Please Read the Letter
St. Thomas was blessed last week by the presence of Fr. Noel Mueller, a Benedictine from St. Meinred Archabbey, who was here to give our parish mission. Fr. Noel’s topic was the life of St. Paul and the impact his preaching had on the early church. Fr. Noel challenged us to hear the letters of St. Paul which are not only meant for their original audience, but for us as well. He began by speaking to us about St. Paul’s conversion. It was an encounter with the person of Christ that changed Paul’s life forever. St. Paul went from living a life centered around the persecution of the followers of The Way to one dedicated fully to the building of Christ’s Kingdom. He was a man who emptied himself for the sake of proclaiming the Gospel to others.
Fr. Noel challenged our community to take a closer look at the famous hymn recorded by Paul in his letter to the Philippians,
Though He was in the form of God,
He did not deem equality with God
something to be grasped at.Rather He emptied Himself
and took the form of a slave,
being born in the likeness of men.He was known to be of human estate,
and it was thus that He humbled Himself,
obediently accepting even death,
death on a cross!Because of this,
God highly exalted Him
and bestowing on Him the name
above every other name,So that at Jesus’ name
every knee must bend
in the heavens, on the earth,
and under the earth,
and every tongue proclaim
to the glory of God the Father:
Jesus Christ is Lord! (Philippians 2:6-11)
Fr. Noel pointed out that it was through the disobedience and pride of Adam and Eve that sin entered the world and it is through the obedience and humility of Jesus that sin is conquered. St. Paul not only understands how Christ is able to bring about salvation, but makes it his life’s work to imitate Christ’s self emptying love. Fr. Noel challenged our community to do the same.
The people of St. Thomas made me proud through their ability to enter into the spirit of love that St. Paul describes even before Fr. Noel began speaking to us. Each night members of our parish gathered to share a meal and conversation with our guest. It was one of the truest experiences of a Eucharistic community that I have experienced in recent times outside of the liturgy. We hope that Fr. Noel will return to St. Meinrad with a few more pounds!
Thank you for being with us Fr. Noel!
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