Homily: Twenty-third Tuesday of Ordinary Time

Twenty-third Tuesday of Ordinary Time (Cor. 6:1-11) “Lawyering Up”

We live in a very litigious society. We have more lawyers than almost any other country in the world. If we look at Japan, we find that there are very few lawyers. The thought in Japan is that you should put misfortune behind you as quickly as possible. The Japanese believe that the longer a controversy is prolonged the harder it is to recover from trauma.

When we consider the reading, we have in Corinthians today we might say that the Greeks Saint Paul was writing to were very much like Americans today. But the Jews were more like the Japanese.

In Greek culture many people were involved in the legal system. Judges were drawn from the general population. Juries could consist of hundreds of people. If you did not participate in the legal system, you could lose your rights as a citizen. Legal wrangling was a very public event. Disputes left a mark on a person’s reputation, good or bad.

In Jewish culture it was thought that two Jews should be able to work out a legal dispute before it ever got to the court system. If an argument became a legal matter, it was considered a failure. The faith of the two parties in God’s law was not strong enough.

Paul just could not understand why the Greeks were so caught up in arbitration, courts, judges and juries. He asks the question of whether legal disputes were in keeping with Christian life. Would it not be better to forgive and turn the other cheek and carry on with life.

Would there be less damage done all around if this were the case. Paul felt that the person wronged would probably find peace of mind more quickly through the act of forgiveness.

Reflection Question:

1.    Do I think our legal system works well? Why or why not?

2.   Do I find peace of mind when I forgive? Do I feel better when someone is punished for a crime?

Dear Parishioners,

             Everyone should have received their ADA mailing by now. Please drop your pledge in the mail this week. Most of the appeal is being handled by the Diocese of Peoria. They are counting the proceeds. We will have no idea if we are meeting our goal before November.

            It would be good to be able to close out the appeal as soon as possible. This would be good for our diocese and for us.

            May our Lady of Peace Pray for us,

            Fr. Mark