The Memorial of St. Andrew Kim Taegon
(1 Timothy 3: 14-16, Luke 7:31-35)
“You should know how to behave in the household of God, which is the Church of the living God” (1 Tim. 3:14). This Church is found on the cornerstone who is Christ. Each of us is a living stone that the Master builder has fitted together to build up the Church. As living stones, we are fitted together and cemented in place by the Holy Spirit. Because of the Master architect’s plan, we both support and are supported by one another. God the Father draws us into an intimate relationship with every other stone and the cornerstone, Jesus Christ. Having been fitted together into the Temp[le of the Holy Spirit, we need to be connected to Christ who is our foundation and support. As Christ is our helpmate and companion, we are to be helpmates and companions to one another.
Having been called out of the world and bound to Christ, we are to embrace and support all those that the Father considers precious in his sight. The image of living stones held together by the bond of love presents a vivid picture of a secure and intimate relationship with Christ and all His members. We, all of us, are to be one in Christ as he is one in the Father. We are called to live as people loved by God, who have been created out of love, to love one another. The household of God is meant to be a place of refuge for people who are lost in darkness. Having been bonded to him who is the way, the truth, and the life (CF. Jn 14:6), we are to speak the truth in love (CF. Eph.4:15).
All who have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ and have become living stones in the house where the Most-High dwells. The Temple of the Living God is the depository of the Living Word and a living testament to the Truth. We live and move in Him who chooses to live in us. We are to serve as beacons for those tossed about in the turbulent seas of life. Having our anchor in Christ, we stretch out our hands to those in trouble. We are partners with God in the task of building up the kingdom.
As I was putting together this reflection, our Jewish brothers and sisters were celebrating Rosh Hashanah. I will conclude with a few random comments I borrowed from Chabad.org. “Not only is Rosh Hashanah about the One Above, but it is also about us below… He created the world. But we drive it to its destiny. That is why it is called “the beginning of Your works”—even though it is not the anniversary of the creation of the universe but of the human being. It is the true beginning, as all of time begins on this day… On this day, more than any other, we are empowered to switch tracks, to transform our destiny and thereby the destiny of all of creation … Through us, the bitter darkness that shrouded truth and goodness can become a flaming torch of light. By connecting our minds to the mind of our Creator, opening our hearts to His boundless love, and laboring to transform His world into a place where one being cares for another so that the many become one… Together, let us recreate our world. make order from confusion, harmony from destruction, caring and compassion where apathy had reigned, light out of darkness.”
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