In today’s gospel, Jesus returns to his hometown and lays out his mission statement. He clearly identifies his goals and values.
Most of us are familiar with Mission Statements, a brief description of the purpose and function of an organization. The statement explains its intentions, priorities, values and goals. I was told by our Parish Council that our church mission statement needs to be current, concise and accurately explain why we exist. Hopefully, our statement does that. If you feel differently, go talk to the Parish Council members.
The question for us today is, what is the Jesus’ mission?
There can be no mistake about His priorities and goals. Today’s gospel clearly defines Jesus’ purpose and mission.
… to bring glad tidings to the poor …
Jesus promised to bring glad tidings to the poor. Do not mistake this for just the materially poor. Jesus promised to also deal with the spiritually poor.
… to proclaim liberty to captives …
Jesus promised to proclaim freedom to captives – people caught or trapped in the addictions of hatred, prejudice, drugs, sex or gambling. But also materialism or over consumerism.
… and recovery of sight to the blind …
Jesus promised to give sight to the blind - to educate people so they could see that we are truly brother and sisters to one another, despite different cultures, languages or social and economic statuses.
… to let the oppressed go free …
Jesus speaks up for the oppressed – the undocumented, the immigrants, the elderly, the unborn.
The shoemaker had a dream that he would see Jesus the next day. He woke up excited and anxiously waited to see Jesus all day. But in the morning, only an elderly man with shoes so worn that his feet were exposed and bruised feet came into the shop. His shoes were beyond repair, so the shoemaker gave him a new pair of shoes. In the afternoon, a woman who was known for sitting in the park and drinking all day from a bottle hidden in a paper bag came in asking for food. The shoemaker gave her his lunch. As evening approached, a blind child came in crying because she was lost. The shoemaker asked her where she lived, he was surprised to find out it was across town. He called her parents to let them know their daughter was safe and that he would be driving her home.
Returning to his shop that night, he was startled to hear the door of the shop open again. A refugee family of immigrants walked in the door asking for work or at least a place to stay. The shoemaker said he did not have either, but he called his friend who owned the local motel and arranged for the family to stay for a few nights.
Exhausted, the shoemaker called it a day. He was certain that he had missed Jesus.
Then he heard a voice, “I kept my word. Four times I came to your door. I was the elderly man with bruised feet. I was the alcoholic woman who needed food. I was the lost and blind child you drove across town to her home. I was the immigrant family for which you arranged a place to stay.”
St. Teresa of Avila, the 16th-century Spanish mystic, is credited with this prayer:
Christ has no body but yours,
No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which He looks with
Compassion on this world,
Yours are the feet with which He walks to do good,
Yours are the hands, with which He blesses all the world.
Yours are the hands, yours are the feet,
Yours are the eyes, you are His body.
Christ has no body now but yours,
No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which he looks
compassion on this world.
Christ has no body now on earth but yours.
— St. Teresa of Ávila (attributed)
There is a reluctance to take today’s gospel and the mission statement of Jesus Christ seriously. We have the uncanny ability to block out those portions of scripture that challenge our prejudices, those chapters and verses that are difficult and just “too hard.” Instead, we tend to follow the parts of scripture that “come naturally” and are advantageous to us.
Today’s gospel questions how we live our faith. How can we live our faith better than by working for social justice?
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