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2 Timothy 4: 10-17

Beloved:
Demas, enamored of the present world,
deserted me and went to Thessalonica,
Crescens to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia.
Luke is the only one with me.
Get Mark and bring him with you,
for he is helpful to me in the ministry.
I have sent Tychicus to Ephesus.
When you come, bring the cloak I left with Carpus in Troas,
the papyrus rolls, and especially the parchments.

Alexander the coppersmith did me a great deal of harm;
the Lord will repay him according to his deeds.
You too be on guard against him,
for he has strongly resisted our preaching.

At my first defense no one appeared on my behalf,
but everyone deserted me.
May it not be held against them!
But the Lord stood by me and gave me strength,
so that through me the proclamation might be completed
and all the Gentiles might hear it.

The Word of the Lord.

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Our first reading from Saint Paul’s Letter to Timothy captures the story of three Christians with very different experiences of faith. Each provides a lesson for us today.

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The first was Demas.

Demas was once a believer; Paul wrote about him in his earlier letters. But sadly, Demas became, “enamored with the world,” and lost his faith.

He provides a cautionary tale for us all. Faith is a life-long journey, riddled with temptations along the way. We should beware of our attachment to material things and fleeting pleasures; they can choke our faith.

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Then there’s Saint Mark.

Mark and Paul once ministered together, but Mark abandoned Paul on one of their early missionary journeys, perhaps out of fear of persecution.

Paul calls upon Mark from his prison cell in Rome, where the two are eventually reconciled and later martyred for the Gospel.

Mark and Paul’s story remind us of the importance of reconciliation. We should seek it with one another while it can still be found.

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Finally, there’s Saint Luke, whose feast day we celebrate today.

Paul says that in his travels, Luke was, “the only one with me.” Luke was faithful, never giving up – neither on his companion, nor on his faith.

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Three Christians with three different stories, each providing a lesson for us today.

Do not cling to the material things of this world; they distract us from what really matters.

Seek reconciliation while it can still be found.

And, above all, remain faithful to the Gospel you have received. 

Saint Luke, pray for us.

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Image credits: (1) New Beginnings in Christ (2) Saint Luke, Valentin de Boulogne (3) agodman.com

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Ephesians 1: 1-10

Paul, an Apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,
to the holy ones who are in Ephesus
and faithful in Christ Jesus:
grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who has blessed us in Christ
with every spiritual blessing in the heavens,
as he chose us in him, before the foundation of the world,
to be holy and without blemish before him.
In love he destined us for adoption to himself through Jesus Christ,
in accord with the favor of his will,
for the praise of the glory of his grace
that he granted us in the beloved.

In Christ we have redemption by his Blood,
the forgiveness of transgressions,
in accord with the riches of his grace that he lavished upon us.
In all wisdom and insight, he has made known to us
the mystery of his will in accord with his favor
that he set forth in him as a plan for the fullness of times,
to sum up all things in Christ, in heaven and on earth.

The Word of the Lord.

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Saint Ignatius, whose feast day we celebrate today, was the bishop of Antioch, located in modern-day Turkey.

He lived as part of the second generation of Christians, who followed in the tradition of Saint Paul by writing pastoral letters to various Christian communities. (As Paul does in our first reading today).

Like Paul, Ignatius was martyred in Rome – he was mauled by lions: and we can still read the text of his letters today.

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One of the great insights Ignatius offers us is the early Christian belief in the Eucharist.

In his Letter to the Romans, he writes, “I have no taste for corruptible food nor for the pleasures of this life. I desire the bread of God, which is the flesh of Jesus Christ… and for drink, I desire his blood.”

Elsewhere, in his Letter to the Smyrnaeans, he writes plainly, “The Eucharist is the flesh of our Savior Jesus Christ.”

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Ignatius offered his life for this belief. Because of his witness, and other Christians like him, the sacrifice of the Mass has been handed on to Christians for two-thousand years, even to us here today.

May Ignatius intercede on our behalf that we, too, would see Christ fully present in the Eucharist, profess our faith publicly, and find ways to hand on this – our one, holy, Catholic, and apostolic faith to the next generation.

Saint Ignatius of Antioch, bishop and martyr, pray for us.

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Image credits: (1) Catholic News Agency (2) Southampton City Art Gallery (3) Catholic Answers Shop

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Gospel: Luke 11: 42-46

The Lord said:
“Woe to you Pharisees!
You pay tithes of mint and of rue and of every garden herb,
but you pay no attention to judgment and to love for God.
These you should have done, without overlooking the others.
Woe to you Pharisees!
You love the seat of honor in synagogues
and greetings in marketplaces.  
Woe to you!
You are like unseen graves over which people unknowingly walk.”

Then one of the scholars of the law said to him in reply,
“Teacher, by saying this you are insulting us too.”
And he said, “Woe also to you scholars of the law!
You impose on people burdens hard to carry,
but you yourselves do not lift one finger to touch them.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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In the Old Testament, God gave Moses the Ten Commandments, which the Israelites were invited to follow as a sign of their covenantal relationship. Examples ranged from keeping the Sabbath holy to honoring one’s mother and father.

As time passed, the religious authorities meticulously interpreted how these commandments should be followed, lest a person sin. 

As a result, the list of commandments ballooned from 10 to over 600! Keeping every single one of them became tedious, expensive, and frankly, exhausting.

This is not the point of religion.

Our relationship with God is meant to be life-giving, not oppressive and burdensome, which is why Jesus is so critical of the scribes and Pharisees, who essentially hijacked their religion. 

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“Woe to you!” he says. “You are like unseen graves over which people unknowingly walk.” 

Just as a person was rendered ritually impure after touching a grave – and therefore unable to worship God for seven days – interacting with these religious authorities left a person spiritually dead.

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Perhaps this leaves us something to ponder: How are we different from the scribes and Pharisees? In what ways does this faith community lead others towards – not away from – God?

And elsewhere – in our families, in the workplace, in our social circles – how do we make God known in gentle, merciful ways?

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This is the role of a Christian: to be a bridge-builder, not a bridge-burner, between the human and divine.

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Image credits: (1) Christian Ethics Today (2) Jesus With the Scribes and Pharisees, Missio Dei, Public Domain (3) Church in the Valley