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Advent Weekday
Isaiah 29:17-24
Psalm 27:1, 4, 13-14
Matthew 9:27-31
Summary
Jesus feels compassion for the 'shepherd-less¯ crowds following him and
spends time healing them and sharing that 'the Kingdom is at hand¯. He then
instructs his 12 apostles that they are to do likewise and gives them the power to
heal and drive out demons. He instructs them, 'Without cost you have received;
without cost you are to give.¯
Reflection
John Paul II called for a '
new
evangelization¯, but what does this mean?
I
think that it may actually be the '
original
evangelization¯ which is exactly what Je-
sus asks for from his followers. In this powerful gospel Jesus is moved to pity
for the people as he goes out into the towns and villages and into the syna-
gogues. His heart aches because he sees that 'they were troubled and aban-
doned, like sheep without a shepherd.¯
This is what this gospel tells me about 'evangelizing¯; firstly, - we must
love
those in need of God. As the old saying goes, no one cares how much you know
(apologetics) until they know how much you care. Secondly, we must
go out
(from the churches, from our comfort zone) to where the people live and are
found. Thirdly, we must do what we can to
help and heal
the people. As Pope
Francis says, 'I see the Church as a field hospital after battle. It is useless to ask
a seriously injured person if he has high cholesterol and about the level of his
blood sugars! You have to heal his wounds. Then we can talk about everything
else. Heal the wounds, heal the wounds.¯
Finally, faith is a gift and as people blessed with
this freely given gift we are obliged to
share our
knowledge
of God?s love
with those who are not
so fortunate. We do this through our direct inter-
action with them, through the way we live our
lives and through our personal testimony. This
