HOMILY THE 15TH SUNDAY IN THE ORDINARY TIME YEAR B 2018
HOMILY
THE 15TH
SUNDAY IN THE ORDINARY TIME
By Fr. Casmir Odundo
One of the things that has remained with me from the Philosophical hermeneutics classes that I attended in the seminary, (as a philosophical student) now over 6 years ago is an aspect called Logos Apophantikos. Logos Apophantikos is a concept introduced by Aristotle but interpreted and elaborated by the existentialist Martin Heidegger. Logos Apophantikos simply put relates to “pointing out and later being seen,” more of “bringing out”. Let me explain by way of example: The different things we see today, the skyscrapers, the tables, the different car models etc. They first existed in someone’s mind before they were translated into reality. A statue first existed into a sculptors mind before he brought it out to exist in reality. Similarly, one may have good ideas but unless he or she brings them out…they remain just ideas. Simply put, it is like the transfer from the theoretical to the practical.
This bringing things out…is in
conformity with what Jesus does in today’s gospel passage. He summons the Twelve
and then sends them out two by two. This commissioning of the Twelve is in a
way a prelude to the great commissioning just before the Ascension. He gives
them a ‘taste’ of the ‘practical’ so to speak.
To be a Christian is also to receive the call to be an apostle. To be a Christian is to carry out a Logos Apophantikos. And we have to accept to be Apostles literally.
(The word Apostle comes from the Greek Apostolos
which means send out). We have to accept to be sent. Otherwise, we will just be
fire does not burn…such a fire that is useless.
I still recall vividly the day I
was ordained a priest. Just before the Solemn Mass was over, the Bishop called
all of us (the newly ordained) and gave us ‘Letters of Appointments’ i.e. places where we were going to serve. At
that moment, the honeymoon was over, so to speak. That essentially is what it means to be a
priest. To be a priest is to go out to the peripheries as Pope
Francis has repeatedly emphasized. One is not ordained a priest so that he
remains around admiring his chasuble. But one is ordained a priest so that he
can do apostolate, he can go out and serve. He can celebrate mass, administer
the sacraments and sacramentals, preach the word of God and be a guide to God’s
people.
The same applies to a religious
or lay faithful. We are not baptized so
that we can remain at the baptismal font, but rather from the powers that come
from our baptism we can go out and bring many others to the baptismal font. This is what happens to the Prophet Amos in our
first reading. Like us, he too was called by God himself to preach to the peripheries.
He left his native home in Judah (Southern Kingdom) and was summoned by God to
preach in the northern Kingdom.
“Nemo dat quod non habet,” is a Latin expression that says one
cannot give what he does not have. Therefore there is the need to sanctify
ourselves first before we seek to sanctify others. That is why before Jesus sent
out the Twelve he first instructed them and gave them authority over the
unclean spirits. St. Francis of Assisi used to say, “Sanctify yourselves first and then you will sanctify society.” The
basis of apostolate therefore is this, to
sanctify to sanctify yourself, at least to strive for it, and then to do
apostolate that is make others do the same.
Several other things that stand
out with connection to the readings:
I.
The
Twelve were sent two by two: By sending them two by two Jesus wanted to emphasize
the need for companionship in the Apostolate. The need for team work. In the
rite for the ordination of priests, after the new priests have been ordained,
all the other priests are supposed to move forward and give each new priest “the
sign of peace,” a symbol of their fraternity and welcome. God desires that we
work together. Today people talk of “Collaborative
ministry” i.e. priests, religious and the lay people all working together
for the benefit ot evangelization. Perhaps Jesus also sent them two by two so
that they can cultivate “friendship” and preach to one another as they walk. And
friendship is one of the modern day Apostolate as I shall enumerate later.
II.
They were
to carry neither bread (and by extension all food), nor sack (beddings) nor
money nor spare tunic (coats). Jesus wanted them to depend totally on the
providence of God. Reading through the life of many saints, especially those
who founded great religious orders, you will note that they also began like
this…with nothing.
o
We are told that St. Joseph Cottolengo after
initial financial frustrations threw away his wallet saying loudly, “You will know it is God who takes care of
this Church.” And from that moment he never lacked. The congregations that
he founded are called Sons of Divine Providence
o
Blessed James Alberione on his part used to send
his sons and a daughter over see’s to set up missions with totally nothing. No
financial assistance, no contributions whatsoever, and the sons and daughters
were to raise their expenses from well wishers and relations. And the Sons and
Daughters of St. Paul Flourished.
o
St. Josemaria Escriva on his part said that he
had only three things when he founded Opus Dei: Youth, good humour and a desire to do God’s will.
