Thirteenth Sunday - 2022

"As they were going along the road, someone said to Jesus,  “I will follow you wherever you go.”  It’s true to say fewer and fewer are saying that today. Our being here today suggest we are trying to say I will follow you Lord, but do we fully appreciate the implications of what we are saying? Jesus wants us to come and follow – but also to understand the implications of saying I will – there will be a cost and it’s important that we understand what that cost entails. So in the gospel passage today Jesus gives us three lessons on what “following Jesus” really means. LESSON #1:  As they were going along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” This world is not our true home – we are just passing through to somewhere else – we’re going home. True we need shelter, food and clothing, and other necessities of life – but we must not over pack. If we make these things the centre of our heart’s desire; bigger and better houses, more and more wealth to purchase things to make us happy; in short, to make here and now the goal of our hearts, Jesus and time and eternity will pass us by and we end up being left behind come eternity. LESSON #2. To another Jesus said, “Follow me.” But he replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” But Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” The culture we live in and the expectations and demands it places upon its own must always take second place to what our true vocation in life really is; living a holy life and being a witness to a higher calling, God’s Kingdom of heaven. Our culture is now dominated by a secular world view – secular culture makes the rules – but our lives must always challenge these secular values by the way we live by the Word of God, not the worlds. LESSON #3.  Another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” Jesus said to him, “No one who puts a hand to the plough and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”  Simply put, half a Catholic just won’t do. Today’s society champions the right to choose, to choose what you like, what attracts you, what you say is right for you. To each his own. More and more we see religious people apply this way of thinking to their religious life. “I like to go to Mass once and a while, but not every Sunday, it’s a busy world, I have so much to do – family, friends, obligations others expect of me.” “And the Church has some good suggestions for living but there are too many doctrines and dogmas to accept. After all, I have the right to choose what I will do with my life.” This is the way of thinking of a divided heart. "No one can serve two masters, because either he will hate one and love the other or be loyal to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and (the world) riches!" Mtt. 6:24.  Let us take these three lessons to heart today – let us ask how well we understand their implications for our lives.

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