The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today inspire followers of Jesus to carry out our mission with confidence as we offer peace to those we encounter.
Peace with confidence
The reading from the Book of Job declares ‘For I know that my Redeemer lives.’
* [19:25–27] The meaning of this passage is obscure because the original text has been poorly preserved and the ancient versions do not agree among themselves. Job asserts three times that he shall see a future vindicator (Hebrew goel), but he leaves the time and manner of this vindication undefined. The Vulgate translation has Job indicating a belief in resurrection after death, but the Hebrew and the other ancient versions are less specific.1
Psalm 27 is a triumphant song of confidence.
* [Psalm 27] Tradition has handed down the two sections of the Psalm (Ps 27:1–6; 7–14) as one Psalm, though each part could be understood as complete in itself. Asserting boundless hope that God will bring rescue (Ps 27:1–3), the psalmist longs for the presence of God in the Temple, protection from all enemies (Ps 27:4–6). In part B there is a clear shift in tone (Ps 27:7–12); the climax of the poem comes with “I believe” (Ps 27:13), echoing “I trust” (Ps 27:3).2
In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus describes the mission of the seventy disciples.
* [10:4] Carry no money bag…greet no one along the way: because of the urgency of the mission and the singlemindedness required of missionaries, attachment to material possessions should be avoided and even customary greetings should not distract from the fulfillment of the task. * [10:5] First say, ‘Peace to this household’: see notes on Lk 2:14 and Mt 10:13. * [10:6] A peaceful person: literally, “a son of peace.” * [10:13–16] The call to repentance that is a part of the proclamation of the kingdom brings with it a severe judgment for those who hear it and reject it.3
Maureen McCann Waldron shares that we are called, as today’s gospel says, to be laborers in harvesting the field.
Each one of us is called by Jesus in a deeply personal and loving way to go with him into the fields. Our harvest work might include loving a difficult person more deeply or listening more carefully in conversation, especially when we hear a point of view different from our own. We can reach out to the many people isolated by the pandemic and ask how they are. And really listen. I could add to the harvest by stopping myself from a snarky comment and holding back on my judgements of others. Each one of these are small steps, or as St. Thérèse of Lisieux would call them, the Little Way.4
Don Schwager quotes “Jesus the Good Shepherd changes wolves into sheep,” by Cyril of Alexandria (376-444 AD).
"How then does [Jesus] command the holy apostles, who are innocent men and 'sheep,' to seek the company of wolves, and go to them of their own will? Is not the danger apparent? Are they not set up as ready prey for their attacks? How can a sheep prevail over a wolf? How can one so peaceful conquer the savageness of beasts of prey? 'Yes,' he says, 'for they all have me as their Shepherd: small and great, people and princes, teachers and students. I will be with you, help you, and deliver you from all evil. I will tame the savage beasts. I will change wolves into sheep, and I will make the persecutors become the helpers of the persecuted. I will make those who wrong my ministers to be sharers in their pious designs. I make and unmake all things, and nothing can resist my will.'" (excerpt from COMMENTARY ON LUKE, HOMILY 61)5
The Word Among Us Meditation on Job 19:21-27 comments that Job knew that he was innocent. Even if God had allowed his suffering, Job just couldn’t accept that it was because of his sins (Job 19:21). He even declared that someday he would be vindicated and that he would “behold [God]” with his own eyes (19:27).
we need to keep in mind that we live in a fallen world. Illness, death, and natural disasters were never God’s intention for us; they came into the world through sin. One day, when Christ comes again, God will be “all in all” (1 Corinthians 15:28). And what a day that will be! There will be no more suffering and no more tears. Like Job, we will behold God with our own eyes—along with the beauty of his perfect creation. “Father, I praise you for your mercy and faithfulness.”6
Friar Jude Winkler notes the transition of Job’s friends from pity to accusation of terrible sin. As lambs among wolves Jesus disciples must trust in Providence. Friar Jude laments that those who reject the Love of God must live in the bed that they have made.
A post by Franciscan Media on Saint Thérèse of Lisieux notes that life in a Carmelite convent is indeed uneventful and consists mainly of prayer and hard domestic work. But Thérèse possessed that holy insight that redeems the time, however dull that time may be. She saw in quiet suffering a redemptive suffering, suffering that was indeed her apostolate. Thérèse said she came to the Carmel convent “to save souls and pray for priests.” And shortly before she died, she wrote: “I want to spend my heaven doing good on earth.”
Preoccupation with self separates modern men and women from God, from their fellow human beings, and ultimately from themselves. We must re-learn to forget ourselves, to contemplate a God who draws us out of ourselves, and to serve others as the ultimate expression of selfhood. These are the insights of Saint Thérèse, and they are more valid today than ever.7
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, comments that we have a lot to learn from communities like the beguines, or later, the Quakers and Mennonites. These movements are made up of little groups, often on the margins of society, sharing the Word of God and their lives together. Author Laura Swan, a Benedictine nun, has studied Christian women’s spirituality movements and writes about the alternative lifestyle of the medieval beguines.
For these women, prayer was being in the presence of God, seeking to unite their minds and hearts with the One they loved (and whom they frequently referred to as their “Beloved”). A central goal in life for beguines was unity of will—that their personal will would become so united with the will of God that they essentially functioned as a unified whole. God’s heart would be the seeker’s heart; the seeker’s heart would find a home in God and God alone. This unity of will would be evidenced by joy, mercy and compassion, and love. . . .8
Our mission requires that the Spirit maintain our confidence and peacefulness by leading us to prayer that makes the daily events of life an opportunity to connect with God.
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