Saturday of the First Week of Advent
Lectionary: 180
Lectionary: 180
Thus says the Lord GOD,
the Holy One of Israel:
O people of Zion, who dwell in Jerusalem,
no more will you weep;
He will be gracious to you when you cry out,
as soon as he hears he will answer you.
The Lord will give you the bread you need
and the water for which you thirst.
No longer will your Teacher hide himself,
but with your own eyes you shall see your Teacher,
While from behind, a voice shall sound in your ears:
"This is the way; walk in it,"
when you would turn to the right or to the left.
He will give rain for the seed
that you sow in the ground,
And the wheat that the soil produces
will be rich and abundant.
On that day your flock will be given pasture
and the lamb will graze in spacious meadows;
The oxen and the asses that till the ground
will eat silage tossed to them
with shovel and pitchfork.
Upon every high mountain and lofty hill
there will be streams of running water.
On the day of the great slaughter,
when the towers fall,
The light of the moon will be like that of the sun
and the light of the sun will be seven times greater
like the light of seven days.
On the day the LORD binds up the wounds of his people,
he will heal the bruises left by his blows.
the Holy One of Israel:
O people of Zion, who dwell in Jerusalem,
no more will you weep;
He will be gracious to you when you cry out,
as soon as he hears he will answer you.
The Lord will give you the bread you need
and the water for which you thirst.
No longer will your Teacher hide himself,
but with your own eyes you shall see your Teacher,
While from behind, a voice shall sound in your ears:
"This is the way; walk in it,"
when you would turn to the right or to the left.
He will give rain for the seed
that you sow in the ground,
And the wheat that the soil produces
will be rich and abundant.
On that day your flock will be given pasture
and the lamb will graze in spacious meadows;
The oxen and the asses that till the ground
will eat silage tossed to them
with shovel and pitchfork.
Upon every high mountain and lofty hill
there will be streams of running water.
On the day of the great slaughter,
when the towers fall,
The light of the moon will be like that of the sun
and the light of the sun will be seven times greater
like the light of seven days.
On the day the LORD binds up the wounds of his people,
he will heal the bruises left by his blows.
Responsorial
PsalmPS 147:1-2, 3-4, 5-6
R. (see Isaiah 30:18d) Blessed are all who wait for the Lord.
Praise the LORD, for he is good;
sing praise to our God, for he is gracious;
it is fitting to praise him.
The LORD rebuilds Jerusalem;
the dispersed of Israel he gathers.
R. Blessed are all who wait for the Lord.
He heals the brokenhearted
and binds up their wounds.
He tells the number of the stars;
he calls each by name.
R. Blessed are all who wait for the Lord.
Great is our LORD and mighty in power:
to his wisdom there is no limit.
The LORD sustains the lowly;
the wicked he casts to the ground.
R. Blessed are all who wait for the Lord.
Praise the LORD, for he is good;
sing praise to our God, for he is gracious;
it is fitting to praise him.
The LORD rebuilds Jerusalem;
the dispersed of Israel he gathers.
R. Blessed are all who wait for the Lord.
He heals the brokenhearted
and binds up their wounds.
He tells the number of the stars;
he calls each by name.
R. Blessed are all who wait for the Lord.
Great is our LORD and mighty in power:
to his wisdom there is no limit.
The LORD sustains the lowly;
the wicked he casts to the ground.
R. Blessed are all who wait for the Lord.
AlleluiaIS 33:22
R. Alleluia,
alleluia.
The LORD is our Judge, our Lawgiver, our King;
he it is who will save us.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
The LORD is our Judge, our Lawgiver, our King;
he it is who will save us.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
GospelMT 9:35–10:1, 5A, 6-8
Jesus went around to all the towns and villages,
teaching in their synagogues,
proclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom,
and curing every disease and illness.
At the sight of the crowds, his heart was moved with pity for them
because they were troubled and abandoned,
like sheep without a shepherd.
Then he said to his disciples,
"The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few;
so ask the master of the harvest
to send out laborers for his harvest."
Then he summoned his Twelve disciples
and gave them authority over unclean spirits to drive them out
and to cure every disease and every illness.
Jesus sent out these Twelve after instructing them thus,
"Go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
As you go, make this proclamation: 'The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.'
Cure the sick, raise the dead,
cleanse lepers, drive out demons.
Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give."
teaching in their synagogues,
proclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom,
and curing every disease and illness.
At the sight of the crowds, his heart was moved with pity for them
because they were troubled and abandoned,
like sheep without a shepherd.
Then he said to his disciples,
"The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few;
so ask the master of the harvest
to send out laborers for his harvest."
Then he summoned his Twelve disciples
and gave them authority over unclean spirits to drive them out
and to cure every disease and every illness.
Jesus sent out these Twelve after instructing them thus,
"Go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
As you go, make this proclamation: 'The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.'
Cure the sick, raise the dead,
cleanse lepers, drive out demons.
Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give."
Meditation: "The kingdom of
heaven is at hand"
Who doesn't want a life of good health, peace, and
well-being? Isaiah foretold that God's kingdom would overcome
sorrow and adversity and bring true peace and prosperity to God's people. Jesus
understood his mission to bring the kingdom in all its fulness to us. The core
of the Gospel message is quite simple: the kingdom or reign of God is imminent!
The kingdom of God is imminent
What is the kingdom of God? It's the power of God at work in that society of men and women who trust in God and who honor him as their King and Lord. In the Lord's prayer we dare to ask God to reign fully in our lives and in our world: "May your kingdom come and your will be done on earth as it is in heaven" (Matthew 5:10 ). Jesus' preaching of God's kingdom was accompanied by signs and wonders. People were healed not only spiritually, but physically as well. Do you believe in the power of God's kingdom for your life? Let his word transform your mind and heart that he may reign supreme in every area of your life.
What is the kingdom of God? It's the power of God at work in that society of men and women who trust in God and who honor him as their King and Lord. In the Lord's prayer we dare to ask God to reign fully in our lives and in our world: "May your kingdom come and your will be done on earth as it is in heaven" (Matthew 5:10 ). Jesus' preaching of God's kingdom was accompanied by signs and wonders. People were healed not only spiritually, but physically as well. Do you believe in the power of God's kingdom for your life? Let his word transform your mind and heart that he may reign supreme in every area of your life.
Jesus commissioned his disciples to carry on the works
which he did - to speak God's word and to bring his healing power to the weary
and oppressed. Jesus said to his disciples: Freely you have received,
freely give (Matthew 10:8). What they had received from
Jesus (all free of charge) they must now pass on to others without expecting
any kind of payment or reward. They must show by their attitude that their
first interest is God, not material gain.
The kingdom of heaven comes to those who receive
Christ with faith
Jesus' words are just as relevant today. The kingdom of heaven is available to those who are ready to receive it. We cannot buy heaven; but if we accept the love and mercy of Jesus we already possess heaven in our hearts! The Lord brings his kingdom or heavenly reign to those who receive him with faith and obedience. When the Lord returns in his glory he will fully restore his kingdom of everlasting peace and justice. Do you pray and watch with confident hope for God's kingdom to come in all its fullness?
Jesus' words are just as relevant today. The kingdom of heaven is available to those who are ready to receive it. We cannot buy heaven; but if we accept the love and mercy of Jesus we already possess heaven in our hearts! The Lord brings his kingdom or heavenly reign to those who receive him with faith and obedience. When the Lord returns in his glory he will fully restore his kingdom of everlasting peace and justice. Do you pray and watch with confident hope for God's kingdom to come in all its fullness?
"Lord Jesus, rouse my spirit from complacency and
stir my faith to see you act today. Give me boldness to live and proclaim the
message of the kingdom of heaven and to be a prophetic sign of that kingdom to
this generation."
Daily Quote from the early church fathers: In remembrance of heavenly life, by
Bede the Venerable, 672-735 A.D.
