CALLED AND SENT WITH AUTHORITY.
July 14, 2024.
Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time – B.
“Jesus summoned the Twelve and began to send them out two by
two and gave them authority over unclean spirits.” Mk 6:7
A Swahili proverb says: “A person does not object to being
called, he objects to what he is called for.” A Romanian Proverb adds: “Every
man must walk in his own calling.”
At our Baptism, not only do we become children of God, but
we are also invested with a threefold authority that becomes also a mission. We
are made through the anointing Priests,
Prophets, and Kings. We are made sharers of the mission of Christ, anointed
like him and sent.
So, as a Priest, you become a mediator between God and
humans, offering sacrifices on behalf of all. Jesus is considered the greatest
high priest. Every baptized Christian is an Alter Christi.
As a King: A person with supreme authority over a territory.
Jesus' mission was to bring peace and justice to the world and to have God
reign in people's hearts. We share in this mission, becoming instruments of
God's peace and love.
Lastly, as a Prophet: The fulfillment of all prophecy. A
prophet is a spokesperson for God, or one who speaks on God’s behalf. In our
union with Christ through Baptism, we become prophetic witnesses to God’s
loving plan of salvation. In our world today, we need prophets in all corners
of the world and society.
In one word, we are “incorporated into Christ who is
anointed priest, prophet, and king” (CCC, 1241).
The beautiful side of this baptismal identity and mission is
that we do not call and appoint ourselves. We are rather called, appointed,
invested with authority, and sent.
Today's liturgy emphasizes the prophetic and apostolic
mission. In the first reading, we hear about Prophet Amos. Confronted by
Amaziah, priest of Bethel who accused him of prophesying against the Temple and
the King and who invited him to flee to Judah, Amos announced the origin of his
prophetic vocation: “I was no prophet, nor have I belonged to a company of
prophets; I was a shepherd and a dresser of sycamores. The Lord took me from
following the flock, and said to me, go, prophesy to my people Israel.”
Prophets are people called and sent by God to be his
messengers. No one can auto-proclaim himself Prophet. As the spokesperson of
God, the voice of the prophet is authoritative, and his words are powerful
because he speaks on behalf of God who sent him.
In the Gospel, we read about Jesus summoning the Twelve
Apostles and sending them two by two with the authority to heal and free people
from unclean spirits. Many elements in this apostolic mission must retain our
attention and lead us in our own mission as Christians.
First, the Apostles did not appoint and send themselves. It
was Jesus who appointed them. Sending them two by two was for mutual support,
for spreading the truth, in fulfillment of the law of Moses Deut 17 and 19),
for accountability, and above all, Jesus foreshadowed the collegiality that would
become the hallmark of the Spirit-filled church. Because the mission is not the
prerogative of one alone, but all together. Two symbolize a community at work.
Secondly, the Lord stated the content of their mission: and
its requirements: To cast out demons, to take no food, no money, no extra
clothes.
Because the mission was not their own but a participation in
the mission of Christ, the Apostles were required a trust in God's Providence
and an abandonment to God. He is the one who calls, appoints, and sends. He
knows how to care for those he calls and sends.
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