CT - Catholic Telegraph

God’s word offers direction

Fourth Sunday of Easter (A), Acts of the Apostles 2:14a, 36-41 (Lectionary 049, April 17, 2005)

This Sunday’s reading is from the same chapter as last Sunday’s and gives us the ending of Peter’s speech on the first Christian Pentecost.

After the same introductory verse as in last Sunday’s reading, we hear Peter drawing to a conclusion. (Note that the lectionary text omits verses 34 f. that again demonstrate Jesus’ messiahship through a quotation from Psalms.) Peter’s bottom line is a call to awareness. He invites the people to "know for certain" that Jesus is "both Lord and Christ." That is, Jesus is both agent and extension of God and also the promised ruler of the house of David.
"But instead of welcoming Him, you crucified Him," Peter tells the people.

In great fear, they ask Peter and the other apostles what they are to do. Now comes more good news. In spite of their rejection of Jesus, they are to be given a second chance. First of all they must repent. That is, they must change their idea of Jesus. They are to share the conviction of the apostles that Jesus is the Lord. Then they are to be baptized; that is, to undergo the ritual washing that would signify their acceptance of Jesus.

This acceptance of Jesus in baptism would bring about the forgiveness of their sins, both their personal sins and their involvement in the corporate rejection and killing of Jesus. As a result of that, they would receive the Holy Spirit as the apostles had received the Spirit earlier on that Pentecost day, and as the Holy Spirit had been promised to God’s people and their children. (This last assurance refers to the very beginning of Peter’s speech, to a part not presented in the lectionary readings, in which Peter had told the people that what they were seeing in the apostles was the beginning of the gift of God’s power and energy to His people that had been promised by the prophet Joel long ago.)

But even more, the Spirit would ultimately come not only on the Jews but also on "whomever God would call." Here we have an indication of the call of the Gentiles that constitutes the subject matter of the succeeding chapters of Acts.

Peter brings his address to a close by urging his hearers to separate themselves from "this corrupt generation," that is, from the people who had crucified Christ, the people with whom God had expressed His dissatisfaction in Deuteronomy (32:5) and Psalms (78:8). Those who wished to be saved had to cut themselves off from those who refused to accept Jesus.

Finally we see the outcome of Peter’s discourse. About 3,000 persons were baptized, the beginning of a new chosen people.

What we have in this reading is not just a historical narrative, a remembrance of what was said and what happened on that first Christian Pentecost a long time ago. We also have God’s inspired word offering us direction for our own faith life.

Granted, we have already accepted Christ as Lord and Messiah. We have been baptized. But that doesn’t mean that we no longer have need for repentance. Repentance is not just sorrow for sin, but an ever-renewed dedication to the Lord Jesus. None of us, not even the greatest saint, can say that we have fully and definitively accepted everything that Christ offers us in faith. Our heart is always in need of further change. Our awareness and understanding of Jesus must be continuously in a process of deepening. We can never say that we know the Lord well enough, that we have received all we need from Him, that our relationship with Him is all that it could or should be. We are always being called to a deeper relationship with the Lord, to repentance.

And like those first Jews who accepted baptism in response to Peter’s call, we, too, have to separate ourselves from the "corrupt generation" that surrounds us. The world in which we live is a world that proclaims that religious faith isn’t really important, that self-satisfaction is the most important thing in life, that expending effort in pursuit of goodness is wasted effort. We can’t afford to let ourselves buy into ideas like that.

Moreover, this corrupt generation is dangerous. It’s easy to find ourselves attracted by the comfort and self-fulfillment that it offers. It’s easy to be charmed away from the path of the Lord. And the corrupt generation is not tolerant of those who reject its offerings. It looks on those who accept Jesus as Messiah and Lord as outsiders, as critics, as accusers. Every Christian martyr has tasted the hostility of the surrounding world. And every disciple of the Lord is called to be a witness, which is another word for martyr.

For reflection and discussion

Is repentance part of my life?

How do I relate to the corrupt world around me?



		Welcome to the online edition of The Catholic Telegraph, the official newspaper of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati Serving 500,000 Catholics in the southwest Ohio counties of: Adams, Auglaize, Brown, Butler, Champaign, Clark, Clermont, Clinton, Darke, Greene, Hamilton, Highland, Logan, Mercer, Miami, Montgomery, Preble, Shelby and Warren.

