Our Gospel reading today is part of the commissioning of the twelve Apostles to go out to the lost sheep of the House of Israel to proclaim to them the Kingdom of God.
In a way, the prefigures the great commission of the Catholic Church, where we are to go out to all the lost sheep in the world around us to proclaim to them the Kingdom of God.
Or, as it says in the Catechism regarding the missionary mandate of the Church: “Having been divinely sent to the nations that she might be 'the universal sacrament of salvation,' the (Catholioc) Church, in obedience to the command of her founder and because it is demanded by her own essential universality, strives to preach the Gospel to all men: ‘Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and Lo, I am with you always, until the close of the age.’”
Archbishop Lori reminds us of this responsibility in his monthly challenge for July as he encourages us to put our faith into action. He calls us to meet people where they are, loving them and serving them, and ultimately leading them into an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ through His Holy Catholic Church. Our active involvement in this missionary mandate is critical to fufill the will of the Father.
As it says in the Catechism, “To reunite all his children, scattered and led astray by sin, the Father willed to call the whole of humanity together into his Son's Church. The (Catholic) Church is the place where humanity must rediscover its unity and salvation. The (Catholic) Church is ‘the world reconciled.’ According to another image dear to the Church Fathers, she is prefigured by Noah's ark, which alone saves from the flood.”
It is up to us to initiate that reunification, just as the Apostles from the reading today. Also, just like the Apostles, you are given great grace to complete this important mission.
Let’s take this month to discern who God has placed in your life to proclaim the Kingdom of God to. Who comes to your mind? In what ways is the Lord inviting you to evangelize to them? In what ways do you find yourself ignoring this call to missionary discipleship? In what ways do you turn away from people when it is inconvenient for you? How can your outreach to the lost sheep in your life in turn bring you closer to the Lord?
Allow yourself to be like the Apostles in our reading today. Find those who thirst in the world. Find those who try to quench their thirst in the waste water of the world, the flesh, and the devil. Bring them to the well of the Sacramental life Jesus established in His Catholic Church. Bring them to the water Jesus gives that we may never thirst; the water Jesus gives as a spring welling up to eternal life.
Remember the words of Jesus: “Whoever gives only a cup of cold water to one of these little ones to drink because he is a disciple—amen, I say to you, he will surely not lose his reward.”
And remember, through you, the Lord wants to do marvelous things.
Thanks be to God!
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