Reflection for January 23 Friday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time: Mark 3:13-19

Gospel: Mark 3:13-19

Jesus went up the mountain and summoned those whom he wanted and they came to him. 

He appointed Twelve, whom he also named Apostles that they might be with him and he might send them forth to preach and to have authority to drive out demons: He appointed the Twelve: Simon, whom he named Peter; James, son of Zebedee,and John the brother of James, whom he named Boanerges, that is, sons of thunder; Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus; Thaddeus, Simon the Cananean, and Judas Iscariot who betrayed him.

+ + + + + + +

Reflection:

What is the relevance of the selection of the twelve apostles to us?

It reminds us that we, too, have a mission to take part in the propagation of the faith. And yet, many of us may quietly say in our hearts, “We know nothing about the faith; therefore, we can do nothing.” We often feel unworthy, unprepared, or simply incapable.

But when we look at the twelve whom Jesus chose, we realize that they, too, knew very little at the beginning. Many of them were ordinary men, and they were sinners just like us. Still, Jesus looked at them with love and called them to follow Him. This tells us that saying “we know nothing” is not an excuse, because we will learn if we only try to open our hearts and desire to know more about our faith.

Jesus will never fail us. He does not call us and then abandon us. He equips us. From knowing nothing, we begin to know something—and this “something” that Jesus gives us grows little by little as long as we continue to respond to His call with trust and perseverance. What begins as something small, He slowly transforms into something meaningful and life-giving.

So let us not be afraid to respond. Let us not be afraid to dive into the deep waters of our faith, for Jesus Himself is with us in the boat. Let us begin our mission in our family, our own domestic church. Let us gently and patiently evangelize them about Jesus and about our Roman Catholic faith through our healing words, our humble actions, and our daily witness of love.

And now, as we reflect on this calling, let us ask ourselves with sincerity: If Jesus is calling us today—not because we are ready, but because He is faithful—will we finally trust Him enough to rise, follow Him, and begin our mission? —Marino J. Dasmarinas