Saturday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time
The theme I see in both of today’s readings is reordering of norms. In the first reading, St. Paul writes to the Galatians that faith and baptism unites us in Christ. The Galatian Gentiles in baptism also become part of the people of the covenant and Abraham’s descendants, a controversial idea among Jews who saw themselves as the only members of God's people. Paul indicates that the Gospel is for all who accept it. This faith is what unites all believers and removes divisions among them. “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free person, there is not male or female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus,” (Galatians 3:28). This reading challenges us to look at what divides us especially in these polarizing times, inspires us to see what unites us, and helps us realize that we have more in common than we think.
In the Gospel, Jesus replies to the woman that those who are blessed follow the Word of God. By saying yes like Mary, Jesus’ mother, we too can belong to Christ. Also, like Mary, God invites us and all others to be part of the Body of Christ. Belonging is no longer dependent upon ancestry, country, or those we get along with but relies on accepting the Word of God. This makes us a part of God’s people, a group that transcends ethnicity, race, class, and gender and is always welcoming others in and ever expanding. How is God inviting you? How is God calling you to invite others?
—Sr. Emily Sandoval, FMI