Word to the Wise
Tuesday, August 30, 2022 - Tuesday in the 22th Week in Ordinary Time
[1 Cor 2:10b-16 and Luke 4:31-37]The Spirit scrutinizes everything, even the depths of God. Among men, who knows what pertains to the man except his spirit that is within? Similarly, no one knows what pertains to God except the Spirit of God. We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand the things freely given us by God. And we speak about them not with words taught by human wisdom, but with words taught by the Spirit, describing spiritual realities in spiritual terms. [1 Corinthians]
The first scriptures for the next few days are from St. Paul's First Letter to the Corinthians. He founded this community through his ministry and preaching. It was a port city with all the moral chaos of a city visited by people from all around the Mediterranean region. It was a pagan city as well, with a great variety of religious deities. Among these would have been what are called "mystery cults" which emphasized a kind of secret knowledge possessed by those who were initiated into them. Paul preached ONE God only and that knowledge of God comes from the Spirit received in baptism. However, what Paul said about God in the person of Jesus Christ was a "scandal" to Jews and a "stumbling block" to the Gentile Pagans. How could a crucified criminal (to Jews) be a Messiah? How could any human "rise from the dead'? (to Gentiles)
Paul preaches the paradox of faith that replaces the "strength" of human wisdom with the strength of faith in a Christ who made himself weak to save humanity from its false wisdom. The baptized believer should have "the mind of Christ" which enables the believer to understand "the mind of God" and the gifts of the Spirit that enable the believer to live a righteous life.
These are realities that require some intentional attention in our day since we can take them for granted. Baptism can seem like something that occurred years ago when we were babies and Confirmation when we were in grade school or high school. But they are not things of the past. They are present powers within us that require us to be aware and not blinded by political or social biases or consumer appetites. We celebrate the gifts of the Spirit when we gather to celebrate the Eucharist. It all does require "intentional attention" but the effort to be aware of this in ourselves and our neighbors is at the heart of Christianity. AMEN