"Why should the lunar reckoning be calculated
from the noontide hours, seeing that the moon had not yet been placed in the
heavens or gone forth over the earth? On the contrary, none of the feast days
of the law began and ended at noon or in the afternoon, but all did so in the
evening. Or else perchance it is because sinful Adam was reproached by the Lord
'in the cool of the afternoon' (Genesis 3:8) and thrust out from the joys of
Paradise. In remembrance of that heavenly life which we changed for the
tribulation of this world, the change of the moon, which imitates our toil by
its everlasting waxing and waning, ought specifically to be observed at the
hour in which we began our exile. In this way every day we may be reminded by
the hour of the moon's changing of that verse, 'a fool changes as the moon'
(Sirach 27:11) while the wise man 'shall live as long as the sun' (Psalm 72:5),
and that we may sigh more ardently for that life, supremely blessed in eternal
peace, when 'the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the
light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days.' Indeed,
because (as it is written) 'from the moon is the sign of the feast day' (Sirach
43:7), and just as the first light of the moon was shed upon the world at
eventide, so in the law it is compulsory that every feast day begin in the
evening and end in the evening (see Exodus 12:18). (excerpt from THE RECKONING OF TIME 3.43)
SATURDAY,
DECEMBER 9, MATTHEW 9:35--10:1, 5a, 6-8
Advent Weekday
(Isaiah 30:19-21, 23-26; Psalm 147)
Advent Weekday
(Isaiah 30:19-21, 23-26; Psalm 147)
KEY VERSE: "As you go, make this proclamation: `The kingdom of heaven is at hand'" (10:7).
TO KNOW: Through Jesus’ teaching and healing, he proclaimed that the kingdom of God had arrived. Jesus was moved with compassion because the people were like "sheep without a shepherd" (Mt 9:36). He asked his disciples to pray that the "master of the harvest" (v 38) would send out more laborers to care for God's people. The Divine Shepherd (Jesus) and the Harvest-master (God) needed human cooperation to achieve this purpose. Jesus chose twelve who would share his authority and mission and serve as apostles. The Greek word apostolos means "one sent forth with a message." Jesus sent his apostles forth to announce his gospel to the "lost sheep of the house of Israel" (10:6). The miracles that accompanied their proclamation were signs of God's reign. The gift that they received was not to be kept to themselves, but was to be freely shared with others.
TO LOVE: In what ways will I share the Lord's gospel with others this Advent?
TO SERVE: Lord Jesus, I pray that I will be generous in answering your call.
Optional Memorial of Saint Juan
Diego Cuauhtlatozin, hermit
Juan Diego was born an impoverished free-man in a strongly class-conscious society. He was a religious man and he became an adult convert to Christianity around age 50. Juan was a visionary to whom the Virgin Mary appeared on December 9, 1531, leaving on his rough cactus fiber cloak (tilma), the image known as Our Lady of Guadalupe. After the apparition, Juan lived out his life as a hermit, telling all who came to him of the wonderful vision of Our Lady. On 20 December 2001 a second miracle was attributed to Juan Diego's intervention and was approved by Pope John Paul II who canonized him on July 31, 2002 at the basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Mexico.
"Listen, put it in your heart my dearest son, that the things that frighten you, the things that afflict you, are nothing. Do not let your countenance, your heart be disturbed. Do not fear sickness nor any hurtful thing. Am I not here, I, who am your Mother? Are you not under my shade and protection? Am I not the source of your joy? Are you not in the hollow of my mantle, here in the crossing of my arms? Do you need anything more?" Our Lady to Juan Diego, 9 December 1531
Saturday 9
December 2017
Advent Season of Creation.
Isaiah 30:19-21, 23-26. Psalm 146(147):1-6. Matthew 9:35 – 10:1,
6-8.
Happy are all who long for the coming of the Lord – Psalm
146(147):1-6.
Each Advent, we are invited to long for the coming of the Lord.
In the midst of their grinding suffering, Isaiah depicts a fresh
and fertile world for the people:
‘People of Zion, you will live in Jerusalem and weep no more. He
will be gracious to you when he hears your cry when he hears he will
answer. When the Lord has given you the bread of suffering and the water of
distress, he who is your teacher will hide no longer, and you will see your
teacher with your own eyes. Upon every high mountain and lofty hill, there will
be streams of running water’.
Isaiah has a poet’s delight in the beauty of the world and God’s
presence shining through it. It invites us to thank God and pray for the
renewal of the world.
In the Gospel story, Jesus sends out his disciples to preach the
Gospel. ‘They are to proclaim the good news to people who lived a half-life.
‘When he saw the crowds he felt sorry for them because they were
harassed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd’.
He responds by sending his disciples out heal, give life and
welcome:
‘As you go, proclaim that the kingdom of heaven is close at
hand. Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out devils. You
received without charge, give without charge.’
Jesus reminds us that faith is not merely in the mind. It is a
profound hope for a full life and based in trust in a God who heals and waters
our lives. We pray for the healing of what has died within us.
