“We hold these truths to be
self-evident, that all men are equated equal, that they are endowed by their
Creator with certain unalienable rights,
that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”
In reflecting on these words
taken from the second paragraph of our nation’s Declaration of Independence, we
must say there are many ways in which we are not all equal. Some people enjoy the blessings of material
prosperity much more than others. Some
people are more academically gifted than others. Some folks enjoy the blessings of health much
more than others.
And so we ask the question: how is equality shared among us? The Declaration of Independence says we are
all created equal and that we are endowed by our Creator. The fundamental equality that we all share is
that each one of us without exception are God’s beloved sons and
daughters. The Declaration of
Independence has it right when it says we are created equal, and that we are
endowed by our Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these rights
are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Indeed the equality
envisioned by the founders of this great nation is a Gospel truth that is to be
celebrated. We are God’s beloved, and
that we are to relate to one another in ways that reflect that equality.
As we celebrate the Fourth of
July weekend and as we give thanks to God for the many blessings we enjoy as
citizens of this country that we deeply love, it is good to pause and reflect on
being American and being Catholic.
For example, what is the
freedom we aspire to as Americans and what is the freedom we aspire as the
disciples of Jesus? As Americans, it is
easy for us to lose track of the meaning of freedom that was given to us by our
founding fathers and mothers.
Sometimes as Americans we
think of freedom as the right to self-expression, to express my individuality
in any way I wish and at any time I wish.
This is my right as an American, thank you very much.
This overly individualistic
view of freedom needs to be balanced and corrected by a Gospel sense of freedom
and discipleship. As St Paul says,
Christ has set us free – free to serve, free to love, free to celebrate that
the Kingdom of God is at hand. Freedom
for a disciple isn’t just about individualism.
It is the freedom to be about building up the Kingdom of God in the here
and now; it is the freedom to serve; it is the freedom to wash the feet of
God’s poor.
From today’s Gospel, twenty
centuries ago, Jesus summoned 72 committed people and sent them, two by two, to
communicate God’s love, to bind up wounds, and to be peacemakers in a troubled
world. These ordinary people took with
them no great plan, no set speech, no “how-to” manual. They brought only their faith, their trust,
and their experience of Jesus. Jesus
knew they would make mistakes; nevertheless, he involved them in his mission
and gave them his authority.
Jesus may have sent them out
without purse, bag, and sandals, but he did not send them out without advice. Yes, they were to live simply. The disciples of Jesus are to experience
freedom in that simplicity. They are to
be missionaries for the reign of God.
Flash forward now twenty
centuries to July 7,2019. We are
missioned to share in the mission and ministry of Jesus. This is what it means to be a disciple of Jesus. We need to leave the baggage behind that
keeps from focusing on our mission of witnessing to the love of Jesus in our
community. We need to leave behind the
baggage of old hurts, of grudges that we have been holding on too long, of
prejudices that keep us from recognizing in our neighbor one of God’s beloved.
The Gospel invites us to
reflect on the truth that Jesus sends all of us out to be missionaries. As American Christians, we have a dual
citizenship. We certainly are citizens
of America; but as baptized disciples of Jesus Christ, we are also citizens of
and belong to the Reign of God.
What would it take for us
to live
by the values by the founders of this great nation and what it take for
us to be more faithful to the mission
that Jesus gave to His original apostles and disciples?
As we celebrate our nation’s
anniversary of our independence, may we remember and celebrate that indeed we
are a nation of immigrants; we celebrate the equality
May we retain true to these
values as Americans.
As disciples, Jesus challenges
us in our life’s work, in our relationships, in our personal spirituality to
try to instill elements of the Reign of God into American culture. As we celebrate the great nation that we
have been blessed with, let us also be aware of the great gift of faith we have
been blessed with.
In today’s gospel passage,
Jesus appointed 72 others to go ahead of him with news of God’s love and
peace. Those 72, in Luke’s view,
represented the diverse nations of the world.
Jesus’ mission and message were intended for all. That work of evangelization continues
throughout history.
In sending out the 72, Luke wants to tell us the mission of Jesus
is not only carried forward by the so called experts like priests and religious
but it is the responsibility of every believer in Jesus. Each one of us, as the community of the
baptized, are missioned to communicate God’s love, bind up the wounds of our
brothers and sisters, and we are to be peace-makers in a troubled world.
The mission of the Church is
to carry on the mission of Jesus -- to live as Jesus lives, to love as Jesus
loves, to forgive as Jesus forgives us. The mission of the Church is to lift us and
to affirm the dignity of each and every person – regardless of their race,
regardless of their sexual orientation, regardless of their politics, their
religion or whatever difference you can possibly think of. Today’s Gospel makes clear that all of us are
to be missionaries proclaiming this mission.
We are both Americans who are
committed to the values of the founders of this great nation. We are also the disciples of Jesus committed
to binding the wounds of our brothers and sisters and we are to be peace-makers
in a troubled world.
Have a Blessed Day,
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