Please read the Scripture passage before the homily.
This is the first written document of the New Testament. In many of his writings, St Paul had to defend his authority as an apostle because some people were asserting that Paul was an imposter. The Thessalonians, on the other hand, trusted Paul, so Paul could start his letter, “Paul to the Thessalonians, grace and peace.”
Paul said he boasted to the other peoples that Paul was evangelizing about the Thessalonians, their faith, and their faithfulness. He asserted that God had judges the Thessalonians as worthy of God’s kingdom.
Paul included Silvanus and Timothy as sharing in this letter. They joined Paul in thanking God for the Thessalonians’ faithfulness and in praying for their continuing growth. They saw that the Christian life of the Thessalonians reflected God’s just judgment on them, because God had judged them to be worthy of God’s kingdom.
We should note here that the purpose of the letter was to thank God always for the Thessalonians, because God had already judged the Thessalonians as worthy of God’s kingdom.
Let us suppose that Paul was writing to us this letter. For what in our lives would Paul be thankful? How would he see God’s just judgment resting upon us, as God had judged the Thessalonians. Paul is writing to us.
Let us also suppose that we were writing this letter instead of Paul. For what would we be praising God about our friends and family? Would we be praising the faithfulness of family and friends? We have to write to our families and friends.