Pope Francis emphasises the importance of appreciating our
environment and thanking God for its beauty and richness. He also attends
closely to the ways greed degrades the environment and stunts human beings and
destroys the future. This reflects the despair that life offers no more than
self and gain.
‘We must regain the conviction that we need one another, that we
have a shared responsibility for others and the world, and that being good and
decent is worth it. We have had enough of immorality and the mockery of ethics,
goodness, faith and honesty. It is time to acknowledge that lighthearted
superficiality has done us no good.’
We are invited to pray urgently for a vision of the goodness of
our world and for trust in the God who heals and gives life to us and our
world.
ST. JUAN DIEGO
On Dec. 9, Roman Catholics celebrate St. Juan Diego, the
indigenous Mexican Catholic convert whose encounter with the Virgin Mary began
the Church's devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe.
In
1474, 50 years before receiving the name Juan Diego at his baptism, a boy named
Cuauhtlatoatzin -- “singing eagle” -- was born in the Anahuac Valley of present-day
Mexico. Though raised according to the Aztec pagan religion and culture, he
showed an unusual and mystical sense of life even before hearing the Gospel
from Franciscan missionaries.
In
1524, Cuauhtlatoatzin and his wife converted and entered the Catholic Church.
The farmer now known as Juan Diego was committed to his faith, often walking
long distances to receive religious instruction. In 1531, he would be the
recipient of a world-changing miracle.
On
Dec. 9, Juan Diego was hurrying to Mass to celebrate the Feast of the
Immaculate Conception. But the woman he was heading to church to celebrate,
came to him instead.
In
the native Aztec dialect, the radiant woman announced herself as the
“ever-perfect holy Mary, who has the honor to be the mother of the true God.”
“I
am your compassionate Mother, yours and that of all the people that live
together in this land,” she continued, “and also of all the other various
lineages of men.”
She
asked Juan Diego to make a request of the local bishop. “I want very much that
they build my sacred little house here” -- a house dedicated to her son Jesus
Christ, on the site of a former pagan temple, that would “show him” to all
Mexicans and “exalt him” throughout the world.
She
was asking a great deal of a native farmer. Not surprisingly, his bold request
met with skepticism from Bishop Juan de Zumárraga. But Juan Diego said he would
produce proof of the apparition, after he finished tending to his uncle whose
death seemed imminent.
Making
his way to church on Dec. 12, to summon a priest for his uncle, Juan Diego
again encountered the Blessed Virgin. She promised to cure his uncle and give
him a sign to display for the bishop. On the hill where they had first met he
would find roses and other flowers, though it was winter.
Doing
as she asked, he found the flowers and brought them back to her. The Virgin
Mary then placed the flowers inside his tilma, the traditional garment he had
been wearing. She told him not to unwrap the tilma containing the flowers,
until he had reached the bishop.
When
he did, Bishop Zumárraga had his own encounter with Our Lady of Guadalupe –
through the image of her that he found miraculously imprinted on the
flower-filled tilma. The Mexico City basilica that now houses the tilma has
become, by some estimates, the world's most-visited Catholic shrine.
The
miracle that brought the Gospel to millions of Mexicans also served to deepen
Juan Diego's own spiritual life. For many years after the experience, he lived
a solitary life of prayer and work in a hermitage near the church where the
image was first displayed. Pilgrims had already begun flocking to the site by
the time he died on Dec. 9, 1548, the anniversary of the first apparition.
Blessed
John Paul II beatified St. Juan Diego in 1990, and canonized him in 2002.
LECTIO DIVINA: MATTHEW 9,35 -
10,1.5-8
Lectio Divina:
Saturday, December 9, 2017
1st Week
of Advent
1) Opening prayer
God
of mercy and compassion,
in your Son, Jesus Christ,
you have revealed Yourself
as a God of people.
Turn our empty hearts to You,
give us eyes to see the depth of our poverty
and our inability to build a better world
with our own resources,
and then come and build it with us
through your Son and our Saviour
Jesus Christ, our Lord.
in your Son, Jesus Christ,
you have revealed Yourself
as a God of people.
Turn our empty hearts to You,
give us eyes to see the depth of our poverty
and our inability to build a better world
with our own resources,
and then come and build it with us
through your Son and our Saviour
Jesus Christ, our Lord.
