Texts taken from the “On Your Word” Missalette May-June 2022

13th Sunday in Ordinary Time (C)
1st week of the Psalter

FIRST READING

From the First Book of Kings (1 Kings 19:16b, 19-21)
In those days, the Lord said to Elijah: “You shall anoint Elisha son of Shaphat, of Abel-meholah, as prophet in your place.” Setting out from there, Elijah found Elisha son of Shaphat. He was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he himself was driving the twelfth. Elijah passed by him and threw his cloak over him. Elisha left the oxen and ran after Elijah, saying, “Let me kiss my father and mother goodbye, and then I will follow you.” Elijah replied, “Go back, for what have I done to you?” After leaving him, Elisha took the yoke of oxen and slaughtered them. He cooked the meat with the wood from the oxen’s yoke and gave it to the people to eat. Then he arose and followed Elijah, entering his service. The word of God.

Commentary on the First Reading

God chooses Elisha as a prophet, and Elijah, by throwing his cloak over him, calls him to embrace this vocation. Placing the cloak on his shoulders indicates the special office Elisha will have to carry out and must not forget, even though he is allowed to go and say goodbye to his loved ones. Indeed, vocation entails abandoning one’s usual way of life, a true break with one’s surroundings, family, and possessions. Faced with such a precise and evident indication, can one doubt? Can one perhaps have second thoughts? Elisha understands that God himself is calling him and responds with a strong sign: he sacrifices the oxen and burns his plow. This means that he is ready to leave everything - his work and his home with all its affections - in order to take on his new mission fully and wholeheartedly. His attitude may seem courageous to you; on the other hand, when we discover God’s love and the benevolence he shows each one of us, how can we fail to respond with the same generosity? This evidently applies to all the baptized. If God were to enter your life as well, would you have the same readiness as Elisha?

SECOND READING

From the Letter of Saint Paul the Apostle to the Galatians (Gal 5:1, 13-18)
Brothers and sisters, Christ has set us free for freedom! Therefore stand firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery. For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters. But do not use this freedom as an opportunity for the flesh; rather, through love, serve one another. For the whole Law is fulfilled in one commandment: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you bite and devour one another, beware that you are not completely consumed by one another! I say, then: live by the Spirit, and you will certainly not gratify the desire of the flesh. For the flesh has desires against the Spirit, and the Spirit has desires against the flesh; these are opposed to each other, so that you do not do what you want. But if you are guided by the Spirit, you are not under the Law. The word of God.

Commentary on the Second Reading

Paul, using rather harsh words, calls the Galatians to make a decision: either follow the Jewish Law and remain in slavery, or embrace the law of Christ, which grants salvation through faith. This temptation is also strong for each of us, just as it was for the Christians of Galatia: after experiencing the grace of salvation and the freedom offered by the Spirit of Christ, we often return to the tyrannical law of the flesh. What exactly are the desires of the flesh? With this expression, Saint Paul means a life marked by selfishness, by behavior centered simply on oneself and the satisfaction of one’s own cravings. In reality, God offers us much more, proposing that we live under the guidance of the Spirit: the result is inner freedom, which makes us dependent only on God and no one else. Therefore, freedom cannot mean giving sin free rein; it must mean openness to the needs of others. Have you ever wanted to be truly free? Live according to the Spirit, and you will be.

GOSPEL OF THE DAY

From the Gospel according to Luke (Lk 9:51-62)
When the days drew near for him to be taken up, Jesus resolutely determined to journey to Jerusalem and sent messengers ahead of him. They set out and entered a Samaritan village to prepare for his arrival. But they would not welcome him because he was clearly on his way to Jerusalem. When the disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven to consume them?” He turned and rebuked them. And they proceeded to another village. As they traveled along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” And Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head.” To another he said, “Follow me.” But he replied, “Lord, let me go first and bury my father.” He answered, “Let the dead bury their dead; but you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” Another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but first let me say farewell to my family at home.” Jesus replied, “No one who sets a hand to the plow and looks to what was left behind is fit for the kingdom of God.” The Gospel of the Lord.

Commentary on the Gospel of the Day

Time is running short, and Jesus knows that he will soon have to return to the Father. For this reason, he wants to make clear the conditions for being his disciples. The initial invitation, which marks a decisive turning point, is contained in that “Follow me,” which means “come after me.” We must be ready to place the person of Jesus and his message at the center of our lives, willing to sacrifice everything else. Following Jesus is an invitation to accept now, not to postpone until tomorrow or until everything is in order. Family, work, and interests immediately take second place. Everything must be left behind to follow the Master. Clearly, Jesus takes nothing away; rather, he gives everything back multiplied in grace and love. But first it is necessary to understand that if we do not decide to embrace fully the demands of discipleship, we can never truly be his. Therefore, you must not make the mistake of following Jesus while setting conditions; even our dearest affections must take second place in relation to him. Jesus is enough to fill life, and before him everything else fades and becomes relative. So let us ask for the gift of discernment, so that we do not pursue secondary and superfluous things, but focus on what is truly a priority for us.