John 16:12-15

Acts 17:15, 22-18:1

Psalm 148:1-2, 11-12, 13, 14

John 16:12-15

Jesus said to his disciples:

“I have much more to tell you, but you cannot bear it now.

But when he comes, the Spirit of truth,

he will guide you to all truth.

He will not speak on his own,

but he will speak what he hears,

and will declare to you the things that are coming.

He will glorify me,

because he will take from what is mine and declare it to you.

Everything that the Father has is mine;

for this reason I told you that he will take from what is mine

and declare it to you.”

Opening Prayer: Lord God, I praise you for who you are and thank you for all you have done for me. You have created all things and guide them carefully to their ultimate end. You sent your Son to redeem me and your Spirit to sanctify me. You have done marvelous things and show, in all things, your love and mercy.

Encountering the Word of God

1. The Guiding Spirit: The Gospel reminds us that it is the Holy Spirit who will guide us to all truth. When we reject the Spirit’s guidance we abuse our freedom. However, when we allow ourselves to be guided by the Spirit we are truly free. Just as the Holy Spirit was at work in Paul’s ministry and preaching, the Spirit can also work in us and through us. Ultimately, this world was created for the glory of God. It is not the result of chaos or just one more world in a never-ending series. By allowing the Holy Spirit into our lives we share in the glory of the Son and of the Father.

2. Paul’s Ministry in Thessalonica and Beroea: The First Reading takes place during Paul’s Second Missionary Journey (A.D. 50-52). The Acts of the Apostles tells us that Paul left the city of Philippi and made his way with Silas and Timothy down to Thessalonica, the provincial capital of Macedonia. Paul preached there in the synagogue for three weeks, proving first that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and rise from the dead, and second that Jesus of Nazareth is the Christ. Some of the Jews and many devout Gentiles were persuaded by his argument, but the Jews, unfortunately, became envious of the new Gentile converts and attacked the house of Jason, who had received the missionaries into his home (Acts 17:7). Like the previous episode in Philippi, the accusation before the city authorities of Thessalonica against Paul appeals to Roman sensibilities. Jesus, we recall, was brought before Pilate and was accused of presenting himself as a king in opposition to Caesar: “We found this man perverting our nation, and forbidding us to give tribute to Caesar, and saying that he himself is Christ a king” (Luke 23:2). In Philippi, the people accused Paul of promoting customs unlawful for Romans (Acts 16:21). Now, in Thessalonica, Paul is accused of “acting against the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus” (Acts 17:7). Paul and Silas escaped from Thessalonica by night and went to Beroea, where they preached in the synagogue (Acts 17:10). Once again, the Jews from Thessalonica became envious of the Gentile converts, and they stirred up the crowd against Paul, who had to flee by boat to Athens. Paul wrote two letters to the Thessalonians. The first letter manifests Paul’s concern for the recent converts to the faith, who were left alone to face persecution. “Absent in person and eager to return (3:10), Paul sent the epistle in his place to strengthen them through these difficult times (3:3-5), to encourage them to be chaste and charitable (4:1-12), and to console the bereaved among them with the hope of resurrection (4:13-14)” (Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: New Testament, 371). Paul’s second letter corrects some misunderstandings about Christ’s return.

3. Paul in Athens: In Athens, Paul preached not only in the local synagogue on the Sabbath but also daily in the public square (Acts 17:17), where he had to contend with people belonging to two schools of philosophy in Athens: the Epicureans and the Stoics. On the one hand, the Epicureans did not believe in an afterlife – death is annihilation for them – and held that the world was formed by atoms moving about in a void. The only thing valuable for an Epicurean was pleasure and securing whatever leads to pleasure. The Stoics, on the other hand, held that everything was material and composed of fire, even God. God, for the Stoics, is the primal fire and pervades the entire world. They thought that all things return to the primal fire and this return gives rise to another world identical in every way to the previous worlds. This process never ends and man, after death, continues to exist until his return to the primal fire. Man is encouraged by the Stoics to live according to his rational nature and the laws of the universe, battle against his passions, and find happiness in virtue for the sake of duty. Paul’s approach with the Jews in the synagogues was to show them that Jesus is the Messiah and the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets. He takes a different approach with the Gentile philosophers and begins by presenting his doctrine about God, who is the Creator of this world and the source of all life. God, Paul argues, is not material or the primal fire. He is immaterial and spiritual and does not dwell in sanctuaries made by human hands. God doesn’t lack or need anything. Human beings come from God and are not the result of a chaotic mix of atoms (according to the Epicureans) or a fiery process of the universe (according to the Stoics). God directs and orders both the world and man, so that man will seek after him freely. Paul proclaims that the time of ignorance about the world, man, and God is over, since all truth has been revealed in and through a man whom God appointed and confirmed by raising him from the dead. Things were going well for Paul until he mentioned the resurrection of Jesus. Although some in the crowd, like Dionysius, accepted the faith, the majority of the Epicureans and Stoics could not accept Paul’s doctrine about life after death. They were slow to raise their minds to heavenly things, preferred a purely material explanation of the world, and placed pleasure or virtuous duty as their ultimate happiness. They rejected that man’s true delight is in God alone and did not see that human virtue is not enough for true happiness. Our true happiness, seeing God face to face, is a gift, not a human conquest. This eternal life begins in us in this life through faith, hope, and love.

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, you are the true philosopher and lover of wisdom. You teach the truth about all things and the path that leads to true happiness. Welcome me into your school of wisdom and let me learn from you each day.

Living the Word of God: What do I place my happiness in? What do I pursue most in this short life? Money? Possessions? Health? Pleasure? Honor? Seeing the Face of God? How can I correct my pursuit of ultimate happiness?