13th Sunday - OT - Cycle C

July 1, 2007

Reading 1
1 Kgs 19:16, 19-21

The LORD said to Elijah:
“You shall anoint Elisha, son of Shaphat of Abelmeholah,
as prophet to succeed you.”

Elijah set out and came upon Elisha, son of Shaphat,
as he was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen;
he was following the twelfth.
Elijah went over to him and threw his cloak over him.
Elisha left the oxen, ran after Elijah, and said,
“Please, let me kiss my father and mother goodbye,
and I will follow you.”
Elijah answered, “Go back!
Have I done anything to you?”
Elisha left him, and taking the yoke of oxen, slaughtered them;
he used the plowing equipment for fuel to boil their flesh,
and gave it to his people to eat.
Then Elisha left and followed Elijah as his attendant.

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 16:1-2, 5, 7-8, 9-10, 11

R. (cf. 5a) You are my inheritance, O Lord.
Keep me, O God, for in you I take refuge;
I say to the LORD, “My Lord are you.
O LORD, my allotted portion and my cup,
you it is who hold fast my lot.”
R. You are my inheritance, O Lord.
I bless the LORD who counsels me;
even in the night my heart exhorts me.
I set the LORD ever before me;
with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed.
R. You are my inheritance, O Lord.
Therefore my heart is glad and my soul rejoices,
my body, too, abides in confidence
because you will not abandon my soul to the netherworld,
nor will you suffer your faithful one to undergo corruption.
R. You are my inheritance, O Lord.
You will show me the path to life,
fullness of joys in your presence,
the delights at your right hand forever.
R. You are my inheritance, O Lord.

Reading II
Gal 5:1, 13-18

Brothers and sisters:
For freedom Christ set us free;
so stand firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery.

For you were called for freedom, brothers and sisters.
But do not use this freedom
as an opportunity for the flesh;
rather, serve one another through love.
For the whole law is fulfilled in one statement,
namely, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
But if you go on biting and devouring one another,
beware that you are not 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 against the flesh;
these are opposed to each other,
so that you may not do what you want.
But if you are guided by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

Gospel
Lk 9:51-62

When the days for Jesus’ being taken up were fulfilled,
he resolutely determined to journey to Jerusalem,
and he sent messengers ahead of him.
On the way they entered a Samaritan village
to prepare for his reception there,
but they would not welcome him
because the destination of his journey was Jerusalem.
When the disciples James and John saw this they asked,
“Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven
to consume them?”
Jesus turned and rebuked them, and they journeyed to another village.

As they were proceeding on their journey someone said to him,
“I will follow you wherever you go.”
Jesus answered him,
“Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests,
but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head.”

And to another he said, “Follow me.”
But he replied, “Lord, let me go first and bury my father.”
But he answered him, “Let the dead bury their dead.
But you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”
And another said, “I will follow you, Lord,
but first let me say farewell to my family at home.”
To him Jesus said, “No one who sets a hand to the plow
and looks to what was left behind is fit for the kingdom of God.”

Freedom is a responsibility. St. Paul said that we are called to freedom. But we are not to use it as a freedom for the flesh because that leads to slavery to the flesh. A few verses later St. Paul lists a few of the sins: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, etc. That sounds like the current state of affairs in our society today. We can see it almost daily if we want by just turning on the TV or going to a movie.

A recent survey shows that only 13 percent of Americans still believe in all ten of the commandments. Nine out of ten people lie regularly. For ten million dollars, 7 percent of the people say that they would kill a stranger. Those are some scary statistics because they show how people that depend on themselves and not on Jesus can be a slave to the flesh.

Freedom is a responsibility. Freedom is rooted in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. There is no real freedom in this world if all we have to look forward to is the grave. Why even speak of freedom at all if we are held eternally captive by sin and death? To have any real freedom, we are going to have to escape the bondage of our own mortality.

Some of you may have heard of Mike Singletary. He was a linebacker for the Chicago Bears when they won the Super Bowl in 1986. He was intense and players said that they could see it in his eyes. But, soon after winning the Super Bowl, he became afraid of the dark. He slept with the light on. Fear, in fact, overwhelmed his life. He thought he was going to die. He had some things in his life that he needed to deal with. Even though he was a devout Christian, there were still some areas of his life he needed to turn over to Jesus – only then would he know true freedom.

That is true of us as well. If we are not free toward God, no matter who we are and what we have accomplished, we are not free at all. Freedom is knowing that no power on earth can destroy us. Freedom is looking into a mirror and seeing a person of integrity. Freedom is making decisions that reflect our lives as a Christian. Freedom has no regrets. Freedom is knowing that our sins are forgiven.

The next time that you go to confession, listen closely to the words of absolution given by the priest:

God the father of mercies, through the death and resurrection of his son, has reconciled the world to himself and sent the Holy Spirit among us for the forgiveness of sins. Through the ministry of the Church, may God give you pardon and peace, and I absolve you of your sins, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Now that is true freedom. I most especially look forward to receiving pardon and peace from God for my offenses against him. Sometimes we have trouble moving forward even after receiving absolution. But that is what Jesus is saying today in the gospel. He tells us to follow him. Once he has forgiven our sins – leave them behind – follow Jesus. He has left our sins behind and wants us to follow him.

Jesus said, “No one who sets a hand to the plow and looks to what was left behind is fit for the kingdom of God.” Leaving our sins behind after we have confessed them gives us freedom.

St. Paul lists some characteristics of that true freedom: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Even if we are able to only embrace one of those characteristics after the Sacrament of Reconciliation, we are that much closer to Jesus.

We are about to celebrate the Eucharist. Partaking of the body and blood of Christ is a true freedom for those Catholics that believe in the Real Presence of Jesus.