Monday, October 2, 2023

Guardian Angels

Zech 8:1-8;

Ps 101;

Lk 9:46-50

It is so natural to be the first; after all, since childhood, we have always dreamed of winning a competition or getting the best results in school. This put us in a certain position and gave us hope in later victories. Today in the Gospel, the disciples tried to daydream, and their thoughts went far beyond Jesus’ thinking. The greatness of the world is not the greatness of the Kingdom of God, because Christ is not of this world. As an example, the Messiah shows a small child and places it next to him. The students were far away with their hearts and minds. They were not close to their Master.

Those who engage in missionary work risk a similar mistake. You can invent new projects, get a lot of money, build churches, but lose closeness with the Messiah. The greatness of an apostle is recognized by closeness to Christ. The title of today’s Gospel could be “dispute over priorities.” The dispute will be in our hearts, only it should be about the primacy of God. Everything we do every day, at home, at church, at work, poses a question: is Christ first? St. Therese of the Child Jesus, patroness of missions, lived enclosed in a cloistered convent opening her heart and prayer to the five continents. St. Therese said, “I have never heard His voice, but I can feel that Christ is in me at all times, He is guiding me and giving me inspiration about what I should say or do.” Listen to God’s voice and you will discover who you are, how great you are in His eyes.