1Corinthians 3: 9c-11, 16-17 (Friday, November 9, 2007 – Feast of the dedication of St. John Lateran)

Today’s feast is a celebration of the unity of the Catholic Church. St. John Lateran is not only the cathedral of the diocese of Rome, but also represents all the dioceses of the world. This feast is also a celebration of religious freedom. Christians in the Roman empire can now worship publicly. Contrary to the general opinion that it was Constantine’s conversion that made Christianity grow in the empire, it was rather the growth of Christianity that made Constantine convert. As it is always said, “if you cant beat them, you join them.” After many years of persecution, Christians were steadfast and large numbers continued to join them. Christians achieved this success because of their unity. They were all of one mind and spirit. The story is different today when we have left our personal ideologies and differences tear us apart. Today we speak of “liberals” and “conservatives”; “traditionalists” and “progressives”; “orthodox” and “unorthodox”, etc. These divisions do not help in building up the body of Christ. That is what St. Paul is saying in the second reading of today. The Church is the temple of the Holy Spirit and we all have the responsibility to add to this building. We are not called to tear it down. We tear it down when we put ourselves first, rather than put Jesus first. It is only when we are of one mind and spirit that we too can change our society.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus Christ, give to your church unity. Help us to rid ourselves of all divisions and give to us the courage to accept each other’s differences and together work to build your kingdom here on earth.