The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today resonate with the theme of great expectations for great numbers of people to encounter great fullness of Life in Christ.
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| Great gathering |
The Letter to the Colossians declares the superiority of the invitation of fullness of life in Christ to other philosophies.
* [4:3] The elemental powers of the world: while the term can refer to the “elements” like earth, air, fire, and water or to elementary forms of religion, the sense here is more likely that of celestial beings that were thought in pagan circles to control the world; cf. Gal 4:8; Col 2:8, 20.1
Psalm 145 proclaims the Greatness and 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 initiates the mission of the Twelve in teaching and ministering to a great multitude.
* [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
Mark Latta takes comfort in knowing we are loved and lifted by God through Christ. We also know we must be on guard against being influenced by false teachers and deceitful philosophies. But how are we to discern, in today’s age of information overload, God’s path for us?
...profound example of Christ himself. Any big event in the life of Jesus was preceded by prayer. He faced the passion after prayer and since choosing his apostles would impact forever his Church on Earth he prayed before selecting them. Committing to time in prayer is joining Christ in prayer and can help us discern what is best and most loving in our daily lives. Prayer can give us the opportunity to put important decisions in our lives in the context of the love of God and his will for us.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 Colossians 2:6-15 comments that every age has its own seductive philosophies that have the potential to lead people away from Christ. We might encounter one as we interact with a coworker or while we’re talking with a relative at a family party. So how can we respond?
What if you tried… to simply listen and ask questions? You could ask how the person came to this conclusion and why they believe it. Or you could try to find a point of mutual agreement between what they believe and your own faith in Christ.
These kinds of conversations, marked by sincerity and kindness, build trust. And trust is what builds bridges between people. If someone begins to respect and trust you, they will be more open to hearing about your own views and beliefs. Who knows? As your friendship grows, that person may actually want to hear about Jesus and how he has changed your life.
Finally, don’t forget to pray. Ask Jesus to guide the person and open their mind to him. Pray also that God will help you to grow in love for your friend and in your ability to see him as God sees him.6
Friar Jude Winkler reviews the exhortation of the author of the Letter to the Colossians to reject heretical faith. We note that Luke frequently tells of Jesus seeking the will of the Father through prayer. Friar Jude identifies touching Jesus as the way to banish demonic influences.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, comments the shadow in and of itself is not the problem. The source of our disease and violence is separation from parts of ourselves, from each other, and from God. Mature religion is meant to re-ligio or re-ligament what our egos and survival instincts have put asunder, namely a fundamental wholeness at the heart of everything. Fr Richard shares the work of Robert A. Johnson (1921–2018), an American Jungian analyst, author, and lecturer who studied at the C. G. Jung Institute. In his book Owning Your Own Shadow, he explains how the shadow begins and how we grow.
Wherever we start and whatever culture we spring from, [most of us] will arrive at adulthood with a clearly defined ego and shadow, a system of right and wrong, a teeter-totter with two sides. The religious process consists of restoring the wholeness of the personality. . . .
Generally, the first half of life is devoted to the cultural process—gaining one’s skills, raising a family, disciplining one’s self in a hundred different ways; the second half of life is devoted to restoring the wholeness (making holy) of life. One might complain that this is a senseless round trip except that the wholeness at the end is conscious while it was unconscious and childlike at the beginning.7
The journey with Christ to wholeness requires mature discernment of the path we take through seeking the will of God through prayer.
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