(I couldn't make up my mind, so I preached two different homilies this weekend!)
Today’s gospel continues the story we started last week. Last Sunday, the apostles were commissioned and sent to preach the Good News to the surrounding towns and villages. They were sent out as prophets to be the voice of God to anyone who would listen. Today we hear about their return as they completed their first missionary endeavor. How long they were gone, we don’t know, but we get to listen as they report their experience. Thanks to the gospel writers, we know this moment of reunion was full of rejoicing and energy - they had experienced the power of God working through them as they cast out demons, healed the sick, and saw people’s hearts changed before their very eyes. How Jesus must have smiled as he listened to their stories and saw their excitement and joy! What happens next, teaches us something essential about our overall wellbeing; after the apostles return from their exciting and busy adventure, Jesus takes them aside to rest, to be with him again in the safety and calm of their small community.
The lesson is clear, but so hard to put into practice: Christians who are engaged in living their faith in the world around them need to balance their activity with contemplation, with time spent in personal conversation with the Lord, not doing anything per se. Sometimes we wonder why we are so emotionally and spiritually exhausted by the busy-ness of our lives. It's because we aren't recharging our spiritual batteries. Stress, discouragement, and other strong emotions can wear us out if we aren't constantly reinforcing our faith in Jesus Christ and letting him love us. Only our friendship with the Lord can supply us with the strength and wisdom we need to be truly successful not only in our daily lives but more importantly, in our relationship with Christ.
Without prayer and time alone with God, our well will soon run dry - we will have nothing to offer others. But without action, without giving freely to others what we have freely received from God, our spiritual waters will become stagnant and lifeless. Contemplation and action, prayer and work - this was how Christ lived his life and this is also how he wants us to live as his modern-day apostles.
Our contemporary society and church tend to stress the importance of action more than prayer, but the two are always meant to go together like St. Louis and pork steaks. One of the hidden blessings of the lockdown was that so many people rediscovered the joy and peace of slowing down and spending more time with God and family. With fewer distractions and so many things cancelled, many people realized how frantic and out-of-balance their lives had become. Jesus taught this balance not only in the way he treated his closest followers but also by the example of his own life. Towards the beginning of his public ministry, he and his apostles visited Simon Peter's house, where he healed Peter's mother-in-law and then spent the evening curing the sick and casting out demons. The next morning, the apostles got up early to start what they knew would be a very busy day. But when they looked around for Jesus, they couldn't find him. They searched all around and finally located him in the hills outside of town, praying. Worldly wisdom would suggest that Jesus pray after getting everything done or maybe even skipping it just this once since he was so holy and there was so much to do. But Jesus knew that in order to do the Father’s Will, he had to stay connected with prayer. If that's the case for the Son of God, how much more it should be the case for us, who seek to follow his example!
St Benedict used a motto that perfectly captures this lesson. His motto was Ora et labora, which is Latin for pray and work. Prayer and work are like the two sides of a coin for us Christians. We are called to become close friends of Jesus Christ and we can only do that if we develop our prayer life. But we are also called to be his fellow workers, ambassadors of his everlasting Kingdom, and that only happens when we be put our talents, time, and energy into doing things that will make this world a better place, a place worthy of our King and Lord.
As we contemplate today’s readings then, we should ask ourselves some challenging questions. Have I found the right balance between prayer and work in my life? Do I only pray when I come to Mass on Sunday or when I step into a church? Do I think of God while I am active and engaged in the everyday business of my life? Do I speak to him during the the week? On the other hand, do I flee to prayer to the point that I neglect my other responsibilities? Am I treating my relationship with God like a magical wand that will take away all my problems without any sacrifice or change on my part? Do I make excuses as to why it is good enough for me to pray but not live out my faith in my words, actions, choices, and relationships?
Some Catholics try to leave all the Kingdom-building to priests, religious, and missionaries. They don't stay on the lookout for opportunities to help others discover the one thing worth finding in this life: friendship and companionship with Jesus Christ. Other Catholics are constantly doing things, staying busy and running around like their hair is on fire but there is little introspection, reflection, and contemplative prayer. Each one of us needs to find the balance that goes with our personality, our gifts, and state in life. Each and every one of us is called to be both active in our faith and contemplative in prayer; it’s not an either/or situation. May we be open to God’s grace as he sends us out to his people. May we find that balance between work and prayer, activity and stillness, so that we may return to Jesus each day like the apostles did, with great joy, telling him of many wonders he is working in our lives!
