Package of a Call!

Friday, July 12, 2024

Hos 14:2-10; Mt 10: 16-23

Today’s Gospel highlights the heavy cost we pay for following Jesus.

The challenges that Jesus hints at are part of the package of the call we have received. 

Though the passage talks of persecution for being the disciples of Jesus, it leaves behind some important assurances.  

1.In our trials and tribulations, Christians will have divine help. Such assurance of divine providence helps us remember whose message we carry and whose character we represent. If we find ourselves in extraordinary circumstances, we may expect extraordinary help too.

2. Jesus’ reminder of God being ‘Our Father’ is significant here because we do not rely on an impersonal God but on a personal God whose beloved children we are. 

3. The prudence of the serpent is recommended thanks to the quickness of its perception of danger and the rapidity with which it escapes from it. The calmness of the dove refers to the simplicity of character, which is a result of our reliance on God. 

4. Jesus also underlines the necessity of endurance in upholding and defending our faith. He assures the certainty of blessing to those who show the completeness of endurance. 

The Gospel passage reminds me of a famous advertisement. 

An ad in a newspaper went like this: ‘Men wanted for hazardous journey; small wages, bitter cold, long months of complete darkness, constant danger, safe return doubtful, honour and recognition in case of success.’ On learning the demands of the call, 5000 applicants came in. Of them, just 28 were chosen for the Antarctic expedition in 1914 on a ship named ‘Endurance’. As expected, the ship was crushed by heavy lumps of icebergs, and all of them had to abandon the ship and float in three small boats for 21 months. Eventually, they accomplished the mission and reached the South Pole. All 28 returned victoriously.

Indeed, following Jesus involves challenges. But our purpose in following Jesus can give us the needed passion to walk in his footsteps in all earnestness. 

Fr. Dhinakaran Savariyar