Catholic Caucus: Daily Mass Readings, 09-09-05, Memorial, St. Peter Claver, priest

September 9, 2005
Memorial of Saint Peter Claver, priest

Psalm: Friday 39

Reading I
1 Tm 1:1-2, 12-14

Paul, an Apostle of Christ Jesus by command of God our savior
and of Christ Jesus our hope,
to Timothy, my true child in faith:
grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father
and Christ Jesus our Lord.

I am grateful to him who has strengthened me, Christ Jesus our Lord,
because he considered me trustworthy
in appointing me to the ministry.
I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and an arrogant man,
but I have been mercifully treated
because I acted out of ignorance in my unbelief.
Indeed, the grace of our Lord has been abundant,
along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 16:1b-2a and 5, 7-8, 11

R. (see 5) You are my inheritance, O Lord.
Keep me, O God, for in you I take refuge;
I say to the LORD, “My Lord are you.”
O LORD, my allotted portion and my cup,
you it is who hold fast my lot.
R. You are my inheritance, O Lord.
I bless the LORD who counsels me;
even in the night my heart exhorts me.
I set the LORD ever before me;
with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed.
R. You are my inheritance, O Lord.
You will show me the path to life,
fullness of joys in your presence,
the delights at your right hand forever.
R. You are my inheritance, O Lord.

Gospel
Lk 6:39-42

Jesus told his disciples a parable:
“Can a blind person guide a blind person?
Will not both fall into a pit?
No disciple is superior to the teacher;
but when fully trained,
every disciple will be like his teacher.
Why do you notice the splinter in your brother’s eye,
but do not perceive the wooden beam in your own?
How can you say to your brother,
‘Brother, let me remove that splinter in your eye,’
when you do not even notice the wooden beam in your own eye?
You hypocrite! Remove the wooden beam from your eye first;
then you will see clearly
to remove the splinter in your brother’s eye.”

From: 1 Timothy 1:1-2; 12-14

Greeting

[1] Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by command of God our Savior and
of Christ Jesus our hope,

[2] To Timothy, my true child in the faith: Grace, mercy, and peace
from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

Paul Recalls His Own Conversion

[12] I thank him who has given me strength for this, Christ Jesus our
Lord, because he judged me faithful by appointing me to his service,
[13] though I formerly blasphemed and persecuted and insulted him; but
I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, [14] and
the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that
are in Christ Jesus.

Commentary:

1-2. The heading is the standard heading used in correspondence at the
time--the names of the sender and addressee, and some words of greeting
(cf. note on 1 Cor 1).

"Apostle of Christ Jesus by command of God": the word can be translated
as "command", "order", "disposition"; whichever is used, the expression
is stronger than that used in other letters--"by the will of God"
(1 Cor 1:1; 2 Cor 1:1; Eph 1:1; etc.)--and it shows that St Paul
holds authority from God (he wants to underline this because he has
things to say in the letter about how the church at Ephesus should be
organized).

"God our Savior": in other letters the Apostle seldom uses this
title, "Savior", and when he does he applies it to Jesus (Eph 5:23;
Phil 3:20). In the Pastoral Epistles it occurs often and is used of
Jesus (cf. 2 Tim 1:10; Tit 3:6) and especially of God the Father (cf.
1 Tim 2:3; 4:10; Tit 2:10; 3:4). In the Greco-Roman world it was
quite common to describe people as saviors; for example, we find the
word (applied to emperors and pagan gods) in stone inscriptions. St
Paul, however, uses it in a restrictive sense; reviving a very
typical Old Testament teaching (cf. Deut 32:15; 1 Sam 10:19; etc.),
he teaches that God is our only Savior. Reflecting on this, St John
Chrysostom comments: "We suffer many evils, but we harbor great
hopes; we are exposed to dangers and snares, but we have a Savior,
who is not just man, but God. Strength will never fail our Savior,
for he is God; no matter how great the dangers, we will overcome
them" ("Hom. on I Tim, ad loc.").

"Timothy, my true son in the faith": when St Paul wrote to the
Philippians he praised Timothy's proven worth: "you know how as a son
with a father he has served with me in the gospel" (Phil 2:22). Now,
in this letter to his co-worker, he highlights Timothy's fidelity to
Christian truth, in contrast to the behavior of self-appointed
teachers who refuse to obey authority (cf. Heb 12:8).

