Sometimes it can be difficult to know our purpose in this life. That is why today’s readings provide us a profound insight into what it means to truly follow the Lord, and they invite us to reflect deeply on our communal and individual responsibilities as members of His Church, wherein God’s will for each of us becomes clearer and clearer with the passing of time.
In the passage from 1 Corinthians, St. Paul addresses a troubling situation in the early Christian community at Corinth. Disagreements among believers were not merely personal grievances; they had become so serious that members were bringing their disputes before secular courts. Paul’s question is striking: “How can any one of you with a case against another dare to bring it to the unjust for judgment instead of to the holy ones?” This challenge compels us to reflect on the essence of our faith and how it calls us to live as a community of believers and also proposes that we should approach all things secular, especially authorities and the justice system, with a healthy dose of caution.
To follow the Lord is not just a personal journey; it is also a communal one which other people are simultaneously engaging with us. Our faith demands that we support one another as brothers and sisters, striving for justice, mercy, and reconciliation.
Paul rebukes the Corinthians not merely for their lawsuits, but more fundamentally for their failure to resolve issues among themselves in faith and love before going to what was often a corrupt secular authority. He urges them to consider the high calling of being followers of Christ—calling them, and us, to a higher standard wherein our love for one another ought to resolve issues with greater mercy, rather than anger and vindictiveness.
What does it mean to be holy? To be holy means to be set apart; to recognize that as Christians, we are called to live differently from the world around us. We, as the “holy ones,” have a mission not only to judge wisely among ourselves but to be witnesses of Christ’s love and grace in a fractured world. This heavenly calling reminds us that through Jesus, we are sanctified and justified. We are washed clean by His grace, and therefore, we are equipped to live differently.
In the Gospel of Luke, we witness how Jesus initiates this call. After spending a night in prayer, He selects the Twelve Apostles, establishing a foundational brotherhood that will carry His mission into the world. The process of choosing the Apostles shows us the importance of prayerful discernment in making decisions that impact not only ourselves but also others.
After Jesus handpicks the twelve, he goes on to his ministry of healing, teaching, and restoring relationships. The crowd sought Him out not just for physical healing, but also for spiritual restoration. They believed that power came forth from Him to heal their afflictions. As followers of Jesus, we too are called to bring healing to our communities. The apostles were getting an immediate picture as to why they were called, and what would be their fundamental mission. We recognize that the Lord calls us not just to be recipients of His healing but also instruments of His peace and love.
Each of us receives a unique call, a vocation within the context of our lives, to follow Christ. We are called to walk hand in hand as a community of faith, where turning to non-believing, secular mediators ought to always be our worst case scenario and not our first point of action. As chosen people of God, we must be able to discern what sets us apart from the mundane, and this is what allows for greater holiness to be lived in one’s vocation – a true gift from above. Our Lady, Queen of Apostles, pray for us.
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