Monsignor Owen F. Campion

  • Serve as Jesus serves

    5th Sunday in Ordinary Time
    Mk 1:29-39

    The Book of Job is the source of this weekend’s first reading. This book furnishes few details about the identity of Job.

    It nonetheless is one of the great literary works in the Old Testament, and one of the best remembered if not always exactly remembered.

    Misreading Job has led to a phrase that has gone into English common speech, the “patience of Job.” Clearly, Job was not always so patient with God.

    For instance, in this weekend’s reading, Job vents his impatience. He asks if life on earth is not in reality drudgery. Each human being, Job writes, is a slave. Personally, Job says he has been assigned “months of misery.” “I shall not see happiness again,” he writes drearily.

    St. Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians provides the second reading.

    The same source has given earlier weekend liturgies this winter their second readings. In this passage from First Corinthians, Paul insists that he was free to accept the call to be an Apostle or to spurn the call. He chose to accept the call.

    So, he proclaims the Good News. He explains the identity, and mission, of Jesus. It is an act of service, and of love, given for people who otherwise would not know Jesus. Paul sees nothing as more important than bringing people to the knowledge of Christ and to loving Christ.

    For its final reading, the Church offers us, from St. Mark’s Gospel, the story of the Lord’s curing of Peter’s mother-in-law.

    The story’s point is clear. Merely by touching her hand, Jesus cured the woman. She was so fully cured, in fact, that she immediately rose from her sickbed and began to wait on Jesus and the disciples. She was healthy again, but she used her health to care for others.

    Lest it appear that this woman simply resumed routine domestic chores, it should be noted that the verb used by Mark in this reference is the same verb used to describe the ministry of the angels while Jesus was in the desert, an event soon to be told. For Christians, serving others, even in their physical needs, is holy and a product of union with Christ.

    (This miracle long has fascinated Christians. Indeed, in the ruins of Capernaum is a site pious pilgrims identified many centuries ago as the place where the house of Peter’s mother-in-law stood.)

    The story continues. Jesus heals the sick and drives demons away. Then, alone, Jesus went to a distant place to pray. Simon and the others pursue Jesus, longing to be near the Lord, needing the Lord.

    When at last they find Jesus, the Lord reminds them that the messianic role is to reach all people.

    Reflection

    The Church continues to introduce us to Jesus, the Lord, the Son of God, with all the power thus implied. In this Liturgy of the Word further puts before us the images of Job, the Apostle Paul, Peter’s mother-in-law and the Apostles accompanying Jesus.

    Paul very obviously gave his life to the vocation to which Jesus called him, that of being an Apostle, of being the bearer to people of the Lord’s message and mercy. It was the mission of all the Apostles, as Jesus told them. It is the mission of Christians.

    Peter’s mother-in-law, cured by Jesus, did not simply return to life as usual, but, as Mark’s use of a particular verb shows, she served others, as Jesus served.

    Job brings to mind who and what we are, limited human beings, whose limitations at times may test our best intentions. Amid this reality, the Lord is our strength and our model. The Apostles knew that there is no other model and none with greater strength and power than the Lord.

    Posted on February 1, 2012, to:

  • Jesus rescues us from sin and points the way to holiness

    4th Sunday in Ordinary Time
    Mk 1:21-28

    The Book of Deuteronomy furnishes the first reading for this weekend. Deuteronomy appears in modern Bibles as the fifth book in sequence in the Old Testament. It is one of the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Old Testament, all of them attributed to Moses.

    In this reading, Moses addresses the chosen people, whom he has led, with God’s help, from Egypt where they were enslaved. He promises that God will send prophets, with whom the people can relate. If anyone presumes to take the role of prophet upon himself or herself, without having been called by God, then this imposter will die.

    God will take care of His people.

    St. Paul’s First Epistle to the Corinthians is the source of the second reading. From the earliest days of Christianity, virginity has been treasured. Christians have never been forbidden to marry, although all Christians are bound to be chaste, according to their state in life. However, over the centuries, Christians have chosen lifelong virginity for religious reasons.

