Memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary
“O Stupid Galatians!” begins our passage from Paul’s letter today. Paul’s frustration with the church of Galatia is expressed here full-force. The subject of this letter is circumcision, which Paul argues is not necessary in order to be a Christian. This is contrary to those Judaizer Christians, who argued that to become Christian one must first become Jewish. This was a way of excluding Gentiles from becoming Christian.
For Paul, however, this is not just an issue of exclusivism; it is an issue of understanding the workings of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is, in fact, the one who has led these people to faith in Christ. An emphasis on circumcision as a necessity seems to contradict God’s work through the Spirit, placing the focus instead on now unnecessary Jewish ceremonial practices. Paul calls the people back to the Spirit and back to faith in the gospel—the good news of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. In today’s gospel passage from Luke, Jesus also calls his disciples to faith, faith in the goodness of the Father.
The message here is persistence in asking, and Jesus states that the Father will give to those who ask for and seek the Holy Spirit. Notice the specificity of this; while the message as a whole regards persistence, specifically it is about those who desire the Holy Spirit. Both readings today draw out this message of the Holy Spirit as gift. It is the best gift that the Father can give us, and the Father WANTS to give us this gift. All we have to do is ask for it with persistence. But, like the people of Galatia, we often fall into the trap of trying to do things on our own, instead of seeking the Spirit. We sometimes live as though everything depends on our own work, as though we can save ourselves, when, in fact, we have already been saved and continue to be saved in the person of Jesus through the continuing work of the Holy Spirit.
Today we also celebrate the Memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary. Although this feast commemorates a 16th century battle at Lepanto, where Christians’ victory was attributed to praying the Rosary, it is a good reminder to all of us of the power of prayer. If persistence in prayer is a hallmark of our faith, praying the Rosary is an excellent way to be persistent. Jesus’ mother Mary was given to all of us when Jesus was dying on the cross, and now we can ask her intercession in confidence, knowing that, like a good mother, she wants what is best for us, and will help us to grow in holiness by leading us closer to her son each day. If it’s been awhile since you took up a Rosary, today is a good day to give it a try.
- Maria Morrow