Contemplating today's Gospel
Today's Gospel + homily (in 300 words)
For this reason, I remind you to stir into flame the gift of God that you have through the imposition of my hands. For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice but rather of power and love and self-control. So do not be ashamed of your testimony to our Lord, nor of me, a prisoner for his sake; but bear your share of hardship for the Gospel with the strength that comes from God.
Or (Tit 1:1-5): Paul, a slave of God and Apostle of Jesus Christ for the sake of the faith of God’s chosen ones and the recognition of religious truth, in the hope of eternal life that God, who does not lie, promised before time began, who indeed at the proper time revealed his word in the proclamation with which I was entrusted by the command of God our savior, to Titus, my true child in our common faith: grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our savior. For this reason I left you in Crete so that you might set right what remains to be done and appoint presbyters in every town, as I directed you.
Announce his salvation, day after day. Tell his glory among the nations; among all peoples, his wondrous deeds.
Give to the Lord, you families of nations, give to the Lord glory and praise; give to the Lord the glory due his name!
Say among the nations: The Lord is king. He has made the world firm, not to be moved; he governs the peoples with equity.
Into whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this household.’ If a peaceful person lives there, your peace will rest on him; but if not, it will return to you. Stay in the same house and eat and drink what is offered to you, for the laborer deserves payment. Do not move about from one house to another. Whatever town you enter and they welcome you, eat what is set before you, cure the sick in it and say to them, ‘The Kingdom of God is at hand for you.’”
“The Lord Jesus appointed seventy-two disciples whom he sent ahead of him in pairs to every town and place he intended to visit”
Fr. Juan Carlos ALAMEDA Vega (San Cristóbal de La Laguna, Spain)Today, we celebrate the memory of St. Timothy and of St. Titus, bishops. They distinguished themselves just for answering “yes” to the Lord. What a joy for all of us to see the generosity and dedication of these two disciples of St. Paul! They met with difficulties in their preaching, but they remained faithful, they were able to pull themselves together and they have borne witness.
“So ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest. Go on your way; behold, I am sending you like lambs among wolves. Carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals” (Lk 10:2-4). Behold here two key words these saints have certainly been experiencing: praying (praying the Lord that many will continue to be their disciples); and generosity to be able to follow Him (what difficulties are we to face to bring in the Good News?).
Today, we are also called by the Lord to bear witness; He urges us to be his “collaborators”. “Paul availed himself of collaborators… yet it clearly appears that he did not do everything on his own but relied on trustworthy people who shared in his endeavors and responsibilities” (Benedict XVI). St. Timothy and St. Titus were capable of bringing the Gospel to different places in Asia Minor, while confirming in the faith several Christian communities that were in need of their support to keep on moving further on.
“Into whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this household.’ If a peaceful person lives there, your peace will rest on him; but if not, it will return to you” (Lk 10:5-6). Peace is the fruit of the announcement of the Gospel. Wherever these saints were going they were bringing in the Lord's peace: it would be beautiful that we could bring everybody, wherever we might be, the true peace of the Lord, while participating in the Holy Eucharist and enjoying its teachings. To get there, St. Augustine recommends to us: “If you want to be a peacemaker between two quarreling friends of yours, begin the work of making peace with yourself; you should first pacify yourself inside, where perhaps you are wrangling and brawling with yourself every day.”
