Jesus continues his instructions to the apostles as He sends them off (Mt 10:7-15).  He tells them to take no provisions on their journeys but rather they are to look for a place to stay in each town and remain there until they leave.  To places where they will be unwelcome, Jesus gives the warning above.  The questions for us are: Which towns, cities, societies, or countries will not receive Christ and listen to His words today?  Are they aware of the fate that awaits them?  And is it just far away places that should be concerned, or is it also our own backyard?  We see Christian persecution escalating around the world and toleration of Christianity diminishing in the U.S. and other western countries.  This is certainly discouraging, frustrating, and even maddening.  But, instead of causing us to retreat or lash out, we should all the more be active in proclaiming “The Kingdom of heaven is at hand” as the apostles were instructed to do as their opening words to a new town (discussed in yesterday’s post).  We would do well to recall the actual Sodom and Gomorrah story from Genesis 18 and 19.  Abraham was not content to see the cities destroyed but bargained with God not to annihilate them if even a few good persons could be found.  So, then, it seems that our job is to increase the number of the righteous by bringing Christ to those who don’t know Him and reintroduce Him to those who have ignored Him or spurned Him.  Reforming our lives is the beginning of this process for us, along with healthy doses of prayer, Bible, study, sharing, and action.  Then more and more righteous will be found as the initial few conversions, through the example of their lives, will spark more and more conversions.  The call to spread the gospel is one we must take seriously (cf. Mt 28:19-20).  The fate of many depends on letting the Lord work through us to spread the Kingdom.

Moving into Matthew chapter 10 (vv. 1-7), we hear how Jesus gathered the twelve apostles around Him, giving them authority to heal and exorcise.  The Twelve are then named.  The passage closes by telling us that Jesus sent these men out to the Israelites only instructing them with the words above.  This proclamation is ours to make as well.  The connotation of expressions like this is that when we declare this we are speaking of the imminent return of Christ, that is, the end of the world.  Since apostolic times there has always been much speculation about when the end is coming.  Just in the last year or so a Christian pastor famously declared that he was certain of the last day; he was, obviously, proved wrong.  And, of course, the infamous Mayan calendar, according to some, places the end of time happening on December 21st of this year.  It is nonsense to get caught up in such conjecture.  All one needs to do is remember Jesus’ own words: “But of that day or hour, no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Mk 13:32).  What is important is the very next verse in Mark: “Be watchful! Be alert! You do not know when the time will come.”  No one but God knows when the end of the world will come, but one thing we surely know is that our end in this life will come, sooner rather than later in the grand scheme of things.  “Live every day as if it were your last” is a good maxim to make our own.  Are we ready to meet the Lord at any moment?  “You also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come” (Lk 12:40).  If we take seriously the Lord’s command to love God above all things and love our neighbors as God loves them and live this out daily, not only will we not need to fear death but we will be providing an example to others so that they too might be inspired to follow the true path.  This is the way we spread the Kingdom and show it to be present today.

As Jesus continues through Capernaum (Mt 9:32-38) He encounters a man possessed and exorcises him to the amazement of the crowd and the derision of the Pharisees, the latter of whom accuse Jesus of driving out demons by Satan.  Moving on to other cities and villages, Jesus continues to spread the gospel and cure many.  Pitying the crowds who come to meet Him, Jesus utters the words above to His disciples and asks them to pray for more helpers.  When we hear these words of Jesus about “laborers” we naturally think of vocations to the priesthood and religious life.  The last lines of this gospel passage are some of the most frequently and widely used to promote vocations.  So we should pray that more persons, especially our youth, be open to the possibility that they are called to such a life.  But our efforts shouldn’t stop there.  Consider in what ways we can encourage a family member, relative, friend, or student to consider a religious vocation: always cast vocations in the best possible light, NEVER running down a priest or religious with gossip, innuendo, or unfair or undue criticism; point out those in religion who have influenced us positively and who are to be lifted up as true role models; get involved in your parish and encourage youth we influence to do the same, seeing the life of priests more intimately and getting to know them personally; encourage young people to visit vocations directors, the local parish priest, a nearby religious order, a spiritual director; invite a joyful priest or religious to dinner for good conversation and for a blessing; read to or provide materials to young people about exemplary priests and religious, both contemporary and of old.  These are just some ways to encourage religious vocations.  But we must never forget that we all have been given the vocation to evangelize.  We too are those laborers — we are not to wait for others to do the work entrusted to us because they have been “set apart” to do so by sacrament or vow.  We also have been set apart by our baptism.  Let us never cease praying and working to be exemplary models of true Christian living so that by word — and more importantly action — we will encourage everyone who encounters us to want to come closer to the Lord so that they can have what we have.

