The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today resonate with a pattern of our lives where we move between growth and set back or rejection.
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| Beyond the bend |
The reading from the Book of Acts describes the growth of the Church in Antioch.
* [11:26] Christians: “Christians” is first applied to the members of the community at Antioch because the Gentile members of the community enable it to stand out clearly from Judaism.1
Psalm 87 proclaims the joy of living in Zion.
* [87:5–6] The bond between the exile and the holy city was so strong as to override the exile’s citizenship of lesser cities.2
In the Gospel of John, Jesus' claim of being One with the Father is rejected by the Jews.
* [10:30] This is justification for Jn 10:29; it asserts unity of power and reveals that the words and deeds of Jesus are the words and deeds of God.3
Luis Rodriguez, S.J. asks if accused of being Christian, could we be convicted on the evidence of our lives? Would our way of living give us away as Christians?
Jesus expected the evidence of his own life and works to be convincing, as we read in today’s gospel reading: The works I do in my Father’s name testify to me. Yet he says: you do not believe. Maybe the evidence of our own way of living is not enough for others, but is it convincing for ourselves? As we look at the way we live, do we feel assured that we live our faith consistently? I am confident that we are at least not totally inconsistent, as the fact that you are taking time to read this reflection would appear to indicate. But we need to let the Lord be the judge, since we are not good judges in our own case.4
Don Schwager quotes “The Great might of Christ's hand,” by Clement of Alexandria, 150-215 A.D.
"The faithful also have the help of Christ, and the devil is not able to snatch them. Those who have an endless enjoyment of good things remain in Christ's hand, no one thereafter snatching them away from the bliss that is given to them. [No one can throw them] into punishment or torments. For it is not possible that those who are in Christ's hand should be snatched away to be punished because of the great might Christ has. For 'the hand' in the divine Scripture signifies 'the power'” It cannot be doubted therefore that the hand of Christ is unconquerable and mighty to all things." (excerpt from the COMMENTARY ON THE GOSPEL OF JOHN 7.1)5
The Word Among Us Meditation on Acts 11:19-26 comments this is true in our life. Twists, turns, and crooked lines are sure to occur. Maybe they weren’t in our plans. Yet none of them can thwart God’s ultimate plan. No matter what developments arise in our life, he is infinitely creative and always able to bring about his deepest desires. He wants us to live with him forever, so he will do everything to help us get there.
But what can you do when all that you can see is the bend in the road?
Start by reminding yourself as you face that curve: God always has an answer in mind. Hold fast to what you know, despite what you can’t see ahead of you. Those early believers, though hounded out of Jerusalem, continued to proclaim the good news. In the same way, you can continue to love and serve the Lord, wherever you are, whatever has happened. Cling to the truths you do know even as you wait for God to show you the next steps he has planned for you. Listen, as you pray, for the Lord’s gentle encouragement. He will help you negotiate life’s curves.
“Lord, I can’t see where you’re leading me right now, but I trust that you are working out your good will in my life.”6
Friar Jude Winkler traces the Greek speaking origins of those fleeing to Antioch. Our responsibility is proportional to the gift of faith we have received from God. Friar Jude reminds us of the deep dualism in the Gospel of John.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, shares that a divine foundation of relationship is what all religion, spirituality, and perhaps even politics, is aiming for. The Trinity offers us this precise gift—a grounded connection with God, self, others, and the world. This ancient doctrine dared to affirm that God is relationship itself. The way of Jesus therefore is an invitation to a way of living, loving, and relating—on earth as it is in God. We are intrinsically like the Trinity, living in absolute relatedness. While we may not always recognize it, we are all together in a web of mutual interdependence. When we recognize it on a spiritual level, we call it love.
The 12th-century mystic Richard of St. Victor (1123–1173) wrote about the Trinity as a mutual, loving companionship of friends—a community, if you will. In my book The Divine Dance, I summarized some of his thinking: For God to be good, God can be one. For God to be loving, God has to be two, because love is always a relationship. But for God to share “excellent joy” and “delight” God has to be three, because supreme happiness is when two persons share their common delight in a third something—together. [1] All we need to do is witness a couple after the birth of their new baby, and we know this is true.7
Our relationship with the Trinity is connected to our recognition of our mutual interdependence with others who facilitate our growth in love.
References
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