5th Sunday of ordinary time

5^TH ORDINARY SUNDAY: JOB 7. 1-4, 6-7; 1 COR 9. 16-19, 22-23; MARK 1. 29-39

 

Focus: Life is short; it passes away swiftly; this fact must not dissipate us or push us to quick and instant enjoyments. Rather this brevity must make us be more responsible for every bit of life and time

1.     Today, one main focus of the Word of God is our mission on this earth and as the disciples of Christ. We are given some essential ingredients of this mission. They are Sensitivity and solidarity, sense of urgency, obligation and dedication, and spirit of unattachment to the world and the earth. These are seen in three figures, namely Job, Paul and Jesus himself, respectively in the three readings.

2.     The whole ministry of Jesus shows this divine sensitivity and solidarity toward the suffering humanity. He preaches the good news, offering comfort and hope to the downcast. He heals the sick. He liberates those in bondage by driving out demons. He cures Peter's mother-in-law of her fever and cures many of their infirmities.

3.     Our reflection on the mission and its components is not merely to know about it, but to do it, because now it is our mission. The baton is passed on to us. It is the very same mission of preaching the good news and healing. Our mission can be effective and fruit-bearing, if only it is driven by the same components that mark the mission of Jesus and Paul. In a world that is drowning in whirlwinds of bad news from all the directions, we are called to be missionaries of good news of comfort, assurance, positive energy, enthusiasm, and hopefulness. The world needs to hear something positive, something healthy, something uplifting, something noble. We have bundles of trash that are bombarded around us. We need some refreshing and relieving bash of good tidings.

4.     The world needs healing from various evil forces. Much more than the physical illnesses which never cease, what is alarming is the infection of mind, heart and spirit. There is so much mental-intellectual virus, emotional- psychological virus, social-moral virus, and spiritual-religious virus. Prejudices and biases, resentments and negativities, closedness and stubbornness, arrogance and haughtiness, deception and selfishness are highly infecting and sickening the world of today. The ugly effects of these viruses and infection are hatred, indifference, violence, corruption and destruction.

5.     Therefore, the Lord is sending us on his behalf in his name, with his own mission. He is trusting us and is counting on us. What must be our response and duty? First of all, we ourselves must receive the gospel and the healing. Because we too are so engulfed in the grip of negative vibrations. We need the fresh waves of good news to drench us. We too must open ourselves to the Lord’s healing touch.

6.     But what next? When touched and cured by the Lord, we need to share it with others and serve them. This is what Peter's mother-in-law did and those who got healed by Jesus. The world of today needs so much the gospel of comfort and hope. It stands in need of liberation from many oppressing forces. It needs healing from many contagions.

7.     But to fulfil this noble mission and task, what are our requirements and equipment? They are Sensitivity and solidarity, sense of urgency, obligation and dedication, and spirit of unattachment to the world and the earth. We need to be both spiritually and fraternally sensitive. We need to be eager and prompt to throw ourselves in solidarity with those who suffer and struggle in different ways. We must know its urgency, because it is already high time and there is no time left; we cannot afford to neglect it or postpone it. We must feel obligated and mandated; it is not an option but an obligation. We must totally commit ourselves to this great mission. For this, as Job exhorts us, we must be conscious of the impermanence of life and the futility and vanity of placing our trust in the world and worthlessly running in worthless pursuits. This must lead us to a spirit of distancing ourselves from undue clinging to the world.

 

Direction: The world needs rediscovery, restoration and re-integration of the lost energies and the lost beauty and joy of life. Only that is the real effect of Jesus' redemptive mission.