Last Sunday’s second reading of the liturgy really struck me as very appropriate for today. Saint Paul urges the Romans not to conform themselves to this world “but be transformed by the renewal of your mind that you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect.” (Romans 12:2) “Be transformed by the renewal of your mind,” could there be any better advice for us today? If we can change our thinking, we will change our actions, our judgments of what assails us, unsettles is, makes us bitter and angry. We can become transformed.
Paul hoped for this for his Roman believers. Here was the problem: Christianity had taken root very early in the large Jewish community in Rome. But the Emperor Claudius expelled all Jews and Jewish Christians (Do you sniff the racial prejudice here?) in A.D. 49. However, Jews and Jewish Christians were allowed to return to Rome in A.D. 54 and this caused considerable anger to the Christians when the Jewish leaders attempted to resume their former leadership positions. Into this boiling pot rides Paul. This was going to be a tough reconciliation in Rome, not at all a ‘shake hands and be nice’ type of reconciliation. Knowing the situation in Rome, Paul writes in advance of his coming from Corinth. Thus, we have the Epistle to the Romans and Paul’s personal anxiety of taking a collection with him from the various communities for the Roman Christian community as he traveled to Rome. Paul was looked on suspiciously in Rome as a converted Jew, but he was carrying contributions from other communities to Rome for “the poor.” Suspicious eyes wondered if he was currying favor with authorities because he wanted desperately to connect all the churches to Rome and thus establish Rome as a thriving center of Christianity.
Just knowing this little slice of history can help an inquiring reader understand why Romans is such a long letter and why it encourages getting along with each other and making efforts to understand each other. The division showed a basic difference between Jew and Christian even though the Jew was a converted Christian. Prejudices run deep and are anchored by lack of knowledge and by fear. The late Daniel Harrington, S.J., says in his book on Saint Paul’s letters, that “…left to their own devices, the Gentiles fell into a downward spiral of ignorance and vice. Even with divine guidance supplied by the Torah, the Jews did not observe God’s Law, and they too found themselves condemned as sinners before God” (p. 82). Harrington also notes that the letter to the Romans uses the Gospel as its backdrop providing themes like kindness to others and service to the poor. Paul is saying to the fighting groups if we live the Gospel, we won’t have these differences, we won’t tolerate them.
Reflection
Most people admit that there is hard core division between us collectively in government and religion. I tend to think it is more in politics than religion. We may disagree in religion over salient issues, but faith and prayer seem to offer a balm to ease the pain. In other words, both sides believe in prayer and good works, and it often sees them through to a reconciliation. But disagreements over policies in politics and government are often irreconcilable. The danger is when someone refuses to see this. When the mind is not renewed to where it can grasp where the evil exists in a political activity like brutality against immigrants or the refusal to lift the death penalty or the giving of blind allegiance to a corrupt leader thus weakening the foundation of our democratic rights.
One might ask: Where do I refuse to ‘renew my mind,’ to open it and discern God’s will and do what is good and pleasing and perfect? Profound renewal begins with the mind and then moves the heart. We don’t make a conversion only in the mind. We start there. We are often driven by holy inspiration. I believe I told this story in a past blog, but it deserves another telling. After I had given a program at our retreat center, a nun came to thank me and then to introduce me to her friend. I put out my hand to shake his hand and he recoiled. “I don’t shake the hands of nuns who don’t wear a veil,” he said angrily. “Oh, too bad,” I said, “I wanted to shake yours.” A few years later he showed up for another program and afterward came to thank me putting out his hand to shake mine. “I’m sorry,” he said, “for being unkind to you a few years ago.” Some experience or some person had expanded or renewed this man’s thinking and his heart was moved. This may seem like too simple of an example but there are people who angrily resist changes in the Church and something like nuns’ changing of the habit make only the tip of the proverbial iceberg. I also think the nun who accompanied him to both talks gave him a verbal ‘whupping’ after our first meeting. She wore a veil!
Let’s look into our hearts this week and ask God to show us where we need to “renew our minds so as to discern God’s will.” Let’s reflect on where we can and should change for the better. We cannot be doing God’s will if we are angry and obstinate over something if we refuse to renew our mind.Meeting Saint Paul Today by Daniel Harrington, S. J., Loyola Press, 2008.
In All Things Charity 
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