Author: admin

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Acts: 20:30, 23:6-11

Wishing to determine the truth
about why Paul was being accused by the Jews,
the commander freed him
and ordered the chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin to convene.
Then he brought Paul down and made him stand before them.

Paul was aware that some were Sadducees and some Pharisees,
so he called out before the Sanhedrin,
“My brothers, I am a Pharisee, the son of Pharisees;
I am on trial for hope in the resurrection of the dead.”
When he said this,
a dispute broke out between the Pharisees and Sadducees,
and the group became divided.
For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection
or angels or spirits,
while the Pharisees acknowledge all three.
A great uproar occurred,
and some scribes belonging to the Pharisee party
stood up and sharply argued,
“We find nothing wrong with this man.
Suppose a spirit or an angel has spoken to him?”
The dispute was so serious that the commander,
afraid that Paul would be torn to pieces by them,
ordered his troops to go down and rescue Paul from their midst
and take him into the compound.
The following night the Lord stood by him and said, “Take courage.
For just as you have borne witness to my cause in Jerusalem,
so you must also bear witness in Rome.”

The Word of the Lord.

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Saint Paul is in trouble… again… because of his preaching. 

In nearly all, if not all, of his sermons we can find at least one of the following themes: Jesus Christ is the Son of God; he died for our sins; he was raised from the dead in accordance with the scriptures; and we are saved – not by following the Law – but by grace.

It’s this final point that gets Paul into trouble in our first reading.

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He’s been preaching inside the Temple in Jerusalem, angering mobs of Jews who believe he’s trying to nullify their religion. But Paul insists that his message does not invalidate, but rather fulfills the Law and the prophets.

In their rage, the mobs shout, wave their garments, and throw dust in the air, calling for his execution. While standing trial, realizing his death is almost certain, Paul makes one claim in self-defense:

I am a Roman citizen.

It was considered reprehensible – if not punishable by law – to strike a Roman citizen. Paul knew this was his way out.

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What’s key here is not the fact that Paul saves his life; it’s why he saves it.

He’s not afraid of death. He risks his life each day of his ministry and willingly accepts his death in Rome. But Paul refuses to die until the appointed time; the Lord had revealed to him in prayer there was more work to be done.

Secondly, Paul teaches us that – while he is not afraid of martyrdom – he is also not afraid to live. There is an undeniable dignity to each human life and to every second we walk this earth.

But the time we are given is not meant for worldly glory or self-satisfaction; rather, it’s meant to be used to spread the kingdom of God.

As Paul later writes, “I long to depart this life and be with Christ, for that is far better. Yet that I remain in the flesh is more necessary for your benefit.”

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Like Paul, may we not only value the time we are given, but also use it well – for the glory of God.

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Image credits: (1) John Paul II Catholic Church (2) National Catholic Register (3) LinkedIn

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Acts 20: 28-38

At Miletus, Paul spoke to the presbyters of the Church of Ephesus:
“Keep watch over yourselves and over the whole flock
of which the Holy Spirit has appointed you overseers,
in which you tend the Church of God
that he acquired with his own Blood.
I know that after my departure savage wolves will come among you,
and they will not spare the flock.
And from your own group, men will come forward perverting the truth
to draw the disciples away after them.
So be vigilant and remember that for three years, night and day,
I unceasingly admonished each of you with tears.
And now I commend you to God
and to that gracious word of his that can build you up
and give you the inheritance among all who are consecrated.
I have never wanted anyone’s silver or gold or clothing.
You know well that these very hands
have served my needs and my companions.
In every way I have shown you that by hard work of that sort
we must help the weak,
and keep in mind the words of the Lord Jesus who himself said,
‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”

When he had finished speaking
he knelt down and prayed with them all.
They were all weeping loudly
as they threw their arms around Paul and kissed him,
for they were deeply distressed that he had said
that they would never see his face again.
Then they escorted him to the ship.

The Word of the Lord.

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“They threw their arms around Paul and kissed him…They were deeply distressed, because they would never see his face again. Then they escorted him to the ship.”

