Gospel according to Saint John 1,35-42:
As John stood with two of his disciples, Jesus walked by, John looked at him and said, «There is the Lamb of God». On hearing this, the two disciples followed Jesus. He turned and saw them following, and He said to them, «What are you looking for?». They answered, «Rabbi (which means Master), where are you staying?». Jesus said, «Come and see». So they went and saw where he stayed and spent the rest of that day with him. It was about four o’clock in the afternoon. Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, was one of the two who heard what John had said and followed Jesus. Early the next morning he found his brother Simon and said to him, «We have found the Messiah» (which means the Christ), and he brought Simon to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, «You are Simon, son of John, but you shall be called Cephas» (which means Rock).
Hoisting the sails
Luis CASASUS President of the Idente Missionaries
Rome, Monday January 14, 2024 | II Sunday in Ordinary Time
1Sam 3:3b-10.19; 1Cor 6:13c-15a.17-20; Jn 1: 35-42
Talking to the children in the parish or the Idente Youth, I often ask them what subject they prefer, or what job they would like to have as adults, but it does not occur to me to ask them what “their vocation” is. It is not a problem of words, but certainly, today’s Gospel presents us with the authentic and full meaning of “vocation”: a call, not simple preference or choice. Behind that call or invitation, of course, is the divine voice, it is not something that emerges from within the person.
God summons someone for a mission, as he does with Abraham, Moses, or St. Paul. Even the baptism of Christ makes it clear that it is “someone” who calls from outside the person.
Normally, a divine vocation is against one’s will. Moses complained that the Israelites never listened to him and thought that Pharaoh would not listen to him either. Jeremiah not only resisted that vocation, but also complained about being treated like a meek lamb led to the slaughter (Jer 11: 19). Jonah wanted to escape from the mission and Christ himself begged to be spared from what was asked of him: My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me (Mt 26: 39).
Moreover, vocation is the source of many difficulties, with the persecution or misunderstanding of those closest to those who are called, who sometimes even threaten to kill them, as happened to Ezekiel or Paul. As soon as he began his obedience to his vocation in public life, Christ was “led by the Spirit” into the desert… to be tempted.
—ooOoo—
The greatest difficulty, however, is internal, and can be summed up in one word, distraction, or deviation. In addition to moral faults, many times, the people of Israel or their kings are punished and corrected for being dazzled, allowing themselves to be captured and surrendered to the gods of neighboring peoples.
We can think of passions, strong temptations, discouragement… but distraction has an immense power. That explains why Jesus invited John’s two disciples to spend the evening with Him, far from the movement and conversations of the people.
The following dialogue may help to convince us of this:
Master: The bravest lion tamers use two tools to control and tame the ferocious companions prowling the cage: a whip and a chair. Which of the two is more valuable to the tamer?
Disciple: Without a doubt, the whip.
Master: No. The most important tool is the chair, and more specifically, the four legs of the chair!
Disciple: How strange! Why?
Master: A lion can easily overpower, maim and kill a person. However, it is only easy for the lion to do so if it can concentrate on the single object of the person. The lion tamer uses the chair as a method of distraction. The lion, when confronted with the legs of the chair, tries to concentrate on all four at once. Confused and unable to concentrate, he stands there, frozen! The lion tamer remains safely behind the chair.
—ooOoo—
Today’s First Reading shows us how vocation is more than how it is represented in the Old Testament: on Mount Horeb God no longer uses earthquakes, fires or mighty gales to call Samuel, but something that happens to every human being, as happened to the two disciples of St. John the Baptist, to whom Jesus asked the seemingly informal question: What are you looking for? Of course, the expression “God called Samuel” should not be taken literally. Only in the silence of the night, in prayer, Samuel was able to understand the will of God, who years ago had been speaking to him through his feelings, through the good and cruel people he met, through his readings, through his personal experiences.
Moreover, he had the help of Elijah to be able to interpret his spiritual impressions. It is not very different for us. In fact, every day we discover with surprise a new meaning to words we have heard many times in the Gospel, or to what true love means.
Vocation comes from God, but it is a response to the innermost restlessness of the human being. In reality, Jesus is saying to these two apostles: Are you really interested in something profound? Is it not only out of curiosity that you want to talk to me? Are you simply trying to feel good? Justified? Perhaps fulfilled? Again the possibility of distraction appears: we have big questions, big concerns, big aspirations… but they can easily evaporate. These distractions are often called “attachments” when we speak of the ascetical life and it is no exaggeration to say that it is impossible to free ourselves from them, unless we look face to face with Christ, before whom we cannot deceive ourselves.
That is the invitation of St. John the Baptist to his disciples. He does not point to Christ as an invitation to look at him with curiosity, but with true attention, with openness, with a desire to spend time at his side, as they did. He makes them see that, in addition to his wisdom, He is the Lamb of whom Isaiah spoke, come to bear the iniquities of many, to give himself as an offering of atonement, and to intercede for transgressors (Is 53).
Otherwise, if the center is not Christ, but some form of moral ideal or certain form of generosity, typical of our character, it will happen to us like a famous (and profit-driven) spiritual lecturer, who made the following confession to his guide and master:
I was lecturing on spirituality. I was supposed to be a spiritual master with no attachments, but the reality is that wherever I went, I had these nine boxes of things that had sentimental value to me. So I was going from city to city giving lectures on how to have no attachments, and all the time I was carrying those nine boxes on my back.
