And another said, "I will follow you, Lord,
but first let me say farewell to my family at home."
Jesus answered him, "No one who sets a hand to the plow
and looks to what was left behind is fit for the Kingdom of God."
Today's gospel describes two men among the crowds who took enough interest in the phenomenon of Jesus to come out and hear him. The first volunteered to follow him, and Jesus invited the second. But the Lord rejected the volunteer; and when the second hesitated, the Lord withdrew his invitation.
Whether one's vocation is to priesthood, religious life, marriage, or consecrated celibacy, the initiative is the Lord's. We do not call ourselves to him. Nor do we decide to follow him without his personal invitation.
In the United States millions of Catholic children have been educated in our elementary and secondary schools in the hope that each one would hear the Lord's personal invitation and follow him. It was surely given to each one as they approached adulthood. The call may have entailed any of thousands of different ways to live one's life, from priesthood to marriage or consecrated celibacy. But many young people never heard it. Some never expected his call; others could not hear him amid the cacophony of other voices; many ignored him.
When Jesus finished his parable about those invited to a wedding banquet, he sadly remarked, "Many are invited, but few are chosen.” (Matthew 22: 14) Anyone who attends the Church for more than a little while understands his sadness. They might add to his remark, "I've seen 'em come; and I've seen 'em go."
Why some people refuse and others accept the invitation will always remain a great mystery, beyond the reach of sociologists, demographers and pollsters. It has to do with the human will, which is just as mercurial as politics and the economy. (Both are studied by experts who call their work science; they deal in statistics rather than facts.)
Those considered most likely to become happy, eager disciples of the Lord are sometimes the first to disappear; while others who look to all the world like losers, turn eagerly to him.
Nor can anyone's vows of marriage, priesthood, or religious life guarantee their perseverance. Their vows are given in response to God's initiative, but they are only indications of intent. They must be proven daily and many times a day; and everyone who has made these promises knows of their failure to keep them on innumerable occasions.
Yesterday we heard Saint Luke say, "When the days for his being taken up were fulfilled, he resolutely determined to journey to Jerusalem." Just before that, in the same chapter, he declared, "Unless you take up your cross daily, and follow in my footsteps, you cannot be my disciple." (Luke 9:23)
To know Jesus is to follow him resolutely to Jerusalem; and those who follow him for more than a few days understand the challenge. Nothing happens easily or automatically in human life. We must make it work daily and many times a day. And take nothing for granted, neither ourselves, nor our commitments, nor the Lord.
"Life passes so quickly that really it must be better to have a very beautiful crown and a little trouble than to have an ordinary one without any trouble. And then for a suffering borne with joy, when I think that during the whole of eternity I will love God better."
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I love to write. This blog helps me to meditate on the Word of God, and I hope to make some contribution to our contemplations of God's Mighty Works.
Ordinarily, I write these reflections two or three weeks in advance of their publication. I do not intend to comment on current events.
I understand many people prefer gender-neutral references to "God." I don't disagree with them but find that language impersonal, unappealing and tasteless. When I refer to "God" I think of the One whom Jesus called "Abba" and "Father", and I would not attempt to improve on Jesus' language.
You're welcome to add a thought or raise a question.