Translations
Unification
Photo By: Flickr/Marie Loughin
The second reading for Sunday January 22, 2017 states:
I urge you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,
that all of you agree in what you say,
and that there be no divisions among you,
but that you be united in the same mind and in the same purpose.
For it has been reported to me about you, my brothers and sisters,
by Chloe's people, that there are rivalries among you.
I mean that each of you is saying,
"I belong to Paul," or "I belong to Apollos,"
or "I belong to Cephas," or "I belong to Christ."
Is Christ divided?
Was Paul crucified for you?
Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?
For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel,
and not with the wisdom of human eloquence,
so that the cross of Christ might not be emptied of its meaning.
1 Cor 1:10-13;17
Today, in America, we are very divided, just like Paul saw happening in the church in Corinth almost 2,000 years ago. It wouldn’t take a lot to change the above scripture reading to be stated directly at the United States of America.
I am a proud member of the Knights of Columbus 4th Degree, The Patriotic Degree. It isn’t anti-church to be patriotic. We can be both. Our Founding Fathers knew the importance of the Church in the country. That is why we have the FIRST part of the First Amendment, which states:
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof….
This states that the government shall not make their own version of the Church of England, but also not impose their will on the Church. Our government knows the importance of faith in country. You always see religious leaders at inaugurations, the Bible is used to swear in our leaders, and the Oath of Office concludes with “so help me God.”
Every 4 years in America, let’s take a step back and listen to the Holy Scriptures, and what Paul said to the church in Corinth, “that [we] be united in the same mind and in the same purpose.”
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About the Author
Faith has been a big part of my entire life. I grew up in the churches that my parents took me to as a child. We have been members of Baptist, Methodist, Lutheran and non-denominational churches. I was always searching for the whole meaning of everything, and church was a place to begin to search.
I went to the University of Dayton for college for many reasons. First, being from the Chicago area, it was close to home, but not close enough for the dreaded parental unannounced visit. It was also highly ranked in what I wanted to major in, Audio/Video Communications, and finally it was Catholic. While at the time I wasn’t Catholic, I knew how the Catholic Church stood its ground when it came to specific issues, and those issues lined up with my own personal beliefs.
While at the University of Dayton I volunteered at a local church in their youth program. It wasn’t Catholic, but it helped me explore more. When I did attend Holy Mass, it was because of a girl who was Catholic. The messages began to sink in. This was reinforced in my regular studies, as I had to take a religion class at least once a year. Nuns who lived on and near campus taught these classes. We looked at religion from many points of view such as, how do Christ’s teachings resonate in today’s world, what are the subtle changes that can we make in a word in the scripture to bring the text alive for those of us alive today without changing any of the meaning of what Christ said, etc. These women of faith made me think long and hard. While not totally understanding what was happening, I was becoming more Catholic every day.
Our instructors who were either priests or nuns didn’t seclude themselves within the halls of academia either. They brought the real world to all of us. The nun who taught my Religion and Film class would go to the Vatican over spring break and meet with Saint Pope John Paul II to discuss film and culture (I actually got, and still have, a cross that he blessed by him on one of her trips) with those living, leading and learning at the Vatican.
Another instructor, a priest, showed me that religion (i.e. Catholic beliefs) had a place in Washington DC. He taught my introduction to Political Science class. He regularly went to DC to talk with members of Congress about what it meant ot be Catholic, and their responsibilities to the Church was just as important as their responsibilities to their constituents.
These two people of the cloth impacted me in a way I wouldn’t realize for over a decade.
After leaving college I looked for a church home. I told myself (and my wife at the time) that I wanted to be as close to Catholic without being Catholic. I still didn’t understand a lot about the basics of Catholicism, but loved the teachings.&nb
