Introduction to the Liturgy of the Day

Introduction to the Liturgy of the Word

Introduction to the Eucharistic Prayer

Reflection

• In the first reading, we hear God tell Moses that the Chosen People are to be “a kingdom of priests, a holy nation” (Exodus 19:6). Their rescue from slavery in Egypt, borne by God “on eagle wings” (19:4), is a sign of the bond between God and the people. Similarly, the Church is a holy people, each person baptized into the priesthood of all believers. Our rescue from the slavery of sin by the blood of the cross, borne by God to reconciliation with God and to eternal life, is a sign of the bond established in baptism. May we, like Paul, “boast of God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:11), who has blessed us for hundreds of generations.

• Up until now in Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus has been carrying out his mission all over Galilee: curing the sick and driving out demons, teaching crowds and welcoming sinners, proclaiming God’s kingdom. The disciples have watched him do all this. Now he calls upon them to do the same. He knows that he will not be able to do it all by himself forever. He knows that he will have to leave his work in the hands of others, of laborers for the harvest. Two thousand years later, we are his disciples, likewise deputized to tend to those with physical or emotional infirmities, to embrace the lost and troubled, and to give hope to the weary.

• The final line of today’s Gospel, simple as it is—“Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give” (Matthew 10:8)—should give us confidence and direction for carrying out Jesus’ mission. We, like the first disciples, have received the power to do all the wonders that Jesus did, despite our failings, despite our sinfulness, and despite our unworthiness. We are now directed to pass on that power to others, despite their failings, sinfulness, and unworthiness. This is our mission.

Question of the Week