A Reflection from Fr. Paul - Sunday, January 12th

This weekend we begin Ordinary time and this year we will be reading mostly from the Gospel of Matthew.  Our liturgical color during Ordinary time is green, the color of growth, because we will be learning how to grow as disciples through Jesus’ words and actions as presented to us by Matthew.
 
Our readings this weekend are a good introduction to Ordinary time, explaining to us, through examples, that each one of us has been called:
 
Isaiah: formed “as a servant” in his mother’s womb and called “to be a light to the nations.”
 
Paul: called to be an apostle, telling us that we are all called to be holy (by being apostles, also).
 
John the Baptist and Jesus: our Gospel tells us that they were both called, John to preach repentance and point to the one coming after him, Jesus to baptize with the Holy Spirit.
 
The point is that we have been formed as servants in our mother’s womb, called by God to be apostles, that is, to bring Christ to others.  And we will learn how to do that through the words and actions of Jesus, as we listen to Matthew’s Gospel this year.
 
Many of the passages we will hear during the 34 weeks of Ordinary time will be very familiar to us.  We will hear lots of parables, for example, the mustard seed; the seeds that fall on rocky ground; the 10 wise and foolish virgins; every worker getting a daily wage. We will learn who Jesus is through the Transfiguration, His walking on water, and His explanation, after Peter has identified Him as the Messiah at Caesarea Philippi, that he will be a Messiah who suffers and dies. He will do a lot of teaching and explanation of the scriptures for His followers, including us. 
 
Since we have heard these Gospels many times before, the human tendency is to let them go in one ear and out the other.  I invite us, as we begin ordinary time, to make a resolution to listen carefully to the Gospels, reflecting on them and allowing God to speak to us in our hearts.  Then we will be growing as disciples.  God bless.
 
Church sign of the week: You can safely assume you have created God in your own image when it turns out that God hates all the same people you do.