Fellowship and Forgiveness

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today challenge us to seek the guidance of the Spirit in removing the barriers we create that separate us from loving fellowship with all the people we encounter on our journey.

Life and Fellowship

The reading from the Letter of Paul to the Galatians refers to the Council of Jerusalem and the mission of Paul and the other Apostles citing how Paul rebukes Peter at Antioch.

* [2:2] A revelation: cf. Gal 1:1, 12. Paul emphasizes it was God’s will, not Jerusalem authority, that led to the journey. Acts 15:2 states that the church in Antioch appointed Paul and Barnabas for the task. Those of repute: leaders of the Jerusalem church; the term, while positive, may be slightly ironic (cf. Gal 1:6, 9). Run, in vain: while Paul presents a positive picture in what follows, his missionary work in Galatia would have been to no purpose if his opponents were correct that circumcision is needed for complete faith in Christ.

* [2:11–14] The decision reached in Jerusalem (Gal 2:3–7) recognized the freedom of Gentile Christians from the Jewish law. But the problem of table fellowship between Jewish Christians, who possibly still kept kosher food regulations, and Gentile believers was not yet settled. When Cephas first came to the racially mixed community of Jewish and Gentile Christians in Antioch (Gal 2:12), he ate with non-Jews. Pressure from persons arriving later from Jerusalem caused him and Barnabas to draw back. Paul therefore publicly rebuked Peter’s inconsistency toward the gospel (Gal 2:14). Some think that what Paul said on that occasion extends through Gal 2:16, 21. (Galatians, CHAPTER 2 | USCCB, n.d.)

Psalm 117 is a Universal Call to Worship.

* [Psalm 117] This shortest of hymns calls on the nations to acknowledge God’s supremacy. The supremacy of Israel’s God has been demonstrated to them by the people’s secure existence, which is owed entirely to God’s gracious fidelity. (Psalms, PSALM 117 | USCCB, n.d.)

In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus presents the Lord’s Prayer.

* [11:1–4] The Matthean form of the “Our Father” occurs in the “Sermon on the Mount” (Mt 6:9–15); the shorter Lucan version is presented while Jesus is at prayer (see note on Lk 3:21) and his disciples ask him to teach them to pray just as John taught his disciples to pray. In answer to their question, Jesus presents them with an example of a Christian communal prayer that stresses the fatherhood of God and acknowledges him as the one to whom the Christian disciple owes daily sustenance (Lk 11:3), forgiveness (Lk 11:4), and deliverance from the final trial (Lk 11:4). See also notes on Mt 6:9–13.

* [11:2] Your kingdom come: in place of this petition, some early church Fathers record: “May your holy Spirit come upon us and cleanse us,” a petition that may reflect the use of the “Our Father” in a baptismal liturgy.

* [11:3–4] Daily bread: see note on Mt 6:11. The final test: see note on Mt 6:13. (Luke, CHAPTER 11 | USCCB, n.d.)

Michael Kavan examines the prayer that Jesus taught us, that we might reflect on its meaning, and maybe better appreciate it and apply it to our spiritual and corporeal lives into the future.

Father - First, to call God “Father” tees up the remaining words in the prayer. If God is our Father, then we are certainly his children…

Hallowed be your name - Common definitions of “hallowed” include made holy, consecrated, and greatly revered and honored…

Your Kingdom come– One of my favorite lines in the prayer..

Give us this day our daily bread – We ask God to help us meet our daily needs for food…

Forgive us our sins for we ourselves forgive everyone in debt to us – Any amount of reflection allows us to understand that we all sin… (Kavan, 2024)

Don Schwager quotes “The privilege and responsibility of calling God Father,” by Cyril of Alexandria (376-444 AD).

