Last of all, as to one born abnormally, he appeared to me. For I am the least of the apostles, not fit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me has not been ineffective. Indeed, I have toiled harder than all of them; not I, however, but the grace of God that is with me. Therefore, whether it be I or they, so we preach and so you believed. (1 Cor 15:1-11)
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/020925.cfm
All the readings this Sunday speak of the Call: the Prophet Isaiah, the Apostle Paul, the first disciples, Peter, James and John. Paul says that he toiled harder than all of the rest, but generously acknowledges, it is God’s grace that accomplishes the work. This is the link to the joint statement of the North Carolina Catholic bishops about immigration: https://charlottediocese.org/communications/nc-catholic-bishops-issue-joint-statement/.
These reflections are a result of more than 40 years of ministry as a Roman Catholic priest. Most of these years I spent in the Diocese of Charlotte which covers Western North Carolina. Now I am retired, and live in Medellín, Colombia where I continue to serve as a priest in the Archdiocese of Medellín.
Sunday, Week V, Ordinary Time
