One of the reasons I enjoy the letters in the New Testament is that they are straight forward. They say what they mean and so they are easy to read. The opposite is also true because they are easy to read, they help us to understand what they say and what they mean.
St. Peter in today’s second reading defines you. Listen to those words again.
But you are “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people of his own, so that you may announce the praises” of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
This is who you are. You have a special dignity before the Lord, but that is not a prize as much as a responsibility. Where does this dignity come from: your baptism and your confirmation.
These are not tools to help you get to Heaven as much as tools to help you to live as Christ has called you. St. Paul describes you as ambassadors for Christ.
You will notice that St. Peter defines whom you are as a royal priesthood. What does that mean? It is a powerful term that indicates the priesthood of the laity.
When you were baptized you receive an anointing that brings you into he priesthood of the laity. That anointing with sacred Chrism which is also used at your confirmation brings you to share the ministry of priest, prophet and king with Our Lord Himself.
That is the priesthood of the laity. The priesthood of the ordained is a call to service of the priesthood of the laity. So you are everything that St. Peter calls you to be. A chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation. The ordained priesthood has a mission to serve the priesthood of the laity, not the other way around. You have that special role to be that in the world.
This is a time where that really is becoming more relevant.
We are listening to many opinions regarding this current pandemic. Granted we are waiting to open up, but I think that it may have affected how we see the world around us. I know it has with me.
What is most important is the element of fear that surrounds us and people actually afraid of the virus. Others are angry at the way this was handled. We are seeing protests in this state and others where people have angrily demanded that the state open up and others fearful of those events and their effect on the people.
One of the reasons I enjoy the letters in the New Testament is that they are straight forward. They say what they mean and so they are easy to read. The opposite is also true because they are easy to read, they help us to understand what they say and what they mean.
St. Peter in today’s second reading defines you. Listen to those words again.
But you are “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people of his own, so that you may announce the praises” of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
This is who you are. You have a special dignity before the Lord, but that is not a prize as much as a responsibility. Where does this dignity come from: your baptism and your confirmation.
These are not tools to help you get to Heaven as much as tools to help you to live as Christ has called you. St. Paul describes you as ambassadors for Christ.
You will notice that St. Peter defines whom you are as a royal priesthood. What does that mean? It is a powerful term that indicates the priesthood of the laity.
When you were baptized you receive an anointing that brings you into he priesthood of the laity. That anointing with sacred Chrism which is also used at your confirmation brings you to share the ministry of priest, prophet and king with Our Lord Himself.
That is the priesthood of the laity. The priesthood of the ordained is a call to service of the priesthood of the laity. So you are everything that St. Peter calls you to be. A chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation. The ordained priesthood has a mission to serve the priesthood of the laity, not the other way around. You have that special role to be that in the world.
This is a time where that really is becoming more relevant.
We are listening to many opinions regarding this current pandemic. Granted we are waiting to open up, but I think that it may have affected how we see the world around us. I know it has with me.
What is most important is the element of fear that surrounds us and people actually afraid of the virus. Others are angry at the way this was handled. We are seeing protests in this state and others where people have angrily demanded that the state open up and others fearful of those events and their effect on the people.
One group of experts says we are doing everything right and one group of experts says we are doing everything wrong.
However, we represent the bigger reality the bigger issues the ultimate reality that this pandemic is drawing us to understand.
We can ask many questions of what is true and false of what we hear, of whom we trust and we do not trust. For the record may I say that it seems our state is not as locked down as others people can still enjoy walks while social distancing along the Charles, the Boston Common and the Public Gardens so many including myself are thankful for this.
However, we have a mission to be the chosen representing the Kingdom of God. We have a mission to lead people away from their anxiety and into a sense of peace in Christ even if things are not resolved.
St. Pio of Pietraclina whom most people know as Padre Pio always taught that we should pray, hope and never worry. How can people understand those words if we do not live them ourselves.
People need to know that God is present to them and is always calling them to draw near to him and to understand the call to holiness. How can they hear that message if we do not live that message ourselves.
