THE WORD
Is 1,10-17 / Mt 10,34-11,1
[Jesus said to the Twelve,] “Do not think that I have come to bring peace upon the earth. I have come to bring not peace but the sword. For I have come to set a man ‘against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and one’s enemies will be those of his household.’ Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever does not take up his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.
“Whoever receives you receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me. Whoever receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward, and whoever receives a righteous man because he is righteous will receive a righteous man’s reward. And whoever gives only a cup of cold water to one of these little ones to drink because he is a disciple—amen, I say to you, he will surely not lose his reward.” When Jesus finished giving these commands to his twelve disciples, he went away from that place to teach and to preach in their towns.
IN OTHER WORDS
In today’s gospel, Jesus speaks “of not bringing peace” upon the earth in view of his radical call to discipleship. He calls us to follow him, serve him and imitate his way of life. Responding to this call entails in us a total change in our way of thinking, living, and behaving. It can cause a great deal of pain and suffering to us and to our families like what happened to St. Francis of Assisi when he renounced all his wealth and family inheritance to follow JESUS’ call to a life of poverty.
This is the gospel call today – to make a sincere decision to follow JESUS in all his ways, and to give ourselves completely to Him without turning back no matter what consequence it might entail to us and to others.
Everyday, there is always something to which we are called and dared to respond: a hungry and poor man; our deteriorating prayer life; our lack of faithfulness to the sacraments; someone we have been refusing forgiveness; that nagging urge to commit, as religious and priests, to serving him in his mission to the world.
More often, to respond to most of these needs demand only a little pain, a little cross to carry, and a little discomfort in our lives. Fortunately, the more we respond, the more we nd peace, joy,
fulfillment and happiness in our hearts rather than turbulence and sadness. Today, let us prioritize our Lord and his calls in our life. We simply cannot imagine the joy and the peace that come with doing it. Let us do it now.
- Fr. Gerry Donato, SVD | DWS, Tagaytay
The Word in other words 2016
An annual project of Logos Publications, The WORD in Other Words Bible Diary contains daily scripture readings and reflections written by priest, brothers, and sisters of the three congregations founded by St. Arnold Janssen (the SVD, SSpS, and SSpSAP). It hopes to serve as a daily companion to readers who continually seek the correlation of the Word of God and human experience.
