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Alumni Newsletter: Fall 2010

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My Brothers and Sisters,

 Christians often use the words disciple and apostle interchangeably. However, they really do not mean the same thing. A disciple is a follower or a student. The word apostle means one who is sent.  As we enter into Ordinary Time, it seems appropriate that our readings today are about discipleship.

 In today’s reading from First Samuel, God calls the young boy Samuel. Three times Samuel mistook God’s voice for the voice of Eli the priest. Eli finally told Samuel that if the voice came again, Samuel should respond, “‘Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening,’” which Samuel did. 

 We all know that children need to be nurtured.  For example, we know that children who are not well nourished will never reach their physical potential.  Likewise, we know that children who are not well educated will never reach their intellectual potential. We also know that children who are not loved and cherished will never reach their relational potential.

 When we baptize infants and small children, we also need to know that unless their faith, love, and hope are nurtured, they will never reach their spiritual potential.  They will never reach spiritual maturity.  They will never grow into the likeness of the Risen Christ. They will never be able to say with St. Paul, “.. it is no longer I who live, but ... Christ who lives in me” [Galatians 2:20].

 We nurture their faith by teaching them to listen to God speaking to them.  We teach them that God speaks to them through the words and example of others, especially their parents and teachers.  We teach them that God speaks to them in the beauty of creation.  We teach them that God speaks to them through their experiences.  We teach them that God speaks to them through his Word in the Bible, through the sacraments and through the Church.  Finally, we teach them that God speaks to them in the depths of their hearts, especially in prayer.

 Before someone can be an apostle, i.e., before someone can be sent to share the Good News, he or she must first be a disciple.  However, even as we get older, we cannot stop being disciples.  When John the Baptist pointed out Jesus to two of his disciples, they immediately started following Jesus.  When he asked them what they were looking for, they asked him where he was staying.  Jesus answered, “‘Come, and you will see.’” In other words, they wanted to see Jesus up close and personal.  They wanted to see how Jesus lived.  If we want to know Christ, we have to develop an intimate relationship with him. We can only have an intimate relationship with Jesus through intimate conversation with Him, both speaking and listening.

 Finally, today’s reading from Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians reminds us of the sacredness of our bodies. According to Paul, our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit and will be raised on the last day.  Unfortunately, we can abuse and sin against our bodies in so many ways: alcohol, drugs, smoking, sex, overeating, under-eating, inactivity, overwork, and reckless behavior.  As St. Paul wrote, our bodies are for the Lord and are members of Christ. Therefore, part of Christian discipleship is nurturing and caring for our bodies.

 My brothers and sisters, all of us by our baptism and especially by our confirmation are called to be both disciples and apostles.  To answer God’s call, we have to learn to listen to God’s voice in all the many ways it comes to us, we have to develop an intimate relationship with Jesus through prayer, and we have to respect and cherish our bodies as temples of the Holy Spirit.