A Word of Hope for Nov 12 by Fr. Scott Steinkerchner, OP, coming from St. Martin de Porres House in Oak Park, Illinois.
Paul had every right to tell Philemon what to do, but he didn't. He asked him to look in his heart and do what he knew was right. What does that teach us about how we grow together in faith?
In today's A Word of Hope, we reflect on Paul's letter to Philemon. Paul asks his friend to free Onesimus, a slave who has been baptized and become a beloved brother in Christ. Paul never commands it, and he never says slavery is wrong. It took the church many centuries to realize that slavery and Christian brotherhood just don't go together.
That says something about how faith works. We journey together. It's not for any of us to tell anyone else what to do, but we can share what we see, what we feel and what we know, and then ask: so what are you going to do with that? That is how we grow together into the truth.
CHAPTERS
0:00 "Look in your heart and do what's right"
0:17 Paul, Philemon and Onesimus
0:51 What Paul doesn't say about slavery
1:27 We journey together
2:12 What we do at A Word of Hope
2:29 Day of Giving and the Friar Power Hour
TODAY IS OUR PROVINCE'S DAY OF GIVING
One day a year, we ask for online donations to fund this ministry and many others. You can give at https://www.opcentral.org/dayofgiving2026
Join us live for the Friar Power Hour today between 12 and 1 Central Time. The friar who raises the most wins a pope jersey, and gifts made to A Word of Hope during that hour count toward ours.
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