Second Sunday of Ordinary Time
Today’s Scriptures tell us how Jesus was recognized by John. We can have the same epiphany of Jesus when we hear his invitation and answer his call. Let us pray to be open to the new directions toward which God calls us.
- To the point: How quickly Andrew transferred his allegiance from being a disciple of John to being a disciple of Jesus! The instant John pointed Jesus out as the “Lamb of God,” Andrew followed Jesus. This encounter with Jesus was so powerful that Andrew immediately went to find his brother Peter, announced he had found the Messiah, and brought Peter to Jesus. Encounter elicits allegiance and allegiance generates action.
- Connecting the Gospel (John 1: 35-42) to the first reading: Sometimes the call and who is calling is not clear as in the first reading. At other times the call and who is calling is quite clear as in the gospel. Either way, when we respond, our life is changed.
- Connecting the Gospel to experience: Though we prize independence, the gospel places higher value on our relationship with Christ as teacher and Savior in the midst of a community of fellow disciples.
Reflection
Young Samuel slept in the temple, near the ark. He was awakened by the voice of God that he did not recognize. A temple elder instructed him to respond:” Speak Lord, your servant is listening” Samuel listened to God as he grew and became a great prophet. By calling his name, God touched the inner fibers of Samuel’s essence. Jesus did thus when he asked two men what they were seeking. He invited them to “come and see.” They spent the day with Jesus and told Simon that they had found “the Messiah”. Jesus also touched Simon’s inner fibers, calling him by a new name — Cephas (Peter — “rock”). In this renaming, Jesus touched Peter’s inner stability and redirected his life. God continually invites us to know our deeper, truer and more stable identity.
Centering prayers
The Gospel
(John 1: 35-42)
So, they went and saw where Jesus was staying, and they stayed with him that day.
Jesus asked, “What are you looking for?”
Uh, something. They weren’t sure what.
So they answered with a question:
“Where are you staying?”
“Come and see.”
They came and stayed with him in his ordinary place.
And they found what they had been seeking.
Christ, take us too to your space.
We want to spend our time with you.
Let us find your radiance, right here, right now,
always, in our everyday lives.
The First Reading
(1 Samuel 3: 3b-10, 19)
The Lord called Samuel again.
The Lord called Samuel. And he thought the voice was Eli’s.
It was the Lord. When you call us out of sleep, or pandemic,
or in the midst of our turmoil, let us know you well
and help us to reply, “Here I am, Lord!”
The Second Reading
(1 Corinthians 6: 13c-15a, 17-20)
Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you?
Christ was not leaving us; he made a home within our hearts.
O Holy Spirit, thank you. Please allow us to see the light
that you shine upon us in others.
Copyright © 2021, Anne M. Osdieck
For reflection