Message From Father Jose for July 20, 2003 Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Shepherd’s Mission

After having reflected on Prophetic Mission and Lay Mission, for the last two Sundays, we are invited to focus our attention on Shepherd’s Mission this Sunday. The readings place before us a comparison between good leaders and those in whom the character and qualities of leadership are sorely lacking. In the 1st reading (Jer. 23:1-6), the prophet Jeremiah bemoans the consequences of poor leadership, viz., the people who look to them for leadership, example and direction find quite the opposite and as a result, they suffer; they are scattered, driven away and lost. Seeing the seriousness of the situation, Jeremiah promises a divine intervention as the only antidote. Someone shall be born of David’s lineage to do what is just and right.
 
The second reading (Eph. 2:13-18) assures that peace, security and salvation will be established through the promised One and the good news will be announced to all, far and near. Through him believers will come to know God as loving Parent and ever-present Spirit.
 
That promised someone, of course, was Jesus who is featured in today’s gospel (Mk 6:30-34) as continuing the formation of his followers. The disciples who were sent forth on mission are returning to render an account of themselves and their efforts. As part of their leadership training, Jesus invites them to come away with him to an out-of-the way place and find their rest in Him. This away-time, this time of peace and prayer, quiet and rest in Jesus is as necessary to the disciple as breathing. Without it, the demands and challenges of Christian service and commitment can choke and stifle even the best of intentions.
 
Concerning the need for finding and maintaining one’s centre in God, Jesus reissues his standing invitation in today’s gospel: Come away with me to rest, to listen, to be renewed. Therefore let us return repeatedly to the one who leads and guides us, feeds and teaches us, heals and forgives us and remains ever present to empower us in all our efforts in the cause of salvation.

Message From Father Jose July 06, 2003 Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Prophetic Mission

My Dear Brothers and Sisters,

This Sunday's readings place before us the nature of prophetic mission and the need of discerning messengers of God amidst us.

In the first reading, Ezekiel (2:2-5) recounts some of the circumstances of his call to prophetic service; his was to be a particularly difficult mission since the very people he was sent to serve were characterized as rebels.

As is reflected in today's second reading (2Cor 12:7-10) Paul, the great apostle to the gentiles knew similar challenges. In addition to his own admitted weaknesses and the distress he experienced for the sake of the gospel, Paul was also subjected to rejection and persecution. As if these burdens were not sufficient to test his mettle, Paul also suffered from what he referred to as a "thorn in the flesh". Amidst these struggles Paul was able to continue speaking and acting as God’s prophet, for he was fully reliant on the power of Christ to sustain him.

Jesus, for his part, also experienced opposition to his prophetic efforts (Mk 6:1-6), not only because people were rebellious, but also because their familiarity with him caused them to think he was of no account and made them disinterested in what he might have to say. Their preconceived notions prevented their openness to the thought that God could be telling them something in Jesus.

While it may be tempting to turn a critical eye and pass judgment on the contemporaries of Ezekiel, Paul and Jesus, this word addresses each of us directly and invites us to consider how we respond to the prophets whom God continues to send among us. Do we value and welcome their message, or do we write them off as annoying, uninteresting, or worse yet, irrelevant?

Prophets are, after all, people who are sent to help others to be good and to do good, not necessarily to feel good. Prophets have been variously described in scriptures as watchmen (Hosea 9:8), as servants (Amos 3:7) as messengers of God (Haggai 1:13). They must burn and etch the message of God’s justice, truth and goodness in the human heart. In other words, the prophets’ mandate is to be the thorn in the flesh of a sinful humanity.

Message From Father Jose for July 13, 2003 the Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Lay Mission

My Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Since its inception, the Judeo-Christian faith community has been largely lay in character and decidedly missionary in its motives and efforts. Our Jewish ancestors were, for the most part, lay men and women through whom the plan and purposes of God were accomplished. Of the prophets, all were lay people except for Isaiah and Ezekiel. Amos who is featured in today's first reading, (Amos 7:12-15) was proud of being a shepherd and migrant worker when he was called to service by God.

Today's second reading (Eph 1:3-14) constitutes one of Ephesians' many beautiful prayers and may be part of an earlier liturgical hymn that was composed for the celebration of Christian baptism. Echoed more than 30 times in the Ephesians letter, the term "in Christ" reminds us of the baptismal incorporation of all peoples into the mystery of Christ's dying, rising and glorification.

In today's gospel (Mk 6:7-13), we see Jesus emphasizing the communal aspect of the mission of the disciples; they were to go two by two. On the one hand, working in pairs would assure the truth and validity of their witness; on the other, travelling in twos would signify that they were not free agents but members and representatives of a faith community. Besides instructing his own about their travel plans, life-style and mission, Jesus also prepared them for the rejection that they would surely encounter. He told them to "shake the dust" from their feet and move on.

When faith becomes a passion, things change. Amos was so passionate that even when he was rebuffed, he would not be silenced. The Twelve were fired by the passion of Jesus and were so driven by that passion that human comforts and other considerations were unimportant. Today, Amos, Jesus, the Twelve, and the Ephesians author remind us that all of us who have been chosen by Jesus are challenged to renew ourselves, our passions and our purpose. May their example aid us in retrieving something of the fire that drove them.