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From: Titus 3:1-7

Respect for Lawful Authority

[1] Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be
obedient, to be ready for any honest work, [2] to speak evil of no one,
to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward
all men.

Renewal of the Christian Life in the Holy Spirit

[3] For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves
to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy,
hated by men and hating one another; [4] but when the goodness and
loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, [5] he saved us, not
because of deeds done by us in righteousness, but in virtue of his own
mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal in the Holy Spirit,
[6] which he poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior,
[7] so that we might be justified by his grace and become heirs in hope
of eternal life.

Commentary:

1-8. In the last part of the epistle St Paul deals with the way
believers conduct themselves in society at large (vv. 1-8); he warns
Titus to see that the Church does not become a place where people argue
(vv. 9-11); and finally he gives him some little personal commissions
and messages (vv. 12-14) and ends with the usual words of farewell (v.
15).

The scheme of the first section (vv. 1-8), like the previous chapter,
is as follows: first he describes the requirements of Christian living,
specifically the attitude towards civil authority and one's
fellow-citizens (vv. 1-2); then he gives the theological reasoning
behind it (vv. 3-8): for a Christian, moral behavior is a consequence
of faith.

1-2. Respect for lawful authority (cf. Roman 13:1-7; Tim 2:2; 1 Pet 2:
13-14) was particularly difficult and meritorious in the situation in
Crete, where the local population (many of them Jews) were not at all
happy with their Roman overlords. However, the freedom of the children
of God (cf. Rom 8:21) which the Christian acquires at Baptism does not
mean he has to be opposed to existing structures: the main thing it
leads him to is personal improvement: "The acute need for radical
reforms of the structures which conceal poverty and which are
themselves forms of violence, should not let us lose sight of the fact
that the source of injustice is in the hearts of men. Therefore it is
only by making an appeal to the moral potential of the person and to
the constant need for inner conversion, that social change will be
brought about which will truly be in the service of man. For it will
only be in the measure that they collaborate freely in these necessary
changes through their own initiative and solidarity, that people,
awakened to a sense of their responsibility, will grow in humanity"
(SCDF, "Libertatis Nuntius", 11, 8).

Gentleness and courtesy are expressions of the new commandment of love;
they show that a person is spiritually mature, and they are very
effective in drawing souls closer to Christ. "To criticize, to destroy,
is not difficult; any unskilled laborer knows how to drive his pick into
the noble and finely-hewn stone of a cathedral. To construct: that is
what requires the skill of a master" ([St] J. Escriva, "The Way", 456).

3-7. The main subject of the chapter is the theological basis of social
obligations (vv. 1-2); every Christian should bear witness to salvation
history, to the change from sin to grace, and the change from an era of
slavery and error to the era of freedom and rebirth ushered in by
Christ.

The "old regime" is sketched out in a very vivid way (v. 3), showing
the effects of sin on man in his three dimensions: in relation to
himself, sin makes a person foolish, rebellious, wayward, a slave; in
respect of God, he becomes hateful in his rebellious pride; and as far
as others are concerned he becomes their enemy--"hating one another".

However, the coming of Christ has opened up a new panorama (vv. 4-7).
As elsewhere in these letters (cf. 1 Tim 3:15; Tit 2:11-14), we have
here a hymn to Christ which may well have come from primitive Christian
liturgy or from a confession of faith. It summarizes Christian teaching
on the Incarnation, the Redemption and the application of salvation to
the individual.

According to this text, the Incarnation is the revelation of God our
Savior, who makes known his goodness ("benignity", a word which often
occurs in the Old Testament and sometimes in the New: cf. Rom 2:4; 11:
22; Gal 5:22; Eph 2:7) and "loving goodness" (literally "philanthropy",
a word taken from Greek). The Redemption is referred to in Old
Testament language: "he saved us in virtue of his own mercy."

Finally, the Christian's access to salvation is something gratuitous:
without any prior merit on our part, God's mercy has sought us out (v.
5; cf. note on Rom 3:27-31); Baptism is the door to salvation, for it
is the sacrament of "regeneration and renewal" (cf. Eph 5:26); the Holy
Spirit sent by Christ (cf. Jn 14:26) makes the waters of Baptism
effective; his grace gives life to the soul and entitles it to eternal
life (cf. Gal 4:7; Rom 8:16-17). The Council of Trent specified that
"justification is not only the remission of sins, but sanctification
and renovation of the interior man through the voluntary reception of
grace and gifts whereby a man becomes just instead of unjust and a
friend instead of an enemy, that he may be an heir in the hope of life
everlasting" ("De Iustificatione", chap. 7).

