Fifteenth
Ordinary Sunday Year B – July 11, 2021
An important start to
travelling is knowing how to pack your luggage. It can be a nightmare trying to
fit two weeks of clothing into a bag which can only accommodate less than a
week, lugging around heavy luggage, waiting in long baggage claim lines, and how
about additional charges for overweight luggage.
In the Little Prince, Antoine De St. Exupery
wrote, “He who would travel happily must travel light.” I learned to travel lightly after having
aching shoulders and a painful back after carrying heavy luggage. As I slowly
ditched the extra “baggage,” I could feel the weight being lifted from my
shoulders. Excess possessions are like excess luggage: they can tie us down,
get in the way, and drain our energy and sense of adventure. Conversely, the
less stuff we have to worry about, the freer we become. To regain our freedom,
we simply need to lighten our loads not only physically but emotionally and
spirituality.
Jesus presents this
wise piece of travel advise to his disciples and to us today. But Jesus’ version
seems harsher than what you would expect on a budget airline trip. When you get
a ticket issued by Jesus, you won’t have to struggle looking for the small
print exclusions found at the bottom of the page. It would come printed in
bold, right at the very top – “No Carry-Ons Allowed.” Or as Jesus said, “Take
nothing for the journey but a walking stick – no food, no sack, no money…. wear
sandals but not a second tunic.”
Did Jesus want to see
his disciples suffer? Was this just hyperbole – a mere exaggeration of the
actual conditions required in order to prove a point, not to be taken
literally. It is clear that the most important lesson that Jesus wanted to
impress on his disciples was a radical dependence on God. He had made this
demand right from the beginning when he called Peter and his brother Andrew and
the two siblings, James and John, from their previous stable occupations of
fishing. They left not only their possessions, a paying job, their hometowns,
but also friends, relatives and even families.
Radical dependence on
God means not anchoring ourselves to our present situation of life. The
conditions imposed by Jesus on travelling lightly stress the importance of
always being on the move, to change our goals or priorities. We are to steer away
from the temptation of growing permanent roots, tightly hanging on to what we
possess, holding onto relationships we have established, keeping a firm hold to
positions we have acquired. Christians need to be always ready to change.
Ezekiel let go of his animal and tree occupations and became a prophet for God.
We as Christians can become overly closed-minded and narrow when we don’t hear
God’s words. When Christians or parishes become overburdened with heavy baggage
(self-concerns), they no longer grow.
Secondly, radical
dependence on God means rooting ourselves in the Church. Being dependent on God
does not mean that one is a Lone Ranger or a soloist. Jesus sent out the Twelve
two by two. Dependence on God requires our faith community and the Church,
communion and collaboration.
Thirdly, radical
dependence means freedom from enslavement to material possessions, false
securities, self-sufficiency and pride. We are free if we are free from
external masters (possessions and securities) but also from the internal master
of and tyranny of self to pride and being wrapped up in self.
Fourthly, radical
dependence means accepting the hospitality of God. God offers hospitality to
humanity by offering us forgiveness and reconciliation. God offers hospitality
to humanity through the gift of salvation. Hospitality means trusting in God’s
providence. God will provide our “daily bread.”
As Christians, we are
often tempted to surround ourselves with several layers of security blankets.
Christians are meant to go out on a limb while attached to the True Vine who
gives life. We are called to travel lightly, while carrying the heavy weight of
being effective witnesses of the good news of salvation.
Fr.
Don, cp