"Grace, mercy and peace": a wish for "mercy" is added to the by now
traditional wish for "grace and peace" (cf. note on Rom 1:7); perhaps
this is meant to be an allusion to "the salvation accomplished by the
Lord and his mercy" (John Paul II, "Dives in Misericordiae", 4), for
in the language of the Bible asking for mercy is the same as asking
for salvation: "Show us thy steadfast love [= mercy], O Lord, and
grant us thy salvation" (Ps 85:7).

12-13. This clearly autobiographical passage, which shows the
Apostle's humility (cf., e.g., 1 Cor 15:9-10), is evidence of the
letter's Pauline authorship: it is difficult to believe that a later
disciple would have dared to call St Paul a "blasphemer",
"persecutor" or "insulter" or made him describe himself as "the
foremost of sinners".

St Paul's conversion is an example of a miracle of grace; only by the
mercy of God could he have been changed and become the Apostle of the
Gentiles and such a faithful minister of the Gospel. This change
which grace worked in Paul can also help all who approach the Church
to have great confidence in God's mercy and forgiveness; like a good
father, God is always ready to receive the repentant sinner.

The sacred text shows quite clearly that the initiative lies with God
when it comes to calling people to Church office. The call to the
priesthood is a grace from God; it is God who makes the choice and
then he gives the person he has chosen the strength to fulfill his
office worthily. In this connection Bishop Alvaro del Portillo has
written: "Christian priesthood is not, then, in the line of ethical
relationships among men nor on the level of a merely human attempt to
approach God: it is a gift from God and it is irreversibly located on
the vertical line of the search for man by his Creator and Sanctifier
and on the sacramental line of the gratuitous opening up to man of
God's intimate life. In other words, Christian priesthood is
essentially (this is the only possible way it can be understood) an
eminently sacred mission, both in its origin (Christ) and in its
content (the divine mystery) and by the very manner in which it is
conferred--a sacrament" ("On Priesthood", pp. 59f).

14. "In Christ Jesus": this expression is being used with a special
technical meaning: it refers to the position of the new man who,
after the "washing of regeneration and renewal in the Holy Spirit"
(Tit 3:5) which takes place at Baptism, is now united to Christ, made
a Christian. At Baptism the mercy of God not only justifies the
sinner but causes him to share profoundly in God's own life by means
of grace, faith and love. These three gifts are a sign that the
Christian has truly been built into the body of Christ (cf. 2 Tim
1:13).

Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text
taken from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries
made by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of
Navarre, Spain. Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock,
Co. Dublin, Ireland.

From: Luke 6:39-42

Integrity

[39] He (Jesus) told them a parable: "Can a blind man lead a blind man?
Will they not both fall into a pit? [40] A disciple is not above his
teacher, but every one when he is fully taught will be like his
teacher. [41] Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye,
but do not notice the log that is in your eye? [42] Or how can you say
to your brother, `Brother, let me take out the speck that is in your
eye,' when you yourself do not see the log that is in your eye? You
hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will
see clearly to take out the speck that is in your brother's eye."

Commentary:
[None for Luke 6:39-42. Below is a commentary on a similar theme from
Matthew 7:1-5:]

1. Jesus is condemning any rash judgments we make maliciously or
carelessly about our brothers' behavior or feelings or motives. "Think
badly and you will not be far wrong" is completely at odds with Jesus'
teaching.

In speaking of Christian charity St. Paul lists its main features:
"Love is patient and kind [...]. Love bears all things, believes all
things, hopes all things, endures all things" (1 Corinthians 13:4, 5,
7). Therefore, "Never think badly of anyone, not even if the words or
conduct of the person in question give you good grounds for doing so"
([St] J. Escriva, "The Way", 442).

"Let us be slow to judge.--Each one sees things from his own point of
view, as his mind, with all its limitations, tells him, and through
eyes that are often dimmed and clouded by passion" ("ibid"., 451).

1-2. As elsewhere, the verbs in the passive voice ("you will be
judged", "the measure you will be given") have God as their subject,
even though He is not explicitly mentioned: "Do not judge OTHERS, that
you be not judged BY GOD". Clearly the judgment referred to here is
always a condemnatory judgment; therefore, if we do not want to be
condemned by God, we should never condemn our neighbor. "God measures
out according as we measure out and forgives as we forgive, and comes
to our rescue with the same tenderness as He sees us having towards
others" (Fray Luis de Leon, "Exposicion Del Libro De Job", Chapter
29).