Yesterday we heard Matthew’s version of two miraculous events effected by Our Lord (Mt 9:18-26 — we heard Mark’s version [Mk 5:21-43] on Sunday of last week).  First an official implores Jesus to return his daughter to life by laying His hands on her.  On the way, a woman with a chronic hemorrhage touches Jesus garment in the hopes of being healed.  She is cured and Jesus addresses her saving faith.  Arriving at the official’s house, Jesus has a crowd of mourners removed and revives the girl.  The last thing we hear are the words above.  The healing of the woman was news enough, but raising a dead person to life?  This is a rare occurrence, even in the Bible (thrice in the Old Testament, five times in the New, three of those by Jesus).  No wonder news spread so quickly!  What we need to do is have that same excitement.  We may never experience or witness an objectively miraculous healing and it is unlikely that we will see someone brought back to life miraculously.  But we have the Good News.  We know what the Lord has done in our lives — why would we not shout it from the rooftops?  What about the healing power of Confession?  Those dead in mortal sin can be brought to glorious new life.  Those steeped in sin and vice are able to start anew.  The love that has been poured out to us to overflowing we must share (cf. 1 Tim 1:14).  We must get to the point where we have to share it (cf. Jer 20:9).  Let us reflect often on our blessings and always be ready and willing to share that joy with others.

As we continue along in Mark (6:1-6) at Sunday Mass, we find Jesus moving on to Nazareth, the place where He grew up.  Traveling with His disciples, He begins teaching in the synagogue.  While the townspeople are astonished at His wisdom and “mighty deeds” they wonder about Him since they (think they) know so well Him, His mother, and His relatives.  Then follows the line above.  Jesus, responding to this attitude, acknowledges that He, like the prophets through the ages, finds no honor at home.  “Amazed at their lack of faith” (v. 6), Jesus was able to heal only a few sick people on His visit.  When we consider who is offended by Jesus, we might naturally think of totalitarian regimes, communist countries, or areas where religious freedom doesn’t happen by law, or if legal, not in practice.  We might also think of militant atheists or those in the grip of the devil through sin and vice.  But what about predominantly Christian societies — those most familiar with Jesus — that seek more and more to impinge upon religious freedom because of a misguided and misunderstood “compassion”?  And what about those same societies that enact laws enshrining the killing of the unborn, the elderly, and the ill, while “blessing” “marriage” between couples of the same sex?  And where pornography and “alternative lifestyles” are not only tolerated but embraced and lauded?  Are not these all indications of taking offense at Jesus?  The Word is clear on all these matters and so many other grave sins that we are called to spurn.  Unfortunately, some try to twist the words of the Bible to justify the sinful acts they embrace , worsening their plight by altering scripture (cf. Rv 22:18-19) thus leading others astray (cf. Mt 18:6).  Let us be a voice, even when it seems to be a lonely one, that never compromises in the face of sin and evil but always seeks to know the Truth more completely and share it in love.

Yesterday, as we continued through Matthew (9:14-17), we heard some of John’s disciples questioning Jesus.  They asked why Jesus’ disciples do not fast while they and the Pharisees do fast.  Jesus responds with the line at top and goes on to say that fasting will occur when He is no longer with them.  He closes His remarks talking about how new material is not used to patch old clothes and old wineskins are not used to hold new wine.  Certainly the apostles and other disciples mourned the death of Jesus, but that sadness quickly turned to joy on Easter Sunday.  Christ is risen!  We need not mourn — Jesus has won victory over sin and death.  So even though we see ever-increasing sin and death around us, and we are saddened by it, we know the end of the story.  But we don’t simply just sit back and wait for the Lord.  He has called us to hasten the kingdom (Mt 6:10) by being faithful to His teaching in thought, word, deed, and by evangelizing the world (Mt 28:19-20).  In the closing words of Matthew, Jesus promises to do what He was begged to do on Emmaus Road: “Stay with us.”  What Jesus foretold in the Bread of Life discourse in John 6 and made manifest at the Last Supper (Mt 26, Lk 22) we are beneficiaries of to this day.  We encounter the Bridegroom most prominently in the marriage supper of the Lamb: the Mass.  We also have Him available in every tabernacle and Eucharistic adoration chapel in the world.  When we mourn or are sad or hurting or confused or troubled, we need only to go to Him who forever waits for us and longs for us.  Jesus, as the New Cloth, did not come to patch up the old law but to fulfill it, making all things new.  Jesus, as the New Wine, gives us His Blood in expiation for sin and to fulfill and complete the ineffective sacrifices of the Old Covenant.  We must let Him turn our mourning into gladness as we look forward the eternal happiness that He made possible for each one of us.

