Fr. Paul D. Scalia: What Makes for Peace

By Fr. Paul D. Scalia, The Catholic Thing, May 25, 2025

Fr. Paul Scalia is a priest of the Diocese of Arlington, VA, where he serves as Episcopal Vicar for Clergy and Pastor of Saint James in Falls Church. He is the author of That Nothing May Be Lost: Reflections on Catholic Doctrine and Devotion and the editor of Sermons in Times of Crisis: Twelve Homilies to Stir Your Soul.

“It is the decision of the Holy Spirit and of us…” This line from today’s first reading (Acts 15:1-2, 22-29) sounds a little odd. As if the decision of the Holy Spirit wasn’t enough, the Apostles have to add “and of us.” It calls to mind the story of the priest who pompously began his sermon, “Our Lord once said – and I think He’s right…” Or, still curiouser, it can sound as though the Holy Spirit and the Apostles had finally come to some agreement. Still, despite its odd sound, the phrase is extraordinarily important – and a harbinger of peace.

“It is the decision of the Holy Spirit and of us…” The Holy Spirit didn’t need the Apostles’ affirmation, and the two parties had not come to some kind of compromise. Rather, that line confirms that the Holy Spirit is working through the Apostles, and the Apostles are the instruments of the Holy Spirit. What the Apostles hand down from Jerusalem is no human opinion but the authoritative teaching of the Spirit. …