Faith and New Life

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today challenge us to seek the guidance of the Spirit as we work to heal the divisions between people in our environment that impede our fullness of life.

Healing Divisions

The reading from the First Letter of Paul to the Corinthians proclaims the kerygma of the Resurrection of Christ.

* [15:1–11] Paul recalls the tradition (1 Cor 15:3–7), which he can presuppose as common ground and which provides a starting point for his argument. This is the fundamental content of all Christian preaching and belief (1 Cor 15:1–2, 11).

* [15:3–7] The language by which Paul expresses the essence of the “gospel” (1 Cor 15:1) is not his own but is drawn from older credal formulas. This credo highlights Jesus’ death for our sins (confirmed by his burial) and Jesus’ resurrection (confirmed by his appearances) and presents both of them as fulfillment of prophecy. In accordance with the scriptures: conformity of Jesus’ passion with the scriptures is asserted in Mt 16:1; Lk 24:25–27, 32, 44–46. Application of some Old Testament texts (Ps 2:7; 16:8–11) to his resurrection is illustrated by Acts 2:27–31; 13:29–39; and Is 52:13–53:12 and Hos 6:2 may also have been envisaged.

* [15:9–11] A persecutor may have appeared disqualified (ouk…hikanos) from apostleship, but in fact God’s grace has qualified him. Cf. the remarks in 2 Corinthians about his qualifications (2 Cor 2:16; 3:5) and his greater labors (2 Cor 11:23). These verses are parenthetical, but a nerve has been touched (the references to his abnormal birth and his activity as a persecutor may echo taunts from Paul’s opponents), and he is instinctively moved to self-defense. (1 Corinthians, CHAPTER 15 | USCCB, n.d.)

Psalm 118 is a Song of Victory.

* [Psalm 118] A thanksgiving liturgy accompanying a procession of the king and the people into the Temple precincts. After an invocation in the form of a litany (Ps 118:1–4), the psalmist (very likely speaking in the name of the community) describes how the people confidently implored God’s help (Ps 118:5–9) when hostile peoples threatened its life (Ps 118:10–14); vividly God’s rescue is recounted (Ps 118:15–18). Then follows a possible dialogue at the Temple gates between the priests and the psalmist as the latter enters to offer the thanksgiving sacrifice (Ps 118:19–25). Finally, the priests impart their blessing (Ps 118:26–27), and the psalmist sings in gratitude (Ps 118:28–29). (Psalms, PSALM 118 | USCCB, n.d.)

In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus forgives a Sinful Woman.

* [7:36–50] In this story of the pardoning of the sinful woman Luke presents two different reactions to the ministry of Jesus. A Pharisee, suspecting Jesus to be a prophet, invites Jesus to a festive banquet in his house, but the Pharisee’s self-righteousness leads to little forgiveness by God and consequently little love shown toward Jesus. The sinful woman, on the other hand, manifests a faith in God (Lk 7:50) that has led her to seek forgiveness for her sins, and because so much was forgiven, she now overwhelms Jesus with her display of love; cf. the similar contrast in attitudes in Lk 18:9–14. The whole episode is a powerful lesson on the relation between forgiveness and love.

* [7:36] Reclined at table: the normal posture of guests at a banquet. Other oriental banquet customs alluded to in this story include the reception by the host with a kiss (Lk 7:45), washing the feet of the guests (Lk 7:44), and the anointing of the guests’ heads (Lk 7:46).

* [7:41] Days’ wages: one denarius is the normal daily wage of a laborer.

* [7:47] Her many sins have been forgiven; hence, she has shown great love: literally, “her many sins have been forgiven, seeing that she has loved much.” That the woman’s sins have been forgiven is attested by the great love she shows toward Jesus. Her love is the consequence of her forgiveness. This is also the meaning demanded by the parable in Lk 7:41–43. (Luke, CHAPTER 7 | USCCB, n.d.)

Matthew Walsh, S.J. comments that in addition to forgiveness, which Jesus offers freely, there is another important lesson on hospitality.

Simon did not offer the hospitality that the woman did: she bathed Jesus feet with her tears and dried them with her hair; she anointed his feet with ointment and kissed his feet. Simon offered none of these. But there is another side to the coin of hospitality, namely that Jesus receives the love and care of the woman. He also assures her of the forgiveness of her sins. And so, we can see that this loving hospitality goes in both directions. The woman offers Jesus her hospitality; Jesus assures her that she is forgiven and loved by God. (Walsh, n.d.)

Don Schwager quotes “Jesus the Physician brings miraculous healing to the woman's sins,” by Ephrem the Syrian (306-373 AD).

"Healing the sick is a physician's glory. Our Lord did this to increase the disgrace of the Pharisee, who discredited the glory of our Physician. He worked signs in the streets, worked even greater signs once he entered the Pharisee's house than those that he had worked outside. In the streets, he healed sick bodies, but inside, he healed sick souls. Outside, he had given life to the death of Lazarus. Inside, he gave life to the death of the sinful woman. He restored the living soul to a dead body that it had left, and he drove off the deadly sin from a sinful woman in whom it dwelt. That blind Pharisee, for whom wonders were not enough, discredited the common things he saw because of the wondrous things he failed to see." (excerpt from HOMILY ON OUR LORD 42.2) (Schwager, n.d.)