"For the Savior said, 'When you pray, say, 'Our Father.' And another of the holy Evangelists adds, 'who art in heaven' (Matthew 6:9)... He gives his own glory to us. He raises slaves to the dignity of freedom. He crowns the human condition with such honor as surpasses the power of nature. He brings to pass what was spoken of old by the voice of the psalmist: 'I said, you are gods, and all of you children of the Most High' (Psalm 82:6). He rescues us from the measure of slavery, giving us by his grace what we did not possess by nature, and permits us to call God 'Father,' as being admitted to the rank of sons. We received this, together with all our other privileges, from him. One of these privileges is the dignity of freedom, a gift peculiarly befitting those who have been called to be sons. He commands us, therefore, to take boldness and say in our prayers, 'Our Father.'"(excerpt from COMMENTARY ON LUKE, HOMILY 71) (Schwager, n.d.)

The Word Among Us Meditation on Galatians 2:1-2, 7-14 comments that Paul wanted the Jewish believers in Galatia to recognize the same grace of God in the lives of their Gentile brothers and sisters and vice versa. He pleaded with them to see each other as members of one family (Galatians 6:10). But it wasn’t easy for them—and it isn’t easy for us. It’s hard to let go of our opinions, and that can strain our relationships. But Jesus can help us recognize his grace at work in another person, and that can strengthen bonds of love.

So how does this happen? A good first step is to recognize and let go of any negative biases you may have. By the Spirit, you can see positive qualities in other people and take a generous outlook toward them.

Second, you can put on humility. When you remember that God has shown you mercy, you view people more mercifully and recognize God’s grace at work in them. You see the patience a father shows his children or a coworker’s diligence at the office. You notice the quiet faith of a Mass-goer who lingers to pray, or you rejoice when you see someone extend a hand to a gruff neighbor. And this can move you to do the same.

Today, let the Spirit help you to appreciate God’s grace in the whole family of God.

“Lord, I want to see my brothers and sisters as you do!” (Meditation on Galatians 2:1-2, 7-14, n.d.)

Friar Jude Winkler positions the visit of Paul and the Gentile Titus to Jerusalem, later in Paul’s mission, to establish Paul as for the uncircumcised and Peter for the circumcised. When visiting Antioch, Peter delivers conflicting messages in his table fellowship. Friar Jude reminds us of the elements of praise, surrender, Providence, and forgiveness in the non liturgical version of the Lord’s Prayer in Luke’s Gospel.

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, introduces spiritual writer Joyce Rupp who understands all of creation as part of a “cosmic dance”.

No one person has been able to fully communicate this amazing dance of life to me, but Thomas Merton comes close with his description in New Seeds of Contemplation. Merton’s use of the phrase “cosmic dance” set my heart singing. When I read it, I felt my early childhood experience [in nature] of the inner dance being echoed and affirmed:  

When we are alone on a starlit night; when by chance we see the migrating birds in autumn descending on a grove of junipers to rest and eat; when we see children in a moment when they are really children; when we know love in our own hearts; or when, like the Japanese poet Bashō we hear an old frog land in a quiet pond with a solitary splash—at such times the awakening, the turning inside out of all values, the “newness,” the emptiness and the purity of vision that make themselves evident, provide a glimpse of the cosmic dance. [1] (Rohr, n.d.)

We ponder the elements that connect the human family as we petition the Father to give us sustenance and forgive our actions that separate us from one another.

References

Galatians, CHAPTER 2 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved October 9, 2024, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/galatians/2?1 

Kavan, M. (2024, October 9). Creighton U. Daily Reflection. Online Ministries. Retrieved October 9, 2024, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/100924.html 

Luke, CHAPTER 11 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved October 9, 2024, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/11?1 

Meditation on Galatians 2:1-2, 7-14. (n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved October 9, 2024, from https://wau.org/meditations/2024/10/09/1101512/ 

Psalms, PSALM 117 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved October 9, 2024, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/117?1 

Rohr, R. (n.d.). The Cosmic Dance. Richard Rohr. Retrieved October 9, 2024, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/the-cosmic-dance/ 

Schwager, D. (n.d.). Lord, Teach Us to Pray. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved October 9, 2024, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2024&date=oct9 

Sin and Growth

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today remind us that the path that leads to serious sin and the road to grow in Christian love begin with small changes in our behaviour.

