Pauline Reflections 14 - 27th December 2008

“Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again; rejoice. Your kindness should be known to all. The Lord is near.”
Philippians 4:4-5 

Paul’s life, as we already know, is characterised by many hardships and sufferings in the footsteps of Jesus. Lest we get upset and discouraged over his lengthy admonitions to accept and live a life of hardship and suffering for Christ’s sake, Paul strikes a very positive note in these verses, highlighting two important qualities we need for a happy life in our call to discipleship - joy and kindness. 

Although Paul wrote to the Philippians while he was in prison, he never lost his joy and peace of heart in all his hardships and suffering. The double emphasis of ‘rejoice’ makes his message very central to our vocation as Christians. It seem to me Paul is saying, no matter what we each face by way of tribulations and hardships, we must never loose our joy. Our source of true joy and happiness is in Christ, who is present with us in every situation. 

These verses reflect the message of Advent, when we await the coming of the Lord at Christmas, reassuring ourselves again of the joy and peace of knowing Christ, of loving him and always living our lives in union with him, the true source of joy and peace. For Paul it fits the context of the second coming of Christ - the ‘parousia’, and so he says: ‘The Lord is near’. Things in this world may bring us joy and happiness, but the joy that comes from Christ surpasses all other joys. Let us learn from Paul to rejoice, and always rejoice in the Lord and be happy at all times as we use the different gifts that God gives us in this life. 

The second virtue Paul mentioned is ‘Kindness’ (my preferred translation) of the Greek word 'Epieikeia'. This word has been translated so many ways in English - as ‘moderation’, ‘gentleness’, 'fairness', ‘forbearing-spirit’ etc. The Greeks used this word in relation to justice: 'Epieikeia' in the sense of relaxing the rule of law and replacing it with mercy. This captures the gospel message of mercy, forgiveness, compassion and love. The woman caught in adultery deserves to die according to the law, but Jesus showed her mercy that went beyond justice. This act of kindness is what Paul  enjoins us to show to all people, since we ourselves have received God’s kindness and mercy in spite of our unworthiness. 

Prayer

Lord God, in all my afflictions and tribulations make me rejoice like Saint Paul for sharing in the suffering of Christ. Make me a kind person in my relationship with others, in appreciation of your many gifts to me.
Amen.