Word to the Wise
Monday, September 25, 2023 - Monday in the 25th Week in Ordinary Time
[Ezra 1:1-6 and Luke 8:16-18]"No one who lights a lamp conceals it with a vessel or sets it under a bed; rather, he places it on a lampstand so that those who enter may see the light." [Luke]
In reading the New Testament, with each "book" it is important to appreciate the perspective of the author(s). The letters of St. Paul are the oldest in terms of proximity to the life of Jesus, followed by Mark, Matthew, Luke and John. With each passing year after the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, the perspective of the authors, and the communities for which they wrote, changes as time passes. We know this from our own experience. Those who are older, like myself (80) will usually perceive the church and ministry with a different perspective than someone newly ordained or newly baptized at Easter. With the newer ones the emphasis might be on lighting the lamp. With the older it might be on keeping the lamp burning for the long haul and knowing from experience how to do that.
The evangelist Luke was writing for a community that included Jewish-Christians and Gentile-Christians and wrote from the perspective of the first 50 years or so of Christian ministry. His writing includes both the Gospel and the Acts of the Apostles. The church had grown all over the Mediterranean area of the Roman Empire because of the missionary activity of the apostles, especially Sts Peter and Paul, but others as well. The gospels and other letters were meant to offer encouragement in the light of the fact that Jesus was not going to return soon and the Church had to be living for the long haul. The lamp had to be lighted as it had been, but it had to be kept burning in the face of all kinds of conditions and efforts to put it out! That remains our challenge today. We have to keep lighting the candle of faith AND keep it burning. AMEN