Jesus Trusts Us

Homily for Friday in the Second Week of Ordinary Time

Today’s Gospel text is one of three accounts in the Gospels about the choosing of the Twelve from among the disciples of Jesus. The Gospel records that Jesus called them apostles, a word that means “sent.” Though we are used to hearing the names of the apostles as they are recorded in the Gospels, it is important to realize that this text is far more than a simple enumeration of their names. The clue to the significance of this reading lies in the Gospel verse for today. “God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.” Jesus entrusted his mission of reconciliation to the Twelve. His trust and confidence in them is a distinct sign of honor, an honor of which they could be justly proud. In St. John’s Gospel, when he greets the Apostles in the upper room after the resurrection, he tells them: “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” Mark writes in a similar vein: “But they went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the word through accompanying signs.”

At the heart of the Gospel, the heart of Jesus’ mission, is the message of forgiveness and reconciliation. In First Samuel, we read of a reconciliation between Saul and David. When he had the opportunity to end the struggle between them, David did not kill Saul but spared his life because Saul was the Lord’s anointed king. When he follows Saul out of the cave, David speaks to Saul and asks that the enmity between them be put aside. Saul agrees to this, but he also realizes that David will one day take his place on the throne of Israel. David was not a perfect human being. Like all of us, he fell. However, in this case, he was the bigger man than Saul.

By coincidence this year, on the day that we read the names of the apostles in the Gospel of St. Mark, we also celebrate the memorial of St. Agnes of Rome, one of the virgin martyrs of the Roman church who is mentioned in the Roman Canon or first Eucharistic Prayer. She is the patroness of virgins and of the virtue of chastity. As I celebrate this day, I cannot forget that the very first women religious I knew, my first three teachers, were from the Congregation of St. Agnes. My first teacher, by coincidence, was Sr. Joyce. So I lift them up in my prayer today as we celebrate this Eucharist, the sacrament of reconciliation.