Cycle B - Year II:  

22 July 2018: Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time  

(Liturgical Color: Green)

Readings:

First Reading:        Jeremiah 23:1-6

Second Reading:   Ephesians 2:13-18

Gospel:Please Read  Mark 6:30-34

Jesus cares for His people!

 How do we measure an effective leadership?  It is said that leadership is practiced not so much in words as in attitude and in actions. Spending precious time on someone, to care and to minister, may also be a measure of leadership.

Our Lord Jesus Christ Himself will show us by His own example what qualities a Christian leader must have.

Recall that in last Sunday's Gospel, Jesus sent out the twelve apostles on their first solo mission, meaning on their own without Him, to preach and bring the Good News to the people. Now this Sunday's Gospel tell us about the return of the twelve  after their first missionary experience.

The apostles came back and reported to Jesus what they have done and taught. Jesus knew they were tired and exhausted and wanted them to rest first. For our Lord was not only concerned with the content of the preaching but also with the time to rest for His disciples. And so Jesus told them to "come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while." By this action, Jesus is showing us that a leader must also be mindful of the physical limitations of his people and does not push them to the extreme. So the apostles take a boat to a deserted place to rest.

Now Jesus wanted to also rest together with His disciples. But the people followed them there. Mark writes that when Jesus saw the large crowd "his heart was moved with pity for them, for they were like sheep without a shepherd, and he began to teach them many things." (Mk 6:34) So then our Lord forgets about His own rest. Because the desire to respond to the needs of the people impels Jesus to leave aside the much needed rest for Himself.

Thus, the Gospel passage reveals the intensity of our Lord's public ministry. Jesus and His disciples were so busy that they didn't even have time to rest and to eat. Even so, notice our Lord's response. Rather than be annoyed, He is compassionate toward the spiritual needs of the people. Our Lord sees that they are hungry for the Word of God, and so He preaches to them.

The example of our Lord clearly reminds us that as Christians we should at times be ready to sacrifice our time and even our rest in the service of the Gospel, that we ought to be accessible to those who need our help as much as it is humanly possible.  Because the Lord gives us the perfect image of a true leader in Himself as the Good Shepherd.

Do we find such type of leader in our national life today, in the Church, within our local community,  and even in our very own family?

The other point in our reflection is to realize that we must never stop seeking at our Lord Jesus Christ, even when He seems so far away or have departed from us. We must imitate the thirst for God's Word by the big crowd that followed our Lord. Because when we are in great needs of Him, it opens up the compassionate heart of Jesus, our Lord and Good Shepherd. This we can be sure.

A blessed Sunday to us all. And thank you for a moment with God.

Ad Jesum per Mariam!