📜Epistle (2 Tim 4, 1-8)
Dearly beloved: I charge thee, before God and Jesus Christ, who shall judge the living and the dead, by his coming and his kingdom: Preach the word: be instant in season, out of season: reprove, entreat, rebuke in all patience and doctrine. For there shall be a time when they will not endure sound doctrine but, according to their own desires, they will heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears: And will indeed turn away their hearing from the truth, but will be turned unto fables. But be thou vigilant, labor in all things, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill thy ministry. Be sober. For I am even now ready to be sacrificed: and the time of my dissolution is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith. As to the rest, there is laid up for me a crown of justice, which the Lord the just judge will render to me in that day: and not only to me, but to them also that love his coming.
Dearly beloved: I charge thee, before God and Jesus Christ, who shall judge the living and the dead, by his coming and his kingdom: Preach the word: be instant in season, out of season: reprove, entreat, rebuke in all patience and doctrine. For there shall be a time when they will not endure sound doctrine but, according to their own desires, they will heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears: And will indeed turn away their hearing from the truth, but will be turned unto fables. But be thou vigilant, labor in all things, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill thy ministry. Be sober. For I am even now ready to be sacrificed: and the time of my dissolution is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith. As to the rest, there is laid up for me a crown of justice, which the Lord the just judge will render to me in that day: and not only to me, but to them also that love his coming.
✠Gospel (Mt 5, 13-19)
At that time, Jesus said to his disciples: You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt lose its savor, wherewith shall it be salted? It is good for nothing anymore but to be cast out, and to be trodden on by men. You are the light of the world. A city seated on a mountain cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel, but upon a candlestick, that it may shine to all that are in the house. So let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. Do not think that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets. I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For amen I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot, or one tittle shall not pass of the law, till all be fulfilled. He therefore that shall break one of these least commandments, and shall so teach men, shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven. But he that shall do and teach, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
At that time, Jesus said to his disciples: You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt lose its savor, wherewith shall it be salted? It is good for nothing anymore but to be cast out, and to be trodden on by men. You are the light of the world. A city seated on a mountain cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel, but upon a candlestick, that it may shine to all that are in the house. So let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. Do not think that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets. I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For amen I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot, or one tittle shall not pass of the law, till all be fulfilled. He therefore that shall break one of these least commandments, and shall so teach men, shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven. But he that shall do and teach, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
🏛️The fortress of the priesthood and the wisdom of doctrine
Today's liturgy masterfully unites the Pauline exhortation to doctrinal vigilance with the evangelical definition of the episcopal mission, personified in Saint Ambrose. Saint Paul warns Timothy about the times when men "will not endure sound doctrine," a prophecy Ambrose lived by combating the Arianism that infested the imperial court. Saint Augustine, the spiritual fruit of Ambrose, teaches in his Confessions that the authority of the bishop lies not only in management but in the capacity to be "salt"—that is, the Divine Wisdom that prevents the corruption of the flesh and error—and "light" that dispels ignorance. The "salt" must burn with the fire of charity, but without losing the savor of truth; if the bishop remains silent before error for political convenience, he becomes tasteless and worthy of being trodden upon. Ambrose did not put his light under the bushel of fear; on the contrary, he placed it on the candlestick of the Church, rebuking emperors and instructing commoners with the same solicitude. The Catechism and tradition confirm that the fulfillment of the Law is not cold legalism, but the perfection of charity that teaches and keeps the commandments, "great and small." The "crown of justice" mentioned by the Apostle is reserved not for those who seek applause, but for those who, like Ambrose, fight the good fight of faith, ensuring that not one letter of the Divine Law is diluted by the spirit of the world.
Today's liturgy masterfully unites the Pauline exhortation to doctrinal vigilance with the evangelical definition of the episcopal mission, personified in Saint Ambrose. Saint Paul warns Timothy about the times when men "will not endure sound doctrine," a prophecy Ambrose lived by combating the Arianism that infested the imperial court. Saint Augustine, the spiritual fruit of Ambrose, teaches in his Confessions that the authority of the bishop lies not only in management but in the capacity to be "salt"—that is, the Divine Wisdom that prevents the corruption of the flesh and error—and "light" that dispels ignorance. The "salt" must burn with the fire of charity, but without losing the savor of truth; if the bishop remains silent before error for political convenience, he becomes tasteless and worthy of being trodden upon. Ambrose did not put his light under the bushel of fear; on the contrary, he placed it on the candlestick of the Church, rebuking emperors and instructing commoners with the same solicitude. The Catechism and tradition confirm that the fulfillment of the Law is not cold legalism, but the perfection of charity that teaches and keeps the commandments, "great and small." The "crown of justice" mentioned by the Apostle is reserved not for those who seek applause, but for those who, like Ambrose, fight the good fight of faith, ensuring that not one letter of the Divine Law is diluted by the spirit of the world.
🇺🇸See English version of the critical articles here