June 11, 2014 Wednesday Barnabas, Apostle 1st Reading: Acts 11:21b–26; 13:1–3 Gospel: Matthew 10:7-13
Jesus said to his disciples, “Go and proclaim this message: The kingdom of heaven is near. Heal the sick, bring the dead back to life, cleanse the lepers, and drive out demons. You received this as a gift, so give it as a gift. Do not carry any gold, silver or copper in your purses. Do not carry a traveler’s bag, or an extra shirt, or sandals, or walking stick: workers deserve their living. “When you come to a town or a village, look for a worthy person and stay there until you leave.
“As you enter the house, wish it peace. If the people in the house deserve it, your peace will be on them; if they do not deserve it, your blessing will come back to you.”
D@iGITAL-EXPERIENCE (Daily Gospel in the Assimilated Life Experience)
A patient who was advised to limit pork intake because of his heart condition asked his doctor if he was better off with his favorite dried fish. The doctor said he was actually safer with pork. “But I thought pork is the leading cause of high blood pressure”, the patient argued. Jokingly the doctor replied: “Those who come home tired from work and find nothing but salted fish for dinner are more likely to experience high blood pressure than those who come home and find lechon on their plates”.
We need to eat well in order to live. So do God’s missionaries, for they are not exempt from basic human needs. In sending his disciples to the mission Jesus took notice of this fact and instructed them to stay in the house of a worthy person in the mission area and eat what he offers, “For a worker deserves his keep”.
Jesus did not see any need for his missionaries to bring provisions for the journey. While it is the duty of missionaries to feed the people spiritually, it is also the duty of the people to support them materially. “The worker is worth his keep,” Jesus said. Ultimately, by feeding our missionaries well, we help ourselves in the long run because our material support will empower them physically to perform better in our midst. If we feed them well they stay healthy enough to persevere. If we feed them with nothing but dried fish fry, their blood pressure shoots up and they turn irritable in their transactions with us.
The mission is as much our concern is it is the concern of the missionaries. It is therefore our sworn Christian duty to support our missionaries. We are even called to become missionaries ourselves in our own little way. The most basic, however is to do this basic act called charity. If one cannot perform the basic, we doubt what he is capable of doing to help build God’s kingdom in our midst. – Rev. Fr. Dan Domingo P. delos Angeles, Jr., DM. Email: dan.delosangeles@gmail.com. Website: www.frdan.org.
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