Blessed Feast of St. Barnabas to you all.
Barnabas was an early Christian convert and leader in the Church in Jerusalem. When people in Antioch fist believed the Gospel, Barnabas was sent from Jerusalem to see what was happening. Luke writes in Acts, "The report of this came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. When he came and saw the grace of God, he was glad, and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose, for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith" (Acts 11:22-24).
What an honor to be described in Holy Scripture as "a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith." And this passage also tells us why Barnabas is described as good. For when he saw the grace of God (i.e. people trusting Jesus and His Gospel) "he was glad, and exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose." Now, think about an enthusiastic coach more than an angry preacher and I think we'll have a sense of Barnabas' goodness. Barnabas recognizes God's goodness in Jesus as good, and encourages the faithful to remain faithful to God's goodness which is Jesus.
The passage continues, "And a great many people were added to the Lord. So Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church and taught a great many people. And in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians" (Acts 11:24-26).
Barnabas brought Paul, the former persecutor of the faithful, to Antioch to teach the faithful. And together with Paul, Barnabas was in the place where the word "Christian" was coined. Wow! What goodness, indeed.
And His goodness can become our goodness, because it's God's goodness shared freely through faith in Jesus who is "our great God and savior . . . who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for His own possession who are zealous for good works" ( Titus 2:13b-14). This self-giving love of God in and through Jesus is what is celebrated today by Christians who observe this day (the Friday after Corpus Christi) as the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
The main idea of this celebration is to adore the love of Jesus, and ask for grace to return His love by asking for God's help to live the Great Commandment. As it says in the prayer book, "Hear what our Lord Jesus Christ saith: Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment, and the second is like unto it. Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets." And as it says in Scripture, "We love because he first loved us" ( 1 John 4:19).
Enjoy this day giving thanks for the examples of a good man named Barnabas, whose character was transformed to share the loving heart of his savior, Jesus.
The lessons for this coming Sunday are:
2 Samuel 11:26--12:10, 13-15
Psalm 32:1-8
Galatians 2:11-21
Luke 7:36-50
Announcements
There are no mid-week Masses this week. Wednesday in Mary will lead Evening Prayer at 6pm.
The Wednesday evening study at St. David's, Gilmer, will resume on June 23 after 6pm Mass and will cover Amos chapters 1-6.
Blessings to you,
Fr Greg+
Barnabas was an early Christian convert and leader in the Church in Jerusalem. When people in Antioch fist believed the Gospel, Barnabas was sent from Jerusalem to see what was happening. Luke writes in Acts, "The report of this came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. When he came and saw the grace of God, he was glad, and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose, for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith" (Acts 11:22-24).
What an honor to be described in Holy Scripture as "a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith." And this passage also tells us why Barnabas is described as good. For when he saw the grace of God (i.e. people trusting Jesus and His Gospel) "he was glad, and exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose." Now, think about an enthusiastic coach more than an angry preacher and I think we'll have a sense of Barnabas' goodness. Barnabas recognizes God's goodness in Jesus as good, and encourages the faithful to remain faithful to God's goodness which is Jesus.
The passage continues, "And a great many people were added to the Lord. So Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church and taught a great many people. And in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians" (Acts 11:24-26).
Barnabas brought Paul, the former persecutor of the faithful, to Antioch to teach the faithful. And together with Paul, Barnabas was in the place where the word "Christian" was coined. Wow! What goodness, indeed.
And His goodness can become our goodness, because it's God's goodness shared freely through faith in Jesus who is "our great God and savior . . . who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for His own possession who are zealous for good works" ( Titus 2:13b-14). This self-giving love of God in and through Jesus is what is celebrated today by Christians who observe this day (the Friday after Corpus Christi) as the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
The main idea of this celebration is to adore the love of Jesus, and ask for grace to return His love by asking for God's help to live the Great Commandment. As it says in the prayer book, "Hear what our Lord Jesus Christ saith: Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment, and the second is like unto it. Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets." And as it says in Scripture, "We love because he first loved us" ( 1 John 4:19).
Enjoy this day giving thanks for the examples of a good man named Barnabas, whose character was transformed to share the loving heart of his savior, Jesus.
The lessons for this coming Sunday are:
2 Samuel 11:26--12:10, 13-15
Psalm 32:1-8
Galatians 2:11-21
Luke 7:36-50
Announcements
There are no mid-week Masses this week. Wednesday in Mary will lead Evening Prayer at 6pm.
The Wednesday evening study at St. David's, Gilmer, will resume on June 23 after 6pm Mass and will cover Amos chapters 1-6.
Blessings to you,
Fr Greg+
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