Word to the Wise
Thursday, November 6, 2014 - Thursday in the 31th Week in Ordinary Time
[Phil 3:3-8a and Luke 15:1-10]The tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus, but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying, "This man welcomes sinners and eats with them." So Jesus addressed this parable to them "What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert and go after the lost one until he finds it? [Luke]
NOVEMBER 6 ST. ALPHONSUS NAVARRETE, O.P. AND COMPANIONS, Martyrs in Japan
[Philippians 3:3-8a and Luke 15:1-10. Scriptures may vary in Dominican locales.]
The Pharisees and scribes would not have appreciated Jesus comparing them to shepherds. Shepherds were generally looked down on socially in those days. Pope Francis in his programmatic document, "The Joy of the Gospel," challenges the "shepherds" of the Church, bishops and pastors, to have "the smell of the sheep" about them! One wonders how much that challenge is appreciated!
Today's gospel scripture features a lost sheep and a lost coin. Both represented valuable economic resources to the one who lost them. No wonder that the shepherd and the housewife search far and wide to find the lost sheep or coin These two parables serve as a kind of introduction to a third parable: the Prodigal Son! If we search high and low for something of economic value, how much more should we search high and low to bring a lost brother and sister back and rejoice at their recovery even more than the shepherd and housewife rejoiced at finding the lost sheep or coin!
There is a clear challenge in the two images today about having zeal for souls! Any disdain for the lost ("They should have known better. They had it coming.") is to be avoided. Search, find and rejoice is the order of the day! AMEN
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