3-5. A person whose sight is distorted sees things as deformed, even
though in fact they are not deformed. St. Augustine gives this advice:
"Try to acquire those virtues which you think your brothers lack, and
you will no longer see their defects, because you will not have them
yourselves" ("Enarrationes In Psalmos", 30, 2, 7). In this connection,
the saying, "A thief thinks that everyone else is a thief" is in line
with this teaching of Jesus.

Besides: "To criticize, to destroy, is not difficult; any unskilled
laborer knows how to drive his pick into the noble and finely-hewn
stone of a cathedral. To construct: that is what requires the skill of
a master" ([St] J. Escriva, "The Way", 456).

Catholic Culture

Collect:
God of mercy and love, you offer all peoples the dignity of sharing in your life. By the example and prayers of Saint Peter Claver, strengthen us to overcome all racial hatreds and to love each other as brothers and sisters. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Recipes:

» Omelette - Tortilla Española

Activities:

Prayers:

September 09, 2005

St. Peter Claver, priest

Old Calendar: St. Gorgonius, Martyr; St. Maria de la Cabeza (wife of St. Isidore the Farmer)

Peter Claver was born of a distinguished family in Catalonia, Spain. He became a Jesuit in 1604, and left for Columbia in 1610, dedicating himself to the service of black slaves. For thirty-three years he ministered to slaves, caring for the sick and dying, and instructing the slaves through catechists. Through his efforts three hundred thousand souls entered the Church. He is the Patron of the Negro Missions.

Before the reform of the General Roman Calendar today was the feast of St. Gorgonius. Two martyrs named Gorgonius suffered during Diocletian's persecution. One, a Roman, is buried on the Via Labicana; the other, a high court functionary at Nicomedia in Asia Minor, was one of Diocletian's first victims. Later the two were confused and the name Gorgonius occurs only once in the Roman Martyrology.

St. Peter Claver

Peter was born of a distinguished family in Catalonia, Spain in 1581. He joined the Society of Jesus (Jesuits), and after his novitiate in Taragona was sent to the college of Montesione, at Palma in Majorca. There he met Brother Alphonse Rodriguez (also a saint), the humble porter of the convent. Alphonse set Peter's soul on fire to save the souls of the African slaves -- thousands being lost because there was no one to minister to them. His superiors finally sent Peter to New Granada in April of 1610. He was never to return to his native Spain.

By 1615 Peter finished his studies and was ordained a priest in Cartagena. When he made his final vows, he added a personal one: Peter, slave of the slaves for ever. Here in this busy seaport city, in a hot, humid, tropical climate, Father Claver spent most of his priestly life. Cartegena was the principal slave market for the New World. Thousands of blacks were brought there, herded into warehouses and auctioned to the highest bidder. Captured in Africa, these slaves were chained in groups of six and crammed into the lower holds of ships designed to hold 100-200, but holding 600-800 humans. Their treatment was so inhumane that 1/3 of the slaves died in the sea journey.

It was to these people that Peter would minister. He would meet each slave ship as it arrived. Peter would go to the warehouses and bring them food, water, medicine and clothing, for, as he said "We must speak to them with our hands, before we try to speak to them with our lips". But most of all, he brought them God. While nursing them back to health, he would teach them of Christ, explain to them that they were loved by God more than they were abused by man, and that evil outraged God. He offered their only consolation: hope in the promises of God. Nearly three hundred thousand of them received baptism at his hands.

After twenty-seven years of devotion to the black slaves, St. Peter Claver died at Cartagena on September 8, 1654. Leo XIII canonized him on January 15, 1888, proclaiming him special patron and protector of the negroes. St. Alphonsus Rodriguez, porter of the college, who inspired Peter to become a missionary for the slaves was canonized at the same time.

Patron: against slavery; foreign missions; black people; race relations; Colombia; diocese of Shreveport, Louisiana; diocese of Lake Charles, Louisiana.

Symbols: ship; cockle shell used for baptizing; usually pictured baptizing a black slave.

Things to Do:

Learn the corporal and spiritual works of mercy.
Find out more about St. Alphonsus Rodriguez.
Study modern missionary activities and perhaps ways to become a missionary in small ways; read what Pope John Paul II says about Missionary Activity and Consecrated Life.
Take a look at African American history, injustice of the slave trade, and African American Catholics today, etc.

