Devotion
Living Letters of Faith
Frances Taylor
Paul is calling these Corinthians "living epistles" or living letters filled with the Spirit of God. How does Christianity spread? In the early days of the church, Paul, Peter and the other apostles went from village to village from Jerusalem to Rome, to Greece and Asia Minor, to Ethiopia and beyond. They told the story of Jesus and the Good News of salvation. If it had ended there, we would not be Christians today. The witness of those converted to Christianity interested others enough to want to know more about this new faith. And so it continues today. Research has discovered that more people are drawn to a faith by the witness of the lives of people than by doctrine. Think about how you go about making friends. What draws you to a person? It can't be what you know about him or her because you just met. It is their smile, the way they welcome you? Whatever it is, you want to know more about them. It's the same with Jesus. Until we meet him, we aren't interested in learning about him. The best way to meet him is in the lives of those who follow him. Living epistles!
Prayer
Lord, let me be a living letter of faith to others. Help me to bring others to know you by the testimony of my life 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...
