A COMMON DENOMINATOR BETWEEN JESUS CHRIST AND ABRAHAM LINCOLN..........

Doris Kearns Goodwin, an American Presidential Historian,who has written extensively on Presidents Lyndon Johnson, Franklin Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln, in recent years wrote the very well received book, "Team Of Rivals", about President Lincoln and the political rivals he assembled around him while he was President of the United States. President Lincoln valued the diversity and differences his once political rivals for The White House brought to the governance of his Administration. Including them in his Cabinet and among his chief advisors and assistants, also underscored the personal stability and political self confidence he possessed as President. Today's Gospel Matthew 10:1-7; shows how Jesus selected a similar band of Apostles. The Twelve chosen and called by Jesus the Christ, were not cookie cutter images of one another, but diverse individuals, brought together and challenged to form a unity of mission. Despite their different backgrounds, livelihoods, and personal focuses, the Twelve Apostles came together despite their differences to experience unity within community. Thus Simon Peter, a Gallilean fisherman by trade, could come to work with Levi / Matthew, who had been a tax collector, before being called and chosen by Christ. The Catholic-Christian Church continues today, into the 3rd Millennium of Christianity as a universally diverse, yet cohesive community of believers. Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, in Del Paso Heights / Rio Linda, is a very good example of the unity in community with ample diversity that can be accomplished. An appreciable percentage of Whites, Blacks, Latinos, Asians, and members of the Nigerian and Tongan communities comprise this parish community. They come together wonderfully well to pray, worship, minister, and fulfill the Gospel Values our Catholic-Christian Faith imparts on us as Disciples of our Lord Jesus Christ. So ponder the next time you are confronted with diversity of persons or circumstances in achieving a unity of purpose, how you can be true to your calling while building a common unity that complements rather than complicates the differences between you and those with whom you are brought together. In The Unity Of Community With The Holy Trinity And Each Other, Fr. Troy