St. Gorgonius

There are two martyrs with this name, a source of considerable confusion. The one was born in Nicomedia and was martyred under Diocletian. Concerning him is the following legendary account: "Gorgonius, a native of Nicomedia, served as a treasurer to Emperor Diocletian. Aided by one of his colleagues, Dorotheus, he converted his fellow officials to the Christian faith. On one occasion, upon witnessing the cruel torturing of a martyr in Diocletian's presence, both Gorgonius and Dorotheus were moved to become martyrs themselves. Fearlessly they addressed the Emperor: 'O Caesar, why do you restrict your punishments to this one witness? Both of us profess the same faith against which you inflict so dire a judgment. See, we are ready to undergo the same suffering.' Without delay the Emperor had them put into irons; he ordered their wounds to be washed with salt and vinegar before tying them to a heated grill. After further torture, they were hanged, about the year 303."

The other Gorgonius to whom we referred above was a Roman martyr. His first burial place was on the Via Lavicana in the cemetery between the two laurels; during the pontificate of Gregory IV (827-844) his remains were transferred to St. Peter's. Actually it was the Roman Gorgonius whose feast was kept today, and who was confused with the better known Nicomedian. — The Church's Year of Grace, Pius Parsch

Things to Do:

The Postcommunion prayer (Tridentine Liturgy) is particularly beautiful: "May eternal bliss shine upon and gladden Your family, Lord; for through Your martyr Gorgon we are steeped at all times in the sweet odor of Christ." This prayer indeed indicates how highly the ancient Church respected martyrs. Let us realize that we are a great family whose most illustrious members are those who have died for the faith. From their passion we still draw benefit; and we should rejoice spiritually over them. Pray that you will have the grace to always stand up for your belief in Christ, even if it should cost you your life.

Homily of the Day

Homily of the Day

Title:	Get Your Own House in Order
Author:	Monsignor Dennis Clark, Ph.D.
Date:	Friday, September 9, 2005

1 Tim 1:1-2,12-14 / Lk 6:39-42

Have you ever noticed the breadth of expertise, virtue, and wisdom on every topic under the sun that seems to congregate at a cocktail party and most other gatherings? It's amazing how much we think we know, and how sinless we seem to think we are! If only we were given the reigns of government, or absolute control over our workplace, or full power to administer our local parish, all things would soon approach the conditions of the Garden of Eden.

Jesus has a quick response to such illusions: "Get your own house in order before you try to handle anyone else's business." How sensible that advice is, and how hard it is to follow. It's so much easier to take potshots at what's out there than to attend to what's inside our own lives, especially if we don't have the habit of looking within.

Jesus' admonition to attend to the plank in our own eyes before attacking the splinter in our neighbor's eye is surely graphic, and it gives a good indication of the relative scale of the issues involved: Major lumber vs. a piece of sawdust. The issue is blindness: "I think I'm just perfect and therefore I have the right to focus on your faults." Whereas the reality is that I have big problems that I haven't even seen.

And that brings us to our task for the day: Forget everybody else's sins and mistakes, and instead take a good look at your own. Face yourself in the presence of the Lord. See yourself as He sees you. And then ask His help to do what is needed. He never says "no" to anyone who asks with an honest heart. And when you finally get your own life together, you'll be ready to be the compassionate friend and fellow pilgrim we all hope to find.

A Voice in the Desert

Friday September 9, 2005 Twenty-third Week in Ordinary Time

Reading (1 Timothy 1:1-2, 12-14) Gospel (St. Luke 6:39-42)

Our Lord in the Gospel reading today gets directly to a point of human weakness that is in most all of us, that is, we like to be able to notice everybody else’s problems while trying our best to ignore our own. We stand in judgment oftentimes of others. We like to point out their weaknesses. If we really stop and think about it, it is not usually done out of charity at all. Most often, it is done out of a sense of arrogance and also out of a sense of self-defense. That is, if we can point out somebody else’s fault and put them on the defensive then they cannot point out ours; it is a matter of trying to beat them to the punch. But Our Lord points out to us that what we are pointing out in someone else tends to be pretty tiny, whereas what we have within our own selves tends to be quite huge, and that we really do not stand in any kind of position to point out the faults in everyone else until we can get rid of the beam in our own eye first.

