Third Sunday in Ordinary Time
Last Monday was the presidential inauguration. In these divided times, there were those who were thrilled and others who were completely disillusioned. Over the years, the elected leader lays out his vision for the nation at the inauguration. I read the significance of the inauguration from a different perspective. Here was a white chief justice John Roberts administering the oath of office to an African-American president and a Latino woman chief justice Sonia Sotomayor administering the oath of office to a white vice-president. All this on Martin Luther King Day. America has come a long way since the “I have a dream,” speech of Aug 28, 1963. Ironically, the day after the inauguration was observed by the Church as the Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children. It just goes to show that the dream has not yet reached everybody. This week the church has prayed that it will. Also, as the Catholic Bishop’s website says, January is also “poverty awareness month.” Yes, the American dream is still only a dream for many people.
The reason I began my homily with the presidential inauguration is because it helps gives us a glimpse into the significance of today’s gospel reading. In the previous chapter Jesus had just been baptized. The Holy Spirit had just anointed him and God has acknowledged him as God’s “beloved son.” Filled with the Spirit he spent fourty days in the desert, perhaps discerning the meaning of his baptism for him and the world. Now, filled with the Spirit he inaugurates his mission in public view. This is Jesus’ inauguration ceremony. And here is his vision for the future: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.”
There are numerous ways from which to look at this passage. One way to reflect upon it is to see Jesus standing at a threshold in his life and make crucial decisions about his life. I see this as a three step process. I think we can learn much from Jesus’ life.
- Discerning the Vision. In this passage from Luke, I see Jesus standing at a threshold in his life. He is thirty years old. Besides working with his father as a carpenter he probably did much discernment. Now, he must meaningfully fashion the rest of his life. The vision Jesus laid out was his plan for living a meaningful and purposeful life. Through this vision Jesus’ life will find expression. How does this apply to us? As the presidential inauguration showcased, as a nation, as individuals and families we constantly stand at the threshold. No matter what state we are in life we are always at the threshold of a new day and a new tomorrow. And there are often two approaches: there are those who let life happen to them and then there are those who like Jesus fashion their life in faith. Meaning comes when we fashion our life like Jesus – in faith. Purpose comes when we lived discerned lives in the Holy Spirit. In the next point I want to talk about how Jesus fashioned meaning for his life.
2. Personalizing the Vision. Jesus ended reading the prophecy from Isaiah with the words, “Today, this prophecy is fulfilled in your hearing.” In this way he personalized God’s plan to save the world. Let me explain what I mean. God had a plan to save the world and Isaiah had prophesied about it. Now Jesus makes God’s plan and Isaiah’s prophecy his own. Jesus does this in two ways: first, he made God’s saving mission his own, and second, he allowed God unconditional claim over his life. What does this mean for us? That there are striking parallels between Jesus and us. Our life is a gift to us from God. And just like Jesus, by our baptism we have chosen to belong to God and Christ. And just like Jesus our identity too is clear – we are sons and daughters of God and as importantly we are also disciples of Jesus. This means that as we fashion our life we too must do two things: make Jesus’ mission our own and second allow God unconditional claim over our lives so that God can work through us. In other words, no matter who we become professionally it can also become the way for us to bring alive the saving mission of Christ.
3. Implementing the Vision. What is our mission? First I want you to hear the words with which Jesus began his ministry. “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.” Tuesday night, after a meeting with our RCIA folks and finance commission meeting, at about ten, I finally sat down for dinner and watched a bit the American Idol auditions. One of the contestants was Rodney Barber. He introduced himself as the ‘Voice of Charlotte” (as in Charlotte, North Carolina). Rodney was once homeless. The show did not tell us how, but Rodney has overcome homelessness and now he sings on the streets of Charlotte. With the money he makes he helps other homeless people get back on their feet. Consciously, Rodney Barber is fashioning his life. In the here and now Rodney is sharing in the mission of Jesus. We too can meaningfully fashion our lives if we too can consciously understand this prophecy of Isaiah, personalize the mission of Jesus and implement it creatively in our life. If we can fashion our lives in a way that we can carry out the mission of Christ, then life will have meaning, purpose both for us and for God.
As we participate in the body and blood of Christ at communion, let us make it a real participation in the life and the mission of Christ, Amen.
- Fr Satish Joseph