One day I realized that I really needed to give up his attachments to those things, so I did my best to give it all away, but in the end I still had three boxes left. Sorry, Master, he wrote, that’s all I can do for now, this is killing me. This happened to me a few months ago… now I have thirteen boxes.
But, the truth is that we at least suspect that God wants something from us or, if we do not believe in His existence, at least that we have come to this world to do something more important than working and doing one activity after another. Isaiah expressed it poetically and accurately: The Lord called me from my mother’s womb. From my mother’s womb he called my name (Is 49: 1). Once I know Christ, no matter how little, no matter how unfaithful I may be, I will be driven to proclaim what Andrew said to his brother Peter: I have known the Messiah.
—ooOoo—
The Second Reading speaks to us of purity, which seems to have no connection with vocation, unless we have understood the danger of distractions, which do not usually leave us with the impression of fault, the feeling of guilt or sin. The Church today makes us reflect on true purity, which is not limited to restraint in acts or thoughts of sexual content, although it is true that St. Paul had in mind the proverbial licentiousness and historical promiscuity of the city of Corinth. Already the ninth Commandment of the Law of God commands us to be pure and chaste in thoughts and desires.
But, in addition, Christ will teach that those who are pure will see God, that is, they will be able to see with God’s eyes, in other words, to know, value and fulfill His will.
The pure person, who does not fall into distractions, is able to see the presence of God in others and in every circumstance of the day.
Vocation, as has often been pointed out, is not a one-time thing, as is often understood when it is said that someone feels a vocation to go to a convent or enter a religious community. Nor is it a call to “carry out a specific action”. In reality, it is very much like what the brilliant St. Augustine condensed in a few words: Love and do what you will. Vocation means an invitation to make everything revolve around Christ; it is like a sailor of the old days who knows well the course to follow, even if he encounters storms, fogs, pirates… sometimes with a mutiny on board. Not losing sight of the fact that we can always work for the Kingdom of Heaven is something that St. Paul, in his troubled and tormented life, lived faithfully: Whether you eat or drink, do all to the glory of God (1 Cor 10:31).
Vocation is nothing more than the discovery of what we were created for, the place we are called to occupy in creation and in God’s plan. To be faithful to one’s vocation is to be faithful to who I truly am. That is why, to pure and sensitive souls, creation and creatures speak of God. The order and obedience of creatures to their laws, brings these souls closer to a Creator who, later, they discover as Father.
If you can, be sure to read Diary of a Country Priest, a novel by French writer Georges Bernanos (1888-1948) in which a humble priest in a small parish keeps a diary of his experiences, which include hostility and lack of compassion from members of the parish, a questioning of his vocation and prayer life, all while assisting a woman who years ago lost her baby.
He is also struggling with a serious stomach condition, reduced to digesting only small amounts of bread, cheap wine and little else. After trying to get a colleague to return to the priesthood, he dies of stomach cancer with a rosary on his chest and saying: What does it matter? All is grace.
_______________________________
In the Sacred Hearts of Jesus, Mary and Joseph,
Luis CASASUS
President
!["El mundo puede cambiar desde el corazón"
(Papa Francisco, Encíclica Dilexit Nos)
"El Corazón de Cristo es éxtasis, es salida, es donación, es encuentro. En él nos volvemos capaces de relacionarnos de un modo sano y feliz, y de construir en este mundo el Reino de amor y de justicia. Nuestro corazón unido al de Cristo es capaz de este milagro social.
Tomar en serio el corazón tiene consecuencias sociales. Como enseña el Concilio Vaticano II, «tenemos todos que cambiar nuestros corazones, con los ojos puestos en el orbe entero y en aquellos trabajos que todos juntos podemos llevar a cabo para que nuestra generación mejore». Porque «los desequilibrios que fatigan al mundo moderno están conectados con ese otro desequilibrio fundamental que hunde sus raíces en el corazón humano». [21] Ante los dramas del mundo, el Concilio invita a volver al corazón, explicando que el ser humano «por su interioridad es, en efecto, superior al universo entero; a esta profunda interioridad retorna cuando entra dentro de su corazón, donde Dios le aguarda, escrutador de los corazones (cf. 1 S 16,7; Jr 17,10), y donde él personalmente, bajo la mirada de Dios, decide su propio destino».
Esto no significa confiar excesivamente en nosotros mismos. Tengamos cuidado: advirtamos que nuestro corazón no es autosuficiente; es frágil y está herido. Tiene una dignidad ontológica, pero al mismo tiempo debe buscar una vida más digna. Dice también el Concilio Vaticano II que «el fermento evangélico ha despertado y despierta en el corazón del hombre esta irrefrenable exigencia de la dignidad», aunque para vivir conforme a esa dignidad no nos basta conocer el Evangelio ni cumplir mecánicamente lo que nos manda. Necesitamos el auxilio del amor divino. Acudamos al Corazón de Cristo, ese centro de su ser, que es un horno ardiente de amor divino y humano y es la mayor plenitud que puede alcanzar lo humano. Allí, en ese Corazón es donde nos reconocemos finalmente a nosotros mismos y aprendemos a amar."](https://www.idente.org/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed/img/placeholder.png)
