Tuesday, October 28, 2003
Sts. Simon & Jude, Apostles

1st Reading: Eph 2:19-22
Gospel: Lk 6:12-16

At this time Jesus went out into the hills to pray, spending the whole night in prayer with God. When day came, he called his disciples to him and chose twelve of them whom he called apostles: Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew, James and John; Philip and Bartholomew; Matthew and Thomas; James son of Alpheus and Simon called the Zealot; Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who would be the traitor.

Commentary

"Now you are no longer strangers... but fellow citizens of the holy people: you are of the household of God... the whole structure is joined together and rises to be a holy temple in the Lord." As I write this reflection, the big news was about the more than 400 refugees mainly from Afghanistan stranded inside the Norwegian cargo ship after they were plucked out from sea with no country willing to take them in. Indonesia refused to take them in and so with Australia closing its shores. Illegal immigrants, people who left their country for one reason or another, and without legal documents to enter another country are in perilous conditions. Nationality and citizenship are very important. They are the key to many privileges and many rights denied to non-citizens. St. Paul writing to the early Christians, used the idea of citizenship to explain the new status of new converts. They are fellow citizens and members of the household of God. As such they should be accorded all the rights and privileges of the children of God.

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