Word of the Week

19th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Required: Apaiteo (Gk.): meaning, “to ask again, requite”. It can also mean “to demand back, exact something due.”

The CCC reminds us that what is required of us is a willingness to change for the sake of the gospel (cf. CCC, 1253). This includes the practice of self-mastery; a practice that at times may be long and arduous, but necessary if we are to grow in the beatitudes. Here, we are called to see that it takes a “renewed effort” at every stage of life to continue our growth in Christ (cf. CCC, 2342). This demand of our radical assent of faith, and gradual transformation in Christ, is the constant portrayal of the parables found in the gospel accounts (cf. 546). Indispensible to this “program” of conversion, is a life of contemplation (cf. 2705) and love of God and neighbor (cf. 2067). Lastly, in the context of what is required of us as Catholics, the CCC reminds all members of her community that we are called to share the faith, always seeking ways to make it readily coherent for all peoples (cf. 24).

The term Apaiteo can be found four times in the New Testament, three of which come to us from the gospel of Luke. In the first case, Luke places an emphasis on the gift of love, a demand that requires loving with no expectation in return (cf. Lk.6:27-35). In the second case, love remains the imperative, but Luke reminds us of the folly of riches and how it clouds our understanding of love (cf. 12:13-21), which brings us to the last usage and Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time. In today’s gospel passage, Luke addresses the widening problem of despondence growing from the expectation that Christ was going to appear in the near future (to the people of the first century). Luke responds to this with the parable of the faithful steward. In this teaching, Christ highlights man’s proclivity to slip into a moral laxity, because there is no one to “keep him honest”. Essentially, Luke raises the question to what standard we should be held accountable, and responds with the call of vigilance: “be ready”.  Underlined in today’s passage is the gift of faith, and how we are called to lean on God for this gift that he freely hands over. The good news for this weekend is that justice will be served and God will reward each human being proportionate to their faithfulness to the gospel values. In addition to this truth, Christ also has a message for the shepherds and leaders of our Church communities: "From everyone to whom much has been given, much will be required; and from the one to whom much has been entrusted, even more will be demanded" (12:48). Here, Christ exhorts all leaders of our faith community to “step up” and be imitators of Christ’s humility for greater the gift comes a greater accountability for the gift that has been received. Essentially, the steward is to guard what has rightfully been entrusted to them, and this is the gift of faith, which is the very sharing of a life in Christ.

I was once asked: what is the greatest truth of our Catholic faith? Upon receiving that question, I went to the CCC, and found the overarching use of the Trinity in the Deposit of Faith. Consequently, I concluded the Trinity, and ultimately responded to that question with an explanation of the Trinity. Upon further review, as I (obviously) remain steadfast to the centrality of the Trinity as the bedrock truth of our Christian heritage, I note something else that is in a way tied to the Trinity, and that is the nature of truth itself. That is to say, the objective absolute, which has become flesh and we are called to give witness too by a life of beatitude. Why am I compelled to speak of matters concerning truth in this short bulletin? Simply, if there is no objective truth, no moral standard from which we are accountable for, then what can be required and demanded of us? Without the principle of truth there is no  measure to “exact” judgment. Conversely, with the principle of truth, Christ has the paten necessary to hold us accountable, which is first and foremost a life of virtue and willingness to die to self for the sake of his body, the Church (cf. Col.1:24).

"What embitters the world is not excess of criticism, but an absence of self-criticism."

G.K. Chesterton

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