Hosea
11:1-4, 8-9 / Matthew 10:7-15
Joseph Stalin’s daughter, Svetlana Alliluyeva, wrote a
book called Twenty Letters
to a Friend. A letter from her father contains this excerpt: “You
don’t write to your little pap. I think you’ve forgotten him. ....Never mind, I
kiss you. I am waiting to hear from you.”
Any parent who can relate to that excerpt can relate
to today’s Scripture reading. It is one of the high points of Old Testament
revelation about God. God is portrayed as a loving father. It was he who took
Israel into his arms. It was he who lifted Israel to his cheeks. It was he who
taught Israel to walk. But the more he loved Israel, the more Israel turned
aside and rejected him.
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How do we respond to those who love us, especially our
own fathers and mothers? “Father! - to God himself, we cannot give a holier name.” William
Wordsworth
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Any parent whose son or daughter is
overseas studying or working, would look forward or even long to hear from
their children. With the change in ways of communication, even parents would
learn how to use email or skype or Facebook or whatever just to keep in contact
with their children. But just as the parents would find ways and means to keep
in contact, the children would be the ones who are not that keen or interested,
even though they are more versatile with modern-day communication means.
The sentiments that parents have
for their children are expressed tenderly in the 1st reading. What is more
profound is that it was God who was speaking through the prophet Hosea. And the
1st reading contains the intimate revelations of God in the Old Testament. God
is portrayed as a loving father. It was He who took Israel into His arms and
lifted Israel into His embrace and taught Israel to walk.
But the more God loved Israel, the more Israel turned away
and rejected God. This ungratefulness and unfaithfulness would certainly
provoke divine wrath, besides of course, human censure.
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SENT IN POVERTY
Introduction
In poignant terms,
Hosea describes how much God loves his child Israel. Even when he has to
reprimand his people, God will be merciful, for he still loves his people,
however wayward. He is God, not a mere human being. Jesus sends his twelve apostles to announce
the kingdom of heaven. They have to be detached from possessions, even from
people. They are to be poor also in the sense that they must accept the
insecurity of not being received well. Perhaps we could retain these words of
Jesus today: you received without charge, give without charge: your love, your
service, your commitment.
Opening Prayer
Lord our God, you
send us all on the mission of making
your kingdom known by the way we live
the gospel of Jesus Christ, your Son. Give us a sense of mission, we pray to you and do not let the cares of the day or the weight of possessions keep us from bearing witness that you are our God and that Jesus is the Lord who lives with you and the Holy Spirit forever.
Commentary
In speaking of God’s love for Israel, Hosea passes from the
image of husband and wife to that of a parent and child. It was God who taught
the child how to walk, held him in his arms, and hugged him. He brought his
child out of Egyptian bondage. And yet
with all the care showered upon the child, he only wanders farther from his
parent, ultimately burning incense to pagan gods. And still God’s constant love
emerges, the unwillingness to abandon his child. Israel will not be destroyed.
This song is a great testimony to God’s fidelity. The good news of Jesus was to be carried with
haste by those who received it. The apostles are not to be impeded—by money,
clothing, or personal belongings. The message they bear is one of peace and
joy. To reject it is to reject the kingdom; to accept it is to find the key to
life. Lord, give us hope in
discouragement. Be always the light of our lives. We have failed many times,
but we are grateful that you have never given up on us.
Points to Ponder
God’s fidelity
The imperative of preaching the good news
Hope in discouragement
Intercessions
– That pastors and lay people in the Church may untiringly
announce the good news as the source of happiness and peace for all, we pray:
– That we may find peace within ourselves, learn to accept
ourselves, and set aside pride and hunger for power to seek genuine and lasting
peace, we pray:
– That missionaries everywhere may make the Gospel credible
by their evangelical lifestyle, we pray:
Prayer over the Gifts
Lord our God, Jesus, your Son comes among us in the poverty of a piece of bread and a few drops of wine. As he gives himself to us free of charge, may we too learn to share free of charge what we have and are. Let this be our offering to you through Christ our Lord.
Prayer after
Communion
Our generous God, this has been a Eucharist, a real thanksgiving to your merciful love. Out of gratitude, may we do the work your Son gave to his
disciples: to fight the forces of evil
in and around us, to heal and to care and thus to proclaim in our deeds and lives that you are a loving God and that your Son Jesus Christ is our saving Lord for ever.
Blessing
We have received without charge all God’s forgiveness and
life. Let also give them without charge and generously pass them on to one
another, with the blessing of almighty God, the Father, and the Son, and the
Holy Spirit.