2) Gospel reading - Matthew 9:35 - 10:1,5-8
Jesus
made a tour through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues,
proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing all kinds of disease and
all kinds of illness. And when He saw the crowds He felt sorry for them because
they were harassed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd. Then He said to
His disciples, 'The harvest is rich but the laborers are few, so ask the Lord
of the harvest to send out laborers to His harvest.'
He summoned His twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits with power to drive them out and to cure all kinds of disease and all kinds of illness.
These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them as follows: 'Do not make your way to Gentile territory, and do not enter any Samaritan town; go instead to the lost sheep of the House of Israel. And as you go, proclaim that the kingdom of Heaven is close at hand. Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those suffering from diseases, drive out demons. You received without charge, give without charge.
He summoned His twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits with power to drive them out and to cure all kinds of disease and all kinds of illness.
These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them as follows: 'Do not make your way to Gentile territory, and do not enter any Samaritan town; go instead to the lost sheep of the House of Israel. And as you go, proclaim that the kingdom of Heaven is close at hand. Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those suffering from diseases, drive out demons. You received without charge, give without charge.
3) Reflection
•
The Gospel today has two parts: (a) A brief summary of the apostolic activity
of Jesus (Mt 9:35-38) and (b) The beginning of the “Sermon of the Mission” (Mt
10:1,5-8). The Gospel of today’s Liturgy omits the names of the Apostles which
are found in the Gospel of Matthew (Mt 10:2-4).
• Matthew 9:35: Summary of the apostolic activity of Jesus. “Jesus made a tour through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the Good News of the Kingdom and curing all kinds of diseases and all kinds of illness”. Matthew describes in a few words the central points of the missionary activity of Jesus: (a) to travel through all the towns and villages. Jesus does not wait for people to come to Him, but He goes out to look for the people, travelling Himself through the towns and villages. (b) To teach in the Synagogues, that is, in the communities. Jesus goes to the place where the people are gathered together around the faith in God. And it is there that He proclaims the Good News of the Kingdom, that is, the Good News of God. Jesus does not teach doctrine as if the Good News were a new catechism, but in everything He says and does there emerges something of the great Good News which dwells within Him, that is, God, the Kingdom of God. (c) He cures all kinds of diseases and illness. What poor people experienced most was illness, all kinds of diseases, and what distinguishes the activity of Jesus is the consolation given to the people, whom He relieves from their pain.
• Matthew 9:36: The compassion of Jesus before the situation of the people. “And when He saw the crowds He felt sorry for them because they were harassed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd”. Jesus accepts persons as they are before Him: sick, exhausted, tired. He behaves like the Servant of Isaiah, whose central message consists of “consoling the people” (cf. Is 40: 1). The attitude of Jesus toward the people was like the attitude of the Servant whose mission was very specific: “He does not cry out or raise his voice, his voice is not heard in the street; he does not break the crushed reed or snuff the smoldering wick”. (Is 42: 2-3). Like the Servant, Jesus feels sorry when He sees the situation of the people who were “tired, exhausted, and dejected like sheep without a shepherd”. He becomes their shepherd, identifying Himself with the servant who said: “...be my servant so as to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and so as to convert the dregs of Israel. Behold, I have offered you as a light for the Gentiles, so that you may be my salvation, even to the furthest regions of the earth.” (Is 49:6). And from the contact with the Father, Jesus receives the consolation to communicate it to the poor.
• Matthew 9:37-38: Jesus involves the disciples in the mission. Because of the immensity of the missionary activity, the first thing that Jesus asks the disciples to do is to pray: “The harvest is rich but the laborers are few! So ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers to his harvest”. Prayer is the first form of commitment of the disciples for the mission. Because if one believes in the importance of the mission one has to carry out, everything possible is done so that it will not die with us, but rather that it will continue with others, through us and after us.
• Matthew 10:1: Jesus gave the disciples the power to cure and to cast out demons. “He summoned His twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits with power to drive them out and to cure all kinds of disease and all kinds of illness”. The second thing that Jesus asks the disciples is that they do not begin to teach doctrine and laws, but rather, to help the people who are overcome by unclean spirits and to help them in the struggle against illness. Today, what often frightens people are certain missionaries who threaten them with the punishment of God and with the danger of demons. Jesus does the contrary. “If it is through the finger of God that I drive demons out, then the Kingdom of God has indeed caught you unaware” (Lk 11: 20). It is unfortunate, but today there are some people who believe they need demons in order to make money by driving them out. It would be worthwhile for them to read what Jesus says against the Pharisees and the doctors of the Law (Mt 23).
