Reading the Skies, Missing the Signs: The Unity That Demands Our All

Eph 4:1-6, Psalm: 23, Lk 12:54-59

Saint Ignatius of Constantinople, bishop

My dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

We can predict a thunderstorm by a darkening cloud. We can sense the coming of a hot day by the wind. But can we read the signs of our own times? Can we discern the urgency of our own conversion? Today, Saint Paul calls us to unity, and Jesus calls us to wakefulness. Both demand that we open our eyes to what God is doing—and to what we are avoiding.

In his Letter to the Ephesians, Saint Paul urges us to “live in a manner worthy of the call you have received.” What is that manner? “With all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another through love, striving to preserve the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” Paul then lays out the foundation of this unity: “One body and one Spirit… one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.” This is not a vague, sentimental unity. It is a unity rooted in our shared identity as children of God. It is a unity that requires humility, gentleness, patience, and love. It is a unity that must be actively preserved.

In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus challenges the crowd to read the signs of the times. “When you see a cloud rising in the west, you say immediately that it is going to rain—and so it does. And when you notice that the wind is blowing from the south, you say that it is going to be hot—and so it is.” They are experts in reading the weather, but they cannot read the signs of God’s action. Jesus calls them hypocrites. “Why do you not judge for yourselves what is right?” He tells them to settle with their opponent before it is too late—to be reconciled on the way, before they reach the judge.

The connection between the readings is the call to discernment and reconciliation. Paul calls us to preserve unity with humility and patience. Jesus calls us to read the signs of the times and to be reconciled while there is still time. Both readings demand that we open our eyes to what God is asking of us—not in some distant future, but now, today.

Saint Ignatius of Constantinople, whose memory we celebrate today, was a bishop who understood the importance of preserving unity in the Church. He lived in a time of great controversy and division. He was known for his courage in defending the faith and his commitment to reconciliation. He did not turn a blind eye to the signs of his times. He read them, and he responded with humility, gentleness, and love.

Pope Francis has said, “Unity is not uniformity; it is the harmony of the Spirit. It is the gift of God that we must preserve with humility and patience.” Saint John Paul II, in his encyclical Ut Unum Sint, wrote, “The unity of the Church is a gift of God, but it is also a task entrusted to us.” And Saint Augustine, contemplating the call to reconciliation, said, “Do not delay your conversion. You do not know what tomorrow will bring.”

What does this mean for us? We are called to be people of discernment. We are called to read the signs of our times—the signs of division, of sin, of suffering—and to respond with the unity of the Spirit. We are called to humility, gentleness, patience, and love. We are called to be reconciled with one another before it is too late. We are called to settle with our opponent on the way.

Today, let us examine our hearts. Are we preserving the unity of the Spirit, or are we contributing to division? Are we reading the signs of the times, or are we blind to what God is doing? Are we reconciled with our brothers and sisters, or are we holding on to grudges? Let us ask the Lord to give us the grace to read the signs of the times, to be reconciled with one another, and to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. Amen.

May God bless you all!