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Feast of St. Bartholomew

Revelation 21:9b-14

Psalm 145:10-11, 12-13ab, 17-18

J ohn 1:45-51 Philip found Nathan'a-el, and said to him, "We have found him of whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph." (46) Nathan'a-el said to him, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth ?" Philip said to him, "Come and see." (47) Jesus saw Nathan'a-el coming to him, and said of him, "Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile!" (48) Nathan'a-el said to him, "How do you know me?" Jesus answered him, "Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you." (49) Nathan'a-el answered him, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!" (50) Jesus answered him, "Because I said to you, I saw you under the fig tree, do you believe? You shall see greater things than these." (51) And he said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man."

Meditation by Alex Rödlach

T he shortcomings and sinfulness of our church and its members make me sometimes wonder if we are really following the Good News of Christ: My commitment to prayer, to a faith community, and to social justice is often shallow and just empty talk. Church communities and many of their members are frequently only mediocre witnesses of our faith. Church leaders often seem to be more concerned with protecting the institution of the Church and their own power than guiding Church members to a closer relationship with God and other members of their faith-community, and to becoming convincing witnesses of our liberating faith by working for social and environmental justice.

This came to my mind when I read the first reading of today from the Book of Revelation. The heavenly Jerusalem is described in all its beauty and splendor with gates at all sides welcoming people from everywhere. The earthly Jerusalem , the Church, should resemble this heavenly Jerusalem , but often is only a faint representation of this ideal image of the Church because of the shortcomings of its members and leadership.

In today’s Gospel, Nathaniel – also known as Bartholomew the Apostle, whose feast we celebrate today – is presented to us as someone who is quite prejudiced. He could not believe that Jesus is the promised liberator and savior because he comes from Nazareth , a small and insignificant town. At the same time he is a good man who genuinely seeks to understand the truth. Jesus recognizes him as such and calls him a “true child of Israel .” Jesus makes a cryptic reference to having seen him under the fig tree. In ancient Israel , people congregated in the shadow of the fig tree to discuss important matters of life and faith. In other words, having seen Nathaniel under the fig tree means that Jesus recognizes him as someone who honestly seeks the truth.

Nathaniel has shortcomings and at the same time he is also genuinely trying to live his faith. In that he is like all of us. We have shortcomings and do many things that contradict our faith. At the same time we also seek to understand our faith, want to be active parts of our faith community, and strive to live our faith through prayer and social engagement.

There is an expression in German, that can be translated saying that the Church is both “saint and sinner.” The literal translation is a bit more drastic that may not be suitable for this reflection.

This give me hope that we as Church, the earthly Jerusalem , despite our  mediocrity and sinfulness, can become more and more a true reflection of the heavenly Jerusalem through our faith and our faith expressions as individuals and a community. The faith of each one of us and its varied expressions will increase the beauty and splendor of our church!

Supplementary Reading

Renew Your Mind Daily

We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ – 2 Corinthians 10:5

So many people today are not really enjoying their lives because of the condition of their minds. They constantly dwell on negative, destructive, harmful thoughts. They don't realize it, but the root cause of many of their problems is simply the fact that their thought life is out of control. They just dwell on any thought that comes.

More than ever, we have to understand that our lives follow our thoughts. If you think negative thoughts, then you're going to live a negative life. If you think discouraging, hopeless thoughts, can't-do-it thoughts, mediocre thoughts, then your life is going to go down that exact same pathway. That's why we have to take captive every thought and renew our minds with the Word of God on a daily basis.

I want to challenge you today to think about what you're thinking about. Don't let those self-defeating thoughts linger in your mind. Instead, speak God's promises over your life. Declare what He says about you. Take captive every thought and renew your mind daily. As you do, you'll be empowered to move forward into the abundant life He has for you!

Father God, today I choose to take captive every thought. I choose to renew my mind according to Your Word. Holy Spirit, thank You for being my teacher and helper. I invite You to direct me in the way that I should go. Help me fulfill my destiny. In Jesus' Name. Amen.—Joel & Victoria Osteen

GOD BLESS US ALL!

O Theos Na Mas Evlogisi!
PRAY as if everything depended on HIM. ACT as if everything depended on YOU.

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