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Gospel: 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?
And when he does find it,
he sets it on his shoulders with great joy
and, upon his arrival home,
he calls together his friends and neighbors and says to them,
‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’
I tell you, in just the same way
there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents
than over ninety-nine righteous people
who have no need of repentance.
“Or what woman having ten coins and losing one
would not light a lamp and sweep the house,
searching carefully until she finds it?
And when she does find it,
she calls together her friends and neighbors
and says to them,
‘Rejoice with me because I have found the coin that I lost.’
In just the same way, I tell you,
there will be rejoicing among the angels of God
over one sinner who repents.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
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This is the third time the religious authorities express their disdain for Jesus’ association with sinners. They believed God wanted them to separate themselves from people with loose morals at any cost, lest they sin.
Keeping their distance was a type of spiritual security policy.
However, Jesus does the opposite, spending his entire life with “tax collectors and sinners,” even calling them to share in his ministry. He justifies this approach, teaching them that God does not wait for the sinner to repent; rather, God goes after us.
He seeks us out. He takes the initiative.
Whether it’s the shepherd seeking his lost sheep or a widow looking for a single coin, God is the protagonist, taking responsibility for the one who strayed or rolled away.
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This is the type of attitude that the Church – you and I – must take in our world today. We all know people who have fallen away from God, or people who, perhaps, never found him. This is certainly true among the younger generations.
With so many different distractions – from technology and social media, to varying life-philosophies – it can be difficult for people to find the Lord, which is why we must go after them.
We are certainly making this attempt in our parish – building out our baptismal ministry, a convalidation ministry (receiving civilly married couples into the Church), an outreach ministry for new moms, and re-imagining our faith formation and Confirmation programs.
Each of these ministries speak to the divine initiative of Jesus in the Gospel, who seeks, searches, finds, and rejoices.
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Is the Lord calling you to participate in any of these ministries? Or, in what ways do you engage the next generation?
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While the religious authorities thought closing others out of their world led to spiritual security, the opposite is true.
Jesus asks us to seek. Search. Find. Rejoice!
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Image credits: (1) Will Vaus (2) United Church of God (3) Million Minutes