The emphasis here
was that the Twelve were not to carry the above mentioned things merely not to
make their journey light but rather to show that they relied not on human
resources but on God’s providence. God’s faithful ministers will never lack.
God will always provide. Remember we all came to this world empty handed. It is also the responsibility of the laity to
provide for the sustenance of the clergy. The fact that they were to carry
nothing with them points also to simplicity of life that should characterize an
Apostle. St. Mark, unlike the other synoptic Evangelists i.e. Matthew and Luke
says that they were to carry only a staff in their hand and have sandals in their
feet. Different scholars have different interpretations of this, however, for
me, I guess Mark wants to point to the long journey that they were to cover.
III.
The
Twelve were also not to move from house to house. The emphasis here is constancy
and stability in the Apostolate. We live in a world where people are changing churches
the way they are changing clothes. We have always to pray for the spirit of
constancy. To remain in God’s house until
we leave this world. The Psalmist best expresses this: “One thing I ask of the Lord, this I seek, to
dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life.” Psalm 27.
IV.
Jesus also
instructed them to shake off the dusts off their feet in wherever places
they are rejected and not listened to. The Jews had a custom of shaking off the
dust whenever they came out of Gentile land. So Jesus was asking them to treat
those who rejected his word as they would do to non-believers. The emphasis here is the theme of rejection
that awaits any Apostle. As we read in last Sundays readings and as is also
expressed in the first reading today where Amos is also being rejected by the
priest of Bethel, Amaziah. Someone said, “An
Apostle is not a dollar to be accepted by everybody.” The mention of Sodom and Gomorrah brings to
mind a similar story in Genesis, where angels of God were sent to the cities
but instead they were abused.
V.
Finally,
we are given a brief report of how the Apostolate went. None of them
starved despite the fact that they didn’t carry bread. None of them got pneumonia
despite the fact that they didn’t carry extra coats and more importantly none
of them complained. They all present a good report of how they preached
repentance and how they anointed people with oil. In today’s world very few
pastors and preachers speak about repentance. Many speak about prosperity and
riches. An apostle needs to speak about confession. The Archbishop of Boston,
Cardinal Sean Patrick O’Malley (one of my favorites of the Cardinals) says
that, “You have to go for confession as
many times as you go for a shave and for the ladies as you go to the Salon.”
This is another modern Apostolate, of both priests and laity. The apostolate of getting people to
confession. We have to speak and encourage our brothers and sisters to go
to this sacrament of mercy. We are also told that they anointed the sick with oil. For the Jews we know that oil was
applied to wounds. I know some places here in Kenya where they also believe
that some sicknesses can only be cured by Mafuta
ya Bunduki. The fact that the sick were anointed points in a way to the
sacrament of the anointing of the Sick which St. James (one of the Twelve) will
later write about. (James 5: 14ff).
Friends, as I said we are also
called to go out just like the twelve to preach the good news. This is a
responsibility bestowed on us by virtue of our baptism, and it should not seem
like the work of priests, religious and catechists alone. What kind of apostolate
are you engaged in? We are created in such a way that, if we know or discover
something good, we always want others to share it with others. If you love
Christ, then it is your responsibility to do apostolate, to make others love
him. Don’t say you don’t have money or time…the twelve went out with barely
nothing.
There
are several kinds of apostolates that one can engage in easily the modern
world. I will propose just a few, mention in St. Josemaria Escriva’s book, The Way. The first one is the apostolate
of friendship. (The Way, n. 973) Today, I think friendship is another name for
apostolate. Another is the apostolate of getting others to go the sacrament of
confession. Another is the Apostolate at the Dinner Table (The way n. 974).
Another apostolate could be the one of providing people with the right kind of entertainment
(The Way, n. 975). Another Apostolate is the Letter Apostolate or to give it a
more contemporary term, the Facebook or
Twitter apostolate. You know in the great commission in Mt. 28:19 Jesus commissions
the eleven to go to the whole world. How much facebook, twitter, whatsapp,
blogger and other social sites have made that easy for us. With the touch of a
button, my message of Christ can go to the whole world. Another is an
Intellectual apostolate, among many others.
I wish to conclude with the words
of St. Josemaria Escriva, “Apostolic zeal
is a divine craziness I want you to have. Its symptoms are: hunger to know the
Master; constant concern for souls; perseverance that nothing can shake.” (The
Way n. 934) Finally, in the Gospel of Luke we are told that when Mary heard
the good news, she also did an apostolate…she went out to meet Elizabeth. May
she, intercede for us so that we may also be imbued an apostolic zeal like
hers.
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