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.
Now to him who is able to accomplish far more than all we ask or imagine, by the power at work within us, to him be glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. (Eph 3:14-21)
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/102022.cfm
What a beautiful pastoral prayer . . . “that you, rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the holy ones what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.” Asking that “Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.” It is my constant prayer for all of you.
To me, the very least of all the holy ones, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the inscrutable riches of Christ, and to bring to light for all what is the plan of the mystery hidden from ages past in God who created all things, so that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the Church to the principalities and authorities in the heavens. (Eph 3:2-12)
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/101922.cfm
The grace to preach to the Gentiles . . . that was the mission of the early Jesuit missionaries to North America. Saints John de Brébeuf, Isaac Jogues, and their companion martyrs endured unbelievable hardships in bringing the gospel to the so-called “new world.” And we are the fruit of their labors.
Luke is the only one with me. (2 Tim 4:9-17)
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/101822.cfm
The Letters to Timothy are written in Paul’s name. And they include this interesting detail “Luke is the only one with me.”. It is one of the few mentions of a “Luke” in the Scriptures. As we know, the gospel writers are anonymous. The names associated with the gospels were added later by the church. So what we celebrate today is not so much a person, but rather a gospel. And what is so unusual about the gospel writer “Luke” is that the gospel that bears his name is in two volumes, Luke & the Acts of the Apostles, more commonly referred to as Luke-Acts. And the gospel writer intended that both volumes be considered “gospel.” And as the former translation of the Preface of Apostles used to read, we are called to be the “living gospel for all people to hear!”
God, who is rich in mercy, because of the great love he had for us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, brought us to life with Christ (by grace you have been saved), raised us up with him, and seated us with him in the heavens in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not from you; it is the gift of God; it is not from works, so no one may boast. For we are his handiwork, created in Christ Jesus for good works that God has prepared in advance, that we should live in them. (Eph 2:1-10)
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/101722.cfm
Saved by grace through faith . . . we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus. The letters of Saint Ignatius of Antioch (died ca. 108) tell the story of the early church and reflect the gracious choice of God: “I will be ground by the teeth of wild beasts to become God’s pure bread.”
Beloved: Remain faithful to what you have learned and believed, because you know from whom you learned it, and that from infancy you have known the sacred Scriptures, which are capable of giving you wisdom for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. (2 Tim 3:14-4:2)
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/101622.cfm
I am always grateful for my grandmother and my mom, both of whom taught me the stories of Jesus. I remember always my first Sunday School teacher, Mrs. Strong. She sat in a big chair and we children were all gathered around her on little chairs as she told us the most wonderful Bible stories. Perhaps that’s why I’m a priest today.
