2015

Years ago, I read about a man who survived one of the most brutal settings of WWII as a prisoner of war in Thailand on the banks of the Kwa Noi River. If you ever saw the movie, Bridge Over the River Kwai, then you may recognize his story. Ernest Gordon worked on what was known as the infamous “railway of death,” which the Japanese were building to advance their drive into India and Burma.

Over 12,000 allied prisoners died of starvation or brutality building that railway. Toiling from dawn to dusk, they worked bareheaded and barefooted in temperatures as high as 120 degrees in the sun. Men staggered to their assignments burning with fever. If they dropped in their tracks, their comrades left them behind to be picked up at day’s end to be carried back to the camp.

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Let’s step back a few weeks…Jesus’ ministry is rejected in his own home town of Nazareth, but he continues his preaching in surrounding villages; he has sent his apostles out in twos giving them “authority over unclean spirits.”  His apostles are returning and Jesus himself is gathering larger crowds each day.  You can imagine those feelings—the excitement of the returning apostles, the hopeful expectations of Jesus, the exhilaration of the crowds who have witnessed Jesus’ words.  And, we can appreciate the weariness of the apostles and Jesus, and understand their desire to “get away by themselves for a few days.”  (pause)

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What is the mission of the church today? Some say it is to “comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.” Others say it is to preserve truth, while others say the mission is to gather people together. The mission of the church seems to be a vague and multi-faceted reality.  We can lose focus on the church’s mission by reducing it to any one aspect.

The opening line of today’s gospel provides a reminder of the fundamental nature of the mission of the church today; summoning his disciples, Jesus sent them out, giving them authority over unclean spirits.

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Per ipsum et cum ipso et in ipso: “Through Jesus, with Jesus, in Jesus.”
St. Therese of Lisieux said; “Without me, you can do nothing. With you, Jesus, I can do all things. Since it is through Jesus that everything must be accomplished, the more I let Him do, the more the work of grace will be beautiful and perfect.”

This is just what we hear in our scripture passages today. Even though we heard that rejection was often found in preaching the Word of God, the ones that got it, the ones who really heard, went on to spread this Good News in obedience and humility, fully giving themselves to God.

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Those of us who are old enough to recall the days before Vatican II changed our liturgies may recall that from time to time we would hear a sermon instead of a homily.  A sermon could be whatever the preacher wanted to talk about while a homily has to be a reflection on the readings or the Mass. All homilies are sermons but not all sermons are homilies.

One sermon I recall from my childhood days in Lakewood was delivered on a hot muggy Sunday morning.  After reading the gospel, the pastor simply said, “If you think it is hot in here, just remember that it is hotter in hell.”  

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