• Matthew 10:5-6: Go first to the lost sheep of the House of Israel. Jesus sends out the twelve with these recommendations: “Do not make your way to Gentile territory, and do not enter any Samaritan town. Go instead to the lost sheep of the House of Israel”. At the beginning, the mission of Jesus was directed to “the lost sheep of the House of Israel”. Who where these lost sheep of the House of Israel? Were they the persons who were excluded, for example, the prostitutes, the tax collectors, and the unclean who were considered lost and condemned by the religious authority of the time? Were they those of the directing class, the Pharisees, the Sadducees, the elders and the priests who considered themselves the faithful people of Israel? Or were they the crowds, tired and exhausted, as sheep without a shepherd? Probably, here in the context of the Gospel of Matthew, it is these poor and abandoned people who are accepted by Jesus (Mt 9:36-37). Jesus wanted the disciples to participate with Him in this mission with these people. But the way in which He takes care of these people, Jesus himself extends the horizon. In the contact with the Canaanite woman, a lost sheep of another race and another religion who wishes to be heard, Jesus repeats to his disciples: “I have been sent only to the lost sheep of Israel” (Mt 15:24). It is at the insistence of the mother who does not cease to intercede for her daughter that Jesus defends himself saying: “It is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs” (Mt 15:26). But the reaction of the mother changes the attitude of Jesus: “Ah, yes, Lord, but even little dogs eat the scraps that fall from their masters’ table” (Mt 15:27). The answer of the woman counters the argument of Jesus. He takes care of the woman. Jesus listens to the woman: “Woman, you have great faith: Let your desire be granted. And from that moment her daughter was well again” (Mt 15: 28). Through the attention given to the lost sheep of Israel, Jesus shows that throughout the whole world there are lost sheep who want to eat the scraps or crumbs.
• Matthew 10: 7-8: Summary of the activity of Jesus. “Go instead to the lost sheep of the House of Israel. And as you go, proclaim that the Kingdom of Heaven is close at hand.
Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those suffering from diseases, drive out demons. You received without charge, give without charge”. How can the closeness of the Kingdom be revealed? The response is simple and concrete: curing the sick, raising the dead, cleaning the lepers, driving out demons and serving gratuitously, without enriching oneself from the service given to the people. Where this takes place, the Kingdom is revealed.
• Matthew 9:35: Summary of the apostolic activity of Jesus. “Jesus made a tour through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the Good News of the Kingdom and curing all kinds of diseases and all kinds of illness”. Matthew describes in a few words the central points of the missionary activity of Jesus: (a) to travel through all the towns and villages. Jesus does not wait for people to come to Him, but He goes out to look for the people, travelling Himself through the towns and villages. (b) To teach in the Synagogues, that is, in the communities. Jesus goes to the place where the people are gathered together around the faith in God. And it is there that He proclaims the Good News of the Kingdom, that is, the Good News of God. Jesus does not teach doctrine as if the Good News were a new catechism, but in everything He says and does there emerges something of the great Good News which dwells within Him, that is, God, the Kingdom of God. (c) He cures all kinds of diseases and illness. What poor people experienced most was illness, all kinds of diseases, and what distinguishes the activity of Jesus is the consolation given to the people, whom He relieves from their pain.
• Matthew 9:36: The compassion of Jesus before the situation of the people. “And when He saw the crowds He felt sorry for them because they were harassed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd”. Jesus accepts persons as they are before Him: sick, exhausted, tired. He behaves like the Servant of Isaiah, whose central message consists of “consoling the people” (cf. Is 40: 1). The attitude of Jesus toward the people was like the attitude of the Servant whose mission was very specific: “He does not cry out or raise his voice, his voice is not heard in the street; he does not break the crushed reed or snuff the smoldering wick”. (Is 42: 2-3). Like the Servant, Jesus feels sorry when He sees the situation of the people who were “tired, exhausted, and dejected like sheep without a shepherd”. He becomes their shepherd, identifying Himself with the servant who said: “...be my servant so as to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and so as to convert the dregs of Israel. Behold, I have offered you as a light for the Gentiles, so that you may be my salvation, even to the furthest regions of the earth.” (Is 49:6). And from the contact with the Father, Jesus receives the consolation to communicate it to the poor.
