The Beauty of the Church
by Fr. David M. Knight
August 24, 2024
Saturday of the Twentieth Week of Ordinary Time
Feast of Saint Batholomew, Apostle
Lectionary 629
Rv 21:9b-14/Jn 1:45-51
Revelation 21:9-14: Every Christian is a consecrated minister of the Church by Baptism. We are anointed to share in the unique priesthood of Jesus. How should we understand ourselves in this role? The Church is the Bride of Christ. As members of the Church, we are all “brides in the Bride.” But when we are acting as ministers of the Church, we take the role of Jesus the Bridegroom:
Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, in order to make her holy by cleansing her with the washing of water by the word, so as to present the church to himself in splendor, without a spot or wrinkle or anything of the kind--yes, so that she may be holy and without blemish. (Ephesians 5:25-32.)
To minister as we should, we have to love the Church, and everyone in it, the way husbands love their wives: “as we do our own bodies.” To love those in the Church is to love ourselves.
For we never hate our own bodies, but we nourish and tenderly care for them, just as Christ does for the church, because we are members of his body.
So as ministers we must nourish ourselves with “word and sacrament,” and use what we assimilate to nourish others. Experience also shows that in this day of large and frequently impersonal parishes, we really need to seek support for ourselves in the communal sharing of a smaller faith community, such as a Scripture study group, a Cursillo group reunion, or any kind of ongoing support group, including twelve-step programs. If we don’t feel the need for this ourselves, we should weigh, as ministers, the value of the support we can give to others who do need it.
The bottom line is this: we need to love one another as Christ loves us, and as he loves the Church. He “nourishes and tenderly cares” for each person in it. This is his “great pastoral commandment,” given to Peter: “If you love me, feed my sheep.
Today’s passage from Revelation gives us a glorious and “mystical” vision of the beauty of the Church that is far truer than what we experience when we come into contact with its human unimpressiveness. Re-read the passage.
John 1:45-51: Jesus gives us the example of, first, looking at the good side of a person; and secondly, looking beyond what is visible to human eyes. Nathanael was something of a skeptic, as his prejudice about Nazareth shows. But what Jesus saw, and chose to see, was “a real Israelite; a man without guile.” Then he looked farther and saw what Nathanael would see through faith, and what great work he would be a part of once he knew who Jesus was. Already he saw himself ministering in Nathanael. We need to see others with eyes of vision.
Initiative: Filter your impressions through love with hope based on faith.
Reflections brought to you by the Immersed in Christ Ministry
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