June 17, 2018 — Eleventh Sunday in Ordinary Time
EZ 17: 22-24; PS 92: 2-3, 13-16; 2 COR: 5: 6-10; MK 4: 26-34
We have stated previously that St. Paul had a way with words. He was able to take a very complex concept and summarize it in a few words and phrases. In today’s Second Reading from Second Corinthians, Paul says simply, “…we walk by faith, not by sight.” (2 Corinthians 5: 7) That statement by Paul has inspired hymns and treatises.
Yet, it is in reality what we are all about as Catholics and Christians. There is no question that it is one of the most difficult notions for us as Catholics and Christians to grasp and accept. The word translated as “walk” can also be translated as “live.” Thus, we could say “We live by faith, and not by sight.”
This was a popular and consistent theme for St. Paul, his point being that we need to build our lives around the eternal prospects, not those of this world. In this society “things” seem so important to us. However, the truth is that they have no eternal significance. That is an ongoing message in the concept of stewardship — basically who we are and how we live is more important than what we own and what we may appear to be. That can be tough for us.
The late Billy Graham, who died earlier this year, was fond of saying, “My home is in Heaven. I am just traveling through this world.” St. Paul would agree with that attitude.
