Office Of Readings | Week 2, Sunday, Ordinary Time | A Reading From The Letter Of Saint Ignatius Of Antioch To The Ephesians | The Harmony Of Unity

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Office Of Readings | Week 2, Sunday, Ordinary Time | A Reading From The Letter Of Saint Ignatius Of Antioch To The Ephesians | The Harmony Of Unity

‘From the first, faith has been God’s means of justifying men.’

In this reading from his letter to the Ephesians, Saint Ignatius of Antioch reflects on the importance of unity within the Christian community. Writing as a prisoner on his way to martyrdom, Ignatius speaks with humility and urgency. He does not present himself as a figure of authority, but as a fellow disciple who is still learning what it means to follow Christ.

Ignatius begins by urging the believers to give glory to Jesus Christ and to live in holiness. For Ignatius, holiness is closely linked to obedience and harmony. He calls the community to remain united with their bishop and presbyters, seeing this unity as essential to their life in Christ. Church leadership is not presented as a matter of power, but as a means of maintaining order, faithfulness, and common purpose.

The letter makes repeated use of the idea of the mind of God. Ignatius describes Jesus Christ as the mind of the Father and the bishops as acting in conformity with the mind of Christ. In this way, he connects the structure of the Church with the will of God. Unity with the bishop is therefore not simply a practical arrangement but a spiritual reality that reflects the relationship between Christ and the Father.

To explain this further, Ignatius uses the image of music. The presbyters are compared to the strings of a harp, and the whole community is invited to become a choir. When believers are united in heart and purpose, their common life becomes a song offered to God. This image emphasises cooperation, mutual dependence, and the need for each person to contribute to the whole.

Ignatius also stresses the value of shared prayer and common worship. He reminds his readers that if the prayer of a few people is powerful, the prayer of the bishop and the entire Church is greater still. Participation in the life of the Church is therefore presented as participation in the life of God. To separate oneself from the community is to lose access to what he calls God’s bread, a reference to the Eucharist and to spiritual nourishment.

Throughout the passage, Ignatius combines affection for the Ephesian Christians with firm instruction. His concern is not simply for good order, but for the deeper harmony that comes from living in Christ. Unity, obedience, and love are shown to be practical expressions of faith and essential marks of the Christian life.

A Reading From The Letter Of Saint Ignatius Of Antioch To The Ephesians | The Harmony Of Unity

It is right for you to give glory in every way to Jesus Christ who has given glory to you; you must be made holy in all things by being united in perfect obedience, in submission to the bishop and the presbyters.

I am not giving you orders as if I were a person of importance. Even if I am a prisoner for the name of Christ, I am not yet made perfect in Jesus Christ. I am now beginning to be a disciple and I am speaking to you as my fellow-disciples. It is you who should be strengthening me by your faith, your encouragement, your patience, your serenity. But since love will not allow me to be silent about you, I am taking the opportunity to urge you to be united in conformity with the mind of God. For Jesus Christ, our life, without whom we cannot live, is the mind of the Father, just as the bishops, appointed over the whole earth, are in conformity with the mind of Jesus Christ.

It is fitting, therefore, that you should be in agreement with the mind of the bishop as in fact you are. Your excellent presbyters, who are a credit to God, are as suited to the bishop as strings to a harp. So in your harmony of mind and heart the song you sing is Jesus Christ. Every one of you should form a choir, so that, in harmony of sound through harmony of hearts, and in unity taking the note from God, you may sing with one voice through Jesus Christ to the Father. If you do this, he will listen to you and see from your good works that you are members of his Son. It is then an advantage to you to live in perfect unity, so that at all times you may share in God.

If in a short space of time I have become so close a friend of your bishop – in a friendship not based on nature but on spiritual grounds – how much more blessed do I judge you to be, for you are as united with him as the Church is to Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ to the Father, so that all things are in harmony through unity. Let no one make any mistake: unless a person is within the sanctuary, he is deprived of God’s bread. For if the prayer of one or two has such power, how much more has the prayer of the bishop and the whole Church.

Christian Prayer With Jesus Christ

Lord Jesus Christ,
you call your people to live as one body in you.
Teach us to seek unity of heart and mind,
and to value the gifts you give through your Church.

Grant that we may work together in harmony,
supporting one another in faith and patience.
Keep us faithful to those who guide us,
and help us to listen for your voice in their counsel.

May our common prayer and worship
rise before you as a single song of praise.
Strengthen us by your Spirit,
so that our lives may bear witness to your love.

Draw us closer to you and to one another,
that we may remain in your peace
and share in the life of the Father,
now and always.
Amen

Glossary Of Christian Terms

Bishop | A leader appointed to oversee and guide a local Christian community
Presbyters | Church elders or priests who assist the bishop in teaching and worship
Disciple | A follower of Jesus Christ who learns from his teaching
Unity | The state of being joined together in belief, purpose, and fellowship
Obedience | Willing acceptance of rightful authority
Mind of God | The will and purpose of God
Harmony | Agreement and cooperation within the community
Sanctuary | The sacred gathering of the Church, especially in worship
God’s bread | Spiritual nourishment, particularly the Eucharist
Martyrdom | Suffering or death endured for the sake of faith in Christ
Church | The community of believers united in Christ
Prayer | Speaking and listening to God in worship and petition