The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today invite contemplation of our awareness of the need to be vigilant and counter distractions with the authoritative confidence in Jesus.
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| Aware and confident |
The reading from the First Letter to the Thessalonians urges vigilance to be prepared for the “thief in the night.”
* [5:10] Characteristically, Paul plays on words suggesting ultimate and anticipated death and life. Union with the crucified and risen Lord at his parousia is anticipated in some measure in contrasted states of our temporal life. The essential element he urges is our indestructible personal union in Christ’s own life (see Rom 5:1–10).1
The triumphant song of confidence in Psalm 27 has a climax of the poem with “I believe”.
* [Psalm 27] Tradition has handed down the two sections of the Psalm (Ps 27:1–6; 7–14) as one Psalm, though each part could be understood as complete in itself. Asserting boundless hope that God will bring rescue (Ps 27:1–3), the psalmist longs for the presence of God in the Temple, protection from all enemies (Ps 27:4–6). In part B there is a clear shift in tone (Ps 27:7–12); the climax of the poem comes with “I believe” (Ps 27:13), echoing “I trust” (Ps 27:3).2
In the Gospel from Luke, Jesus cures a man with an unclean spirit on the Sabbath in Capernaum.
* [4:34] What have you to do with us?: see note on Jn 2:4. Have you come to destroy us?: the question reflects the current belief that before the day of the Lord control over humanity would be wrested from the evil spirits, evil destroyed, and God’s authority over humanity reestablished. The synoptic gospel tradition presents Jesus carrying out this task.3
Luis Rodriguez, S.J. notes that the scribes needed to quote their Torah, in order to be credible. Jesus did at times also quote Scripture, but he dared to move beyond its literal sense: you have heard... but I say to you... He was not authoritarian, he was authoritative.
His authority was not political clout or temple power, it was moral authority that came from his life witness: who among you can convict me of sin? When life witness is present, there is no need for external cred-entials. Beyond speaking with authority Jesus was living with authority. Pope Francis speaks with authority, because he lives with authority.4
Don Schwager quotes “New creation begins on the Sabbath,” by Ambrose of Milan, 339-397 A.D.
"He describes the works of divine healing begun on the sabbath day, to show from the outset that the new creation began where the old creation ceased. He showed us that the Son of God is not under the law but above the law, and that the law will not be destroyed but fulfilled (Matthew 5:17). For the world was not made through the law but by the Word, as we read: 'By the Word of the Lord were the heavens established' (Psalm 33:6). Thus the law is not destroyed but fulfilled, so that the renewal of humankind, already in error, may occur. The apostle too says, 'Stripping yourselves of the old man, put on the new, who was created according to Christ' (Colossians 3:9-10, Ephesians 4:22,24). He fittingly began on the sabbath, that he may show himself as Creator. He completed the work that he had already begun by weaving together works with works. (excerpt from EXPOSITION OF THE GOSPEL OF LUKE 4.58)5
The Word Among Us Meditation on 1 Thessalonians 5:1-6, 9-11 comments that Paul wrote his first letter to the Thessalonians around AD 51, only about twenty years after Jesus’ resurrection. Like many believers at the time, the believers in Thessalonica were expecting Jesus to return very soon and usher in the kingdom in its fullness.
Paul, however, set the record straight: don’t worry about when Jesus comes again; concentrate on how ready you’ll be. Stay sober and alert, and spend your energy encouraging one another and building one another up.
Two thousand years later, Paul’s advice is just as relevant. We don’t know when Jesus will come again—it might even be today or tomorrow! So while we always need to be ready, we should focus on helping each other to stay faithful to the Lord.6
Friar Jude Winkler comments on the advice of Paul that we know neither the time or season of our end times. Luke carries a theme of the battle between the forces of good and evil. Friar Jude reminds us of the tension between all illness seen as curse and suffering as related in the Book of Job.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, quotes 1 Corinthians 13:12 as he shares the work of Dr. Barbara Holmes, who writes about our work for justice as creation “groans” toward fullness, inviting us to view the world differently.
Our desire for justice is deeply rooted in systems that are holistic and relational. We have not forced, created, or dreamed this shared destiny; it seems to be the way of the universe. Perhaps we will find paths toward mutuality when we consider how our lives are spent within a complex cosmos. However, we will not wrest an egalitarian order from the chaos with swords drawn or in fitful dreams of better times, but with an alertness and commitment to the difficult work of knowing self, others, and the universe as integral parts of a cosmic order that announces its Author, our liberation, and the human potential for transcendence in every star and galaxy.7
We consider the situation of the world of Paul with an expectation of imminent “end times” and hold it in tension with the perspective of our connection to a universe of infinite proportions and diversity to sharpen our attention to confidently seek Christ in every moment.
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