So we see the example of Saint Paul. He tells us that he was once a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an arrogant man. Then he says that he has been treated mercifully because he acted out of ignorance, but that the grace of Christ has been abundant in his life. So it is with each of us. If, like Saint Paul, we are willing to humble ourselves, to acknowledge who we really are, to acknowledge our sinfulness, to acknowledge our weakness, to allow the Lord to work within us so that He can point out all of the beams (as well as the splinters) that are in our own eyes, then we will be able to see clearly, then we can actually point things out to others and it will be done not in an arrogant way, not in a way that is intended to keep the focus off of us, but rather it will be done out of charity and with a focus on Christ.

We see the entire difference in the manner in which things are done. Jesus needs to be the focal point. Our charity in pointing out another’s fault is done to help the person, not for any selfish reason, but purely out of charity. Once again, if that is the case, then Our Lord is the one who is the center point. It is not “me and this other person,” but rather it is about the Lord and helping the other person to be able to draw closer to the Lord and to become more Christ-like. That is the way we have to be. But, of course, in order to do that, we have to make sure that our focus is on Christ. It is very, very easy to be able to pick apart somebody else, but it is not so easy to be able to be truly charitable because when we pick them apart it is really about our own selves. That says something about where our focus is. But if our focus is on Christ in prayer then there is an entire difference in the manner and the way that we do things. So that is what we have to be about.

Certainly, within our own states in life, it may be incumbent upon us to point out other people’s faults, but we need to do it in charity; not because we think we are better than they are, not because we want to pick on them so they cannot pick on us, but rather so that they can grow closer to Christ. That has to begin with the acknowledgment of our own faults, that we are the greatest of sinners. Read any of the saints and they all say the exact same thing: “I am the worst of all.” And this is coming from some people who have never committed a mortal sin in their lives! Yet they will tell us that they are the worst sinner of all. It kind of puts it in perspective for the rest of us, then, doesn’t it?

So we recognize that we cannot stand in judgment of anyone, we cannot stand arrogantly before anyone to point things out, we can only stand humbly before the Lord, acknowledging our own faults, our own sinfulness, our own extreme weakness. It is only out of that kind of humility, and following from that, out of charity, that we are able to point things out in others; not because we are anything great or because we are some sort of expert that can do it, but rather if we are looking at Jesus, and out of charity for another we want them to grow in perfection and virtue and holiness, and to become closer to the Lord, that is the reason why we would do the things that we would do: so that we will grow closer, that they will grow closer, that the grace of Christ will abound abundantly in each, so that the love of God will be greater.

* This text was transcribed from the audio recording with minimal editing.

American Catholic’s Saint of the Day

September 9, 2005

St. Peter Claver

(1581-1654)

A native of Spain, young Jesuit Peter Claver left his homeland forever in 1610 to be a missionary in the colonies of the New World. He sailed into Cartagena (now in Colombia), a rich port city washed by the Caribbean. He was ordained there in 1615.

By this time the slave trade had been established in the Americas for nearly 100 years, and Cartagena was a chief center for it. Ten thousand slaves poured into the port each year after crossing the Atlantic from West Africa under conditions so foul and inhuman that an estimated one-third of the passengers died in transit. Although the practice of slave-trading was condemned by Pope Paul III and later labeled "supreme villainy" by Pius IX, it continued to flourish.

Peter Claver's predecessor, Jesuit Father Alfonso de Sandoval, had devoted himself to the service of the slaves for 40 years before Claver arrived to continue his work, declaring himself "the slave of the Negroes forever."

As soon as a slave ship entered the port, Peter Claver moved into its infested hold to minister to the ill-treated and miserable passengers. After the slaves were herded out of the ship like chained animals and shut up in nearby yards to be gazed at by the crowds, Claver plunged in among them with medicines, food, bread, brandy, lemons and tobacco. With the help of interpreters he gave basic instructions and assured his brothers and sisters of their human dignity and God's saving love. During the 40 years of his ministry, Claver instructed and baptized an estimated 300,000 slaves.

His apostolate extended beyond his care for slaves. He became a moral force, indeed, the apostle of Cartagena. He preached in the city square, gave missions to sailors and traders as well as country missions, during which he avoided, when possible, the hospitality of the planters and owners and lodged in the slave quarters instead.

After four years of sickness which forced the saint to remain inactive and largely neglected, he died on September 8, 1654. The city magistrates, who had previously frowned at his solicitude for the black outcasts, ordered that he should be buried at public expense and with great pomp.

He was canonized in 1888, and Pope Leo XIII declared him the worldwide patron of missionary work among black slaves.

