"Chocolate or Vanilla": A Reflection on The Second Reading for July 22nd, 2018: Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Ephesians 2:13-18

13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near in the blood of Christ. 14 For he is our peace, who has made us both one, and has broken down the dividing wall of hostility, 15 by abolishing in his flesh the law of commandments and ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, 16 and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby bringing the hostility to an end. 17 And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near; 18 for through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father.

Are you chocolate or vanilla?

Ice cream. Chocolate or vanilla? 

The age old question. How does one choose between the two? For some the choice is easy, while for others it is cause for major debate. But wait! There is a way to get the best of both worlds: the twist! Two familiar and distinct flavours combine to make something new—and in my humble opinion—something that much better!

Chalk it up to warm summer days, or my year round love of soft serve ice cream—this is the image that entered my head as I reflected on the second reading for the 16th Sunday of Ordinary Time. In Saint Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, he reminds this growing Christian community, a mix of Jews and Gentiles, that in Christ we are one. Probably not an easy notion for either group to grasp. Each had characteristics that made them who they are; an identity. They were as different as chocolate and vanilla (I’ll let you decide who’s who!). Yet people in both groups encountered the transformative love of Jesus Christ. How then, were they to reconcile the coming together of such different communities to become one community in Christ? I still struggle with this 2000 years later! How do I make room in my head and heart for the many ways we are all uniquely called to be disciples of Christ, yet still be truly one community? It can only be done through Jesus who came to reveal the Father to all, as the Father of all. As baptized followers of Christ, we proclaim one Lord and one faith… as one family. I often forget the oneness I have—not only with Jesus—but with my brothers and sisters in the faith. I get caught up in the debate of who’s actions are more right, more holy, more Catholic. Yet God doesn’t have a chart where I get a gold star every time I have been the “most” right. Each of us was created to bring something marvellous to the other, and to this world.  Knowing I am connected to all who claim their discipleship, changes my own sense of identity; I become more aware that I am not alone, and that I do not have to spread the Good News of Christ by myself. Once we know who we are in Christ, we cannot deny the power of that identity to another disciple simply because their gifts, their way of seeing things, or their way of being who Christ calls them to be, is different from our own. 

I am not chocolate. I am not vanilla. And neither are you. We are both! Hello twist! Just as two differing ice cream flavours can be reconciled into one new yummy creation, so too are we reconciled to the Father through Christ making us one (slightly less yummy) creation. And together as one, we are created into something new that is that much better than who or what we are apart.

​Aurea Sadi

"Each of us was created to bring something marvellous to the other, and to this world." - Aurea Sadi (Ora Reflections)