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For the last three years, Paul has been living within a Christian community in Ephesus, which he helped to establish. Now the time of his departure is at hand; it has been revealed to him in prayer that he must leave for Jerusalem, revealing Paul’s docility to the Spirit.

“What will happen to me there,” he says, “I do not know.”

While this community was heartbroken by his departure, it was also a blessing in disguise – at least for Christians today.

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Paul was always a man on the go. He’d establish one community, then depart for another. In his absence, he wrote at least fourteen pastoral letters, encouraging these early believers to remain steadfast in their faith.

These letters, along with the Acts of the Apostles, form almost half of the New Testament. 

So, what do Paul’s words reveal about the early Church? And what was some of his parting advice? 

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From the beginning, there was the handing on of apostolic authority, which the Catholic Church has continued for 100 generations. This power was also given to Paul, who ordained priests through prayer and the laying on of hands.

With every departure, Paul warned these communities that “savage wolves” – false preachers – would come among them, unraveling some of his hard fought teaching. But they were encouraged to remain faithful to his teachings – as Pope Leo reminds us to be today.

Finally, Paul lived a life of surrender – freely accepting whatever happened to him: rejection, imprisonment, even death, which he will receive upon arriving in Rome.

Everything Paul did was for the glory of God.

May his courageous spirit spurn us on to continue God’s good work today.

Saint Paul, pray for us.

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Image credits: (1) Saint Paul, Pompeo Batoni (2) DeviantArt (3) cfan.eu

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Gospel: John 17: 1-11

Jesus raised his eyes to heaven and said,
“Father, the hour has come.
Give glory to your son, so that your son may glorify you,
just as you gave him authority over all people,
so that your son may give eternal life to all you gave him.
Now this is eternal life,
that they should know you, the only true God,
and the one whom you sent, Jesus Christ.
I glorified you on earth
by accomplishing the work that you gave me to do.
Now glorify me, Father, with you,
with the glory that I had with you before the world began.

“I revealed your name to those whom you gave me out of the world.
They belonged to you, and you gave them to me,
and they have kept your word.
Now they know that everything you gave me is from you,
because the words you gave to me I have given to them,
and they accepted them and truly understood that I came from you,
and they have believed that you sent me.
I pray for them.
I do not pray for the world but for the ones you have given me,
because they are yours, and everything of mine is yours
and everything of yours is mine,
and I have been glorified in them.
And now I will no longer be in the world,
but they are in the world, while I am coming to you.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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When do you sing out loud?

Perhaps at a concert or on a hot summer day while driving in the car alone – windows down, hair blowing in the wind, not a care in the world.

To me, singing is a bit like whistling – it’s hard to do when your sad or angry, but easy to do when joyful.

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Today we celebrate the feast of Charles Lwanga and his companions, who sang to God during the most difficult moments in their lives.

By the end of the 19^th century, Catholicism was spreading like wildfire throughout Africa. But often when the Church begins to flourish, it also meets resistance. 

Such was the case in in Uganda.

The local king didn’t pay any attention to Christianity taking root, budding beneath his throne, until he was confronted directly by Christ’s teachings through Saint Charles Lwanga.

Charles told the king that he was living a life of immorality and debauchery, and that his actions offended God. The king should repent.

Much like King Herod after being confronted by John the Baptist, this earthly royal became so enraged that he forced Charles and his Christian companions to march into the woods for two dreadful days, then he burned them on wooden stakes.

As they endured their death march, Charles and his companions sang songs to God – a sign of just how deeply rooted their faith in Christ had become.

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As the old Swedish proverb reminds us, “Those who wish to sing always find a song.”

It’s not only true on good days, while jamming out a concert or cruising down the highway; it can also be true while under duress. 

May Charles and his companions pray for us, that even in the darker hours of life, we’d turn trustingly to God, finding a song to sing.

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Image credits: (1) Saint Charles Lwanga, The Saints Project (2) Singin’ in the Rain, The Guardian (3) StickPNG