14th Sunday of Ordinary Time

Isaiah 66:10–14c

Psalm 66:1–3, 4–5, 6–7, 16, 20

Galatians 6:14–18

Luke 10:1–12, 17–20

The world needs a new proclamation of the Gospel that is clear and direct. Only believers who put the Gospel at the center of their lives can be effective witnesses. Jesus calls us to be disciples.

The sending of the 72 is a model for discipleship. Jesus sent them two by two to the towns He would visit to prepare the way for Him. The description of their responsibilities is rather unusual. Jesus tells them not to take supplies, to accept the hospitality offered to them and not to fight for a place if it was not offered. He gives them the charge to give “peace” to anyone willing to accept it.

Shalom is translated as peace, but the concept is far more than that. It is not the absence of war. The proper way to ask how a war is proceeding in Hebrew is: “How is the shalom of the war?” 

Shalom means fullness of being, completeness, wholeness. It includes recognition of wounds, emptiness and longing for something more. Offered and accepted, it establishes a relationship.

Relationship with Jesus is the essence of discipleship. What the 72 are to experience is a sharing of relationship, first with the One Who sends them, then between the two who walk without resources as companions, and finally, as two who have been made one in shalom by the journey together, to whomever they meet in the town to which they were sent.  

This is to prepare the way for Jesus to start the process all over again as those who have been prepared receive Him into their lives and establish a living relationship with Him as disciples.

Evangelization continues this process. We tend to make it more complex than it is. Each of us has a relationship with the Lord. If we are truly seeking to be disciples, we open our hearts to Him. We become empty, unattached, not clinging to our set patterns of behavior or to the skills we have developed for ourselves. We look to Jesus as our all and make our own all that He offers us, His gift of Shalom.

When the 72 return to Jesus, they are filled with joy and with stories of what they accomplished in the name of Jesus. They are amazed at what they did, including freeing others from the grip of the devil.  

The Lord’s response is to point out that their actions have had an effect far greater than they can imagine. What they have done is not just for their time; it is for eternity. Their names are written in heaven.

Consolation and joy are given to us as we walk the earthly journey. We are invited to be engaged with this world, reaching deep into our relationship with the Lord, to share not what we have on our own, but what He has given to us. When we encounter Jesus, He offers us His Shalom. Then, He draws us into the act of sharing that Shalom with others.

The troubles of our time seem too much for us. We can be overwhelmed by the complexity of these challenges. There are layers upon layers of difficulties. Political attitudes, social situations and familial strife can sap our energy.

There are signs that powers beyond us at the spiritual level are behind the divisions that we experience among the nations, in our families and even within our own being. Jesus’ response is to send us out, two by two, into all the places He wants to visit.

Shalom, fullness of being, is offered to us. It begins with our relationship with the Lord. Will we be disciples, relying on what He supplies?  

Listen to His voice, speaking within your heart: “The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest.” And then, “Go on your way.”