BEGUN A GOOD WORK IN YOU
God has begun a good work in us and He wants to bring it to
completion by forming us into a people who reflect His Kingdom here on earth.
God's Kingdom is one of justice, love and peace.
Today, we begin
reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Philippians. The Philippians were
Paul's favorite converts because of the warmth with which they received him and
because of their generosity to the poor. Paul was convinced that God had begun
a good work in them and that he would bring it to completion. They seemed very
close to being an ideal Christian community. Even this letter from Paul was
occasioned by their goodness.
The Philippians
learned that Paul had been imprisoned in Rome.
They were worried about him and sent one of their numbers, a man with the
unusual name of Epaphroditus, to Rome
to try to help Paul. While in Rome
Epaphroditus became ill and almost died. When he recovered Paul decided to send
him back home, asking him to deliver his letter to the Philippians.
The Philippians were
not perfect; there were some rather serious dissensions among them. And yet
they had caught the essential spirit of faith. Affection towards others and a
concern for their well-being had become part of their outlook. They knew that
their love for God must overflow into love for their neighbors. In direct and
shocking contrast is the attitude of the Pharisees who objected to Jesus'
healing of the man with dropsy on the Sabbath. They were more concerned with
legalism than with the spirit of religion. The example of Jesus shows us that
coming to the help of others in need is what He expects from us.
Today's Gospel account
takes place when Jesus is on the road to Jerusalem,
following His death on the cross. Jesus' journey began at the end of the ninth
chapter of the Gospel of Luke and continues on until his Palm Sunday entrance
into the city ten chapters later. The focus is on Jesus' Passion, giving us a
sense of urgency and focus. St. Benedict said if a person wanted to live a
complete life, it was important always to keep death before one's eyes.
Benedict did not mean this in a bad way. It was his way of focusing on
priorities.
When a person is
approaching death, what will matter most, the rules one kept or the people one
loved? On Jesus' way to death on the cross, He clarifies priorities. Jesus'
priority is on people, not polices and procedures. We must remember there never
was a law against doing good deeds. No policy takes priority over our call to
care for people in need and love one another as God loves us. God has begun a
good work in us and He wants to bring it to completion by forming us into a
people who reflect His Kingdom here on earth. God's Kingdom is one of justice,
love and peace.