Comment:

The Holy Spirit's might and power are manifested in the striking decisions and bold actions of Peter Claver. A decision to leave one's homeland never to return reveals a gigantic act of will difficult for the contemporary mind to imagine. Peter's determination to serve forever the most abused, rejected and lowly of all people is stunningly heroic. When we measure our lives against such a man's, we become aware of our own barely used potential and of our need to open ourselves more to the jolting power of Jesus' Spirit.

Quote:

Peter Claver understood that concrete service like the distributing of medicine, food or brandy to his black brothers and sisters could be as effective a communication of the word of God as mere verbal preaching. As Peter Claver often said, "We must speak to them with our hands before we try to speak to them with our lips."

The Word Among Us

Friday, September 09, 2005

Meditation
Luke 6:39-42

Ever since Adam pointed the finger at Eve, humans have struggled with the all-too-common tendency to criticize, blame, and judge one another. Since we all struggle at times with being critical of others, let’s use today’s gospel to examine ourselves and get right with the Lord. Take a sheet of paper and try to answer the following questions as honestly as you can:

Am I too critical of others? Are my critical thoughts aimed at a particular group of people—such as my spouse and children, my co-workers, or my friends and neighbors? Do I find myself categorizing others according to their looks, their talents, their intelligence, or their financial situation?

Now take a few moments to review your answers, and then continue:

Do I use negative humor to raise myself and lower others in my mind? Do I blame others for my problems? Am I hard to please? Do I think my life would be so much easier if certain people would just change their bad habits?

Look honestly at your answers and see if the Holy Spirit shows you any ways that you have been pointing out specks in eyes of others, all the while remaining blind to the plank in your own eye.

This kind of examination can be very freeing. Rather than causing guilt, an open and honest dialogue with yourself and with the Holy Spirit can help you see how you have wronged a loved one by your critical judgments—and it can give you great hope in the Spirit’s promise of transformation. You will find yourself inspired to stop these critical thoughts, and you may even feel led to seek out that person and ask his or her forgiveness. Such an act of humility can bring a world of healing to strained relationships and can restore unity to our homes, communities, and workplaces. You also may go a long way toward freeing the other person to change, because our negative thoughts about others can be like a chain holding them bound in the patterns we are critical of.

“Jesus, please forgive me for any ways I have been critical and judgmental toward others—especially those who are closest to me. Teach me to love others as you have loved me. Help me to remove the plank from my own eyes, so that my words will be uplifting and kind to everyone I meet today.”

1 Timothy 1:1-2,12-14; Psalm 16:1-2,5,7-8,11

One Bread, One Body

<< Friday, September 9, 2005 >>

St. Peter Claver

1 Timothy 1:1-2, 12-14

Psalm 16

Luke 6:39-42

View Readings

“WE ARE NOT WORTHY”

“I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, Who has strengthened me, that He has made me His servant and judged me faithful.” —1 Timothy 1:12

At the time this is being written, it has been nearly a year since Fr. Al Lauer, the long-time author of One Bread, One Body, passed away. When the task of continuing this ministry fell to me, I was filled with an acute awareness of my own unworthiness. Nonetheless, when the Lord calls someone to a ministry or task, He provides special “graces of state that accompany the exercise of the responsibilities of the Christian life and of the ministries within the Church” (Catechism, 2004). Our unworthiness is no excuse to not serve Him, for His grace is sufficient (2 Cor 12:9).

No one is worthy to serve Almighty God. Yet He Who calls us to serve Him has judged us worthy (1 Tm 1:12). So if God is for us, no one can be against us (Rm 8:31). We cannot be against ourselves either. We can no longer use the excuse that we are too weak, sinful, or limited to serve Him. Such a claim insults the power of God’s grace and His ability to choose His servants. In His unique wisdom, God delights in calling those who are seemingly unqualified (1 Cor 1:26ff) and “of no standing” (Acts 4:13), such as the twelve apostles.

Servants of God, focus not on yourselves but on Jesus (Heb 3:1). “Whatever you do” for Him, “work at it with your whole being” (Col 3:23). “Do not grow slack but be fervent in spirit; He Whom you serve is the Lord” (Rm 12:11).

Prayer: Father, You choose me to be Your servant! (Jn 15:16) I give You my life. May I bear much fruit for You.

Promise: “You will show me the path to life, fullness of joys in Your presence, the delights at Your right hand forever.” —Ps 16:11

Praise: For love of Jesus, St. Peter Claver served those the world treated worse than animals. He instructed and baptized over 300,000 slaves, providing them food and medicine.

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