Monday, October 26, 2028

 

Monday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time

(Ephesians 4:32-5:8; Luke 13:10-17)

To draw the attention of others some act obnoxiously and speak obscenities.  They bully the weak and provoke fights they know they can win.  This kind of behavior, of course, is contrary to what the author of the Letter to the Ephesians has in mind in today’s first reading.

Instead of being “Mr. Tough Guy” or “Ms. Tough Girl” the writer tells community members to be generous and caring.  Their speech should express gratitude -- a sign of dependence -- rather than aloofness from or dominance of others. 

Some may find it difficult to act with such humility.  For cultural or personal reasons, they may tell themselves never to be vulnerable to another’s criticism.  Such people call forth our patience and prayer.  It is not just a matter of tolerance or getting along, but of love.  We show ourselves to love like Christ when we bear with the difficult as well as when we celebrate with the good.  As he bore our sins, so must we cope with the shortcomings of one another.

 

Monday, October 29, 2018

Monday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time

(Ephesians 4:32-5:8; Luke 13:10-17)

Every seminarian should learn not to chastise people in public.  People may be willing to change improper behavior if told politely and discreetly.  But they will surely defend themselves if publicly humiliated.  Priests receive this lesson the hard way when they tell parents to remove a crying infant from church.  Today’s gospel gives another instance of this very mild form of clerical abuse.

The synagogue leader scolds the sick for coming to see Jesus on a Sabbath.  He faults them for causing Jesus to heal which he sees as a form of prohibited work.  Interestingly, he directs his criticism at the invalids and not at Jesus, the perpetrator of the perceived misdeed.  Anyway, Jesus comes to their defense.  His argument is that since the Sabbath celebrates liberation, how can it be wrong to liberate the suffering on that day?

The passage from Ephesians gives us the proper perspective for correcting others’ mistakes.  It exhorts us to be kind and compassionate to one another.  Fraternal correction is an act of charity if done with respect for the dignity of the person at fault.  We have to help him or her to feel cared for and not demeaned.

Monday, October 27, 2014

Monday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time

(Ephesians 4:32-5:8; Luke 13:10-17)

A wise man once said that it is easier to act ourselves into a new way of thinking than to think ourselves into a new way of acting.  Developing virtue, the dispositions to act well, require practice.  All the thinking and hoping in the world will not produce a person of character.  The Pauline author of Ephesians surely will concur.

The writer begs his readers to “be imitators of God.”  He (in all likelihood the writer was male) urges the people to love by doing good things for one another.   They are to support the weak, to instruct the unlearned, and to promote the welfare of everyone. 

Sometimes we want to squirm from the challenge.  Imitating God seems too much for us.  And it is true that we are utterly incapable of imitating God in every way.  But God Himself empowers us to get beyond natural limitations.  Our imitations may never be perfect, but with effort they can both please God and help our neighbors.