Today’s readings present us not one, but two farewell speeches. The apostle Paul is concerned with finishing his course faithfully with the remaining time he has on earth. In the Gospel of John, we tune into God the Son praying to God the Father. This is Jesus’ high priestly prayer right before He undergoes His Passion. We too should have an eye on the end game.
Paulinesque
What stirs in your heart when you read the awesome acts of Paul the apostle?
Today, in particular, we listen to Saint Paul’s farewell speech to the Ephesians, shortly before he left to face certain martyrdom. Here is a man who will do whatever it takes to ensure eternal life is within easy grasp of us all. Jesus tells us that eternal life is knowing God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. Knowledge of God and Sharing Him to the World around us. This is the only mission of Saint Paul and of us. Spreading the gospel, the good news, to all we meet.
I don’t know about you, but I fall far short of the high-water mark laid down by St. Paul. That shouldn’t distress us, but we shouldn’t ignore it either. Because you, dear reader and especially if you’re a baptized Christian, have the same responsibility of spreading the gospel. Maybe not exactly like Saint Paul, who crisscrossed the Roman empire, undergoing hardships, trials and punishments galore. So how then? Let us sift his farewell speech, which St. Luke presents as the last will and testament of the great apostle. Paul tells his hearers that he did not shrink from teaching in public or in their homes. In a word, everywhere. What did he teach? Repentance before God. And faith in the Lord Jesus.
Folks, it’s so easy, but we make it so deucedly difficult. Each day, we need to beat our breast and say to the Lord: Have mercy on me, a miserable sinner. For it’s true. Before the sun goes down every single day, every single human being sins on a sliding scale of great to staggering. Popes, priests and publicans alike. Thankfully, there is such a thing as sacramental confession.
Spreading The Kingdom
The second task is much harder. Proclaiming the Gospel. In words and especially in thoughts and deeds. If we examine the expanse of our reach, we will find it is limited – a gaggle of social media groups, and in the physical world, friends, neighbors and familiar strangers we encounter on our daily doings and goings about. Each of these can become places where we can ply our faith, like the workshop in Nazareth, where the Holy Family taught us how to spread the gospel of love.
We don’t do this, do we? We’re too busy subscribing to minutiae, getting upset about matters we have scant control over and overlooking the Lazarus at our doorstep.
The saints are always consumed by the mission and fulfilling it with determination, even to the point of martyrdom. Our task is much easier, but it will require intentional discipleship. We can’t expect only priests and religious to do the needful; it’s up to each one of us, especially in the secular corners of the world that you and I inhabit. As we delve into the Acts of the Apostles, we see how ordinary people, in conjunction with the Holy Spirit, achieve the extraordinary. The same Holy Spirit is at work in our age. Come, Holy Spirit, enkindle the fire in our hearts and help us renew the face of this Earth.
Witnesses of Christ
In the final hours of his life, we find Jesus praying to His Father. May we be imitators of Christ, the perfect Son who glorifies His Father by accomplishing the work that he was given to do. In Jesus, God speaks His Final Word. Everything in the Bible that went before reaches its climax in Christ. Like the disciples in Emmaus, we have both the Word and the Bread. And we should feed on both, daily if possible. Sunday worship should be the pinnacle that prolongs our apostolic endeavors throughout the week. For it is only when we have fed on the twin foods of Scripture and Holy Communion that we will have anything worthwhile to offer to the world at large.
How can we become better imitators of Christ? For starters, we can strive to emulate the saints. In following their lead, we’ll be well on the way.
