“I remind you to stir into flame the gift of God that you have through the imposition of my hands.” (2 Timothy 1:6) Last week, we reflected on Paul’s exhortation to Timothy from the perspective of Scripture itself. This week, we continue our October meditation by exploring this same verse through the lens of the early Church Fathers- those who received and lived this word within the vibrant, suffering, Spirit-filled Church of the first centuries. For them, this verse was both deeply personal and profoundly ecclesial. It spoke to the responsibility of each baptized and ordained person to nurture the grace they had received and to live it fruitfully for the salvation of others.

“I remind you to stir into flame the gift of God that you have through the imposition of my hands.” (2 Timothy 1:6) These words come from the second letter of St. Paul to Timothy, one of the last known writings of Paul, likely composed around the mid-60s AD, near the end of his life. Paul writes from prison in Rome, fully aware that his earthly journey is coming to an end. It is a deeply personal and pastoral letter, addressed to Timothy, a young bishop whom Paul mentored and ordained. Timothy was entrusted with leading the Christian community in Ephesus- a challenging mission field marked by external persecution and internal confusion. The early Church was growing but fragile, often under pressure from Roman authorities and from competing ideas about the faith. In this context, Paul urges Timothy not to allow fear or discouragement to paralyze him, but to remember and rekindle the grace received at his ordination, the “gift of God," a divine empowerment for ministry, sustained by the Holy Spirit.

The Knights of Columbus are teaming up with the St. Michael Social Justice Committee to collect clothes, pull-ups and toys for toddlers for OpenArms Pregnancy Center in Augusta.