Sunday Sermon for July 14, 2024, the Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B
Readings: Amos 7:12-15; Eph 1:3-14; Mk 6:7-13
In the readings today, we hear about people chosen by God and sent by Him for a particular purpose. In the first reading we hear about the prophet Amos who was irritating the priests of the Temple in Bethel and the royal officials with his messages. When the priest ordered Amos out of the Temple he told Amos to go and earn his bread by prophesying somewhere else. Amos responds that he was not a prophet nor did he belong to a company of prophets. In other words, Amos was not a professional prophet; prophesying was not something natural to him nor he was trying to make a living as a prophet.
There are people who have a natural sensitivity and intuition to “know” things most people do not know. Those in the occult seek out such people and work to develop their abilities. These people are known by various titles such as psychics, mediums, fortune tellers, etc. It is a sin to try to develop these abilities because it allows the evil one access to manipulate the person. It is also a sin to consult such a person because they are seeking their knowledge from someone who is not God.
If you are gifted with this kind of ability, just accept that and do not try to develop it or try to use it intentionally. If God wants you to know something, He will simply put it there. Such a gift can be very helpful to keep you from trouble or to help others, but primarily it is there so you can pray for the people God places on your heart. Also, understand that with this kind of sensitivity, you will be sensitive to both the good and the bad. Be very careful, because the devil will tempt you to use this sensitivity in the wrong way.
As we see in the first reading, there were schools or companies of prophets in ancient times. These schools or companies are also seen in the stories of Elijah and Elisha. It is important to note that the prophets God called were not part of these groups. Rather, God chose people who would not have been expected. The prophet Amos certainly fits this category. He was a dresser of sycamore trees and a shepherd from Judah who God called to prophesy in Israel. Putting this another way, he was poor and lowly in that society. God chose the one the world would not have chosen.
In the Gospel, we see Jesus sending out the twelve Apostles. Once again, no one would have expected these men to be chosen. The Twelve comprised a very diverse group of people, but none were from among the groups like the Pharisees or Sadducees, who were more “full time” or “professional” in their dedication to the faith. All of these men had a profound faith, but they were all from other walks of life and would not have been obvious candidates for someone chosen to call Israel to repentance and convert the whole world.
With no formal training, Jesus sent these Apostles to preach and He gave them authority over unclean spirits. The trust our Lord had in those He had chosen was amazing. We know the Apostles returned with stories of their success, but this was merely preparing them for their greater mission to preach the death and resurrection of Jesus and to show humanity to find their hope in Him. Their message of faith, hope, and charity continues to echo two thousand years later and continues to touch the hearts of people and draw them to their Savior and Redeemer.
All of this is beautiful and astounding, but it gets even better. In the second reading St. Paul says that in Jesus we also were chosen. Amos was chosen to be a prophet, the Apostles were chosen to preach the Gospel, and we were chosen, St. Paul says, to exist for the praise of God’s glory. That same thing can be said of the Prophets and the Apostles, so the question each of us must ask is: what does God want me to do that will give the greatest praise to His glory? We must be careful not to assume we already know the answer to that question. Amos and the Apostles were all doing God’s will and fulfilling the duties of their state in life when they were called to do something they probably never considered.
Whether God is asking us to keep doing what we are doing or if He is asking something different, our response needs to be the same. We need to put our whole heart into doing God’s will. When we are doing everything for love of God and neighbor, then we will be existing for the praise of God’s glory!
Fr. Altier’s column appears regularly in The Wanderer, a national Catholic weekly published in St. Paul, Minn. For information about subscribing to The Wanderer, please visit www.thewandererpress.com.
