Devotion
Some Rules to Live By
Frances Taylor
How does Christianity call us to live? Paul had some very specific ideas about this and outlines them in this letter to the community in Rome. I like especially the first: let love be without hypocrisy. Love of neighbor is the second of the great commandments given us in the Old Testament. This is confirmed by Jesus in the New Testament and he goes even further by telling us that our love must be like his. That's a tough job to live up to, but Paul gives us some concrete ways to proceed. Abhor what is evil. First we need to look around and see what is evil. Sometimes evil looks good. It can be tempting to cut corners at work, either by using sub-standard materials or not putting in the time you claim for your pay. Cheating has been a problem in school at every level because a person wants a higher grade, but doesn't want to put in the time to study. Be diligent, not slothful – would that the workforce in every situation would adhere to this! We should be steadfast in prayer and patient. Patience can be one of my faults in many situations! We also are told to be hospitable and this is not limited to those we like. I'm sure there are many examples you can give that are even stronger than mine. Knowing what to do is easy, doing it is hard.
Prayer
Loving God, you have called us to be your witnesses to the world and given us the best example of how to accomplish this – reflect the love of your Son, Jesus. Give us the graces we need to hold firm to what we know to be right and to act upon it. Amen.
Devotion
Culpability
Frances Taylor
This is an interesting passage because, among other things, it talks about sin and who is considered guilty of sin. Paul is talking about how he has been forgiven, how God has been merciful to him because his actions were committed in unbelief. In order for sin to be committed, one needs to know he is committing it. No one can commit sin in retrospect. Sin is always a deliberate act. This can be hard for some to understand. Actions can be considered sinful, even though the person committing them may not be culpable. For example, lying is a sin. However, is the two year old hiding behind the curtains sinning when he or she claims not to have broken the vase? No, because the child has no understanding of the difference between truth and lie. Those who do not have a relationship with God, who do not know the commandments, who have never heard of Jesus, may commit sinful actions, but are not guilty of sin. This is what Paul claims is his situation. Paul ...
Morning Prayer
And the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there: And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, ) full of grace and truth.
Inspiration
When the Lord sent his only Son, he sent also his word. For his body was this very word made flesh. Importantly this was not simply a manifestation of God's word, but also rather an 'animation' of it (meant here in the original Latin as 'animare' –'to instill with life or spirit'), an instance of God's love and divine grace in action, among us.
Prayer
Lord, I am grateful for your mercy in showing us your word made flesh so that we may be redeemed. Further, I am grateful to you for showing us your love and grace through your only begotten son. Let his body not have been torn and broken for no avail, but feed us now in the Eucharist. Let not his blood have...
