Homily for Tuesday, 23d Week of Ordinary Time

Homily for Tuesday
23d Week of Ordinary Time

Sept. 7, 2021
Luke 6: 12-19
Col 2: 6-15
Christian Brothers, St. Joseph’s Home, New Rochelle, N.Y.

“Jesus … spent the nite in prayer to God” (Luke 6: 12).

Jesus prays a lot in Luke’s Gospel, and we must suppose he prayed regularly, probably several times a day, as we do by rule.  But Jesus isn’t doing it by rule; rather, out of love for his Father and out of the same need any human being has for guidance, comfort, and strength.

In this case, he’s praying before a crucial moment in his ministry, his choice of his 12 apostles.  There men are chosen from among a larger group of disciples (6:13)—a group, incidentally, that includes women, as Luke notes in ch. 8 (vv. 1-3).

(by James Tissot)

These 12 are a select group on which Jesus will build the new Israel of God, like the 12 tribes.  Only Christians, of course, aren’t a tribal lot.  We act that way, at times, in our defensiveness and pride, as you can see from letters to the editor, the blogsphere, and comment boxes.  We need to remember who is our lord and teacher, and be united around him.

We’ve all made mistakes in our lives.  Most of us, if not all, would do some things differently if we had a 2d chance, recognizing that even what seemed to be our best judgment at a certain time was, in retrospect, a bad judgment; not necessarily sinful, just errant.

Now look at Jesus’ choices.  He chose Judas Iscariot (6:16).  He must have had a good reason for picking him.  It didn’t turn out so well.  Assuredly, Jesus didn’t choose Judas so that he could betray him.  He just made a bad choice, as all of us do.  In the end, God the Father made all things right.

And so the Father will do for us—not only our poor, mistaken decisions, but even our sins.  God will bring us to life along with Christ, having forgiven us all our transgressions, obliterating any bond held against us by Satan (cf. Col 2:13-14).  Power goes forth from Jesus to heal everyone he touches (Luke 6:19).