MY daily reflection and prayer:
Friday, July 8, 2016
Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time
The Twentieth Anniversary of Our Priesthood
Dear my friends,
Here is the Gospel for us today according to St. Matthew 10:16-23
Jesus said to his Apostles: “Behold, I am sending you like sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and simple as doves. But beware of people, for they will hand you over to courts and scourge you in their synagogues, and you will be led before governors and kings for my sake as a witness before them and the pagans. When they hand you over, do not worry about how you are to speak or what you are to say. You will be given at that moment what you are to say. For it will not be you who speak but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. Brother will hand over brother to death, and the father his child; children will rise up against parents and have them put to death. You will be hated by all because of my name, but whoever endures to the end will be saved. When they persecute you in one town, flee to another. Amen, I say to you, you will not finish the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.”
This is the Gospel of the Lord. Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ.
***
WHY did Jesus say “Behold, I am sending you like sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and simple as doves.” What does it mean for us today?
Let’s think of it out of the box. Of course, Jesus Christ never promised his followers an easy life. But we should not think that wolves are symbolizing opposition and contradiction mark of our mission. Rather, it is a sign of authenticity of our mission.
We know, wolves appear when the lamb is present. Being a lamb in the midst of wolves implies that the wolves are best defeated by the meekness and simplicity with which a disciple of Christ lives his life.
So Jesus Christ challenges us to have a pure and selfless heart. It does not permit bitterness, resentment and hardship to weaken our commitment to spread the Kingdom of God.
In the Perpetual Adoration of the Eucharist, while worshipping Jesus Christ we wish to form our heart to be conquering and meek like his Most Sacred Heart. There we ask him to grant us a deeper union with him as the only one who will never fail us. Can we offer up our trials for the salvation of the world?
Let’s pray: Lord Jesus Christ, thank you for your grace of our ordination as your priest. Today is the twentieth anniversary of our priesthood. Lord, you know what really makes us mature in love that is sacrifice. It purifies us. It ennobles us. To love means to share in another’s pain. Help us bear all this well, for love of you now and forever. Amen.
Kredit foto: Ilustrasi (Ist)
