Third Sunday in Ordinary Time

 Lectionary: 67

In all the Dioceses of the United States of America, January 22 (or January 23, when January 22 falls on a Sunday) shall be observed as a particular day of prayer for the full restoration of the legal guarantee of the right to life and of penance for violations to the dignity of the human person committed through acts of abortion. 

This Sunday also falls within the International Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. 

Anguish has taken wing, dispelled is darkness: for there is no gloom where but now there was distress. The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom a light has shone.

Nuclear winter is a severe and prolonged global climatic cooling effect that is hypothesized^[1][2] to occur after widespread firestorms following a large-scale nuclear war. Wikipedia

Spiritually, we have been suffering a nuclear winter for a very long time. It covers the earth and billions walk in darkness. In my experience much of the gloom is caused by divorce. It's consequences are manifold: depression, abortion, addictions, alcoholism, sexual adventuring, STDs, gay marriage, gender confusion, suicide. To name a few. And then there are the desperate efforts to normalize these aberrations. They're sanctioned under the auspices of inclusiveness and freedom. 

Some may see other root causes for the distress: racism, consumerism, violence, or the culture of death. In any case, this spiritual "nuclear winter" has gone on so long that many people suppose that darkness is normal. Some hope for a premature end with a true nuclear winter, a man-made end of the world. They don't remember ordinary joys and sorrows; they don't recall a Garden of Eden; and when life happens in the way of birth or death, defeat or success, they lose their bearings completely. 

In today's gospel Saint Matthew presents Jesus as a dawning light to dispel the darkness. He is the star of Bethlehem shining across the land as he calls disciples to follow him. They will be daylight spreading from east to west. In their light -- that is, their courtesy, confidence, courage, generosity and joy -- the world will see the Kingdom of Heaven. 

Because they fear the Lord and no one else, they will say yes when they mean yes and no when they mean no. Their marriages will be lifelong for they will regard their own words as seriously as they regard the Word of God. Their modesty will not exaggerate their presence but it will be seen, heard, and felt. The nuclear gloom will lift ever so slightly wherever they go. 

Each year on this Third Sunday of Ordinary Time, in response to the gospel stories about the call of Jesus's first disciples, the Church prays especially for vocations. We ask God to inspire young people to seek ordination to the priesthood or diaconate, or to monasteries, convents, and friaries. More importantly, we ask God to guide young people toward the Vocation of Matrimony because devout families stabilize a teetering society. 

The entire Church -- and especially married couples -- "must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father."