Cycle C - Year II:  

26 June 2022: Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time 

(Liturgical Color: Green)

Readings:

First Reading:        1 Kings 19:16, 19-21

Second Reading:   Galatians 5:1, 13-18

Gospel:  Please Read  Luke 9:51-62 

To follow our Lord without conditions!

We are back to Ordinary Time after a series of solemnities at the end of the Easter Season, and this Sunday is the 13th in Ordinary Time. Recall that Ordinary Time in the Catholic liturgical calendar is that part of the yearly cycle of 33 or 34 weeks in which there is no particular aspect of the mystery of Christ is celebrated, but rather the mystery  of our Lord Jesus Christ in all its fullness is observed.

The Gospel from St. Luke presents Jesus determined  to journey toward the final stage of His mission which must happen in Jerusalem. It is in Jerusalem that He will reveal the whole purpose of His life on earth, and that is to die out of love for sinners.

The travel narrative begins with a brief encounter where Jesus is rejected in Samaria. But Jesus rebukes His disciples who wanted to repay the hostility of the Samaritans with fiery destruction.

St. Luke preaches to those who would-be followers of Jesus in several stories. This collection of stories may just seem to be strung together, nonetheless, there is a common theme in them. For in these stories Luke instructs us about how to receive Jesus and His call, even if we find the call inconvenient or untimely sometimes. And the rest of the Gospel story is an admonition from our Lord Jesus about detachment from all worldly security when we decide to accompany Him in this "journey".

How do we apply the Gospel message in our lives?

The first lesson for those who would travel with Jesus is to put aside all initiatives prompted by anger, violence, and prejudice.  That is why in the Gospel Jesus Himself rebukes the disciples James and John who wanted to "call fire from heaven to consume" the hostile Samaritans.  Because as Christians we are taught to put aside anger and violence as ways to solve problems.  Jesus reminds us that to "call fire down from heaven" is definitely not the Christian way to deal with difficult people.

The second lesson is that those who follow Jesus must be willing to let go of all previous attachments. Because half-hearted discipleship simply will not be acceptable to our Lord.

Thus, the challenge of our Christian faith is really to keep calm in the midst of storms, to keep our peace even in turbulent times, and to keep our hope even when everything seems lost.  Because we believe that our life on earth is but a journey, in preparation for our final destiny in the heavenly home.

This is the challenge to us all who want to follow our Lord Jesus Christ in His journey to Jerusalem. The Lord expects the same kind of decisiveness from His followers. It is not going to be easy, that is why we need to pray persistently and consistently for grace to be able to respond to the challenge. And our Blessed Mother Mary is our very model in trust and complete submission to God's will.

And so when we really begin to trust more the wisdom of Jesus, we will gladly let go of unworthy attachments and trust more and more the promises of God, and begin to run joyfully toward the future, which is our heavenly destiny.

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

Ad Jesum per Mariam!