Called to compassion

The harvest is still abundant and we are called to continue to gather people together by healing, forgiving and loving.

Word of Faith is a weekly break down of this week's scripture readings. Dive deeper into what the Gospel message at Mass will be.

Our readings for Sunday call us to a deeper relationship with the Holy One and to a deep compassion for all God’s people. The reading from Exodus is a covenant renewal. The Lord (used to avoid the personal name, YHWH, the name too sacred to pronounce) calls Moses to the top of the mountain for a special message. Moses is commissioned to remind the people of all that the Lord has done for them in bringing them out of slavery in Egypt and sojourning with them in the desert. The people are called to listen to God and keep the covenant, the commandments. God will continue to hold the people aloft, as an eagle does when teaching fledglings. The people will be God’s “special possession,” which means that they have a unique task to carry out. They will be a kingdom of priests: their call is to make God’s presence known to the whole world. 

Psalm 100 echoes these themes. The call is to sing, to serve, to come, and to know the Lord. These are imperatives for a people who relish and celebrate their covenant, their relationship with God! The Lord shows forth great compassion, which flows from God’s abundant goodness and kindness. God tends the people like a caring shepherd. The people can count on God’s loving kindness because God has shown faithfulness throughout the generations.

This goodness and kindness flows in the Gospel. Compassion and loving kindness are hallmarks of Jesus’ ministry. Jesus sees the crowds and is moved with pity; this word in Greek describes intense emotion, one that ferments in the deepest part of a person. This is not the feeling of just being sorry for them; it is a love that moves one to action on behalf of the other. He saw the crowds, troubled and abandoned, with the eyes of a shepherd who must protect and feed the sheep. Although it is not mentioned in this reading, we know that Jesus indeed fed the people with bread and fish (Mt.14:13ff). 

But Jesus was also seeing the deeper needs of the people — their spiritual hunger for God. He sees the urgency of the harvest, of gathering the people into the compassionate Reign of God. There is urgency here because when crops are ready, they must be harvested or they are lost. Likewise, people need to hear and know the good news of God’s love — it cannot wait. So, Jesus calls others to help him in this great task. 

This call is answered by the 12 apostles. Jesus gives them authority and power to heal, raise the dead, clean lepers and drive out demons. They are to act as good shepherds among the people. These actions make real the loving kindness of God’s reign. The apostles must proclaim the message of God’s compassion and must do the deeds which show it forth. They are to do this freely and generously, as God does — without cost. 

This is our call as well. We are in a covenant relationship with God through our baptism. Jesus has called and anointed us in confirmation. He feeds us in the Word and the Eucharist so that we can go out into the world and be his compassion for others and indeed for all creation! The harvest is still abundant and we are called to continue to gather people together by healing, forgiving and loving. Will you continue to answer the call?