Thursday of the Ninth Week in Ordinary Time
“The Word of God is not chained.” - 2 Timothy 2:8-15
In their early ‘60s pop song Chains (written by Carol King), the Beatles sang, “Chains. My baby’s got me locked up in chains. But they aren’t the kind that you can see. These chains of love won’t let me be.” There are chains of love of another sort described in today’s first reading from 2 Timothy—the chains of Paul and the attempted chaining of the Word. This reflection will focus on the captive Paul —his physical chain could be seen, but even those manacles could not bind up the Word that Paul, while in prison, continued to proclaim.
In commenting on this, Pope Francis reminded us that "Luke ends the Book of Acts not with Paul's martyrdom but by describing his tireless proclamation of the Gospel, showing the power of God's word which can never be chained." The pontiff went on: "Paul's missionary journeys, culminating in Roman bondage, reveal the power of God's Word…
"Luke concludes his work by showing us not the death of Paul but the dynamism of his preaching, of a Word that is not chained. Paul does not have the freedom to move about but is compelled to speak because the Word is not chained - a Word ready to be sown with full hands by the Apostle.”
Paul does this "with all frankness and without impediment" even while in prison where he welcomes those who want to receive the Word so as to know Christ, the Word made flesh. Paul, though persecuted, misunderstood and bound with chains, never tired of welcoming those who ventured to his prison cell.
Although Paul was chained, the Word cannot be so. Not in the 60s of the first century and not today. One way to “unchain the Word” for us is to take part in parish Bible study opportunities at IC and to be familiar with the USCCB webpage that is filled with the daily proclamation of the Word and the breaking open of the Word. Another way is to read the webpage daily parish reflections (which you are doing now), written by parishioners, that open the scriptures to us.
Regarding the unchained word the Beatles were right in singing, “these chains of love won’t let me be.” Indeed the Word won’t “let it be” (another Beatles hit). That was true for Paul (the apostle, not McCartney) and is likewise true for us.
—Timothy J. Cronin