Thursday of the 27th Week in Ordinary Time
Galatians 3:1-5; Luke 11:5-13
It’s pretty easy to tell that St. Paul was angry when he wrote to the Galatians. My guess is that if he had any idea his letter would be read in the Church for thousands of years, he probably wouldn’t have lead this section with, “O stupid Galatians!”
But what made him so angry to begin with?
Apparently, some Jewish Christians went to Galatia after he left and informed them that Paul hadn’t told them everything. Yes, faith in Christ was necessary, but there were aspects of Jewish law – like circumcision – that still had to be observed.
The point of Paul’s reply is simple: The Galatians became Christian because they heard the Gospel, believed it, received the Spirit, and encountered Christ. It was a work of grace. They didn’t need to include works of Mosaic Law.
No one needs to add anything to the work of Christ. Not then, not now.
St. Paul isn’t saying to them or us that works don’t matter. They do. Works are the fruit of grace. But they’re not a substitute for it. When we treat works as more or less than they are, we fall into the same trap the Galatians fell victim to.
In the gospel, Jesus tells us what to do when we realize that’s happening – go to the Father in prayer. “Ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened.” And, he says, we will be more than amply rewarded: “How much more will the Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?”
So, God isn’t merely waiting for us to become better people. He responds to our prayers by giving us Himself.
That’s grace. And we depend on it. Our life as Catholics begins with grace, continues by grace, and reaches its fulfillment by grace. Our job isn’t to try and manufacture grace or earn holiness, but to remain open to God, who gives all the grace we need and more.
For that reason, the prayer we need most isn’t, “Father, help me do better,” but “Father, give me Your Holy Spirit.”
How can we do that today? Think about one place in your life where you’ve been trying to handle everything on your own – maybe your marriage, your parenting, forgiveness, an addiction, anxiety, faith, a difficult person – and begin there by praying, “Father, I can’t do this alone. Give me your Holy Spirit.”
As the Responsorial Psalm reminded us, God has “remembered His holy covenant.”
The initiative is His; the faithful response, ours.
So let’s never try to take over what God has started. Remember what Paul called the Galatians when they did that.
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