Thursday, October 5, 2023

Saint Faustina Kowalska, Apostle of Mercy

Ne 8:1-4,5-6,7-12;

Ps 18;

Lk 10:1-12

“The harvest is abundant, but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest.” Preaching the Good News requires human involvement, but it should not be forgotten that before God we are only beggars asking. There are many hearts waiting for the Gospel, so there must also be many hearts praying. God teaches us to trust and confirms this with the signs of Heaven that this is his harvest, and these are his laborers. As we read today’s gospel carefully, we will notice that the project was prepared by Jesus himself who sent the elect, kept them and equipped them with everything they needed for evangelization. Our attitude should be marked by constant thanksgiving as the Messiah invites all of us baptized to go and preach. In the tradition, sending two by two is an image of a combination of action and prayer, a symbol of preaching and silence. One student “opens” his mouth to the people he meets, while the other “opens” his heart to the voice of God. In missionary cooperation, we need both wings of evangelization, namely action and prayer. Therefore, during missionary month, we show activity and creativity in spreading the Good News and, on the other hand, we also feel the need to pray and immerse ourselves in God’s Word. Evangelization is a matter of faith, so faith must be strong to bring Jesus into the world. This is what B. Paul Manna, founder of PUM said, “The spirit of faith in your holy vocation means a living, deep and abiding conviction and that the Lord has entrusted you with a task on the fulfillment of which depends on your sanctification and the sanctification of many souls.”