These reflections are a result of more than 40 years of ministry as a Roman Catholic priest. Most of these years I spent in the Diocese of Charlotte which covers Western North Carolina. Now I am retired, and live in Medellín, Colombia where I continue to serve as a priest in the Archdiocese of Medellín.
Paul, an Apostle of Christ Jesus by command of God our savior and of Christ Jesus our hope, to Timothy, my true child in faith: grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. (1 Tim 1:1-2, 12-14)
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/091225.cfm
The Letters to Timothy, as well as the Letter to Titus, are written in Saint Paul’s name. The three letters are called the Pastoral Epistles because they address the problems of the church and its ministries in a later age and reveal some of the challenges that the early Christian communities faced. Today we honor the name of the Virgin Mary from whom we received our Savior.
Jesus said to his disciples: To you who hear I say, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. To the person who strikes you on one cheek, offer the other one as well, and from the person who takes your cloak, do not withhold even your tunic. Give to everyone who asks of you, and from the one who takes what is yours do not demand it back. (Lk 6:27-38)
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/091125.cfm
Love our enemies—well the Lord really knows our limits. Perhaps the world would be a better place if we only took the Lord seriously. https://youtu.be/VxlCkLdK9cc?si=8NxTRO431ZJIRdwo
Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcision and uncircumcision, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all and in all. (Col 3:1-11)
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/091025.cfm
Our unity in Christ is not a fiction, even though we have fostered divisions for almost 2,000 years. Christ breaks down barriers, walls, pride, sin, even death itself so that we can be one and he can be all in all. https://youtu.be/s-LqUJe-BMQ?si=UdLt-RhxzoNxVf_I
You were buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead. He brought you to life along with him, having forgiven us all our transgressions; obliterating the bond against us, with its legal claims, which was opposed to us, he also removed it from our midst, nailing it to the cross; despoiling the principalities and the powers, he made a public spectacle of them, leading them away in triumph by it. (Col 2:6-15)
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/090925.cfm
Saint Peter Claver (1580-1654) sought to do good and to save life. He was a Jesuit missionary to the New World who found himself in Cartagena, Colombia, which was a center of the Atlantic slave trade. He dedicated his life to ministry to those who had been enslaved. He personally baptized over 300,000 slaves. His feast day, September 9, is the National Day of Human Rights in Colombia. https://youtu.be/Jbe7OruLk8I?si=H6eaFBzXSu09ceSL
We know that all things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. (Rom 8:28-30)
https://bible.usccb.org/es/bible/lecturas/090825.cfm
Today we reflect on God’s call as revealed in the life of the Blessed Virgin Mary who was chosen to become the mother of our Savior. Today we celebrate her birth . . . just as 9 months ago we celebrated her conception (December 8). Perhaps if we look at just one moment of life we might be able to dispute Saint Paul’s assertion that all things work for good for those who love God . . . but when we look at the whole arc of our lives, we begin to see God’s mysterious plan unfold and with Mary we too can proclaim the greatness of the Lord. https://youtu.be/i85XG4OwQ8s?si=TUqUTMagKPdRVunF