We hear people scare others by saying that God is punishing his people for their sins and pointing at people who do not have any relationship with God as the target of God’s wrath. But God does not work that way. Even the Book of Revelation shows that God calls us toward him so that we can understand his truth no matter what happens around us. However, how are people going to understand that if we are not living it and teaching it.
I am currently reading Fr. Daniel Moloney’s book on Mercy, Fr. Moloney is a fellow priest ordained for the Archdiocese of Boston and is currently the chaplain at MIT. He makes an interesting teaching. He says the issue of original sin is that unless we are redeemed and healed from it, then we would be miserable in Heaven. That is actually why Jesus came to us, he explains. The effects of original sin separate us from God being able to make us fully human and fully alive. God is calling us to grow in holiness and in doing so we will be joyful in Heaven. The more we understand that, the more we can live it and teach it.
These are the messages people need to hear today in the midst of their trepidation and even bad information that they are hearing in a time of great anxiety and upheaval.
None of us have every been through anything like this and it reflects fear and anxiety in the face of forces bigger than us. There is a lot of fear of political maneuvering which makes it hard to trust the authorities that are acting sincerely. That lack of trust compounds the fear, frustration, anger and more.
Yet, our greatest trust is in Christ and even if we disagree with the authorities, we respect and respond to them knowing that in doing so we are serving Christ. Christ calls us to be a voice of calmness in the face of anxiety. The reason is that we are looking at the bigger picture and trusting a bigger authority that will get us through this and is using this to transform us.
This is all part of our role right now as a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people of his own, so that you may announce the praises” of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
This reading is so apropos for us right now because it is a calling us to live in service to God and our neighbor. It is a service our neighbor needs us to live right now.
One group of experts says we are doing everything right and one group of experts says we are doing everything wrong.
However, we represent the bigger reality the bigger issues the ultimate reality that this pandemic is drawing us to understand.
We can ask many questions of what is true and false of what we hear, of whom we trust and we do not trust. For the record may I say that it seems our state is not as locked down as others people can still enjoy walks while social distancing along the Charles, the Boston Common and the Public Gardens so many including myself are thankful for this.
However, we have a mission to be the chosen representing the Kingdom of God. We have a mission to lead people away from their anxiety and into a sense of peace in Christ even if things are not resolved.
St. Pio of Pietraclina whom most people know as Padre Pio always taught that we should pray, hope and never worry. How can people understand those words if we do not live them ourselves.
People need to know that God is present to them and is always calling them to draw near to him and to understand the call to holiness. How can they hear that message if we do not live that message ourselves.
We hear people scare others by saying that God is punishing his people for their sins and pointing at people who do not have any relationship with God as the target of God’s wrath. But God does not work that way. Even the Book of Revelation shows that God calls us toward him so that we can understand his truth no matter what happens around us. However, how are people going to understand that if we are not living it and teaching it.
I am currently reading Fr. Daniel Moloney’s book on Mercy, Fr. Moloney is a fellow priest ordained for the Archdiocese of Boston and is currently the chaplain at MIT. He makes an interesting teaching. He says the issue of original sin is that unless we are redeemed and healed from it, then we would be miserable in Heaven. That is actually why Jesus came to us, he explains. The effects of original sin separate us from God being able to make us fully human and fully alive. God is calling us to grow in holiness and in doing so we will be joyful in Heaven. The more we understand that, the more we can live it and teach it.
These are the messages people need to hear today in the midst of their trepidation and even bad information that they are hearing in a time of great anxiety and upheaval.
None of us have every been through anything like this and it reflects fear and anxiety in the face of forces bigger than us. There is a lot of fear of political maneuvering which makes it hard to trust the authorities that are acting sincerely. That lack of trust compounds the fear, frustration, anger and more.
Yet, our greatest trust is in Christ and even if we disagree with the authorities, we respect and respond to them knowing that in doing so we are serving Christ. Christ calls us to be a voice of calmness in the face of anxiety. The reason is that we are looking at the bigger picture and trusting a bigger authority that will get us through this and is using this to transform us.
This is all part of our role right now as a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people of his own, so that you may announce the praises” of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
This reading is so apropos for us right now because it is a calling us to live in service to God and our neighbor. It is a service our neighbor needs us to live right now.
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