Posted by The WORD in other words (2018) by Fr Allan Meechan SVD – Naujan, Oriental Mindoro
Friday 13th Week in Ordinary Time
Today’s Word presents a veritable challenge for all of us.
Amos’ contemporaries simply allowed religion to keep going with minimal inconvenience to them. At our present time, Cardinal Sarah, of Guinea, West Africa, has lamented “the eclipse of the sense of God and man, the lack of real familiarity with the teaching of Jesus Christ… and what John Paul II called a ‘silent apostasy.’” Many of us, while engaged in many laudable efforts for service and social growth, seem to function in a mode of maintenance, simply keeping the place going.
Matthew experienced a personal, life-changing encounter with Christ. He was offered and accepted the chance of a new start in spite of his previous sinfulness, indifference or complicity in evil. But this was not simply a matter of his being “saved.” In following Jesus, Matthew, was called to share in his mission, as are all of us today.
Cardinal Sarah also said, “It is important to give individuals the opportunity for the experience of close encounters with Christ. Without such a heart-to-heart conversion, we are fooling ourselves if we think that people will follow the Son of God in the long term.” We cannot meet Christ in a concrete way, as Matthew did, but we can come to know him on an ongoing manner through scripture, the sacraments, prayer and basing our life on familiar Christian community – or are we ready, like Matthew, to go out to others?
The Pope himself said, “…we cannot passively and calmly wait in our church buildings” and that we must move “from a pastoral ministry of mere conversation to decidedly missionary pastoral ministry.” Today’s readings show a move from maintenance to mission. Can we make this move in our parish?
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