13th Sunday of Ordinary Time
Here we are at the start of July and the beginning of the summer holidays. Here in Northern Ireland where I am the schools will be closed for the next 2 months and by the end of that time the parents will be ready for the asylum. So these days spare a thought for all those parents out there who are wondering what they will do with the youngsters over the next few weeks. We were lucky as we were able to go to the country and the cousins and many friends were there so times were great during the summertime for us but the summer holidays can be a difficult time for many families who mightn’t have the opportunity for a holiday this year so we remember them in our thoughts..
In the First Reading through the woman of Shunem we learn that in our search for God, practicing hospitality is important, for it can be the occasion of a blessing from God through the person we are dealing with at that moment. In our Gospel story we are reminded that the priority of faith demanded radical consequences for early Christians as they took up their crosses to follow Jesus. At that time extended closely-knit families formed the basis of society, a choice for a follower of Christ could mean a rejection of the family’s faith and values. Jesus reminded his followers that the Christian life involved many risks and one could not compromise or hide these risks, a believer could not placate his or her family if the cost threatened faith. Even though they had only a very vague idea then of what he meant, when the time came, they remembered Jesus words and gladly suffered imprisonment, hardships, and finally martyrdom for Christ.
This shows how the resurrection of Christ, and the descent of the Holy Spirit on them, changed them from worldly weaklings into fearless spiritual heroes. They were convinced that Christ was the Son of God their saviour who had come on earth to bring all men to heaven. Today, too, there are still those who are suffering a lingering martyrdom, worse than quick death on the scaffold, because they obey God rather than man. We ourselves, who are free from any overt persecution, must show our gratitude to God for being allowed to practice our religion openly and without fear. We may not be able to preach, or teach the truth of the faith in the same way as priests deacons or religious do but we can help all those who are doing so by our prayers and our actions in living our lives according to our Catholic faith. This Gospel highlights for us the importance of hospitality in the Christian life.
To welcome another in Jesus name is to extend hospitality to Jesus himself. We have many opportunities in our daily life to reach out to others, to be a welcoming presence and a sign of God’s love in the world especially where we live let us not be afraid to take these opportunities when they arise.
Fullerton T 