Luke 12:49-53

Ephesians 3:14-21

Psalm 33:1-2, 4-5, 11-12, 18-19

Luke 12:49-53

Jesus said to his disciples:

“I have come to set the earth on fire,

and how I wish it were already blazing!

There is a baptism with which I must be baptized,

and how great is my anguish until it is accomplished!

Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth?

No, I tell you, but rather division.

From now on a household of five will be divided,

three against two and two against three;

a father will be divided against his son

and a son against his father, 

a mother against her daughter

and a daughter against her mother,

a mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law

and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.”

Opening Prayer: Lord God, send forth your Spirit into my heart that I may understand your divine Word. Grant me the gift of counsel so that I may know what to say and how to act within my family. I want to bring all my family members to share in your divine life.

Encountering the Word of God

1. Prince of Peace or Bringer of Division? The Gospel passage we read is not an easy one to understand. If Jesus is the “prince of peace” (Isaiah 9:6) and gives the gift of peace to his Apostles after the Resurrection, then why does he say in today’s Gospel that he came not to give peace but to bring division? How can we reconcile this with his message of love, communion, mercy, eternal life, and salvation? Before speaking about the interfamilial division he will bring about, Jesus tells us that he came to cast fire on the earth and that he will be baptized. The fire Jesus brings is not an earthly fire. Rather, fire is an image of God’s presence and love. It is an image of God’s judgment of sinners. It is also a symbol of divine purification. Jesus, then, brings us the fire of God’s love: he invites sinners to repent, and he purifies them from sin. And when Jesus speaks about his baptism, he isn’t speaking about his past baptism by John in the River Jordan, but about his future baptism on the Cross. He desires to purify and save us, and he will do this by being sacrificed for our sins.

2. Unleashing the Tribulation: To understand the type of division Jesus brings, we need to recall that the prophets (like Micah 7:6) foresaw a time of tribulation, characterized by a time of interfamilial strife and division, before the coming of the Kingdom and the salvation of the New Exodus (see Pitre, Jesus, the Tribulation, and the End of the Exile, 216). When Jesus speaks about the division he will bring, he is saying that he is unleashing the time of tribulation foreseen by the prophets. The time of tribulation precedes the age of salvation. By unleashing the time of tribulation, Jesus then can establish the Kingdom of God and lead the New Exodus. When Jesus began his ministry, the people of Israel were in exile. They were waiting for the Shepherd who would restore them and bring them into one flock. With the coming of Jesus, the Good Shepherd, the exile ends and the New Exodus begins. This New Exodus leads not to an earthly promised land but to a heavenly one. We, who have been baptized into Christ, are on this New Exodus. We are walking with Jesus, the New Moses, and are led by the cloud and fire of the Holy Spirit to our heavenly home.

3. Paul’s Five Petitions: Like Jesus, who speaks about deep mysteries, Paul also speaks about very deep mysteries in his prayer for the Ephesians. Paul kneels before God the Father in prayer and makes five petitions for his readers (see Williamson, Ephesians, 96-101). First, he asks that they be strengthened with the power of the Holy Spirit. Second, he asks that Jesus may dwell in their hearts. This is where Jesus wants to dwell and reign. As Christians, we live in Christ, and he lives in us. Third, Paul asks that they may understand. This likely refers to God’s loving plan of salvation and the wisdom of the Cross. Fourth, Paul wants his readers to know the love of Christ. Each day, we have to experience Christ’s merciful love. Lastly, Paul wants the Ephesians to be filled with the fullness of God. This sums up the other petitions. Through grace, the Trinity dwells in us, and we share in the wisdom of the Son and the love of the Spirit. Through grace, we are granted the wisdom to see things from God’s perspective and are enabled to love God and our neighbor. As we journey through the desert to our heavenly home, we are led by Jesus and the Spirit, sustained with the New Manna of the Eucharist, guided by the New Law of charity, and enjoy the peace of the New Covenant. We are called to invite all men and women to share in these riches and journey with us to heaven, where every tear will be wiped away and where sin and death are no more.

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, I do not know how to pray as I ought. I need to sit again and again at your feet and learn from you. Guide my thoughts and prayers so that I may ask for good things from the Father.

Living the Word of God: Am I able to discern when I need to be a peacemaker and when I need to be a sign of contradiction? Peace is not naïve toleration; it is the tranquility of order. It is not opposed to justice or truth. How can I order my life more properly to experience the peace of Christ? What are the areas of disorder I am called to address, with charity and truth, in my family life or professional life?