The magnificent resume of faith in Christ contained in Titus 3:3-7 also
helps Christians see how to approach their work and social involvement;
the Second Vatican Council has reminded us once again that "the
promised and hoped-for restoration has already begun in Christ. It is
carried forward in the sending of the Holy Spirit and through him
continues in the Church in which, through our faith, we learn the
meaning of our earthly life, while we bring to term, with hope of
future good, the task allotted to us in the world by the Father, and so
work out our salvation" ("Lumen Gentium", 48).

Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text
taken from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries
made by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of
Navarre, Spain. Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock,
Co. Dublin, Ireland.

From: Luke 17:1-6

On Leading Others Astray, Fraternal Correction

[1] And He (Jesus) said to His disciples, "Temptations to sin are sure
to come; but woe to him by whom they come! [2] It would be better for
him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were cast into the
sea, than that he should cause one of these little ones to sin. [3]
Take heed yourselves; if your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he
repents, forgive him; [4] and if he sins against you seven times in the
day, and turns to you seven times, and says, `I repent,' you must
forgive him."

The Power of Faith

[5] The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith! [6] And the
Lord said, "If you had faith as a grain of mustard seed, you could say
to this sycamine tree, `Be rooted up, and be planted in the sea', and
it would obey you."

Commentary:

1-3. Our Lord condemns scandal, that is, "any saying, action or
omission which constitute for another an occasion of sin" ("St. Pius X
Catechism", 417). Jesus is teaching two things here: the first is that
scandal will "in fact" happen; the second, that it is a grave sin, as
shown by the punishment it earns.

The reason why it is so serious a sin is that it "tends to destroy
God's greatest work, that of Redemption, through souls being lost; it
kills one's neighbor's soul by taking away the life of grace, which is
more precious than the life of the body, and it is the cause of a
multitude of sins. This is why God threatens with the most severe
punishment those who cause others to stumble" ("ibid"., 418). See [the
notes on] Matthew 18:6-7; 18-8; 18:10.

"Take heed to yourselves": a serious warning, meaning that we should
not be a cause of scandal to others nor should we be influenced by the
bad example others give us.

People who enjoy authority of any kind (parents, teachers, politicians,
writers, artists, etc.) can more easily be a cause of scandal. We need
to be on the alert in this respect in view of our Lord's warning, "Take
heed to yourselves."

2. Millstones were circular in shape with a large hole in the center.
Our Lord's description, therefore, was very graphic: it meant that the
person's head just fitted through the hole and then he could not get
the stone off.

3-4. In order to be a Christian one must always, genuinely, forgive
others. Also, one has to correct an erring brother to help him change
his behavior. But fraternal correction should always be done in a very
refined way, full of charity; otherwise we would humiliate the person
who has committed the fault, whereas we should not humiliate him but
help him to be better.

Forgiving offenses--which is something we should always do--should not
be confused with giving up rights which have been justly violated. One
can claim rights without any kind of hatred being implied; and
sometimes charity and justice require us to exercise our rights.
"Let's not confuse the rights of the office you hold with your rights
as a person. The former can never be waived" ([St] . Escriva, "The Way", 407).

Sincere forgiveness leads us to forget the particular offense and to
extend the hand of friendship, which in turn helps the offender to
repent.

The Christian vocation is a calling to holiness, but one of its
essential requirements is that we show apostolic concern for the
spiritual welfare of others: Christianity cannot be practiced in an
isolated, selfish way. Thus, "if any one among you wanders from the
truth and some one brings him back, let him know that whoever brings
back a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death
and will cover a multitude of sins" (James 5:20).

5. "Increase our faith!": a good ejaculatory prayer for every
Christian. "Omnia possibilia sunt credenti". Everything is possible
for anyone who has faith.' The words are Christ's. How is it that you
don't say to Him with the Apostles: `"adauge nobis fidem"! increase my
faith!'?" ("The Way", 588).

6. "I'm not one for miracles. I have told you that in the Holy Gospel
I can find more than enough to confirm my faith. But I can't help
pitying those Christians--pious people, `apostles' many of them--who
smile at the idea of extraordinary ways, of supernatural events. I
feel the urge to tell them: Yes, this is still the age of miracles: we
too would work them if we had faith!" ("The Way", 583).