14th Sunday in O.T. (Gal 6:14-18)

(Gal 6:14-18)

Galatians 6:14 As for me, may I never boast of anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, as I have been to the world.

While others can boast because they are good, because they have many disciples, because they observe the law, because they are circumcised, Paul says: I would like to boast of one thing, the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. This is Paul's spiritual programme. Every action, every gesture must serve only to fulfil his fundamental choice: the choice to be crucified with Christ and to crucify the world in Christ. A crucified man is a cursed man, but a man crucified in Christ is blessed and chosen by heaven. From Christ onwards, the cross, a sign of death, will be carried as a sign of life and glory. Whoever looks to the One who was pierced will be saved.

The cross is the opposite of pride; it is ignominy. It is like saying, 'I boast of the worst thing there is, because the cross is the worst thing there is.' Paul boasts of the cross because in the cross he understood the essence of God; he understood that on the cross the Lord Jesus loved us. This is the boast of the Christian: to understand the mystery of the cross and to understand the mystery of God's love. Those who understand this love say: I am crucified for the world; but what does it mean that I am crucified for the world? The world for me died through the cross; it no longer has its charm, it no longer has its appeal, because I no longer live for myself, for my selfishness, for my old self; I live for this love that He gives me freely, so I am dead to myself, I live for Him; it is no longer I who live, Christ lives in me; the life I live in the flesh, I live in the love of the Lord who loved me and gave himself for me.

Those who choose the cross give themselves fully to the Lord, and this gift is not expressed in doing this or that, but in making themselves available to the Lord, in listening to His will. Choosing the cross means renouncing one's own plans, ideas, thoughts and views, so that the Spirit can guide our lives where and when He wants. Thus, to crucify the world means that we deny it, condemn it, reject it, bury it so that it no longer reigns over us, so that it does not invade our lives, so that it does not tempt us and make us abandon Christ, the only source of life and blessing.

This world is the world of the flesh, of sin and death, which stands in contrast to the new creation in Christ. We crucify the world by removing from our hearts its thoughts, its ideas, every influence and every feeling that contrasts with the will of God expressed and manifested in the word of Christ. The world is crucified by openly condemning its works, its opposition to God, its satanic will to oppose everything that is a moral reference point in human conduct. Today we condemn the world... but do we crucify it? The answer is no. We do not crucify it because we have conformed to its thinking, which is the thinking of Satan and not of Christ.

In this, the Church must acknowledge many failures among her children. They live by rituals but not by faith; by functions but not by the Word; by traditions but not by holiness; they live by outward appearances and formalities but not by listening to the Word of Christ. The world does not crucify itself unless it lives by faith, by the Word, by listening, by holiness, by great interiority, by the constant motion of the Holy Spirit.

"The world has been crucified to me, as I to the world." Paul is crucified, that is, dead to this old world of evil, which is unable to separate him from Christ, and he himself has been crucified to the world, since the world can take nothing from him except the testimony of the cross of Christ. This is the profound experience that Paul offers to everyone, and this is what he boasts about, this is what it is right to boast about, and may heaven grant that we may all boast about this.

If the disciple of Jesus does not crucify the world, he will not be crucified by the world. The two crucifixions are the cause of each other. The disciple of Jesus crucifies the world, the world crucifies the disciple of Jesus. First, the disciple of Jesus must choose to follow Christ faithfully, and it is in this choice that the world is crucified, but it is also in the realisation of this choice that the world crucifies the Christian. Everything therefore depends on the disciple of Jesus, and if the world does not crucify us, it is a sign that we have not crucified the world.

Therefore, it is very easy to know whether we are of Christ or not. We need only observe how the world treats us. If the world crucifies us, it is a clear sign that we have crucified the world. When the world no longer crucifies us, it is clear that we have slowed down our journey in faith, or even strayed from the right path and immersed ourselves (too) in the thoughts and logic of the world.

In this verse, Paul summarises the profound experience of Christian life and the core of the entire Letter to the Galatians, namely the meaning of the cross as a source of pride, as glory, as a revelation of God and as a radical change of life: the old man dies and the new man is born, whose measure is the love of God and no longer his own selfishness and desires.

Argentino Quintavalle, author of the books

- Apocalypse – exegetical commentary

- The Apostle Paul and the Judaizers – Law or Gospel?

Jesus Christ, true God and true man in the mystery of the Trinity

The Prophetic Discourse of Jesus (Matthew 24-25)

All generations will call me blessed

Catholics and Protestants in comparison – In defence of the faith

The Church and Israel according to St. Paul – Romans 9-11

(Available on Amazon)

51 Last modified on Monday, 30 June 2025 20:54

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Argentino Quintavalle

Argentino Quintavalle è studioso biblico ed esperto in Protestantesimo e Giudaismo. Autore del libro “Apocalisse - commento esegetico” (disponibile su Amazon) e specializzato in catechesi per protestanti che desiderano tornare nella Chiesa Cattolica.

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"The girl is not dead, but asleep". These words, deeply revealing, lead me to think of the mysterious presence of the Lord of life in a world that seems to succumb to the destructive impulse of hatred, violence and injustice; but no. This world, which is yours, is not dead, but sleeps (Pope John Paul II)

“La bambina non è morta, ma dorme”. Queste parole, profondamente rivelatrici, mi inducono a pensare alla misteriosa presenza del Signore della vita in un mondo che sembra soccombere all’impulso distruttore dell’odio, della violenza e dell’ingiustizia; ma no. Questo mondo, che è vostro, non è morto, ma dorme (Papa Giovanni Paolo II)

Today’s Gospel passage (cf. Lk 10:1-12, 17-20) presents Jesus who sends 72 disciples on mission, in addition to the 12 Apostles. The number 72 likely refers to all the nations. Indeed, in the Book of Genesis 72 different nations are mentioned (cf. 10:1-32) [Pope Francis]

L’odierna pagina evangelica (cfr Lc 10,1-12.17-20) presenta Gesù che invia in missione settantadue discepoli, in aggiunta ai dodici apostoli. Il numero settantadue indica probabilmente tutte le nazioni. Infatti nel libro della Genesi si menzionano settantadue nazioni diverse (cfr 10,1-32) [Papa Francesco]

Christ reveals his identity of Messiah, Israel's bridegroom, who came for the betrothal with his people. Those who recognize and welcome him are celebrating. However, he will have to be rejected and killed precisely by his own; at that moment, during his Passion and death, the hour of mourning and fasting will come (Pope Benedict)

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A life without love and without truth would not be life. The Kingdom of God is precisely the presence of truth and love and thus is healing in the depths of our being. One therefore understands why his preaching and the cures he works always go together: in fact, they form one message of hope and salvation (Pope Benedict)

Una vita senza amore e senza verità non sarebbe vita. Il Regno di Dio è proprio la presenza della verità e dell’amore e così è guarigione nella profondità del nostro essere (Papa Benedetto)

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