the intimacy of her relationship with God and asks “What is my God-given name? What is my unique name for God? “ Maybe our names change from encounter to encounter. Maybe not.
In prayer, I sit alone in the stillness of silence and listen with my heart, with my entire body, noticing the interior nudges that alert me to God’s approach, to God’s presence. My name? I will know it. Maybe I have heard/noticed/felt it before, maybe now for the first time, maybe it will take a bit of noticing in the solitude of prayer before I hear it. I listen. I notice. We are privy to a glimpse into the relationship between Jesus and God. God names Jesus, “My Son”. Not just “Son”, but “My Son”. Feel the deepness between the two names. Jesus calls his Father, “Abba”, Daddy. Feel the mutual intimacy. As I sit in contemplation of what I can imagine these names reveal of their relationship, I feel a deep sense of joy, unconditional presences and unfathomable love and wholeness. My words are not descriptively adequate. Alone, in silent solitude I listen for my own God-given name. Initially, I experience a slight interior feeling, movement, rather than hearing or certainty. Words don’t come readily.4
Don Schwager quotes “Jesus chose fishermen and tax collectors to be apostles,” by Ambrose of Milan, 339-397 A.D.
"It says, 'He called his disciples, and he chose twelve of them,' whom he appointed sowers of the faith, to spread the help of human salvation throughout the world. At the same time, observe the heavenly counsel. He chose not wise men, nor rich men, nor nobles, but fishermen and tax collectors, whom he would direct, lest they seem to have seduced some by wisdom, or bought them with riches, or attracted them to their own grace with the authority of power and nobility. He did this so that the reasoning of truth, not the grace of disputation, should prevail."(excerpt from EXPOSITION OF THE GOSPEL OF LUKE 5.44)5
The Word Among Us Meditation on Luke 6:12-19 comments that at its heart, prayer is all about our relationship with the Lord. Of course, we should petition him for our needs, and of course, he loves to hear those requests. But our most fundamental need is to be in communion with God, the source of our life. Prayer is meant to be a loving conversation in which we express our love for God and he expresses his love for us.
Today, try approaching prayer that way. Think of it as a chance to meet with your heavenly Father. Start by offering him praise for his goodness, faithfulness, and mercy. Thank him for all the blessings he’s given you. Tell him how much you love him. Then listen for his response. He will remind you of his love in different ways. He may say “I love you” in the silence of your heart or in a favorite Scripture passage. He may remind you of a time when he blessed you in the past. And best of all, he will fill you with his Spirit so that you can live as his beloved child. “Father, I love you more than anything! Thank you for loving me and making me your child!”6
Friar Jude Winkler expands upon the seductive Gnostic philosophy that Paul sees as having a negative influence on the community's understanding of Christ Incarnate. In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus prays many times to discern the Will of the Father. Friar Jude reminds us that Jesus welcomes Jews and Gentiles, all people, to relationship with Him.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, comments that our English phrase is wonderful. We say, “I’ve fallen in love.” We recognize love not as something we can achieve by willpower. As Eckhart Tolle teaches, you fall through your life situation into your real life. Everything here is simply a lesson—all your life situation, all your life events are used by God. They often are not consciously religious.
Paul does not speak of doing the deeds of the Spirit, but instead he speaks of the fruits of the Spirit, and love as the greatest gift of the Spirit. Love is something we abide in, something we fall into—usually when we’re out of control, when we’re failing and faltering and we can’t do it right. When we reach the end of our resources—and we have to start relying on a power greater than ourselves—that’s when we fall into the Great Love that is God. Alcoholics Anonymous discovered this many years ago. For Paul, love is the realm for perfect seeing. When we’re in love, in agape, we are able to “see” correctly. When we’re reading reality correctly, we will love, we will know how to love, and we will be in love. We will not have a judgmental, negative, or critical stance. We’ll see what’s really happening. From some place we do not completely understand comes this capacity to forgive, to embrace, to compassionately understand, to let go, and to hand over my small self to the Big Self that we call God, or our Higher Power.7
In our journey, we experience times of “falling”, in love, and in suffering. The Holy Spirit prompts us to prayerfully discern “our name” and mission in these times of spiritual enlightenment.
References
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