Today, we hear some very
harsh words in the first letter of John, with charges of “liar” &
“anti-Christ,” about those who intentionally deceive us about our faith. Why would we hear such a harsh message right
in the middle of the Christmas season, right after our joyous celebration of
Mary, the Mother of God? Perhaps it
helps us to know that this letter was written when the Johannine community was
splitting apart, probably over differences in their belief about Jesus'
divinity. The author of this letter is
writing in order to warn his community of some members who have broken away,
who possibly deny that God was fully present in Jesus, his begotten Son. Today, too, we unfortunately see a lot of
factionalism in our Church. Some in our
Church today think that their interpretations & views of the faith are the
only true ones; they think that anyone with a different outlook is not loyal to
the Church, not true to the faith.
Divisiveness &
factionalism aren't modern developments; we can it in the writings of the New
Testament. But, its persistence in our human society isn't something we should just
passively accept. Today's readings touch
us in our own modern reality, they encourage us to work toward unity &
dialogue in our community of faith. I
can attest that I have been edified & challenged as a priest by those here
in our parish who maybe have a different theological perspective than my own.
Being open to the diversity in unity that exists in our Church is so important.
We have 2 great saints
& doctors of the Church to celebrate today in the context of unity &
defending the faith. St. Basil was an
influential founder of monasticism in the East, a bishop & great defender
of the faith against the Arian heresies in the fourth century. Basil's friend,
Gregory of Nazianzen, became the Archbishop of the great city of Constantinople
in this same era after it had been under the control of Arian bishops for over
3 decades. Gregory helped restore the
true faith in that holy city; his teachings remain a great example for us to
this day.
I found this quote from
St Basil, which I really love, which really challenges us to live out our
faith: “The bread which you do not use is the bread of the hungry; the garment
hanging in your wardrobe is the garment of him who is naked; the shoes that you
do not wear are the shoes of the one who is barefoot; the money that you keep
locked away is the money of the poor; the acts of charity that you do not
perform are so many injustices that you commit.”
With Gregory of Nazianzen
& Basil the Great as examples for us, may we be called to work together for
our faith. May we be true to the faith
that has been passed down to us by the early Church Fathers, a faith that is
still taught to us through Tradition, the Scriptures, & the Magisterium of
the Church. Let us pray that one day we
may all be one in the faith, that our work for Church unity will never cease
& will bear fruit.
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