More power. Luke tells us in today’s Gospel that “the power of the Lord was with him for healing.” The healing was both physical and social. But, the Lord’s power was not exercised by compromising principles. Faith was the prerequisite for those Christ cured of physical ailments. It was also necessary for healing the disbelief of the Pharisees, for establishing unity, concord, and peace between believers and non-believers.
St. Ambrose, a fourth century bishop whose feast we celebrate today, put that power into practice. He was not afraid to take on the political power of the state, coining the phrase “The Emperor is in the Church, not above the Church.” His life is worth reading. It seems almost contemporary, in fact. Because of Ambrose’s tough principles, St. Monica chose him as her confessor and eventually he baptized her wayward son, Augustine. Was this one of the results of his way of dealing with the political and moral enemies of the Church? Who knows? What is certain is that we should pray for our local bishops today that they use the Christ-like power, which was given to them at their ordination, for bringing about true peace within the Church and for confronting hostile political factions.