(Please read this Scripture passage first, before the homily.)
We celebrate the feast of the Apostles Simon and Jude. Our reading come from the letter to the Ephesians. This letter was written to second-generation Christians. They were experiencing alienation because the pagans saw them as people with strange habits. They were like strangers to their neighbors.
The author reminded the second generation Christians that they were baptized into a cosmic Christ, who is the powerful, august, awesome and loving One. They therefore had a citizenship much more exalted and inclusive than that of the other Ephesians or even of the Romans. They were not strangers or people with only a green card, or people without a country, but citizens of another fashion. Their citizenship included the holy ones, and they themselves were citizens with the angels, apostles, prophets and Christ himself. Their citizenship was to include God as well as angels and people. All this belonged to the Ephesians Christians.
In our day, we have to reclaim this citizenship of ours. We have to see this citizenship with Christ and the saints is greater than the earthly citizenship of ancient Ephesus, better than that of ancient Rome and greater than our U.S. citizenship. We also have to recognize the people of other cultures and places as fellow citizens with us in Christ. We know that people of Asia, people of Africa, people of Central and South America clamor for places in our society. Our common citizenship in this temple of the Lord demands that we welcome these people. It should not matter that they be poor, of darker skin, or of different language. Our Christian and Catholic citizenship calls us to welcome them and accept them into our embrace.
The second generation Christians were called to be citizens of the household of God. We all belong to the same household. We have no right to exclude others from our community. It is a year for elections. We must elect to welcome those who come to us.
The author of this letter assures us that we are under construction and being built into a dwelling place of God in the Spirit. This building up is our task as we celebrate the feast of the Apostles Simon and Jude.