No doubt when St. Paul was spreading the gospel to include the non-Jews, the Gentiles, the memory of Jesus’ expansive definition of what it meant to be a believer echoed in the Church’s memory. “Whoever does the will of my heavenly Father is my brother, and sister, and mother.” Faith is not matter of biology or nationality or race. It is a question of practice. Live as the gospel commands and no matter who your family is you belong. This understanding produced an interesting conversation several years ago. Someone was proposed as a godfather and one of the questions is “are you a practicing Catholic.” He answered, “Father, I will admit I don’t go to Church as often as I should. However, I work very hard to care for the needy who are in my neighborhood. I am part of a peace circle promoting reconciliation in a violent city. I am on the committee welcoming refugees into this country.” What do you think? Was he a practicing Catholic?
JULY232024
By Church Staff
