14th Sunday in Ordinary Time
(Sunday 3rd July 2016)
Share the gift of God’s love with others – (Luke 10:1 – 12, 17-20)
When I was younger I would play a board game with my family and friends called ‘Risk’ – each player would have a mission to carry out that involved a particular strategy. If a strategist was to hear of God’s plan then a conclusion might be stated that God was taking one of the greatest risks by sending his Son through the Incarnation. In this Gospel reading Jesus seems to continue this risk taking procedure by appointing 72 others to send his message out. At other times in the Gospels the idea of discipleship focuses on the work of the 12 apostles. When St Luke uses the figure of 72 here it may be symbolic of all the Gentile nations or of the elders that accompanied Moses. Today though, we can read this text as a call to everyone to share in the work of evangelisation.
In today’s world there are vetting and screening processes for any prospective position but Jesus foregoes all of this – he knows we all have flaws, we all have made mistakes but he is willing to take that risk – to place his trust in each of us. So many times do people pray the words in the Divine Mercy Chaplet – “Jesus I trust in you” – yet by reading this Gospel, we can see how Jesus placed his trust, and the importance of his mission in spreading the Good News of God’s love, to those around him. God doesn’t need our help to do this but he invites us to collaborate with him so that we may all truly rejoice just as the 72 did.
Our rejoicing should not be due to the power that Christ has given to us but for the very fact alone that we have experienced and witnessed to the love that God has for each of us. This is the same love that we experience at our Youth 2000 events – the fruit of this love is the peace that we have in our hearts and in our lives. This fruit is a special gift that we are called to share with others and it is significant that Jesus sent out the 72 in pairs. It is significant for the very fact that as Jesus addresses the 72 he does so with a clarity of purpose – discipleship will not be easy – there will be rejection by some and by being in pairs we will have someone to share the burden with and to console each other in times of trial and distress.
Rev. Charles Lafferty S.A.C.