17th Sunday in Ordinary Time (July 28, 2024)
2 Kgs 4.42-44; Eph 4.1-6; Jn 6.1-15
St. Paul speaks directly to the nature of the Christian vocation, spelling out not only that to which we are called, but also how we are to live in a worthy manner. The emphasis is on unity. In the Gospel, even Jesus places an emphasis on unity: “Gather up the fragments left over, so that nothing may be lost.”
Even though it is a sad reality that today Catholics differ on how much they accept the Gospel of Life, St. Paul exhorts each of us to resist the pull of the world and the tendency to fracture. Peace and unity are to be the hallmarks of Christian life and the route to this goal is the virtues of “humility, gentleness, and patience.”
After all, these aforementioned virtues, when practiced with those brothers and sisters with whom we vehemently disagree, might just be the things needed to bring about a new perspective and conversion to the Culture of Life.
Pro-Life Intercession
That Christ, who multiplied the loaves, may fill us with active compassion for those whose rights to food, work, and life itself are threatened, we pray to the Lord ...