Saint James, the son of Zebedee the fisherman, recited the prophet Amos and fostered the Church that Jesus had begun. The former scribes and pharisees, new Christians themselves, were again a problem for the early church, demanding that rabbinic laws be followed for the gentile catechumenate. But it was St. James that silenced the argument with the power of the Holy Spirit by quoting from the Torah, an Epilogue from the Book of Amos, a poet who had earlier prophesied the fall of the Northern Kingdom in 400 BC, “On that day I will raise up the fallen hut of David…” At that first Council in Jerusalem, the Holy Spirit moved Saint James to speak and say, “It is my judgement, that we should stop troubling the Gentiles who turn to God.” These inspired words of Saint James let the seeds spread by the early disciples to reach many of the Gentiles of that time. The words of our loving God do not pass away despite all the wayward acts of man.

In this way, the great command of Jesus to love one another took on a greater meaning for all the disciples. The new Christians realized God’s intention to save the whole world more fully. Today’s reading reminds us that we must guard against excluding a group or an individual from our community based on our personal prejudices. This is God’s mission: to spread the Kingdom of God.

Saint Peter Julian Eymard’s “total gift of himself” was expressed in his life as an exercise of love and compassion for his neighbor. As an untiring apostle of charity, fueled by the Eucharist, he dared to venture where others did not go – into the outskirts of Paris where the poor lived, to take upon himself the burden of humanity abandoned by society.

Let Us Pray:

Jesus, guide us in your light to see the opportunities to serve others. Open our hearts to embrace everyone as our brothers and sisters.