"Jesus summoned the Twelve and began to send them."

Amos 7:12-15
Psalm 85
Ephesians 1:3-14
Mark 6:7-13

"Jesus summoned the Twelve and began to send them"

God sends His Son Jesus for a mission. As Jesus was sent, so He also summons Twelve apostles and sends them for the same mission. It is in this mission that obedience and poverty are also practiced. These are the three Christian ideals that go together, and should be part of every "missionary". Jesus embodied these ideals in His life and person. He practiced them first in His life as a poor, itinerant preacher. He summoned the Twelve to follow Him, and they obey in the spirit of their Master's zeal and radical poverty. It is this missionary spirit that enkindles every missionary in the Church to go forth into the world to proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom.

The lay faithful are also called to share in this mission by virtue of their baptismal consecration. We are called to sanctify the secular realities we find ourselves in. Sanctification is not an easy, nor pleasure-filled process because it entails purification - both on the part of the missionary and on the people who receive God's Word. It involves discipline, perseverance, sacrifices and a conversion experience that can become unsettling at first. All of us undergo this purifying process. We are called to understand how our faith calls us to make God's Word and Sacrament fruitful in our lives and in our works. The call to sanctify the very realities we are immersed in have their rootedness in Jesus. The more we are rooted in Christ, the more our mission leads to life. Christ is the Life of the mission. Our mission is to live that Life.

Christian life is celebrated in the Sacraments through our ordained ministers. We can also be integrated more deeply into this life by joining parish-based lay ministries. These are established spiritual paths to make Christ known to others. Prayer is always primary in these spiritual paths. All apostolic activity flows from this basic attitude. Whether we act in family or in work, or add involvement in parish-based lay ministries, we need to be rooted in Christ through prayer. Only if we do so will all our actions bear fruit in the Holy Spirit. The success of our works will produce the humility, understanding, patience, hope, and charity of Christ. This rootedness in Christ in prayer, the Sacraments, and ordinary work is the simplest path to join the Church in mission, obedience and poverty.

"The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near."

Ezekiel 2:2-5
Psalm 123
2 Corinthians 12:7-10
Mark 6:1-6

"The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near."

Jesus emphasized faith in His prophetic preaching. It is one important theme of His proclamation and preaching, especially at Galilee. He says with emphasis: "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent and believe in the good news." To believe in the good news. It is the Lord's appeal to all to have faith in Him and the Kingdom of God. However, not all respond in faith. And this we see in the gospel passage of Mark 6:1-6. Those who did not respond in faith were His own countrymen. Their familiarity with Jesus' family background prevented them to discern His divinity. It was this lack of faith that distressed Jesus not only in this instance, but during His entire public ministry. But the Lord continued on for He had great faith in the Father and in the mission of building God's kingdom.

Faith is a gift. And it is not found in all. For those of us who receive this gift, we are called to be grateful and generous. It helps us to know a God who loves all and who wills life in its fullness for all of humanity. It moves us to be good and to correct our way of living and working with others. It helps us to act well in the eyes of both God and man. The more we have faith, the more we will see that God indeed, by our faith in Him, can "move mountains". Faith can indeed move mountains - so that we can overcome whatever toil or hardship that comes our way. Faith is the key to receive the reward God promises us in our present state and at the end of our lives. Oftentimes, we do not see that reward; but faith gives us the eyes to discover where that reward already is. It is often in the truth and wisdom we receive from our encounter with God in prayer and in our work.

Faith can indeed move mountains. But we don't need this degree of faith everyday. The daily miracles of faith we see are those times when we continue to persevere in doing the good that we ought to do, even when others in our environment aren't. Blessed Teresa of Calcutta is our inspiration in this regard. She said, paraphrasing in a few words, "if others are bad, be good just the same". And St. Paul too can inspire us to always act in good faith: "The trials we have had to bear in our lives are no more than people normally have; we can trust God not to let us be tried beyond our strength; and with any trial He will give us a way out of it and the strength to bear it." (1 Cor 10:11-13). 

Solemnity of the Birth of St. John the Baptist (B)