The Word Among Us Meditation on 1 Corinthians 15:1-11 comments that God’s grace was, for Paul, also an experience of his mercy and love. Jesus didn’t condemn Paul for his sins. He led him to repentance and gave him new understanding. In changing Paul, Jesus didn’t turn him into a robot with no free will. Neither did he erase Paul’s personality. Rather, he loved Paul as God had created him. And out of that love, he redeemed him and made him a son of God. Paul went on to use his gifts and talents, his temperament, and even his weaknesses to build God’s kingdom.

So Paul’s testimony is credible. By the grace of God you are what you are, he tells you: a beloved child of God. That grace is powerful and effective; it fills you with God’s love and mercy. It has changed you, and it is still changing you today.

Rejoice! God has made you his own!

“By your grace, O God, I am what I am. Thank you!” (Meditation on 1 Corinthians 15:1-11, n.d.)

Friar Jude Winkler notes that the Greek audience to which Paul writes is not comfortable with the resurrection of a physical body when their philosophy considers the spiritual world to be pure and the material world to be corrupt. The citing of hundreds of witnesses to Jesus Resurrection is a gutsy proclamation. Friar Jude reminds us that the “saving” of the woman is not a matter of perfection but of being vulnerable to falling into self hatred and selfishness of sin.

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, introduces peace activist Father John Dear who describes nonviolence as an expression of who we are more than something we do. He names how the nonviolence exemplified by Jesus, Mohandas Gandhi, and Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. can disarm our systems and world.

The visionary nonviolence taught by Gandhi and King flows from our disarmed hearts, from our inner depths, where we renounce our inner violence, let God disarm us and cultivate interior nonviolence, then moves us to practice meticulous interpersonal nonviolence with our families, neighbors, co-workers, communities, cities, nation, all creatures, and Mother Earth. As we face the structures of violence head on with the power of organized nonviolence, we build grassroots, bottom up, people-power movements to end tyranny and injustice and institutionalize nonviolent democracy and social, economic, racial, and environmental justice. When organized on large national and global levels, active nonviolence can peacefully transform entire societies, even the world, as Gandhi demonstrated in India’s revolution, as the civil rights movement showed, as the growing women’s, LGBTQ, and environmental movements demonstrate, as the People Power movement showed in the Philippines, and as Archbishop Desmond Tutu and the churches of South Africa showed against apartheid. Gandhi said that nonviolence, when it is harnessed, becomes contagious and can disarm the world. (Rohr, n.d.)

We ponder the structures of division in our society and gratefully receive the prompting of the Spirit to move us toward compassion, mercy, acceptance, and love for the people we encounter on our journey.

References

Luke, CHAPTER 7 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved September 19, 2024, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/7 

Meditation on 1 Corinthians 15:1-11. (n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved September 19, 2024, from https://wau.org/meditations/2024/09/19/1076016/ 

1 Corinthians, CHAPTER 15 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved September 19, 2024, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/1corinthians/15?1 

Psalms, PSALM 118 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved September 19, 2024, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/118?1 

Rohr, R. (n.d.). Transformative Nonviolence. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved September 19, 2024, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/transformative-nonviolence/ 

Schwager, D. (n.d.). Which Will Love Him More? Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved September 19, 2024, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2024&date=sep19 

Walsh, M. (n.d.). Daily Reflection Of Creighton University's Online Ministries. OnlineMinistries. Retrieved September 19, 2024, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/091924.html 

Strife Teaching and Healing

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today present us with a challenge to seek the transformation led by the Spirit that will form us as leaders and healers in Christ.

Strife and Leadership

The reading from the First Letter of Paul to the Corinthians deals with Lawsuits among Believers.

* [6:1–11] Christians at Corinth are suing one another before pagan judges in Roman courts. A barrage of rhetorical questions (1 Cor 6:1–9) betrays Paul’s indignation over this practice, which he sees as an infringement upon the holiness of the Christian community. 6:2–3: The principle to which Paul appeals is an eschatological prerogative promised to Christians: they are to share with Christ the judgment of the world (cf. Dn 7:22, 27). Hence they ought to be able to settle minor disputes within the community.

* [6:9–10] A catalogue of typical vices that exclude from the kingdom of God and that should be excluded from God’s church. Such lists (cf. 1 Cor 5:10) reflect the common moral sensibility of the New Testament period.

* [6:9] The Greek word translated as boy prostitutes may refer to catamites, i.e., boys or young men who were kept for purposes of prostitution, a practice not uncommon in the Greco-Roman world. In Greek mythology this was the function of Ganymede, the “cupbearer of the gods,” whose Latin name was Catamitus. The term translated sodomites refers to adult males who indulged in homosexual practices with such boys. See similar condemnations of such practices in Rom 1:26–27; 1 Tm 1:10. (1 Corinthians, CHAPTER 6 | USCCB, n.d.)

