Eleventh Sunday of the year (Year A)

Eleventh Sunday of the year, June 18, 2023

Exodus 19:2-6a, Romans 5:6-11, Matthew 9:36-10:8

(image courtesy: Google)

Once the train ticket inspector entered a crowded compartment and there he found an old worn out purse. He searched with money for the identity of the person and found nothing but the picture of Jesus in it. He asked the people there and one elderly person said that it was his. The inspector asked him to prove and he replied saying that it had the picture of Jesus. The inspector said that anyone could have it but could he explain.  The senior man said that it was a gift from his father and he kept his parent’s picture because they were great. As he grew up he placed his own photo thinking he was the handsome. Soon his girlfriend took that place, and later his wife, and finally his son. His parents, wife all passed away, his friends left him alone and his son went his own way. What was left for him was the only friend Jesus. He had little money but Jesus was his companion. Everyone in the compartment heard his tale with some tears. At the next train station, the Inspector got down and went to the book shop asked for a picture of Jesus to be kept in his purse.

In the gospel, we hear how Jesus cared for the people and sent his disciples to do the same. He sends his disciples out to do the same work as he did. He gives them the mission to proclaim the Kingdom of God and to bring peace and harmony to all. He gives them the power to heal and make them persons according to his heart. The disciples have received a lot from Jesus – power to preach, heal and bring wholeness and now they are invited to do so, just like the elderly man in the story who gave Jesus to others.

The reading tells us that Israelites came to the Desert of Sinai and camped in the desert in front of the mountain. The Lord called to Moses from the mountain and told him to tell people of the need of their fidelity to him.  They have witnessed his signs and he carried them out of Egypt, as if on eagle’s wings and has brought them to himself. If they keep the agreement, namely the covenant, they will be his own possession, chosen from all nations. Then they will be his kingdom of priests and a holy nation people belonging to him.

In today’s gospel, Matthew is calling attention to the mission that the twelve disciples are being given. They are sent by Jesus to proclaim the kingdom of heaven in word and deed. As Jesus sent his disciples to continue his work and mission, so too the Church is sent by Jesus. The Church is his continuing presence on earth. Every member of the Church is sent by Jesus to contribute to this mission. This calling continues today. Jesus still calls, as he called the twelve, to continue the loving ministry of Jesus in the world. At baptism, we receive the water of God's love and the oil of service, completed in confirmation, marriage and ordination. The needs of God's people are as great today as then. In a world of addiction, suicide, confusion, poverty, injustice and many other big needs, Jesus still looks and sees people 'like sheep without a shepherd'. He calls each of us, male and female, young and old into his service. The Lord is inviting us to give Him wherever possible. In other words, we are all called to be His missionaries.

What is the spirit of a missionary? Every missionary is possessed by a sense of generosity, the giving of oneself, one’s time, services and resources in the service of God’s kingdom becomes possible only when we realize that all we are and all we have, including life itself, is a gift from God. It is well explained by Jesus in today’s gospel - “You received without payment; give without payment” (Matthew 10:8).  Being a Christian is, in fact, a life of conscious receiving and giving back to God. Unfortunately, we often pay much more attention to receiving than giving. As children of God we receive the grace of faith, we receive the word of God, we receive forgiveness, we receive the sacraments, and we receive new life in the Spirit. But we only complete the circuit of God’s grace when we go out and share these same blessings with those who do not as yet have them.

Where shall we begin? Mission, like charity, begins at home. The place for us to begin, therefore, would be with the lapsed and lukewarm members of our own families and our own parishes. But we must find an avenue to give back the faith we have received. That is the only way to remain alive and vibrant in the faith.

 

Happy Sunday