The Gospel this weekend has Jesus sending his disciples out two by two into the world for ministry. He doesn’t promise them that it is going to be easy, or that they will even be successful. Jesus simply sends them out with basic instructions to do God’s work in building the Kingdom of God.
When was the last time we did God’s work in building the Kingdom of God after we left church? At the end of mass there is the clear commissioning to ‘Go announce the Gospel of the Lord, Go in peace, glorifying the Lord by your life, or Go in peace.’ All of the dismissals begin with the word GO! This commissioning is empowering for all of us to go build the kingdom of God in our worlds. Do we? We need to be reminded that our lives are to attract others and cause them to ask why we’re Catholic, why do they live like that? If we are living our lives as true disciples it isn’t always going to be easy or even successful, but it is part of our baptismal call.
The Second Vatican Council spoke of the baptized being the leaven of the church in the world. The way the baptized live their lives is meant to bring the church, Jesus’ mission to the world. You and I have a responsibility through our baptism to be Disciples in all aspects of our lives. Some simple examples of doing this include; praying at work, saying grace before meals, having something on your desk or in your work area that identifies you as a believer, having something in your home that identifies your home as the home of a disciple, taking time to pray as a family, to share a meal together and have conversations about prayer and God. Speaking up for injustices that you witness, defending the faith when people speak ill of it, having the courage to share your faith when someone needs consoling, offering to pray for them. These are simple ways that all of us can live the Gospel this weekend. Try it, it may not be easy, but I promise you, it is very rewarding.
Picnic time! Next weekend is our St. Mary’s 172nd Picnic. Please pray for good weather and a successful picnic for our parish. Invite those who may have been away for a while, encourage people to visit and have a great time. Our parish family is a great place to grow in Jesus’ love, and our picnic is a great place to welcome our neighbors, friends and strangers who stop in. Thanks to all who over the next week will work to make our picnic a success. Thanks too, to all who have been planning behind the scenes for months now, especially making sure that everything was good with COVID regulations. The picnic plans have adjusted many times and I appreciate sincerely those who persevered through all of it. Thank you!
See you next weekend at the picnic! It’s going to be great!!
Keep smiling, 😊
Fr. Bryan