Daily Gospel Reflection
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January 18, 2019
When Jesus returned to Capernaum after some days,
it became known that he was at home.
Many gathered together so that there was no longer room for them,
not even around the door,
and he preached the word to them.
They came bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men.
Unable to get near Jesus because of the crowd,
they opened up the roof above him.
After they had broken through,
they let down the mat on which the paralytic was lying.
When Jesus saw their faith, he said to him,
“Child, your sins are forgiven.”
Now some of the scribes were sitting there asking themselves,
“Why does this man speak that way? He is blaspheming.
Who but God alone can forgive sins?”
Jesus immediately knew in his mind what
they were thinking to themselves,
so he said, “Why are you thinking such things in your hearts?
Which is easier, to say to the paralytic,
‘Your sins are forgiven,’
or to say, ‘Rise, pick up your mat and walk’?
But that you may know
that the Son of Man has authority to forgive sins on earth”
–he said to the paralytic,
“I say to you, rise, pick up your mat, and go home.”
He rose, picked up his mat at once,
and went away in the sight of everyone.
They were all astounded
and glorified God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this.”
Reflection
When Jesus saw their faith, he said to him, “Child, your sins are forgiven.”
Each of us has our own story of faith. Today’s readings highlight individual faith within the context of community and family. Some of us grew up in families of faith, others of us did not. My father is a Christian minister and most of my family are dedicated to their faith. Faith came easily to me at an early age. But as I grew older and experienced the more painful aspects of our humanity—injustice, heartache, abuse, failure, shame, self-loathing—I began to doubt Jesus’ “good news.”
The doubt that Jesus could see in the hearts of that crowded room in his hometown of Capernaum exists in us all to varying degrees. We see the imperfections in ourselves and others and doubt that love can exist within and between us. We need signs to remind us that forgiveness is possible. My great-grandmother was a sign for me: the love she showed for others rekindles my faith whenever I remember her. There was always a sparkle in her eye, a hug, or an affirming word that would greet whomever she encountered. Loyal friendships are also signs. When life seems impossibly frustrating or I am struggling to forgive myself or another, the unconditional love of a friend reawakens my faith. Perhaps, in the same way, the kindness of those friends who lowered the paralytic to Jesus bolstered the faith of that paralyzed man.
Regardless of where we have been or where we find ourselves now, Jesus encounters us, ready to offer rest and forgiveness. Even though we doubt (which I often do), God gives us signs of the good news: we are forgiven, we are loved, and we can, through faith, enter into God’s rest.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, those who love you bear witness to this love by sharing it with others. Help us to grow in love, and strengthen us to reach out to those in need and lead them to you, so that all who are burdened in this life may experience healing in body and soul. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Saint of the Day
"Today, in many parts of the world,
under the inspiring grace of the Holy Spirit,
many efforts are being made in prayer, word and action to attain
that fullness of unity which Jesus Christ desires.
The Sacred Council exhorts all the Catholic faithful to recognize
the signs of the times and to take an active
and intelligent part in the work of ecumenism."
— UNITATIS REDINTEGRATIO §4
As Christians, we are all too familiar with the divisions that have plagued Christ's followers since the very first days of Christianity and continue to this day.
Throughout the twentieth century, as the modern world became increasingly fractured and plagued by violence, Popes John XXIII and Paul VI saw that Christians should heed even more closely Christ's call to be one as Christ is one with the with Father (Jn 17:21). If Christ says, in the Gospel of John, that the world would know that his followers were Christians because of their love for one another (Jn 13:35), the leaders of the Church saw how the bickering and the divisions between Christians marred their witness of Christ to the world. In a divided world, Christians ought to be a witness of the "one faith and one baptism" (Ephesians 4:4-6) they profess in Christ.
John XXIII and Paul VI, particularly, saw it was their responsibility, as Bishop of Rome, Successor of Peter, and Vicar of Christ on earth to try to follow Christ's command to Peter to "feed my sheep," and to care for the flock (Jn 21:17). Thus, these two popes worked hard to bridge centuries-old divisions between Christians. These popes (both canonized saints as of October 2018) advanced the unity of the Church worldwide. As pope, John XXIII established the Secretariat for Promoting Christian Unity which is today the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity. This branch of the Curia became the Roman Catholic Church's representative in working with other Christians churches and ecumenical organizations.
John XXIII invited theologians from other Christian traditions to Vatican II as observers, such as George Lindbeck, a famous Lutheran American theologian. Opening up dialogue with other Christians led to continued dialogues with Orthodox, Lutheran, and Reform churches. Several of Notre Dame's own theological faculty have been asked by the Vatican to serve on these dialogues, a great honor and responsibility. In 1999, the Lutheran World Federation and the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity jointly published the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification. This document was a milestone in Lutheran-Catholic relations, since many of Luther's theological rallying cries during the Reformation, nearly 500 years before, centered around issues of justification (e.g., sola fide).
John XXIII's successor, Paul VI, made a great leap in Christian and Orthodox relations by meeting with Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras I of Constantinople in 1964, in Jerusalem. Together, Paul and Athenagoras revoked millennium-old excommunications that had been mutually invoked upon their respective churches. Tantur Ecumenical Institute, which houses Notre Dame's Jerusalem Global Gateway, was built to honor this meeting. The Vatican has entrusted to Notre Dame the responsibility for caring for and maintaining this important property, which is built to help Christians truly seek unity through the study of Scripture, discussion and prayer together.
Two important Church teachings regarding Christian Unity and Christian Ecumenism are Unitatis Redintegratio, "Restoration of Unity," and Ut Unum Sint, "That they may be one." Unitatis Redintegratio was a decree drafted by the bishops during the Second Vatican Council and officially promulgated by Paul VI on November 21, 1964. Ut Unum Sint is an encyclical letter by Pope John Paul II, published in May 1995, on the Church's commitment to ecumenism. Both documents urge Christians to work for peace and Christian Unity by healing divisions.
As we mourn the deep divisions in our nation, our Church, and our world, the witness of Christian charity in unity becomes all the more important. Our divided and conflicted world is full of men and women sorely in need of the light and truth of the Gospel.
The image above is of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, which is divided between six branches of Christian churches. It is a sign both of our unity in the mystery of Christ's death and resurrection and in the brokenness of our communion with one another.
On this opening day of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, may we work to heal divisions between all Christians, so that we may all be truly one in Christ!
Image Credit: Our featured image is in the public domain. Last accessed November 24, 2024 on Wikimedia Commons.
