Word: As disciples of Christ, we are called to proclaim God’s word.
Order: “… before you were born I dedicated you, a prophet to the nation. I appointed You”. (Jer 1:5)
Reflection:
Before his Ascension, Jesus passed on the mission of proclaiming the “Good News of God” to His disciples, commanding them to, “Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature,” (Mk16:15).
The Second Vatican Council reiterates this call strongly emphasizing the Church’s duty to proclaim the Good News, especially through “Ad Gentes” (Sent to the Nations), the Decree on the Church’s missionary activity. Basic teachings on this were issued by Pope Paul VI through his Apostolic Exhortation “Evangelii Nuntiandi” (Announcing the Gospel/ Evangelization in the Modern World). Thereafter, Pope John Paul II underscored the importance of carrying out this evangelizing mission with renewed zeal in the “New Evangelization”, which Pope Benedict XVI now aims to fulfill in his declaration of the “Year of Faith” for the whole Church.
The Community Word for the month of February – “As disciples of Christ, we are called to proclaim God’s word,” – reminds us, as a true follower of Christ, to take this exhortation seriously. We are admonished to be living witnesses to what we preach and to evangelize in a way that is tailored to the demands of the present times. We need to find new ways to face, confront, and overcome the greatest challenges the Church faces today.
The themes and promises of each week in February are meant to bring us to greater knowledge of Him, and rekindle our desire to serve our Church with new fervor.
Our theme for the 1st week is: We proclaim God’s word when we witness to the love of Jesus.
The 2nd reading, taken from 1 Corinthians contains the most beautiful and challenging commentary on Christ’s commandment of love, which ought to be deeply imbedded in our consciousness. Love bears all things when it has its origin in God. We cannot fulfill our commitment and mission to the best of our gifts and abilities if our motives are not based on and guided by genuine love, as exemplified by Jesus. Without love, nothing has any value. God is love. We can only be worthy to be called a person of God when people can see Christ working and moving through us. For love is not love until it is given away or shared.
The theme for the 2nd week states: – “We proclaim God’s word when we respond to His call to be fishers of men.”
Evangelization is a mission field. It starts with God’s call, which convicts us and draws us to experience and receive Him in our life. Thereafter, our mission is to bear fruit for God, who calls us to be heralds of His message and instruments of His divine love. We need not fear to answer His call, for He can turn our weakness into strength, our defeat into victory and our sin into holiness. Our mission is to share in God’s work of saving souls.
Our theme for the 3rd week declares: – “We proclaim God’s word when we worship Him and Him alone.”
The Liturgical calendar changes this week as we celebrate the 1st Sunday of Lent. The gospel reading narrates the many tests and temptations one has to confront and hurdle in the practice and profession of one’s faith. As Jesus chose to live by the word of God and remain loyal to the Father, we too should not, even for a second, waver in our faith. Let us make our God happy by the choices we make, that is, turning away from evil ways and choosing to live by the word of God.
Finally, the theme for the 4th week tells us: – “We proclaim God’s word when we heed Him.”
We have to open our eyes to the truth of who Jesus is in our life. If, despite knowing Him, we are still uncertain about who He is in our life, we need to make an honest assessment of ourselves. We need to pass the proverbial narrow gate and fix our eyes on the transfigured Christ to derive from Him the strength and conviction we need, to enable us to continue our walk in holiness. There can be no error when we follow, obey and stand firm in the Lord.
Our Community Order for the month as discerned by the ECSL, states: “…before you were born I dedicated you, a prophet to the nation. I appointed you…” (Jer 1:5). It exhorts all baptized Christians to be involved in the New Evangelization, in accordance to our role in the Christian Community, because we all have a share in the prophetic role and mission of Christ.
