Foolish weak and lowly workers

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today invite us to contemplate a paradox

Contemplate

where we are exhorted to both realize as Paul tells the Corinthians how powerless we are without the Life of Christ

* [1:29–31] “Boasting (about oneself)” is a Pauline expression for the radical sin, the claim to autonomy on the part of a creature, the illusion that we live and are saved by our own resources. “Boasting in the Lord” (1 Cor 1:31), on the other hand, is the acknowledgment that we live only from God and for God.

and at the same time hear Jesus in the Gospel from Matthew relate a parable wherein the servant who does not exercise his power is condemned by the king.

* [25:26–28] Wicked, lazy servant: this man’s inactivity is not negligible but seriously culpable. As punishment, he loses the gift he had received, that is now given to the first servant, whose possessions are already great.

Esther, Yankee Gospel Girl, offers an attempt at resolving the Pauline paradox, with a little help from much greater minds than hers.

This is why I dislike the common analogy of “lying down in the boat” while Jesus does all the work. It’s probing at something true, but it’s really not that biblical. It’s not an analogy found anywhere in the Bible, and it in fact directly contradicts some very clear analogies to the contrary. How are we supposed to “fight the good fight and finish the race” when we’re “lying in the bottom of the boat?” I believe that my analogy of the runner who is powerless without God but becomes swift in His strength is much closer to what Paul had in mind. It’s all in Philippians.

Friar Jude Winkler explains the Gnostic challenge to the preaching of Paul. In the Gospel the talent and gifts from God coincide and are to be used and shared for the growth of the Church and others.

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, invites us to set aside regular, day-long periods of rest and retreat, simply being in awareness of God’s presence. Find a rhythm of rest and work that allows for renewal so that you enter your active life from contemplative grounding. Anita Amstutz writes.

The Sabbath imperative is to not accomplish or initiate anything, refuting the belief that you have to “do something” to be worthy. Instead, the original vision of Sabbath calls us to cease doing something, acquiring things, making stuff, expecting returns. Instead, we are called to just be and receive the Creator’s good gifts. Forget stifling restrictions. Instead, time is savored as a precious gift from God. Time for your body to stretch and your soul to relax

References


(n.d.). 1 Corinthians chapter 1 - United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved September 1, 2018, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/1corinthians1:33
(n.d.). Matthew 25:31-46. Retrieved September 1, 2018, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/matthew/matthew25.htm
(2012, April 23). Biblical Thinking: The Pauline Paradox – Yankee Gospel Girl. Retrieved September 1, 2018, from https://yankeegospelgirl.com/2012/04/23/biblical-thinking-the-pauline-paradox/
(n.d.). Daily Meditations Archives - Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved September 1, 2018, from https://cac.org/category/daily-meditations/