Sep 16 – Memorial for Sts. Cornelius, Pope and Martyr; and Cyprian, Bishop and Martyr
St. Cornelius (d. 253) was elected after a year-and-a-half period, during which persecutions were so bad that papal ascension was a quick death sentence. He worked to maintain unity in a time of schism and apostasy. He called a synod of bishops to confirm him as rightful pontiff, as opposed to the anti-pope Novatian. Cornelius was eventually exiled by Roman authorities to punish Christians in general, who were said to have provoked the gods to send plague against Rome.
St. Cyprian (190-258) was baptised when he was 56. By the time he was bishop, he had been a Christian for only 3 years! When the Roman emperor Decius persecuted Christians, Cyprian lived in hiding, covertly ministering to his flock; his enemies condemned him for being a coward and not standing up for his faith. He supported St. Cornelius against the anti-pope Novatian. He too was exiled and martyred when Decius’ successor continued with persecution of Christians.
- Patron Saint Index
Cor 11:17-26,33
Lk 7:1-10
“…I am not worthy to have you under my roof…”
We offer this response at every Mass as we prepare to receive the Eucharist. How many of us simply rattle this off as a ‘canned response’? I am, at times, guilty of this as well.
As I reflect on this phrase, are we really worthy to receive the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ? We, who are broken and fallen, prone to sin and selfishness, can we ever be worthy to receive God himself? Even if we are in a state of grace, do we dare to say, “Yes! I am worthy?”
I know I am not worthy. But by God’s grace, He has allowed me to serve in the ministries of the Word of God and of the Eucharist. There have been times when I process up to the ambo to proclaim the Word, when I say to myself, “What am I doing here? Am I an imposter pretending to proclaim the Word?” But I pray to let the Holy Spirit guide the words that I proclaim, and that the words that I proclaim strike a chord with the congregation. I also pray to not let myself allow my pride to get too carried away, in that I become too focused on the delivery or the ‘performance’. I pray for the grace to proclaim it clearly so that some may find solace and comfort in the Word, and that some may even perceive God’s movement in those words and in our lives.
In today’s gospel, we hear of the Roman centurion asking Jesus to heal his servant. He was obviously a man used to having his orders obeyed without question. Even with all his authority and power, he must have been at his wits end to even consider asking Jesus, a Jew, for help. Perhaps, he had also exhausted all his efforts with his own Roman healers. The fact that he humbled himself even to consider seeking help from one below his station is, indeed, mind boggling. Perhaps, this is also a lesson for all of us — sometimes the answer we seek may not be immediately apparent, the answers we seek may be from an unlikely source. So let our hearts be open to consider all possibilities and let the Holy Spirit guide us to the right solution.
What was even more surprising to me, in the case of the Roman centurion, was that he did not even want Jesus to come into his house — he trusted in Jesus enough to know that his servant will be healed if Jesus wills it. Do we have that same trust and faith? Do we dare to leave our worries and cares to the Lord and let Jesus minister to us? Honestly, I don’t know. I say the words, I pray for the trust and grace to let God be God, but there’s this little bit of a nagging fear at the edges of my mind.
Perhaps that nagging fear is good, in that it doesn’t allow us to be complacent. That we know that we cannot do anything without God leading us. And that God is saying, “Yes! You are worthy. You have been made in my image and likeness. I have come down from Heaven and redeemed you. You are mine and I will always take care of you.”
(Today’s OXYGEN by Calvin Wee)
Prayer: Open our hearts and minds, Lord, to see your workings in all that we do. Grant that we may have the faith and trust in You, to allow you to minister to us when we are in need. And to know that all of us are loved. Amen.
Thanksgiving: Thank you Father, for counting us worthy of your great love. Grant that we may never ever take You for granted and that we should always come to you in good times and in bad. Let us always give thanks for this great gift of being your sons and daughters and that You will always be there for us. Amen.
OXYGEN 
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