Whenever you call me, I'll be there, whenever you want me I'll be there, whenever you need me, I'll be there; I'll be around. These lyrics were first sung by the Spinners in 1972. They are just as meaningful today as they were then.
All of us have been called and that call required us to be there; to be around. It may have been a call from a spouse or a child or a dear friend. Whether they called to share good news or bad, or perhaps they needed help, hopefully, when we received the call, we responded, I'll be there!
As people of faith, Jesus is calling us, right here, right now. He calls us, he wants us, yes, he needs us. How do we respond?
Our backdrop today is the first Sunday of Ordinary Time in Year B of our 3 year liturgical cycle. Today we are back to green vestments; we have said farewell to the liturgical season of Christmas. Year B is the year of the Gospel of Mark but today we hear from John. Mark, one of the three Synoptic Gospels along with Matthew and Luke is a very "to the point" Gospel and therefore, is the shortest Gospel of the four. Sometimes, during Year B, we will hear from John and today is one such day. But this is no random selection; no, in today's Gospel from John, we hear the call of the first followers of Christ as he prepares to begin his public ministry. At first there appears nothing spectacular happening here, John the Baptist is hanging out with some of his disciples and Jesus is walking by. We do not know if Jesus was coming to visit with them or if he had another purpose. But John the Baptist catches sight of him and tells his own disciples, Behold the Lamb of God. Immediately, John's disciples respond and begin to follow Jesus. John the Baptist always knew, he was called to point others to Christ, and you and I are called to do the same.
Once they begin to follow Jesus we have the interesting conversation of what are you looking for, where are you staying, come and see. What just happened here? Is it not a conversation we too could easily have with Jesus? Where is Jesus in our lives and how will we react when Jesus invites us to come and see. For us, gathered here at Mass, Jesus invites us to come and see and reveals Himself to us in His most holy Word, the Liturgy and most excellently in the Eucharist; Behold the Lamb of God!! And he reveals Himself to us in that brother or sister sitting in front of you, behind you and along side of you. Does He reveal Himself to others in us?
Another important aspect of John's Gospel today is the response we hear from Andrew. Not only did Andrew respond to the call and follow Jesus, he could not wait to bring another to the Lord. We know that other is his brother Simon, now called Peter, who becomes the rock upon whom Christ builds His Church. Andrew's example is ours to follow; when we answer the call to follow Him, we too are invited to bring others along. Who have I brought to Jesus lately?
Our 1st reading too is a wonderful lesson of how we are to respond when we hear the Lord calling us. Whether we clearly hear the call, or we need help, like Samuel did in the person of Eli, can we respond as Samuel did: speak Lord, for your servant is listening? That's an important part of today's message for us, we are being called, we are being invited more fully by the Lord, we need to listen.
In the week ahead we are going to be called, invited and maybe even challenged. Tomorrow we will recall the life of Dr. Martin Luther King and remember the 40-plus year legacy of the horror of abortion. In these events, God is calling us to holiness. God is inviting us to respond with our own " I'll be there". Dr. King's holiday gives us an opportunity to deal head on with the scourge of violence and racism that sadly remains with us all these generations since the death of Dr. King. We are being called, by God, today, to examine our own attitudes about racism and being asked, do I see Jesus in my brother and sister who simply does not look like me? Well, do we? In this week's sad remembrance of Roe v Wade, we are invited to ask ourselves, how much have I done to promote a culture of life? Do I embrace fully the teachings of God, best expressed through the teachings and actions of Holy Mother Church? This year, what is preventing me from participating in the March for Life, or at a minimum, will I share with at least one other person this week, the true Gospel of Life. In these two examples and in so many other ways, Jesus is calling us by name.
Can we respond "I'll be there" whenever Jesus calls us, whenever Jesus wants us, and yes, whenever Jesus needs us to be His hands, his feet and his disciple? Can we truly say, Yes Jesus, I'll be around?
All of us have been called and that call required us to be there; to be around. It may have been a call from a spouse or a child or a dear friend. Whether they called to share good news or bad, or perhaps they needed help, hopefully, when we received the call, we responded, I'll be there!
As people of faith, Jesus is calling us, right here, right now. He calls us, he wants us, yes, he needs us. How do we respond?
Our backdrop today is the first Sunday of Ordinary Time in Year B of our 3 year liturgical cycle. Today we are back to green vestments; we have said farewell to the liturgical season of Christmas. Year B is the year of the Gospel of Mark but today we hear from John. Mark, one of the three Synoptic Gospels along with Matthew and Luke is a very "to the point" Gospel and therefore, is the shortest Gospel of the four. Sometimes, during Year B, we will hear from John and today is one such day. But this is no random selection; no, in today's Gospel from John, we hear the call of the first followers of Christ as he prepares to begin his public ministry. At first there appears nothing spectacular happening here, John the Baptist is hanging out with some of his disciples and Jesus is walking by. We do not know if Jesus was coming to visit with them or if he had another purpose. But John the Baptist catches sight of him and tells his own disciples, Behold the Lamb of God. Immediately, John's disciples respond and begin to follow Jesus. John the Baptist always knew, he was called to point others to Christ, and you and I are called to do the same.
Once they begin to follow Jesus we have the interesting conversation of what are you looking for, where are you staying, come and see. What just happened here? Is it not a conversation we too could easily have with Jesus? Where is Jesus in our lives and how will we react when Jesus invites us to come and see. For us, gathered here at Mass, Jesus invites us to come and see and reveals Himself to us in His most holy Word, the Liturgy and most excellently in the Eucharist; Behold the Lamb of God!! And he reveals Himself to us in that brother or sister sitting in front of you, behind you and along side of you. Does He reveal Himself to others in us?
Another important aspect of John's Gospel today is the response we hear from Andrew. Not only did Andrew respond to the call and follow Jesus, he could not wait to bring another to the Lord. We know that other is his brother Simon, now called Peter, who becomes the rock upon whom Christ builds His Church. Andrew's example is ours to follow; when we answer the call to follow Him, we too are invited to bring others along. Who have I brought to Jesus lately?
Our 1st reading too is a wonderful lesson of how we are to respond when we hear the Lord calling us. Whether we clearly hear the call, or we need help, like Samuel did in the person of Eli, can we respond as Samuel did: speak Lord, for your servant is listening? That's an important part of today's message for us, we are being called, we are being invited more fully by the Lord, we need to listen.
In the week ahead we are going to be called, invited and maybe even challenged. Tomorrow we will recall the life of Dr. Martin Luther King and remember the 40-plus year legacy of the horror of abortion. In these events, God is calling us to holiness. God is inviting us to respond with our own " I'll be there". Dr. King's holiday gives us an opportunity to deal head on with the scourge of violence and racism that sadly remains with us all these generations since the death of Dr. King. We are being called, by God, today, to examine our own attitudes about racism and being asked, do I see Jesus in my brother and sister who simply does not look like me? Well, do we? In this week's sad remembrance of Roe v Wade, we are invited to ask ourselves, how much have I done to promote a culture of life? Do I embrace fully the teachings of God, best expressed through the teachings and actions of Holy Mother Church? This year, what is preventing me from participating in the March for Life, or at a minimum, will I share with at least one other person this week, the true Gospel of Life. In these two examples and in so many other ways, Jesus is calling us by name.
Can we respond "I'll be there" whenever Jesus calls us, whenever Jesus wants us, and yes, whenever Jesus needs us to be His hands, his feet and his disciple? Can we truly say, Yes Jesus, I'll be around?
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