    Corinth, in the first century, was a city notorious for its outrageous immorality. It was a busy commercial center. Visitors often availed themselves of the pleasures of the flesh provided in Corinth. Indeed, Aphrodite, the goddess of love and carnal desire, was the city’s special deity.

    Paul sees virginity as a powerful Christian witness, and from a more pragmatic point of view, he thinks that Christians not obligated by marriage and parenthood can devote their whole time to God’s service.

    St. Mark’s Gospel is the source of the third reading. It is an interesting story, the first of four references to exorcisms.

    First, Mark again reveals the identity of Jesus. While Judaism has never required weekly attendance by Jews at synagogue services, going to synagogue to pray together, and to learn the teachings of the Torah, was definitely a high value for Jews during the time of Jesus, as indeed it is even among Jews today.

    That Jesus went to the synagogue, and on the Sabbath at that, reveals the ongoing gift of salvation offered by God to the chosen people. Jesus fulfilled and culminated this long process of mercy and life.

    Then, Jesus spoke with authority, and the people realized this.

    The most dramatic moment came when a man “with an unclean spirit” appeared. This man recognized Jesus as the “Holy One of God,” affirming that Jesus has the power to do anything.

    Exercising nothing less than divine power, Jesus orders the unclean spirit to leave the man, and the unclean spirit obeys.

    Again, the people are amazed. No devil can overcome the power of God.

    Reflection

    Thanks be to God, few people today would say that they, or great numbers of people, are “possessed by the devil,” although the Church still teaches that such possessions occur.

    Still, sin is real. Evil is real. All sin, and sin is the mark of the devil’s involvement to some extent at least in any person’s spiritual life.

    An unfortunate mark of these irreligious times is that fewer and fewer people have any sense of sin. Few think of themselves as sinners. They succumb to the age-old tactic of rationalization, abetted by this culture’s increasing rejection of any transcendent religious principle, taught by any religious authority.

    The contemporaries of Jesus had a strong sense of sin. They saw personal sin, and society’s sin, as the root of all heartache and injustice. They knew that humans, and human communities, easily may be prey for temptation.

    Jesus, the Son of God, in the words of Mark, rescues people from sin, forgiving them for sins committed, and pointing the way to holiness.

    Resisting sin, nevertheless, requires personal resolve, a determination equal to that urged by Paul in his message to the Corinthians.

    Posted on January 25, 2012, to:

  • We have a choice to accept salvation

    3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time
    Mk 1:14-20

    The first reading for this weekend is from the Book of Jonah, an Old Testament writing seldom presented in the liturgy. While Jonah is the central figure in this book, he was not the author. The author is unknown. Scholars believe that the Book of Jonah was written sometime after the Babylonian Exile of the Jews.

    The reading speaks of Jonah’s visit to Nineveh, the capital of the Assyrian Empire, located roughly in the region of modern Syria. He went there, at God’s command, to preach conversion.

    Preaching conversion in Nineveh was a tall order, and the Jews who first heard this reading knew exactly how difficult the assignment was. No city on earth had the image of evil and vice that surrounded Nineveh.

    Nineveh, after all, was the capital of Assyria. Over the centuries many neighboring powers invaded, and overwhelmed, the Holy Land. However, none of the invaders matched the Assyrians for bloodthirstiness and brutality. Yet, the climax of the story is the conversion of the city.

    For its second reading this weekend, the Church offers us a passage from the First Epistle to the Corinthians. Paul had a challenge in leading the Corinthian Christians to a fully devout Christian life. The city was in reality what Nineveh was symbolically to the ancient Jews. Corinth was known around the Roman imperial world as a center of vice and licentiousness. It was a noteworthy distinction, since vice and lewdity prevailed throughout the empire.

    The Apostle calls upon the Christians of Corinth to remember that time passes quickly, and that life is short. They have before them two options. The first is life in Jesus, a life that is everlasting, but it requires fidelity to the Gospel and the Gospel’s values. The other option is eternal death, awaiting those who spurn the Gospel.