	*Overtures* Reflection on the first readings of the Sunday liturgy By Archbishop Daniel E. Pilarczyk God’s word offers direction Fourth Sunday of Easter (A), Acts of the Apostles 2:14a, 36-41 (Lectionary 049, April 17, 2005) This Sunday’s reading is from the same chapter as last Sunday’s and gives us the ending of Peter’s speech on the first Christian Pentecost. After the same introductory verse as in last Sunday’s reading, we hear Peter drawing to a conclusion. (Note that the lectionary text omits verses 34 f. that again demonstrate Jesus’ messiahship through a quotation from Psalms.) Peter’s bottom line is a call to awareness. He invites the people to "know for certain" that Jesus is "both Lord and Christ." That is, Jesus is both agent and extension of God and also the promised ruler of the house of David. "But instead of welcoming Him, you crucified Him," Peter tells the people. In great fear, they ask Peter and the other apostles what they are to do. Now comes more good news. In spite of their rejection of Jesus, they are to be given a second chance. First of all they must repent. That is, they must change their idea of Jesus. They are to share the conviction of the apostles that Jesus is the Lord. Then they are to be baptized; that is, to undergo the ritual washing that would signify their acceptance of Jesus. This acceptance of Jesus in baptism would bring about the forgiveness of their sins, both their personal sins and their involvement in the corporate rejection and killing of Jesus. As a result of that, they would receive the Holy Spirit as the apostles had received the Spirit earlier on that Pentecost day, and as the Holy Spirit had been promised to God’s people and their children. (This last assurance refers to the very beginning of Peter’s speech, to a part not presented in the lectionary readings, in which Peter had told the people that what they were seeing in the apostles was the beginning of the gift of God’s power and energy to His people that had been promised by the prophet Joel long ago.) But even more, the Spirit would ultimately come not only on the Jews but also on "whomever God would call." Here we have an indication of the call of the Gentiles that constitutes the subject matter of the succeeding chapters of Acts. Peter brings his address to a close by urging his hearers to separate themselves from "this corrupt generation," that is, from the people who had crucified Christ, the people with whom God had expressed His dissatisfaction in Deuteronomy (32:5) and Psalms (78:8). Those who wished to be saved had to cut themselves off from those who refused to accept Jesus. Finally we see the outcome of Peter’s discourse. About 3,000 persons were baptized, the beginning of a new chosen people. What we have in this reading is not just a historical narrative, a remembrance of what was said and what happened on that first Christian Pentecost a long time ago. We also have God’s inspired word offering us direction for our own faith life. Granted, we have already accepted Christ as Lord and Messiah. We have been baptized. But that doesn’t mean that we no longer have need for repentance. Repentance is not just sorrow for sin, but an ever-renewed dedication to the Lord Jesus. None of us, not even the greatest saint, can say that we have fully and definitively accepted everything that Christ offers us in faith. Our heart is always in need of further change. Our awareness and understanding of Jesus must be continuously in a process of deepening. We can never say that we know the Lord well enough, that we have received all we need from Him, that our relationship with Him is all that it could or should be. We are always being called to a deeper relationship with the Lord, to repentance. And like those first Jews who accepted baptism in response to Peter’s call, we, too, have to separate ourselves from the "corrupt generation" that surrounds us. The world in which we live is a world that proclaims that religious faith isn’t really important, that self-satisfaction is the most important thing in life, that expending effort in pursuit of goodness is wasted effort. We can’t afford to let ourselves buy into ideas like that. Moreover, this corrupt generation is dangerous. It’s easy to find ourselves attracted by the comfort and self-fulfillment that it offers. It’s easy to be charmed away from the path of the Lord. And the corrupt generation is not tolerant of those who reject its offerings. It looks on those who accept Jesus as Messiah and Lord as outsiders, as critics, as accusers. Every Christian martyr has tasted the hostility of the surrounding world. And every disciple of the Lord is called to be a witness, which is another word for martyr. For reflection and discussion** Is repentance part of my life? How do I relate to the corrupt world around me?

	[Return to top of page ] Copyright (c) 2004 The Catholic Telegraph