Word of the day

A Reading from the Second Letter of Paul to Timothy
2 TM 1:1-8316

Paul, an Apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God
for the promise of life in Christ Jesus,
to Timothy, my dear child:
grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father
and Christ Jesus our Lord.

I am grateful to God,
whom I worship with a clear conscience as my ancestors did,
as I remember you constantly in my prayers, night and day.
I yearn to see you again, recalling your tears,
so that I may be filled with joy,
as I recall your sincere faith
that first lived in your grandmother Lois
and in your mother Eunice
and that I am confident lives also in you.

For this reason, I remind you to stir into flame
the gift of God that you have through the imposition of my hands.
For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice
but rather of power and love and self-control.
So do not be ashamed of your testimony to our Lord,
nor of me, a prisoner for his sake;
but bear your share of hardship for the Gospel
with the strength that comes from God.

From the Gospel according to Luke
LK 10:1-9

The Lord Jesus appointed seventy-two other disciples
whom he sent ahead of him in pairs
to every town and place he intended to visit.
He said to them,
"The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few;
so ask the master of the harvest
to send out laborers for his harvest.
Go on your way;
behold, I am sending you like lambs among wolves.
Carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals;
and greet no one along the way.
Into whatever house you enter, first say,
'Peace to this household.'
If a peaceful person lives there,
your peace will rest on him;
but if not, it will return to you.
Stay in the same house and eat and drink what is offered to you,
for the laborer deserves his pay.
Do not move about from one house to another.
Whatever town you enter and they welcome you,
eat what is set before you,
cure the sick in it and say to them,
'The Kingdom of God is at hand for you.'"

God’s Word must be transmitted with frankness, that is, openly, even with strength, with courage. The person without courage — spiritual courage, heartfelt courage, who is not in love with Jesus, from whom courage comes, might say something interesting, something ethical, something that will do good, philanthropic good. God’s Word proclaimed with this frankness, with this courage, is capable of forming God’s people. The Word of God must be proclaimed through prayer, and this should be done always. In fact, without prayer, you may offer a good conference, good education, good, very good, but it is not God’s Word. Indeed, only from a heart in prayer can God’s Word issue forth. Prayer is therefore necessary so that the Lord may accompany the sowing of the Word, and the Lord may water the seed so that it may sprout. The true preacher is one who knows he is weak, who knows he cannot defend himself from himself. The emissary in the midst of wolves. Go! This is the way. A most profound reflection by John Chrysostom: “if you do not go out as a lamb but go as a wolf among wolves, the Lord will not protect you; defend yourself on your own”. (Santa Marta, 14 February 2017)