    St. Paul obviously urges the Corinthians to be holy.

    The Gospel of Mark provides the last reading. First is a brief mention that John the Baptist “has been handed over,” a phrase later to describe the arrest of Jesus on Good Friday. The reading continues to say that Jesus was preaching that the “kingdom of God is near.”

    Then, the Lord calls Simon and Andrew, brothers and fishermen, as Apostles, to be followed by the call of James and John.

    For the early Christians, the Twelve especially were important. From the Apostles came knowledge of Jesus. It was vital to assure, and present, their credentials.

    The Lord’s call was sudden. They were unprepared, yet Jesus and the offer of salvation caused them to drop everything and follow Jesus.

    The juxtaposition of the preaching of Jesus and the call of the Apostles is instructive. They were part of the Lord’s plan of salvation. They continued the Lord’s work.

    Reflection

    The Church called us liturgically to celebrate the birth of Christ. Two weeks later it celebrated the feast of the Epiphany of the Lord. A day later, it offered us the feast of the Lord’s Baptism by John in the Jordan River.

    All these celebrations taught critical lessons about Jesus. He is human, the son of Mary. He is the Son of God. He is the Savior, assuming our sins even though Jesus was without sin.

    Now, the Church tells us that Jesus calls us to salvation, eternal life. He called the Apostles specifically to continue the work of salvation. The Apostles, through the Apostles and the Church founded upon them, teach  and invite us to follow Christ.

    These four Apostles’ instant response is a lesson. Nothing is more important in life than being with Christ, answering the Lord’s call to be saved.

    Directly and simply, Paul told the Corinthians that they could accept salvation — or not.  We have the same choice.

    Posted on January 18, 2012, to:

  • Follow Christ for true life and peace

    2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time
    Jn 1:35-42

    The First Book of Samuel is the source of the first reading for this weekend. Originally, First and Second Samuel were one volume. At some point in history, an editor divided them into the two volumes, and two volumes appear in Bible translations today.

    As the title of these books implies, the central figure is Samuel, a prophet active centuries before Christ.

    Prophets were highly revered throughout the history of the chosen people. They were seen as God’s special representatives, but also personally very holy and devoted to God. At times, prophets resisted their calling initially. Such was the case of the great prophets, Isaiah, Ezekiel and Jeremiah. However, after all was said and done, they accommodated themselves to God’s will and accepted the call to be prophets.

    These figures were admired because the call to be a prophet was seen precisely as a call, as a call from God.

    In this weekend’s reading, God calls Samuel. This occurs according to God’s plan. Samuel is open to hearing God, indeed ready to hear God, but Samuel cannot hurry the divine plan.

    St. Paul’s First Epistle to the Corinthians supplies the second reading for this weekend. Many of the Pauline writings have their luster in their clear revelation of the bond between true believers and Jesus. Jesus was the Son of God, but also human, in a mystery theologians call the Incarnation.

    Truly committed Christians, in faith and baptism, are inseparably bound to Jesus, both in a shared human nature, but also in the divine life given believers by Christ.

    This supernatural bond, the very keystone of personal salvation, requires Christians not only to be of spiritual faithfulness, but bodily faithfulness as well. They must not allow themselves to fall into carnal sin.

    Instructing the Christian Corinthians in this fact seems for some to be excessive for Paul.  However, it should be remembered, Corinth was known near and far as a virtual capital of lewdity and vice.

    St. John’s Gospel furnishes the last reading. It is a story about the decision to follow Jesus by Simon, later known as Peter, and Simon’s brother, Andrew. In the story, Jesus intrigues Andrew and Simon. They follow Jesus. Yet, the Lord invites them to be apostles.

    They recognize Jesus as Messiah. Jesus calls Peter to a new life, even giving him a new name, Cephas — that is often translated as Peter.

    Reflection

    The Church, in the majesty and glory of its liturgy, in a profound gaze into the reality of Jesus, born in Bethlehem, given by the Gospels, called us all to celebrate the birth of Christ at Christmas.

