"LET US EMPTY OURSELVES BEFORE JESUS SO THAT WE MAY
TRULY BE FILLED UP BY HIS LOVE, WISDOM AND GRACE"
Homily for the 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Fr. Jonathan L. Reardon
July 15th, 2012
Year B

I’m sure that it is safe to say that we have had to endure difficult situations in our lives, situations where we have found it hard to hear God’s voice and listen to Him teaching us something. It would be much easier to listen to God if He just appeared to us directly. But since He does not do that we have to rely on alternative means: His Word spoken in Sacred Scripture, homilies, priests, friends, our own prayer, our conscience, etc.

In our first reading, the prophet Amos is rejected because the priest, Amaziah, struggles to hear God’s word spoken through the prophet. Amos had been telling the people of Israel that they needed to return to the basics of their religion, following the commandments and giving up their self-indulgent idolatries. You would think that with God's authority and power behind him, everyone would simply hear and obey. But the message wasn't comfortable for them, and so they rejected it, and they sent the prophet Amos packing.

Today the Church is asking us to reflect on how well we listen to God's prophets, to His words. Are we selective listeners, picking and choosing according to what fits our comfort zone? Or are we true followers of Christ, willing to love and obey Him even when it means carrying our piece of the cross, willing to say with today's Psalm: “I will hear what God proclaims”? It's an important question. Our hearts are like the house Jesus mentions in the Gospel. If we welcome God's word, His grace will come and stay there, bringing peace, wisdom, and salvation. But if we don't, God's word will shake the dust from its feet and move on. St Augustine used to say: Beware of the grace of God that passes by, never to return again.

Listening to God’s word involves a certain “nothingness.” Jesus tells His disciples in the Gospel to take nothing with them for their apostolic mission, except for a staff – a symbol of authority. The lack of a sack meant that they could not even accept provisions for the journey. St. Mark does not explain why this poverty is so important. We can, however, ascertain a few reasons. First, it meant that had to totally rely on God, on His providence and not their own resources. Since they occupied themselves with God’s work, He would have to provide. Second, their poverty freed them from distractions so that they could focus on their mission. Finally, their poverty gave credibility to their message.

We are invited to embrace the same poverty, the same “nothingness.” Our poverty, however, comes in another form. It is not a material nothingness but rather a spiritual one. We have to rely on God’s word and those who speak in His name in order to experience His grace and mercy. Too often, however, we rely on public figures – politicians, celebrities, mainstream media, and so on – to help us discern what is right, true and good. Those formulations, however, are generally formed by the opinion of popular culture and it usually is the most comfortable. Listening to God’s word, however, is not always comfortable. It is challenging and difficult to accept and to bear – much like the cross. This is why we must empty ourselves – we must embrace “nothingness” – because only but surrendering to God will we be able to hear Him speak to us. Only by freeing ourselves from the distractions of popular culture will we experience His grace and mercy; then will we be able to discern what is right, true, and good.

Rev. Jonathan L. Reardon is a priest for the diocese of Springfield in Massachusetts.
He serves at Sacred Heart Parish in Pittsfield, MA.

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