 

On the path

The reading from the Second Book of  Samuel describes how David commits adultery with Bathsheba and has Uriah Killed.

“Place Uriah up front, where the fighting is fierce. Then pull back and leave him to be struck down dead.”1

 

Psalm 51 is a prayer for cleansing and pardon.

* [Psalm 51] A lament, the most famous of the seven Penitential Psalms, prays for the removal of the personal and social disorders that sin has brought. The poem has two parts of approximately equal length: Ps 51:3–10 and Ps 51:11–19, and a conclusion in Ps 51:20–21. The two parts interlock by repetition of “blot out” in the first verse of each section (Ps 51:3, 11), of “wash (away)” just after the first verse of each section (Ps 51:4) and just before the last verse (Ps 51:9) of the first section, and of “heart,” “God,” and “spirit” in Ps 51:12, 19. The first part (Ps 51:3–10) asks deliverance from sin, not just a past act but its emotional, physical, and social consequences. The second part (Ps 51:11–19) seeks something more profound than wiping the slate clean: nearness to God, living by the spirit of God (Ps 51:12–13), like the relation between God and people described in Jer 31:33–34. Nearness to God brings joy and the authority to teach sinners (Ps 51:15–16). Such proclamation is better than offering sacrifice (Ps 51:17–19). The last two verses express the hope that God’s good will toward those who are cleansed and contrite will prompt him to look favorably on the acts of worship offered in the Jerusalem Temple (Ps 51:19 [20–21]).2

 

In the Gospel of Mark, Jesus teaches with the Parable of the Growing Seed and the Parable of the Mustard Seed.

* [4:1–34] In parables (Mk 4:2): see note on Mt 13:3. The use of parables is typical of Jesus’ enigmatic method of teaching the crowds (Mk 4:2–9, 12) as compared with the interpretation of the parables he gives to his disciples (Mk 4:10–25, 33–34) to each group according to its capacity to understand (Mk 4:9–11). 3

 

Barbara Dilly comments that David was certainly a sinner. Yet, he is a role model for Christians because he genuinely repented for his sins.

But sincere confession does take confidence in God’s love and goodness. Through Jesus, any barriers to God as a result of our sins and our limited understanding of God’s love have been removed. All we need is faith. And it seems to me, in my practice, that faith can grow if we daily confess our sins, believing in God’s forgiveness. Our faith grows stronger when we trust that no matter what evil we have done, God does not turn against us. Instead, God turns away from our sins. God blots them out, forgives us and continues to love us. In my experience, our faith grows when we feel that love more strongly every day and rejoice in it. I pray today that all Christians can feel that love more strongly each day as we practice honest confessions.4

 

Don Schwager quotes “God gave us what was most precious,” by Isaac of Nineveh (a Syrian monk, teacher, and bishop), 613-700 A.D.

"The sum of all is God, the Lord of all, who from love of his creatures has delivered his Son to death on the cross. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son for it. Not that he was unable to save us in another way, but in this way it was possible to show us his abundant love abundantly, namely, by bringing us near to him by the death of his Son. If he had anything more dear to him, he would have given it to us, in order that by it our race might be his. And out of his great love he did not even choose to urge our freedom by compulsion, though he was able to do so. But his aim was that we should come near to him by the love of our mind. And our Lord obeyed his Father out of love for us." (excerpt from ASCETICAL HOMILY 74.28)5

 

The Word Among Us Meditation on 2 Samuel 11:1-10, 13-17 comments that David’s downward spiral began because he wasn’t doing what he should have been doing in the first place. Unfaithfulness to his duties led to even more unfaithfulness. And that can happen to us too.

