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| Mystical Rose another of Mary's titles |
One night while Paul was in Corinth, the Lord said to him in a vision, “Do not be afraid. Go on speaking, and do not be silent, for I am with you. No one will attack and harm you, for I have many people in this city.” He settled there for a year and a half and taught the word of God among them.
Because he was obedient to the Spirit of God, Saint Paul’s life is a study in contrasts. He is not an action hero like many of our cinema idols, though he sometimes had to flee from one town to the next. He was not a masochist though he was beaten half to death several times. Suffering brutality didn’t seem to worry him; he’d get up and go right back to preaching. Nor was he an ivory tower scholar though he could settle down for a year or two and teach about Jesus, as we hear in today’s reading. He was not a criminal though he endured long sentences in roman jails; nor was he an ascetic though he could have been for all the hours he fasted and prayed in solitude.
He said of himself:
…for I have learned, in whatever situation I find myself, to be self-sufficient. I know indeed how to live in humble circumstances; I know also how to live with abundance. In every circumstance and in all things I have learned the secret of being well fed and of going hungry, of living in abundance and of being in need. I have the strength for everything through him who empowers me.
One Sunday evening I felt boredom coming over me. It was not an unfamiliar feeling but it seemed wrong. Was I wasting time? Was there something I should be doing? Is there something wrong with me?
Then, as the time passed, I began to think of a woman I knew who was undergoing psychiatric care. She had been doing well, showing great improvement. And then suddenly she turned around and got worse. It was rumored she had quit taking her medicine.
I wondered why she would quit taking her medicine if it was helping her. It came to me in a flash, “boredom.” Perhaps she preferred the excitement of mental illness to the flatness of ordinary life. And then, as quickly, I realized that it’s okay to be bored on Sunday evening. “I’ll bet even the Pope gets bored on Sunday evening!”
Life in the Spirit may be boring if you like excitement; or it may be frightening if you prefer routine. It may demand too much study or too much prayer, if you prefer to witness by socializing. Or, if you’re like me, it may demand too much interaction with people.
Saint Paul shows us the way. Wherever the Spirit directs, he goes.
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I love to write. This blog helps me to meditate on the Word of God, and I hope to make some contribution to our contemplations of God's Mighty Works.
Ordinarily, I write these reflections two or three weeks in advance of their publication. I do not intend to comment on current events.
I understand many people prefer gender-neutral references to "God." I don't disagree with them but find that language impersonal, unappealing and tasteless. When I refer to "God" I think of the One whom Jesus called "Abba" and "Father", and I would not attempt to improve on Jesus' language.
You're welcome to add a thought or raise a question.