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Today Luke tells us that he
wrote his gospel so that Theophilus (lover of God) could realize the
certainty of the teachings he had received. Luke’s message is for all of
us who love God and want to experience the power of God’s love (the Holy
Spirit) in our lives.
When Jesus came to his own town of Nazareth he was invited to read at
the synagogue. He selected the beautiful passage from Isaiah that
outlined the mission of the Messiah. His sermon was powerful and
simple. “Today this scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.”
Those words are just as true today as they were then. God’s Word is
living, active, true.
If we listen with our ears only and not our hearts, God’s Word can
become too familiar. It becomes stale. The Word of God is
fulfilled whenever it is heard in faith and empowered by the Holy
Spirit.
What did you make of today’s passage from First Corinthians? Have you
ever wondered how your God-given talents were meant to serve the church?
Are you a preacher, teacher, prophet? Are you gifted to work mighty
deeds of charity or healing? Are you talented in administration,
assisting others? Each of us is gifted, not for ourselves only, but for
the good of the church. Consider what God has gifted you to do for his
people.
Did you hear about the child being called the miracle baby of New
Orleans? This week the media was momentarily enamored by the story
of baby Noah Benton Markham, born January 16th. Noah was “just a frozen
embryo” stored in liquid nitrogen at a New Orleans fertility clinic when
Hurricane Katrina hit. Through the heroic effort of a clinic doctor and
several police officers some 1,400 abandoned embryos were retrieved
before they thawed out. Noah was thought to be the first of those
embryos brought to term. It is wonderful to rejoice at this new
life that survived the tragedy of Katrina. What I don’t understand is
how we Americans can hear this story and then go on about our business
while politicians in Washington are bound and determined to fund
embryonic stem cell research with our tax dollars. All embryos are
little people, just like Noah. They are not the stuff of scientific
experiments, nor should we ever allow them to become commodities used to
repair our broken bodies. We must find other ways. Babies are not spare
parts. Stand up for all life! Pray for an end to the culture of
death!
Monday, January 22nd is the anniversary of the Supreme Court’s erroneous
Roe v. Wade decision. This day shall be observed in all dioceses of the
United States as a particular day of penance for violations to the
dignity of the human person committed through acts of abortion, and of
prayer for the full restoration of the legal guarantee of the right to
life.
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