July 13, 2003
Amos 7:12-15 + Ephesians 1:3-14 + Mark 6:7-13
The prophet of this week had a lot of problems, not the least of which was that he was a layperson, a working man, a herdsman. Today we would call him a migrant worker. We would restrict his benefits, lure him to work for us in jobs no one else wants, and leave him at the bottom of the pay scale. He did not come on the scene with any credentials. He had no degree in theology. He was not part of the establishment who ran things. In fact, his authority came not from a title, an earned degree an ordination ceremony or an “inside group”; but from God’s call. He fits the model of Israel’s greatest: Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Moses, even David. It is a long line of our ancestors who were lay men and women through whom the plan and purposes of God were accomplished. Except for Isaiah and Ezekiel, all the prophets were lay people.
It is not much different in New Testament times. John the Baptist, his cousin, Jesus, and all those hey called to discipleship were, with few exceptions lay people. They were willing to leave behind the safe and familiar to set out on a mission for the sake of the good news. Those we hear about in the Gospel today were not prepared for the work Jesus gave them. They did not understand perfectly who Jesus was or what he was doing. They were full of faults, ambitious, confused, and they fought among themselves. Yet Jesus did not wait till they had it all together to send them out. I think he knew that whatever success they experienced would not be theirs, but the consequence of his Spirit. The work they were to do would not be their work, but his. If he had wanted professionals, he would have selected scribes or Pharisees.
The biggest difference between Amos and the Twelve is that the twelve went out two by two, while Amos went alone. Going together made it clear that they were not free agents but members and representatives of a community, and it assured the truth and validity of their witness. In spite of this difference however, the message was much the same Amos comes to warn the kingdom and its neighbors against reliance on military power, social injustice, immorality and shallow religiosity. Disciples are sent to invite people to rely on God with the reminder that true authority over life and death is never our own. They proclaim that Love of Neighbor is as important as Love of God. As a result, Social Justice is an issue for believing people, and it becomes a measure of faith just as surely as devotions and prayers.
Disciples of Jesus are not defined by their success. By the political and power standards of his day, Amos was a failure. Jesus was a dead man as far as the Romans were concerned, and a huge disappointment even to some of his friends at first Our only failure would be to ignore the mission, to do nothing, to be silent in face of injustice, violent in the face of conflict, and miss the example of the one who sends us forth.
My friends, you do not belong to the church. You do not have a role in the church. You are the church because you are Baptized. The mission of the church does not belong to someone else.
It is not my job – it is yours. Whoever rights wrongs, feeds the hungry, cares for the dispossessed; Whoever is simple and honest, sensitive toward the countless heartaches people suffer, and intolerant of injustice is the presence of Christ in this world and the continuation of his mission.
These efforts must be fueled by passion. When faith becomes a passion, things change. Amos was so passionate that even when rebuffed, he would not be silent. The Twelve were so fired by the passion of Jesus, so driven by that passion that human comforts were unimportant. Today, Amos, Jesus, the Twelve, and the author of Ephesians remind us that all of us who have been chosen by Jesus are called to renew our passions, our purpose, and ourselves.
Perhaps our reflection on their lives
may help us all to retrieve some of the passion and fire that drove themand is worthy of disciples and people of faith.