SIXTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
22 JULY 2018
The
prophet Jeremiah speaks to his people, who have been scattered when the
Babylonians had destroyed Jerusalem.
Jeremiah gives the reason for their difficult condition. Those charged with leadership have failed
them. Jeremiah calls them shepherds. Instead of watching over their flock,
protecting it, keeping it together, and caring for the injured or the sick,
they were too taking care of themselves.
Knowing his people’s discouragement, Jeremiah promises that God himself
will gather the remaining members of his people and care for them. Even though the last remaining descendant of
King David has been killed by the Babylonians, Jeremiah promises that God will
raise up a righteous shoot to David who will govern wisely and do what is just
and right in the land.
We see
Jeremiah’s promises fulfilled in today’s Gospel. Jesus is a descendant of David. Those seeking his help often cry out and
address him as “the son of David.” Jesus
is also the only begotten Son of God, revealing his identity through his
miracles. As the promised shepherd of
Jeremiah, he had sent his apostles on mission to proclaim the good news of
God’s kingdom. They have returned and
are telling Jesus about their successes and failures.
Jesus
listens, even though he is mourning the execution of his cousin, John the
Baptist. So, he gets into a boat with
them and crosses the Sea of Galilee to a deserted place to get some rest. Moses had led their ancestors through the Red
Sea to a deserted place, where they rested from years of slavery in Egypt to
allow God to teach them how to behave as free people. Now, the Good Shepherd takes his tired
apostles to a place where they can rest and learn from him. However, a vast crowd waits for them in that
deserted place. Jesus is moved with pity
for them, because they are lost and scattered.
He sets aside his own grief about the death of his cousin, as well as
his own exhaustion from his ministry, and teaches them. The Incarnate Word of God speaks God’s word
to them. When he realizes that they had
not brought any provisions with them, he feeds 5,000 of them with five loaves
and two fish.
On this
Sabbath day of rest, we have just heard the Lord speaking to us. In just a few minutes, he will feed us with
his Body and Blood. Beginning next
Sunday, we will switch from the Gospel of Mark to the Gospel of John to hear
the “Bread of Life” discourse for the next five Sundays. In listening to the Lord and sharing in the
Eucharist, we can reflect on the dynamics of being disciples. We need to trust that the Good Shepherd heals
those wounds which cause us to be broken and scattered. We need to work hard to meet the needs of
others who depend on us. But, we also
need to rest, to take time to spend quality time in intimacy with the Lord.
We too are
“apostles,” in the sense that we are sent to proclaim the good news of the
kingdom of God. Thanks to the writings
of our last three popes, we are becoming more aware that each of us has a role
in sharing our relationship with Jesus Christ with others. The popes have called our role the “New
Evangelization.” That is especially true
of those of us who are called to be “shepherds.” We are shepherds as priests, religious, and
parents. We are moved with pity toward
so many who are lost or scattered. Without pushing them or putting guilt trips
on them, we can make new efforts to reach out to the “nones”– those who respond
that they have no religion when asked.
As a parish, we are putting together a five year strategic plan to
explore ways in which we can be more effective in our role of evangelizing, and
especially of reaching those who call themselves “nones” and meet their
needs. The Good Shepherd provides a good
model for us. We rest on the Sabbath to
listen to the Lord and to have him feed us in the Eucharist. Then he sends us beyond these stone walls as living
stones formed as Church.
No comments:
Post a Comment