    On Christmas, the Church revealed to us that Jesus was the son of Mary, therefore a human, as she was only human despite her unique holiness and singular place in the divine plan of redemption.

    Two weeks later, it celebrated for us the feast of the Epiphany, revealing then to us the fact that Jesus, born in Bethlehem, was divine, the Son of God, and that redemption is God’s gift for all people.

    So, these past several weeks have been times in which the Church, with the greatest joy and hope, has told us about the Lord. He is the Savior of the world!

    Now, the Church asks us in the readings this weekend to consider how personally we shall respond to these marvelous facts. By the mere fact we are of the Church, or at least interested in God, we are being touched by God’s grace. God calls us. He offers us eternal life in Christ.

    How should we respond? St. Paul gives very concrete advice. Samuel, Peter and Andrew are examples. We must follow Christ. There is no other way to true life and peace.

    Posted on January 11, 2012, to:

  • God will guide us to Himself

    Feast of the Epiphany of the Lord
    Mt 2:1-12

    This weekend the Church celebrates the ancient feast of the Epiphany of the Lord, commemorating, and reflecting upon, the visit of Magi “from the East” to the crib side of the newborn Savior.

    For the first reading, the Church presents a passage from the third and last section of Isaiah. After four generations of exile in Babylon, survivors, or descendants of survivors, of the long past Babylonian conquest of the Holy Land finally were able to return to their homeland.

    When Persia in turn overtook Babylonia, Persia’s King Cyrus allowed the exiles to leave Babylon and to return to the Holy Land. Homecoming was bittersweet. The land to which they returned after so many years was desolate and unyielding.

    The prophets insisted that, in spite of this desolation, times would change for the better, because God would not forget the chosen people.

    Thus, this reading rejoices in God’s salvation, not the bad fortune. He will vindicate the people. In justice and mercy, God will come. So, the prophecy predicts a great new day!

    For the second reading the Church offers us a selection from the Epistle to the Ephesians. It is a frank and direct statement that God intends salvation also for the Gentiles, not only for the chosen people.

    St. Matthew’s Gospel furnishes the last reading. Among the four Gospels, only Matthew and Luke refer to the conception, birth and very early life of Jesus. Mark and John are silent on these subjects.

    Between Matthew and Luke, only Matthew has the story of the Magi. This story is one of the most profound, and expressive, revelations in the New Testament. To better understand it requires recognizing the symbols and images contained in the passage.

    First, the Gospel speaks of visitors “from the East.” “From the East” was a phrase referring to much more than a direction of the compass. It meant a distant and unknown place. It was a term of mystery. What was the origin of these visitors? All that is known is that they were “from the East.”

    Who, and what, were they? Scholars cannot agree, and have not agreed, on a translation.  Some think that they were astrologers, in a time when astrology was heavily associated with theology and philosophy. Others think they were nobles, or kings. Another term is Magi, its meaning unclear.

    Whatever the answer, they were gifted, learned and very sincere people from someplace far away, strangers earnestly seeking the true God. Art and legend have seen them over the centuries as three in number.

    Herod tried to frustrate their search hoping to remove any threat to his corrupt control over the people, fearful as to what a “newborn king” might do. Looking for clues, he discovers that according to the Scriptures, the Savior indeed will be born in Bethlehem.

    Overall, the message is powerful. The Magi, only humans, yearn for God but cannot find God on their own. God assists them, with a star in the sky, and even through the evil Herod.

    Reflection

    This wondrous feast teaches a vital lesson. First, we must recognize that we are limited humans, even sinners. We are helpless in the last analysis.

    Accepting our limitation is one message. We also should examine what we regard as rewarding. Too often we allow ourselves to slip into the role of Herod. We look for security in earthly terms. We make judgments based on earthly instincts. Fear overtakes us.

    The divinity found by the Magi in Bethlehem hardly met earthly expectations. God was a newborn Child, innocent, indeed helpless, with Mary.

    Finally, God alone supplies the answers — and reward — in life. The wonder is that if we are sincere, God will guide us to Himself, living in Christ.

    Posted on January 4, 2012, to: