20th Sunday in Ordinary Time
(Cycle “B" – August 20, 2006)

Q. 385:   What can we possibly learn from a corrupt pagan society of two thousand years ago that would be relevant to us today?

A. 385:   Did you notice the three “don’ts” in St. Paul’s message (Eph 5:15-20) to the people of Ephesus?   “Don’t be foolish; don’t be ignorant; and don’t get drunk.”   Sounds like very good advice, wouldn’t you say?   But it also implies that the Ephesians were indeed being foolish, ignorant, and tipping a few too many.   Gee, d’ya think that could apply to us today?

Why were the Ephesians acting “like fools”?   It was because they were wasting the remaining opportunities left to them to prepare their souls for eternity.   If those were “evil days” (to use Paul’s words), I wonder how he would describe our own self-indulgent society!

Why were the Ephesians “ignorant”?   We are told by Paul that this was caused by their lack of discernment of the Lord’s will.   The verses immediately before and after today’s reading were designed to show the radical contrast between the pagan way and the Christian way of living.   So in this context, Paul is teaching about the normal way of living the Christian virtues that were manifested through Jesus Christ.   An “ignorant” person is one who is not living out the Christian virtues in his daily life, nor even seeking to understand them.

Finally, too much booze leads to debauchery – a significant word that means to become separated from your source of stability (e.g., like a branch from a tree). For those few of you who have “over tippled” on occasion, you know how it inevitably leads directly to a loose tongue and loose morals, as well as resulting in tomorrow’s pain and shame.

So for Paul the “antidote” to avoiding the many pitfalls of our decadent society is threefold: to live thoughtfully; to discern carefully; and to be filled with the Holy Spirit in an attitude of praise and gratitude for God’s steadfast love.

KNOW YOUR CATECHISM!   We can discern the will of God through prayer (CCC #2826).  Prayer and Christian life are inseparable, and this unity of prayer and works is the way to “pray without ceasing” (CCC #2745).

Deacon Paul Rooney
Mary Our Queen Parish, Omaha

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