Are you being faithful to what God is calling you to do, or are you getting bored and wandering off? You can find joy even in your mundane tasks or repetitive duties because God is there. So try to approach each routine task with a desire to please God. He will bless your faithfulness and pour out his grace to draw you closer to him. “Lord, help me to follow you faithfully!”6 

Nicholas Austin SJ, teacher of  Ethics at Heythrop College, University of London, examines the history of the seven deadly sins, asking what accounts for their perennial attraction. What accounts for the perduring fascination of the seven deadly sins? Pride, avarice, envy, wrath, lust, gluttony and sloth: throughout the ages, this list of vices has occupied and preoccupied theologians and philosophers, pastors and penitents. It is in Saint Thomas Aquinas (1224-1274) that we find the most systematic explanation of the seven sins.

For Thomas, evil as such never motivates the soul. Human appetite always inclines itself towards something perceived as good, as desirable. The capital vices, therefore, can only motivate and attract the human soul because they ‘participate in some way in some aspect of happiness’.[4] Truly flourishing people, for example, lack nothing and are content with what they have, and avarice seems to promise this kind of self-sufficiency. Similarly, no one can be happy without pleasure, and lust and gluttony seem to offer this in abundance; true beatitude is characterised by peace and rest, and sloth offers some semblance of this; and the self-assertion of pride imitates the true freedom of those who have a healthy self-esteem grounded in humility. As DeYoung comments, ‘The vices have such attractive power because they promise a good that seems like true human perfection and complete happiness.’[5]7

 

Friar Jude Winkler fleshes out that the decision of Uriah not to go home is connected to battle as a liturgical event. The growth of the Kingdom occurs in God’s time and God’s way. Friar Jude is reminded by the mustard plant that good is contagious.

 

The Franciscan Media article on Saint Thomas Aquinas notes that The Summa Theologiae, his last and, unfortunately, uncompleted work, deals with the whole of Catholic theology. He stopped work on it after celebrating Mass on December 6, 1273. When asked why he stopped writing, he replied, “I cannot go on…. All that I have written seems to me like so much straw compared to what I have seen and what has been revealed to me.” He died March 7, 1274.

We can look to Thomas Aquinas as a towering example of Catholicism in the sense of broadness, universality, and inclusiveness. We should be determined anew to exercise the divine gift of reason in us, our power to know, learn, and understand. At the same time we should thank God for the gift of his revelation, especially in Jesus Christ.8

 

  Brian McLaren explores fellowship as he invites us to imagine that we are among the disciples in John’s Gospel, gathering together in Jerusalem after Jesus’ death.

Whatever else this uprising will become, from that night we’ve known it is an uprising of fellowship, a community where anyone who wants to be part of us will be welcome. Jesus showed us his scars, and we’re starting to realize we don’t have to hide ours. So fellowship is for scarred people, and for scared people, and for people who want to believe but aren’t sure what or how to believe. When we come together just as we are, we begin to rise again, to believe again, to hope again, to live again.9

 

The loneliness and selfishness of sin is contrasted with Christian fellowship through which the seeds planted by the Spirit grow into fullness of life.

 

References

 

1	(n.d.). 2 Samuel, CHAPTER 11 | USCCB. Retrieved January 28, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/2samuel/11
2	(n.d.). Psalms, PSALM 51 | USCCB. Retrieved January 28, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/51
3	(n.d.). Mark, CHAPTER 4 | USCCB. Retrieved January 28, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/mark/4
4	(n.d.). Creighton U Daily Reflections - Online Ministries. Retrieved January 28, 2022, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/012822.html
5	(n.d.). Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved January 28, 2022, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2022&date=jan28
6	(n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved January 28, 2022, from https://wau.org/meditations/2022/01/28/301360/
7	(2012, February 20). The Seven Deadly Sins | Thinking Faith. Retrieved January 28, 2022, from https://www.thinkingfaith.org/articles/20120220_1.htm
8	(n.d.). Saint Thomas Aquinas | Franciscan Media. Retrieved January 28, 2022, from https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saint-of-the-day/saint-thomas-aquinas
9	(n.d.). Daily Meditations Archive - Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved January 28, 2022, from https://cac.org/fellowship-for-all-2022-01-28/