Thursday of the Fifth Week of Easter
(Acts 15:7-21; John
15:9-11)
In today’s reading
from Acts Jesus’ disciples resolve a crisis that could have split the
Church. James, the leader of the conservative
Jewish Christians, declares that gentile converts need not eat only kosher
foods. Moved by the Holy Spirit, James
accepted the rationale proposed by Peter and Paul that people are saved by
faith in Christ.
The Church today faces
challenges like the one featured in Acts.
Liberals keep clamoring for ordination of women and Communion to the
divorced and remarried. Conservatives
want more access to the pre-1960 Latin mass.
These issues cannot be resolved by compromise but by careful discernment
and prayer. Synods may widen
perspectives, but ultimately the Holy Spirit will make known the way to
proceed.
We may find it hard to
trust in the Spirit. However, trust in
the Spirit does not prohibit us from carefully considering the different
arguments. Doing so, we will be able to
understand the reasons the pope and other bishops give for their determinations.
