31st Week in Ordinary Time : Tuesday 7th November 2023

St Paul introduces the image of the Body of Christ to speak about the Church. This Image has continued to play an important role in the Church’s reflection on the mystery of Jesus and of the Church. No image is totally adequate to express a mystery. Hence, continued theological reflection within the Church means that sometimes the Church moves beyond the image to underline other aspects of the Church’s identity.

In 1943 Pope Pius XII wrote a profound encyclical on the Mystical Body of Christ just as Hitler and the Nazis in Germany were murdering Jews and Gypsies and those with disabilities. In speaking of the Church as the Body of Christ, the Pope affirmed the dignity of every human person and condemned the enormous crimes that take their root in racism. Given the ugly rhetoric of certain people in the modern world, Pope Pius’ doctrine is as important today as it was seventy years ago, just as Paul’s exhortation is as relevant to our world as it was to his world: “Have the same attitude to all.”

Father in Heaven, keep us safe from all forms of racism and bigotry so that, with Your Son Jesus, we may indeed be the light of the world and the salt of the earth.