Word to the Wise
Tuesday, June 25, 2013 - Tuesday in the 12th Week in Ordinary Time
[Gen 13:2, 5-18 and Matt 7:6, 12-14]...[T]he Lord said to Abram: "Look about you, and from where you are, gaze to the north and south, east and west; all the land that you see I will give to you and your descendants forever. I will make your descendants like the dust of the earth..."
As if on cue the basis for St. Paul's argument about our being co-heirs with Christ (cf. this past Sunday's reflection) appears in the first scripture for today! The great story of Abraham [his name is changed from Abram later in the story] has profound spiritual, theological and political significance.
The theological significance is found in our identification with Christ through baptism and therefore we become "co-heirs" with him to God's promises made to Abraham and to David! This we experience through the Holy Spirit that dwells in us and in the church as a whole.
The spiritual significance comes about in our understanding of the fact that we share this Abrahamic faith with our brothers and sisters of Jewish and Moslem tradition! Anti-Semitic and Anti-Islamic prejudice have no place in Christian faith.
The political significance is exemplified in the unfortunately competing claims of Christians, Jews and Moslems to the city of Jerusalem (and the competing claims of Islam and Judaism to the territory of the Holy Land. ) This is why it is so important to reflect on the scriptures of the Old Testament. Our spiritual roots are there and influence the way in which our faith has grown. AMEN