Monday of the
Twenty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time
(I Timothy 2:1-8; Luke 7:1-10)
Persecutions in the early Church were evidently not as
severe and as frequent as sometimes thought.
Historians say the Romans were
generally lax about religious laws. They
only insisted that people pay respect to the Roman gods without necessarily
abandoning their own. Of course,
Christians would not acknowledge the existence of other gods and were
persecuted when politically expedient. Today’s first reading indicates the
early Christian desire to exist in peace with Rome.
Paul, or perhaps his disciple, exhorts Christians to pray
for those in authority. His intention is
to have them avoid persecution as much as possible. It is not to be a prayer for show but a
testimony to God’s will for universal salvation. The gospel likewise has this in mind as it
shows Jesus praising the faith of a Roman officer.
Some may find it unnecessary today to pray for the
salvation of non-Christians given Vatican II’s acknowledgment that one
following his or her conscience will be saved.
However, Pope Benedict offered some insight when he asked the poignant question:
Can people be saved if they convert their opinions and desires into norms of
conscience so that they do anything they wish?
No, such salvation is doubtful. The
world desperately needs the saving truth of Jesus as a guide to the world. Even if not all embrace belief in his
divinity, the world needs his light.
