Friday in the 29th Week of Ordinary Time, October 23, 2020

Ephesians 4:1-6

Cardinals Burke and Viganò as well as our own Bishop Burbidge, have issued statements regarding the words Pope Francis is reported to have spoken in support of civil unions for homosexuals.  Let us pray that our faith in the Lord Jesus may be continually strengthened against all the scandal and persecution that may come our way.

“Brothers and sisters: I, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to live in a manner worthy of the call you have received, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another through love, striving to preserve the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace; one Body and one Spirit, as you were also called to the one hope of your call; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

“I, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to live in a manner worthy of the call you have received”.  The translation gives us “A prisoner”, but the Greek text actually sets the definitive article here, so literally, Paul calls himself "the" prisoner.  “For the Lord”: the Greek preposition έν, translated as “in” (not “for”, as here) has many meanings, among them “with”, as in a close association to someone else, and “because of”.  Thus, Paul might mean that he is “the prisoner with the Lord”, or, “the prisoner because of the Lord”.  The Greek δέσμιος, here translated as "prisoner", implies that Paul is “bound”, so, “bound with the Lord” or, “bound because of the Lord”. In either case, Paul is expressing his intimacy with the Lord.  “Call”. The Gentile culture knew nothing of being "called" to a particular way of life, but only of being fated to it.  This "call" means more than a particular series of outwardly actions, but an action or direction of the inner man.  That is, God calls from within a person, speaking in that person’s deepest self so that there is no chance of his voice being mistaken for anything else.  

“With all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another through love, striving to preserve the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace.”  Paul speaks here of the “bond of peace” a few lines after he had spoken of himself as “bound” in the Lord. Being “bound” to the Lord is the Christian’s true calling. This binding also accomplishes the “unity” between the members that comes from the Holy Spirit.  This binding is a model, on a very small, human, scale, of that which unifies the Persons of Holy Trinity.

“One Body and one Spirit, as you were also called to the one hope of your call; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.”  Paul emphasizes their oneness in order to console them -- they are one not only with one another, but with all believers, because they are one in the One, the only, the true, the all-transcendent God.