Third Sunday in Ordinary Time, Word of God Sunday
“I urge you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree in what you say, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and in the same purpose.” –1 Corinthians 1:10
In the fall of 2019, Pope Francis called for a renewed attention in the Church to the Word of God, and so dedicated the Third Sunday in Ordinary Time to be a particular day on which the call to listen to the Word of God should be remembered. Of course, the very life of the Church is to listen to the Word. This listening is what we train our hearts in every time we go to Mass. This listening is what we participate in whenever we pray the Liturgy of the Hours, or simply spend time personally reading the Bible. However, since so many demands on our attention arise throughout the course of the year, it is good to have this Sunday as a basic reminder that our very life as Christians is dependent upon hearing and following the Word of God.
St. Paul’s urging to the Corinthians offers a fruit that we might hope for when we listen attentively to the Word of God: unity! The local church which Paul founded in Corinth has quickly devolved into bickering about who is better than who, based on certain connections. ‘I know Paul,’ some claim; ‘Well Apollos is who I know!’ others reply. Dissatisfied with this distraction of name-dropping, St. Paul calls them back to the source of their unity: Jesus Christ has laid down His life for us! This fact should demand our attention, shape our hearts and unite us far more than any petty rivalry which seeks to separate us.
This week, let us allow the Word of God to call us to greater unity with one another. Let us allow the sacrifice of Christ to be our focus, especially when we are tempted to argue about anything that takes our eyes off of the Cross and the love of Christ.