Still in Capernaum, Jesus encounters the tax collector Matthew and invites him to follow Him (Mt 9:9-13).  Matthew does so immediately.  The next scene is a dinner at Matthew’s house with Jesus and “many tax collectors and sinners” (v. 10).  The Pharisees disapprove, but Jesus, overhearing them, responds with the line at top.  He goes on to tell them that they should learn what “I desire mercy, not sacrifice” means (from Hos 6:6) and that He “did not come to call the righteous but sinners” (v. 13). It is true that a medical doctor is most needed by those who are ill, ailing, or with disease.  But who are the “sick” in the spiritual realm?  Those who sin.  And that is everyone.  Who are the righteous (i.e., the just)?  “There is no one just, not one” (Rm 3:10).  So we are all in need of Christ and His saving power.  And the sicker we are with sin and vice the more He desires to give us His grace if we will only desire to reject these evil ways and accept His gift.  Understanding Jesus’ attitude toward sinners is not difficult at all.  If we have a sick loved one we pour out even more love to that person, desiring to take away some — or maybe all — of his pain.  Jesus is the same way, only perfectly.  We also know that sometimes getting to a physical cure involves bitter medicine, painful treatments, or major surgery with a long recovery time.  The same is true with our soul.  God knows that only if we are humbled will we be exalted (cf. Mt 23:12).  Cutting away the dross is painful, but what remains afterward much more closely resembles our true image (cf. Gn 1:27).  Looking at life this way, we can “consider it all joy” when trials, tribulations, suffering, and heartache come our way (Jas 1:2).

The story of Jesus’ healing of a paralytic is given to us today (Mt 9:1-8).  Jesus, returning to His home base, Capernaum, is immediately greeted by people seeking healing for a disabled man.   Because of their faith, Jesus says the words above to the man on the stretcher.  When some scribes object privately, Jesus calls them out, effecting physical healing to back up His claim that He has the authority to forgive sins.  The crowds, “struck with awe,” glorify God.  We are grateful today that Jesus gave this same authority to forgive sins to His apostles and their successors.  When we are truly sorry for our sins and have a firm commitment to avoid them in the future, Jesus words above can be heard by us today.  Certainly we should ask forgiveness immediately from the Lord and from those we harm.  Also, a daily examination of conscience and Act of Contrition are indispensable for growing in holiness.  But our most powerful source for confession, penance, and reconciliation is the Sacrament of Confession.  Sacraments are the ordinary means of grace established by Christ.  When we enter the “medicine box” with the proper disposition, freely telling all of our remembered sins, we hear Jesus’ words audibly through the voice of His priest who acts in the person of Christ.  Let us never hesitate for any reason to avail ourselves of this great gift no matter how grave the offense that burdens us or how long we’ve been away.  Like the Prodigal Son, the Father wishes nothing more than our return and longs to run to meet us with open arms so that He can give us all that He has (Lk 15:11-32).

This day we hear proclaimed Jesus’ encounter with the Gadarene demoniacs (Mt 8:28-34).  When Jesus enters their territory, two demoniacs living in the tombs meet him, calling out the words above.  They ask that if He drives them out that they be allowed to enter a herd or swine.  Jesus agrees as He exorcises them and they all rush into the sea and drown.  The swineherds run to the townspeople and tell them of this, whereupon all ask Jesus to leave their area.  It seems that the attitude of the possessed men and the townspeople were similar.  They wanted nothing to do with Jesus.  We, on the other hand, should want everything to do with Jesus.  If there is any part of our lives in of which we’d prefer Jesus not be a part, we must examine that attitude in ourselves.  Is Jesus excluded from the bedroom?  The boardroom or meeting room?  The coffee klatch?  The pub?  If Jesus isn’t Lord of all aspects of our lives, we allow Him to be Lord of none of it.  Let us constantly ask the Lord to help us to resist temptation and avoid sin so that we concede no part of ourselves to anything but Him.  We “do not do what [we] want, but [we] do what [we] hate” (Rm 7:15) but we must continue to “work out [our] salvation with fear and trembling” (Phil 2:12).  God always desires to give us the grace necessary so that by His gift of faith we can work in love (cf. Gal 5:6).

The Feast of St. Thomas, Apostle gives us the opportunity to again enter into the episode for which Thomas is most (in)famous: disbelieving the other apostles’ account of Jesus’ post-Resurrection appearance to them in the Upper Room (Jn 20:24-29).  Thomas was not present at Jesus’ first appearance but is with the group when Jesus appears again a week later.  At that time, Jesus addresses Thomas first, inviting him to inspect the wounds he claimed to need to probe before believing.  Well, Thomas immediately confesses Jesus as Lord and God which prompts Jesus to reply with the headline of this post.  Jesus is speaking to every Christian that ever lived or will live that didn’t know Him when He walked the earth or who did not have a supernatural encounter with Him.  But for those of us Christians who believe the Eucharist is the really and truly present Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Christ, we see, and through the eyes of faith, believe, before finally having a real, intimate encounter with Him.  In fact, it is often recommended that Thomas’s words to Jesus, “My Lord and my God,” are especially appropriate for us to say in our hearts at the consecration at Mass, the moment that simple bread and wine are transsubstantiated into the Flesh and Blood of Christ for our salvation.  For those of us blessed with the gift of faith, we see and believe, trusting that Jesus has kept His promise to be with us “always, until the end of the age” (Mt 28:20).