one for all, and all for one
"I for My part declare to you, you are 'Rock,' and on this rock I will build My Church, and the jaws of death shall not prevail against it. I will entrust to you the keys of the kingdom of heaven." —Matthew 16:18-19
The Lord wants us to be one as He and the Father are one (Jn 17:21). "It was in one Spirit" that we "were baptized into one body" (1 Cor 12:13). The source, center, and culmination of our faith is receiving and being in unity, union, and Communion with the Lord and each other.
The Lord has provided practical means for us to become one. He has given us His representative on earth, the Pope, as a center of unity (see Mt 16:18-19). Just as receiving Holy Communion is not merely a spiritualized abstraction but actually receiving the Body and Blood of Jesus, so our unity in the body of Christ is more than a spiritual attitude. Our unity is based on a relationship with the Pope in love, submission, and obedience. We celebrate this relationship on today's feast of the Chair of St. Peter. We are one with and in Christ. We are one with and through the Pope. We are one with each other. Let us celebrate our unity and the papacy.
Prayer: Father, make us one by Your standards and in Your ways.
Promise: "Be examples to the flock, not lording it over those assigned to you, so that when the chief Shepherd appears you will win for yourselves the unfading crown of glory." —1 Pt 5:3-4
Praise: Jesus asked St. Peter three times "Do you love me?" Peter replied three times, "Yes, Lord, you know that I do" (Jn 21:15-17). With that, Peter accepted Jesus' call to become the first Pope of the Catholic Church.
Reference: (Ladies, our annual Women's retreat is March 15-16. Join your sisters in Christ as we look to Mary this Lent to guide us closer to her Son. For more information or to register, call 513-373-2397 or see our website www.presentationministries.com or e-mail us at retreats@presentationministries.com.)
Rescript: †Most Reverend Joseph R. Binzer, Auxiliary Bishop, Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, October 24, 2018
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