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.
And one of them, realizing he had been healed, returned, glorifying God in a loud voice;
and he fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked him. He was a Samaritan.
Jesus said in reply, “Ten were cleansed, were they not?
Where are the other nine? Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?”
Then he said to him, “Stand up and go; your faith has saved you.” (Lk 17:11-19)
How important it is to give thanks. All ten were healed . . . but only one was saved, the one who returned to give thanks. One of the oldest parts of the Mass is the dialogue: Lift up your hearts/Let us give thanks. Saint Leo was shepherd of the church of Rome almost 1,600 years ago . . . but we still remember him. In his famous homily for Christmas Day, he said, “Christian, remember your dignity.” Today’s full readings: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/111021.cfm. Today's picture is of Saint Leo the Great Church in Winston-Salem, NC, where I was ordained.
Do you not know that you are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?
If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that person;
for the temple of God, which you are, is holy. (1 Cor 3:9c-11,16-17)
It’s hard for us to believe that for the first 300 years of the church, Christianity was NOT a tolerated religion in the Roman Empire. When Paul wrote his letter to the Corinthian community where he had spent at least a year and a half preaching, the humble Christian community did not have a church building. They met in people’s homes. When Paul says “you are God’s temple,” he’s having a bit of a laugh. Today’s picture is of the majestic ruins of the Temple of Apollo in Corinth. Today's full readings: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/110921.cfm.
If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. And if he wrongs you seven times in one day and returns to you seven times saying, ‘I am sorry,’ you should forgive him.” And the Apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.” (Lk 17:1-6)
Most of us find forgiveness to be the hardest thing to do. Some of us have problems forgiving family much less enemies as the sad holiday non-reunions unfold this time of year, even without the pandemic to deal with. So no wonder the apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” Today’s picture is of John Paul II forgiving Mehmet Ali Ağca in his prison cell in 1983. The assassination attempt took place on May 13, 1981, in Saint Peter’s Square.
Jesus sat down opposite the treasury and observed how the crowd put money into the treasury.
Many rich people put in large sums. A poor widow also came and put in two small coins worth a few cents.
Calling his disciples to himself, he said to them, "Amen, I say to you, this poor widow put in more
than all the other contributors to the treasury. For they have all contributed from their surplus wealth,
but she, from her poverty, has contributed all she had, her whole livelihood." (Mk 12:38-33)
The story of the Widow’s Mite reminds us that God sees the world through eyes and values different from ours. We have to decide if we are going to live by the values of the Kingdom or by the values of the world.
Greet Andronicus and Junia, my relatives and my fellow prisoners;
they are prominent among the Apostles and they were in Christ before me.
. . . .
I, Tertius, the writer of this letter, greet you in the Lord. (Rom 16:3-9,22-27)
We come to the conclusion of Paul’s great Letter to the Romans. His salutations to various members of the community are very interesting . . . especially, Andronicus and Junia . . . as Paul says, they are “prominent among the Apostles.” Junia is a woman! But for me the most fascinating interjection in the conclusion of this letter is Tertius, the scribe who is receiving the dictation from the apostle and photobombs Paul’s conclusion: ”Hi y’all!”
