Word to the Wise
Monday, January 2, 2012 - Jan. 2
[1 John 2:22-28 and John 1:19-28]Let what you heard from the beginning remain in you. If what you heard from the beginning remains in you, then you will remain in the Son and in the Father. And this is the promise that he made us: eternal life.
A popular piece of advice used in organizational behavior concerns "staying on message." This means that the organization is founded on a particular set of principles or goals and should strive to maintain its focus on those goals or principles and not be distracted by competing or different factors, no matter how attractive or irritating! This piece of advice is not new! Much of the New Testament is an attempt to keep various early Christian communities "on message." The first scripture for today is an example.
The First Letter of St. John is clearly pointing to the reality that some people were misinterpreting the message about Jesus and were creating division. The letter is designed to call the attention to the receiving community that they were given the "truth" about Jesus from "the beginning" and that this truth means eternal life. The promise of eternal life is based on the relationship between the Father and the Son. This is based on the fundamental acceptance of Jesus as "the Christ." Apparently there were preachers who were denying this or at least interpreting it in ways that were different. Unity in faith, "staying on message," is the goal of the community and the purpose of the letter.
The liturgical season of Christmas/Epiphany celebrates the tremendous mystery of God's love becoming incarnate in a human person, Jesus. Our faith in that reality is what leads us to add the word, "Christ," to his name. There are more than one billion people on the planet who share this faith. This will continue only if we "stay on message!" AMEN