Friday of the
Twenty-second Week in Ordinary Time
(Colossians 1:15-20; Luke 5:33-39)
The novel All the
Light We Cannot See won a Pulitzer Prize a few years ago. It tells the story of perhaps the world’s greatest
diamonds. The jewel gets concealed in an
intricate box for safekeeping during World War II. The first reading today follows a similar
story line.
The passage reveals how Jesus is God’s image on
earth. He created the universe, holds it
together, and is bringing about its destiny.
He accomplishes the last objective by founding the Church. This institution, which becomes like his
avatar, gather people together from every race, nation, and language. Yet Jesus Christ is almost hidden in history. He is in a back-water part of a historically almost
irrelevant nation. He commands no armies
and wins no military victories to manifest his power.
Christ is our secret and, at the same time, our
glory. Imitating his legacy in the
gospels, we reflect his merciful power.
Growing ever closer to him by means of the sacraments, we prepare
ourselves for eternal life.
