ELEVENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
18 JUNE 2023
In
the first reading from the Book of Exodus, Moses tells the Israelites that God
has been intimately involved in their lives and in their history. God freed them from their slavery in Egypt
and brought them through the waters of the Red Sea. At Mount Sinai, God entered into a special
covenant relationship with him. God
chose this insignificant group of people out of love. Moses uses a beautiful image to explain how
God forms them into a covenant of love.
Mother eagles bear their babies on their wings. As they soar in the sky, they drop them and
swoop down to catch them until they learn to fly on their own. Like a mother eagle, God has been leading
them through the desert, teaching them how to behave as free people. They drop many times in their lessons. But God is patient. Moses tells them that they are God’s special
possession, dearer to him than all other people on the earth. God has made them a kingdom of priests, a
holy nation. They did not earn a
covenant relationship. They have often failed
to hearken to God’s voice and keep the commandments. But God remains faithful to them.
Jesus, the
Word made flesh dwelling in our midst, demonstrates the same intimate
involvement with his people. He has been
announcing that the kingdom of heaven is at hand. His heart is moved with pity, because they
have been neglected by their religious leaders.
He selects some of his disciples to continue his saving work. Instead of forming an efficient search
committee to look for the most qualified candidates, he chooses twelve of his
disciples and sends them out to proclaim the presence of this kingdom. The ones chosen are insignificant people with
no apparent qualifications. Most of them
are fishermen. One is a tax collector
who worked for the Romans. Another is a
Zealot, whose party is dedicated to driving out the Romans, sometimes with
force. Jesus gives them authority over
unclean spirits. Despite their lack of
any kind of qualification, all of them eventually choose to remain his
apostles, except for Judas Iscariot.
They become the foundation for the building of Christ’s Church.
The Lord
has called each of us to become his disciples when we passed through the waters
of Baptism. None of us have any specific
qualifications for being his disciples. Saint
Paul makes that point when he says that the Lord reconciled us to the Father
when he died for us sinners. As
reconciled people standing on the foundation of the Apostles, we are called to
live that reconciling love and extend it to others. At Mass, he speaks to us, his disciples in
the Word. He feeds us with his Body and
Blood and sends us out to proclaim that the kingdom of heaven is at hand and to
invite others to be part of it.
We who are
fathers share a unique calling to proclaim that the kingdom of heaven is at
hand. Most of you are physical fathers
with biological children. Some of us are
spiritual fathers, with lots of children given to us as fathers of this parish. We really do not have any specific qualities
for being fathers. But Jesus Christ
loves us and has shown what his special relationship with the Father looks
like. None of us are perfect, and we
have all failed to reflect the Father’s love in our vocations. But the Lord reminds us today that we too
must show compassion to those who depend on us.
We can cure the sick, especially those who suffer with the sickness of
not being loved. We can renew our
efforts to die to ourselves so that we can share the Lord’s rising with our
children. We can reconcile those who are
alienated in any way. We can drive out
the demons of division, jealousy, and hatred.
We have received our vocation without cost. Without cost, we can give our love generously.
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