• Matthew 9:37-38: Jesus involves the disciples in the mission. Because of the immensity of the missionary activity, the first thing that Jesus asks the disciples to do is to pray: “The harvest is rich but the laborers are few! So ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers to his harvest”. Prayer is the first form of commitment of the disciples for the mission. Because if one believes in the importance of the mission one has to carry out, everything possible is done so that it will not die with us, but rather that it will continue with others, through us and after us.
• Matthew 10:1: Jesus gave the disciples the power to cure and to cast out demons. “He summoned His twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits with power to drive them out and to cure all kinds of disease and all kinds of illness”. The second thing that Jesus asks the disciples is that they do not begin to teach doctrine and laws, but rather, to help the people who are overcome by unclean spirits and to help them in the struggle against illness. Today, what often frightens people are certain missionaries who threaten them with the punishment of God and with the danger of demons. Jesus does the contrary. “If it is through the finger of God that I drive demons out, then the Kingdom of God has indeed caught you unaware” (Lk 11: 20). It is unfortunate, but today there are some people who believe they need demons in order to make money by driving them out. It would be worthwhile for them to read what Jesus says against the Pharisees and the doctors of the Law (Mt 23).
• Matthew 10:5-6: Go first to the lost sheep of the House of Israel. Jesus sends out the twelve with these recommendations: “Do not make your way to Gentile territory, and do not enter any Samaritan town. Go instead to the lost sheep of the House of Israel”. At the beginning, the mission of Jesus was directed to “the lost sheep of the House of Israel”. Who where these lost sheep of the House of Israel? Were they the persons who were excluded, for example, the prostitutes, the tax collectors, and the unclean who were considered lost and condemned by the religious authority of the time? Were they those of the directing class, the Pharisees, the Sadducees, the elders and the priests who considered themselves the faithful people of Israel? Or were they the crowds, tired and exhausted, as sheep without a shepherd? Probably, here in the context of the Gospel of Matthew, it is these poor and abandoned people who are accepted by Jesus (Mt 9:36-37). Jesus wanted the disciples to participate with Him in this mission with these people. But the way in which He takes care of these people, Jesus himself extends the horizon. In the contact with the Canaanite woman, a lost sheep of another race and another religion who wishes to be heard, Jesus repeats to his disciples: “I have been sent only to the lost sheep of Israel” (Mt 15:24). It is at the insistence of the mother who does not cease to intercede for her daughter that Jesus defends himself saying: “It is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs” (Mt 15:26). But the reaction of the mother changes the attitude of Jesus: “Ah, yes, Lord, but even little dogs eat the scraps that fall from their masters’ table” (Mt 15:27). The answer of the woman counters the argument of Jesus. He takes care of the woman. Jesus listens to the woman: “Woman, you have great faith: Let your desire be granted. And from that moment her daughter was well again” (Mt 15: 28). Through the attention given to the lost sheep of Israel, Jesus shows that throughout the whole world there are lost sheep who want to eat the scraps or crumbs.
• Matthew 10: 7-8: Summary of the activity of Jesus. “Go instead to the lost sheep of the House of Israel. And as you go, proclaim that the Kingdom of Heaven is close at hand.
Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those suffering from diseases, drive out demons. You received without charge, give without charge”. How can the closeness of the Kingdom be revealed? The response is simple and concrete: curing the sick, raising the dead, cleaning the lepers, driving out demons and serving gratuitously, without enriching oneself from the service given to the people. Where this takes place, the Kingdom is revealed.
4) Personal questions
•
We all receive the same mission given by Jesus to the disciples. Are you
conscious and aware of this mission? How do you live your mission?
• In your life, have you had any contact with the lost sheep, with people who are tired, exhausted and searching? What lesson did you draw out of this?
• In your life, have you had any contact with the lost sheep, with people who are tired, exhausted and searching? What lesson did you draw out of this?
5) Concluding prayer
The
Lord heals the broken-hearted
and binds up their wounds;
He counts out the number of the stars,
and gives each one of them a name. (Ps 146:3-4)
and binds up their wounds;
He counts out the number of the stars,
and gives each one of them a name. (Ps 146:3-4)
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