We have to get over the idea that when Jesus says, “Ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers for His harvest,” He is suggesting that we should pray that someone else will go. That sort of thinking is a bit typical of our age, isn’t it? How often is it that we see something wrong and think that someone else should do something about it – when, in fact, little is going to happen unless we get active and engaged?
“Go on your way,” says Jesus – at this moment and in this place. We don’t need anything to be a disciple of Jesus on the mission other than the belief that God wants us to go, not someone else. Yet, we so often think we lack something essential or we’re not good enough, smart enough, or strong enough to take up the mission entrusted to all of the Baptized. To that thinking, Jesus says: “You don’t need anything, but to pray … and then go!” Yet, some people still think that we need a degree or some special training to be part of the disciple’s mission. Some people think that we have to know how to teach and what to teach. Some people still think that we have to have a well-formed argument or some intellectual persuasion or “magic” words. That is not what Jesus did. He listened, He touched, He healed, He fed, He forgave, and He served. He went to people’s homes, He walked with them on the journey, He never avoided those whom others chose to avoid or ignore.
What is revealed to us at the Mass this weekend (thanks to Luke 10) is something too often forgotten: the effectiveness of the simple yet powerful “ministry of presence.” It is the truth that joyful, kind, merciful, and forgiving people who do not criticize or judge are really nice to be around, which is exactly the way Jesus carried on the mission He was given by the Father. He demonstrated and continues to demonstrate an “attractive” way of living; others are drawn to people who live like He lived. Jesus did not call great scholars, brilliant scribes, or holy Pharisees to be among His first disciples. He called unskilled, simple, working people who sought to follow His path. He invited them to “hang around Him” for a while, to watch and listen. Then he said: “Go.” It’s that simple: “Go! Now!”
