|

United, We Stand; Divided, We Fall

Location: Corinth

While there were no stockings bearing gifts hung up at our hotel, we were blessed with the gift of a beautiful day on this feast of St. Nicholas after the 48 hours of downpour. Today we visited ancient Corinth, where we learned about the context of the letter to the Corinthians. Corinth was a prosperous city state long before Athens became so. The city state boasted ample protection from its towering fortresses, had easy access to water, fertile lands thanks to the Mediterranean climate, and a picturesque backdrop of the sea below the mountains.

View from Corinth’s Areopolis (Fortress, guarding the city of Corinth)

Upon arriving in Corinth, Fr. Kasule celebrated the sacrifice of the Mass on the grounds of the ancient ruins. Fr. Kasule, fresh from teaching us Ecclesiology this past semester, spoke about how the Eucharist makes the Church and the Church makes the Eucharist. He developed this concept throughout his homily, emphasizing that the Eucharist acts as a school where we, as members, learn how to be the Church amidst our differences. We were also joined by a Catholic married couple from Minnesota who happened to be walking by.

Our Mass amongst the ruins of Corinth

Next, we visited the Bema (the site where the judge sat), where, as we read in the Acts of the Apostles, the Roman Proconsul addressed the angry crowd who brought St. Paul forward after he was accused of subversive teachings against Mosaic law. To the dismay of the crowd, he was released without penalty by the proconsul. In recognition of this event, a chapel was built on the site, which is now in ruins. Before departing, we also read from 1 Corinthians, which explained Paul’s acknowledgement of the divisions present within the Corinthian community, particularly regarding different allegiances. These allegiances were between Paul, Apollos, and Cephas. Paul corrected the Christians in Corinth that they must be centered and unified with Christ as the head. Like Paul, St. Nicholas never wavered in his teaching of Catholic doctrine nor in his call for unity in the truth; may we do the same in today’s world with God’s grace!

The Bema, where Paul was released by the Roman Proconsul

-Brother Marko Culjak — Cannons Regular of St. John Cantius

Similar Posts

Hagia Sophia
|

Hagia Sophia

After our ~16 hours of airports and flying, we made it to Istanbul, our first stop on our 2023 Mundelein pilgrimage in the footsteps of St. Paul. Seeing as Istanbul is over 90% Muslim, like the rest of Turkey, and St. Paul never explicitly mentions stopping in the city, it might seem like a strange first place for us to visit.

Ephesus
|

Ephesus

The ancient city of Ephesus was a major center of the Roman world. It was a port city with a population that was near 250,000. The city had streets were made of marble and had a library that was second only to the great library of Alexandria. In the city were many temples to the Roman gods, especially the goddess Artemis, whose name was repeated for two hours in the theatre when Paul tried to proclaim the gospel in Ephesus.