132. Third Sunday of Easter
Meditations no. 178 (unofficial computer-aided translation)
The command to do apostolate.
The disciples met our Lord in Jerusalem. And there, before leading them out as far as Bethany, he entrusted them with an important mission: he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and said to them, āThus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be preached in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things.ā
Christ paid the ransom for our sins and made it possible for us to live a life of grace. However, the fruits of his redemption have to be applied to each individual; and he has entrusted this task to his apostles. The mission consists of spreading his kingdom among all nations, so that all may be saved and come to know and live the things the Lord has taught. To this end, he chose a handful of men, lived with them, formed them, and then later on sent them out to the whole world.
If someone who had no faith were to witness this Gospel scene, they would think it a mad plan, doomed to failure. How could a few uneducated men, with no influence or resources, coming from such a backward part of the world, set about the immense task of converting the whole pagan world?
Fortunately, they did have the blessed madness to launch out into the deep, being faithful to Christ. Thanks to their faithfulness, and that of those who followed them down the centuries, we today, and a great many others, are Christians. But their mission is not yet finished. Today, the command still applies: āGo and preach the Gospelā¦ I will be with you.ā Jesus has said this, and he has said this to you. Our Father adds: We cannot afford to relax. Spreading the kingdom of God isnāt only an official task of those members of the Church who represent Christ because they have received sacred powers from him. Vos autem estis corpus Christi, you also are the body of Christ, says the Apostle, with a specific command to fulfil.
Responsibility for our vocation to apostolate.
There are many Christians who are persuaded that the Redemption will be completed in all environments of the world, and that there have to be some souls -they do not know which ones - who will contribute to carrying it out with Christ. But they see this in terms of centuries, many centuries. It would be an eternity, if it were to take place at the rate of their self-giving.
That was the way you thought, until they came to āwake you upā.
It is both an honour and a great responsibility to have been chosen by God to be an apostle of Jesus Christ. As our Father taught us, a Christian knows that he is grafted onto Christ through Baptism. He is empowered to fight for Christ through Confirmation, called to act in the world sharing the royal, prophetic and priestly role of Christ. He has become one and the same thing with Christ through the Eucharist, the sacrament of unity and love. And so, like Christ, he has to live for others, loving each and every one around him and indeed all humanity.
We have to give testimony to the whole world of everything which God the Father has made us know and love through Jesus Christ. Ut eatis! (Go forth!) Sometimes I really want to have you at my side, our Father said, but I am very happy that you are spread all over the world. This is how it should be. And he added: I would like to have you beside me always, materially very close to me. But at the same time, I love to see how you are spread out, sowing with love, with hunger for the harvestā¦ What a beautiful wheatfield, my children! What a blessing from God!
Forward! Each of you must be secure in your vocation, without admitting a shadow of doubt!ā¦ Ut eatis! So we will goā¦ everywhere in the world, to all the points of the compass. And there, completely immersed in our own part of the world and in all human activities, we will become salt and light; light to enlighten minds and hearts, salt to give flavour and preserve from corruption. If we lacked apostolic zeal, we would become insipid, useless; we would be cheating others and our life wouldnāt make sense.
St John Chrysostom says: If others become insipid, you can restore their flavour; but if you become insipid, you will drag down the others as well. So the more responsibility you have, the more fervour and zeal you need.
Urgency in the apostolate: many souls await us.
In the Gospel, the Church presents to us once more the scene from Emmaus, which we now contemplate from the viewpoint of apostolate. Jesus, as he is walking along, meets two men who have nearly lost all hope. They are beginning to feel that life has no meaning for them. Christ understands their sorrow; he sees into their heart and communicates to them some of the life that he carries within himself.
When they draw near the village, he makes as if he is going on, but the two disciples stop him and practically force him to stay with them. They recognize him later when he breaks the bread. The Lord, they exclaimed, has been with us! And they said to each other: Was not our heart burning within us while he was speaking on the road and explaining to us the Scripture? Every Christian should make Christ present among men. He ought to act in such a way that those who know him sense the bonus odor Christi, the fragrance of Christ. People should be able to recognize the Master in his disciples.
How could we abandon those who need our help to come close to God? The Apostle says: For if I preach the gospel, that gives me no ground for boasting. For necessity is laid upon me. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel! Our relatives, friends, and colleagues all have a right to our apostolate. This is why we have been sent to be with them. When our work, or the demands of our vocation, take us elsewhere, perhaps those souls we lived with for some time will no longer have anybody to bring them to God.
We are all obliged to do apostolate, whatever our age, and in whatever circumstances we find ourselves. Father, what about when I turn eighty? Just the same: in your family life, with your colleagues, with your friendsā¦ We have to enkindle the light and warmth of genuine Christian life in everybody: we cannot let any soul who comes close to us be lost from the apostolate and possibly be deprived of a vocation.
We should have a sense of urgency in apostolate. Dig further every day into the apostolic depths of your Christian vocation. Christ unfurled a banner to be followed twenty centuries ago, for you and me to proclaim aloud. It is indeed meant for all those who have a sincere heart and are capable of lovingā¦ What clearer invitations do you need than these: Ignem veni mittere in terram - I have come to bring fire to the earth; and the thought of those two thousand five hundred million souls who still do not know Christ!
Holy Mary, Queen of Apostles, pray for us, so that the apostolic zeal which Jesus Christ himself has placed in our hearts may burn more brightly every day.