Right now, in the United States, we’re in the last leg of our election campaigns. People are making up their minds who they want to represent them in the government, and that’s the process. We pick a candidate, and they become our man or woman.
However, as we’ve read in the Letter from St. Paul to the Corinthians, this type of thinking spilled over into the early Church, and St. Paul wants to set things straight. He points out that jealousy and rivalry among them are stunting their spiritual growth.
Some are saying their man is Paul or Apollos, to which he says, we are ministers through who you became believers, merely men who God chose. He goes on to say, I planted, Apollos watered, but it’s God who caused the growth.
St. Paul wants us to remember that he and all who have come after him are God’s co-workers, and those we serve are God’s field. On an everyday level, one person told me that they got distracted before Mass even began by being disappointed by seeing which priest going to celebrate the Mass. It’s human, but this is where St. Paul wants us to go deeper.
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Are we willing to focus on God at Mass and see the priest, bishop, cardinal, or pope as one of God’s co-workers?
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Do we listen to the readings attentively and make connections to our lives?
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And do we think about what we are saying in the prayers we offer during the Mass?
When we seek to learn from the Word of God and make our prayers an offering to God, this is when we allow God’s goodness to grow within us. Yes, it’s planted and watered by God’s ministers. But remember, in the Word, God is speaking and guiding us through each day. The Lord is seeking to touch our hearts and minds to allow us to become more Christ-like in how we treat our families and all those we meet.
Let’s do our best with the grace of God to put aside jealousy and rivalry, and work together to build up the Kingdom of God; so that we will all be winners united in God.
May God bless you and your families this holy day!
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