There are two essential facts in our readings this
morning. First, Jesus shows his
desire for a unified Church: “I
pray not only for these, but also for those who will believe
in me through their word, so that they may all be one, as
you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, that
the world may believe that you sent me.” Second, St. Paul refers to the resurrection of Christ,
albeit in a shrewd way: “My brothers, I
am a Pharisee, the son of Pharisees; I am on trial for hope in the
resurrection of the dead.”
The
resurrection is one of the foundations for Christianity that keeps us united
together. And it is no small
belief. We believe that God became
a man. Additionally, we believe
that the God-man Jesus Christ rose from the dead. Finally, we affirm that he returned to heaven from which he
came. These substantial truths
take great faith to believe.
Yet
the sad reality is that division is present in our Church. Look at the recent political situation
regarding marriage in Minnesota. I
frequently observed Catholics publicly refuting Church teaching and supporting
same-sex unions in our state in the name
of Christ. This confuses me,
because many of these individuals believe in the incarnation, resurrection and
ascension. Yet if these eternal
leaps are swallowed, can’t we trust in God’s infinite power to establish His
Church? Didn’t Jesus promise he
would be with his Church until the end of time? Isn’t Jesus capable of guiding morality even to this day?
We
pray for conversion in our society to conform to Christ and his Church. We pray that the gifts of the
incarnation, resurrection and ascension may draw all Catholics and Christians together
to follow Christ’s teachings faithfully.
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