Sunday Gospel Comment
Alberic Jacovone OSB
YEAR C FOURTEENTH SUNDAY - 4.7.04 Is 66,10-14c; Gal 6,14-18; Lk 10,1-12.17-20 Go!, now you are sent forth! Go
the Mass is ended!.
Today’s Gospel spells out the blueprint of all Church Ministries. Every
Christian is asked to share in Jesus’ work of telling everyone the exciting
“Good News” of God’s unbelievable love for us all.
It’s a love which goes to the excess of letting God’s own Son die a
shameful and horrific death on a Cross, so that insignificant creatures like us, may have life in abundance. It’s a love
beyond all imagining, and only the cruel movie of Mel Gibson can give a glimpse
of the enormity of our
unworthiness, and the unbelievable mercy & compassion of our loving God. All
this gets re-enacted and celebrated every time we celebrate Mass. In it, re
re-live and share in the actual event of Christ’s death on the cross. At the
end of Mass we are dis-missed, with the commission to go and tell everyone about
God’s graceful and unbelievable love towards every sinner. The instructions
that Jesus gives to his disciples in today’s Gospel, are meant for each of us.
We are the people who are to go to everyone. Now that at baptism, we have become
free and unencumbered, are asked to go as God’s messengers who bring peace
into every home, and invite everyone into God’s wonderful deal of
reconciliation. Indeed every time we come to Mass, we share at God’s sacred
meal and automatically our body & soul is brought into a sharing with the
gruesome Passion, Cross and horrendous Death of Christ (His Covenant in his
Blood!). At the end of each Mass,
we are officially dismissed with the injunction to go and tell everyone about
God’s wonderful deal. In Christ, God has sealed his covenant with us and we
share in it every time we celebrate Mass. Mission
& Commission:
If we claim to be Christ’s followers, then we accept Christ’s commission: we
are missioned to give Christ’s life and love to everyone. The gift we have
received we are to extend to others in the three specific areas of proclamation,
service and charity. First, we bring the fruits of our worship to people’s
life, then the fruits of our service to the next celebration and again take the
vision and grace of that celebration to continue the service. Some of our
dismissal hymns express our mission and commission very well. Today, let’s
consider the words in the Hymn: 1. “Go, the Mass is ended - children of
the Lord. Take his word to others, as you’ve heard it spoken to you. Go the
Mass is ended - go and tell the world.
The Lord is good, the Lord is kind and He loves every one.
2. Go, the Mass is ended, take his love to all. Gladden all who
meet you, fill their hearts with hope and courage. Go the Mass is ended,
fill the world with love, and give to all what you have received, the peace and
joy of Christ. 3. Go, the Mass is ended, strengthened in the Lord,
lighten every burden, spread the joy of Christ around you. Go the Mass is
ended, take his peace to all.
This day is yours to change the world, To make God known and loved”. Today we
are called to realize Christ’s mission in our life and to extend it in the
lives of other people. We are all in this together. While we must pray the Lord
of the vineyard to send workers in his vineyard, we must ourselves heed God’s
calling to be a team member, in the missionary activity of the Church. As we
read today’s text, we feel like the first disciples, who, afraid and
unprepared felt like being thrown into the deep-end!. Jesus however reminds us
that in this mission it is not a matter of being powerful or successful
ourselves. What matters is that we accept to do God’s will in Jesus name, work
for his glory, and leave the rest in God’s hands. Jesus is himself is Teacher
& Catechist & Proclaimer & Minister. ______________________________________ |
