Daily Gospel Reflection
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July 9, 2020
Jesus said to his Apostles, “As you go, proclaim the good news, ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons.
“You received without payment; give without payment. Take no gold, or silver, or copper in your belts, no bag for your journey, or two tunics, or sandals, or a staff; for laborers deserve their food.
“Whatever town or village you enter, find out who in it is worthy, and stay there until you leave. As you enter the house, greet it. If the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it; but if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you.
“If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet as you leave that house or town. Truly I tell you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.”
What a challenging, but ennobling Gospel for today. We are witnessing the bestowal of a great dignity upon these twelve followers of Jesus. They are sent to proclaim in word and deed that the kingdom of God is at hand. They are to preach and to heal, just as Jesus did, and they are to live in such a way that their very life, in all its details, speaks this proclamation. As theologian Stanley Hauerwas says, “their mission, as well as our own, is not to call attention to ourselves, but to Jesus and the kingdom.”
This commissioning is a grace. But we get the sense that it is also a costly grace. The commission transforms how the twelve eat, how they travel, how they treat money, and even where they sleep. Their lives are saturated by the commission to proclaim Jesus and the kingdom; they depend upon him at every moment. They cannot live as if he didn’t exist.
As followers of Jesus, our calling to witness in such a way as the first twelve is no less present in our time. We live in a world starving for this good news. Some will be called to go to distant lands; some will not. But whoever we are with, our witness ought to be no less present. Such a witness demands that we frequently ask ourselves: To what and to whom am I leading those around me? Are my words and deeds leading those around me to the hope of the kingdom, to Jesus?
When John the Baptist encounters Jesus in the gospel of John, he says, “He must increase, but I must decrease.” May this be our prayer, too, that we might offer such a witness in both word and deed.
Prayer
Loving God, You call us your Beloved Sons and Daughters and by name. May we not be afraid or lack trust in letting Jesus heal what is broken in our mind, body or spirit. May Jesus lead us outside of ourselves to the immigrants, refugees, poor, imprisoned and homeless, seeing His compassion is for all of us. We ask this through Jesus the Shepherd and our Brother. Amen.
Saint of the Day
In the 19th century, China opened its doors to world trade, and missionaries traveled there to evangelize the nation. By the end of the century, as China’s economy wavered, attitudes towards the foreigners had begun to change. A nationalist movement took shape that opposed foreign imperialism and Christianity.
A secret society was formed to drive the Europeans away—they called themselves the Society of Righteous and Harmonious Fists. In 1900, these “Boxers” led attacks on embassies and diplomats, merchants and missionaries. Any Chinese who had converted to Christianity were also killed—a total of some 30,000 Christians were massacred.
In many cases, these martyrs were given a chance to renounce their faith, and were killed by strangulation when they refused.
The Catholic Church honors 120 Catholics who died between 1648 and 1930 as the “Martyr Saints of China”—86 of these died during the Boxer Rebellion.
Among them were Augustine Tchao, who was a Chinese soldier who escorted a bishop to Beijing during his missionary work. The bishop, Saint Gabriel-Taurin Dufresse, had such a powerful personal witness that Augustine was moved to consider the faith. He was among those who were converted by Gabriel, and went on to become ordained a priest. He was arrested during a persecution in 1815, and was tortured and killed.
Of the 120 Martyr Saints, 87 were Chinese lay people and 33 were missionaries. These saints were canonized by St. Pope John Paul II in 2000, and are sometimes referred to as Augustine Zhao Rong and his 119 companions.
Martyr Saints of China, you remained true to your faith even under torture, and died for what you believed—pray for us!
Image Credit: Courtesy of the Holy Transfiguration Monastery