Reflection on Today’s Readings, Saturday of 24th Week in Ordinary Time, Year I, and the Memorial of Padre Pio, September 23rd, 2023
Texts: 1 Timothy 6:13-16; Psalm 100:1-5; Luke 8:4-15 

St. Paul exhorts us, today, to keep the Commandment. What is this commandment? It is God’s word, which is preached to us. It is the sound teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ. Such word, teaching, produces its effects in an honest and good heart.  An honest and good heart meditates on God’s word, perseveres in the face of persecution and free from worldly cares. It is in this way it produces its effects, which is blameless life. Keeping the word, commandment, produces virtues, which makes blameless life.  

St. Paul shows that keeping the commandment is a path of blameless life. He puts it thus: “I charge you to keep the commandment unstained and free from reproach until the appearing of our  Lord  Jesus Christ”. The desire to be blameless is fulfilled by keeping the commandment. Do I want to be blameless? I am to keep the commandment.  

Keeping the commandment unstained means we are not to defile any part of it. In the words of Jesus Christ: it is “hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bring forth fruit with patience.” 

The demand to keep the commandment has divine approval

Paul invokes the presence of God and Jesus Christ to affirm the truth of his word and divine approval. This means his word is true and approved by God. The demand to keep the commandment has divine approval. It also shows how serious is the demand to keep the commandment. Being true it demands our obedience. With divine approval, it is pleasing to God to keep the commandment.  

St. Paul also shows that keeping God’s commandment is awaiting the return of Christ. This is because keeping the commandment of God frees us from reproach. Christ is to come and meet us without reproach. Blameless life is the garment for participating in the kingdom of God. Without blameless life we will not participate in Christ’s wedding banquet. We continue to keep the commandment of God unstained until Christ comes again.  

The memorial of St Pio of Pietrelcina

Today is the memorial of St Pio of Pietrelcina. He was a priest whom people very much sought after as a spiritual advisor, confessor, and intercessor. He was also a stigmatist. “He died a few days after the fiftieth anniversary of his receiving the stigmata, and over 100,000 people attended his funeral” (Universalis). 

Prayer 

Almighty ever-living God, who, by a singular grace, gave the Priest Saint Pius a share in the Cross of your Son and, by means of his ministry, renewed the wonders of your mercy, grant that through his intercession we may be united constantly to the sufferings of Christ, and so brought happily to the glory of the resurrection. Amen (Collect) 

Fr. Andrew Olowomuke