Whoever Loves Me Will Keep My Word

05-22-2022Weekly ReflectionFr. Manasseh Iorchir, VC

You must have observed that the First Readings during Eastertide have consistently been taken from the Acts of the Apostles. This is deliberate. Acts of the Apostles is said to have been originally written as part of the Gospel of St. Luke. It tells the story of the post-Resurrection Church: How the Apostles reacted to the Resurrection of Jesus, how they waited for and received the Holy Spirit, how the disciples remained connected and completely reliant upon the promptings of the Holy Spirit, how they encountered and responded to persecution from various individuals and groups, how sacred orders and ministries evolved; essentially, how the early Church began, lived and grew. One of the defining moments in the Acts of the Apostles is the encounter of the Gentiles with the Gospel and the resultant implications of this encounter.

The First Reading summarizes the first major internal dispute of the early Church and how they resolved it. Unidentified preachers from Judea had come to Antioch to teach that circumcision was necessary for one to be a Christian. If their assertion were to be accepted, Christianity would by implication remain a sect in Judaism. Paul and Barnabas disputed this erroneous doctrine and so it was decided that delegates be sent to the Apostolic college in Jerusalem, center of the Church at that time, for guidance. By deferring the resolution of this theological dispute to the Apostles in Jerusalem, the early Church afforded us a living example of how true disciples ought to handle faith ambiguities and moral difficulties. Paul and Barnabas could have justifiably invoked their own Apostleship as basis for deciding on the matter within their pastoral jurisdiction. Instead, they preferred Apostolic collegiality aided by the inspiration and guidance of the Holy Spirit, to individual arrogance in handling disputes of faith.

Pride is the devil’s favorite vice. Some theologians have described heresy as exaggerated truth. The tendency to feel individually self-sufficient, even in our knowledge of God, can lead us into grave error. While God generously bestows the gift of faith on all His children, our individual capacity to irreproachably receive it may encounter certain hindrances that impede it. The Church, totally reliant on the assurance of the Holy Spirit and led by the successors of the Apostles, remains the surest compass that leads to the truth in matters of faith and morals. To love Jesus we must keep His word; and to keep His word we must listen to the promptings of the Holy Spirit who never stops making available to us the required guidance through the Church.

Let us pray at this Mass for a Church that resembles the post-Resurrection and Apostolic Church. May we return to listening to the Holy Spirit and may we be granted the grace of humility so we can be truly formed to do God’s will.

Please be kind and may God bless you.

Fr. Manasseh

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