Luke 9: 51-62

[Melody]

51 When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem.
52 And he sent messengers ahead of him. On their way they entered a village of the Samaritans to make ready for him;
53 but they did not receive him, because his face was set toward Jerusalem.
54 When his disciples James and John saw it, they said, "Lord, do you want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?"
55 But he turned and rebuked them.
56 Then  they went on to another village.

57 As they were going along the road, someone said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go."
58 And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head."
59 To another he said, "Follow me." But he said, "Lord, first let me go and bury my father."
60 But Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God."
61 Another said, "I will follow you, Lord; but let me first say farewell to those at my home."
62 Jesus said to him, "No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God."

[royston]

Gospel Reflections - Sunday 4th July 2004
by Father Gerry Pierse, C.Ss.R.
Is 66:10-14 • Gal 6:14-18 • Lk 10:1-12, 17-20

In the Gospel that we read today Jesus is warning the seventy two disciples about their attitudes as he sends them out on mission. He tells them to travel light, to carry no purse or sandals and not to dilly dally on the way. He is telling us,  through them, not to give importance to the baggage we bring, the equipment, the diplomas, the signs of wealth or distinction that mark us as having something that others have not. He knew well that these things only divide people. The more we appear to excel the more we make others ill-at-ease and the more we create jealous reactions. On the other hand the more we are conscious of and accepting of our own limits the more we find uniting us with others and the more we leave space in which to love and be loved by others.

When the disciples came back it is clear that they did not get his message. "Lord," they said, "even the devils submit to us when we use your name." They became intoxicated by the external signs of their power. In their insecurity they grabbed at the external signs and felt that they gained prestige from them. Their value was in these possessions. But Jesus put them back on track by telling them, "Do not rejoice because the spirits submit to you: rejoice rather that your names are written in heaven." To have one's name written in heaven, to be close to the Lord
is what is important. External manifestations are not important.

What really matters
In the Second Reading, Paul, speaking to the Galatians, says that it does not matter if a person is circumcised or not. Could we say today that going through the ritual of being baptised may not be the most important thing either? What does matter, says Paul, is "to become an altogether new creature". Unless I am on the way to becoming a genuinely transformed person in the image of Jesus, then my
baptism and all my other religious experiences have very little value.

Christianity is not an end in itself. It is simply a very effective, and, we believe, the most effective way, of becoming that altogether new kind of human person that Jesus and Paul speak about. This new person has a deep sense of both God's utter transcendence and utter immanence, the God who constantly calls us beyond where we are and who, at the same time, deeply penetrates our being and our every experience. This new person lives a life of perfect integrity and truth, a life of deep compassion and concern. This new person lives in freedom and peace.

Bringing Jesus
Jesus sent out his seventy-two disciples "to all the places he himself was to visit". That is an interesting remark. Who comes first to any place? Is it Jesus or me? As a person baptised in Jesus' name, I am a part of his Body. Where the body is, there, too, is the person. Where I go the then, Jesus also comes to visit. Jesus does not go before us. Nor does he follow after us. We arrive together!

But if I do not go, if I do not reach out, then to some extent Jesus does not go, Jesus does not reach out. I am part of his Body, I am the visible indication of his presence. My voice is his voice. "Who hears you, hears me," he told his disciples once. If I do not speak his message, who will get to hear it?

What a wonderful scene of wild enthusiasm concludes this Sunday’s Gospel. Jesus says, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from the sky.” Later on, in the Book of Revelation, he will say, “See what I have done.” That is so right. He has done it. As I keep having pounded into my head every day, “It is all about Jesus. Everything worthwhile in life is about Jesus.” We, through the power of the Holy Spirit, have been given the great gift of experiencing his action in our lives.

Today we pray that our faith life may be a living celebration of what God has done.......for us. "Rejoice for your names are written in heaven."