Word to the Wise
Thursday, September 30, 2021 - Thursday in the 26th Week in Ordinary Time
[Neh 8:1-4a, 5-6, 7b-12 and Luke 10:1-12]Jesus appointed seventy-two other disciples whom he sent ahead of him in pairs to every town and place he intended to visit. He said to them, "The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest." [Luke]
SEPTEMBER 30 ST. JEROME, doctor of the church
When I was a pastor of an inner-city Hispanic parish in San Antonio, TX (1994-98), it became clear to the parish council and me that there were more Catholics in our parish than we had on the registration list. We didn't want to do a full census, but just get an idea of the number. So, we asked for volunteers and got enough to cover the territory. We trained the volunteers in how to approach a home they had never visited before and sent them out in pairs just like the gospel says. They came back with all kinds of stories about their welcomes but all of them said, "We never want to do this again!" I wonder what Jesus would have said if the seventy-two disciples had returned [cf. 10:17-20] and said the same thing?
Jesus exhorts us to pray that the harvest master send out more workers for the harvest. Do we exclude ourselves from that call of the Lord? Praying for "vocations" isn't just for more priests or nuns! It is a prayer for workers of all kinds.
On another occasion, some parishioners complained to me that there were small non-denominational churches starting up in their neighborhood with members going door-to-door inviting people to join them. My reply was, "That's a great idea! Why don't you do that for St. Ann's? Their answer was, "Oh no, Father, that's what the Protestants do!" I said, "Catholics can do that too!"
The Lord is not going to parachute new vocations into our midst, whether priest, sister or lay person. The vocations are already there but not receiving the encouragement and support they need to undertake the mission. Parents must encourage consideration of a vocation to priesthood and/or religious life by being themselves "missionary disciples," as Pope Francis puts it. Priests and religious, themselves, must actively invite others to join them. Yes, we must pray, but we must act as well. AMEN