John 1: 35-42
The Word: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/011424.cfm
Out here in the mission country of the Pacific northwest we are familiar with two early American explorers, Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. They were commissioned by President Thomas Jefferson in 1803 to begin an exploration of the enormous newly purchased western half of what became a much vaster United States. These courageous explorers, along with the team who accompanied them, were branded the “Corps of Discovery.”
Along their laborious trek from St. Louis to the Pacific Ocean, they met a young female native American guide, Sacagawea, who became an indispensable navigator to open the way to an unprecedented new beginning for the American nation. It was an amazing accomplishment, somewhat equal in value to the exploration of the moon. They were searching, literally walking, rafting, and horse riding into unknown and perilous territory hoping to find a new route to the Pacific Ocean.
Our first reading this Sunday from the Book of Samuel in this now ordinary time of the liturgical year finds the Lord calling the young Samuel by name as he sleeps in the temple of the Lord. Samuel hears the call but does not recognize that it is the Lord who calls him. In a near humorous scenario in which Samuel wakes up and goes back to sleep, directed by the priest Eli, who had been his mentor in the Temple. Samuel finally comes to identify the voice of God within him as the voice he hears and responds: “Speak, for your servant is listening.” The Lord finally got Samuel’s attention.
As the Book of Samuel states: At that time Samuel was not familiar with the Lord, because the Lord had not revealed anything to him as yet. It seems that rather than Samuel seeking the Lord, it was the Lord who was seeking him. It was the Lord who was on a mission of discovery to find the heart of Samuel and like our northwest explorers; Samuel was called to set out to discover the will of God. His whole life turned to a new way.
In our Gospel passage from John, Andrew and another disciple of John the Baptist are redirected by him to go in search of Jesus who he points out as the “Lamb of God.” To Jewish ears the title Lamb of God would have resonated with images of the Passover, their deliverance from Egypt and their longing for a savior with Messianic overtones. These two disciples of John now eagerly follow John’s advice and seek out Jesus.
All of this sense of search and discovery is confirmed in Jesus’ statement as he notices John disciples now following him: “What are you looking for?” We might more exactly understand the words of Jesus saying: “What are you seeking?” They discover that is is not a “what” they are searching for but a “who.” John invites us to see these words, the first spoken by Jesus in the Gospel of John, as a call to all of us as we discover that, like
Samuel,
the Lord is seeking us. In many ways in our daily life the Lord makes himself
known and asks, “What are you looking for?”
Our pursuit of pleasure, love, satisfaction, meaning and purpose often can lead is in the wrong direction. Once we find that satisfaction, is does not least so we seek more and more of it. Today, social media is an excellent example at time of false friendship. We strive to overcome loneliness and may think that this way of modern connection, while some good is certainly possible, there is also a dark side, an empty side to it all.
All of this searching to discover the right path is truly a search for the One who can satisfy all these human needs in us. To search for love and community is bottom line a search for an encounter with the One who brought us in to life. Andrew was so impressed that it was less than a day before he went in search of his brother Simon to bring him to meet this Jesus. While that was only the beginning of a new direction, the ultimate discovery was a life constantly fulfilled by their relationship with Christ. So, we see the gathering by Jesus of his early disciples who later became the pillars of his Church in the apostolic order.
So too with us. To set out for a deeper discovery of the Lord is to set out in search of the whole meaning and purpose of our lives. What are we seeking? More stuff, fame, wealth, a nice home, a great marriage, a secure job, good heath? While all that does have its place in our lives it does not ultimately fulfill our greatest desire for God. When we go from new and shiny to dull and routine, we seek more that provides the same level of discontent in the end. We are called to holiness, to discipleship, to understanding and faith; to hope and trust in the Lord.
If I am marked through baptism with the sign of Christ + ideally for all of us it would be to follow Christ and to see him as Lord of my life. If he is truly Lord, then everything we have pours from his generosity.
Let us bring Christ to the world in a way that will not be apologetic or half-baked. The great evangelist Bishop Robert Barron is clear on this point. We have been incorporated, folded in to and grafted on the vine of life in Christ. Hear him calling to you in the many ways he speaks through the Church in Scriptures and Sacrament, in prayer, in the experiences of daily living, in the call to selfless service to those in need, then “Go announce the Gospel of the Lord.”
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Almighty ever-living God,
who govern all things,
both in heaven and on earth,
mercifully hear the pleading of your people
and bestow your peace on our times.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
(Collect of Mass)
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