June 26th 2022.  Thirteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time

GOSPEL  Luke 9, 51-62

Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini, broadcast on Vatican Radio

 

Don Fabio’s reflection follows the Gospel reading . . .

 

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GOSPEL  Luke 9:51-62

When the days for Jesus' being taken up were fulfilled,
he resolutely determined to journey to Jerusalem,
and he sent messengers ahead of him.
On the way they entered a Samaritan village
to prepare for his reception there,
but they would not welcome him
because the destination of his journey was Jerusalem.
When the disciples James and John saw this they asked,
"Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven
to consume them?"
Jesus turned and rebuked them, and they journeyed to another village.
As they were proceeding on their journey someone said to him,
"I will follow you wherever you go."
Jesus answered him,
"Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests,
but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head."
And to another he said, "Follow me."
But he replied, "Lord, let me go first and bury my father."
But he answered him, "Let the dead bury their dead.
But you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God."
And another said, "I will follow you, Lord,
but first let me say farewell to my family at home."
To him Jesus said, "No one who sets a hand to the plough
and looks to what was left behind is fit for the kingdom of God."

The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ

 

SUMMARY

In Sunday’s Gospel we see how Jesus’ gaze is fixed firmly on his destination of Jerusalem. In other words, his whole intention is directed to the passion, death and resurrection that he will undergo out of love for us. Various people then come up to Jesus and tell them that they intend following him. Jesus’ reaction to these various individuals underlines the radical nature of Christian discipleship. First of all we note that Jesus is on an unwavering path of love towards his passion. We too must follow his way of love, and this entails being ready to accept rejection and refusal. One of the bystanders says, “I will follow you wherever you go”. Jesus makes clear that following him does not bring earthly comfort or prosperity. “The Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head”. The love we are called to is not a love that hopes for earthly reward. Other bystanders say that they must bury their family members or say goodbye before they can follow him. Jesus, in response, encourages us to keep our eyes focussed on the Kingdom. Family issues will always be there looking for resolution. We must make the following of the Lord our priority. Also, we have a tendency of always wishing to resolve our own problems before following the Lord, but if we put anything before God, then he is not really our God.

If we are to follow Jesus in loving others, then we must be ready to meet rejection

First he is met by rejection - the Samaritans do not welcome him. In response the disciples ask that they be punished. Jesus can only reproach this attitude, because love demands nothing in return and cannot be forced on anyone. It is not an imposition. If our love is not accepted, then we must willingly accept the refusal of the other. Whoever does not know how to accept a refusal does not know how to love! On a daily basis, God accepts our “no”, our indifference, our distraction, but he continues to love us. Love is not discouraged by refusal. As we see, Jesus continues to walk towards Jerusalem.

 

If we are to follow Jesus, it must not be with secret hopes of earthly rewards or prosperity. We are called to love without calculating returns

A bystander says to Jesus: "I will follow you wherever you go". This might seem a good sentiment, but Jesus makes clear that his destination is not a place on this earth. A Christian act is not really such if it does not have an eschatological dimension, an orientation towards the Kingdom of Heaven. Saint Paul says: "If our hope in Christ is only for this life, we are to be pitied more than all men" (1Cor 15:19). All those who think that the following of Christ will bring benefits on this earth are very wrong. We must realize that this world is only a prelude to true fullness in heaven. Otherwise, we are deceiving ourselves and many disappointments will come. As Jesus says, "The foxes have their dens and the birds of the sky their nests, but the Son of man has nowhere to lay his head." Anyone who claims to love in order to win a “den” or a “nest” is just a utilitarian. The love we are called to by Jesus is a love which does not make calculations.

 

We must not look back at the things of this life that cannot be resolved. Instead we must keep our gaze fixed firmly on the things of heaven.

A second person asks Jesus to go and bury his father before following him. Jesus gives a terrifying answer: "Let the dead bury their dead; you instead go and announce the kingdom of God”. Burying the dead is an act of mercy, but what Jesus is referring to is the fact that resolving our paternal and parental relationships can be an endless business. This becomes clearer in the case of the third person who asks to be allowed to say farewell to his family. All of us have issues with our childhood that can never be resolved completely. In a sense, you can never finish burying your father. You can never cut your ties completely with home. Either the chapter of childhood is left serenely behind or it remains there to impede our development. There is always something to fix or be clarified! And this can prevent us from becoming adults, like one who ploughs a field looking backwards. He won't do a good job. We too must keep our eyes fixed on the Kingdom.

 

We tend to try to sort out our own problems BEFORE following the Lord. But if we put anything before God, then he is not really our God.

Both of these last people say, “Let me first do such-and-such and then I’ll follow you”. If God is not the first thing in our lives, then he is not our God! Whatever we put before God is that which dominates our existence. We always have the tendency of wishing to first resolve our problems, then follow the Lord. In this way, we never resolve our problems! That which is of the flesh, or of the psyche, tends to never be satisfied. These are appetites that are always seeking for more. The Fathers of the Church used to say, “Don’t put anything before Christ”. As we read this Gospel, let us set aside those things that distract us. Let us give less importance to those things that are not salvation, that prevent us from going directly to Paradise.