Psalm 149 offers Praise for God’s Goodness to Israel.

* [Psalm 149] A hymn inviting the people of Israel to celebrate their God in song and festive dance (Ps 149:1–3, 5) because God has chosen them and given them victory (Ps 149:4). The exodus and conquest are the defining acts of Israel; the people must be ready to do again those acts in the future at the divine command (Ps 149:6–9). (Psalms, PSALM 149 | USCCB, n.d.)

In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus Chooses the Twelve Apostles, Teaches and Heals.

* [6:12] Spent the night in prayer: see note on Lk 3:21.

* [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).

* [6:14] Simon, whom he named Peter: see note on Mk 3:16.

* [6:15] Simon who was called a Zealot: the Zealots were the instigators of the First Revolt of Palestinian Jews against Rome in A.D. 66–70. Because the existence of the Zealots as a distinct group during the lifetime of Jesus is the subject of debate, the meaning of the identification of Simon as a Zealot is unclear.

* [6:16] Judas Iscariot: the name Iscariot may mean “man from Kerioth.” (Luke, CHAPTER 6 | USCCB, n.d.)

Candice Tucci, O.S.F. comments on a book published in 2011 by author, Leonard Doohan, with the title: Courageous Hope, the Call of Leadership.  Doohan writes:

“The splendid task of leadership is a vocation to hope. A person without hope is no longer a leader. A great leader is an agent of hope…has a hope-filled vision of humanity. It requires faith, positive thinking, sharing with good people, reflection and contemplation…it implies healing and liberation, bringing out the best in everyone, and moving forward in spite of setbacks.”

In our Gospel today we see Jesus, a leader of hope. He is choosing the leadership that will carry on his vision of the Reign of God. Jesus chooses individuals who are not perfect. Yet, He sees their potential, challenges them to heal, and for each, to experience a personal transformation. Their “good” is to be leaders of hope in a struggling world. I believe, this too, is “our good.” It is our “holy.” (Tucci, n.d.)

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) (Schwager, n.d.)

The Word Among Us Meditation on 1 Corinthians 6:1-11 comments that we have been . . .

Washed. Through Baptism, you were cleansed and transformed. You received the grace to share in the divine life… Sanctified. When you were anointed with sacred oil at your Baptism, you were set apart. You bear the indelible mark of belonging to Christ… Justified. Baptism cleansed you from your sins and made you righteous in the eyes of God. In the same way your own sin was forgiven, so was the sin of your brothers and sisters in the Lord. Each one of us has received God’s boundless grace, an unmerited gift. And so your starting position as you relate to other Christians should be one of reverence for God’s grace at work in them.

What wonderful graces you have received from the Lord! And so have your brothers and sisters in Christ!

“Jesus, help me to see all believers as fellow members of your family!” (Meditation on 1 Corinthians 6:1-11, n.d.)

Friar Jude Winkler comments on Paul dealing with the people in the community who are taking disputes to the pagan courts in opposition to the incredible dignity God has given us. Those living in sin will suffer the consequence of the sinful lifestyle. Friar Jude reminds us that in Luke’s Gospel, Jesus prays 11 times resonating with the Stoic influence in Luke’s writing.

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, introduces womanist theologian Karen Baker-Fletcher who describes forgiveness as a source of healing that can help break repetitive cycles of hatred and violence. 

 

Forgiveness is grounded in love that demands justice. Forgiveness is a God-given grace that frees the sinned against to pray for the salvation of sinners to free the world from further hatred, violence, and desecration. Forgiveness is … the act of desiring divine overcoming of evil while also desiring the salvation of those who have been seduced by it. Forgiveness is grounded in a tough divine love that prays for the power of righteousness to persuasively, powerfully move sinners into righteousness against all visible odds so that evil is overcome. (Rohr, n.d.)  

We ponder the choices Jesus made for the Apostles and explore the resonance with the teaching and healing He initiated and we continue in fulfillment of our Baptismal anointing.

References

Luke, CHAPTER 6 | USCCB. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved September 10, 2024, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/6?12 

Meditation on 1 Corinthians 6:1-11. (n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved September 10, 2024, from https://wau.org/meditations/2024/09/10/1070392/ 

1 Corinthians, CHAPTER 6 | USCCB. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved September 10, 2024, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/1corinthians/6?1 

Psalms, PSALM 149 | USCCB. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved September 10, 2024, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/149?1 

Rohr, R. (n.d.). Daily Meditations — Center for Action and Contemplation. Forgiveness Is a Process. Retrieved September 10, 2024, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/forgiveness-is-a-process/ 

Schwager, D. (n.d.). Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved September 10, 2024, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2024&date=sep10 

Tucci, C. (n.d.). Daily Reflection Of Creighton University's Online Ministries. OnlineMinistries. Retrieved September 10, 2024, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/Archive/2016/090616.html